Why bother with Value Networks?
ByVerna Allee, M.A., is Co-founder and CEO of Value Networks LLC, located at ValueNetworks.com. Verna was my guest on the Business901 Podcast, What’s behind Collaboration and Value Networks?. We discussed the history of knowledge management and how her work has evolved into value networks. Value Network philosophies also apply to Lean, Agile and into sales and marketing arena. I find this area fascinating as we rid ourselves of hierarchy, positions and titles and delve into that mysterious area of roles!
An excerpt from the transcript:
Verna: What we manage, very simply, are our own roles. So if we look at it from the perspective of "In my role, I manage my inputs and my outputs." When we have a healthy value network, you look at any given role and the number of inputs and outputs are manageable. If it’s too much, you’ve got a problem. You’ve got a bottleneck; you need to redesign.
There’s some kind of a healthy ratio of tangibles and intangibles. When you look at your role, you should be able to say "Oh, that’s not so hard. I can do that." If it is overwhelming when you look at it from where you stand in the network, then you probably have some redesigning to do. I always like to say the center of the network is where you are.
You may need to see that larger picture around you. You may need to be able to see out there at the far horizon of the network. But when it comes to practical everyday work, what we manage is simply our own roles. And when people model the network, they negotiate their roles and just what they understand. I don’t understand everything about how you play your role, but I can negotiate with you about how you and I interact.
Value Networks and the true nature of collaboration by Verna Allee with Oliver Schwabe is a digital edition book located at http://www.valuenetworksandcollaboration.com.
Related Information:
It’s not your Grandmother’s Lean anymore!
Using Cynefin for a Lean Transformation
Business Processes as Value Networks
The New Knowledge Management Game eBook
