Volatile, Uncertain, Complex And Ambiguous Research Articles

A review of the strategic planning process in the Hong Kong Police Force

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to review the strategic planning process of the Hong Kong Police Force (the Force) and its outcomes for the planning cycle of 2019-2021.Design/methodology/approachBased on an insider's perspective drawn from documentation, internal reports and field observation, this study is an analysis of the five-step strategic planning process of the Force as a case study over the two-year period by using the 3-H (Heart-Head-Hand) framework and futures studies.FindingsThis study demonstrates the Force's strategic management in practice. The 3-H framework and the Six Pillars Foresight Process are found to be useful tools in strategic planning. When the Heart, Head and Hand elements are developed and integrated as a mindset during the process, they help theorise the practice and experience of police officers towards a holistic and effective strategic management. Coupled with the foresight process, the Force will be more agile and outward focused in the Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous (VUCA) world.Originality/valueThis is the first study to apply the 3-H framework and futures thinking in analysing the process in a police organisation in Hong Kong. While strategic planning is an important process to set directions for an organisation to move forward, this study describes the process in terms of relevant practice and theoretical concepts. It is hoped that such experience can serve as reference for practitioners in other government departments and police organisations.

2050 And beyond: A futurist perspective on musicians’ livelihoods

ABSTRACT While it could be argued that musicians have been long conditioned to the current Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous (VUCA) global environment, it appears the recent challenges are testing even the most resilient and adaptable, causing one to question future professional sustainability. The methodological practice of Strategic Foresight and the use of Hajkowicz’s Global Megatrends as a guiding framework is chosen to answer the question ‘what will musicians’ livelihoods look like in 2050?’. Resultant scenarios of musicians’ futures conclude that live performance will be highly valued and in demand, and largely enabled by private funding and repurposed resources. Music, and therefore musicians, will embrace diversity and innovation in physical and digital forms, broadcasting to a global public seeking a more human experience within a non-human environment. The interim decades may see an increasing inclusion of professional non-music careers within one’s portfolio of work, further expanding generic definitions of ‘musician’. However, are experts in the fields of Music Careers and Strategic Foresight eligible to cast opinion? Can Strategic Foresight practice be even remotely applicable in these current postnormal times? Regardless, higher music education is required to adapt, and continue to adapt, by including digital literacy and futures thinking training.

Leading in the certainty of uncertain times

This research focused on the potential for Christ-following leaders to develop a theological and missiological posture in response to the current volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA) world context. This research looks at how the attitudes and actions of the corporate world have influenced those of Christian organisations and Christian leadership. The corporate world primarily focuses on strategies for overcoming the challenges of the VUCA environment, but this research explores how Christ-following leaders might benefit from looking more deeply at what VUCA represents, rather than merely accepting and reacting to it. The research used a literature review to develop the groundwork for an increased understanding of how God and VUCA relate and how Christ followers can develop a perspective in keeping with an understanding of God’s mission, their calling and the VUCA world mindset. Although some research has been done regarding spirituality as part of a response to the VUCA world, it has often focused on the outward expressions (morality, values, collaboration and service) with little attention to the Christ follower’s source of spiritual life, the trinitarian God. This research integrates recognition of the character of God, evaluation of VUCA realities and rhetoric, and the responsibilities and opportunities of leaders who desire to participate in God’s mission. In this process, the research explores strategy metaphors, missional thinking and leadership implications. Contribution: This research encourages greater theological and missiological exploration of the Christian leader’s posture and response to the VUCA world mindset. The research engages with corporate thinking regarding strategy and the implications of VUCA and with theological and missiological thinking regarding God’s role, the leader’s role and the nature of current contexts, both local and global.

Exploring Prospective Teachers' Reasons for Choosing General Science as a Specialization

Choosing a career path is difficult for students, especially in their transition from senior high school to college. Students struggle to select the most viable program that suits their interests, skills, and passion. Hence, most students end up shifting among courses and, at worst, dropping out of their program. This qualitative study explores the reasons prospective teachers specialize in General Science in a teacher education program. The data were gathered through interviews and were treated through thematic analysis. Eight themes emerged including (1) alignment to chosen senior high school strand; (2) personal choice and interest; (3) passion for science; (4) personal knowledge and skills; (5) inspiration by teachers; (6) encouragement from family; (7) challenge to oneself; and (8) non-availability of a preferred course. The study has established important implications for admission policies in terms of the selection process for students enrolling in the General Science program. Higher education institutions (HEIs) should support the continuous improvement of the science education curriculum, campus and physical facilities, and student services, which are at the heart of education in a volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA) world.

Life Cycle Engineering 4.0: A Proposal to Conceive Manufacturing Systems for Industry 4.0 Centred on the Human Factor (DfHFinI4.0)

Engineering 4.0 environments are characterised by the digitisation, virtualisation, and connectivity of products, processes, and facilities composed of reconfigurable and adaptive socio-technical cyber-physical manufacturing systems (SCMS), in which Operator 4.0 works in real time in VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous) contexts and markets. This situation gives rise to the interest in developing a framework for the conception of SCMS that allows the integration of the human factor, management, training, and development of the competencies of Operator 4.0 as fundamental aspects of the aforementioned system. The present paper is focused on answering how to conceive the adaptive manufacturing systems of Industry 4.0 through the operation, growth, and development of human talent in VUCA contexts. With this objective, exploratory research is carried, out whose contribution is specified in a framework called Design for the Human Factor in Industry 4.0 (DfHFinI4.0). From among the conceptual frameworks employed therein, the connectivist paradigm, Ashby’s law of requisite variety and Vigotsky’s activity theory are taken into consideration, in order to enable the affective-cognitive and timeless integration of the human factor within the SCMS. DfHFinI4.0 can be integrated into the life cycle engineering of the enterprise reference architectures, thereby obtaining manufacturing systems for Industry 4.0 focused on the human factor. The suggested framework is illustrated as a case study for the Purdue Enterprise Reference Architecture (PERA) methodology, which transforms it into PERA 4.0.

Applying Combat Power in the Context of Vuca and Jiim Operational Environments

Abstract The present study is aligned with the concerns of different armies to identify solutions regarding the operational adaptation of military structures to the demands of current and future operational environments. The volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA) character of the various operational environments determines the military structures to operate from a joint, interagency, intergovernmental and multinational (JIIM) perspective in order to reach the desired end state. From this perspective, the adjustment of combat functions becomes the groundwork for the proposed variant of the combat power adapted to support the operational flexibility and the organizational versatility of the forces.

Designing remote education in a VUCA world

The goal of this article is to identify and share the best practices and innovations to enable teaching and learning to take place during times of VUCA (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, and Ambiguous) such as the coronavirus pandemic. This will help lay the foundations for more inclusive and equitable approaches to education when the crisis subsides. The main response to school closures is to dive headlong into academic cyberspace and remote learning, creating a human-machine symbiosis. Ideally, specific contents, learning outcomes, and a set of instructions are desirable. Different media and technologies can be used to assist students to learn in different ways and achieve different outcomes, thus also individualizing learning more. Technologies can be compared along several characteristics. These characteristics form a basis for analyzing new technologies, to see where they fit within the existing environment, and to evaluate their potential benefits and limitations. Nowadays, technologies have a tendency to become more ‘communicative’ and ‘media rich’, thus offering educators and students powerful tools to attain desired learning outcomes.

REVISITING TALENT MANAGEMENT PRACTICES IN A PANDEMIC DRIVEN VUCA ENVIRONMENT – A QUALITATIVE INVESTIGATION IN THE INDIAN IT INDUSTRY

Organisations across the globe have been operating in a landscape which is volatile, uncertain complex and ambiguous (VUCA). The notion of “VUCA” was introduced by the United States Army way back in 1980’s to describe the unpredictable environment that resulted from the end of cold war and it has been staying with us since then. The acronym has been used time and again by organisations and business leaders to describe the dynamic business landscape that may have resulted from various crisis situations such as Global Financial Crisis in 2008-2009, Demonetisation, BREXIT. The most recent example of VUCA has been the spread of Coronavirus (COVID 19) pandemic. Organisations and employees at global and domestic levels are experiencing highest levels of uncertainty due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the impact of which is unprecedented. There are several VUCA factors that have emerged due to the spread of COVID 19. This has created deep implications for strategic business leaders across the world. The prime goal for any organisation in the present scenario is survival, well-being and effective management of the human workforce. Therefore, Human Resources, the one that revolves around managing people and workplace environment plays an important role in this pandemic era. In the process, talent management is considered to be of prime importance as many organisations are struggling to implement effective talent management practices to sustain through the current environment. This study presents insights into the Indian Information Technology (IT) Industry in the context of a pandemic driven landscape. While the outbreak of COVID pandemic in the year 2020 has led to the rest of the industries crippling, business for tech industry has been steady. Therefore, this generates a need to understand the talent management practices that have been adopted by the sector which has enabled the organisations in the industry to thrive through such challenging times. It is a qualitative investigation accomplished with the help of in-depth interviews of senior HR professionals across the IT sector. The literature in the paper has been enriched with different types of studies. The findings are based on data gathered from above sources (primary and secondary). The research makes an attempt to identify the talent management practices that have been undertaken in the IT industry to combat the pandemic driven VUCA factors, incorporated in a framework for future reference.

High-performance work system and organizational citizenship behaviour at the shop floor

PurposeThe manufacturing industry is presently experiencing technological disruption on a global scale. Consequently, to tackle such disruption, firms are identifying a volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA) scenario and seeking ways to counter it. Accordingly, this paper aims to investigate the employee performance through assessing organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB) among the shop floor employees of the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry where a high-performance work system (HPWS) has been implemented.Design/methodology/approachA descriptive research design was used in the study, and 395 shop floor employees working in leading multinational firms, with a minimum global turnover of US$1bn, were interviewed. These manufacturing firms were located in three industrial clusters in the northern part of India.FindingsThe results indicate that HPWS influences OCB. Most of the dimensions of HPWS and OCB were found to be positively associated. The findings also disprove the labour process theory in the context of the study.Practical implicationsThe findings report a broad view of the relationship between HPWS and OCB in the Indian manufacturing context. The study offers the practical insights that HPWS is a universally accepted framework and that organizations should focus on the effective implementation of HPWS in a VUCA scenario, which is in line with past studies. The study also provides future directions for research.Originality/valueThis paper has established the relationship between HPWS and OCB in the manufacturing sector, especially for shop floor employees.

Karakteristik Kepemimpinan dalam Dunia Pendidikan untuk Merespon Era Disrupsi

Disruption brings fundamental changes in almost all aspects of life, changes are made by small institutions that are more agile and distributed, taking over the role of incumbents established. Disruption in education is defined as a new way that shifts the old way that is less relevant, such as technology, perspectives, approaches, teaching processes, instructional media, forms of classrooms and others. The reality of change creates a state of VUCA (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous) where the world is very dynamic and difficult to predict. The old form of leadership is no longer able to deal with current changes, new leadership characteristics must be developed to face the future, addressing the needs and problems that arise from the uncertainty and ambiguity of the current situation. The study aims to discuss current literature and research on the characteristics of future leaders that are appropriate for responding to change. It also provides an overview of future leadership and provokes the birth of thoughts on leadership issues, especially in the field of education. The result show that the characteristic of future leadership are social and digital smart, collaborating, agile, adaptable, transformative, adept at technology, flexible, initiative, innovative, humble, free thinking, visionary, able to evaluate, think differently, and distributed leadership. This means that future leader must disrupt the role, disrupt the identity, and disrupt the meaning. Future educational leadership needs to be developed as an effort to deal with a a volatile, uncertain, complex and unclear environment or VUCA environment.

Changing Paradigms of Engineering Education - An Indian Perspective

Abstract VUCA (Volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous) characterize the engineering education scenario. Engineers form the backbone of any country’s economy. Around 25% of the world’s engineers are in India but it lags behind in research and innovation. At the global level, engineering education is experiencing a paradigm shift from teacher-centric to student-centric teaching- learning process, content based education to outcome based education, knowledge seeking to knowledge sharing classrooms, teachers to facilitators, traditional engineering disciplines to interdisciplinary courses, chalk and board (lecture based) learning to technology driven learning and the list goes on. But in India, still conventional teaching – learning practices with little practical training is adopted in many institutions. This is shown by the fact the Indian institutions still struggle to make a position in world ranking with few exceptions. A country which pioneered in engineering, medicine, arts and music etc. in ancient era, suffers major setbacks in technical education. Hence this study attempts to analyse the perception of stakeholders, viz. students, parents, academic faculty and industry, on engineering education and the future of engineering education. Focus group consultations with select group of respondents were carried out. The results were analysed which showed that the students perceive positively on engineering education but at the same time are apprehensive about the position of engineers in the society. Parents’ perception towards engineering is solely on the job opportunities but the faculty members opined changes in the mindset of students and the impact of social media on general attitude. Industries expressed lack of employable engineers and lack of skills in new age technologies. Overall the respondents favoured the introduction of new and multidisciplinary courses to meet future demands.

RELIGIO-POLITICAL DISCOURSES IN DOCUMENTARY FILMS ON IRAQ PROMOTING PEACE OR CONFLICT

<p class="Abstract">In the information age, media has become an important tool to seek information for clarity but it is paradoxical. This study shows whether documentaries are projecting skepticism and sarcasm of Iraqi people due to volatile, uncertain complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) conditions or projecting VUCA discourses for the restoration of peace and harmony. The object of this study consists of Oscar-winning and Oscar-nominated documentary films from 2003 to 2011 with a total of 45 films. The year 2003 is selected for its demarcation of U.S.-led invasion of Iraq which started in March 2003 and toppled over the government of Saddam Hussein. The year 2011 denotes the end with the departure of US troops in 2011. Through the criterion sampling, four films are selected that depict Iraq and all the four got nomination for Oscar that include: Iraq in Fragments (2006-Nomination); My Country My Country (2006-N); No End in Sight (2007-N); Operation Homecoming: Writing the Wartime Experience (2007-N). To explore Iraqi people’s perspectives, a further sampling is applied and two documentaries are selected depicting entanglement of religion and politics in Iraq from Iraqi people’s perspective.</p>

The quest for context-relevant online education

Is it possible to provide context-relevant education to a diverse and dispersed body of students via online presented courses? Contextual relevance is called for by students and the public alike, as can also be seen in the #fallist movements. More traditional academics and institutions argue for retaining excellence from the past and known knowledge still to be taught. In this conceptual article, education is seen as a mastery of knowledge expanses by integrating Data and Information into Knowledge and Wisdom (D-I-K-W). Departing from the learning sciences, especially mind, brain and education science and its application in culturally appropriate learning, it is argued that including effective learning strategies in online courses, especially application-oriented strategies, can help students to apply knowledge from the past to contexts in the present, thereby attaining context-relevant education. However, the application of learnt material to situations brings forward another dimension, namely, the future, which is Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous (VUCA). In applying and making decisions, it is helpful to attend to the Cynefin framework, attending to the domains of the obvious, the complicated, the complex, the chaotic and the disorder. Excellence from the past and relevance in the present should, therefore, be augmented by abilities aimed at future readiness. Context-relevant online education should therefore attend to the past, the present and the future.

Employee Retention in the VUCA World: Challenges and Strategies

Employee retention has become one of the major areas of concern for industries across the globe, considering the dynamics of the Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous (VUCA) business environment. Today global explosion in business creates more prospects, employees have become highly mobile and not restricting to particular job. It is universally accepted that human resources are the life-blood of any organization. In this competitive era, every organization has realised that human capital is the major source of existence, growth and excellence of any company. Employee retention is also significantly important to make the company more cost effective and save the time by avoiding frequent hire to newcomers. Moreover, it is the interest of the employer to retain and utilise the expertise of the valuable employees which further adds on to its productivity and profit. In today’s global work environment, technology has improved the global job opportunities with lucrative salary packages, flexible working hours, career opportunities, better workplace environment, on-line-recruitment facility and so on. Hence, it is a high time for the employers to keep regular track of their employees’ satisfaction, ambition, commitment, engagement, work-life balance and to modify the policies asper the requirement. This paper highlights various factors that can have impact on employee retention. Further, it derives a model or framework including the desired strategies which can be adopted for retaining honest, trustworthy and competent employees.

Innovation, dynamic capabilities, leadership, and action plan

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to propose a new model of leadership in a volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA) context, paying special attention to human resource management.Design/methodology/approachThe paper is conceptual. It presents the challenges of the VUCA environment that from which technically empowered democracy movements around the world have emerged, needing a new leadership model that aligns human resources tools to the new leadership model.FindingsNew tools for human resource management are proposed.Originality/valueThe paper links technological changes and leadership skills, providing a novel framework that can provide a basis for further research into the profound nature of leadership. Implications useful for managers and leaders are discussed.

Real-time data processing in supply chain management: revealing the uncertainty dilemma

PurposeParticularly in volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA) business conditions, staff in supply chain management (SCM) look to real-time (RT) data processing to reduce uncertainties. However, based on the premise that data processing can be perfectly mastered, such expectations do not reflect reality. The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether RT data processing reduces SCM uncertainties under real-world conditions.Design/methodology/approachAiming to facilitate communication on the research question, a Delphi expert survey was conducted to identify challenges of RT data processing in SCM operations and to assess whether it does influence the reduction of SCM uncertainty. In total, 14 prospective statements concerning RT data processing in SCM operations were developed and evaluated by 68 SCM and data-science experts.FindingsRT data processing was found to have an ambivalent influence on the reduction of SCM complexity and associated uncertainty. Analysis of the data collected from the study participants revealed a new type of uncertainty related to SCM data itself.Originality/valueThis paper discusses the challenges of gathering relevant, timely and accurate data sets in VUCA environments and creates awareness of the relationship between data-related uncertainty and SCM uncertainty. Thus, it provides valuable insights for practitioners and the basis for further research on this subject.

Current Challenges of Agile Hardware Development: What are Still the Pain Points Nowadays?

AbstractOriginally developed for the software industry, agile development is being applied in the hardware field nowadays as well due to its benefits when having to deal with volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA) conditions. However, certain complications arise when applying the concept of agility in the hardware. In this publication, based on the challenges identified by Ovesen in 2012, the current challenges of agile development for hardware are gathered using an embedded design approach, ensuring its actuality based on the latest surveys and empirical data. The current state regarding the challenges is displayed and its interrelations as well as their advancements compared to seven years ago is discussed. Moreover, an attempt to explain the difficulties of applying agile development is given by a hardware-related complexity model.

Entrepreneurial team and strategic agility: A conceptual framework and research agenda

To be agile, responsive and innovative seems to have become prerequisites for long-term growth and success for any organizations operating in an increasingly volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA) world. This paper argues that such prerequisites, in turn, are dependent on the organization's abilities to harness team-level entrepreneurial behaviours, talents and activities as drivers of continuous strategic agility and innovation through an effectively managed HRM process. It illustrates this argument by conducting a synthesized review of the literature streams of entrepreneurial team and strategic agility and developing a conceptual framework that links them together. Rooted in the micro-foundational perspective, this review examines the relationship between key conceptual dimensions of entrepreneurial team and strategic agility, and explores the connections between these two literature streams. Our findings suggest the potential value from a cross-fertilization approach, and points out the future research directions through which these literature streams might be advanced collectively and effectively. Our research sheds some important light on the relationship between strategic agility and HRM through the lens of managing effective entrepreneurial teams in differing contexts.

Leadership Lessons from Indian Knowledge System

In a Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous (VUCA) world efficiently managing the human resources is highly challenging for this era leaders. Leadership is a powerful enabler that can leverage an organisation to any heights. But bad leadership can downside any organization which leads to destruction. To lead the organization effectively and efficiently leaders follow different types of leadership styles. So, one of the critical challenges is leading the organization and driving towards his vision. Therefore, one of the major issues and the real concern of any organization is identifying great leaders and nurturing the best qualities. Several theories were discussed and deliberated this issue from a multiple perspective. So many different qualities and styles of leadership have been discussed in modern management theories. The interesting observation is our ancient scriptures such as Bhagavad Gita, Mahabharata, Ramayana, Arthashastra and Bhoja Prabandha etc., we get different perspectives of what leadership is and what it can do to an organization. For Instance, Lord Krishna who was the avatar of Lord Vishnu who was a divine soul with a high degree of intelligence, communication skills and ability to influence others and capable of resolving any crises faced by his devotees. In the modern scenario, it can be said that Lord Krishna has acted as the greatest crises manager the world has ever produced. If we look towards Mahabharata, we can say that Krishna was the Finest Strategist. Even though many other characters in Mahabharata have responded to the great challenges at that time. Krishna was also a thoughtful and intelligent leader he adopted different leadership style according to the time; people and situation. Majorly this paper focus on how our Indian ancient scriptures such as Bhagavad Gita, Mahabharata and Ramayana had different perspectives on leadership qualities.

ENTERPRISE RESOURCE PLANNING (ERP) AS A CHANGE MANAGEMENT TOOL

Change is not just inevitable it is rapid, frequent and full of complexity. Today’s business environment is characterized by something called as VUCA (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous). Those who don’t change perish. Change is required not for growth alone, it is needed even to survive. Those who stay glued to their old, orthodox, traditional and conventional approaches either will stay mediocre or will be thrown out of the race. Resistance to change is an important management topic and has been researched in depth by academicians across the globe. The general observation as it is well known is that people by and large don’t like change. ERP is one of the highly popular change management tool that has been used by companies across the globe to integrate and rationalize their processes. The legacy systems suffered from limitations. They were functioning in a stand-alone, silo mode. However, this type of working created serious problems of coordination, duplication, delays and dissatisfaction. Hence ERP emerged as a solution to seamlessly integrate things so as to make the processes smoother, quicker, leaner and robust. The data collection, storage and processing capabilities of ERP are huge and can benefit the organization not only in terms of descriptive and prescriptive analysis but can also provide ground for predictive analysis. This article discusses the concepts of change management, resistance to change and then explores the role of ERP as a catalyst of change.