cynefin-framework
Skill3 starsChanged 6 months agoMITView on GitHub
Use the Cynefin framework to classify situations as clear, complicated, complex, chaotic, or disordered and choose the right response. Use when deciding how to act under uncertainty or domain complexity.
1 other project uses a version of this.
Adopted by
Most recently taken up by
- tupe12334/instincttheir own version, first seen Aug 17, 2026
Other versions1 project uses a version of this.
Word for word · 0
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Edited · 0
None found.
Wrote their own version · 1
- tupe12334/instinct★ 1same name
How matches are found. Word for word: the exact same text. Edited: shares passages with this file (“99% same” means 99% of its five-word phrases also appear here; 10% or more counts). Their own version: similar meaning, or, weakest, the same name. We can’t tell which project had it first. Projects are counted among the 200 most-starred candidates, and mentions are links to the repository we found, up to 50 per site, so both counts are a floor.
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The file
We split this skill into the rules it gives an agent
2 rules. About 0 are common, 2 are distinctive, and 0 are very specific to this project.
≈0
Common · estimate
Many files like this have a rule of this kind.
≈2
Distinctive · estimate
This author's own choices. Worth a look.
0
Very specific
Tied to their project's names, files or tools. Probably skip.
- Common
- Distinctive
- Very specific
- Distinctive: line 46
Don't know which domain you're in
- Distinctive: line 56
Do you know what causes the situation?
≈ “Common” is an estimate: at least 1 in 5 of the 350,495 skill files we read have a rule of the same kind, not the same words. “Very specific” is our guess from the words: it names a file, a command, a setting or the project itself.
Files
Cynefin Framework
Overview
- Category: Decision Making Tool
- Purpose: Help make sense of different situations to choose an appropriate response
- Developed by: Dave Snowden in 1999
- Pronunciation: /kuh-nev-in/
Five Domains
1. Clear (Obvious/Simple)
- "Domain of best practices"
- Characteristics:
- Familiar, clearly defined problems
- Stable situations
- Clear cause-and-effect relationships
- Approach: sense-categorise-respond
2. Complicated
- "Known unknowns"
- Multiple right answers not immediately visible
- Requires expert analysis
- Approach: sense-analyze-respond
3. Complex
- "Unknown unknowns"
- Situation cannot be understood by analysis
- Approach: Experiment, learn, then sense and respond
- Goal: Move problem to complicated domain
4. Chaotic
- Situation not under control
- Unclear cause-and-effect relationships
- Approach: act-sense-respond
- Opportunity for novel solutions
5. Disorder
- Don't know which domain you're in
- Goal: Quickly identify correct domain
- Strategy: Break down problem into parts
How to Use
- Identify which domain your situation falls into
- Choose appropriate response based on domain characteristics
Guiding Questions
- Do you know what causes the situation?
- Is the situation under control?
- How much do you know about it?
- Does solving it require expert knowledge?
Key Takeaway
"Different kinds of situations or problems require different kinds of responses."
Sources
- Harvard Business Review
- Everyday Kanban
- Wikipedia
- Miro template
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