Next Friday the 13th of June, Keith Johnston (ANU School of Management, Marketing and International Business) will be leading a discussion on “Can environmental managers provide clear and effective leadership in the face of high levels of uncertainty and complexity?”

Few decision makers face complexities that are as persistent and pervasive as those who are tasked with managing the environment or managing human impacts on the environment. Does this mean that managers working on complex systems, such as these, need to be especially good systems thinkers and able to engage with the perspectives and thinking of multiple communities of interest?

After many years as a senior manager in New Zealand’s Department of Conservation, Keith Johnston is completing a PhD with the ANU’s School of Management, Marketing and International Business. His thesis studied environmental managers working in New Zealand. The over-arching question he set out to address was: What is the level of complexity of thinking and meaning making that might be required to sustainably manage the environment and how does this compare with the levels demonstrated by existing managers?

Using theories and methods from the field of adult development, he argues that managers need a high level of complexity of thinking and meaning making, or this at least needs to be present within management teams, if sustainable management is to be attained. He developed a framework for environmental management and leadership, providing indicators of systems capability and meaning making at different levels of management. But he did not find the levels of capability that he expected were required, even amongst the teams that were judged to be the most successful. What are the implications of these findings?”