Metaphorum 2026 · Toward Resilient and Ethical Viable Systems

Measuring Organizational Viability Beyond Structure: The CO4 and Biovariety Framework

Purpose: The Viable System Model (VSM) has demonstrated strong explanatory and practical value across diverse organizational contexts. However, organizations may preserve the formal architecture of viability while losing the relational conditions that sustain adaptation. This paper introduces the CO4–Biovariety framework as a relational extension of the VSM, proposing that viability depends on functional differentiation and the continuous conservation of relational organization. Methods: Grounded in Relational Trifferential Logic, the framework integrates two developments. CO4 evaluates viability through four relational dimensions—Cohesion, Communication, Coordination, and Conduct—while Biovariety assesses relational continuity by distinguishing required from non-required variety. Together, they provide operational indicators of functional hypertrophy, relational degradation, and declining adaptive capacity before structural deterioration becomes evident. Findings: Applications in mining, public healthcare, higher education, and public administration show that organizations with similar functional architectures can differ substantially in relational viability. The framework identifies cases in which increasing functional complexity consumes relational resources, reducing adaptive capacity despite preserving structural coherence. Implications/Contributions: The framework extends organizational cybernetics by complementing structural assessment with measures of relational organization. It provides a practical diagnostic methodology for earlier detection of organizational deterioration and measurable indicators supporting intervention, organizational learning, and adaptive governance. The paper argues that sustainable organizational viability is fundamentally a relational property rather than solely a structural one. Speaker: Leonardo Lavanderos

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