Knowledge Redundancy Cycles in Complex Mission-Critical Systems

Based on a 20-year, 10-million case study programme of research, 98% of all innovation attempts end in failure. The main aim of the research has been to decode the underpinning, first-principle-driven ‘DNA’ of the 2% of successful attempts. Sitting right at the centre of this DNA is a triad of fundamentals: the need to embrace the dynamics of complex adaptive systems, the need to actively seek out and eliminate compromises and contradictions, and the need for industry domains to periodically unlearn knowledge that has become redundant. The chapter discusses all three of these pillars. Particular attention is paid to the knowledge redundancy topic, where the fact that the life-cycle of knowledge follows distinct, repeating patterns of evolution at meta, macro and microhierarchical levels is demonstrated. The research further demonstrates how organizations can use these patterns to objectively identify redundancy ‘pulse-rates’ and thus objectively manage both the acquisition of required new knowledge and the disposal of knowledge that is no longer fit for purpose. The research shows too that a key aspect of this ‘unlearning’ activity demands that organizational leaders acknowledge and accommodate the very human emotions that accompany change initiatives where the things that define a person’s competence become a hazard to the future success of the enterprise.