Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity – VUCA – or simply a catch-all phrase to say “it is crazy out there”. Living in a VUCA world means we have to think differently about how we organise our organisations and projects. It is important that any organisation is able to quickly adjust their plans and structure if the environment requires to do so. As the COVID-19 pandemic shows us our environment can change in a snap and have huge consequences on any organisation. Working in a VUCA world might sound scary, but it doesn’t have to be. When you are aware of your strategy, the surrounding landscape and have the ability to learn quickly, I feel that any organisation can thrive in this VUCA world.

Nowadays, there is an increasing interest and mentioning of socio-technical engineering, socio-technical systems. And although the words do not strike as odd on its own I personally have struggled quite a bit with the different meanings of the terms and understanding the field of socio-technical systems. So in this article, I will provide a layman’s introduction to socio-technical systems. Knowledge about socio-technical engineering can help you to understand what constraints might prevent or help you to succeed in your current project.

When leading an IT department you are faced with numerous challenges across the board. Whilst attracting and retaining IT talent is one of the biggest challenge, it is often paired with the challenge of understanding and displaying the value of the IT department towards the organisation.

IT has moved from a necessity to be a game-changer in some areas, but in many organisations, traditional perspectives and mindsets apply. Changing perspectives as an IT leader isn’t easy. Especially when daily operations are taking the most of your energy and attention.

So, let’s look at some ideas to regain a focus on strategic software delivery. By dedicating attention on reflection and finding areas of improvement, we can provide better conditions to succeed and contribute to the goals of the business.

Read more →