ValueShepherd.com: Thoughts on R&D Management

Commentary

The Swamp

The term "swamp" is from Educating the Reflective Practitioner by Donald Schon [1]. In it he describes the difference between academic and practical problem solving:

In the varied topography of professional practice, there is a high hard ground overlooking a swamp. On the high ground, manageable problems lend themselves to solution through the application of research-based theory and technique. In the swampy lowland, messy, confusing problems defy technical solution. The irony of this situation is that the problems of the high ground tend to be relatively unimportant to individuals or society at large, however great their technical interest may be, while in the swamp lie the problems of greatest human concern. The practitioner must choose. Shall he remain on the high ground where he can solve relatively unimportant problems according to prevailing standards of rigor, or shall he descend to the swamp of important problems and non-rigorous inquiry?

I've spent some time on the high ground at school and reading books. But I've spent my career in the swamp and come away with two big lessons.

First, we in the swamp can implement high-ground ideas, but doing so requires careful thought and some rigor. Sloppily applied, high-ground ideas are at best a waste of time and at worst become hallowed falsehoods--the flat earth of our profession.

Second, some of the problems of the high ground do tend to be "relatively unimportant" to those of us in the swamp, but the reverse seems even more true. While high-ground ideas like strategic planning and portfolio management are useful to guide exercises in the swamp; with rare exception many of the techniques and perspectives that are most useful in the swamp don't appear in high-ground discussions at all. These tend to be very simple ideas with a lot of leverage that require reflexes to deploy--reflexes one acquires from working on wicked problems [2]. Like the mechanics of a good tennis backhand, they aren't teachable without frequent practice and real-world feedback.

References

1. D. Schon, Educating the Reflective Practitioner, Jossey-Bass, 1990.

2. P. DeGrace, L. H. Stahl, Wicked Problems, Righteous Solutions, Yourdon Press, Englewood Cliffs, 1990.