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.

Latest

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.

Next

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

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Research

Evidence, with its limits attached.

Original studies that test a thesis against data. Each names the thesis it supports or challenges, the sample, the method, and what it does not establish. The instrument is published with the report.

Published: 5
In progress: 1
Standard: Methods and limitations in full

Research 06

The Decision Rights Index

Rivera, Lindqvist · In progress

Research 06/Tests Thesis 003

The Decision Rights Index

A method for scoring who can halt, restart and change a workflow.

Instrument development · 8 pilot organizations · In progress · due Q1 2027

Research 05

The Agent Ownership Study

Tanaka, Mendes · July 2026

Research 05/Tests Thesis 004

The Agent Ownership Study

What happens to a workflow when nobody owns the agent running part of it.

14 organizations · 61 deployed agents · July 2026

Research 04

The Skills Mobility Panel

Eatough, Natarajan · June 2026

Research 04/Tests Thesis 007

The Skills Mobility Panel

Tracking 2,400 workers through role changes to see what survives.

2,412 workers · 6 sectors · 18 months · June 2026

Research 03

The Coordination Advantage

Lindqvist, Rivera · May 2026

Research 03/Tests Thesis 003

The Coordination Advantage

Designing work systems people can trust.

52 organizations · 1,184 respondents · May 2026

Research 02

The Exception Load Survey

Okafor · November 2025

Research 02/Tests Thesis 004

The Exception Load Survey

How much of a role is now the part that does not fit the rule.

3,100 workers · 9 sectors · November 2025

Research 01

The Management Capacity Audit

Wald, Fontaine · September 2025

Research 01/Tests Thesis 003

The Management Capacity Audit

Why AI deployments stall, measured at the manager.

27 organizations · 214 managers · September 2025