tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4595590912416369261.post3247485732248269641..comments2023-08-08T05:05:29.017-07:00Comments on Disruptive Thinkers: A Response to the Critics of Disruptive ThinkingBen Kohlmannhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03169347794851576548noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4595590912416369261.post-73701834297190315332012-06-21T03:47:11.457-07:002012-06-21T03:47:11.457-07:00Ben,
I'm an Army Officer in Australia and I w...Ben,<br /><br />I'm an Army Officer in Australia and I was very impressed with your small wars journal article and the replies that supported your point of view. Your articles have been referenced in our Senior Officers Professional Digest and, with the permission of the SWJ, will be reproduced in the Australian Army Journal along with some articles discussing our military education in the Australian Army. I'll keep in touch and let you know how they go.<br /><br />LiamAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16923363549428154224noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4595590912416369261.post-90587143571754174602012-05-16T13:43:36.811-07:002012-05-16T13:43:36.811-07:00Jeez, that doesn't make much sense w/o punctua...Jeez, that doesn't make much sense w/o punctuation:<br /><br />I've been critical of management theories and practices having gone thru the formal schooling ((GWU) you are exactly right, diverse experience from industry greatly informs the often enough top-down mandates/echo chamber w/in DoD), a lot of study of the history of "science" in all its guises and the rationalizing/systematizing impulse that is strong in the US, and from a bit of time in the cockpit (USMC) and a bit more time in the ever troubled acquistions system (I'm on NMCI right now). But you are absolutely right - the business, econ, and social science schools and programs do some good work and pump out some clever and innovative grads. The B schools are far from all bad, I'm just gun-shy about their promotion given all that's gone off the rails in management/business thought and method as applied to DoD over, approximately, a century.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4595590912416369261.post-25116296468624520682012-05-16T13:30:51.562-07:002012-05-16T13:30:51.562-07:00Ben,
Great. Keep up the thinking and writing. Y...Ben,<br /><br />Great. Keep up the thinking and writing. Your energy is excellent.<br /><br />I've been critical of management theories and practices having gone thru the formal schooling (GWU) you are exactly right, diverse experience from industry greatly informs the often enough top-down mandates/echo chamber w/in DoD, a lot of study of the history of "science" in all its guises and the rationalizing/systematizing impulse that is strong in the US, and from a bit of time in the cockpit (USMC) and a bit more time in the ever troubled acquistions system (I'm on NMCI right now). But you are absolutely right - the business, econ, and social science schools and programs do some good work and pump out some clever and innovative grads. The B schools are far from all bad, I'm just gun-shy about their promotion given all that's gone off the rails in management/business thought and method as applied to DoD over, approximately, a century.<br /><br />S/F/Dave FosterAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4595590912416369261.post-69027815041654299202012-05-04T13:40:07.969-07:002012-05-04T13:40:07.969-07:00I get the impression that another tacit assumption...I get the impression that another tacit assumption has been running through the whole disruptive thinkers debate; that the ideas will be incorporated enterprise wide. While I'm sure that many good ideas will compete and the best will become standardized and propagate throughout an organization, the important thing is maintaining the ability to innovate when conditions change suddenly. Rather than wait for orders or someone at the top to provide a solution, young sergeants and officers will get on with it and achieve. This is an important quality we need to preserve against the drawdown, interwar & austerity era impulse to circle the wagons and crack down on standards. Keep adaptation alive.Jon Jeckellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18346601792525998741noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4595590912416369261.post-29894741767641025582012-05-03T06:36:05.101-07:002012-05-03T06:36:05.101-07:00LT Kurt Albaugh has a good post over at CIMSEC'...LT Kurt Albaugh has a good post over at CIMSEC's NextWar blog on Navy efforts, particularly within Fleet Forces Command, to develop ways to bring new ideas from the junior ranks to the fore: <br />http://cimsec.org/crowdsourcing-the-next-navy/Scott Cheney-Petershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11894383655065380822noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4595590912416369261.post-61441666893639124702012-05-02T21:05:34.103-07:002012-05-02T21:05:34.103-07:00You bring up a lot of great points, which I will d...You bring up a lot of great points, which I will discuss in greater depth tomorrow, but I want to briefly touch upon one of the core issues. I think perception that this was about junior innovators vs. senior bureaucrats distracted quite a lot from the core points. I've seen a lot of senior leaders try to implement an innovation only to walk away frustrated, or at best succeed after an exhausting and harrowing ordeal. Lots of senior leaders retain the ability and creativity to innovate and support innovators. I think the core issue is how well run organizations filter out information they deem irrelevant to their current mission. The more efficient and effective they are, the more they ruthlessly discard extraneous information. This also makes them inflexible, although they can adopt certain types of innovation that improve their performance in ways they expect. On the other hand, they don't know how to handle what Clayton Christensen dubbed disruptive innovation. The whole organization resists or ignores these innovations because they don't fit their model. This sounds a lot like what your friend experienced. I think the key is understanding the difference between these types of innovation and handling them accordingly. At this time of night I don't have any easy answers about how to handle a disruptive innovation in the military. Bolster your credibility with your leadership so they trust you and observe your thinking and judgement. Identify people who could recognize and help implement your innovation and make a cogent argument to them. Brett Friedmann used several examples where a senior leader ran top cover for someone with a valuable idea. I know this probably sounds trite, but if people like you who care don't keep trying, the system stagnates.Jon Jeckellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18346601792525998741noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4595590912416369261.post-14001860095990120872012-05-02T19:14:50.792-07:002012-05-02T19:14:50.792-07:00Ben -
Another JMO echoing the sentiment above - ...Ben - <br /><br />Another JMO echoing the sentiment above - I read the post on SWJ and subsequently came to the site via Wings Over Iraq. I've enjoyed following the conversation thus far and appreciate you taking the time to share your perspective. <br /><br />Looking forward to commenting more in the discussions (I hope) this blog will generate in the future.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02771136493559959119noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4595590912416369261.post-6095289447071497082012-05-02T10:58:50.103-07:002012-05-02T10:58:50.103-07:00Hey Ben,
I've been following the series of po...Hey Ben,<br /><br />I've been following the series of posts - keep fighting the good fight and know there are others like you...voices shouting in the wilderness.<br /><br />-Cameron <br />@cjschaeferCameron Schaeferhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14754079112326490330noreply@blogger.com