Organizational effectiveness does not lie in that narrow minded concept called rationality. It lies in the blend of clearheaded logic and powerful intuition
Henry MintzbergRead
When the world is predictable you need smart people. _x000D_ When the world is unpredictable you need adaptable people.
Interpretation
What this quote means
In unpredictable situations, adaptability becomes more valuable than intelligence.
This quote emphasizes the importance of adaptability in an ever-changing world. When conditions are stable, intelligence is crucial for making informed decisions; however, in times of uncertainty, it is the ability to adjust and thrive amidst chaos that truly determines success.
Themes
AdaptabilityChangeIntelligenceUnpredictableSmart
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a leadership seminar to highlight the importance of adaptability in teamwork.
More from Henry Mintzberg
All quotes →Basically, managing is about influencing action. Managing is about helping organizations and units to get things done, which means action. Sometimes, managers manage actions directly. They fight fires. They manage projects. They negotiate contracts.
Henry MintzbergRead
The real challenge in crafting strategy lies in detecting subtle discontinuities that may undermine a business in the future. And for that there is no technique, no program, just a sharp mind in touch with the situation.
Henry MintzbergRead
It is time to recognize conventional MBA programs for what they are - or else to close them down. They are specialized training in the functions of business, not general educating in the practice of management.
Henry MintzbergRead
To 'turn around' is to end up facing the same way. Maybe that is the problem, all the turning organizations around.
Henry MintzbergRead
Management and leadership are not separate spheres. The two skills work together in the larger realm of “communityship.
Henry MintzbergRead
Similar quotes
We live increasingly in a world of haves and have-nots, of gated communities next to ghettos, of extreme poverty and unbelievable riches. Some enjoy rights that are completely denied to others. Relative inequalities are exploding, and the world's poorest, despite all the advances of globalisation, may even be getting poorer.
Noreena HertzRead
No matter what's happening in your life, you can change the trajectory of events by closing your eyes, reviewing your thought and behavior, and sending love wherever you've been withholding it.
Marianne WilliamsonRead
The insistence on complete certainty about the full details of global warming-the most serious threat we have ever faced-is actually an effort to avoid facing the awful, uncomfortable truth: that we must act boldly, decisively, comprehensively, and quickly, even before we know every last detail about the crisis. Those who continue to argue that the appropriate response is merely additional research are simply seeking to camouflage timidity or protect their vested interest in the status quo.
Al GoreRead
A great revolution in just one single individual will help achieve a change in the destiny of a society and, further, will enable a change in the destiny of humankind.
Daisaku IkedaRead
N.Y. hip-hop is ok, but we gotta become brave again; we have to be brave enough and do something new - that's what New York is about... New.
NasRead
I think it has been a tremendous feat on the part of East Germans since 1990 to adapt to everything changing.
Angela MerkelRead