Working in a VUCA World

Every decision on the proverbial table affects people’s physical, emotional, and mental health.

V: Volatility

U: Uncertainty

C: Complexity

A: Ambiguity

The U.S. Army War College developed VUCA as a way of referencing new circumstances—those with no historical references to tie them to—after the tragic events of 9/11/2001 in New York City; Washington, DC; and Shanksville, PA.

Ever know someone who answers a multiple-choice question with, “Yes”? VUCA seems like an appropriate description for year three of the global health crisis and pandemic—especially when trying to do the right things in the workplace and in business. Every decision on the proverbial table affects people’s physical, emotional, and mental health.

Some people want to move past the fact that we’re still living through a global pandemic. Others pretend there never was a global pandemic at all. Many want to continue all COVID-19 protocols to keep themselves, their families, and others in society safe. Leadership faces big decisions about where their staff will work (or has already made them). This has pleased some and stressed others—all of whom are possibly pondering their own big decisions. At home, there is stress over students who are participating in their school classes via remote learning. Others are going back into schools that have made few, if any, accommodations toward keeping school staff, teachers, and students truly safe from COVID-19. And there is the continuing debate over wearing masks.

WAYS TO NAVIGATE GOING FORWARD

  • Keep reading the room. Pay attention to be able to discern where conflict might appear. And the underlying reason(s) for it.
  • Don’t act unless or until circumstances are clear.
  • Listen A LOT more than usual. People can’t always articulate what they need. Listen to the emotion and ways people communicate, more than the words they use.
  • Keep a running list of “what if we…” and “maybe we should try…” items to offer solutions in the moment.
  • Task the team with developing their vision statement or charter together. Use it as the basis for making decisions and aligning tasks—again, together.
  • Ensure all team members are heard and provide multiple ways to make this happen.
  • Strengthen existing relationships and develop new connections by “forcing” collaboration as often as possible.
Dawn J Mahoney, CPTD
Dawn J. Mahoney, CPTD, is the program content manager for Training magazine. She also owns Learning in The White Space LLC, a freelance talent development (“training”) and instructional design consultancy. She is passionate about developing people through better training, better instructional design, and better dialog. E-mail her at: dawn@trainingmag.com.