Collaboration is an appropriate metaphor for thinking about partnerships in all their forms. It’s a process of continuous and interactive change. The coevolution aspect is about learning how to adapt to meet each other’s needs for the good of the whole system.
One of the most fascinating dynamics in collaboration is the tension between entropy (decay) and syntropy (organization). Entropy, often seen in a process of unlearning, necessary for clearing out the old thinking and making way for the new. Syntropy, on the other hand, is the force that drives systems toward engagement, order, and renewal. Together, they create a dynamic equilibrium that allows the agents or parts of the system to collaborate to evolve.
Think of conflict. At first glance, it looks like pure destruction. But by breaking down perceived differences the nutrients of new perspectives, they can set the stage for regeneration. It teaches us that entropy and syntropy are not opposing forces but complementary ones, driving the evolution of relationships for mutual growth.
This can be a messy process, as evolution often happens in fits and starts. A new order emerges when there is a shift in the rules and pattern of relationships. The danger is that communication flows can break down when processes are contracted out to service partners outside the system in focus. For example, when departments introduce different policies on social media relationships or complaints procedures.
Relationships have to have logical rules and be consistently applied to achieve coherence across the system. This allows all parties in the system to overcome any resistance to learning and adapting to the new arrangements. When the new system gets embedded it “locks in” and new patterns of cooperation and collaboration then emerge to transform the system. Mobile phone companies play this game all the time. What initially feels strange, enhances user satisfaction and a new relationship with the producer emerges.
