Gardener

Elder

Maker

Creation Tool

Cynefin

Adapt your leadership style to navigate complexity and improve decision-making

Table of Contents

1. Introduction

The Cynefin Framework, (pronounced: kuh-nev-in), developed by IBM software engineer Dave Snowden in 1999, is a powerful sense-making tool that helps leaders understand and navigate different types of problems and contexts. Unlike prescriptive frameworks, Cynefin offers a way to perceive and make sense of situations (individually or with your team) and then make decisions accordingly. It's particularly valuable for responsible innovation, as it encourages leaders to adapt their approach based on the complexity of the challenges they face.

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2. When to use this tool

Cynefin is especially useful when:

Facing unfamiliar or complex challenges;
Needing to categorize problems to determine appropriate responses;
Wanting to avoid applying inappropriate solutions to complex issues;
Seeking to foster innovation and adaptability in your organization;
Aiming to improve decision-making processes across different contexts.

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3. How to use this tool

Each ‘domain’ in the Cynefin framework refers to a type of situation, context or problem. And each of the categories require a different leadership approach. Once you understand the categories and you become more aware of the type of problem you are dealing with, you can then choose the most appropriate leadership and problem-solving approach.

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1. Understand the five domains

There are five domains in the framework:

Clear: In this problem category, cause and effect are obvious to most people, and solutions or interventions consistently lead to the same outcome. For problems in this category, we can develop procedures or protocols and then train people on best practices. Imagine cooking a dish by following a recipe. Or at a larger scale: the mass production of consumer products on a factory line.
Complicated: For these types of problems, cause and effect are discoverable but not immediately apparent to an untrained eye. This is the space of doctors (in the western medicine tradition), engineers and advisors. We need to first diagnose the problem or challenge and then come up with remedies that work. Imagine an airplane. Even though it consists of hundreds of thousands of interacting parts, humans have the skill (collectively, no one person can do this) to design, build, operate and maintain the machine, and repair it when something is broken. It is highly complicated, and it requires a lot of specialised expertise, but it is still within human control.
Complex: For this category of problem, it is impossible to predict how a situation will respond to an intervention. This is the space for creative leaders, community elders, and politicians. Complex systems contain many interrelated actors or parts, and their relationships and interactions mean that the behavior of the system is ever-changing and evolving. Cause and effect can only be understood in retrospect and most of the time only partially. Any systems that involve humans, even a small team of three working together, are by definition complex systems. Organizations, cities, the stock market, the climate, elections—these are all examples of complex systems.
Chaotic: In this situation there is no clear cause and effect relationship; everything seems to happen at the same time, and the system is deeply unbalanced and out of control. A fire, an accident, natural disasters, stock market crashes, network outages, a coup. Crisis management is the only appropriate response.
Confused: If you haven’t asked yourself the question, or if your team disagrees on the answer, you will be in a state of not knowing which domain you are in. In this case, some people may suggest simple solutions, while others may suggest an independent committee to analyze the situation, which is a response from the complicated domain. If you happen to be in the complex domain, these recommendations will not get you very far. This is why it is so crucial to understand which domain you are in.

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2. Distinguish the leadership styles for each domain

For each domain in the Cynefin framework, there is a leadership style best suited to leading in that domain:

Clear: In this domain, the task is to assess the situation and choose the appropriate response, following an ‘if this, then that’ logic. If the food is burning, lower the heat. We rely on observation and pre-established processes to handle the problem. This approach is called: Sense, Categorize, Respond.
Complicated: In this domain, we cannot judge the situation alone or in isolation. We need advice from experts, and in most cases there are multiple options to treat the problem. Imagine a challenge around how to make an airplane more efficient and reduce emissions. There would be several options (reducing luggage allowance, using more sustainable air fuels, flight path optimization), each with their own merits and drawbacks. The leadership task is to collect recommendations, apply judgment and make a decision. This approach is called: Sense, Analyze, Respond.
Complex: In this domain, analysis only gets us so far. It may make sense to map the system you are trying to influence and to make educated guesses as to how the system might respond to certain interventions. Then, the task is to conduct small experiments and evaluate the results. If the system evolves in the way we wish it to, we continue to do similar interventions; if something unexpected and unintended happens, we close the experiment and do something else. It is most effective to run multiple experiments at the same time. Feedback loops need to be in place to inform us about what is happening. This approach is called: Probe, Sense, Respond.
Chaotic: This is the only domain in which strong, top-down leadership is the best option. Act decisively and quickly, and communicate clearly, in order to establish order and bring the situation back under control. Only then should you problem-solve as if the situation is in the complex domain. This approach is called: Act, Sense, Respond.
Confused: If you feel you are in this situation, your task is to gather more information or collectively reflect in order to arrive at a consensus about which domain you are really in, and then act accordingly.

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3. Determine the appropriate leadership style for the problem at hand

With your team, get together and first define the scope of the problem you are solving for. Then:

Assess the level of complexity of the problem you're facing.
Decide which problem-solving or leadership style to deploy based on the domain.
Act according to the chosen approach and observe the results.
After a while, reassess and change your approach based on new information or outcomes.

This final step is a crucial and often missed one, particularly when dealing with complex problems. New approaches are often required after some experimentation, and sometimes pieces of the problem may move into the complicated or even clear category. Reasses, and then readjust.

A common pitfall is to treat complex problems as if they were merely complicated. This can lead to overanalysis, often followed by impatient attempts at top-down control. In larger organizations, which are managed through targets, structures, KPIs and quarterly plans, it may prove difficult to apply a ‘probe, sense, respond’ approach to problem solving. It is tempting to fall back on simple solutions or well-crafted plans. Nonetheless, those never really progress the situation. A broader culture of experimentation and learning may be needed to become effective in leading in complexity.

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4. What outcomes to aim for

More nuanced understanding of different problem types;
Improved decision-making processes tailored to specific contexts;
Enhanced ability to navigate complex and uncertain environments;
Increased organizational adaptability and resilience;
More effective and responsible innovation practices.

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5. How to take this further

The key to this tool is practice. The more you practice assessing problems and applying different forms of leadership and experimentation, particularly within the Complex domain, the more effective a leader you will be. Leading in complexity is not simply about understanding the level of complexity, it is about learning how to take action when you don’t have all the answers.

By incorporating the Cynefin Framework into your leadership toolkit, you can develop a more sophisticated approach to problem-solving and decision-making. This framework encourages leaders to recognize the nature of the challenges they face and adapt their strategies accordingly, fostering more effective and responsible innovation in complex environments.

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