Reflection in self-organised systems - Information Systems Foundations: Constructing and Criticising - page 110

level represents the complete system or organisation, which needs to maintain the effect-
iveness of its performance.
Description of process
For an organisational system to be suitable for both self-organisation and reflection, it
needs to have a flat and decentralised structure, individuals need to be able to interact
easily with others, and all parts of the system are necessary and sufficient for the opera-
tion of the whole but are not necessarily required to produce or replicate each other.
The environment also needs to be conducive to reflective learning and cooperation
between the parties. Seibert (1999) suggests the conditions that cultivate this environment
are:
1. autonomy - ample freedom and discretion to structure one's work as one sees fit;
2. feedback - information on the results of one's actions - information is the raw ma-
terial of reflection;
3. interactions with other people, entailing access to others - encounters with skilled
and knowledgeable people; connection to others - at least one caring interpersonal
relationship; and stimulation by others - encounters with people who provide new
ideas and perspectives;
4. momentary solitude - periodic, brief occasions at or away from work to process new
information alone.
Within an organisation that has these attributes, there will be individuals who, at any
particular time, will become aware of a problem, a complex or unusual situation or per-
haps an opportunity for improvement in their line of work. At this point, the individual
conducts an analysis by examining the current situation, challenging their espoused
theory of action, contemplating the ideal outcome and using their own experience and
knowledge as well as knowledge from other sources (if it is reflection-on-action) to
propose viable alternatives. The individual then tests each alternative to arrive at the
optimal solution. The interaction of the individual with the information creates a spatio-
temporal structure that has minimal interference from external sources. The iterative
testing of alternatives within this structure creates a pattern from which cues are emitted
and then perceived by other individuals in the organisation who are pursuing a similar
purpose. The existence of patterns and emission of cues cause unintentional attraction
between the individuals. These cues trigger an emergence of order - the creation of a
cluster based on the common purpose. Within the cluster, links between individuals
are strengthened as they work towards attaining a common meaning assigned to the
problem or a modified purpose of this newly generated system.
This emergence of order initiates the second level. Clusters, based on various meanings
are formed - each has its own purpose. Knowledge and information needs of each cluster
may become part of the internal environment (stigmergy) or may form actual communic-
ation patterns (channels within the organisation) that are used to trigger the coordination
and construction of activities targeting problem solving. Actors within the cluster work
together, reflecting on each other's suggestions and comparing them with the ideal, often
coming to a satisfactory conclusion. However, there may not be sufficient information
available within the cluster, necessitating further exploration - possibly from another
cluster. One important factor to consider, and that is often missed in the self-organising
literature, is that cooperation is a necessary condition for the existence of a social system
and therefore for the presence of clusters. Cooperation facilitates the interaction among
clusters and ensures information flow so that each cluster's issues and concerns are known
across the organisation. Under these conditions, clusters are better informed in a problem