Chaordic Design Process Notes and Narrative - Free

The Chaordic Design Process
Introductory Notes & Narrative
By Thomas J. Hurley
With Joel Getzendanner and Steve Hock
December 2000
Chaordic Design Process Notes and Narrative
Purpose
The First Lens
Definition
The Purpose is a simple statement of the common pursuit of a community. More than
just a conventional mission statement, it identifies that which gives meaning to
participants’ lives and binds them together.
Purpose – In Context
The first step in the chaordic design process is to define, with absolute clarity and deep
conviction, the Purpose of the community.
An effective statement of Purpose will be a clear, commonly understood statement of that

which identifies and binds the community together as worthy of pursuit. To be effective,
it must reach beyond instrumental goals and speak of that which has utmost significance
both for the individuals involved and for the community.
The first step will usually result in a single, powerful sentence. It will express deeply held
personal aspirations and provide a powerful focus for collective intent and enterprise.
Participants will say about the Purpose, “If we could achieve that, my life would have
meaning.”
Work on Purpose is the foundation for everything that follows. The Purpose and the
Principles constitute the fundamental body of belief on which the organization is based.
See pages 33-34 for illustrative statements of purpose from previous chaordic
organizational initiatives.
Processes and Approaches

Honest conversation is the key to arriving at a compelling statement of Purpose. Such
dialogue is based in mutual respect and involves both a willingness to state one’s own
thoughts and feelings clearly and a capacity for listening carefully to the views of others.
Work on Purpose asks participants first to explore, perhaps in ways that go unusually
deep, what is most personally meaningful to them. From these deeply personal statements
of caring, concern and aspiration can emerge a sense of what participants have in
common – a shared concern or aspiration that is significant for the organization,
community or field as a whole.
We have used the following approaches to illuminating deep Purpose, among others:
 The Chaordic Commons 2

Begin with a simple question: Why are you here? Urge participants to speak openly
about the questions, concerns, hopes or curiosity that drew them to be part of the
organization design process, or part of the organization undertaking the process.
Initially, try not to guide participants’ responses; they might answer from a personal
perspective or from an organizational, professional or vocational perspective. Both
are important.
Probe participants’ response using the “five whys”. When individuals respond to the
question “Why are you here?”, gently probe their response by again asking “Why?”
When this is repeated a few times, individuals will often begin to articulate the
deeper, more fundamental dimensions of their commitment, dreams or concern.
Explore participants’ vision of a desirable future. Ask individuals to talk about what
kind of world they want their children and grandchildren to inherit. Have them
describe the role that their organization, field or industry might play in helping bring
that world into being. Alternatively, they might talk about their vision for their own
organization and how it evolves to more fully address the deeper issues they care
about.
Invite participants to tell personal stories that reveal something essential about why
they are involved in the organization, industry or field. These stories often express
truths about the organization’s potential Purpose that would otherwise be difficult to
articulate.
Discuss current and emerging issues and opportunities in the organization, industry
or field. (Sometimes it also helps to consider the evolution of a particular
organization, field or industry.) By identifying critical needs, particularly those that
are emerging or inadequately addressed, participants will begin to articulate different
potential dimensions of a Purpose statement as well as potential Practices.
The processes described above, and others, will provide ample material for developing a
statement of Purpose. As the work continues, we try both to sharpen the inquiry and to
move toward articulation of a statement that captures the essence of what participants
have said.
Specific steps toward articulating a powerful Purpose statement include:
Develop draft statements based on what participants have said. The best statements
will come from participants themselves. Sometimes a single initial statement will be
forthcoming, sometimes two or three will be proposed by different people. We have
even had everyone in a group draft a purpose statement and then read them aloud for
comparison and contrast. Eventually you will want to identify one to work with,
recognizing that it is likely to change radically in the process of review and
refinement.

Aim to clarify the social function served by the organization. Often what is trying to
be achieved is not something new, but rather some basic human activity that has been
organized into many different patterns over hundreds or thousands of years. For
example, Visa didn't change the need for money; rather, it reconceived money as
more than paper, coin and drafts into an electronic medium for worldwide exchange
of monetary value. Similarly, institutions for conflict resolution have been with us
since pre-history, but globalization has outstripped their ability to succeed at local and
global levels simultaneously. Along the same line, the United Religions Initiative
seeks a new way to work on issues of violence, though the underlying need will
persist as long as there is a human race. Whether the challenge is to manage a
commons or produce and distribute healthy food, the purposes of all of the groups
with whom we have worked are focused on an important and abiding social function.
Work toward shared meaning. Carefully probe the meanings associated with every
word and phrase. Participants will invariably be making different assumptions about a
given statement, have different connotations for the same word, place varying
importance on a particular issue or opportunity. Honor these differences, but make
them explicit to the extent possible and work toward a field of understanding and
vision that encompasses them all. A rich exploration of language and its meaning is at
the core of Purpose.
Seek a succinct expression of common concern and shared aspiration. There is

often a tendency, initially, to craft a long statement that encompasses many individual
statements of purpose. Take the time to discern what is most fundamental, especially
when there are two or three potential purposes that seem to compete with one another.
Work on Purpose involves continually exploring the relationship between what is deeply
personal and what is collectively meaningful. This is a lifelong inquiry that will continue
well beyond the chaordic design process. Conclude this phase when participants have
created a statement that everyone agrees is “good enough” for now.
Test a draft Purpose statement by asking: Can you easily imagine all potential
participants identifying with this Purpose as their own?
As the process unfolds, participants will return continuously to the statement of Purpose
and refine it in the light of their emerging understanding of issues and opportunities.
Process Notes
Teams that undertake the chaordic design process are usually diverse, with participants
coming from very different parts of the organization or community. The individuals
involved may not know each other well. Creating a sense of community, developing trust
among participants, and fostering shared meaning are crucial if the enterprise is to
succeed. Without shared meaning and cohesiveness, subsequent work is fraught with
difficulty.

Participants may assume that they know each other well. However, it’s likely that
sustained conversation about Purpose will help them discover assumptions and
preconceptions that have clouded deeper understanding and the discovery of real shared
Purpose – as well as things they simply haven’t known about one another.
Strong feelings, deep emotion and conflict are evoked as participants explore the ideals,
aims and assumptions that underlie their work – as well as their perception of others.
Common experiences during work on Purpose include insight, exhilaration, excitement
and catharsis – but also discomfort, frustration, impatience and a pervasive sense of being
unsettled. In fact, if people don’t become frustrated at some point, they may not have
stretched themselves far enough. Welcoming such experiences can provide an opening to
unexpected insight, mutual understanding and common ground.
Educator Parker Palmer talks about the “great questions” that serve as the focus for
communities of truth. Such “great questions” are not capable of being exhausted. The
Purpose a group seeks is a statement like this – a “great question” that can live at the
heart of an organization. As such, it will be open to endless inquiry and exploration
through practice as the community and its needs, opportunities, technologies, capacities
and knowledge evolve. Over time participants will come, in their living relationship to
the Purpose, more and more fully to experience and understand its richness, depth and
meaning.
The Purpose is not a marketing slogan, or a tag line for the organization, or a preamble
that provides more detailed information on the context and rationale for the enterprise. In
working on a statement of Purpose, participants will often recognize the need for these
and may even produce them, but this work should be kept separate from the work on
Purpose.
Don’t rush through the work on Purpose. The Purpose statement needs to be clear and
robust enough to support the next steps. Eventually it will be a statement that lives at the
heart of the organization, so take the time to develop a field of shared meaning and to “go
deep” individually and collectively.
At the same time, again, recognize when a draft statement is “good enough for now”.
Participants will come back to the work on Purpose over and over as they become more
comfortable with one another, and gain greater insight into their own aspirations as well
as the needs and opportunities in the organization or field.

What You Need For Work on Purpose

A group of diverse individuals representing the full range of relevant and affected
parties.
Willingness by participants to talk honestly about that which matters most to them,
both personally and professionally.
A capacity to listen openly, suspending judgment in order to understand different

perspectives.
Respect for diversity, together with a capacity to discover shared meaning.
Comfort with expressing and acknowledging deep feeling.
Principles
The Second Lens
Definition
Principles are clear, commonly understood statements of how the Participants will
conduct themselves. Individually and collectively, they are the parameters against which
all subsequent decisions, organizational structures and practices will be judged.
Principles – In Context
Once the Purpose has been clearly stated, the next step in the chaordic design process is
to define, with the same clarity, conviction and common understanding, the Principles by
which those involved will be guided in pursuit of that Purpose.
If the Purpose defines a field for the organization’s pursuit, Principles guide
organizational behavior and individual practice and foster success in that field. They
serve as the “organizational DNA” that supports continuous learning, innovation and
emergence.
Principles typically have high ethical and moral content. Developing them requires
engaging the whole person, not just the intellect. The best will be descriptive, not

prescriptive, so that there will be many different ways that Participants in the
organization can embody or practice the Principles.
Taken as a whole, together with the Purpose, the Principles constitute the body of belief
that will bind the community together and against which all decisions and acts will be
judged. They must always be considered as a set, rather than taken in isolation. Each
Principle will illuminate the others. The creative tension among them is a characteristic
feature of chaordic organization.
This phase of the process will result in a set of 10-15 clear, unambiguous statements of
Principle applicable to all activities within the organization or community. These
Principles, along with the Purpose, will be written into the Constitution for the
organization. They serve as binding agreements for all Participants in conducting the
organization’s activities, and directors (or trustees) of the organization will have a
fiduciary responsibility to serve them.
The Principles are crucial for subsequent work on Organizational Concept, as they
provide clear guidelines against which potential approaches to organizational structure
and governance can be tested.
The formal Principles of the Chaordic Commons are listed on page 35. See pages 36-38
for additional illustrative Principles from previous chaordic organizational initiatives.

In developing a set of core Principles, participants will often find it useful to distinguish
principles of organization from principles of practice. For example, the fundamental
Principles of the Chaordic Commons include five principles of organization and five
principles of practice (see page 35).
Principles of organization have to do with the group’s basic beliefs about participation,
self-organization, decentralization, decision-making and related issues. The five
principles of organization for Terra Civitas have been articulated, in slightly different
words, by virtually every organization and group that has worked with The Chaordic
Alliance.
Principles of practice concern the group’s beliefs about leadership, conflict resolution,
organizational culture, social or ecological responsibility, and specific issues of particular
concern to their organization or community. The third, fourth and fifth principles of
practice for Terra Civitas are also common to many groups, which then add others that
are unique to their circumstances.
We have used the following approaches to help groups identify potential Principles:
Examine the Principles of other organizations. Increasingly, groups find starting

with the Terra Civitas Principles a good way to begin their own creative process.

Occasionally they also find it helpful – especially when trying to write a Principle
about a specific issue – to see how other groups have approached the same issue.
Explore basic beliefs about fundamental organizational issues such as power,

fairness and equity, decision-making, diversity, participation, leadership and
accountability. Dissatisfaction with the way these issues are addressed (or not
addressed) in existing organizations often attract participants to chaordic approaches.
Reflect on what Principles are needed to clarify aspects of the Purpose. For
example, the statement of Purpose for Terra Civitas includes the phrase “more
equitable sharing of power and wealth”. The first principle of practice then states,
“Work to ensure that all people, by right of birth, have … an equitable share of wealth
and resources”. The fourth principle of organization states, “Vest authority, perform
functions, and use resources in the smallest or most local part that includes all
relevant and affected parties.” Both of these Principles amplify the Purpose statement.
This exercise helps participants understand the integral relationship between Purpose
and Principles. In the prior work on Purpose participants will often have begun
identifying Principles essential to its realization.
Identify critical issues in the organization, field or community. Fishermen,

environmentalists and others working to create the Northwest Atlantic Marine
Alliance were concerned with the use of technologies that damaged the marine
ecosystem. Governmental and private sector participants forming the GeoData
Alliance knew that data privacy and public access to geospatial data were critical
issues in their field. People participating in the United Religions Initiative recognized
that proselytizing within the organization would doom it. Consequently all of these
groups developed Principles speaking to these issues. When this exercise is first
undertaken, participants will often create a long list of critical issues. As they proceed
to draft potential Principles, they see that some are more fundamental than others – or
that one is a subset of another – and end up with a smaller set.
Identify principles of organizational behavior and individual practice required in

order for Participants to achieve the Purpose. When narrowing the set of Principles
down to a manageable number, it is sometimes possible to imagine the system
spinning out of control, or concentrating power or activity too narrowly, thus limiting
how much can ultimately be achieved. This may indicate that a key Principle is
missing – perhaps something implicit in one that was discarded.
To the extent time allows, invite participants to expand the set of potential Principles. The
process can stand an explosion of possible Principles if participants understand that the
aim is ultimately to develop a small set.
As participants begin to understand what a Principle is – and what it isn’t – they can
begin to reduce the list to a set of necessary and sufficient Principles. Make a disciplined
effort to distill a smaller set of powerful core Principles. There are always additional
principles that could be added, but this should be resisted if they are not essential.

Writing Principles involves the same careful attention to language and to meaning that
writing a statement of Purpose does. Again, carefully probe the meanings, connotations
and assumptions associated with each word and phrase. Invite participants to state a given
Principle in different ways to see if deeper or richer meanings can be articulated.
(The principles of organization for Terra Civitas have been carefully honed through years
of work with a wide range of organizations. We encourage participants to approach them
critically and develop their own formulation, but increasingly groups find them useful.)
Principles of Transition
In some cases, participants may need or want to develop a special set of principles for the
transition from one type of organizational system or structure to another. This is more
likely to happen when working with existing institutions that already have well-defined
or ill-defined relationships, or within a single organization that will be adopting a new
structure or governance system.
During the transition from the pre-existing Bank of America licensing structure to the
formation of Visa, for example, Dee Hock and his colleagues were consciously guided by
several principles concerning the position of banks then involved in the system:
Duplicate levels of management should not be created but that for greater efficiency
and economy, the new organization should combine all existing structures.
Every bank heavily and directly involved should be entitled to voting membership.
Assessments should not exceed the present royalties.
No bank should be financially damaged or otherwise left in a lesser position, as a

result of the reorganization.
The plan must offer enough advantages to gain voluntary acceptance from a majority
of the licensees.
All existing contractual obligations must be honored for any bank that might decide
not to accept the plan.
The unique position of the Bank of America in the system must be recognized,
properly compensated, and its ability to provide sustaining assistance during any
transitional period should be utilized.

Process Notes
Several challenges can arise during the work on Principles. As with Purpose, a group’s
first attempt to articulate Principles may result in platitudes. Potential statements of
Principle may be vague or overly complex. Organizational goal statements may be
confused with Principles.
Such initial efforts are essential but incomplete. Every effort should be made to help the
group clarify its basic beliefs and develop clear, specific statements that can serve as
unambiguous guidelines for decision-making and practice.
The search for core Principles can be challenging in other ways as well. Sometimes
participants will observe that a given Principle will be difficult to implement because of
perceived “current realities” in a particular organization, industry or field. Acknowledge
the potential legitimacy of such observations but do not let them interfere with
articulating Principles that carry real conviction. Encourage participants to relax their
concerns with current practice, legal frameworks or political correctness and to explore
their basic personal values and beliefs about the issue under discussion. The Principles
that participants develop will reveal how bold they are willing to be in committing
themselves and their organization to what they really believe.
Sometimes the key to success is often listening carefully for what participants are trying
to say but have not quite yet articulated. Sometimes the key is noticing that two
seemingly different Principles can be combined in a single statement, or that overly
complex statements in fact represent two distinct Principles.
True Principles are descriptive, not prescriptive. They identify what is to be done but not
how it is to be accomplished. In fact, there are likely to be many different ways of
observing the Principles. Over time, a rich ecology of practice should develop within the
organization, with proven practices proliferating while still allowing ample room for
innovation and experimentation.
How many Principles are enough – and when do you have too many? We sometimes use
a rule of thumb that says, “Create only as many Principles as you can easily keep in
mind”. Participants will continually be working with the entire set, so the total number
should be manageable.
Finally, always remember that the Principles constitute an indivisible set. The creative
tension among apparently contradictory Principles supports a living dynamic of inquiry
and innovative practice.

What You Need For Work on Principles

Clarity about fundamental beliefs and values. Principles are, with Purpose, the
touchstone for the organization and those who participate in it.
Knowledge about critical issues in the organization, industry or field.
A willingness to take a stand. Principles are what Participants refuse to violate in

pursuit of the Purpose.
Rigor in articulating clear and meaningful statements. Effective Principles are not
platitudes. Take care to articulate them carefully enough that they can serve as a basis
for interpretation, for inference, for practical guidance and, when necessary, for
assessment and judgment.
A capacity for transforming conflict. Participants often discover that they have very
different values and beliefs concerning some of the central issues of concern.
Working through these differences toward higher common ground enables
Participants to create a truly unique context for pursuit of the Purpose.

Participants
The Third Lens
Definition
Participants encompass the range of individuals and institutions likely to see the Purpose
and Principles as their own, and empowered to create the organization and guide its
evolution.
Participants – In Context
With clarity about Purpose and Principles, the next step is to identify all relevant and
affected parties – the Participants whose needs, interests and perspectives must be
considered in conceiving (or reconceiving) the organization.
As design team members pursue their work, their perceptions of who constitutes a
stakeholder will typically expand. They now have an opportunity to ensure that all
concerned individuals and groups are considered when a new Organizational Concept is
sought.
Work on Participants typically results in a list of the types (or classes) of individuals or
institutions presently or potentially participating in the organization or community. These
classes may be further divided into sub-classes, or categories, if necessary to distinguish
key groups whose interests and perspectives should be represented in the organization.
Understanding the diversity of individuals and institutions who might participate in the
organization is essential for development of an appropriate Organizational Concept.
Classes and categories of participation are also listed in the Constitution and enable the
specification of distinct rights and responsibilities if necessary or desirable, such as
participation on decision-making bodies, voting rights, record keeping and other
functions.
Work on Participants provides an opportunity to review the Principles by asking, “Do

these Principles represent the values of these parties?” Exploration of all relevant and
affected parties is also likely to stimulate creative thinking about Practices that the
organization might pursue – especially activities that are not possible now because of
constraints on participation.
See page 16 for simple examples of the ways that Participants have been conceived in
previous chaordic organizational initiatives.


The fundamental question being explored in this phase of the process is: Given the
Purpose, who are all of the relevant and affected parties?
Those initiating the chaordic design process will have considered this question at the
outset of the initiative. They will have made an effort to involve a diverse group in the
design process, ideally representing key types of participants from the usually larger
universe of all relevant and affected parties.
At this point, members of the design team take a more disciplined and systematic look at
the question. Work on Purpose and Principles will likely have broadened the group’s
sense of who constitutes a relevant and affected party.
We will typically undertake identification and analysis of Participants as follows:
Identify the individuals, institutions and interest groups already involved in the
organization, industry or field. This sounds straightforward, but it can evoke
breakthroughs as participants relax their conceptions about relevant parties based on
current relationships within existing structures of organization.
Expand the vision of potential Participants by identifying those who may contribute
to, be served by or benefit from the new organization in some way.
Imagine different ways of conceiving and describing all relevant and affected
parties. Groups will usually consider differentiating on the basis of institutional
affiliation, function, sector, interests represented and other bases.
Develop an initial conception of Participants based on the group’s sense of which

approach most meaningfully distinguishes relevant and affected parties with respect
to how they will contribute to realizing the Purpose – and with respect to what
interests need to be balanced to develop an organization trusted by all Participants.
This phase of the chaordic design process, like the prior development of Principles, first
involves creating an expansive set of possibilities and then constraining it as necessary.
Process Notes
After development of Principles, the nature of the work involved in the chaordic design
process begins to change. More detailed analytical attention is paid to the specific
organization or industry. Members of the design team will benefit from having a clear
understanding of why a schema for Participants is being developed.
Classes and categories of participation provide a “doorway” into the organization for
potential participants. Using categories that are recognizable to participants allows

them to self-identify their category of participation and eases entry into an

organization that will be different from anything they have experienced.
Distinguishing different classes and categories also allows assignment of different

rights and responsibilities for each, if necessary or desirable.
Classes and categories serve in designing balanced governance councils and, if

necessary, in articulating guidelines for the formation of sub-units of the organization.
The challenge for members of the design team who are trying to think creatively about
Participants again involves breaking out of pre-existing mindsets and expanding their
conceptions about who constitute the “relevant and affected parties” for the organization,
field or community of concern.
At some point, members of the design team usually recognize that the range of relevant
and affected parties, and thus of potential participants, is much broader than originally
contemplated. The task at that point is to begin “closing the circle” to identify potential
participants essential to realizing the Purpose in accord with the Principles. The particular
approach chosen for categorizing Participants will reflect the team’s sense of what
interests most need to be balanced when designing governance relationships during the
next phase of the process.
Members of the design team should be prepared to modify their initial conception of
Participants as they work on developing an Organizational Concept. For example, the
way they initially thought most appropriate for categorizing Participants may need
revision as they think about how best to comprise a balanced and representative
governance council for the whole.
The insights that occur in this work can be refreshing, even exhilarating, as participants
perceive new connections and become more inclusive in their definitions of community.
The work can also be challenging, even frightening, as participants consider the allowing
what some project participants have called the “devil in their midst”.

What You Need For Work on Participants

Members on the design team who know the “players” in the industry, field or
community well – both as it has been, as it is now, and as it might evolve.
An understanding of the key dimensions of the industry, organization or community

that need to be integrated or balanced more effectively.
A capacity for creative analytical thinking, to enable development of several different

schemas for characterizing the same group of Participants.
A strategic mindset. Think about who constitutes a “critical mass” to launch the new
organization – or who is needed in support of an innovative organizational design.

Illustrative Approaches to Conceiving Participants

(By Function and Importance)
Northwest Atlantic Marine Alliance

Principal Categories
Commercial Fishing
Aquaculture
Processors and Distributors
Consumer
Commercial Recreational
Recreational
Maritime Industry
Related Categories
Marine Support and Supply
Conservation and Environmental
Research and Education
Government
Community Service
Community Alliances for Interdependent AgriCulture
Principal Groups
Grower
Minority Grower
Processor/Distributor
Labor
Consumer
Support Groups
Government
Research/Education
Supplier
Farm Organization
Related Groups
Environmental
Community Service
Social/Economic Justice
Health and Wellness

Organizational Concept
The Fourth Lens
Definition
An Organizational Concept answers the question “How are Participants in the
organizational system related?” It specifies the legal nature of the organization, depicts
potential functional relationships among Participants, and describes governance
processes, including the initial decision-making bodies.
Organizational Concept – In Context

When all relevant and affected parties have been identified, design team members
creatively search for and develop a general Organizational Concept for the organization.
In the light of Purpose and Principles, they seek innovative organizational structures and
relationships that can be trusted to be just, equitable and effective with respect to all
Participants, in relation to all Practices in which they may engage. They usually discover
that no existing form of organization can provide that level of trustworthiness and that
something new must be conceived.
In one sense, an Organizational Concept is the chaordic equivalent of the organization

chart, though it tends to resemble the neurons of the brain or the complex patterns of an
ecosystem rather than a traditional hierarchy. It also includes the key guidelines for
interaction among Participants and for the emergence of new elements in the system.
When the Organizational Concept phase is completed, the design team has several useful
products. They include a description of the organization as a totality, in its systemic
context; initial preferences concerning the legal structure of the organization; a set of
diverse visual images of potential organizational structures, decisions concerning basic
organizational elements and their relationships, and a sketch of the way that governance
bodies will initially be composed.
Prior decisions about Purpose, Principles and Participants will inform development of a
powerful Organizational Concept. Work done in this phase will directly translate into key
sections of the Constitution.

Developing an Organizational Concept typically requires a great deal of creativity,
dialogue and experimentation. It is as much about unlearning our conventional ideas
about organization as it is about creating new ones.
The fundamental questions being explored are:

If anything imaginable were possible, what would be the nature of an ideal

organization to fulfill the Purpose in accord with the Principles?
How do we create an organization that is trusted by all Participants to make decisions

about the innumerable critical issues that exist and will emerge in this organization,
industry or community?
What is the most appropriate legal form for the organization? For profit or nonprofit?
Stock or non-stock? 501c3 or 501c6? Some combination of these – or something else
entirely? What are the strengths and weaknesses of various options? (This subject will
inevitably be revisited in the Constitution phase of the process.)
When working with a single organization, we sometimes find it useful – and invariably
revealing – to have participants begin work on Organizational Concept by drawing their
current organizational structure. In most cases, different individuals will produce very
different pictures of the organization. Exploring these differences, and probing the
relationships depicted, will illuminate many of the issues that participants seek to resolve
in reconceiving the organization.
In an inter-organizational initiative, we typically engage in a similar inquiry. In this case,

the focus is not on the structure of a single organization but on the relationships in an
industry, field or community. Having design team members diagram the dynamics of the
system can provide important information about current challenges, highlight key
Participants, and illuminate the fundamental social function that they are seeking to fulfill
through their efforts. It can also help them begin to imagine innovative systems of
interaction more appropriate to emerging realities.
The point of these explorations of organizational structure and system dynamics is not to
reinforce what already exists but to begin seeing through and beyond it to more potent
organizational possibilities. Consider for a moment four ways of looking at things: as
they were, as they are, as they might become, and as they ought to be. The heart of the
work on Organizational Concept revolves around this fourth perspective. It begins when
team members start to envision new principle-based systems and structures that redefine
relationships among Participants in flexible yet coherent ways. They should be
encouraged to put aside perceived constraints and obstacles, including their
preconceptions of what the law may or may not allow.
For the effort to be most successful, intensive, sustained and creative thought must be
given to specific topics. Some of the more important are:
Nature of ownership
Who will own the organization and its assets?

Will it be owned equitably? How will equity be ensured at the outset and as the
organization grows?
Can ownership be “unbundled” from other forms of participation in the system?
Ownership means different things in chaordic organizations. It tends not to include rights
normally associated with conventional stock ownership, such as proportional control of
the governance structure, rights to liquidate commonly held assets, or perpetual royalties
based on the share of externally invested capital (traditional equity).
Ownership is more likely to involve rights of participation, and access to or use of

common properties. It might imply the right to create new products or services. Owners
(or owner-members) may also have the right to create new parts of the organization in
accord with the Principles.
Value flows and power
Who provides what kinds of value, both monetary and non-monetary, in the
organization, industry or field? How do values flow within the system?
What are the current constraints on an equitable flow of value(s) within the
organization or industry? How could relationships among the Participants be
reconceived to create a system that produces more value for all?
What types of power operate in the system? How are they correlated to value flows?
What other interests or powers need to be integrated and balanced? It can be useful to
think specifically about such issues as separation of powers, distribution of power,
sufficiency of power, and how powers are reserved by or for different Participants.
Structure and self-organization
What are the most elemental “units”1 of organization? What will these entities be
called, and what minimum degree of diversity must they have to reflect Purpose and
Principles? Will they be compromised of individuals, institutions or both? What will
their obligations be?
What is a clear and complete way to describe the different kinds of participants
among which power needs to be balanced? Will some have different rights and
obligations?
1
Borrowing from the complexity sciences, we often use the term “fractal” to refer an organizational
component of chaordic organizations, especially the elemental units. Fractals will be embedded within or
connected to the system, and they embody the same fundamental rights and obligations (Purpose and
Principles) among their members as the organization of which they are part. Each fractal has the full
authority of the whole in undertaking its operations and has the right to pursue any activity congruent with
the Purpose and Principles.

Will the initial organizational units or levels be geographically defined? Defined by

function, interest or subject matter? Some combination of these? Should rights or
duties vary depending on whether they are geographically based, functionally based
or based on interests?
May these units join one another, and what will be consequences, if any, of doing so?
How does the organization scale – that is, how can larger entities self-organize as
functions or governance encompass larger domains? How do entities at different
levels form, grow, change, and combine?
Governance
A central challenge of the Organizational Concept phase involves imagining the

collection of bodies and methods through which participants will set policies for
themselves, commit to joint action, or resolve issues. Chaordic organizations will have
multiple centers of governance, none of which could be described as dominant. Important
questions abound:
Who will participate in governance of the organization? What are the respective
rights and responsibilities of participants in the organization, whether individuals,
institutions, self-organizing entities, governing councils or others?
Does the organization have sufficient powers to make, implement and enforce
decisions involving the needs of the system? These powers should rest in a board (or
council) small enough to work efficiently, yet large enough to represent all relevant
and affected parties.
Is the governance body responsible for stewardship of the whole appropriately

representative of all Participants? What is the optimal size and composition of that
body, if it is to balance all relevant and affected parties?
How will members of the board be determined (a) at minimum composition, (b) as
the board grows and (c) at maximum composition? How are seats on governing
councils filled – by appointment, election or some other method?
What will be the powers and responsibilities of the board, and what voting or other
requirements will apply to the board’s exercise of its powers and responsibilities?
What express limitations should be placed on powers of the board and reserved to
participants?
Should the organization’s members, owners or participants have the ability to amend
any parts of the concept that become part of the Constitution without board approval?
If so, what parts and by what degree of agreement?

(Knowing the kinds of issues that must be addressed in the Constitution will guide
detailed consideration of certain aspects of Organizational Concept.)
As design team members work through these and related questions, they are searching for
a way to conceive initial conditions for the organization so that it grows and evolves in
ways consistent with its Principles – without dictating how that development is to occur,
and allowing organizational structure to be emergent.
A frequently recurring challenge during the Organizational Concept phase is the tendency
of design team members to attempt to envision and provide for every issue and
permutation that may arise as the organization evolves. This is a futile exercise, for in a
truly self-organizing, self-governing organization the possibilities are infinite. It is
important for members of the design team to recognize that the Organizational Concept is
not a set of “rules” tailored to imagined scenarios, but rather creation of an initial
governance structure and set of rights of responsibilities that will be trusted by
participants to be responsive to a multitude of unforeseeable events in accordance with
the Purpose and Principles.
We use visualization tools extensively during the Organizational Concept phase of the
chaordic design process. Drawing materials, three-dimensional modeling tools, and other
creativity aids can help participants conceive innovative organizational relationships and
envision the organization’s potential evolution.
The figures starting on page NN illustrate a few of the images that we have used in
organizational design initiatives.
Process Notes
The first three phases of the chaordic design process form the foundation for creating an
innovative Organizational Concept. Work on Concept requires constant checking against
Principles and careful consideration of Participants, in particular. Both are often refined
during this phase of the process.
Preliminary thinking about Practices may also be helpful, especially if it illuminates the
need for a Concept flexible and adaptive enough to encompass a wide range of potential
activities. In general, developing an Organizational Concept involves continually:
Refining a new vision of the relationships among Participants
Identifying and letting go of conventional assumptions about organizations
“Unbundling” concepts of ownership, participation and value
Deepening the inquiry into the organization’s essential social function
Seeking higher level solutions to the creative tensions that will inevitable arise

Exploring different organizational forms of organizational structure – hub structures,

cooperatives, business webs, syndication networks, the open source movement and others
– can be useful. Participants will typically discern features they seek in an Organizational
Concept and limitations they aim to avoid.
As part of unbundling process, some groups find it useful to differentiate reasons that
Participants might join together and then begin to imagine different ways those activities
could be undertaken and related. We sometimes distinguish:
Councils — Where people come together to make decisions that are potentially
binding on them all. Conventional corporations make decisions through boards of
directors and hierarchical power structures, but many other approaches might be
possible and appropriate.
Commons — Where people come together to share a resource that is either naturally
occurring or brought into being through human effort. Are there ways to own
common properties that are fair and that avoid negative incentives?
Enterprises — Where people come together to complete tasks or divide labor

efficiently and effectively. What form do enterprises take when principles of self-
organization are faithfully applied?
Communities — Where people come together, because that’s what people do, for
identity, meaning, nurturing and companionship.
These notions are not mutually exclusive. Options abound for how these different forms
of activity can be pursued in complementary ways. Communities may have one or more
councils, one or more commons, and one or more enterprises. Commons are may have
one or more councils, several enterprises, and one or more communities. Councils may
involve one or more communities, enterprises or commons. Enterprises are almost certain
to include all three. We encourage design team members to explore what an organization
starts to look like if Participants have the freedom to organize themselves in the most
productive ways they can find.
Every organization is unique – and an Organizational Concept most fully empowering its
Participants to realize Purpose in accord with Principles will also be unique. At the same
time, certain perspectives will tend to characterize the structure and functioning of
chaordic organizations. The organization will be:
Inclusive. The organization will be open to all who subscribe to its Purpose and
Principles in conducting the organization’s activities.
Multi-centric and distributive. There will be no single center of power – they will be
everywhere. The smallest or most peripheral parts of the organization will retain the
most power.

Self-organizing and self-evolving. The organization will grow through self-

organization rather than through a centralized command-and-control process. Every
aspect of the organization will be subject to change as the whole evolves.
Participant-owned and participant-governed. Participants will govern themselves

and the parts of the network in which they participate. Any central board or council
will be responsible only for those few decisions that concern the whole of the system.
Diverse and adaptive. In a chaordic organization, there will be very few constraints
on innovation and experimentation. Rich collaboration can occur and competing
strategies can be pursued simultaneously. Good ideas will be able to spread rapidly,
while bad ideas are likely to be choked off before they do much damage.
Strongly cohesive, with an unshakable focus on common purpose and core

principles. The overarching Purpose and core Principles of a chaordic organization
are the basis for its enabling structures, which will allow Participants to pursue
tremendously diverse Practices in a context of evolving agreement about issues that
are fundamental to the whole.
Every choice concerning Organizational Concept will involve trade-offs. Recognizing

this and being conscious of the choices that are being made – and their implications – will
improve the likelihood that the organization will engender genuinely new possibilities.
Participants’ trust in the organization will derive in large part from their confidence that
organizational structure embodies the Principles that have been articulated. This involves
carefully harmonizing the creative tensions among each and every part, and between
different levels, within the organization. It is this balancing of creative tensions that
ensures a chaordic organization’s integrity and fosters its distinctive, dynamic balancing
of self-organization and organizational coherence.
A danger during this phase of the chaordic design process is to leap to the first
Organizational Concept that emerges. Groups rarely get a Concept “just right” on their
first pass. To one extent or another, it is likely still to embody certain habitual ways of
thinking about organization.
Even the Concept that is eventually developed will evolve over time. The Constitution
must allow a way for changes in the Organizational Concept – membership classes and
categories, or the size and composition of governance bodies, for example – to be
modified by participants.
Finally, we encourage design team participants – during work on Organizational Concept

– not to worry how they’re going to explain it. That’s a task they can tackle later!

What You Need For Work on Organizational Concept

An ability to think abstractly
Creative imagination concerning new organizational forms
A willingness to examine unconscious assumptions and a capacity for “unlearning”
The courage to embody fundamental values and beliefs – as expressed in Principles –

in binding organizational structures
Tolerance for ambiguity and uncertainty
Constitution (Binding Agreements)

The Fifth Lens
Definition
The Constitution is a civil contract among participants in the organization. It spells out
their rights and responsibilities, establishes the initial decision-making and governance
bodies and provides a framework for self-organizing growth and evolution of the
organization to occur.
Constitution – In Context
Once the Organizational Concept is reasonably clear, the organizational structure and
functioning are expressed in a written Constitution (by-laws) or other binding agreement
appropriate to the organizational form. Charter agreements can also be developed for
initial participants in the new organization, if necessary.
Work during this phase results in a set of documents that refine and incorporate, with
precision, the substance of the previous steps. They will embody Purpose, Principles and
Concept; specify rights, responsibilities and relationships of all participants; and establish
the organization as a legal entity in an appropriate jurisdiction. Involvement of expert
legal counsel is required.

Developing a Constitution – a carefully articulated agreement that will be legally binding

– usually involves refining prior work on Principles, Participants and Organizational
Concept. Initial decisions about certain aspects of the Organizational Concept, in
particular, are likely to receive intensive scrutiny and to be tested against all other
decisions that have been made. The Organizational Concept is often simplified and made
more coherent during this phase.
The Constitution is the legal foundation for the organization. Once adopted, it is the
framework guiding trustees, management, staff and participants in pursuit of the Purpose,
and enables self-organization and evolution of the organization.
The box on page NN includes a generic sample Table of Contents for a Constitution to
provide an overview of the topics addressed.

Writing a Constitution will require the involvement of legal counsel. We recommend that
legal counsel be engaged no later than the Organizational Concept phase, and that
counsel participate in at least the last meeting concerning Organizational Concept in
order for counsel to be better prepared for work on the Constitution. In some cases, it is
advisable to retain counsel earlier for advice on specific legal issues (if, for example,
antitrust issues arise in the course of an inter-organizational initiative.)
We strongly recommend working with lawyers familiar with chaordic concepts and
experienced in writing Constitutions and other legal documents based on them. Most
lawyers, by training and experience, are accustomed to thinking and working solely in the
context of hierarchical, command and control organizations, and they often have
difficulty understanding concepts of chaordic organization and preparing organizational
documents based on those concepts.
We also recommend working intensively with a much smaller group drawn from the
design team during this phase. The full design team – or those leading the strategic
change initiative – can designate a group of 2-4 individuals to be responsible for the
careful, detailed work of reviewing drafts of the Constitution and resolving any issues
that arise.
Sometimes existing Constitutions, including the Constitution we have written for the
Chaordic Commons, can serve as a template for a group’s first draft. The kinds of topics
to be addressed in a Constitution are illustrated in the box on page 4.
When the Constitution drafting team meets, having received a draft Constitution for
review ahead of time, we explore with them such general questions as:
Does the Constitution accurately embody the work done by the design team on
Purpose, Principles, Participants and Organizational Concept?

Does the Concept as it is expressed in the Constitution accurately embody the

Principles, especially with respect to such issues as the right of self-organization, the
distribution of power, and decision-making?
Can the Organizational Concept be streamlined, to resolve inconsistencies,

unnecessary complications or flaws?
Has the organization been given sufficient powers to make, implement and enforce
decisions involving the needs of the system, to balance participants’ right of self-
organization?
In our experience, writing a Constitution always provides opportunities to refine the

organizational concept – if the task is approached with attention to detail and a
commitment to embodying the Principles as fully as possible. At least two and often
more drafts are required to identify and work through all the issues that are likely to arise.
In addition to the general issues just mentioned, a variety of more specific questions will
require very careful thought during this phase. Some will have been addressed, at least in
part, in prior conversations; others will not have been. They include such questions as:
What common properties will the organization and its participants hold? How will
intellectual property be treated?
Who has the right to admit or terminate participants? What specific rights and
responsibilities do participants have? Who is responsible for oversight of participants’
activities, and on what grounds can participation be terminated?
What are the specific rights and responsibilities of the board of directors (or trustees)?
What protections are in place against the inappropriate centralization of power and
authority?
What aspects of the organization or its Constitution should be relatively easy to

change? What should be difficult to change? Who has the right to make such changes,
and what level of agreement should it take to do so? For example, what percentage of
votes (by directors or members) are required to modify Purpose or Principles; change
the classes or categories of participation; alter the composition of the board of
directors; amend other Constitutional provisions; etc.?
In what state should the organization be incorporated, to allow the concept to be most
fully realized? This is a key decision, because state corporate laws differ, and the
laws of some states are more favorable to chaordic organization that others. The
decision concerning an appropriate jurisdiction should be made in conjunction with
legal counsel with expertise in chaordic organization.

Prepare to undertake two or three revisions of a draft Constitution. Each draft should
narrow the number of issues requiring careful thought and creative solutions, but new
issues may arise along the way.
Sample Table of Contents for Constitution
Article I Purpose and Principles

Article II Classes and Categories of Members
Article III Eligibility for Membership
Article IV Applications for Membership
Article V Admission of Members
Article VI Termination of Membership
Article VII Sizes and Compositions of Council
Article VIII Primary Functions of Council
Article IX Appointment and Election of Council
Article X Powers and Responsibilities of Council
Article XI Rights and Responsibilities of Members
Article XII Officers and Staff
Article XIII Decisions and Voting Requirements
Article XIV Miscellaneous (For example, annual and special meeting
dates, record dates and notices; allowable means of
communication and voting, including proxies; nature of
fiduciary duties of trustees on Councils; etc.)
Process Notes
When work on a Constitution begins, the chaordic design process is nearing its
conclusion. At this point, some participants will be eager to begin implementing the
Organizational Concept, undertaking innovative activities to realize Purpose in accord
with Principles. Occasionally there will be questions about whether a Constitution is
really necessary, or about how much time and attention to give this phase of the process.
We believe it is essential that the design work be embodied in a legally binding

agreement – and that it be done with legal counsel familiar with chaordic concepts.

Unless a sound and binding legal framework is established to reinforce the creative work
done in conceiving a new organization, participants tend – despite their best intentions –
to revert to more habitual forms of organizational behavior. In addition, unless
established as a legal entity, the organization will be unable to engage in such basic acts
as contracting, owning trade or service marks, acquiring other properties, making
decisions, and innumerable other activities necessary to function effectively in pursuit of
the Purpose.
Without experienced legal counsel, the work done in the earlier phases of the process will
not be accurately represented in the Constitution. If you encounter constraints on some of
the organizational innovations you might like to implement, lawyers experienced with
chaordic organization are likely to be more helpful in finding creative solutions and ways
to expand the perceived limits of current legal thought and practice.
Fundamentally, the Constitution provides a vehicle for self-organization, self-governance

and a framework for cooperative action. It puts Purpose and Principles at the foundations
of the organization and clearly articulates the work on Organizational Concept. It
establishes the framework that allows the organization to evolve. Taking the time and
incurring the expense to do it right will help minimize the likelihood of difficulties,
including potential legal liabilities, as the Organizational Concept is implemented and the
organization evolves.
What You Need For Work On Constitution

A small group of 2-4 individuals knowledgeable about the work to date who have
been given responsibility seeing it embodied in the Constitution.
Expert legal counsel familiar with chaordic concepts and experienced in writing legal
documents based on them.
Sharp analytical thinking skills.
Sensitivity to nuances of the relationship between Principles and Organizational

Concept as they are formally embodied in a legal framework for the organization.
Commitment to ensuring that the Constitution fully embodies work done by the
design team on Purpose, Principles, Participants, and Organizational Concept.

Practices
The Sixth Lens
Definition
Practices are the activities, products and services through which the Participants pursue
the organization’s Purpose and create value. The possibilities are infinite, so special
attention is placed on Practices that cannot be achieved without a new organization, or
those that are essential to making the organization a coherent yet flexible working whole.
Practices – In Context
With clarity of shared Purpose and Principles, the right Participants, an effective Concept
and a clear Constitution, Practices will naturally evolve in highly focused and effective
ways. They will harmoniously blend cooperation and competition within a transcendent
organization trusted by all. Purpose is then realized far beyond original expectations, in a
self-organizing, self-governing system capable of constant learning and evolution.
Work on this dimension of the chaordic design process results in a prioritized list of
Practices or activities that the new organization – or its members – might undertake.
When the work takes place within a single organization, rather than inter-
organizationally, the focus is often on innovative approaches to collaboration that cross
established boundaries or on activities that help the organization redefine itself by
engaging a much broader community of participants.
Work on Practices usually occurs throughout the chaordic design process, almost as a
counterpoint to other phases. Skillfully done, without prematurely narrowing
participants’ focus to a small set of activities, it can illuminate the search for a powerful
Purpose, compelling Principles, an inclusive definition of Participants and an innovative
Organizational Concept.

We have found simple and straightforward questions to be most useful when inviting a
group to identify potential practices. In this realm, the creative intelligence of the design
team – or any others involved in the process – is typically hungering to be liberated.
We will initiate the exploration of Practices with such questions as:
What are we currently doing that we want to do better, more effectively or more
efficiently?

What opportunities do we envision that we cannot currently pursue? These may be

opportunities to collaborate in new ways, or they may be new activities that take the
organization into entirely new areas.
What kinds of innovative Practices or activities are required by current or emerging

trends in our community, field or industry?
What critical functions are necessary to ensure organizational coherence while

fostering self-organization on the part of all participants?
Having identified a diverse set of potential Practices, most groups find it useful to
prioritize them. A variety of approaches can used. Sometimes a simple list is adequate. A
complementary approach involves categorizing Practices using a matrix such as the
following:
Potential Can be done by Requires some mid- Must be done

smaller parts level coordination collectively
Practices
Must do
Adds significant value
Nice to do if possible
Exercises such as this are most effective if the choices do not become overly complex. At
this point, the aim is not detailed organizational planning but clarification of that which
needs priority attention – and by whom – if the new organizational design is to be
implemented effectively.
Actually undertaking the Practices identified during the chaordic design process is not a
formal dimension of the process itself, except to the extent that activities occurring while
the design process is underway can usefully illuminate the work on Purpose, Principles,
Participants or Organizational Concept.
Yet it is vital that the organization be supported during launch and implementation of the
new Concept – and new Practices – to ensure that habitual patterns of organizational
behavior do not reassert themselves. The notes in Tab NN discuss additional phases of
organization development and transformation that must be encompassed by any
comprehensive change initiative.

Process Notes
Conceptually, making Practices the sixth lens of the chaordic design process is both
pragmatic and provocative. Most importantly, it emphasizes the importance of beginning
with Purpose and Principles. It also enables creative thinking about Organizational
Concept without participants focusing on a single business objective and organizing only
to do that. If any are inclined to do so, it serves as a spur to examine the assumptions
underlying ordinary approaches to business development and organization design.
Practically, however, we often find it useful to engage design team participants in

thinking about potential Practices throughout the chaordic design process. This can be
done more or less formally, depending on the needs of the group at any given point.
Sometimes, for example, a simple brainstorming exercise might be helpful as participants
are working on Purpose or Participants. At other times, a more sustained effort can be
made to help capture important ideas or strategies that emerge.
Learning by doing can also inform the design process. In working in an existing
organization, the experience gained from actually trying things out can be very
informative for those involved in conceiving or reconceiving the organization. This can
also be the case if participants in an emerging organization are already undertaking initial
activities in parallel with the organization design effort.
Sometimes the hardest thing for participants to grasp with respect to Practices is the
nature of the entity they are trying to create. Chaordic organizations, especially when
they involve inter-organizational participation, are fundamentally enabling entities. They
are primarily designed to help participants to do things for themselves, and easily to join
with one another to pursue common purposes. Core staff will tend to be responsible
primarily for functions that are common to the whole. These might include:
Coordinating participants’ activities so they support and enrich one another, and
creating synergies by fostering connections among participants.
Managing any common properties, such as a shared technology infrastructure for

communication and collaboration.
Educating participants about the nature of and potentials for self-organization in a

chaordic organization.
Nurturing the capacity of the whole by helping grow capacities for leadership and
innovation among participating individuals or institutions.
In a chaordic organization – an enabling entity – understanding the implications of the

right to self-organization is key to thinking strategically about Practices. In effect,
participants have a right to create new parts of the organization or network, to pursue
specific aims, as long as they do so in ways conforming to the core Purpose and
Principles. These self-organizing “fractals” are a microcosm of the whole and carry the

full power and authority of the whole in exercising their chosen function. They are the
entities through which most of the work of the organization will actually be done.
Most participants will focus on Practices that address immediate challenges and
opportunities within their current sphere of concern. Over time, as greater possibilities for
connectedness become apparent, they may create more far-reaching initiatives and
enterprises. In forming fluid connections with others to pursue specific aims, however,
they give up no freedom or autonomy except that required for organizational coherence.
The common elements of the Constitution guarantee it.
What You Need For Work on Practices

Familiarity with the current structure of the organization, industry or field.
Sensitivity to trends that are or will be impacting the organization or industry.
A keen eye for emerging opportunities.
An entrepreneurial mindset and a willingness to take risks.
Leadership – individuals willing to “go first and show the way”.

Statements of Purpose
From Selected Chaordic Organizational Initiatives
Use the following statements to reflect on what contributes to an effective statement of

Purpose and on your own fundamental commitments or concerns.
Appleseed Foundation
To effect and enable constructive systemic change leading to a more just, equitable and
sustainable society.
Community Alliances of Interdependent AgriCulture
To enable people to create food and farming systems that improve and sustain ecological,
economic and social health through systemic, community-based, self-organizing
governance.
GeoData Alliance
To foster trusted, inclusive processes to enable the creation, equitable, effective flow and
beneficial use of geographic information.
La Leche League (draft / in process)
To realize, deepen, and share the love and wisdom inherent in breastfeeding.
To restore and enhance an enduring Northwest Atlantic Marine System supporting a

healthy diversity and abundance of marine life and human uses through a self-organizing
and self-governing organization.
Society for Organizational Learning
To discover, integrate, and implement theories and practices for the interdependent
development of people and their institutions.
Technical Cooperation Network
TCNetwork is a global community of technical assistance providers committed to mutual

support, accountability, and excellence. Our purpose is to foster sustained improvement
of health care services through better management and leadership. TCNetwork increases
accessibility for clients and donors to quality technical assistance provided by effective,
well-managed and locally-owned members of this community.

United Religions Initiative
To promote enduring, daily interfaith cooperation, end religiously-motivated violence

and create cultures of peace, justice and healing for the Earth and all living beings.

Formal Principles of the Chaordic Commons
In pursuit of the purpose, each and every part of the Chaordic Commons will abide by the
following principles in conducting Chaordic Commons activities.
Principles of Practice
1. Work to ensure that all people, by right of birth, have adequate necessities of life,
including clean air, water, food and shelter; an equitable share of wealth and
resources; and opportunity to develop their full physical, mental and spiritual
potential.
2. Work to ensure that human capacities, technologies and organizations sustain and
support, not systemically alter, degrade or destroy, the Earth, its diversity of life or
life support systems.
3. Work to ensure interdependent health and diversity of individuals, communities,

institutions, cultures and other life forms.
4. Resolve conflict creatively and cooperatively without physical, economic,

psychological, social, or ecological violence.
5. Freely and fully exchange information relevant to the purpose and principles unless
doing so violates confidentiality or materially diminishes competitive position.
Principles of Organization
1. Be open to membership by any Individual or Institution subscribing to the purpose
and principles in conducting activities of Terra Civitas and the Chaordic Commons.
2. Have the right to self-organize at any time, on any scale, in any form, for any activity
consistent with the purpose and principles.
3. Conduct deliberations and make decisions by bodies and methods that reasonably
represent all relevant and affected parties and are dominated by none.
4. Vest authority, perform functions, and use resources in the smallest or most local part
that includes all relevant and affected parties.
5. Educe not compel behavior, to the maximum degree possible.

Illustrative Principles From “Chaordic” Organizations
Each of the organizations listed below has a complete set of principles that include both
principles of organization and principles of practice. The following principles illustrate
both the types of issues that different organizations have chosen to address in their
principles and, in some cases, alternative ways of phrasing principles that address the
same issue.
GeoData Alliance
• Conflict will be resolved creatively, cooperatively, and constructively.
• Standards essential to achieve the purpose in accord with the principles will be
established and implemented.
• Innovation is essential to achieve the purpose, will be encouraged, and should be

fairly rewarded.
• Each and every part of GDA will protect the privacy and confidentiality of personal
information and sensitive geographic information.
• Geographic information and technologies will be used to improve the health of our
communities, our economies, and the Earth.
Identity Commons
• Enable participants to protect identity, relationships, and private information from

unwanted monitoring, intrusion, disclosure or use.
• Work to ensure that technologies used as part of the IC system are interoperable with
one another.
• Work to ensure that no member obtains an intrinsic advantage in the Identity

Commons system.
• Work to ensure that voting rights and membership fees are derived from a common
formula based on each member’s contribution to the IC system.
La Leche League
• Make room for family.
• Be mutually affirming, supporting, and accountable.

• Remain coherent and disciplined as a whole.
• Encourage practices, behaviors and uses of technology that are consistent with the
purpose and principles and control practices, behaviors and uses of technology that
are inconsistent with the purpose and principles.
• Deliberate and make decisions using current and objective knowledge and
information derived from scientific methods and practical experience.
• Maintain the highest standards of credibility and ethical conduct, fair and accurate
dissemination of information, and full disclosure and accountability for its affairs.
Patient Safety Institute
• Individually identified data must remain the property of that individual and must not
be disclosed or disseminated to others without that individual’s consent.
• Any data accessed for the development of improved health or patient safety must be
de-identified and remain under the control of PSI.
• PSI will be designed and will function to enable and enhance community-based
collaboration for improved health and patient safety.
Society for Organizational Learning
• Subsidiarity - Make no decision and perform no function at a higher or more central

level than can be accomplished at a more local level.
• Inclusiveness - Conduct all deliberations and make all decisions by bodies and
methods which reasonably represent all relevant and affected parties.
• Shared Responsibility - Advance the Purpose in accordance with these Principles in

ways which enhance the capacity of the community as a whole, as well as that of each
member.
• Openness - Transcend institutional and intellectual boundaries and roles that limit or
diminish learning.
• Adaptive Governance - Continually conceive, implement, and practice governance

concepts and processes which encourage adaptability, diversity, flexibility, and
innovation.

• Intellectual Output - Use research generated by the community in ways that most
benefit society.
• Acknowledgment - Openly and fairly acknowledge intellectual contributions to

Concepts, Theories, and Practices, both from within and from outside the community.
• Participation & Quality - Contribute to and/or participate in research, capacity

building, and practice, striving for the highest standards of quality.
Technical Cooperation Network
• Remain committed to understanding and fostering sustained improvement of the

quality of the health and well-being of the communities we serve.
• Work in ways that are mutually beneficial to clients, donors, and ourselves as
technical assistance providers.
• Maintain the highest standards of professional integrity, accountability, and

performance quality.
• Use knowledge already available and contribute to the body of scientific,

professional, and practical knowledge in adding value for clients and other
stakeholders.
• Nurture the next generation of technical assistance providers to meet the quality
expectations of clients and development partners.
• Maximize opportunities to participate, benefit, and contribute among existing and

new members.
United Religions Initiative
• We have the responsibility to develop financial and other resources to meet the needs
of our part, and to share financial and other resources to help meet the needs of other
parts.
• We maintain the highest standards of integrity and ethical conduct, prudent use of
resources, and fair and accurate disclosure of information.
• We are committed to organizational learning and adaptation.

Sample Organizational Concept Diagrams
W e have found that one way of communicating new and complex organizational
concepts is with graphical images. The goal is to be very clear about what each of
the component parts means — lines, shapes, colors — and keeping it simple. That
simplicity can then give rise to complex, organic-looking images. A few early examples
follow.
Covering Geography Areas with Organizational “Fractals”
CA
CA GA
GA
CA GA RA
GA GA
SA
FSA
CA
CA
GA
CA
RA
GA
GEODATA
INITIATIVE
CA GA
CA
RA
GA
GA
GA

Composition of a Governing Council
A
A A
A A A A
A
Venture Capital A
GeoData
Start-Up
A A Group League
Global Businesses A
Socially Community
A NGOs A A
Responsible
League
Business A
A
Alliance A
A
A A
A
Alliance
A of Cities A A
Appleseed
Fdn League A A
COMMONS Regional
Governance
A
COUNCIL A League
A A A A
Staff
United NAMA
A Religions A A
League
A
Initiative
Renewable
A
Energy A
A
A Alliance
Infrastructure
Company
A A
A A
A A A
A
Conservation
Health Alliance
Philanthropy
A A A A
A Care A
Alliance A League
A
A
Agriculture
A A
Education A League A A
League
A
A
Society Potential Participants
for Org.
Learning For Illustrative Purposes Only
Multi-Institutional Governance Overlaps
Relationship of
Terra Civitas Councils
Resource Development
Commons Coordinating
Commons
Council Director Council
Min 15 / Max 28 Min 15 / Max 28
Man. Man.
Dir. Dir.
Advisory
Council
Max 13
Man. Man.
Dir. Dir.
Implementation Dissemination
Commons Commons
Council Council
Min 15 / Max 28 Min 15 / Max 28
Four Initial Councils

Balanced Representation of All Member Origins, Shared Trustees,
An Advisory Council With No Formal Power, and Staff

Interconnectedness Among Organizational Elements
GeoData Alliance
CA
A highly interconnected, fluid CA

network of Individuals, Institutions
and Alliances brought together in MCA
relation to place and / or issues of NA
common concern. CA
CA
CA
CA
CA CA
MCA
MCA
CA
CA
CA CA
CA
CA
Council of
MCA CA
Trustees
NA CA
CA 28 Trustees on the Council are elected by
CA
General Members and by Alliances. Two At Large
Members are selected by the Council itself. The
Executive Director also serves as a Trustee.
“Unbundling” an Organization

Conceiving Boundary Conditions

Chaordic Design Process Notes and Narrative - Free

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Chaordic Design Process Notes and Narrative - Free

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The Chaordic Design Process

Introductory Notes & Narrative

An effective statement of Purpose will be a clear, commonly understood statement of that

Processes and Approaches

 The Chaordic Commons 2

Specific steps toward articulating a powerful Purpose statement include:

 The Chaordic Commons 3

 Seek a succinct expression of common concern and shared aspiration. There is

 The Chaordic Commons 4

 The Chaordic Commons 5

What You Need For Work on Purpose

 A capacity to listen openly, suspending judgment in order to understand different

 Respect for diversity, together with a capacity to discover shared meaning.

 Comfort with expressing and acknowledging deep feeling.

 The Chaordic Commons 6

Processes and Approaches

 Examine the Principles of other organizations. Increasingly, groups find starting

 The Chaordic Commons 7

 Explore basic beliefs about fundamental organizational issues such as power,

 Identify critical issues in the organization, field or community. Fishermen,

 Identify principles of organizational behavior and individual practice required in

 The Chaordic Commons 8

 Assessments should not exceed the present royalties.

 No bank should be financially damaged or otherwise left in a lesser position, as a

 The Chaordic Commons 9

 The Chaordic Commons 10

What You Need For Work on Principles

 Knowledge about critical issues in the organization, industry or field.

 A willingness to take a stand. Principles are what Participants refuse to violate in

 The Chaordic Commons 11

Work on Participants provides an opportunity to review the Principles by asking, “Do

 The Chaordic Commons 12

Processes and Approaches

We will typically undertake identification and analysis of Participants as follows:

 Develop an initial conception of Participants based on the group’s sense of which

 The Chaordic Commons 13

them to self-identify their category of participation and eases entry into an

 Distinguishing different classes and categories also allows assignment of different

 Classes and categories serve in designing balanced governance councils and, if

 The Chaordic Commons 14

What You Need For Work on Participants

 An understanding of the key dimensions of the industry, organization or community

 A capacity for creative analytical thinking, to enable development of several different

 The Chaordic Commons 15

Illustrative Approaches to Conceiving Participants

Northwest Atlantic Marine Alliance

Community Alliances for Interdependent AgriCulture

 The Chaordic Commons 16

Organizational Concept – In Context

In one sense, an Organizational Concept is the chaordic equivalent of the organization

Processes and Approaches

The fundamental questions being explored are:

 The Chaordic Commons 17

 If anything imaginable were possible, what would be the nature of an ideal

 How do we create an organization that is trusted by all Participants to make decisions

In an inter-organizational initiative, we typically engage in a similar inquiry. In this case,

 Who will own the organization and its assets?

 The Chaordic Commons 18

 Can ownership be “unbundled” from other forms of participation in the system?

Ownership is more likely to involve rights of participation, and access to or use of

Value flows and power

Structure and self-organization

 The Chaordic Commons 19

Seek a succinct expression of common concern and shared aspiration. There is

A capacity to listen openly, suspending judgment in order to understand different

Respect for diversity, together with a capacity to discover shared meaning.

Comfort with expressing and acknowledging deep feeling.

Examine the Principles of other organizations. Increasingly, groups find starting

Explore basic beliefs about fundamental organizational issues such as power,

Identify critical issues in the organization, field or community. Fishermen,

Identify principles of organizational behavior and individual practice required in

Assessments should not exceed the present royalties.

No bank should be financially damaged or otherwise left in a lesser position, as a

Knowledge about critical issues in the organization, industry or field.

A willingness to take a stand. Principles are what Participants refuse to violate in

Develop an initial conception of Participants based on the group’s sense of which

Distinguishing different classes and categories also allows assignment of different

Classes and categories serve in designing balanced governance councils and, if

An understanding of the key dimensions of the industry, organization or community

A capacity for creative analytical thinking, to enable development of several different

If anything imaginable were possible, what would be the nature of an ideal

How do we create an organization that is trusted by all Participants to make decisions

Who will own the organization and its assets?

Can ownership be “unbundled” from other forms of participation in the system?

Will the initial organizational units or levels be geographically defined? Defined by

Is the governance body responsible for stewardship of the whole appropriately

Refining a new vision of the relationships among Participants

Identifying and letting go of conventional assumptions about organizations

“Unbundling” concepts of ownership, participation and value

Deepening the inquiry into the organization’s essential social function

Enterprises — Where people come together to complete tasks or divide labor

Self-organizing and self-evolving. The organization will grow through self-

Participant-owned and participant-governed. Participants will govern themselves

Strongly cohesive, with an unshakable focus on common purpose and core

Creative imagination concerning new organizational forms

A willingness to examine unconscious assumptions and a capacity for “unlearning”

The courage to embody fundamental values and beliefs – as expressed in Principles –

Tolerance for ambiguity and uncertainty

Does the Concept as it is expressed in the Constitution accurately embody the

Can the Organizational Concept be streamlined, to resolve inconsistencies,

What aspects of the organization or its Constitution should be relatively easy to

Sharp analytical thinking skills.

Sensitivity to nuances of the relationship between Principles and Organizational

What opportunities do we envision that we cannot currently pursue? These may be

What kinds of innovative Practices or activities are required by current or emerging

What critical functions are necessary to ensure organizational coherence while

Managing any common properties, such as a shared technology infrastructure for

Educating participants about the nature of and potentials for self-organization in a

Sensitivity to trends that are or will be impacting the organization or industry.

A keen eye for emerging opportunities.

An entrepreneurial mindset and a willingness to take risks.

Leadership – individuals willing to “go first and show the way”.