Another Set of Data for Complex Systems: Why Knowing Reality is Not Enough

Understanding the underlying data that influences human behaviour is essential in the complex and ever-changing environment of organizational development.

Organizational development aims to enhance an organization’s capacity to adapt and improve strategies, making it more agile and responsive to changes in the VUCA (Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, Ambiguity) world.

However, traditional data sources often fall short. To truly understand and improve organizations, we must consider “complex data”—how people perceive and interpret the world around them.

The Importance of Complex Data in Organizational Development

Organizational development relies heavily on data to drive its processes. However, many OD practitioners and HR professionals overlook the importance of complex data, which includes the perceptions, interpretations, and feelings of individuals within the organization.

While traditional data such as leadership development and talent management metrics are valuable, they often miss the more profound insights provided by understanding how employees perceive their environment and their roles.

Understanding Beyond Reality

Relying solely on objective data is not enough when dealing with complex systems. While the world’s reality is fundamental, it is only one part of the picture.

People do not see the world as it is; they see it as they are.

This subjective perspective can create chaos if not properly understood and managed. Therefore, it is crucial to collect data about the world and how people perceive and interpret that data.

The Need for Complex Data

Complex data provides insights into how people understand, feel about, and judge various aspects of their environment. This data type is essential for creating new collective understandings and possibilities for action.

For example, in addressing climate change, understanding how people perceive and react to the data can be as important as the data itself.

Collecting Complex Data

To gather complex data, we must listen to people and understand their perspectives. This involves more than just hearing their words; it requires an effort to comprehend their narrative and judgment.

The challenge lies in overcoming our tendency to judge and categorize information quickly. By suspending judgment, we can better appreciate the perspectives of others and gain deeper insights.

The Power of Understanding

Once we understand people’s perspectives, we can identify our views’ limitations and potential misinterpretations of problems. However, it is impossible to understand a complex system entirely from one’s perspective.

Instead, we should ask people to evaluate the data and collect their interpretations. This approach provides a richer set of data by combining objective facts with the subjective lenses through which people view those facts.

Transform Your Organizational Culture

Ready to transform your organization’s culture? By understanding the organization’s narratives, we can collectively reinterpret them and steer culture.

Run a Culture Sprint with us to understand and steer your organization’s culture. Through expert consulting and innovative strategies, we create data-based participatory solutions. Ready to see the change?

Schedule a consultation and discover how a Culture Sprint can help you understand and change your organisation’s culture.