Qualified determinism in emergent-technology Complex Adaptive Systems

Organizations ranging from the Internet, to economies, to large global corporations, to rapidly changing technological ecosystems can be thought of as Complex Adaptive Systems (CAS). When viewed from the bottom-up CAS is often characterized by distributed control, connectivity, co-evolution, emergence, and unpredictability. When viewed from the top-down characteristics such as an implicit order, qualified determinism, and directional integrity emerge. There are advantages and a different management system required when CAS is viewed from the top-down. This paper will in particular elaborate a framework of “qualified determinism” that can be used in the management of an emergent-technology CAS.