In a recent workshop that took place at the Project Management Institute Poland Chapter in Warsaw (Poland), participants interested to gain new insights on project management, explored how social simulations can be used to navigate the complexities of change.

Social Simulations can help managers

Effectively managing VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity) requires a nuanced approach that incorporates adaptive strategies, structured frameworks, and comprehensive tools to navigate the ever-changing landscape of organisational challenges.

During the workshop, Piotr and Michalina suggested that the leaders of complex change initiatives should take into account stakeholders’ diverse worldviews and the unpredictability of the social and environmental contexts.  Tools like Discourse Analysis and Systems Mapping can help organisations in addressing VUCA in their work areas. The integration of these methodologies with the established Project Management (PM) and Change Management (CM) tools facilitates organisations’ resilience and risk intelligence.

Enter the world of Social Simulations

We avoid idle chatter and prefer to preach by showing. Thus, Piotr and Michalina quickly engaged participants in the Just Mobility Transition Simulation designed for the SEER (Socio-economic Effects of an European Green Deal implementation and Reform) Project. PMI participants took on roles of fictional organisations and had to face the complexities of decarbonization and decoupling transitions in the European Union.

Thank you to PMI for an invitation to hold a workshop during the Congress! It makes us very happy to be able to showcase the transformative power of social simulations and to share our work on sustainability issues.