Systems Thinking Job Aids for Systems Thinking For

Systems Thinking Job Aids for Systems Thinking For Systems Thinking Workshops Version – July 2011 – created and facilitated by – Richard Karash This Power. Point file is available on the Web at the URL below. Copyright Notice: This “Job Aids” collection may be reproduced freely with the copyright/attribution as below. The latest version Power. Point file for this collection is available on the web at the URL below. v. 7/2011 Please contact Richard Karash with comments and suggestions! Job. Aid 1 May be reproduced with attribution • © Richard@Karash. com • 617 -308 -4750 • http: //www. Karash. com/systemsthinking

Systems Thinking Job Aids What Does it Mean to See a System? When we see something (a whole)… With internal structure (that is, parts and their interrelationships)… ? That produces an excess result… Beyond what would be produced by the parts acting separately… And, this is because of the way the parts relate… We call that a Systems Thinking — An approach for understanding a whole by examining it's parts and how they relate. Job. Aid v. 7/2011 2 May be reproduced with attribution • © Richard@Karash. com • 617 -308 -4750 • http: //www. Karash. com/systemsthinking

Systems Thinking Job Aids What is Systems Thinking? • Systems Thinking: understanding a whole by examining it’s parts and their interrelationships. • Our focus is “The System” • Purpose: Increasing our collective capacity to produce the results we want to create. • Propositions: Understanding guides effective action Leadership includes systems leadership Job. Aid v. 7/2011 3 May be reproduced with attribution • © Richard@Karash. com • 617 -308 -4750 • http: //www. Karash. com/systemsthinking

Systems Thinking Job Aids Systems Thinking Process Postpone Solutions Revisit Values. . . Focus. . . Required to understand anything. Strategies and Choices flow from tension between Vision and Current Reality. Zen-like Openness to Data and Experience. Explain Observe Design Create Alternatives. Know what you know. … and what you Don't. Look for Leverage. Act Choices. Action Planning. Search for experiments and contexts which will give the data to illuminate the important "Don't Knows. " v. 7/2011 Ref: Many authors have emphasized the power of a Learning Cycle like this. Going back through time: Senge, Kolb, Deming, Shewhart, Dewey, Wm. James and Charles Sanders Peirce. Job. Aid 4 May be reproduced with attribution • © Richard@Karash. com • 617 -308 -4750 • http: //www. Karash. com/systemsthinking

Systems Thinking Job Aids Systems Thinking Process — More Detail START HERE Ex Pr pa oc nd ee ed d Cl Seq oc ue kw nc is e: e. . . Going Deeper Questions Core Sequence Job. Aid v. 7/2011 5 May be reproduced with attribution • © Richard@Karash. com • 617 -308 -4750 • http: //www. Karash. com/systemsthinking

Systems Thinking Job Aids Emergent Learning Maps Framing Question: _________ Thinking Past 2. Explanations 3. Insights for the Future 1. Facts in Relevant Situations 4. Application (Specifics) Future Job. Aid v. 7/2011 Tangible Signet Research • &617 -308 -4750 Consulting, LLC May be reproduced with attribution • ©© 2006, Richard@Karash. com • http: //www. Karash. com/systemsthinking 6

Systems Thinking Job Aids Learning Disciplines Personal Mastery Shared Visioning Team Learning om nding C a t s r e d Un Aspirati on Generative Conversation plexity Organizational Capabilities Mental Models Systems Thinking Organizational Capabilities rest on three foundations… Like a three-legged stool. In these three areas, we distinguish five disciplines for organizational learning. Job. Aid v. 7/2011 Ref: Peter Senge, The Fifth Discipline and related works. May be reproduced with attribution • © Richard@Karash. com • 617 -308 -4750 • http: //www. Karash. com/systemsthinking 7

Systems Thinking Job Aids Essential Elements of Systems Thinking: A B Diagramming Cause – Effect Chains Feedback Loop Perspective — Dynamic Behavior The System Drives Behavior adding System Archetypes — Themes & Patterns depleting Resource Surprising Nature of Accumulations & Delays Mental Models — Thinking as Part of Systems A Process. . . and Stance Job. Aid v. 7/2011 8 May be reproduced with attribution • © Richard@Karash. com • 617 -308 -4750 • http: //www. Karash. com/systemsthinking

Systems Thinking Job Aids Questions to Open Different Levels of Seeing • Questions • What do you see? Observe? What did you experience? What’s been happening? What’s changing? Contrasts? Draw the graphs! Getting better? . . or worse? Why? How? is this happening? Reas. explanation of mechanism? Causal connections. . . Make hypothesis. . . and test! What is the thinking? Assume reasonable and responsible. v. 7/2011 • Action Perspective • Events Patterns Explanation & Understanding (Understanding the Thinking) React. . . Faster! More Flexibility! Anticipate. . . Forecast Prepare Plan Design. . . Architect. . . Create. . . A structure which produces the results you want! Transformation Culture Change It’s Like an Iceberg! — Hard to See Below the “Water Line” May be reproduced with attribution • © Richard@Karash. com • 617 -308 -4750 • http: //www. Karash. com/systemsthinking Job. Aid 9

Systems Thinking Job Aids Mapping — To Keep Track of Complexity Why diagram? To keep track of complexity. Without a graphic, human mind can handle only a handful of items. Workload De lay System Investments Service Quality Differences that make a difference. Changes that change something. Arrows shows cause and effect. From Cause to Effect… Change causes change. Mark the most important delays. Staffing Workload (Optional) Tell the story with directional arrows (up/down) to show which way things are changing. The causal arrow is different; it means “change causes change. ” Job. Aid v. 7/2011 10 May be reproduced with attribution • © Richard@Karash. com • 617 -308 -4750 • http: //www. Karash. com/systemsthinking

Systems Thinking Job Aids Mapping — More Details S Workload S Mistakes & Errors Cause can drive Effect in Same Direction. Mark with "S. " OO Staffing Workload Or, Cause can drive Effect in Opposite Direction. Mark with "O. " We can’t afford it. SS Financial Results Systems Investments When “B” is a human choice, the “thought bubble” shows the thinking that leads to the choice being made. Assume “Reasonable and Responsible” v. 7/2011 11 Job. Aid 11 May be reproduced with attribution • © Richard@Karash. com • 617 -308 -4750 • http: //www. Karash. com/systemsthinking

Systems Thinking Job Aids Mapping — Criteria for Links Criteria for good causal links: Does the causal link make sense logically? Tight Logic. S Workload S Mistakes & Errors Could this be an explanation, practically? Real Mechanisms. Not just loose analogy. Is it happening here? In the period of interest? Data Based. Is it important? Making a real difference? High Leverage. Job. Aid v. 7/2011 12 12 May be reproduced with attribution • © Richard@Karash. com • 617 -308 -4750 • http: //www. Karash. com/systemsthinking

Systems Thinking Job Aids Graphs — An A+ Example One Variable (graph) on a Post-It Note. Show Desired Level if appropriate. Customer Satisfaction Clear Identification of the Variable. Very Strong Desired Some Indication of the Scale. Graph shows Levels, Trends, and Bends. (Subjective or Data-based) None 2000 Time Period is Explicit & Long Enough. NOW Shows Where is NOW. v. 7/2011 Job. Aid 13 May be reproduced with attribution • © Richard@Karash. com • 617 -308 -4750 • http: //www. Karash. com/systemsthinking

Systems Thinking Job Aids Feedback Loop Perspective — Two Dynamics Reinforcing Loop Balancing Loop Target Speed Actual Speed US Weapons Spending R Russian Weapons Spending B Excess or Shortfall Power to Car’s Engineering: Positive Feedback Systems Thinking: Reinforcing Loop Behavior: Run-Away Negative Feedback Balancing Loop Control, Stability (May Oscillate) OR v. 7/2011 time OR time May be reproduced with attribution • © Richard@Karash. com • 617 -308 -4750 • http: //www. Karash. com/systemsthinking Job. Aid 14

Systems Thinking Job Aids Fixes that Backfire Template Title: _____________ Thinking that leads to this solution The Story: Results we really care about: Job. Aid v. 7/2011 15 May be reproduced with attribution • © Richard@Karash. com • 617 -308 -4750 • http: //www. Karash. com/systemsthinking

Systems Thinking Job Aids May be reproduced with attribution • © Richard@Karash. com • 617 -308 -4750 • http: //www. Karash. com/systemsthinking Shifting the Burden Template Title: _____________ The Story: v. 7/2011 Job. Aid 16

Systems Thinking Job Aids Diagramming with Resources and Flows Steps for Adding Resources and Flows to our Diagrams: Resource A 1. Identify and Name the critical resources that determine the results of interest. In-Flow Factors affecting the In-Flow Out-Flow 2. Identify and Name the flows in and out of each resource. Factors affecting the Out. Flow Results affected by the level of the Resource 3. Identify and diagram the factors which determine the In-Flows and the Out-Flows. 4. What results are affected by the resource level? Draw these causal relationships. Note: There is never a causal arrow into a resource. The level of a resource can only be affected by the flows in and out. Job. Aid v. 7/2011 17 May be reproduced with attribution • © Richard@Karash. com • 617 -308 -4750 • http: //www. Karash. com/systemsthinking