Three Ways to Build an Adaptive Organization

There are three techniques to prepare and cultivate “adaptive” qualities in every form of companies, even and government departments. 

1.  Build self-directed team development
The basis of every bottom-up change begins with self-motivated, self-directed teams’ empowerment. An excess of structure and rules tends to hinder innovation and adaptability, particularly in organizations whose structure is hierarchical. Many companies experience that the most successful cooperation is informal, volunteering and self-supervised. Good personal partnerships contribute to good cooperation, since it is difficult to cooperate with someone you are “commanded” to work with. “By mandate” teams have difficulty looking at their world from an open mind as conventional beliefs and approaches are evident. Smaller, self-generating communities will test the dominant paradigms and find innovative ways to respond to new opportunities and challenges.

2. Connect the stovepipes through employee engagement
The next approach is to attack the segmentation of agencies, branches and groups within an organization.

If every entity holds tightly to vital records, a company can’t respond to new situations. Only a free exchange of views and opinions between all classes and sub-groups within an organization will provide an integrated understanding and strategies for the environment. Many leaders we asked thought various types of activities would help “bridge pipes.” 

One strategy is to create “open expectations” for teams to build trust, co-operation and ideas around the company. Common negotiation strategies, approaches to problem solving and behavioral modes are crucial to eliminate constraints on an efficient flow of information, so essential to a genuinely evolving world and to respond to its difficulties and possibilities.

These approaches and criteria should cover all teams within the organization and cross all corporate borders. A mutual mission will also motivate and encourage all in an organization to adapt to a common goal.

3. Create “venues” for employees to practice adaptive thinking
Innovation has to be created by leadership. Several leaders noted that you ought to form an organization’s framework so that workers can “think out of the box” in order to create different approaches. Many have written and reported on the need to build an organizational atmosphere where workers feel the psychological and functional security to work together and explore fresh ideas – a “intellectual safe harbor,” with unknown prospects and ways to respond to unfamiliar situations or to anticipate them.

Often, the “safe place to innovate” is created within the business but beyond the usual models of operation—for instance, “tiger teams” or “greenfields.” Just as critical as providing space and time, the organization’s top levels (as well as managers at all levels) must show a sincere commitment to listening from all walks of life and from above and around the organization.

As Vietnam’s leading HR consultancy firm, Talentnet applies state-of-the-art technologies to its framework, a profound understanding of labor law, and associated HR solutions. Contact Talentnet today so we can help you build adaptive organization and so much more.