We have a lot of tools for managing value chains, the linear production model of the industrial age.
But do we have the tools for managing value networks of companies in an innovation age?
I have been pondering this question since Ward showed me a data modeling framework that he has been developing. It is an amazing way to visualize relationships within a dynamic, network-based organization.
By mapping these relationships, it may be possible to see where there might be friction or misalignment. You also start to glimpse the patterns of a value network.
Which all got me thinking about the nature of management in a creative economy. In the past, leadership was focused on managing *processes*. But now it must focus on managing *patterns*.
What new tools will need to develop to help us manage patterns? Perhaps this is the new horizon of management.