Designing Thrivable Creation Spaces
Thrivability, at its core, is all about creating environments that are generative of adaptive diverse abundance, both in the sense of nature, and in the sense of the potential for innovation present in an organization. If people come together with a sense of purposive play, then innovation emerges from the dynamic richness of the interactions.
It is all about fostering an environment in which upward spirals are most likely to emerge.
So it is great to see folks over at HBR talking about factors to take into account when intentionally designing creation spaces, such as the Hub coworking space for social entrepreneurs that will soon be opening in San Francisco.
Emergent behavior from participants is, of course, essential. But it rarely takes hold unless it’s organized and supported within carefully designed (and tended) “creation spaces.
As with gardens, it’s best to design creation spaces minimally at the outset and then let them create a life of their own, layering in additional design elements over time.