Comments on: Entrepreneurs and Enigmas

By: Unfit for purpose? – organisational resilience and Bletchley Park » FOLLOWERS OF THE APOCALYPSE

Tue, 20 Nov 2012 23:03:16 +0000

[…] fate and fascination draws me back to Bletchley Park. My initial stumble upon the Christopher Grey’s book “Decoding Organisation” has now been compounded […]

By: dkernohan

dkernohan — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 22:20:42 +0000

In reply to Robert Swanson.

Thanks Robert – what a great extra example. It’s always these unwanted spaces that become creative and valuable isn’t it? I’m thinking also of “artistic quarters in major cities that usually become so because space is cheap and ugly. And any Viv Stanshall fan can’t be all bad. We need the Bonzo’s more than ever 🙂

By: Robert Swanson

Robert Swanson — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 20:51:49 +0000

David, really enjoyed your preso today here at TRU, Open Learning. Lots to chew on.

Re: Entrepreneurs and Enigmas, another great example of the value of uncoordinated, “chaotic” working environments achieving marvelous results is the story of Building 20 at M.I.T.:
http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2012/01/30/120130fa_fact_lehrer?currentPage=all

Pull quote:
“Building 20 became a strange, chaotic domain, full of groups who had been thrown together by chance and who knew little about one another’s work. And yet, by the time it was finally demolished, in 1998, Building 20 had become a legend of innovation, widely regarded as one of the most creative spaces in the world. In the postwar decades, scientists working there pioneered a stunning list of breakthroughs, from advances in high-speed photography to the development of the physics behind microwaves. Building 20 served as an incubator for the Bose Corporation. It gave rise to the first video game and to Chomskyan linguistics. Stewart Brand, in his study “How Buildings Learn,” cites Building 20 as an example of a “Low Road” structure, a type of space that is unusually creative because it is so unwanted and underdesigned. (Another example is the Silicon Valley garage.) As a result, scientists in Building 20 felt free to remake their rooms, customizing the structure to fit their needs. Walls were torn down without permission; equipment was stored in the courtyards and bolted to the roof. When Jerrold Zacharias was developing the first atomic clock, working in Building 20, he removed two floors in his lab to make room for a three-story metal cylinder.”

As a huge fan of Vivian Stanshall, I too value coming at things from different perspectives.

By: Paul Hollins

Paul Hollins — Fri, 12 Oct 2012 07:42:07 +0000

Yes, an interesting post in the context of current changes within the sector . The notion of non-hierarchical systems and Bletchley was (arguably) one such system, in fostering innovation is well documented. Bletchley was as Beer would define it a viable system with the necessary authority ascribed to the system 1 (doing) to inspire confidence , confidence enough to experiment and challenge. A good lesson Innovation doesn’t just happen ! (Christienson) talks about this in disruptive innovation it needs the right environment in which to flourish!

But senior management interested in maintaining their own (questionable) viability just ” know best “.