thesis.

Library Theses Research Arguments Field studies Institute People Convenings

The shelf. Seven volumes, one per problem the institute intends to solve.

Three carry an opening argument and a confidence mark. Four are published as the agenda so the framing can be argued with before the work starts. Pull one out to read it.

In focus

003 · Management Is Becoming an Operating System

Numbered positions on how work is changing. Each one sourced, challenged, and reviewed on a published date.

The register is the institute's memory. A thesis can be revised or retired, but it is never deleted; the previous claim stays on the record with what changed and why.

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All · Argued · On the agenda

Original studies that test a thesis against evidence, with methods and limitations published in full.

Research is heavier than commentary. Every study names the thesis it supports or challenges, the sample, and what it does not establish.

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Research 05 · The Agent Ownership Study

Essays, interviews, responses and field notes. Every one a claim someone can disagree with.

Lighter than research, still tied to the library. An argument that moves a thesis is linked to the revision it caused.

This week

Augment, don't replace · Jeff Wald

Theses applied inside real organizations, for two to four quarters, with the outcome reported against a written baseline.

This is where a position earns or loses confidence. Every field study ships with its limitations. Organizations are described, not named, until they consent.

Latest

Moving people, not skills · a 9,000-person manufacturer

How the work moves from signal to impact, and the standards that hold it to account.

Seven stages, from noticing a pattern to measuring what changed in the world. Plus evidence, counterargument, revision and independence standards, published in full.

Fellows and contributors, listed by what they have authored, challenged, and revised.

A profile here is a record of intellectual contribution, not a biography. Challengers are credited alongside authors.

Working sessions built to test a live thesis, with the question published before and the synthesis after.

Small rooms, real disagreement, and a written record of which positions moved.

What is management for when coordination becomes software? · 08 October

Newsletter Search Standards Independence Contact

Essay/AI systems · Management

Agents need owners, not users.

Oversight is what you give a tool. Ownership is what you give a colleague. Agents are the second thing.

Mika Tanaka15 May 20266 min read

Essay15 May 2026AI systems · Management

Oversight is what you give a tool. Ownership is what you give a colleague. Agents are the second thing.

The full text of this piece is being prepared. The summary above, the author, and the thesis it touches are on the record now so that the connection is visible before the piece is.

Every argument published here links back to the library. If it moves a thesis, the revision it caused is linked from this page.

Moves the library. Published alongside Thesis 004 v1.0. Thesis 004, Every Organization Is Becoming a Human-Machine System.

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