VUCA Tools ™ for a VUCA World:
Developing Leaders and Teams for Sustainable Results
All of us are dealing with the ongoing challenge of change and striving to discover the necessary tools to thrive, and not just survive. The current change context has become known by an acronym: VUCA-Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, and Ambiguous. This term was coined in the 1990’s at the US Army War College to describe the changing terrain of warfare. VUCA is now used as a label to capture the rapidly changing landscape in all our lives, i.e., we live in a VUCA world. Change is constant. Sometimes it’s all we can do to survive another day.
Many of us experience the volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity of VUCA as a threat to our well-being and success. We react in predictable, yet narrow, ways:
- Fight: We try to fight change, or deny it, blaming those we hold responsible.
- Flight: We attempt to escape or avoid change, to flee its inexorable path.
- Freeze: We freeze in place, unsure of what to do and unable to make a move in any direction.
- Appease: And, in addition to the familiar Fight/Flight/Freeze reactions, we try to survive the threat of VUCA through appeasing the powers that be, simply complying and bending to what others want without considering if it’s the right or best thing to do.
Perceiving change as risky and VUCA as dangerous, we activate our threat response and default to our most primitive capabilities, and our actions are limited to survival responses. Faced with VUCA, when we most need to access our brain’s amazingly rich capabilities, we simply react.
Is there a better way? VUCA Tools™--Values, Us, Curiosity, and Aspirations-- arose from the recognition that conscious choice, and a key set of tools, enable us to respond effectively to a VUCA world. VUCA Tools™ begins with the possibility that our observation of VUCA is simply awareness. Recognizing VUCA as our new reality enables us to consciously engage with changing circumstances. VUCA Tools™ are four approaches that enable us to access the strategic and planful parts of our brains and respond thoughtfully, instead of just reacting.
This session provides people leaders and talent development professionals with an introduction to the concept of VUCA, and the framework and methodologies of VUCA Tools™ to enable yourself and others to thrive instead of just survive in the midst of challenging times. You’ll come away from the session with a new lens for what you offer, and tools to use to ensure that you, and your team, flourish.
About the Speaker: Ann V. Deaton, PhD, PCC
Ann Deaton, PCC is a leadership and team coach. Her work focuses on coaching individuals, teams, and groups who are experiencing significant change and growth. In addition to coaching, she facilitates workshops and team-building sessions for corporate, nonprofit, and government clients. Ann’s strengths are in creating the kinds of rich and open sessions that expand perspectives and ideas – and then holding clients accountable as they take action to realize their goals.
Ann has her doctorate in Clinical Psychology, with specializations in health psychology and neuropsychology, from The University of Texas. After a two-decade career in health care, she decided to pursue Leadership Coaching Certification with the Newfield Network and earned her Professional Certified Coach (PCC) designation from the International Coach Federation. Ann founded DaVinci Resources coaching practice in 2003, and co-founded The Bounce Collective coaching and consulting business in 2009.
In addition to her work with individual clients and teams, Ann facilitates leadership and coaching skills development courses for corporate, government and university clients. She is the author of two books: VUCA Tools for a VUCA World: Developing Leaders and Teams for Sustainable Results and Being Coached: Group and Team Coaching from the Inside (with co-author Holly Williams).
Contact Ann at:
Ann@wecanbounce.com
