Welcome to “Harmonious Workplaces,” the podcast that delves into corporate culture, organizational change management, and workplace behavior. Hosted by independent consultants Rich Cruz, Ben Kleinman, and Cheryl Vulpi, this episode, the 11th in their series, tackles a concept that can evoke a range of emotions: ambiguity. For some, it’s frustrating; for others, it’s scary or even exciting. Regardless of your personal reaction, the hosts emphasize that it’s more prevalent than ever before, and crucially, you can learn to become more comfortable with it.
What is Ambiguity? A Closer Look
Ben Kleinman defines ambiguity as a “jargony term” that essentially means uncertainty, or a situation characterized by a larger amount of unknowns than usual. It’s when you’re asked to do something, but the desired outcome (“what good looks like”) isn’t clear, or you don’t know the exact process, time, budget, or resources available. This lack of clarity can be liberating for some, allowing them to take ownership and innovate, while for others, it’s a source of fear, frustration, and a reluctance to start or risk going down the wrong path.
Ambiguity: An Enduring Presence
The hosts concur that the idea of a stable, unchanging work environment is largely a thing of the past, if it ever truly existed. Rich Cruz suggests that even in historical roles with long tenure, some level of uncertainty always existed, such as new parts, production methods, or potential factory closures. Cheryl Vulpi highlights that ambiguity is a major part of change and is unavoidable. Leaders often hope for new ideas and innovation within ambiguity, even when they don’t have everything figured out.
Ambiguity isn’t just a concern for rapidly changing industries like startups or entertainment; it’s also a significant factor in heavily regulated sectors like finance and healthcare, where people still grapple with new, unclear information. The podcast points to both internal forces like mergers and acquisitions, and external forces such as P.E.S.T.L. factors (Political, Economical, Social, Technology, Legal, or Environmental), as major contributors to workplace ambiguity.
“Comfort with Ambiguity” in Job Descriptions
A noticeable trend discussed is the increasing inclusion of “comfort with ambiguity” in job descriptions across various industries. This phrase, sometimes compared to Google’s “googliness” (adherence to Google’s values, including comfort with ambiguity), raises questions about its true meaning. Ben Kleinman probes whether it signals organizational laziness—a way of saying “we didn’t do our homework”—or a culturally accepted code for needing flexible, non-rigid, easygoing individuals.
Rich Cruz clarifies that the meaning “it depends”. In startups or roles involving new product rollouts, it’s an intentional requirement. However, for other positions, it might indeed indicate a company’s own lack of clarity. Crucially, the hosts warn that “comfort with ambiguity” should not be interpreted as a “catchall for a disorganized tire fire”. Instead, it should genuinely indicate a company’s commitment to innovation, where ventures into the unknown are expected, and candidates’ risk tolerance and disposition in such situations are key cultural traits.
Strategies for Reducing Ambiguity
While ambiguity is inherent, leaders can help reduce its impact. The episode offers three actionable strategies:
- Get Organized and Create a Visual: When faced with the unknown, the first step is to document everything you do know. Create a visual representation, sketch, or take detailed notes to scope out the known elements. This can involve drawing out processes or using whiteboards, which can be incredibly clarifying for different learning styles.
- Take Smaller Steps and Get Quick Feedback: Avoid taking “enormous launches” into uncertain territory. Instead, take smaller, manageable steps, and seek feedback quickly. This “fail fast” approach allows for adjustments as you go, reducing the risk of significant missteps.
- Check In with Your Emotional Intelligence: It’s vital to self-reflect on your reaction to ambiguity. Ask yourself if your response is counterproductive or if you’re frozen like “a deer in the headlights”. Recognizing and managing your emotional response provides a sense of control and agency, even when external circumstances are chaotic.
The Power of Psychological Safety and Visual Communication
A recurring theme and a crucial element for navigating ambiguity is psychological safety. Cheryl Vulpi emphasizes that in exchange for employees’ comfort with ambiguity, employers should provide the psychological safety that allows for:
- Time to get organized in unknown periods.
- Time to check in with oneself.
- Trust within the team to discuss feelings and exchange information.
When people feel safe to contribute to feedback loops, their self-confidence and intrinsic motivation improve. This environment also fosters better knowledge transfer and retention because individuals are less afraid to fail, allowing them to “fail fast, learn, and keep moving forward”. Ben Kleinman describes this as a “virtuous cycle” where ambiguity can lead to positive outcomes.
The hosts also strongly advocate for visual communication as a powerful tool to remove ambiguity. Rich Cruz recounts an experience where drawing a process on a whiteboard instantly clarified a complex system for his team. The anecdote of “Project Zipper,” where a whiteboard sketch of a zipper became a guiding visual for building a streaming platform from scratch, perfectly illustrates how visuals can create a shared vision and fill in gaps of unknowns, acting as a form of visual storytelling.
Key Takeaways for Leaders and Individuals
Cheryl Vulpi’s main takeaway is that ambiguity is “here to stay”; events like the COVID-19 pandemic have underscored its omnipresence. The key is not to be afraid of what you don’t know but to outline what you do know and approach the rest with innovation. She brilliantly summarizes it as: “It’s an opportunity. It’s a feature, not a glitch.”.
Rich Cruz stresses the importance of psychological safety in fostering communication and feedback, allowing people to learn and feel engaged even when making mistakes. Ben Kleinman concludes that leaders bear the responsibility of creating an environment where ambiguity is seen as an opportunity and where psychological safety is foundational. By doing so, leaders can help their teams realize that “there’s a lot more that’s stable than there is uncertain, there’s a lot more that’s known and less scary than there is ambiguous and fraught with danger”. This approach cultivates agency and self-efficacy, ultimately leading to a more harmonious workplace.
The hosts invite listeners to connect with them for further discussions or feedback on their insights.
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