Add post: Stupidity Paradox

content/2024-04-19-Review-Stupidity-Paradox.markdown

@@ -0,0 +1,149 @@
+---
+title: The Stupidity Paradox
+---
+
+This is a review of the book _The Stupidity Paradox_ by Mats Alvession and
+André Spicer which explores the role of functional stupidity in contemporary
+organizations.
+
+The authors' thesis is that functional stupidity is omnipresent, especially in
+large firms, and it has a mix of positive and negative outcomes.
+
+# Stupidity Today
+
+In the first part of the book the authors claim that predictions from the 1960s
+about the arrival of knowledge-based economy still remains a promise.  The
+reality is that only a small fraction of jobs are knowledge-intensive.  In
+fact, contemporary organizations make many smart people do stupid things.
+
+Functional stupidity is the absence of reflection on the purpose or the wider
+context of a job.  You do the job correctly, focusing on the technical details
+but stop searching for questions about the work.  Three aspects characterize
+functional stupidity:
+
+1. _Lack of reflexivity_: You don't think about your assumptions.
+1. _Lack of justification_: You don't ask why you're doing something.
+1. _Lack of substantive reasoning_: You don't consider the consequences or
+   wider meaning of your actions.
+
+Wishful thinking, following leaders without scrutiny, unreasoning zeal for fads
+and fashions, senseless imitation of others and the use of clichés in place of
+careful analysis are examples of functional stupidity.
+
+In organizations a small amount of functional stupidity is beneficial.
+Avoiding difficult conversations can help individuals to suppress their doubts,
+be happy and feel comfortable with ambiguity.  Ignoring negative impulses help
+to get along better with colleagues and provide a steady climb on the corporate
+ladder.
+
+But if people stop asking probing questions and ignore problems for too long,
+functional stupidity can lead to larger problems and disasters.  People grow
+cynical and alienated when they see a large discrepancy between proclaimed
+values and actual work.
+
+# Five kinds of Functional Stupidity
+
+The second part of the book explores five sources of functional stupidity which
+are common in organizations, induced by leadership, structure, imitation,
+branding and culture.
+
+_Leadership-induced stupidity_. When people develop an unquestioning faith in
+their boss and in the magical powers of leadership.
+
+_Structure-induced stupidity_.  Formal processes and structures are required in
+organizations but they don't guarantee quality, reliability and productivity.
+People often blindly trust processes and systems which don't produce the
+results they hope for.  The mixture of senior managers who mainly sit in
+meetings talking to other managers, narrowly focused experts, and routinized
+workers create organizations where rule-following trumps good results.
+
+_Imitation-induced stupidity_.  Managers often adopt structures and formal
+practices that look good and not what makes the organization function more
+efficiently.  This is to create an image which conforms to broadly shared
+expectations of how an organization should be.  But a disconnect between the
+organization's image and its everyday practices lead to frustration, low
+commitment and cynicism.
+
+_Branding-induced stupidity_.  There is a massive overproduction in many parts
+of the economy.  To dispose of this surplus we developed an economy of
+persuasion.  Branding helps to transform the dull job of convincing people
+about things they don't need or want into something that sounds exciting and
+interesting.  But branding activities are often met with indifference and
+cynicism.
+
+_Culture-induced stupidity_.  Corporate culture coordinates people, offers a
+shared sense of purpose, creates a common identity and reduces conflicts and
+confusion.  But culture always includes a degree of functional stupidity.  Most
+organizations foster a culture of optimism, focusing on the present and being
+change oriented.  But when you can't mention bad news you often can't adapt to
+important changes.  If you don't look at the past you cannot learn from it. And
+an organization that drifts from one change initiative to another without real
+benefits becomes self-obsessed and gets harder to get actual work done.
+
+# Stupidity management
+
+Although it's never presented explicitly, stupidity management, that is to
+reduce thinking at work, is an important activity for managers. Again, small
+amount of functional stupidity can be advantageous because too much thinking
+can lead to conflicts, uncertainties, doubts and reduced motivation.
+
+The third part enumerates four ways managers encourage functional stupidity:
+
+* _Authority_: Manager use their formal position in the hierarchy to make
+  subordinates follow polices and orders.  The hope for a reward or the fear of
+  punishment discourages staff from thinking too much.
+
+* _Seduction_: Managers enlist attractive ideas and arrangements to persuade
+  people. It's often about arguing that change is always good and about
+  painting a rosy picture of the future absent of the past and present
+  problems.
+
+* _Naturalisation_: Managers claim that the organization's assumptions, its
+  view of the word, and goals are self-evident, or natural.
+
+* _Opportunism_: Managers buy into questionable trends or actions because good
+  things will follow.  Instead of searching or explaining the purpose of an
+  action they rationalize the doubts.
+
+The closing chapter proposes to fight functional stupidity with _critical
+thinking_: querying assumptions, asking for and being prepared to give
+justification and considering the outcomes and meaning of what we do.
+
+The authors suggest that organizations instead of encouraging only optimism
+they should build up _negative capability_, the ability to face uncertainty,
+paradoxes and ambiguities.  Some steps in this directions are:
+
+* _Post- or pre-mortems_: Take a good look at a failed project and learn from
+  it.  Or, before a project starts try to imagine all possible ways the project
+  could fail.
+
+* *Listening to newcomers and outsiders*: New employees or an external person
+  may point out deficiencies or silly things in your organization that you've
+  grown accustomed to.
+
+* *Reflective routines and anti-stupidity task force*: Regularly stop to think
+  and ask: _Why?_.  Evaluate your projects, structures and processes. Do they
+  make sense? What's their purpose? Perhaps even try to discontinue or cancel
+  an activity or an arrangement.
+
+# Summary
+
+I'd recommend _The Stupidity Paradox_ to everybody who works for any
+organization that employs more than a dozen people.  Functional stupidity --
+characterized by the lack of reflexivity,  lack of justification and the lack
+of substantive reasoning -- is everywhere in today's organizations.  This
+sounds depressing.  Indeed, even the authors are concerned:
+
+> Everyone from CEOs to low-level employees is regularly put at risk of
+> overdosing on stupidity management.  We believe  that this corporate no-think
+> is one of the most urgent, yet most challenging, issues that organizations
+> face today.
+
+But the book also makes the point that inhibiting individual thinking in
+certain cases results in less conflicts, happier work environment and higher
+productivity.
+
+_The Stupidity Paradox_ helps to spot elements of functional stupidity and
+provides some advise how to keep it under control.  In summary, the antidote of
+functional stupidity is critical thinking: reflecting on your assumptions, on
+your actions and on their consequences.