Positive Feedback Loops in Calving
Positive feedback loops in organizational calving (bankruptcy cascade, talent exodus, customer churn spiral) don't stabilize without decisive intervention.
Positive feedback loops in calving don't stabilize on their own. Once initiated, they run to completion unless external conditions change.
Columbia Glacier was stable from 1790s-1980s, then retreated 20km in 25 years (1982-2007). The trigger was geometric: the terminus retreated off a shallow ridge into deep water. The feedback loop: calving into shallow water (50m) creates small icebergs → terminus retreats into deeper water (200m) → larger icebergs possible → more ice lost per event → faster retreat → exposing more deep water → even larger icebergs → loop accelerates 10-100×. The glacier won't stabilize until it retreats to shallow water or land.
Business Application of Positive Feedback Loops in Calving
Positive feedback loops in organizational calving (bankruptcy cascade, talent exodus, customer churn spiral) don't stabilize without decisive intervention. Once initiated, they run to completion unless external conditions change.
Positive Feedback Loops in Calving Appears in 4 Chapters
The Columbia Glacier's 25-year collapse demonstrates how positive feedback loops, once triggered, run to completion without decisive intervention.
Glacier calving as runaway feedback →Ant pheromone trails and kelp forest dynamics show how positive feedback creates emergent patterns - and how negative feedback prevents runaway collapse.
Emergence through feedback loops →Earthworms improving soil that supports more earthworms exemplifies how success strengthens niches through self-reinforcing dynamics.
Positive feedback in niche construction →Bacterial quorum sensing uses positive feedback to create bistable switching - populations flip sharply between OFF and ON states rather than transitioning gradually.
Bistability through positive feedback →