A simple balancing loop can be thought of as a basic control loop. In this type of feedback loop, any discrepancies between desired…

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…

Peasants in southwest France have been selling smelly but delicious black truffles to restaurants for more than $600 a kilo (2.2 lb). Not surprisingly,…

The first three systems thinking skills help you establish an extensive (breadth) and intensive (depth) boundary for your mental or computer-based model. The next…

Language has a subtle, yet powerful effect on the way we view the world. English, like most other Western languages, is linear—its basic sentence…

In writing and teaching people about systems thinking, my colleagues and I at I see systems often refer to “mental models.” For some people,…

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…

Making individual mental models explicit is only one step toward fostering organizationwide learning. Since perceptions of reality can vary widely among different people in…

There is a full array of systems thinking tools that you can think of in the same way as a painter views colors many…

We live in a networked age. After centuries of perceiving different parts of the world as separate and isolated, we are now beginning to…