"Warm-up" Blogs

"Collaboration rather than conquest" could be a new mantra.

We have renamed this site as "Succeed in the value network space" and wish all our readers "power with good purpose."

Christie Sarri  ....... and ........   David Meggitt ......

...

.......at the grave of Nikos Kazantzakis, author of "Zorba the Greek," high on the ancient walls of Heraklion, Island Region of Crete, Greece.

Epitaph: "I hope for nothing. I fear nothing. I am free."

Posted...Remembrance Sunday (UK) 9th November 2014.

You are here: http://tinyurl.com/n7xkx8w

How can CEOs benefit from a knowledge of viruses?

Maybe they can point to the flu strain's apparent capacity for both incremental innovation (genetic drift) and disruptive innovation (genetic shift) as an exemplar of good practice for use in an organisational setting. Its capacity to adapt and survive against threats to its existence is only marred by its propensity to kill off its hosts / customers too early in the relationship before infection can spread!

So, how does the human body adapts to survive without our even thinking about it? The following description shows how.

The immune system’s role is to identify the enemies that are attacking the body and then to destroy them. These enemies include foreign agents such as bacteria and viruses as well as our own cells that become defective.

You can see how in the diagram following. Follow the sequence 1 to 7. Note the potentially supporting role of "nutrients." You never hear that from the UK NHS; just the role of drugs, unfortunately.

Source F:\energy4living\Swine flu material\Immune System

There are four levels to our defences: some of the main components are shown here.

Apart from our skin, the first level contains the digestive tract which lets in food, and the lungs, which let in air.

Within the digestive tract is the “gut-asssociated immune system”, which is programmed to prevent incompletely digested foods from entering the bloodstream and causing immune reactions and eventually allergies.

The nasal passages help to prevent unwanted agents from entering the lungs. Healthy, strong mucous membranes in the respiratory and digestive tract are the first line of defence against invaders.

Once inside the body, the immune system has an army of special cells to deal with invaders. These defenders differ in their function and territory. For example, some cells operate in the blood, keeping an eye out for invaders. The three main types of immune cells found in the blood, collectively called white cells, are B-cells, T-cells and macrophages.

B-cells or B-lymphocytes are produced in an antibody for each specific invader or antigen. When a B-cell comes into contact with an antigen it grows larger and divides into several cells which secrete specific antibodies that latch on to the invader. Antibodies cannot destroy bacteria or viruses, but they do give them a hard time. They stop bacteria producing toxins, and they prevent viruses from entering body cells. Since a virus cannot reproduce unless it enters a body cell and takes over the cell’s control centre, reprogramming it to produce more viruses, antibodies are a major nuisance for viruses. Antibodies also whistle up other, more belligerent members of the immune army, such as T-cells.

T-cells or T- lymphocytes are derived from the thymus gland at the top of the chest. There are three kinds: T-helpers, T-suppressors and NK (natural killers). NK cells produce toxins that can destroy the invader. T-helpers help to activate B-cells to produce antigens, while T-suppressors turn off the reactions once the battle is won. Normally, there are roughly twice as many T-helpers as T-suppressors. In AIDS the HIV virus selectively destroys T-helpers, resulting in too many T-suppressors which depress the immune system, leaving the sufferer susceptible to other infections.

At any time there are a small number of immune cells roaming the body. Many of the have only a short life: T-cells, for example, live for about four days. When an invader is identified, new troops are produced in the bone marrow and thymus and posted to other areas such as lymph nodes, the tonsils, appendix, spleen and Peyer’s patches. Lymphatic vessels drain into these areas, bringing in invaders to be destroyed. That is why lymph nodes, for example in the neck, armpits and groin, become inflamed during an infection. This means they are doing their job. Since the lymphatic system does not have a pump, lymphatic fluid is moved along by muscle movement – so physical exercise is important for lymphatic
drainage.”

Since anti viral drugs inhibit replication of viruses, there is no point in taking them until infected.

On the other hand, a vaccine stimulates antibodies to fight a specific strain - the body is given a memory of something it must fight. Get the strain wrong, or be behind a virus' mutation, it may become less effective, or even useless.

So, maybe a little bit of thought, using value networks, can reveal how an organisation of people can reconfigure for both incremental and disruptive innovation.

Please note the form of diagram shown above is not the same as a value network. Spot the difference.
There will be no prize for the answer. Knowing is enough.

You are at http://tinyurl.com/ylpksjq

Wonderful!

Gary Hamel, in his book "The Future of Management" poses a direct challenge to all involved with management innovation - how to reinvent our management systems so they inspire human beings to bring all of their capabilities to work every day?

He suggests that human capabilities that contribute to success can be arranged in a hierarchy. At baseline bottom is the ability to take direction and to follow rules - obedience. Next is diligence, which is necessary for accountability. And so on, up to passion - the "secret source" that turns intent into accomplishment. Passion is contagious and "turns one-person crusades into mass movements."

"One person with passion is better than forty people merely interested," wrote E.M.Forster, the English novelist.

Ranking these capabilities in terms of relative contribution to value creation, where efficiency and discipline are taken for granted, Hamel suggests the following order…..

Read this as meaning that obedience, far from literally being worth nothing - a company without rules would soon descend into anarchy - in rule following employees is, nevertheless, "worth zip in terms of the competitive advantage they generate," says Hamel.

So, in terms of value creation, where do we find the capabilities carrying most weight being manifested? Are they most prevalent in the lean managed, six sigma'd, work flow and and highly rgulated processes, or in those irrepressible and splendid informal networks?

Usefully, in order to find out, the value network approach combines both informal networks and formal processes to provide that unique dynamic diagnostic tool for highlighting where organisations need to take remedial action for change, growth and success.

Value networks and analysis (VNA) reveals the hidden connections when inspired and impassioned people create outstanding results together!

You are at http://tinyurl.com/y9ebjff

Life in organisations can be complicated and complex! Here's one viewpoint.

The diagram below is my most complicated one yet to capture some of life's challenges in organisations. This is for consumption by engineers and blatently breaks all the rules of good presentation by ignoring the benefits of "chunking." You can obtain a larger image by clicking on the jpg at the foot of the blog.

The blue blocks show how intangible assets are conceived and grouped, using the descriptions found in the value network approach. The intangibles are:

>>> Foreground intangible assets (Human competence, business relationships, internal structure)
>>> Background intangible assets (Corporate identity, social citizenship, environmental health)

Tangible Assets are show in red as facilities and trading, for want of better headings.

The horizontal brown bands represent interventions or concepts that interweave at four levels:

>>> Personal
>>> Interpersonal
>>> Organisational
>>> Societal

A recent book " Long-Range Futures Research - An application of complexity science" by a former colleague at Planning Research Corporation (PRC), Robert H. Samet, provides rich new insights on alternative ways in which to reconfigure these levels, as well as extending the horizon to 2150 with a tracing of an evolutionary trajectory to 2250.

The "Focus of Conversation" blocks are based upon a theoretical construct of aspects of knowledge devised by former colleague Verna Allee in her book"The Knowledge Evolution - Expanding organizational intelligence," itself based on the prior work of Karl-Eric Sveiby and Leif Edvinsson.

Usefully, these aspects can be directly linked to the time horizons of CEO's as they wrestle with the sometimes conflicting demands of short term action and longer term issues and worldviews. Although the brown topics above are not linked to the planning horizons, their significance seems eternal.

A question for Remuneration Committees: - How should a CEO's remuneration be linked to the Planning Horizons?

Dimensions of Organisational Existence.jpg

The is a partial list of past events in the UK. It provides a background to the heralding in to the UK of value networks and analysis, and its validation in the contexts explored.

May, 2006
Workshops at the University of Greenwich introduced the technique of Value Network Analysis to member organisations within the London Knowledge Network coordinated by Martyn Laycock.
Workshops Greenwich May 2006.pdf

August to December, 2006
Where is value in the "Blank" economy? Will the real business or service model please stand up.
(For "Blank" insert your own words - service; knowledge; networked; ecosystem...)

As a follow up to a briefing by Verna Allee on Value Networks on June 15th 2006, hosted by Tony Tzcarnecki, Managing Partner of Euro Business Management Ltd, in the offices of Sun Microsystems, London, the following workshops were held on the 1st Friday afternoon of each month, August to December 2006, facilitated by David Meggitt. The location was at the Institution of Civil Engineers,Westminster, London SW1P 3AA:-

>>4th August
Relationship management
Relationship management typically just focuses on managing information about customers, suppliers, and business partners. A value network approach considers relationships as two- way value-creating interactions, which focus on realizing value as well as providing value. Sub focus on "Politics", "Diversity", "Handling conflict".

>>1st September
Business ecosystem development.
Resource deployment, delivery, market innovation, knowledge sharing, and time-to-market advantage are dependent on the quality, coherence, and vitality of the relevant value networks within business ecosystems.

>>6th October
Market space strategies and investments
Identifying lucrative and powerful investment opportunities requires the ability to quickly assess a complex environment and accurately map the current and emerging market space. A value network analysis helps identify, analyze, evaluate, prioritize, and manage investments in market spaces — ranging from providing seed capital through joint venture financing and support of management buy-ins or buy-outs.

>>3rd November
Reconfiguring the organization
Change is all there is. Mergers, acquisitions, downsizing, expansion to new markets, new product groups, new partners, new roles and functions — anytime relationships change, value interactions and flows change too.

>>1st December
Fast-track complex process redesign
Product and service offerings are constantly changing — and so are the processes to innovate, design, manufacture, and deliver them. Multiple, inter-dependent, and concurrent processes are too complex for traditional process mapping, but can be analyzed very quickly with the value network method.

For each of the five meetings, the following format was adopted.
Focus on one candidate application of value networks
>> apply VNA thinking
>> expose opportunities for:
>>>>>>incorporating as users,
>>>>>>applying as advisors.
Open up meeting to "Anything on the table" as an application
Identify difficulties encountered with methodology generally. Post up for resolution
Adopt, adapt and improve "messages" for CEO's to open up new and authentic forms of assistance that can be delivered profitably.

20-21 November, 2007
Programme and Project Management conference organised by Unicom
Contribution on role of value networks in projects and programmes. "Will the Real Project Please Stand Up?" Organising for value in situations ranging from simple to chaotic.
Project Management Conference 2007 (2).pdf

20th February, 2009
Meeting of Control and Risk Self-Assessment Forum at Grant Thornton, London, UK
This meeting was held to address the challenges of the current credit crunch to pinpoint needed action in organisations. David Meggitt's presentation used the UBS shareholder report to provide an hour's presentation with Q and A on focussing the value network perspective on "appraising business models before and after they come off the rails." The report of this contribution is here.
CRSA Forum Agenda 2009.pdf

11th June, 2009
Achieve win-win with value networks
Held at Regent's Business School, London, by City and Westminster Branch of Chartered Management Institute.
CMI Flyer for value networks.pdf

21st October, 2009
Business Psychology:The Russian-British Experience
Scheduled for The Graduate Centre, Holloway Road, London, organized By: London Metropolitan University and Moscow Higher School of Economics.
Anglo-Russian Conference AT _2_.pdf

There was once a CEO of RBS (Royal Bank of Scotland, UK) who was pilloried for refusing to return a portion of his huge pension provision in the light of the subsequent disasterous performance of the group. Apparently he was legally justified in retaining what he was awarded when he left in disgrace. There has been talk of the Government enacting legislation to shred this award to a more fitting level.

Consider also the call of the Prime Minister for "global rules grounded in our shared values," plus a list of tests. The first test was "we must clean up the banking system." The last test was "we must never, ever, forget our obligations to the poor."

So a question arises, "is it good to make shedloads of money?" If not, how much is it appropriate to make? What should we expect of our organisations, and what should we contribute?

While many say Big Ideas-meganarratives- are out, that post-modern society is diverse and fragmented, and can't be reduced to any one organising concept, there are those who disagree.

Over the next few weeks, I will be addressing relevant material, some of it normally held to be off limits, in the search for a worldview or paradigm that can be considered in conversations as people in organisations envision a new future together.

I am indebted to Dr Charles Savage for his encouragement and ongoing dialogue when a year ago we started the quest for such a paradigm.

Thinking and acting with a "value network" perspective presents participants with a unique opportunity for getting into the flow. It helps you to achieve win-win outcomes in most situations, particularly in business, and guides you in the adoption of new mind sets to become fit for purpose in challenging environments.

There are three steps.

1) Seek out the formal processes that cross functional silos and other hierarchical boundaries. Identify what each participating group is designed to contribute as tangible deliverables.

2) Ask, "How do we really do the work around here?" Identify the informal social networks that provided the basis for relationship building and sharing of information, co-creating knowledge and the transmission of other favours without expecting immediate payback.

3) Be still, reflect, meditate/pray and be open to the energy that transforms disorder into order. Judge whether it is energy that destroys or builds for the future. ( See, for example, how to relate this to credit crunch issues here)

With this trinity of flows, be ready to transform your relationships and effectiveness with others whether in community, enterprises, regions, globally.

Optionally, inject some spirit into affairs, using whatever source inspires you or you are open to.

Note how your capabilities are enhanced and how behaviour changes.

Notes: Acknowledgement is given to the Verna Allee and Oliver Schwabe for the ideas behind the NetMat TM approach to visualising value networks, and Joan Bird for many conversations about energy in networks.

A peer reviewed Technical paper for the flagship journal of the Institution of Civil Engineers that introduced the value network approach to the profession has the following summary:-

"Civil engineers have a systems approach to model the behaviour of designed facilities and an appreciation of the complexity of natural environment. Yet many clients and implementation teams are constrained by management principles derived by 19th century industrialists which hinder the release of co-creativity required to deliver complicated infrastructures. This paper outlines and appraises the value network approach as a way for the industry to overcome these restrictions. It presents other case studies from other industries that show how the ingenuity to conceive, create and manage novel organizations can lead to a step change in project and programme performance."

An earlier summary was as follows: 

"Civil engineers have a systems approach to model the behaviour of designed facilities and an appreciation of the complexity of natural environment. Yet many clients and implementation teams are constrained by management principles derived by 19th century industrialists. These hinder the necessary release of co-creative potential required to deliver complicated infrastructures. This paper outlines and appraises the value network approach as a way to overcome these restrictions. It presents other industries’ case studies showing how the ingenuity to conceive, create and manage novel organizations can be harnessed in practice by adopting a new mindset. It concludes that, through using value networks, the construction industry can co-evolve solutions to cultural and practical obstacles by putting people at the centre of purposeful activity with a new way of perceiving how work is really done.  With the construction industry sector results in 2011 continuing to fall significantly, doing more of much the same is not a sustainable option. It is time to experiment."

Take your pick!

View and download the Paper here

In the late 1980's, strategic planning was the new replacement for the moribund corporate planning of earlier decades.

In 1988, the then Business Development Director of Y J Lovell Holdings PLC sanctioned a review for the Group of key information needs, resulting in a report and recommendations for the "Cultivation of use by staff of information of strategic value." This was undertaken on condition its findings could be made public to the industry when appropriate.

The purpose of the report was to set out the issues which drove the need to develop throughout the Group an outward perspective, to identify information of strategic value and its potential use, and to suggest tentative action plans.

The scale of the changes taking place in the external environment in which businesses operated could be illustrated by long term trends. For example, a trace of the variations in economic growth in the UK displayed intervals of some 50 years between the repeating cycles of peaks and troughs. These suggested that the 80's and 90's were set for another peak of innovative activity and change.

Although the Group was performing well within its sectors, to sustain that performance, entrepreneurship was required to exploit sources of opportunity through systematic innovation. The new age skill to be developed was "insight."

Longer term, changes in Group behaviour could be achieved by changing mindsets to develop an outward entrepreneurial attitude. This was expressed in traditional consulting methodology at the time as "unfreezing current attitudes and then refreezing them after an outward entrepreneurial attitude has been developed." (1)

A key challenge was to develop information flows that support thinking and analysis of strategic issues. Such a task required an understanding of:

• The processes involved in formulating business unit strategy.
• The pivotal role performed by the concept of competitive advantage in sustaining corporate performance. 
• The potential role of scenario variables and related causal factors as focal points for gathering market and business intelligence.

Further, a powerful diagram technique for representing how information could be used was proposed and a draft prepared that could be developed internally to reflect the Group's strategic planning needs.

To develop an outward business perspective, a four phase implementation programme was envisaged consisting of:

Phase 1 - Initiation. With centre staff, the development, use, testing, and agreement to an approach for achieving the programme objectives, to be conducted in two parts, Part 1, development; Part 2, use, testing and agreement.
Phase 2 - Critical Mass. Through a prototype project with a specified Division, the development of a critical mass of interest by implementing the approach agreed in Phase 1: - "Unfreezing of attitudes."
Phase 3 - Implementation. Group-wide implementation of new procedures: - "Changing of attitudes."
Phase 4 - Consolidation. Group consolidation of new administrative systems: - "Refreezing of attitudes."

It was recommended that:-

a) A diagram be developed showing strategic information flows, see following draft:

b) The implementation programme be adopted and action plans developed, using a Goal Directed Project Management approach.

................

In parallel, specific recommendations were made in conversation with the then Managing Director of the Clugsten Group to cultivate services of high value to project commissioning agencies prior to their formulation of civil engineering projects.

..................

Fast forward to 2012, now.  Consider, how to represent business models that neatly span the divide between the, understandably, sanitized versions of business models that appear in audited annual reports and the somewhat messy reality at the coalface.

Note that the value network approach is ideal for underpinning the representation of business models, understood to be a description of the structure of product, service and information flows and the roles of participating parties. (2)

Notes:

(1) Now, more participative methods using a mix of focused conversation, powerful questions and Appreciative Inquiry are recommended when time permits. Try, for example a new form of questionnaire that incorporates these methods ..... http://tinyurl.com/ccgsclo

(2) Defined in "Exploring corporate strategy," by Johnson et al, 7th edition, Prentice Hall, UK, 2005.

You are at http://tinyurl.com/c5k4nuv

Applying spirit at work implies invoking it. But now we confront an obstacle!

Matters of the spirit have traditionally been almost the exclusive domain of the "Religions" in the Western World. Yet, one of the main objections to religion in the workplace is that it is a source of division rather than inspiration. In a non Islamic country, (in Islamic countries, being called to prayer during working hours is routine) it could be most disturbing and resented for a Chief Executive of a particular religious persuasion when trying to bring spiritual principles to bear in their companies to force a particular brand of religion on their staff. Additionally, in the US, it would constitute an infringement of the Second Amendment to the American Constitution, which stipulates that people should be free to pursue the religion of their choice.

However, there are many lessons to be learned from Religions and many terms have been adopted by "management."

A common ground that underpins much coaching work is the "Spirit at Work" (SaW) movement, where spirituality helps us in our struggle to determine who we are (our being) and how to live our lives in this world, even at work, (our doing).

Now, a useful starting point is to learn from the wisdom of the past and integrate that with the new knowledge we accumulate and new experiences we encounter.

So, how could a person with a particular religious faith or leaning proceed in order to usefully relate and connect in a relationship of Divine knowledge co-creation?

One route, offered by authors on the spirit at work phenomena, is to suggest that adherents to any one faith adopt a different style - a new paradigm that will better support appropriate conversation.

We can then, in accepting our modern world, more readily become creatively critical of it as we negotiate our own self-interest and beliefs in our value networking!

The table below provides some suggestions. Certainly, in my own experience as a traditional Anglican, it has been most helpful to read more of the dynamics of the world's largest religion, and the inherent challenges it posed both historically, and now, in making sense of life (a).

Yet, another view and approach to achieve transformations from a non religious, almost anti-religious yet loving viewpoint, with great power can be found here (b).

I wonder what may be stirring now.

Features of a religion supporting relatedness.jpg

(a) "Christianity - an introduction," 2007, Alister E. McGrath (Former Professor of Historical Theology at Oxford University), Blackwell publishing.

(b) "The breakthrough experience," 2002, Dr John Demartini, Hay House.

Any more good references to other religions would be welcome.

Identifying and formulating projects that fit coherently with the national "will" is a complex affair. Even if a formal process be established, implementing it is complicated.

To illustrate, in the 1980's, a major kingdom in the Middle East used over 5,500 information elements in the preparation of its five year plan, where a single information element could consist of many tables of subject data or accompanying reports.  

The corresponding information flows (developed by this author and approved by the Client)  were as shown in the following diagrams.

a) Overview:-

b) More detailed view of Five year "Development Plan Preparation" in above diagram

Having developed the above diagrams with the planning Ministry then, it would be interesting to learn, now, what process the UK government uses to formulate the National Infrastructure Plan and the types of models and simulations used, if any.

It may also be instructive to appreciate the frequency and nature of the internal communication between relevant departments and agencies and other stakeholders. The following chart shows how that could be represented - an early version, perhaps, of Social Network Analysis (SNA). Interesting that it was criticized as being more of a sociogram rather than an exchange of information / ideas about National Planning issues!

Fast forward 25 years and new systems approaches could illuminate the process further and reveal the otherwise hidden connections that support and empower participants to achieve, together, growth and success. Recommended as a primary candidate systems approach is our co-evolved Value Exchange System (VES), a diagnostic and leadership tool for use at every level within the value network space.

You are at http://tinyurl.com/c974xef

Blackstone Franks is a progressive firm of chartered accountants based in the City of London.

Recognising that company agility and adaptability is key to survival and growth, it has now added value network analysis (VNA) to its portfolio of diagnostic and supporting services. One development is to add VNA to the Activity Review Chart, shown below, which can be used in conversation with SME owners when reviewing their current and future needs.

The firm is no stranger to value networks. It played a leading role in helping visualise the roles played by participants in grooming businesses for sale- demonstrating that it is not a linear process, but one of many interactions in a complex web of inter-relationships. An article on that is here.

The world and its people are currently in a mess!

Solutions must incorporate systemic understanding and stakeholder interest and influence, preferably with transparency.

19 th century management principles are gradually being adapted to incorporate practice that is found in a new generation of inhabitants that know how to use social media and global networks to good effect.

In parallel, there are traditions that believe that we are co-creators not just with one another but with a Divine Creator to ensure the care of a groaning earth and its restoration for being fit for purpose for future generations. Currently, there are almost 35,000 references to co-creativity on the web,

At this point I acknowledge the influence of David Welbourn, co-author of "The spirit at work phenomenon," Dr Charles Savage, author of 5th Generation Management - Co-creating through Virtual Enterprising, Dynamic Teaming, and Knowledge Networking," (still fresh after 13 years), George Por for his insights on "Collective Intelligence," and Verna Allee, the main original contributor and developer of the value network approach.

Building on the shoulders of giants in their fields attention is now drawn to the work of Hubert Saint-Onge, an originator of the knowledge management movement and his new co-authored book with Jay Chatzkel, "Beyond the Deal," which outlines an approach to achieve quantum leaps in corporate performance.

Four people gathered at the Institution of Civil Engineers (UK) for three hours on 7th January 2009 to co-create a simple way of visualizing how the current financial system could be tweaked to fund needed action to help combat climate change effects and causes.

The brainchild of Ian Greenwood, with supporting analyses and input from Jamie Walton, Ian assembled information from the UK Treasury, the Bank of England and other authorities to formulate options for restructuring the funding of sustainable energy production and energy conservation/usage in buildings. Concurrently, he conceived how both commercial property and householders could benefit from the proceeds of a range of new taxes that re routed conventional commercial banking money flows along new channels to help offset the tax needed for the restructure.

Following probing questioning from Beverley Daley, a Value Exchange Systems (VES) diagram was developed with facilitation from David Meggitt. A first cut at the current situation was co-created by first identifying two broad groupings of participant as follows:

• The banking ecosystem, consisting of commercial, banks, the money market, the UK Treasury, the Bank of England

• A UK development ecosystem, consisting of a) designers, builders / installers, product manufacturers, raw material suppliers and customers for insulation products b) more general investment by Government in infrastructure and services provided by a network of other contributors

We identified some key transactions that flowed between the participants by asking a simple question, “What are the deliverables that a Participant creates and launches to be received by another Participant?” The following diagram was prepared to show how these flows fit together. The Participants are shown as ovals and the transactions as lines with a description of the deliverable on the line. The activities needed to create, launch and receive the deliverables are contained within the ovals. These activities include the formal procedures and processes required for that purpose. The receipt of rules enforced by regulation and legislation is omitted for clarity.

The following VES diagrams are provided as examples only and subject to continual refinement.

The transactions, shown as solid lines, are associated with contracted and expected agreements, albeit, at a low level of detail at this stage.

We then asked ourselves whether this represented the real way in which the overall “system” worked. Had we acknowledged the informal networks that oil the wheels of the machine? Recognizing this omission, we then added a representative sample of informal flows of information that normally fell outside the auditable standard processes, shown as dotted lines in the diagram following.

The next step was to consider new possibilities, termed scenarios, in which the quantity of interest paid by customers to commercial banks for loans was reduced and a portion diverted via a Credit Money Banking Adjustment (CMBA) which is passed straight to the Treasury. Similarly, an Environmental Tax on Imports (ET) raised from customers is redirected to the Treasury using the existing VAT system but clearly indicated on receipts to fund further activities in the development grouping that will help combat climate change (ET%).

We then added these new flows to the VES diagram, below, and in so doing identified a new group that we wished to add:

• Overseas programmes beneficiaries,

The tentative suggestion flagged up here depends upon whether banks are able to fulfill their new roles in return for leaving the principal payments untouched and flowing to the programmes. A funding stream is definitely needed to accomplish climate mitigation and adaptation for the poorer producer nations.

We now have a first cut / draft of the value exchange system for the existing situation and one for a possible future scenario. Subsequent work, as below, would show the sequence in which the activities and deliverables took place. Additionally, for those who prefer lists and tables to diagrams, spreadsheets are available which also show additional detail needed for analysis of costs, risks, perceived values et al.

The current diagrams can be used as a “Discovery Dialogue” with interested parties prior to establishing a project to move to the next stages. This can be formulated to develop a “Discovery Map” of a desired arrangement, leading to a “Business Model,” “Strategy Blueprint,” “Business Process Prototypes, and Deployment.”

Further questions can now be raised. Where is the energy or passion in this ecosystem and how is it raised or lowered? Is greed a shared passion? Is enabling a sustainable cause a motivation? How does that affect behaviour of the whole or part of the ecosystem? How is synchronous leadership cultivated? Techniques that complement the VES approach can be used. For example, we can begin to visualise the possibilities of energy flow quite easily: see here.

-----------
Additional notes from Ian Greenwood

1. Revenue must be directed as part of the system towards insulating the “hard to treat” buildings - it is no good having:
• difficulties/time lag in applying for adequate funds/subsidy
• long delays or stop-start of funding,
• immense staff or bureaucracy costs

2. The message from STEERglobal is that an equal dollar return must be made to the producer nation for their sustainability & energy efficiency. This can be achieved via an Environmental Tax on Imports (ETI) or ET. Credit money re-directed - the Credit Money Banking Adjustment – (CMBA) at the level of the base rate can then enable offsetting of ETI Tax. Such an adjustment would be about 50% of so-called “free” commercial bank money.

The key point about CMBA is that it diverts a portion of the large amount of so called FREE MONEY that currently accrues to Banking and Finance. This FREE MONEY has significantly contributed to the CREDIT CRUNCH through build up over preceeding years. With a target 5% base rate, CMBA would divert about half and be adjustable.

3. Additionally, now that the other proposal, the Credit Money Banking Adjustment (CMBA) has been devised, the revenue can flow from where it has been inflationary (or held back in the credit crunch) to where it is necessary to achieve energy and resource sustainability, directly to projects investing in a sustainable future. Allowing these investments in a balanced way across the world would also create more stable finances and benefits socially, environmentally and politically. Confidence can then return.

4. Notes on conversation Ian/David 21-04-2009v2: Possibly change red arrow to black from customer to Commercial bank. In due course maybe suggest that in return for retaining the principal on “free” money, C.banks administer the system at no extra charge: i.e. the diversion to the treasury can be an un-necessary task. The banks in receiving the principal merely return some of it direct to the customer – i.e it is healthy to SHOW the interest on the statements, but maybe not necessary to collect part or all of the principal/interest. No doubt there are further “takes” on this. IG

You are at http://tinyurl.com/cs9dtq

This note describes how entrepreneurs benefited from using value networks to underpin their thinking and strategy, having initially practised their pitch within an environment supportive of those aspiring to entrepreneurship. The initial random contact was made at a Regional Meeting of Ecademy in Weybridge with Paul Harvey.

The 3Cs Community (www.3cscommunity.com) in the UK is focussed on encouraging entrepreneurship in a supportive atmosphere and receives sponsorship in the form of meeting facilities from a range of organisations - professional firms, research and academic institutions, libraries.

One of the business pitches in May was by Bio Music, whom I introduced, and subsequently suggested they use the value network approach to further refine their business planning.

This note briefly describes the process we undertook to apply value networks over a period of two months.

Developing the Discovery Map

The first conversation was to allow the business owner / CEO to develop what I call a Discovery Map, underpinned by the value network way of representing the key role plays and both formal and informal flows. This was done in free style with a large piece of paper, pens and sticky notes and took about two hours of time together. A tidied up version is shown below.

Data was then fed into a proprietary analysis and report generator tool and sample outputs obtained and distributed.

A comment from the owner at this point is included below the map.

Discovery Map of the Bio Music Business

"Dear David, Just wanted to say, once again, a very big thank you for yesterday’s session at the ICE and for your invaluable input in helping us identify the ‘mechanics’ of our business, which, I find, has greatly helped us to pin-point the priorities to make and the strategy to follow up in order to achieve the overall goal of a global success.

Please let me know if I can be of any assistance to you in your future presentations of our business model or in any other way at all.

I look forward to receiving your final map in due course and to see you again in the near future, most likely at a future 3Cs event, if not before…

All the very best,

Jean-Louis
Loriana Music"

Developing the business model and strategy blueprint

The next stage was to involve another key member of the team, Paul Harvey, and allow both to co-develop a business model that incorporated the business strategy. This means using the Discovery map to tease out and use further components that addressed the key questions of "What should we be doing and when?" and " Who will do it and why?"

The technique used in this case was to project the Discovery map (as the underpinning value network) on to the wall which was covered with a large blank sheet of paper. The facilitated conversation was a mix of standard value network analysis subjects, interlaced with strategy considerations, extended over a working day with a break for lunch. The value network was extended by adding new deliverables, highlighting cash flows, and adding the sequence of the flow of deliverables. (Called transactions in the methodology). Some role plays / participants were removed for strategic reasons.

The resulting drawing is shown in the photograph below.

Subsequently, a neat version of the map was created and a nice twist added to the title to create....

A vibrational pull business model.

"Vibrational pull" resonates particularly well in this case for two reasons:

>>> The marketing approach is geared up to the "pull" from potential served markets as opposed to "product push"

>>> The product itself features vibrations of a special nature

This represents the current position. The diagram is now available for use in conveying, through conversation, the dynamics of the emerging and developing business. It can also be used to progress to creating the Business process blueprint and technology blueprints which create prototype and working workflow systems in quick time.

A final word from the entrepreneur..

"Dear David

Many thanks for the Bio Music Vibrational Pull Model.
It seems all fine to me.

Thank you also for the value network map attached to your email.
It does show how valuable the exercise of creating a value network map is in order to enable a clear overview of a business model and to facilitate the process of elaborating the changes required.
I like this a lot!

Best regards,

Jean-Louis
Loriana Music
www.biomusic-6in1.net"

You are at http://tinyurl.com/nqkrzl

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David is one of the co-founders of 3Cs Community and served on the Board of Directors of the servicing company for many years.

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In some respects, the art and science of non military life cycle costing see here has advanced since the pioneering work undertaken for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu in the early 1980's.

A Google search for life-cycle costing or whole life costing will now yield a tranche of standards and synthetic values for project designers.

However, a significant stumbling block to their intelligent application in the UK was the silo'd devolution of budget responsibility between:

• development of facilities and
• operations

For organisations still struggling with this artificial division perpetuated by blinkered adoption of 19th century management principles, is now an opportune time to explore how business models built on traditional thinking can be adjusted to reveal where the true value lies in organisations and their built environment?

As usual, the value exchange system (VES)  "lens" allows participants to introduce this innovation and simultaneously engage participants / stakeholders in intelligent conversation about "sustainability," promoting growth and success.

You are at http://tinyurl.com/ooavdyl

The introduction of Lean methods has had mixed success and is properly considered a life long journey for problem solving, innovation and heightening morale. But reality can be very different if only linked to management and production practices such as six sigma and value stream analysis. These are often conducted within a top down, command and control structure with the intention of driving out variation, - and with a focus that is predominantly on incremental creativity in order to lower risk.

Indeed, leaders in the “Lean movement” have indicated a wish to remove the word “Lean” from their vocabulary. Lean remains a transaction view of the world, where the only deliverables that have value are those that go directly to the end customer. Anything else is treated like an event, not a value transaction between participants working together.

Further, the background situation in the United Kingdom is now less predictable than at any time for decades, and for the foreseeable future, so should we be more tolerant of emergent solutions co-created informally, yet within auditable, trusting environments?

Is a subtle change now needed in approach in order more fully to:

• recognise and absorb both incremental and radical, even disruptive, variation in customer requirements, supplier capabilities and a host of other factors in a businesses’ supply chain and entire ecosystem 
• pinpoint remedial action for change,  growth and success based on both a Lean transactional view AND a relationship perspective in which both formal and informal contributions can be assessed, as needed, in ANY or EVERY exchange?
   

Usefully, to that end, a different perspective, value networks and analysis, on how organisations really work, complete with supporting simple tools for analysis and engagement, is available. It is recommended to fill the gap between:

• the formal hierarchy required for control of the formal processes and
• management guided, self-organising informal networks of co-creative peer to peer collaboration, characterised by:  

• • participants behaving with integrity, guided by ethical principles
  • leading to trusting relationships and exchange of intangible deliverables
  • that can be converted to tangible deliverables of higher perceived value.

Read the white paper here

You are at http://tinyurl.com/ct7xagu

Value network methods help us visualise the relationships between people, what they contribute and the roles they play, whether as individuals or in groups. The blog here illustrated the place of "spirit" in guiding human activity in organisations.

So what could the title of this blog mean?

Based upon definitions in the Concise Oxford Dictionary, the following is today's contribution.

To "Put your spirit into your value networks" is to release your vital animating essence (courage, energy, vivacity, dash) into the collaborative work you do with others. This involves being sympathetic to the mental or moral conditions or attitudes prevailing at the time...to which I will add, beliefs.

So where to begin? For initial inspiration, a recently rediscovered set of articles originally published in the Spring 2000 edition of Faith in Business Quarterly (FiBQ) may be helpful. Now out of print, I am indebted to Dr Richard Higginson Director of Studies at Ridley Hall, Cambridge, a member of the Editorial Team, for permission to reproduce articles from this edition of FiBQ entitled "Spirituality at Work Issue".

The first is a review of the book "SQ: the ultimate intelligence" by Danah Zohar and Ian Marshall. At the time, Zohar taught in the Oxford Strategic Leadership programme at Oxford University and was a Visiting Fellow at Cranfield School of Management where she led a one day course to launch SQ in February, 2000.

The reviewer, Bob Cumber, was a retail banker, and in 2000 an independent management consultant.

The review is attached, which contains the following comment: "As with many new age thinkers she applies subtly different meanings to conventional spiritual vocabulary and she promulgates a smogasborg of beliefs not dissimilar to many new age thinkers. This includes concepts taken from psychology, eastern philosophy, mysticism, gnosticism and all the worlds' major religions, including Christianity, but very much on a pick-and-mix basis. .... The task which Zohar sets her readers is daunting.......Despite these criticisms, SQ does provide very useful insights to any seeking to gain an understanding of the ways in which many people are thinking about spiritual things at the start of the 21st century.

What Spirit.. SQ Zohar Review.pdf

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Categories of enterprise value - M and A.jpg

For some, Christmas is a time for renewing relationships and deepening those we allow to flourish. 

Christians have some rather special relationships to consider, and we can use value networks to help illuminate these. This blog focuses on the Trinity - a key model we have of God.

Some history: in the 2nd century AD, the first major Christian theologian, Tertullian, a Carthaginian who thought and wrote in Latin, coined the term Trinitas. He had some pretty deep disagreements with an important school of thought at the time - Monarchianism. Usefully for us, they had developed a model of, or approach to understanding, "God" as "modalist." This saw the names of Father, Son and Holy Spirit  as corresponding merely to different aspects or modes of the same divine being, playing transitory parts in succession, like an actor on the Classical stage donning a theatrical mask to denote a tragic or comic role or "Persona."  (MacCulloch, D. A History of Christianity. London, 2009).

Fast forward to the theologians of the 19th and 20th centuries and we discover a real attempt to interpret classical trinitarian doctine, to get beneath its surface grammar and penetrate its deepest intention. It is now affirmed that God is Triune, the reality of shared love and life rather than in terms of domineering power. (Migliore, Daniel.L Faith seeking understanding - an introduction to Christian Theology, 2nd edn. USA. 2004).

So, turn to our diagram below. We can still with theological credibility depict three "role plays" shown in our circles with a direct connection to ourselves as a person. But the mix of God as three roles (to our limited understanding, of the mystery of God) is not sequential but a dynamic mix or dance of interplays between aspects of God and each person who allows it. The contributions to our lives can be identified and assessed.

There has to be some "mechanism" for this transfer, and we can utilise the discoveries and theories from physics and other sciences to glimpse how this may occur. This is represented as an inner cloud.

Infusing this, though, is the activity of the "Maker," represented as an overarching outer cloud.

What questions does this depiction evoke? 

I am grateful for:

• conversations with our home group members, Margot, Cathy, Jaysie, Sandy, Stafford, Simon who have patiently endured my contributions and for their prayers
• guidance from Rvd. Phillip Johnson, vicar of All Saints' Weston for illuminating further the mysteries of the Trinity and his inspired leadership.

HAPPY CHRISTMAS

You are at http://tinyurl.com/cawyhxw