V: VUCA (Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, Ambiguity)

We live in an increasingly VUCA world:

• Volatility
• Uncertainty
• Complexity
• Ambiguity

Think about the volatility we have seen in oil-prices lately (see chart below), the uncertainty of what might happen to oil prices next (up, down, flat, when?), the complexity of the eco-system surrounding oil prices (shutting down the shale-oil/fracking industry with big job losses, benefitting airlines with aviation-fuel prices, shifting sales away from more fuel-efficient cars) and the ambiguity of what this means for us individually and the bigger impact upon our economic outlook (how confusing all this can be in trying to make sense of it all).

 

VUCA is a military term which my colleagues and I at Agility Consulting & Training (Nick Horney is ex special forces) are on the leading edge of introducing into the business world – download “Leadership Agility in a VUCA World – 2015 Update –– January 2015” here:  Downloadable Resources.

For more on VUCA, also see:

• The Digital Vortex
• No Ordinary Disruption.
• Shift Happens
• The Math of VUCA – How Many Ways Can You Combine 6 Lego Bricks?
• The Supply & Demand of VUCA: Digital Disruption or Distraction?

Want to stay abreast of VUCA?  Participate in The VUCA Report at The Strategic Agility Institute.

 

 

 

Because we live in an increasingly VUCA world, Agility is King!