Polarity Management explains how when we want to create progress we often end up with unintended results. The world is full of complex issues. Polarity Management gives helps us plan an effective strategy to manage change. This guide explains polarity management and how you can apply it to manage effective change.
What is Polarity Management: Key Takeaway
Polarity Management is about recognising and balancing the tradeoffs of progress to achieve better outcomes. Instead of trying to “fix” problems, with simple solutions. It focuses on managing the relationships between opposing needs, like rest versus action, to create more sustainable solutions. This approach helps in making progress on issues without getting stuck in the negatives of either side.
Are you struggling with solving problems on your initiatives and projects? Learn about polarity management, the key to balancing tensions and achieving success.
Table of Contents
Defining What is Polarity Management?
Polarity Management is a framework created by Barry Johnson. It is used to identify and handle issues that are not problems with a single solution, but rather sets of opposites that need to be balanced. It involves recognising that many challenges involve managing the trade-offs between interdependent pairs of values or goals, such as stability and change. In order to maximise positive outcomes and minimise negative impacts.
Introduction to Polarity Management
All of us live in social systems: our societies are complex adaptive systems that are ever changing. Social systems face complex and interdependent issues that cause both positive and negative social impact. How often do we try and solve a social problem then end up with the opposite of what we wanted. Polarity management, by Barry Johnson, offers a different approach to problem solving, that can enable us to manage change and transformation.
What Are Polarities?
Polarities are interdependent pairs of characteristics that are often seen as opposites. However in reality they are actually complementary and interrelated. Examples of polarities include stability and change, independence and interdependence, and competition and collaboration. In any given situation or issue, there will be both positive and negative aspects of these polarities. These polarities are particularly common in social issues and human affairs.
Why is Polarity Management Important?
Polarity management is important as we often approach complex issues with a “fix it ” approach. We focus on solving problems rather than managing tensions. We are taught in school that every problem has a solution. Whilst this may be true in certain circumstances when dealing with people and social issues this is rarely the case. This can lead to a narrow focus and limited solutions that misunderstand the problem.
Polarities Explain Why Leadership Planning Often Fails.
Leadership strategy planning tends to focus on creating a logic model to focus on creating a strategy to optimise the business for a single strategy. For example increase efficiency. Polarity Management teaches us that by focusing on efficiency we may cause a problem with it’s polarity creativity and innovation. Meaning the organisation will fail to adapt to it’s customers needs and identify and exploit new opportunities the more that efficiency is focused on.
How a Focus on Plans Often Results in The Planning Stress Cycle
The Planning Stress Cycle is what typically happens if rather than adjust direction. the plan is decided to be sacrosanct and it’s the people that are wrong. The Planning Stress Cycle, is where managers try to fix problems, but end up with new stresses and problems resulting in a failure to adapt to people and the resulting need for a ‘new plan’.
Social and Cultural Changes Often Result in Polarities to be Managed.
In reality, many issues are connected. Social changes by their very nature handle things that are wicked problems. There are tradeoffs between the things we do. If we just focus on the one approach and neglect the tradeoff in many cases we are simply storing problems for the future. Often we find connected to the positive social impacts there are negative ones attached.
What is Polarity Management?
Polarity management is an approach that recognises that many issues are not problems to be solved. Instead they are tradeoffs to be managed. These tradeoffs can be managed by taking actions to maximise the positives of a change. Whilst monitoring that we don’t end up in the negative zone of each polarity.
Why Polarities Are An Important Part of Management
Barry Johnson’s theory suggests that many issues we come across every day can be viewed as polarities. These are interdependent pairs of values or goals that need to be balanced to achieve success. For example, a project may need to balance the polarity of responding to short-term challenges and long-term sustainability. Both are important and need to be managed together to achieve lasting change.
What Happens When You Focus on Only One Polarity.
Polarity Management suggest that fixating on one polarity, at the expense of another builds up problems. Eventually, you end up with the negative social impacts of the focus. Then followed by the negative social impacts of the other polarity. Meaning that focus only on one polarity can result in the downsides of both polarities.
So a focus on too much sustainability over the long term could result in limited innovation, then by burnout and stress. This is as the number of changes have built up and there are now so many things to fix. To maintain a healthy balance we need allow for a fluctuation between the two polarities.
How to Manage Polarities?
1. Identify the polarities
To implement polarity management, projects can start by identifying the polarities. This can be done through dialogue with stakeholders, including the communities they serve.
2. Map the polarities
You can map the polarities by listing the positives of each polarity. Then list the downsides of each polarity.
3. Create actions for the upside of the polarity.
List actions that you can do to move to the upside of each polarity.
4. Create early warning measures of the downsides of each polarity
Find easy to collect measures that will give you fast warning that you are entering into the danger zone of either polarity.
5. Start the actions and monitor the warning signs.
You can either choose to start on one polarity and move to the other later. Or take action on both polarities simultaneously. When you get warning signs of one switch focus to the opposite polarity.
6. Respond to the warning signs.
When you get warning signs of one switch focus to the opposite polarity.
Polarity Management Strategy
Benefits of Polarity Management
Polarity management means we can make progress on both polarities. Whilst minimises the downside of each polarity. The goal is to spend more time in the positive side of the pole and switch track once the negatives start to appear. In this way, a project can create a balanced approach.
This aims to allow the flexibility to maximises the benefits of each polarity. This may involve setting goals, developing strategies. Whilst being on the watch out when we are overextended on one polarity. As well as establishing metrics that measure progress in both areas. So if we want people to get fit we also need to not only for them to exercise more but rest more too. (e.g. as they could get injured)
An Example of Managing a Polarity for a Social Impact Project
A social impact project working to provide education to disadvantaged communities may face the polarity of access and quality. On one hand, the project may want to provide access to education to as many children as possible. On the other hand, they may want to ensure that the education provided is of high quality. By recognising this as a polarity, the project can work to balance both goals. Perhaps by prioritising access in the short term while investing in teacher training to improve quality over time.
If they solely focus on increasing access to as many children as possible, the quality may suffer. (The books get tatty and damaged, some go missing and less focus on the needs of individual children)
Barry Johnston’s Guidance on Polarity Management.
Key Points of Polarity Management (Barry Johnston)
1. Every change effort is part of an infinity loop energy system. Polarity energy is at play.
2. Having all the ‘power” and all the ‘alignment’ in a change effort is not enough to overcome the misdiagnosis of treating a polarity as if it’s a problem to solve.
3.If you want to guarantee the failure of a change effort, tie it to one pole of a polarity.
4. It you want success, tie it to both poles of a polarity. That polarity will always be available to leverage because polarities are indestructible.
Key Points of Polarity Management (Barry Johnston)
Polarity Management Means That Solving One Problem Will Often Create A New Problem.
In most organisations we are told to prioritise and focus on ‘the solution’ to fix the problem. Polarity management suggests that where there is a tradeoff the problems will be stored and up and result in future problems and crises. By focusing on the benefits of both polarities and talking about tradeoffs, rather than solutions. We can better manage success, create buyin and create a culture of collaboration and innovation.
Even Love and Hate Are Polarities That Can Be Managed.
You can even do this with love and hate. Too much love can result in vulnerability, emotional dependence, loss of individuality. In the words of Johnny Rotten ‘Anger is an energy.’ It can make us push away those things that are harming us. It can mean we look after our individuality. Whereas the fear and distrust of too much hate can best be cured by love. It is an accident that the free love movement of the late 60s and early 70s was followed by the angry energy of punk in the mid 70s. Barry Johnstons idea suggest the two were interrelated.
Polarity Management in Leadership Strategy and Decision Making
We can’t predict the future and that is a key reason why leadership plans fail. Polarity Management is a different lens to help us understand the world that let’s us anticipate the consequences of our strategies. It’s great strength is the ability to view and manage tradeoffs that can have a significant impact empowers us to adapt and make changes. It is able to identify and address potential risks before they happen and manages for contingencies. Polarities can be found in almost everything we do. It can be used every day and always delivers fresh insight and avoid and address issues. It has an extraordinary power to help us manage change.
Polarity Management Works Very Well With Other Strategy Tools.
How does Polarity Management help us with leadership and decision making? Polarity Management fits into the Orientate and Decide sections of the OODA Loop. It sits comfortably alongside the Cynefin Framework by Dave Snowden and the Adaptive Cycle Holling (1986, 2001) to both make sense of the information that we see and help plan future actions. I am constantly finding new uses every day for Polarity Management and finding it an exceptional powerful tool.
Polarity Management as a Framework for Social Impact Strategy
There is a very important lesson from polarity management for leaders creating social impact strategy. If you look to create impact, you need to be aware that there will be tradeoffs. Those tradeoffs will increase over time and changes that worked before will lose momentum. If you are dependent on following a plan and ignore the fact that circumstances might change you are most likely dooming yourself to failure or at the very least dealing with endemic problems.
For example the more you look after someone the more dependent they will become. Instead of relying on dead plans we need to give people working on the front line the scope to observe and pivot to keep momentum. If you would like to read more about how to use it in leadership visit my article on Social Impact Leadership and Decision Making here
A Theory Why Does Polarity Management Work?
(These are my own thoughts): We tend to think of scientific systems as being simple cause and effect. However, there is a whole field in mathematics called dynamic systems where things oscillate around attractors. They are never in the same place twice. This is mirrored in complexity science where human systems are seen as ever changing complex adaptive systems. It seems impossible to overlook the similarities with practice of polarity management.
Polarity management starts with the observation that when things are pushed in one direction they will eventually find themselves in the opposite space. As we push things further in that direction the energy and information costs increase to the state that the tradeoffs required get stretched to and beyond their limit. Meaning the energy cost and benefit of changing direction is the only thing that can mean the system can restabilise and continue to exist.
Examples of Polarity Management in Business
Polarity management can be applied in a variety of contexts. Here are some examples:
1. Work/Life Balance
Managing the polarity between work and life is important for individuals to maintain a healthy balance. This can be done by identifying the positive and negative aspects of each polarity and finding a way to balance them.
2. Leadership Styles
Managing the polarity between autocratic and democratic leadership styles. This is important for leaders to find the appropriate balance. This can be done by recognising the benefits and drawbacks of each style and finding a way to balance them.
3. Team Dynamics
Managing the polarity between individual and team dynamics. This is vital for teams to function effectively. This can be done by establishing priorities for each and finding a way
Conclusion
Polarity management offers a great approach to balancing tensions and tradeoffs. By recognising and managing polarities, we can achieve lasting change. To implement polarity management, leaders should identify the polarities within their organisation. Then create a shared vision for success, and build buy-in to overcome resistance to change. With polarity management, social change initiatives in particular can achieve greater impact. Whilst making a more sustainable difference in the communities they serve.
Learn to create change that flows: Discover more at edgeofpossible.com
Other articles on Leadership and Decision Making for Social Impact
Creating Social Projects Making Sense of the World With the Cynefin Framework
The OODA Loop: How to Improve Social Impact Projects.
What is the Best Leadership Style for Great Social Impact Projects
Social Projects: A Complete Guide.
Questions:
What are the polarities that you see in your own work?
Do you know of any other great approaches to recognise and manage tradeoffs?