island⁹⁴

I was having a talk today with Danielle about this proposal on “Open Source Engagement” on Milla Digitalia. Mostly I was being critical of the manner in which the authors sling around “open source”.

But back to Danielle, and the analogy. The fallacy of that proposal is that the authors are confusing design and process. The argument, as I can tell, is that Wikipedia and Open Source Software Development (like Linux) work a certain, so they will design their Project to work that way too (when I say “work”, I am intentionally being vague as to whether I mean design or process).

So here is the analogy:

Wikipedia/OSS are like buildings (Danielle is in an Urban Planning Program). They are designed to have as many doors as possible. All over the place. And it just so happens that people really like using the front door and the door into the kitchen, and mostly ignore the other doors.

Now, in this proposal, they make this argument: We’ve learned from Wikipedia/OSS that front doors and kitchen doors really work great, so we’re going to design our project to have a front door and a kitchen door just like they do.
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At work I have been furiously engaged in strategic planning in advance of some major grant-writing. This process is a continuation from some vine-withered efforts my coworker and I had made last fall, but due to some changing circumstances—a better understanding of the existing processes at play and increased authority to manage the outcomes—this most recent effort is bearing more fruit.

Perhaps the largest set-back to our strategic planning projects has been the planning of our strategic planning. Without having to recurse infinitely backwards, perhaps the most important things I’ve learned are:

• Strategic planning relies on individuals. Strategic planning usually requires the actions of a single, or a small handful of individuals that not only are motivated, but have the resources and authority (or the full backing of someone with authority) to proceed. This is not to diminish the value of SWOT or SMART, but to reaffirm that strategic planning relies upon someone to begin the process, facilitate it, and ensure that its outcomes are useful.
• Strategic planning should build on your strengths. There is a tendency to relegate strategic planning activities to weak periods or to use it to shore up areas that are perceived lacking. This often means that you aren’t able to properly recognize what led to successful periods or why certain components succeeded.

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