Seeing the whole
Systems thinking and system mapping.
- Level
- Bitesize
- Learning time
- 2 hours
- Where
- Systems Leadership
- Price
- £39
When you step up to a higher level, what you paid in the last 12 months for lower-level courses inside the bigger course comes off its price, in proportion to how much of each is inside it, whichever topic it's from. Courses at the same or a lower level don't give credit against each other. A Focus course or above always costs at least £15. Read the full terms
Certificate of Completion
Overview and Outcomes.
Overview
Public service problems such as homelessness and health inequality sit across many organisations, and no one of them can fix them alone. This module introduces what a system is, drawing on Donella Meadows, the tame and wicked distinction of Rittel and Webber, and the growth of systems thinking from Forrester to Senge. It reads Everyone In as a system and applies Cynefin to member and officer relationships. When the same problems keep returning despite good people working hard, the cause usually lies in the structure. This module covers the core grammar of systems thinking: stocks and flows from Forrester's system dynamics, reinforcing and balancing loops, delays and oscillation, and the iceberg model from Senge's tradition. It reads the English NHS waiting list as a stock and explores John Seddon's idea of failure demand. A good map turns a tangle of opinions into something a group can point at, argue about and improve. This module compares rich pictures, causal loop diagrams and actor maps, explores Peter Checkland's Soft Systems Methodology and Werner Ulrich's boundary questions, and reads the 2007 Foresight obesity system map. It shows why smaller maps drawn together with the people affected often lead to more action.
What you'll develop
In this Bitesize, you will develop the ability to:
- Explain what a system is, using elements, interconnections, purpose and boundary, and distinguish tame problems from wicked ones.
- Analyse a cross-boundary case such as Everyone In to identify what changed, who was involved and what the system had not been seeing.
- Explain how stocks, flows, reinforcing and balancing loops and delays shape the behaviour of a public service system over time.
- Analyse a recurring problem, such as a waiting list, by identifying its inflow and outflow taps, likely loops and expected delays.
- Distinguish rich pictures, causal loop diagrams and actor maps and choose the right one for the stage a group has reached.
The Modules.
2 hours of learning.
- 01Foundations: Why Systems Leadership, Why NowPublic service problems such as homelessness and health inequality sit across many organisations, and no one of them can fix them alone. This module introduces what a system is, drawing on Donella Meadows, the tame and wicked distinction of Rittel and Webber, and the growth of systems thinking from Forrester to Senge. It reads Everyone In as a system and applies Cynefin to member and officer relationships.38 min
- 02Systems Thinking EssentialsWhen the same problems keep returning despite good people working hard, the cause usually lies in the structure. This module covers the core grammar of systems thinking: stocks and flows from Forrester's system dynamics, reinforcing and balancing loops, delays and oscillation, and the iceberg model from Senge's tradition. It reads the English NHS waiting list as a stock and explores John Seddon's idea of failure demand.38 min
- 03Mapping the SystemA good map turns a tangle of opinions into something a group can point at, argue about and improve. This module compares rich pictures, causal loop diagrams and actor maps, explores Peter Checkland's Soft Systems Methodology and Werner Ulrich's boundary questions, and reads the 2007 Foresight obesity system map. It shows why smaller maps drawn together with the people affected often lead to more action.38 min
Keep going.
Part of the Systems Leadership topic, also sold whole as Leading the whole system.
Go deeper, and pay only the difference
- You are hereBitesize, 2 hours, £39
- Next stepFocus, Learning to see systems, 3 hours, £69. Already own the Bitesize? You pay £30.
- Explore, Seeing and shifting systems, 5 hours 30 minutes, £129. Already own the Bitesize? You pay £90.
- The whole topicImmerse, Leading the whole system, 11 hours, £249. Already own the Bitesize? You pay £210.
When you step up to a higher level, what you paid in the last 12 months for lower-level courses inside the bigger course comes off its price, in proportion to how much of each is inside it, whichever topic it's from. Courses at the same or a lower level don't give credit against each other. A Focus course or above always costs at least £15. Prices per person. Read the full terms
Also part of: Beyond our own walls, Joining up care
Other Bitesize in the Systems Leadership topic
- Where a small push goes farSystem archetypes and leverage points1 hour 15 minutes£39
- Leading what no one controlsComplex adaptive systems and systems leaders1 hour 15 minutes£39
- Sensing what wants to emergeAdaptive leadership and Theory U1 hour 15 minutes£39
- Trust as the real currencyRelational leadership and Collective Impact1 hour 15 minutes£39
- Where law and place meetWelsh law, integrated care and devolution1 hour 15 minutes£39
- Learning as the way we leadHuman Learning Systems and system measurement1 hour 15 minutes£39
