The West is caught in algorithms, and we? We dance with chaos...

If there's something I learned in my 15 years in the Pepsi system (1993-2008), it's that the West operates by well-defined rules. Processes are like well-oiled mechanisms, and any deviation from the established algorithm is not allowed. In Romania, on the other hand, the situation is almost the opposite. I felt this personally when I transitioned from corporate to management consulting.

But let’s break down the dynamics of processes a bit, using Roger Martin's approach: chaos/mystery, heuristic, and finally, algorithm. I believe this is the key to understanding how the West and Romania approach, or better yet, don't approach processes.

The three steps of a process: Chaos, Heuristic, and Algorithm

Chaos/mystery: This is the starting phase, where nobody knows exactly what is happening or how to solve the problem. It's a sort of "what the heck are we doing here?" When you look at a Romanian city or a Romanian company from this perspective, the chaos is evident. Buildings are randomly placed, without any coherent urban logic, and processes in organizations are improvised. This is the zone where many Romanian companies seem to be stuck: there's no coherent system, and any attempt at order hits a wall of confusion (see the notable tendency to avoid uncertainty and the significant power distance – Daniel David, The Psychology of the Romanian People).
Heuristic: Here, we start making steps. We don't yet have a clear algorithm, but we’re testing empirical solutions – guessing what might work. It's like when a chef adds ingredients "by eye" without following an exact recipe but has enough experience to know not to add salt instead of sugar. In many cases, Romanian companies occasionally reach this phase, but when they do, it’s often on discretionary bases and doesn’t last long. Why? Because the chaos around them swallows them back. If you do too good a job, you attract attention and are "lynched" by the faulty infrastructure around you.
Algorithm: This is the final phase, where we have clear, repeatable, and optimized processes. If chaos is anarchy, the algorithm is Western bureaucracy in all its splendor. Every piece is where it should be, every process has a purpose, and results are predictable. I lived for many years in such a corporate bubble, where every "must-have capability" was ticked without question, and management systems continuously supported well-defined processes.

Cultural differences: From excessive processing in the West to creative chaos in Romania

The West operates on algorithms – whether we talk about urbanism, management, organizations, education, technology, or social relations. Everything is clear, ordered, repeatable. If you look at a city in the UK from above, you’ll see how the roads and buildings are perfectly aligned, as if drawn with a ruler. In the company I worked for, Pepsi, aside from the chaos of the early '90s, the rest of the time I spent in a well-oiled machine. There were clear management systems that continually optimized everything – from production and distribution to marketing – and any deviation was quickly corrected.

When I left the corporation and began consulting in business strategy in Romania, it was like falling out of a plane mid-flight...luckily, I studied Aerospaceengineering many years ago ;-)

Most local companies were in full chaos – no clear processes, random decision-making, and rare attempts to reach heuristics. Those who had the courage to introduce a minimum of order were immediately suppressed by the chaotic infrastructure.

Case study: Agricola and the wrong algorithm

A concrete example that illustrates how tangled things can get is Agricola, where I witnessed an algorithm applied backward. At that time (2008), Agricola was a vertically integrated holding where all entities sold products to each other based on BVC=0 (Income and Expense Budget), meaning without margin. From grain production to slaughterhouse and finally selling the chickens, costs accumulated but without any intermediate profit. The problem was that this structure pushed costs to the final point in the chain, which couldn’t sell competitively on the market.

Instead of starting from the target price and optimizing costs along the value chain, Agricola applied a reverse algorithm. The solution was to change this system, but it took years. Today, Agricola is one of the market leaders, but only after realizing that you can’t continue to apply an algorithm that doesn’t work and after benefiting from 'creative chaos.'

The bright side of the dark side: The advantage of creative chaos

But, despite all this, chaos isn’t entirely negative. In Romania, this lack of rigid structure offers a creative freedom that the algorithmized West no longer has intrinsically; it imports it from the East. In the West, well-defined processes can stifle creativity and make people lazy, content to follow the rules without questioning them.

In Romania, we have the opportunity to explore the mystery and test heuristics before reaching well-defined algorithms. In Agricola's case, the absence of algorithms led to the freedom of creativity (benefiting from the significant intellectual potential identified by Daniel David in his 10 years of research on Romanian ethos), generating innovative and sometimes amusing products, like the "happy chicken," "anti-stress chicken," or even the "family chicken, with four legs." ;-)

The challenge is to turn this chaos into valuable algorithms, not to settle for short-term improvisations. Moreover, with AI on our heels, it’s essential to develop intelligent algorithms before we find ourselves relying on bad processes. Otherwise, we risk falling into the "garbage in, garbage out" trap.

A sort of conclusion: Romania between chaos and opportunity

The West is firmly anchored in the algorithmic phase, where processes are optimized and systems work like Swiss watches. Romania, on the other hand, navigates between chaos – "it’ll work somehow" – and heuristics – "we'll manage," with a few attempts at algorithms that often go the wrong way. Although this complicates the implementation of business strategies, it also offers a rare opportunity: the chance to shape better, more creative, and maybe more efficient processes and algorithms. In this free zone between mystery and algorithm lies Romania’s true creative potential.

Without chaos, order wouldn’t make sense.