Your Organization has “Wicked Problems”

Whether you are aware of it or not, wicked problems exist in your organization today, yesterday, and tomorrow that must be identified and mitigated (as much as they can be mitigated). But what are wicked problems, you ask? I have shared below various quotes/definitions around what constitutes wicked problems.

“In wicked (complex/dynamic) domains, the rules of the game are often unclear or incomplete, there may or may not be repetitive patterns and they may not be obvious, and feedback is often delayed, inaccurate, or both” – Epstein, D. (2019) Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World, MacMillan

“Whether it is pandemics, flood management, snowstorms, drought or satellite failures, the ability to recognise the changing environments that create the conditions in which those incidents can occur, and to prepare ourselves in meaningful and sustainable ways, is the underlying bedrock on which all other actions must take place” – Rubens, D. (2023). Strategic Risk and Crisis Management: A handbook for modelling and managing complex risks, KoganPage, p.299

“Wicked” problems often involve complexities rooted in uncertainty, multidisciplinary, unpredictability, diverse variables, and the involvement of cross-market stakeholders (often with competing objectives)”- Benjamin-Fink, N., & Reilly, B. K. (2017). A road map for developing and applying object-oriented Bayesian networks to “WICKED” problems. Ecological Modelling, 360, 27-44.

“One of the fundamental errors underlying the misclassification of wicked problems is the belief that they can be engaged with using ‘normal science’” – (Rubens, 2023:287)

“…establishing causality between intervention and impact is a major challenge for transboundary wicked problems. ” – Jore, S. H. (2021). Ontological and epistemological challenges of measuring the effectiveness of urban counterterrorism measures. Security Journal, 34(2), 231-246.

“Understanding both safety and culture as wicked problems is critical for ‘tackling’ risk” – Long, R.(2024). No ‘Taming’ or ‘Fixing’ Wicked Problems, SafetyRisk, available at: https://buff.ly/3PstEgS.

Need to know more? Email: info@caribbeanriskmanagement.com.

Have a productive, anticipatory, and resilient week ahead, folks!

Cheers

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