6/5/2000
Axelrod and Cohen, pioneers in the study of complexity, offer a framework to help managers, policymakers and researchers understand how complexity in organizations can be used as asset and not a liability. Asserting that all complex situations share the characteristics of variation, interaction and selection, they use examples ranging from medieval Italian trade associations to AIDS research to the evolution of Linux open source software to show how managers and leaders can leverage these qualities to foster creativity and innovation in their organizations. The result is a book that is both practical in its effort to create a system for managing complexity and entertaining in the richness of the examples the authors use to drive their points.