ISCE Managing the Complex Book Series

Volume Four
Complexity and Knowledge Management: Understanding the Role of Knowledge in the Management of Social Networks

A Brief Introduction to Complexity and Management

The emerging theory of complex systems research has sparked a growing movement to reinvigorate management. Theory, research, practice, and education can all benefit by adopting a more dynamic, systemic, cognitive, and holistic approach to the management process. As interest in the study of complex systems has grown, a new vocabulary is emerging to describe discoveries about wide-ranging and fundamental phenomena. Complexity-related research has brought new insights and new ways of discussing the many issues related to management and organization science.

A shared language based on the insights of complexity can have an important role in a management context. The use of complexity metaphors can change the way managers think about the problems they face. For example, instead of competing in a game or a war, managers of a complexity-thinking enterprise are trying to find their way on an ever changing, ever turbulent landscape. Such a conception of their organizations' basic task can, in turn, change the day-to-day decisions made by management.

The most productive applications of complexity insights have to do with new possibilities for innovation in organizations. These new possibilities require new ways of thinking, but old models of thinking persist long after they are productive. New ways of thinking don't just happen; they require new models which have to be learned.

Call for Papers

I am writing today to invite you to submit an extended abstract of about 1000 words for consideration for inclusion in this fourth volume of the ISCE Managing the Complex Book Series. In your extended abstract please include at least 10 references to other works that your paper might relate to, or build upon. These abstracts will be reviewed by ISCE's associate fellowship, and the editorial board of ISCE's international journal, Emergence: Complexity & Organization. However, we'd like this project to be a community project, so if you'd like to volunteer as a reviewer please send us a brief biography and we will gladly consider you. Unfortunately, like most academic reviewing activities we cannot pay you for your efforts. The names of all reviewers and their affiliation(s) will, however, be fully acknowledged in the final publication.

As a rough content guideline to paper topics/questions the following list may prove useful. It is not, however, a comprehensive list of topics/questions so please feel free to make submissions that relate to topics/questions not listed here. Though, of course, a link to complexity and knowledge management must be obvious.

Section 1: What is knowledge?

The first section will be related more to complex systems in general rather than socio-technical systems in particular.

• Can we usefully define knowledge?
• What are the limits to knowledge of complex systems?
• Can knowledge be objective?
• Are there limits to knowledge of complex systems?
• What is the difference between linear and nonlinear knowledge?
• Is reductionist knowledge still useful?
• Is knowledge a ‘thing’ (noun) or a ‘process’ (verb)?
• Are there preferred forms of knowledge?
• Can knowledge be transferred?
• How can incommensurables be compared?

Section 2: The role of knowledge in social networks

The second section will be concerned with the theoretical application of complex systems theories, ideas, metaphors, etc. to the understanding and management of organizations.

• How does local knowledge affect global behavior?
• What is the role of ‘expertise’ in understanding complex systems?
• Elicitation of social knowledge
• The role of social (informal) and scientific (formal) knowledge in network behavior
• How does data become useful knowledge in organizations?
• Can too much “knowledge” paralyze an organization?
• How important is diversity within an organization? What kinds of diversity are important?
• Are all organizations equally “complex”? What types of organizations can benefit most from complex systems research?
• Can the ideas from complex systems research be effectively applied to the management of knowledge within traditional organizational hierarchies?
• Knowledge management in coalitions/partnerships

Section 3: Tools for creating, maintaining and using knowledge

The final section of the book will be devoted to applications of 'complexity thinking' in the workplace, i.e., case studies. The practice of complexity thinking is an area that is rather under-represented in the complexity literature. This section is not for theories, ideas and opinions of how an organization should or could be understood and managed; that is the focus of section 2. Section 3 is concerned with how and where complexity ideas have been applied in real organizations and how such applications turned-out. There is scope within this section to include post-hoc analysis of previous events which did not necessarily and explicitly utilize a complexity-inspired design, but we are more interested in receiving case studies of organizational 'interventions' that were inspired explicitly by complexity ideas and concepts.

Proposed Schedule and Contact Details

If you would like to submit an extended abstract (1000 words and 10 references) please email an electronic copy (in either MS Word or Word Perfect format) to Kurt Richardson at iap4@isce.edu, by the end of March, 2006. Please make sure you mention what section of the book you are primarily aiming your paper, along with 3-4 keywords. To assist us with the management of this project please let us know beforehand if you intend to submit an abstract... thanks in advance!

Also, if you'd like to volunteer for reviewing duties please send a brief biography to Caroline Richardson (caroline_richardson@isce.edu) by the end of June, 2006.

By the end of April, 2006 decisions by the various reviewers concerning the content and relevance of the extended abstracts for this project will be sent out to each author.

Full papers of around 5000 words will then be due by then end of June, 2006 so that the review board can prepare feedback for the authors (end of August, 2006). Final paper submissions will be expected by the end of December, 2007. The aim is to get the book published around August, 2008.

Timetable summary:

• March 31^st, 2006            Submission deadline for extended abstracts
• April 30^th, 2006               Requests for submission of full paper sent out
• June 30^th, 2006              Deadline for final submission
• August 31^st, 2006           Reviewer feedback sent out to authors
• December 31^st, 2007    Deadline for final paper versions
• August 1^st, 2008             Full manuscript submission to publisher

Kind regards,

Kurt Richardson, ISCE Research
Andrew Tait, Idea Sciences
Volume Editors