ORGANIZATIONS AS COMMUNICATIVE PROCESSES
The Complexity and Management Center of the University of Hertfordshire understands organizations as complex processes of being in relation; as processes of referring to and communicating with each other. This rejects any notion of a system when we look at human behavior. It is the communicative interaction between the different people that forms the basis for the creation of experience, identity and transformation. It highlights the meaning of the informal as opposed to instructions and instruments and stresses the importance of present and genuine experiences.
This understanding of organizations as communicative processes builds the foundation for participative self-organization in which relations and interactions have the ability to form entirely new patterns. However, this implicates unpredictability of outcomes and it also means that newness cannot be defined by the past. When studying organizations this is a highly relevant statement. Because newness is unpredictable we cannot set the rules in advance.
This must therefore lead to a new understanding of leadership. Effective leaders tend to develop greater spontaneity and the ability to accept the views of their team members. On this basis they enter greater risks and strengthen the communication between groups.
Within ChallengeX we incorporate these results by creating as many options for qualitative reflections as possible with regard to the identified challenges. This happens with as many different participants as possible in structured and unstructured settings. The selection of groups in structured settings happens randomly. Further on it is crucial that the facilitators do not take a lead in working on the identified challenges. Their task is rather to support the participants in getting a multitude of perspectives. The judgment on options for action and the choice which actions are taken remain within the full responsibility of the participants.
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