Trust defined Trust might be considered the glue that binds people together. As such it enables humans to operate collaboratively, whether that be in respect of a community, a business or as a 3-legged pub crawl team. Our ability to collaborate at scale sets us apart from our bipedal cousins. We have demonstrated our ability to act collaboratively at a national, international and global scale. Incentives are another means of engendering collaboration. You might not trust your local grocer, but you hope that their desire to remain viable will ensure that they set a minimum standard in respect of produce quality. Incentives lack the foundations of trust. When trust is in place, each party will be more forgiving when expectations are not met. Conversely with incentives any deviation from expectations generates a red flag and escalation to Defcon One. Is he asleep? The industrial era factory model was built on incentives. The peasant would endure hours of drudgery and hardship to acquire the money to live in the city, feed the family and architect a rudimentary lifestyle. There was no need for organisational trust. In much the same way that there is no need for the components of a sausage machine to have a trusting relationship. But as workers moved from cogs in the machine to knowledge workers, the ability to manage their activities became more difficult. “Is Fred asleep or mentally working through a business-critical problem?” Management would feel more comfortable with Fred’s inactivity if it knew that he was ‘all in’ re the organisation’s vision and thus could be trusted to always act in a manner that progressed the mission. Sponsored micro-aggressions The reality is that in many organisation’s Fred doesn’t trust his employer. Even the slightest disagreements cause both Fred and HR to lunge for the employment contract. Whilst not every employee is a freelancer, more often than not the organisation is staffed with mercenaries. So the relationship has a brittle quality. Management wants Fred to spend more time in the office, with his eyes open. But they are not sure how he will react, and so they kick the can down the road. The distrust rachets tighter. Similarly teams and departments, more specifically their managers, distrust the other groups. They pursue their own political agenda, which is often at odds with what is best for the organisation. We can add to that the mist of micro-aggressions that has permanently settled on the organisation. The lack of trust, perhaps more specifically the lack of civility, leads to people communicating in inconsiderate ways. This can take the form of lazy assumptions in relation to race, gender, age or background. The offenders are oblivious and consequently leave comet trails of frustration and anger as they move through the day. Leaders who create an environment where juniors cannot share their perspectives and so feel obliged to stay silent clearly do not see trust as a corporate asset. Therefore psychological safety might be seen as leadership-sponsored micro-aggression. Imagine each cell in your body feeling too exhausted to do their job because they are ruminating over a recent disrespectful encounter, They decide to ‘quietly quit’, thus performing their duties to the absolute minimum standard. It would not be long before your body showed signs of irreversible damage. You started it As the forces bearing down on organisations compound and conflate, organisations that are internally at war are unlikely to sense and make sense of what is happening in their market. Decision quality is thus hampered, and the resultant execution is a combination of tardy and ineffective. Imagine a Delta Force unit deep behind enemy lines descending into open conflict mid-mission. Raised voices, arguments and infighting cut through the night, effectively acting like a giant flashing beacon hovering overhead with a downward arrow and the words: “Enemy infiltrators here.” Internal friction does not stay internal for long. It leaks outward as noise, hesitation and vulnerability. Eventually the market feels it. Running low on trust, puts your organisation at existential risk. Your organisation is probably only one more black swan away from extinction / acquisition. Reverse engineering trust The absence of trust presents as a systemic problem. However you cannot ‘buy trust in’ or ‘sheep dip’ the workforce, and the management, in a pan organisation, workplace civility programme. Fundamentally it is a structural problem. Given the complex nature of modern organisations, particularly those that adhere to industrial principles, it is very likely that the horse has bolted in terms of rectification. Any attempt by the leadership team to behave in a more enlightened manner will be seen as weakness by the workforce and they will capitalise on it. Big time. Tighter governance to the rescue You have very little choice but to ramp up the governance to the point where people have very little latitude other than to do what they are supposed to, including engaging with other parties up and down the value stream. This is the equivalent of making a deep commitment to centralised leadership, which in itself is the wrong move in terms of organisational adaptiveness - a critical characteristic in disruptive times. However it may well keep your organisation in the game for a little longer. Another more radical approach is to grow parallel sources of income by developing new business models. Cultivating a culture of trust is critical from the outset, given how complex systems are shaped by their initial conditions. You know this only too well if you preside over a culturally dysfunctional organisation. In conclusion You can make good progress in the absence of trust if you get the incentives right. But I feel that this is not enough given how macroenvironmental forces are creating a very uncertain and volatile world. It is already well established that organisations predicated on industrial era principles are highly mechanical and thus unsuited for a rapidly changing world. Those organisations that are similarly predicated but recognise the value people can deliver will eventually recognise to their dismay that a lack of trust is even more corrosive than sclerotic mechanical processes. CEOs should not be surprised when their leadership offsites, employee wellness programmes and heavy investment in AI only serve to accelerate the organisational tailspin. This article first appeared on Substack.

Money's no object The notion of a war for talent has been around for at least a quarter of a century. As business jargon goes it has stood the test of time. The militaristic language adds drama. Blood may be spilt. One imagines Google and Microsoft in a tug of war competition with the talented AI specialist performing the role of a low tensile rope. Scarcity fuelled the war for talent. There are not enough skilled management consultants, Java programmers or derivatives traders, so we have no choice but to pander to their remuneration demands. In essence the war for talent was a problem that could be fixed with cash. Yesterday's problem? But the world has changed and continues to change. Some leaders are pinning their hopes on AI eventually obviating the need for people. Like generalised AI, this is a fantasy and will be for some time. So people have a value-creating role to play in most organisations, particularly in respect of innovation. As a reader of this newsletter, you will know that innovation is the mechanism by which organisations adapt to an increasingly unknowable world. And as you may have observed most organisations are not organised to distil the creativity of their people in pursuit of innovation. That is an existential table stakes problem. Similarly the war for talent has changed. Throwing money at the problem will not cut it. Talented people are less willing to do meaningless work even if they are rewarded very generously for what is in effect trading their lifeforce units for money. Not so easily fooled Key drivers of this change include: Demographic shifts – An aging workforce is more likely to value meaningful work than well paid meaningless work that connotes status and spending power. Hybrid work expectations – Some people have decided they like their family more than their employer and are not interested in organisations that would prefer the opposite. Global fluidity – Your organisation is no longer the only game in town. Remote work has opened the stage to a global beauty pageant of opportunities for top talent. Experiences trump careers – Some people have woken up to the fact that they only have one life, so they want to experience life in a manner that might be considered extreme work-life integration. The key to the c-suite bathroom has lost its allure. So perhaps for the first time ever, organisations will need to think of talented people as individuals rather than resources / cogs for the machine. HR departments will need to develop a passion for people rather than people processes. Why your organisation? So how do you move forward? The first step is to determine how strongly your employer brand contributes to attracting and retaining talent. Here is a simple tool to find out. Ask each employee which level reflects their primary reason for working.   Survival:  I have bills to pay. Stability:  I like having a predictable income. Comfort:  The remuneration enables me to have a comfortable lifestyle. Competence  – I like doing a job that conveys social status. Engagement  – I enjoy what I do. Mastery  – I like getting better at what I do. Craft  – I think of work as a form of self-expression. Contribution  – I like the idea that my employer is a force for good. Legacy  – I like the idea that my outputs will still be of value long after I am gone. Transformation  – I like working for a company that has a vision to change the world. On this scale it should be fairly obvious where Amazon fulfilment driver and SpaceX janitor sit. There are in essence three levels: Hygiene: 1 to 3 Professionalism: 4 to 7 Spiritual: 8 to 10. The scores are in Hygienic:   If your organisation scores in this zone, its chance of survival depends on whether you can automate everything and eliminate people. Organisations do not exist simply to make people comfortable. Today’s organisations need people who can turn cognitive horsepower into value. That requires much more than adhering to the ops manual. Professional:   There is something noble about becoming a craftsman. But organisations, particularly in times of disruption, are not monasteries. They must adapt to the macroenvironmental forces bearing down on them. People who are unwilling to adapt because they have a vision of themselves as an authority on for example agentic AI, or worse still data warehousing, will increasingly become a HR headache. Spiritual:   Such organisations attract people who see beyond their own interests. They will do what it takes to progress the mission. They will even role with a change of mission if the organisation maintains its ‘Don’t be evil’ stance. This is a problem if your organisation is predicated on: Giving young children type 2 diabetes. Dismantling families by empowering the breadwinner to always be within easy reach of a virtual Las Vegas. This need to support the greater good is a consequence of us being social animals. Smart employers will exploit this superpower / vulnerability. And the employees will love them for it. This article also appeared in the   Intelligent Organisation   newsletter on LinkedIn.

Health warning In this article, I will be delving into what many might consider an indelicate matter. It is important to highlight from the outset that I am not a gastroenterologist. This article is metaphorical and does not represent in any way a medical breakthrough in respect of this debilitating condition. The Symptoms Telltale signs of organisational constipation, include: Loss of appetite   – Your leadership team seems to lack ambition. The organisation appears to be coasting. Discomfort   – Getting even the simplest things done feels like an uphill challenge. Bloating   - Bureaucracy appears to be spreading into the simplest of processes, not unlike a yeast infection. Stagnation   – Your organisation is no longer brimming with creativity, and decision making is grinding to a halt. Headaches   – Your leadership team are tetchier than usual. Thus there is a tendency to leave them to it. Consequently, they no longer receive the intelligence needed to make strategic decisions and the staff feel they are on a rudderless boat. The causes Broadly the issue can be collectively considered as a lack of guts. Specifically, the guts to: Remove high performing, but culturally toxic staff. Demise grand vision projects that are clearly going nowhere. ‘Sack’ lucrative, but high maintenance clients. Turn off products and services that no longer have value in an increasingly chaotic world. Strip away processes, particularly those that stifle creativity. Take measured risks. Less a lack of guts, and more a lack of gut contents - A diversified gut biome is the basis for a healthy body. We still don’t really know its full contribution, but the evidence to date suggests that the link is critical to overall health and wellbeing. Organisationally, homogenous cultures are a precursor to poor organisational health. Treatment These include a mixture of invasive and non-invasive approaches: Stress management   will go a long way to avoiding this condition. However stress is unlikely to evaporate until the organisation feels confident that it can operate in what is an increasingly disruptive and disorienting environment. A healthy gut , as mentioned, will sidestep this issue. Please note, diversity is not an exercise in recreating something akin to a Benetton advert. Cognitive diversity is what we are seeking. Life experience variety, regardless of colour, gender or height, is as good a metric as any. Move   – Movement is a natural means of stimulating several of our internal systems. Organisationally, this means creating a sense of direction and then focusing the organisation on getting there. An inspiring vision will lift, and mobilise, the most curmudgeonly of spirits. Shock treatment   – There is no need to orchestrate this. The market has much to offer in this respect. Disruption is a natural and readily available laxative. Movement, particularly of the faint hearted / uncommitted, will follow. Routine   – Our bodies thrive on routines for many reasons, not least for the energetic benefits that the cultivation of habits affords us. The annual review is such an example. But as we all know, a year is a little too long when it comes to ‘purging’. Something closer to real-time makes more sense. Such reviews might well include clients, products/services and projects. Fibre –optics – Smooth and reliable communications across the organisation will ensure smooth decision making and will thus significantly decrease the likelihood of organisational stagnation.   Digital convenience In organisational circles, the topic du jour is typically more digital / AI focused. And perhaps there is a role for tech to play in respect of the above treatments. I am not holding my breath in respect of Harvard or INSEAD adding a ‘constipation module’ to their MBA syllabi. Nonetheless, I believe this represents a fundamental organisational challenge. One that will determine its future vitality and viability. I chose to tackle this socially awkward topic as it links very closely to one of   the eight key characteristics of a living, and thus intelligent system , namely ‘excretion’. I suspect a direct nod to this in the title might be a little too much for LinkedIn’s more censorious moderators. This article also appeared in the   Intelligent Organisation   newsletter on LinkedIn.

Ade McCormack helps leaders develop viable and valuable organisations for an increasingly disrupted world. Make reality your strategic guide I help leaders develop viable and valuable organisations Most organisations today are built on outdated principles, prioritising profit, process and efficiency. This worked well when the world was more stable. Strategic planning also made sense. But that world has gone. Today reality outpaces the plan and those organisations that cling to it get left behind, or worse. This is an organisational design issue. And this is where I can be of value. My work is grounded in the ongoing research and exploration of The Intelligent Organisation , a think tank examining how organisations must evolve to survive and thrive amidst constant disruption. IntelligentOrganisation.org is where the ideas are explored. AdeMcCormack.com is where those ideas are applied. I support organisations through: Keynotes that challenge outdated assumptions about leadership and organisation design Workshops that help teams design mechanisms for operating in increasingly uncertain conditions Advisory work focused on redesigning organisations for adaptiveness, not stability. This is not leadership development in the traditional sense. It’s organisational engineering for an increasingly unpredictable world. I work with senior executives, HR and digital leaders who recognise that: Their operating model is no longer fit for purpose Complexity has outpaced their governance and decision structures Incremental change is no longer enough The strategic and operational assumptions of the industrial era no longer hold true. If you’re interested in the thinking, explore the research at IntelligentOrganisation.org . If you are ready to act, we should talk .

Ade McCormack helps leaders develop organisations that are akin to real-time, intelligent living systems. Organisational Intelligence Design is an emerging discipline that focuses on organisational viability in what is an increasingly unknowable world. Adapt to disruption Helping organisations adapt as disruption becomes the norm I work with leaders and their teams to redesign how their organisations sense, decide, and act in an increasingly disruptive world. Most organisations are struggling not because of a lack of talent or technology, but because their underlying design no longer fits the environment they’re operating in. I help organisations rethink leadership, cognition and innovation so they can adapt in real-time, without relying on heroic leaders or stockpiling AI. Organisational intelligence is how organisations sense, decide, and act in the moment. It is not a department, but part of the organisational fabric. My work is grounded in the ongoing research and exploration of The Intelligent Organisation , a think tank examining how organisations must evolve to survive and thrive amidst constant disruption. IntelligentOrganisation.org is where the ideas are explored. AdeMcCormack.com is where those ideas are applied. I support organisations through: Keynotes that challenge outdated assumptions about leadership and organisation design Workshops that help teams design mechanisms for operating in increasingly uncertain conditions Advisory work focused on redesigning organisations for adaptiveness, not stability. This is not leadership development in the traditional sense. It’s organisational engineering for an unpredictable world. I work with senior executives, HR and digital leaders who recognise that: Their operating model is no longer fit for purpose Complexity has outpaced their governance and decision structures Incremental change is no longer enough The strategic and operational assumptions of the industrial era no longer hold true. If you’re interested in the thinking, explore the research at IntelligentOrganisation.org . If you’re ready to apply it, we should talk .

Here you can search Ade McCormack's website. Search site