1 / 26

Complexity and cooperation in – and between organisations

Complexity and cooperation in – and between organisations. What is a c omplex organisation ?. Any organisation where single actors ( individuals , groups etc.) cannot have a full understanding of what the system does .

adin
Download Presentation

Complexity and cooperation in – and between organisations

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Complexity and cooperation in – and betweenorganisations

  2. What is a complexorganisation? • Anyorganisationwhere single actors (individuals, groups etc.) cannot have a full understandingofwhatthe system does. • In complexorganisations, there is no ‘birdseyeview’ – no total overview. • Thus, all workwill be locally adaptive work– «localrationality». • E.g. all peopleareguided by localcircumstances

  3. Cooperation withinorganisations • Commonassumption: Work is done by divisionoflabour • E.g. different functions -> different jobs • But… in complexorganisations.. • Workperformed by one function is oftencoupled - E.g. it affectswork done in other parts oftheorgansation

  4. Cooperation withinorganisations (1): Leader decisions S2 Ship B Ship A Ship C Ship D Ship E

  5. Cooperation withinorganisations (1): Leader decisions ‘Green shipping’ S2 Ship B Ship A Ship C Ship D Ship E

  6. Cooperation withinorganisations (1): Leader decisions ‘Green shipping’ Indirectconsequence S2 Ship B Ship A Ship C Ship D Ship E

  7. Cooperation withinorganisations (1): Leader decisions ‘Green shipping’ Indirectconsequence S2 Changes jobs & goal setting Ship B Ship A Ship C Ship D Ship E

  8. Cooperation withinorganisations (1): Leader decisions ‘Green shipping’ Indirectconsequence S2 Changes jobs & goal setting Ship B Ship A Ship C Ship D Ship E

  9. Cooperation withinorganisations (1): Leader decisions ‘Green shipping’ Indirectconsequence S2 Changes jobs & goal setting Ship B Ship A Ship C Ship D Ship E Alteredoutcomeofwork

  10. Cooperation withinorganisations (1): Leader decisions • Decisions & actions in complexorganisationscan(will) have unintendedconsequences • Due to thesheercomplexity and couplingbetweenworkprocesses • Universallycorrectdecisionscanonly be taken from a global ‘bird’seye-perspective’ - Whichunfortunately is impossible…

  11. Cooperation withinorganisations (2): Procedures and safety S2 Ship B Ship A Ship C Ship D Ship E

  12. Cooperation withinorganisations (2): Procedures and safety S2 Ship B Ship A Ship C Ship D SOPs Ship E

  13. Cooperation withinorganisations (2): Procedures and safety S2 Ship B Ship A Ship C Ship D Implement in ships SOPs Ship E

  14. Cooperation withinorganisations (2): Procedures and safety S2 SOP is designed by other part oforganisation -> withoutlocalknowledgeofcurrentpracticalchallenges Ship B Ship A Ship C Ship D Implement in ships SOPs Ship E

  15. Cooperation withinorganisations (2): Procedures and safety SOP might not fitworksituations -> alteredwork S2 SOP is designed by other part oforganisation -> withoutlocalknowledgeofcurrentpracticalchallenges Ship B Ship A Ship C Ship D Implement in ships SOPs Ship E

  16. Cooperation betweenorganisations: Case of shipping contracts • Cooperation betweenorganisations is (mainly) governed by: • Contractualagreements (e.g. shipping contracts) • Formal meetingsbetween land-basedpersonnel • Cooperation in thesharp end (aboardships and offshore installations)

  17. Cooperation betweenorganisations (1): shipping contracts as locally adaptive butgloballymaladaptive • Contractcomeoutof a processwherenegotiatorsattempt to maximizetheirown (organisation’s) gain. • Localoptimization –> but not global optimization • Often, shipping contracts is writtenwith a clausethatstipulatesthatthe cargo ownershallpay for all fuel oil during theshipment.

  18. Cooperation betweenorganisations (2): shipping contracts as locally adaptive butgloballymaladaptive • Thus, the shipping company have nothing to gain from reducingfuelconsumption - there is noincentives for fuelconsumptions. • Such a contract is globallymaladaptivewhen it is a goal to reduceemissionsto sea & air. • The contractcanalso have indirecteffects in the ‘sharp end’.

  19. Cooperation betweenorganisations: Case of shipping contracts S2 Ship A Ship B Offshore installations A B C Ship D Ship C Ship E

  20. Cooperation betweenorganisations: Case of shipping contracts Contracts S2 Ship A Ship B Offshore installations A B C Ship D Ship C Ship E

  21. Cooperation betweenorganisations: Case of shipping contracts Contracts Defines areas ofcooperation, day rates, responsibilities. S2 Ship A Ship B Offshore installations A B C Ship D Ship C Ship E

  22. Cooperation betweenorganisations: Case of shipping contracts Contracts Defines areas ofcooperation, day rates, responsibilities. S2 Ship A Ship B Offshore installations A B C Ship D Ship C Ship E

  23. Cooperation betweenorganisations: Case of shipping contracts Contracts Defines areas ofcooperation, day rates, responsibilities. S2 Ship A Ship B Offshore installations A B C Ship D Ship C Ship E

  24. Cooperation and complexity • 2 ex. Ofcooperationwithinorgs. • 1 ex ofcooperationbetweenorgs. • All had inherent challenges. • All ofthemhad a commonfeature • Complexity……

  25. Complexity • Most organisationstoday is complex, hence: • Single actorscannot be fully in commandoftheoutcomesoftheirwork. • The organisation’sperformanceenvelopecannot be determinedexactly.

  26. Complexity – the end…. • I.e. Complexorganisationsdoes not actaccording to theassumptionsofrationality in traditionaleconomictheory. • Thereis a need to identifyhowcomplexorganisationswork and fail. • Or most importantly, wemustreducecomplexity…….

More Related