Complexity and Simplicity

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Comment by Matthew Kálmán Mezey on May 7, 2012 at 20:27

I can't really put my finger on it - but if there was a way to look at what complexity/emergence can tell us about membership organisations - re collaboration, crowdsourcing ideas, transparency etc - then that would be pretty interesting, for me at least.

I'm pretty interested in complexity and management generally (despite not knowing a huge amount about it all) - but the context of charities and volunteer networks would be fascinating.

Eileen Conn (in the RSA's complexity group) may have worked this all out already - I need to get up to date with her model...

Matthew

Comment by Carlos Largacha-Martinez on May 4, 2012 at 21:14

Hi Indy and Matthew

I think that the 'time' issue is real, but also I think that if we have a 'project' or 'proposal' within the group, that will invite us to participate more actively. So what about complexity and management? or something.

Carlos

Comment by Matthew Kálmán Mezey on May 3, 2012 at 11:08

Hi Indy,

I don't think  the long established group has any online presence. Do contact the e-mail given in my blog: http://www.rsablogs.org.uk/2012/social-economy/networkscomplexity-f... and become a member.

I guess they meet up, periodically.

I think it would be worth you sending a message to the whole group (using the button on top right) offering some topics for a Hangout and asking which are most popular with the 23 members. (And asking for additional suggestions too).

Open up the lines of communication with that non-digital group - phone up the organiser or meet for a coffe (and tell them you're planning a small online event).

Though people like Eileen Conn from that group are certainly doing lots of things online.

Bringing the two groups closer together, informally, and doing some kind of event online for this Ning group seems best to me.

Matthew

Comment by Indy Neogy on May 3, 2012 at 10:15

Hi Matthew,

To be absolutely honest, it's not just that people don't have time for discussion, but that I don't have as much time as I hope to seed the group with content. Also, I'm not really a "stirrer" on e-forums by nature.. ;-)

Observations across the Ning groups I've looked at that groups that have some kind of "event" presence, be it physical or virtual discussion, seem to have more momentum. I was indeed thinking of Google Hangouts or something similar.

Does the established complexity group have any kind of presence? I'd be happy to direct people to them more, but I don't seem to hear about thing like the recent event early enough...

Comment by Matthew Kálmán Mezey on May 3, 2012 at 10:08

Hi Indy,

It can be hard to tell whether people don't have time for discussion, or whether there's a need for more active seeding of content by a group's facilitator. Or just that the group needs some more members.

Maybe you need to post more of the interesting complexity bits and bobs you come across to the group? Or start some kind of contentious discussion every now and then..?!  ;-)

(I'm happy to help out, in principle, though don't have time to actively help to facilitate the 50 or 60 Ning groups we have here, at this stage! I hope to have more time, at some point. Also I don't know a huge amount about complexity, but am keen to know more myself! Any good overview papers on the latest cutting-edge thinking that I should look at? Tell the group!).

Also, are you connected in to the RSA's long-standing complexity group? Have you invited all its members into this group? (Maybe you should find about more about its forthcoming book, and tell this group about it?). Have you invited all the people you know who are interested in complexity to this group?

Here's my blog report on that fascinating RSA event about complexity and policy-making:

http://www.rsablogs.org.uk/2012/social-economy/networkscomplexity-f...

Re meeting up - I must say that I've found Google Hangouts to be very engaging - you get to see video of the (up to) 10 participants. It's fun :-)

It gets close to feeling like you're in the room with the others (especially with the big screen we just put in for Skype here).

Maybe do a poll of members of the group to see if there's a particular topic/speaker that some of the 23 members would like to have a Google Hangout abou/with?

Or do this jointly with the RSA's established complexity group?

I could ask Eileen Conn - from that group - if she wants to talk to an interested group of up to 10 people, if that would help.

Best wishes,

Matthew

PS I really enjoyed chatting with you at that collaboration-related event, and afterwards.

-----

Matthew Kalman Mezey

Online Community Manager

 

RSA

Tel 020 7451 6825

www.thersa.org
A live dashboard webpage showing RSA online activity is here: http://bit.ly/onlineRSA
twitter.com/MatthewMezey
twitter.com/thersaorg
rsafellowship.com (online community)

Comment by Indy Neogy on May 3, 2012 at 9:17

Welcome to our latest member Matthew Mezey.

It seems clear to me that people in this group don't have a lot of time for discussion here on the Ning. Anyone have suggestions for what we should do?

Maybe some kind of online meet up?

Or would people prefer to discuss somewhere else? LinkedIn?

Comment by Indy Neogy on January 14, 2011 at 16:55

 

The RSA Social Brain project has published two reports now and highlighted the complexity of social networks and is looking to explore how decisions are made in this context.

 

In another strand, Matthew Taylor has been trying to build on the Social Brain project findings with his concept of a "21st Century Enlightenment" and the idea of a 21st Century Enlightenment Organisation.

 

Researchers in Complexity Studies have already spent a lot of time working with both of these strands. The idea of this group is to bring that thinking into the RSA, and RSA projects - both the above ones and the more practical ones around building social capital in communities.