Replying to LO27036 --
Barry:
>Are there not hypotheses, backed by phenomenological evidence, that
>groups of organisms possess discernible attributes usually not seen in
>individuals members of the group?
I am not sure if it has been codified but I have always felt that there is
more power in the whole than in the individual. To borrow and change a
title slightly... It takes a community to make things work. Individuals
can be driving forces and the energy of a group but can not do the work of
a group.
>Can amoebas act in a group the way they would not alone, much like schooling
>fish, herding mammals, Gloria Estefan concert-goers, looters?
Depends on how you view evolution for the amoebas. Schooling fish and
herding mammals develop group (community) instincts. The individuals all
have the same instincts but as a group they are stronger and more
sensitive to their environment. Looters and concert-goers ... I call this
group activity social brownian motion. There is no control or leadership
just a common urge to do. As you watch riots or concert-goers there are
little knots of entities who may stick together but for the most part
there is no cohesiveness except in the overall behavior.
>Now, if there's something to all this, if some kind of "weak force" in
>organizations makes the Organization itself learn in a way that is
>different from the learning of individual members OUTSIDE the dynamics
>(whatever THAT is) of the organization, then maybe organizations DO
>learn, too.
Organizations do learn ...look at ad campaigns that go on beyond their
usefulness or cuteness ... ie: the energizer bunny. The company "learned"
it worked then learned it was getting old so have dropped it for another.
A company's statistics shows it has an inventory it can not sell so it
researches why then ... hopefully ... doesn't make the same mistake again.
YES companies -- communities -- learn.
> Organizations don't learn...<< disagree - see above >> Much of the learning
> that people do in formal organizations is done in informal, primarily social
> organizations known as "communities of practice" (CoPs).<< agree - see below
>>
Communities are made up of 4 separate entities:
1) Communities of Interest ... broad category ... all the members of an office
2) Communities of Practice ... Professional ... all the accountants
3) Communities of Sharing ... Social ... members of the same organizations
(social and professional)
4) Communities of Caring ... Relationships and support ... in and out of the
office
I feel one of the mistakes in attempting to formulate a community for LO,
KM or any other purpose in a company, is that the essential elements of
Interest, Practice, Sharing, and Caring are ignored. If this is the case
then you essentially have organized social brownian motion. A mob with a
purpose.
Bruce Jones
--"Bruce Jones" <bjones1@nwths.com>
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