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Simon Wardley

23 Feb, 12 tweets, 3 min read

X : "The resilient resists shocks and stays the same"
Me : Since when? Life is resilient, it doesn't just resist shocks it constantly adapts and improves.
X : That's antifragile.
Me : Gorm.
X : Eh?
Me : I have redefined the answer to everything to be gorm, so you can be gormless.

X : You don't like antifragile?
Me : It has its uses. In my case, I use it as a shibboleth.
X : You're not a fan?
Me : Look, you can use whatever word you want just don't start telling me that resilient now means something other than resilient.

To make it simple, this is the way that I look at the space ... if there was a missing word then it was "fuid". I do understand what you mean by antifragile, I just can't seperate it from resilience because it is included in resilience ...

... so by all means use the word antifragile because I know what you mean. Just don't tell me it's different from resilience because it isn't unless you redefine resilience which is where you started. That's the bit that annoys me.

X : Why does it annoy you?
Me : It's a bit like you turning up at my home and saying "That's not a home, that's a cave. You should live in a home. You can make it a home by buying these new set of windows" ... to which my response is to close the door ...

... I do understand your view, your "windows" on the world, your use of the term just don't try and redefine that which I understand in order to fit into your desired view of the world.

X : Words get redefined all the time, it's just inertia to suggest otherwise
Me : I know. Eventually resilience may well be redefined to mean something other than resilience in order that new words can have meaning. I understand this. Doesn't mean I like it.

X : Why do we create new words if not for a missing meaning?
Me : "Digital Transformation" sounds so much more exciting, cutting edge and disruptive than "Going online". The desire to present a meaning (ego, status, power) can be greater than the need to inform.

i.e. an "antifragile complex adaptive digital transformation" sounds so much more powerful and cutting edge than "small teams of people working collaboratively online" which sounds like something gamers were doing decades ago.

X : I understand "small teams of people working collaboratively online". I don't understand "antifragile complex adaptive digital transformation"
Me : See -> the desire to present a meaning (ego, status, power) can be greater than the need to inform.

This is best summarised with the concept of "De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da" -

X : #FUID should be the new #HODL
Me : Oh no ... that was typo ... "fluid" dammit. What have I done?

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More from @swardley

Simon Wardley

@swardley

23 Feb

X : We've built a data lake.
Me : Good on you.
X : How do we get the best ROI?
Me : Have you tried asking for a refund or returning the lake to the supplier?
X : ?
Me : If you're asking the ROI question after you've built it, I already know you have zero situational awareness ...

... which means you don't know why you built it or what you're looking for. Instead you spent a bucket load of money on something because it seemed like a good idea or you read an article in HBR that others were doing this. I'd try and get a refund.

X : We want to be a data driven organisation.
Me : Words which are meaningless without an understanding of your landscape, your context ... wait ... I have solution ...
X : ?
Me : I can sell you six boxes of agile and an extra portion of innovation. Would you like ketchup?

Read 5 tweets

Simon Wardley

@swardley

22 Feb

X : When do you think people will be returning to offices?
Me : Some won't be, some companies will have adapted. The isolation economy (caused by COVID) was an accelerator of an underlying change not the cause of it ...

... you didn't think that in the future as humankind spreads beyond the shores of our own planet that we'd be having face to face meetings as though we all lived in the same village with the same elder's hut? It's a throwback to the past, a constraint, a lack of vision ...

... even within the confines of our own planet we've been adapting and learning to work in a distributed fashion for the last few decades. Sure, traditions of the past are difficult to give up on but we've been heading that way slowly, reluctantly, with much stamping of feet ...

Read 10 tweets

Simon Wardley

@swardley

21 Feb

X : Are you in favour of capitalism?
Me : That's like asking me whether I'm in favour of Agile? Capitalism is a tool which has an appropriate context. So yes, I'm in favour in its appropriate context. The dogma of using a tool as a "one size fits all" is extremism.

X : So, you're anti-capitalist?
Me : Do you not understand context? I'm in favour of using capitalism in appropriate contexts and using other systems when it is not appropriate. The capitalism vs anti-capitalism debate is as full of religious zealots as agile vs six sigma debate.

... all of these one size fits all dogmas - "our methods is best and works everywhere" - are just examples of extremism peddled by people often with self interest. They do not look to the benefit of the system as a whole.

Read 20 tweets

Simon Wardley

@swardley

20 Feb

Oh great, it's bad enough that we have poor GP services, that the vaccine centre is 10 miles away, there is no public transport to it, we only have one bus per week in my area, vaccinations didn't start until end of January etc ... but now ...

... the plan is to centralise hospital services in the area with an empty hospital so that some builder can create thousands of new homes on the old site - this doesn't sound "super" to me - kentonline.co.uk/canterbury/new… ...

@MattHancock

... it seems daft given the complete lack of public transport, site will be 30 miles+ for many etc but what happens if we have a major incident on the M20 or the Tunnel?

I can't see this developer led bonanza getting past @MattHancock

Read 4 tweets

Simon Wardley

@swardley

20 Feb

Should generate about 20 kWh of solar today which is about 50% of my total power usage. By beginning March I should be back to complete self generation on a daily basis. Need to replace the electric heaters this year, get more efficient systems installed and extend my solar.

X : What's the cost?
Me : Not the point. I'm driven by a need, an intent to put more into the system than I take out. Hence I'm constantly looking to reduce my footprint, to reduce consumption, to drive more generation.

X : Views on solar geoengineering?
Me : Firing particles into the atmosphere to reflect sunlight?
X : Yes.
Me : Absolutely effing mad. We need to scale up renewable energy production, get more efficient in use, kill off fossil fuels completely, plant billions of trees etc ...

Read 12 tweets

Simon Wardley

@swardley

20 Feb

X : Thoughts on private companies being on the boards of ICS (integrated care systems).
Me : Conflict of interest question? Supplier determining needs?
X : Yes
Me : It's ok, as long as
a) you have effective spend control
b) those private companies are JVs which Gov owns 51% of.

X : What if they are not 51% owned JVs?
Me : Ah, that's a bad idea. You really want your boards to have your interests at heart.
X : What about experience, partnership?
Me : Those are advisors and you take it with a pinch of salt and as much as possible use critical friends.

Suppliers will always tell you that they want to be your partners, to build a relationship, to be your friends, to find the win/win in much the same way a second hand car salesperson wants to be your buddy ... but their interests are not yours and never can be.

Read 10 tweets

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