Homeland Security Institute

ISBN 978-09853-2480-3 Library of Congress Control No 2012904936 Chapter Author, Dr P. H Longstaff, former James Martin Senior Visiting Fellow

Proceedings of the first international symposium on societal resilience contains a chapter "Is the Blame Game Making Us Less Resilient? A Re-examination of Blame Allocation in Systems with High Uncertainty." The New Normal is a time of higher uncertainty for many businesses and governments, with fast and strong disruptions in many systems. We cannot manage systems with high uncertainty unless we receive accurate feedback. If surprises are concealed because they are seen as “failures” of the system or the person in charge, the system cannot adapt. This is a significant problem in many countries and in many organizational cultures including the military, NGO’s, corporations large and small, and the media. It deserves a broad and open debate. The resilience of our organizations may depend on it.