Uncertainty as Competitive Advantage- LSE Public Lecture by Mark Phillips

PMI Government Community of Practice

Uncertainty as Competitive Advantage

Listen to the Lecture athttp://www.lse.ac.uk/newsAndMedia/videoAndAudio/channels/publi

cLecturesAndEvents/player.aspx?id=2750

London School of Economics

1 December 2014

by Mark Phillips

© 2014 Mark Phillips | ReinventingCommunication.com

2Source: http://arcweb.archives.gov/ by Technical Sergeant John L. Houghton, Jr., United States Air Force

3Source: US Army http://www.army.mil/-images/2009/07/09/44434/index.html)

4Source: US government DOD and/or DOE photograph

5Source: http://world.guns.ru/assault/rus/ak-akm-e.html

6Source: phonearena.com

7Source: http://www.theinquirer.net/IMG/955/225955/original-apple-iphone.jpg

8Source: https://developer.android.com/distribute/tools/promote/brand.html

9Source:http://rt.com/usa/164964-chinese-military-hacking-aerospace-industry |

http://www.stripes.com/news/should-cyber-warfare-be-elevated-to-highest-command-structure-1.218776

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Source: ReinventingCommunication.com

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OODA

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15Source: ReinventingCommunication.com

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ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION

and

REVEALED PREFERENCES

Source: ReinventingCommunication.com

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Communication Objects

Communication Objects are the artifacts generated by the

process of communication. A communication object is more than

the information it is meant to contain; it is made up of numerous

elements, including descriptors of the container itself. This is

much like how an in-person conversation between two people is

made up of non-verbal elements as well as the words in the

conversation. Communication Objects encompass the “non-

verbal” elements of communication and are a reflection of the

design of the communication environment.

Source: Mark Phillips “Reinventing Communication” Gower 2014 & ReinventingCommunication.com/glossary

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Communication Object Elements

Communication Object elements are the full range

of measurable aspects of a communication object and

are descriptors of a communication object.

They play an important role in how communication

object are used, telling us about the communication

environment and the people in the environment. They

are generated by applying an analytic tool or method to

communication objects.

Source: Mark Phillips “Reinventing Communication” Gower 2014 & ReinventingCommunication.com/glossary

19Source: Mark Phillips “Reinventing Communication” Gower 2014, Image used with kind permission of Seth Godin..

20Source: Mark Phillips “Reinventing Communication” Gower 2014, Image used with kind permission of Seth Godin..

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Slide on amount broadcast

to audience.

Source: Mark Phillips “Reinventing Communication” Gower 2014, Image used with kind permission of Seth Godin.

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Communication Environment

The Communication Environment is the structure

of an environment as it relates to communication.

It determines the communication generated in an

environment.

Source: Mark Phillips “Reinventing Communication” Gower 2014 & ReinventingCommunication.com/glossary

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Design Elements of the

Communication Environment

Elements of Communication Design are

observable manifestations of communication

design. They reflect the design of the

communication environment and include

intentional and unintentional actions and

decisions.

Source: Mark Phillips “Reinventing Communication: How to Design, Lead and Manage High Performing Projects” Gower 2014

24Source: Mark Phillips “Reinventing Communication” Gower 2014

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TAME

MESSY

WICKED

Source: ReinventingCommunication.com

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Observable Manifestations

Observable Manifestations are visible expressions of an

underlying structure or process. For example, the

structure of a project environment may not be readily

apparent. However, the observable phenomena of

schedule lateness can be observed. Another example is

that the way someone thinks about uncertainty may not

be readily apparent. However, the observable

phenomena of limiting who a manager can use on a

project team can be observed.

Source: Mark Phillips “Reinventing Communication: How to Design, Lead and Manage High Performing Projects” Gower 2014

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Orientation toward Uncertainty

Orientation toward Uncertainty describes how a project

environment is designed to react to uncertainty. It is based on

project environment participants’ perception of how great a role

uncertainty plays in a project environment, as well as individual

factors which motivate an orientation toward control or

predictability. An environment’s orientation toward uncertainty

impacts the solutions delivered y that project environment.

Environments oriented to work with a high degree of uncertainty

produce different outcomes than environments oriented to work

with certainty. Orientation toward uncertainty is a design element

of a project environment. It can be understood, measured and

managed to increase the probability of delivering desired

solutions.Source: Mark Phillips “Reinventing Communication: How to Design, Lead and Manage High Performing Projects” Gower 2014

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Source: Mark Phillips “Reinventing Communication” Gower 2014

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Measurable

Communication Actions (MCA)

A Measurable Communication Action (MCA) is a single unit of measurement

of communication in an environment. It provides a means to measure and

integrate multiple communication methods, communication elements and

design decisions into a single unit of measurement. It can be made up of a

single method of communication or multiple methods of communication.

The methods can be added together, giving all methods equal weight, or

different methods can be weighted when combining them into an MCA. The

weighting can reflect variables such as the relative value management places

on each form of communication or the strictness with which communication

design decisions are enforced for each method of communication. It can

reflect the phase of the project or the expected activities for that period of

time. It can be tweaked to increase sensitivity towards one method of

communication over another to facilitate management awareness of

unpredicted behavior.

Source: Mark Phillips “Reinventing Communication” Gower 2014 & ReinventingCommunication.com/glossary

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14

18

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1 2 3 4

Am

ou

nt o

f C

om

mu

nic

ation

(Nu

mb

er

of E

ma

ils)

Planned

Actual

Weeks

At Week 4, Actual is less

than Planned

Communication by 5

emails

Source: Mark Phillips “Reinventing Communication” Gower 2014

31Source: Mark Phillips “Reinventing Communication” Gower 2014

32Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Netscape-logo.png

33Source: http://blogs.msdn.com/b/robmar/archive/2011/02/10/a-history-of-internet-explorer-highlights-form-first-15-years.aspx

34Source: Strategypage.com

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Source: US Army/www.army.mil

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