Leadership, Organisations

Humpty Dumpty had a great fall…

  • 9:04 am
  • July 10, 2025

Dateline June 9th 2017, the morning after the UK election. The results of yesterday’s votes are, for the moment, a minority government led by a terminally damaged Prime Minister.  Of course, by the time you are reading this, things will have changed further.  I am not about to predict how; I prefer you to see that we have left the realms where predictions are any better than guesses.  Uncertainty rules.  Life is more unpredictable than ever.

But it was predictable that we would encounter such conditions.  Over 40 years ago, socio-psychology professor Clare W. Graves predicted we would encounter a transition bigger than any that humanity had faced before.  He anticipated where we were headed and he described what it would take for us to cope.

This is not a political analysis.  It will begin as a set of observations about the conditions we are now living in and go on to discuss what those conditions call us to be prepared for.  The results of yesterday’s votes are, for the moment, a minority government led by a terminally damaged Prime Minister.  She is due within days to start Brexit negotiations having failed to receive any sort of mandate and with a portion of her own party calling for her resignation.

In the background are huge shifts.  Globally, the Macron and Trump elections gave warning that the old guard is not trusted.  The Brexit vote itself signalled a split nation.  A Labour party whose name indicates its previous appeal to “the working class” gained much support from the urban middle-class.  A Conservative party traditionally seen as appealing to the middle class gained seats through lower class groups in the regions and rural areas.  The maps have changed.

Bizarrely, the stock market sees this as good news.  An instant fall in UK currency values repeated the scenario of a year earlier; stocks rose because exporters will benefit.  It was once the case that markets would react negatively to uncertainty.  Apparently this no longer applies.

Predictably unpredictable

Of course, by the time you are reading this, things will have changed further.  Uncertainty rules.  We have to live with that.

But it was predictable that we would encounter such conditions.  As I mentioned above, it was predicted in 1974 by socio-psychology professor Clare W. Graves.  Drawing his conclusions from a theory that he based on two decades of data collection and analysis, he said that we should expect to go through a transition bigger than any that humanity had faced before.  He anticipated by decades where we were headed and he described what it would take for us to cope.

This is not the place to describe the theory, though a very simple version of Graves’ stages of development model may be familiar to those who have read Frederic Laloux or some of our blogs.  In this article, I wish to engage with the conclusions Graves reached.  In tune with the well-worn observation from Albert Einstein that problems cannot be solved from the level of thinking that created them, Graves described what we would need to learn if we were to thrive amidst the anticipated turmoil.

All the Queen’s horses are not going to put Humpty back together, still less set him back on the wall.  He has too many cracks in too many areas.  Political instability is just one among many and Britain simply part of a bigger pattern of a world in which too much changes, too fast, in unpredictable ways, and where everything is connected to everything else.  It’s not a mechanical, fixable system and it has a life of its own.

Formulas are futile

In organisations, our normal, understandable but regrettably futile response is to want a formula.  We look for tried and tested improvement programs with defined outcomes.  We believe in evidence-based research with metrics on the deliverables.  While that can still have some value – there is always benefit in raising skill levels – it is inadequate in the face of living complexity.   While it is scary that there is so much uncertainty and so little control, it does not serve us to pretend it could be otherwise.  Theresa May is learning that central control is weak, and so must we.

The ONLY given is change, and the interdependencies of multiple systems and variables are beyond computation.  This is not because the issues are mystical and ethereal – they are all too real.  It is simply that the variables include people and behaviours as well as interdependencies that are too many and too complex to analyse.  You might as well try to find an analytical way to deal with your next case of flu.  Your brain can’t do that; a central control system can’t hack it – it requires a response from each cell and organ.  Your whole body is an immune system and there is no vaccine against life itself.

An organisational immune system

If we cannot prevent, cannot avoid, cannot predict and cannot control then we had better learn how to live with it.  We need an organisational immune system against life’s unexpected events.  The peripheries are as much a part of sensing issues and dealing with them as the central command is.   Similarly your skillsets need to be in the muscle memory of the organisation as well as in your cognitive understanding.  Being responsive, adaptive and agile is not a nice-to-have.  It is fast becoming a condition of thriving and maybe even of surviving.

Humpty was not responsive or resilient.  His shell was rigid.  He was not that agile either – big head and tiny limbs.  Someone must have put him on that wall in the first place.  Since we cannot deal with problems from the current level, we must raise our collective game.  This does not look likely to happen in the political realm any time soon, but it is possible for leaders and organisations.  It is a developmental process and a new skillset, but it is not a formula.  It calls for us to take Peter Senge’s concept of a learning organisation to a new level.

It requires the introduction of greater flexibility, autonomy and distributed accountability.  It demands the creation of flexibility and flow, with the ability to continuously adapt the process layer.  It calls for a mindset of rapid prototyping and an attitude to life that replaces analyse-and-predict with sense-and-respond.  It extends Jim Collins’ “Thriving in Uncertainty” and Tom Peters’ “Thriving on Chaos” and makes them a way of living.

Since we are dealing with a new way of being, this is not something that is delivered through a car-wash style training program.  Since it is an ongoing, developmental learning process it has to take place alongside and inside real life.  The organisation has to learn as it goes, making one adjustment at a time.  It is not even a journey, because you can’t know exactly where you will end up. It’s an exploration of uncharted territory in which you create the map as you go.  But there are map-making tools, surveying instruments and navigation skills that you can learn.  And you can be accompanied by guides who know what this kind of exploration calls for and can help your discovery.

Humpty cannot be put back together again, so it is best not to be one.  How do you or your organisation soften your shell and develop more functional limbs?  We at Future Considerations have learned a lot about this and we have designed a way of engaging that is appropriately flexible, adaptable and functional.  We co-create as we go and model the new world more than teach it.  It is exciting work, it can even become fun and you see the benefits from early on.  What if there’s a different way of looking at “training and development”?   What if the most valuable skill you could learn is adaptability?  Contact me if you would like to know more.

Jon Freeman is an Associate of Future Considerations and specializes in systemic organisational redesign in support of conscious, values-led and purpose driven culture change. He is also a Spiral Dynamics trainer and practitioner, and author of “Reinventing Capitalism: How we broke money and how we fix it, from inside and out”.

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Jules brings over 45 years of experience to boosting people’s motivation and purposeful contribution to their roles and organisations. With first-hand experience of senior leadership in the private and non-profit sectors and 15 as a consultant.

Jules designs and delivers leadership development and partnering programmes for all levels of leaders and managers. Trained to coach individuals and teams to build trust, techniques and resilience in a volatile and complex world. Clients include Arup, Philips, PwC, Aegon, British Council, and both Universities in Sheffield.

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His speciality lies in the area of Embodied Leadership and Somatic Coaching, where he has written a book and completed a PhD. In addition, he works with conflict in organisations, an area where he has a keen interest. He has many years of experience in action and self-managed learning processes and supervises PhD students on Hult Ashridge’s Doctorate in Organisational Change.

Pete lives in Brighton with his wife and young daughter, reads widely, loves to cook, and practises martial arts.
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She takes a systemic approach that shines a light on the deeper dynamics influencing our perception and choices. She accompanies and resources leaders and ‘top teams’ in their role as shapers. She helps groups build cultures for innovation and extraordinary partnership. She helps people explore resistance and stuckness, and what is limiting their success and fulfilment. People are able to act with more awareness, alignment, impact and ease.

Lycia works with groups of all flavours and sizes, sectors and industries.
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As a facilitator, James excels in working in multi-cultural, multi-disciplinary teams using innovative, solution-oriented methodologies. He facilitates multi-stakeholder processes to co-create joint strategies and plans for joint ventures, mergers and collaborative poverty reduction strategies. In order to ensure success of these plans, James provides coaching on change management, organisational culture and performance management.

James uses a range of coaching tools and techniques which support learning and performance and has certificates in Systems Coaching, embodied Coaching and Constellations. Clients include JP Morgan, Daimler FS India, Pertamina, The Australian Embassy in Jakarta, Kantar, IFC Hong Kong and Bank Negara Indonesia.
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He has also been trained as a futurist at Singularity University and spent close to 10 years training and coaching future-focused innovators, entrepreneurs, business owners and thought-leaders globally.
Celine is a coach, consultant and facilitator, working with change-makers to reshape the world of work, business and society. With 30 years’ experience across brand strategy, sustainability, organisational development and coaching, Celine works with leaders and teams to align Purpose, Meaning and Impact. Her clients include large corporations, NGOs, charities & foundations & educational institutions.

Celine is a certified practitioner and trainer with Map of Meaning International, bringing a powerful framework for cultivating meaningful work at individual, team and organisational levels. She is also the founder of Meaningful Futures, a social innovation project giving young people the skills and confidence to craft meaningful and regenerative careers.

Celine holds an MSc in Responsibility and Business Practice and advanced coaching qualifications. She draws on a wealth of experience in personal transformation and systems thinking to help clients build confidence and clarity to lead complex change from who they are, or put simply: to be themselves and do what matters.
As a facilitator, Louie’s practice includes the design and delivery of structured learning solutions for organisations and teams for both local and international companies located in the Philippines, wider Asia region and the world.
His interests are in the realm of leadership, individual and team development. Louies 22 years of experience includes working with middle management up to the C-suite level. As a coach, Louie combines somatic practices to support his clients in understanding the connection of mind, heart and body. He uses a wholistic approach as a base to provide space for sustainable change. He encourages people to break barriers, challenge what is current and move them to a space of choice and action.

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Dick brings over 30 years of experience helping organisations navigate complex change and is passionate about helping people engage in purposeful work in a meaningful way.

He delivers leadership development programmes, coaching individuals and teams to build capability, confidence and resilience in a changing world. Recent clients include Arup, Aegon, Zurich, Prudential, and Phillips, with experience spanning from new managers to senior leadership and board level.

His work focuses on systemic approaches to organisational transformation, new ways of working such as self-managing systems, and effective governance. Dick brings a calm, grounded presence and is known for his ability to hold space for deep reflection and practical progress.
Laura specialises in embedding growth mindset at the heart of how organisations operate, lead, and evolve. Her mission is to help people and their organisations become more adaptable in today’s complex world, without the disruption and resistance that often accompany traditional change programmes. By fostering a culture of continuous learning, resilience, and psychological safety, Laura empowers individuals and teams to challenge assumptions, shift behaviours, and drive sustainable transformation.

With over 20 years of commercial experience, Laura brings a unique blend of strategic insight and human-centred practice. Beginning her career at Unilever, she has since worked across many sectors, including Infrastructure, Defence, Finance, Healthcare, Energy, and Government - leading large-scale programmes and enabling leadership development from graduate to C-suite levels. Her work focuses on equipping people with the skills and mindsets needed to lead change, collaborate effectively, and perform at their best in uncertain environments.

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Since 2000, Beth has been a consultant, coach and facilitator. Beth has coached C-suite executives all over the world. She coaches leadership teams, including those in start-up or transition. Beth has also been part of the development staff in many leadership faculties for multinational organisations such as Shell, Philips, Adidas, Jollibee Food Corporation, British Petroleum and others. Her ability to work across multiple cultures has been honed through her leadership responsibilities as a global senior executive at Johnson & Johnson and through worldwide and regional assignments in leadership development for a range of multinationals as a programme developer and executive coach.

Abundant energy and physical stamina, Beth has an infectious but grounded energy. Her communication skills carry her comfortably from the lecture hall to the boardroom. Her coaching skills can give an invaluable boost to rising, or temporarily sputtering, organisational stars. She has been recognised for her unique ability to draw out extraordinary performance in organisations and teams with diverse members.
Jon’s early career designing applications led to him becoming IT director for a market-leading multinational. His systemic perspective, allied with a background in psychology and subsequent leadership experience inside major organisations was followed by intensive learning in personal development, values systems and multiple intelligences. Brought together, these create a transformational perspective for understanding and developing organisations as living systems.

Jon is a master trainer in Spiral Dynamics, a founder director of the UK chapter of Conscious Capitalism and a certified Spiritual Intelligence coach. He is the author of several books and articles and is developer of Relational Being, a visionary whole-systems approach to evidence-based spirituality, complexity science, human emergence, societal change and conscious business. This breadth of experience and deep understanding informs his work as a consultant, coach, trainer and facilitator
Jon Freeman, UK

Jon’s early career designing applications led to him becoming IT director for a market-leading multinational. His systemic perspective, allied with a background in psychology and subsequent leadership experience inside major organisations was followed by intensive learning in personal development, values systems and multiple intelligences. Brought together, these create a transformational perspective for understanding and developing organisations as living systems. Jon is a master trainer in Spiral Dynamics, a founder director of the UK chapter of Conscious Capitalism and a certified Spiritual Intelligence coach. He is the author of several books and articles and is developer of Relational Being, a visionary whole systems approach to evidence-based spirituality, complexity science, human emergence, societal change and conscious business. This breadth of experience and deep understanding informs his work as a consultant, coach, trainer and facilitator.