Sensemaking and policy innovation

Policy making in a complex environment

. . . understanding for what policy making sense-making may serve. and if and how far the approach has potential to change the policy making culture in particular with respect to medium and long horizon oriented policy making issues  - medium horizon up to ten years, long term horizon up to 30 years. One of the reviewer recommended last years edited Oxford Handbook on Time and Politics, which was very valuable for me. The article shows that medium and long term horizon oriented public policy making is till know mostly informed by specific systems analytical perspectives and strategic foresight with its rather expertocratic concept to engage a singular group of experts and stakeholders to design potential futures collective narratives for transition (pipe dream scenarios).

With respect to science, technology and innovation policy agenda setting this approach is co-productive, but in respect to mission, transition and change (singular expert group driven concepts) may turn out as highly contra-productive - at least this was one of my arguments. However, sense making in large group environments is carrying a conflict with respect to nowadays public policy making and strategic planning with a medium and long horizon.

Sense making, and I guess as well the SenseMaker Tool, originates in a complex adaptive systems perspective with one its fundamental theorems: there are no finite solutions. This makes a huge difference for strategy design and policy making. And I guess it is difficult for many policy makers, that their policy outcomes can not expect to transfer finite solutions. Is it a sort of cultural turn in public policy making? And is such a trend plausibel to long run overrule todays still dominant expertocratic and technocratic public policy making practices - and this in particular as well in the European institutions environment.

Claus Seibt , personal communication