MANAGEMENT
40 Fleet Maintenance | November/December 2018
We are living in a world dominated by VUCA.
What is VUCA? It stands for: Volatility,
Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity.
It’s a concept that helps defi ne increasingly
complex problems, and helps to assist with
determining a solution.
I learned about this concept when I attended
an educational session run by Barbara Taylor,
an executive coach. Th e idea of VUCA originated
at the U.S. Army War College to assess the
world aft er the Cold War. While employed by
the U.S. military for decades, only within the
last two decades has it become a leadership
strategy concept for businesses.
Overview of VUCA
Th e mix of the types of problems we face in
the workplace has shift ed, so the strategy to
get to the solution also has to change.
Taylor defi ned a VUCA world as being one
where these descriptors dominate:
Volatility: Fast change happens without
a clear, predictable trend or pattern. Th e
duration of these trends or patterns is
unknown, and the outcome is unexpected
and unstable. Volatility is understandable,
and you can gain knowledge from it, but it
takes work.
Uncertainty: Th is refers to frequently
disruptive changes. Additionally, the past is
not a great predictor of the future. However,
the basic cause and eff ect is known. Change
is possible but not a given.
Complexity: Th e situation has many interconnected
parts and variables. Th ere are
many moving parts, and the volume can
be overwhelming to process.
Ambiguity: Th ere is little clarity about what
is real or true. Th e meaning and outcome of
casual relationships are unclear. No precedent
has been set, and we may be faced with
“unknown unknowns.”
We are in a time of increasing VUCA.
Th ere have always been problems of all types
within the commercial vehicle industry. For
example, look back to discussions on diesel
costs and the impact on fl eet operating costs.
Th is issue can be viewed as a VUCA problem.
Simpler times
Before the increase in VUCA, most issues
could be viewed as puzzles.
In a puzzle, there is one best solution and
the trick is to arrange the pieces or facts in
the right order to solve the problem. Problems
like fl eet size, inventory levels and skills needed,
for example, fi t into this problem-solution
model. Normal tools of leadership apply to
helping resolve the problem, like project
Another approach
to problem-solving
Decision-making used to have a more
simplifi ed and straightforward process.
By Joel Levitt
PRESIDENT, SPRINGFIELD RESOURCES
Springfield Resources (maintenancetraining.com) is a
management consulting firm that services a variety of
clients on a wide range of maintenance issues. Levitt is
the president of thecompany, and has trained more than
17,000 maintenance leaders from more than 3,000 organizations
in 24 countries. He is also the creator of Laser-
Focused Training, a flexible training program that provides
specific targeted training on your schedule, online to one
to 250 people in maintenance management, asset management
and reliability.
» VUCA is a concept that helps define
increasingly complex problems, and helps
to assist with determining a solution.
Photo from iStock
Building muscle in
solving these higher
VUCA problems
involves thinking
in terms of A and B
rather than A or B.
/maintenancetraining.com