Many readers of The Systems Thinker are familiar with the systems archetypes developed in the mid- 1980s based on the work of Jay Forrester, …

When Albert Einstein began to play with the theory of quantum physics, he didn’t like it. He spent a few years trying to disprove …

Systems thinking has been described as a language for talking about the complex, interdependent issues managers face every day. Within that framework, causal loop …

The “learning organization” is fast becoming a corporate buzzword. Many companies are jumping on the bandwagon without really understanding what a learning organization is, or …

Consider any complex, potentially volatile issue — Arab-Israeli relations; the problems between the Serbs, Croats, and Bosnians; the U.S. deficit, healthcare costs, or labor/management …

Imagine picking up a newspaper and reading that the country’s largest petroleum company has petitioned the government to increase the gasoline tax at the …

As readers of this newsletter are aware, systems thinking is evolving as an alternative to the old paradigms. Richard Mattessich wrote that “systems thinking …

Trust is a subject close to many people’s hearts. Whenever I make presentations on this subject, I never cease to be amazed by the …

B definition, a problem is any stimulus, question, task, phenomenon, or discrepancy for which we don’t immediately have an answer or solution. We are …

Attempting to bring about organizational change through the internal transformation of individuals is difficult, yet it may be the most effective way. The belief …

Your division has been plagued by late launches in its last five new products, and now management has charged you with “getting to the …

The systems thinking community has always considered stock and flow diagrams to be important tools, and recognition of their key place in the …

Fortune magazine recently labeled the U.S. school system “our most endangered institution,” highlighting a growing national concern about the quality of education in America. Steadily …

Jorge Valchez is an organizational development consultant at International Chocolate, Inc., a (fictional) confectionery company. A few years ago, he picked up a copy …

As of 1993, Sigma Tech (a fictional name) was one of the most successful small corporations in the U.S. The company’s business was both …

The drive toward improvement has become a way of life in corporations today. Total Quality Management, Business Process Reengineering, and other improvement techniques have …

Many leaders feel starved for time. Working under the assumption that longer hours lead to improved productivity, they drive themselves and others to increase …

The parable of the blind men and the elephant illustrates how our individual perceptions (what Peter Senge calls our “mental models”) can lead to …

Individual Practice Becoming a seasoned systems thinker starts with a strong commitment to developing your own awarenesses and skills. Ask Different Questions. Systems thinking offers …

The goal of education for sustainability (EFS) is “to develop in young people and adults new knowledge and new ways of thinking needed to …

So you’ve read The Fifth Discipline, attended the Pegasus “Systems Thinking in Action” Conference, bought simulation software, and created your first computer models. You’re …

Everything is connected. A child randomly kicks the elephant on the mobile hanging over her crib, and the other members of the aerial zoo …

Bank failures, health insurance rate hikes, and the troubles of auto manufacturers provide recent examples of the vulnerability of big, fast-changing systems and the …

Any time you hear the phrase, “Here we go again” in response to a problem, it is a clue that a pattern is in …

Creating learning organizations takes more than a collection of individuals working toward the same cause; it requires building a community of learners who are …

The Milwaukee Area Technical College (MATC) is the largest two-year technical college in the U.S., serving nearly 70,000 students with an annual budget of …

The first thinking skill in the systems thinking paradigm is Dynamic Thinking. It comes first because you must be able to think dynamically in …

Total Quality Control and systems thinking have complementary strengths that can greatly enhance an organization’s ability to improve its performance. How? Through a more balanced …

When something goes wrong in an organization, the first question that is often posed is, “Whose fault is it?” When there’s data missing in …

Despite significant advances in personal computers and systems thinking software over the last decade, learning to apply systems thinking effectively remains a tough nut …

What should be the outcome of a systems education? We do not expect most students to spend their lives in front of a computer …

As members of communities and organizations, many people feel their days (and their energy!) being consumed by contentious conflicts between diverse stakeholder groups. Organizations …

Are we failing to adequately prepare our business leaders? Since an article in the Harvard Business Review on the topic more than 30 years …

Systems thinking is different from most other problem-solving tools because it takes into account the fact that we are a part of the system …

Contrary to popular opinion, learning is not the process of merely accumulating more information. You have “learned” something only when you can produce a …

We can gain leverage for improving conversations by paying attention to advocacy and inquiry. Advocacy is stating one’s views. Describing what I think, disclosing …

Why can’t we all just get along?” asked Rodney King famously, echoing the sentiments of many of us who have at some point or …

If the element in greatest evidence in a school system is “young people,” and the second most prevalent feature is “desks,” surely a close …

Why are attempts to transform organizations usually painful and so often unsuccessful? Why is it that, even when leaders recognize the value of the …

Leadership traditionally has been thought of as “doing the right thing” while management has been defined as “doing things right.” Contemporary leadership combines these …

TEAM TIP Look for things that rise and fall in your organization, such as employee motivation, product sales, progress on goals, etc. What are …

All you need to do is read the paper or watch the news to realize that the world is becoming more difficult to understand …

You are a claims processor working for a large insurance company. You are good at what you do, but although you know where your …

Interest in systems concepts is reviving and broadening. However, the sheer size of the field poses a dilemma for both newcomers and those who …

Take a moment to put on a new set of glasses. Change your perspective. Consider, for a moment, that the most widespread and pervasive …

The 1990s are shaping up to be a decade of dramatic changes. The recent shake-ups at IBM and General Motors are ominous signs that …

The way people talk together in organizations is rapidly becoming acknowledged as central to the creation and management of knowledge. According to Alan Webber, …

The recent decline of well-established firms and the perceived need for corporate renewal has fueled a growing interest in the topic of organizational learning.

Decision-makers often turn to computer models when they face a problem too “big” to grasp all at once. Having the computer keep track of …