Mastering Chaos: Navigating the BANI Future with Bob Johansen & Jamais Cascio
🎙️ Episode Title: Mastering Chaos: Navigating the BANI Future
👥 Guests: Bob Johansen & Jamais Cascio
💡 Sponsored by: Kyndryl | Reimagining the tech systems powering global enterprise innovation.
In this episode, Bob Johansen and Jamais Cascio return to explore their book Navigating the Age of Chaos: A Sensemaking Guide to a BANI World.
They dive into the evolution from VUCA (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, Ambiguous) to BANI (Brittle, Anxious, Nonlinear, Incomprehensible) and its impact on leadership, strategy, and personal resilience.
🔍 Topics Include:
The origins and future of VUCA and BANI
VUCA+ and BANI+ frameworks
Real-world examples: LEGO, Netflix, Special Olympics, Airbnb
Leadership agility & "Flexive Command"
Future-back thinking and anticipatory history
AI, ethics, empathy & strategic foresight
Purpose, interconnectedness & sensemaking
This episode is essential for leaders, innovators, and future-thinkers navigating today's complex and chaotic world.
00:00 Introduction and Sponsor Message
00:24 Opening Quote and Guest Introduction
00:59 Understanding VUCA and VUCA Plus
04:36 Exploring BANI and BANI Plus
06:37 Future Back Thinking and Historical Patterns
09:33 The Concept of Flexive Command
11:01 Resilience and Bendability in Organizations
25:59 Empathy and Anxiety in Leadership
39:52 Debating AI and Guardrails
40:47 Ethics and Metaphors in AI
41:57 Kate Darling's Perspective on AI
43:31 The Language of AI
43:59 Robotics and Empathy
45:51 Mindfulness and Anxiety
47:18 Nonlinearity in BANI
48:04 Neuro Flexibility and Improv
50:40 Orthogonal Thinking and T-shaped People
53:17 Distant Early Warnings
59:50 Gaming and Nonlinear Thinking
01:09:30 Incomprehensibility and Interconnectedness
01:16:45 Faith and Purpose in a BANI World
01:20:45 Final Thoughts and Conclusion
🔗 Useful links:
• Navigating the Age of Chaos – ageofbani.com
• Bob Johansen – IFTF.org
• Jamais Cascio – openthefuture.com
• Kyndryl Institute – kyndryl.com/institute
• Aidan McCullen – aidanmccullen.com
#TheInnovationShow #BANI #VUCA #Leadership #FutureThinking #Chaos #Resilience #Innovation #Kyndryl #Thinkers50
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