What's The Uncertainty Lab?
A collection of concepts, patterns, methods, teaching aids, and research notes about how change emerges and why organizations struggle to anticipate it.
The Uncertainty Lab is the research and teaching environment of Dr. Barbara van Veen.
Its work focuses on strategic uncertainty, emerging technologies, innovation systems, anticipation, and the dynamics that shape change over time.
Rather than attempting to predict the future, the Lab investigates the mechanisms that make some futures easier—or harder, but always better to anticipate.
Its work focuses on strategic uncertainty, emerging technologies, innovation systems, anticipation, and the dynamics that shape change over time.
Rather than attempting to predict the future, the Lab investigates the mechanisms that make some futures easier—or harder, but always better to anticipate.
Objective:
Understanding how change emerges, why organizations get surprised, and how strategic decisions help shape the future.
To Peruse:
Collections
The Lab is organized into collections: curated bodies of work that investigate specific challenges faced by organizations, governments, researchers, and strategists.
#1 Unstable Systems
How do you make strategic decisions when everything is changing?
This collection explores the dynamics that make change difficult to recognize before it becomes obvious. It examines concepts such as drift, delay, false stability, and adaptive fragility.
It helps managing the unexpected effects of strategic decisions in unstable environments.
This collection explores the dynamics that make change difficult to recognize before it becomes obvious. It examines concepts such as drift, delay, false stability, and adaptive fragility.
It helps managing the unexpected effects of strategic decisions in unstable environments.
#2 Strategy Information
How do you make strategic decisions when information is incomplete, contradictory, or uncertain?
This collection explores signal detection, interpretation, sensemaking, information quality, ambiguity, assumptions, and the challenges of recognizing what matters before it becomes obvious.
It helps getting the best possible inputs for decisions.
This collection explores signal detection, interpretation, sensemaking, information quality, ambiguity, assumptions, and the challenges of recognizing what matters before it becomes obvious.
It helps getting the best possible inputs for decisions.
Dr. Barbara van Veen
Researcher & Educator
Dr. Barbara van Veen is an independent researcher and educator specializing in strategic uncertainty, emerging technologies, and innovation systems.
Learn more about Barbara
