Biological and Business Ecosystems
In the natural world, an organism must participate in a system of exchange with other organisms and resources in order to meet its own needs.
In business we used to call this the market, and it’s now trendy to call it what it is — an ecosystem!
Take this snippet from an introduction to the management and leadership conference Peter Drucker Forum 2019.
Ecosystems are everywhere, not confined to natural environments — increasingly, we see businesses, public sector institutions, and third-sector organizations all moving beyond their traditional operational borders and creating or participating in new, flexible, and adaptive networks of enterprises jointly pursuing ambitious purposes.
In my organisation, the word ‘ecosystem’ is seen as a buzzword which people are cautious to throw around. The word can mean a great number of different things to different people.
The word already has meaning, so I encourage you to steer these conversations towards natural examples. Consider studying natural ecosystems as an endless source of strategic inspiration.
Ecosystems are capable of complete recycling, meaning that 100% of waste can be reconstituted indefinitely, as long as there is an available source of energy such as solar.
Composting within agricultural systems capitalizes on the natural services of bacteria, fungi, insects and earthworms. As the plant waste detritus is recycled back into fertile soil and on into crops.
In our man made systems this composting cycle can be supercharged in a system with optimal conditions. In nature this nutrient cycling happens over a longer period of time on the ground’s surface.
We massively undervalue the service offered by the organisms which bring value back from waste.
