B. What is a system and systems thinking?

system – a group of independent but interrelated elements comprising an integrated whole

systems thinking – the process of understanding how system elements interact to produce system behavior.

• structure – composition of elements
• behavior – involved inputs, processes and outputs of material, energy and/or information
• interconnections – structural and functional relations between elements
• emerging properties -system properties that do not appear in individual elements (e.g. car individual parts cannot move by themselves)

Systems are everywhere. They interact with each other and environment, belong to other systems and contain own sub systems. In addition, we, humans, constantly create new systems that usually cause more problems than solve.

2. Ability to predict and influence future is the most important skill of the Master of Systems Thinking

• Technology, software systems and operation environments
• People, team, company
• Business, industry, customers and user communities
• Economy, society, world
• Universe

C. Elusive Systems

Here is grim reality: “Large complex systems are beyond human capacity to evaluate” [Systemantics]

3. Inability to understand systems is the most serious obstacle for the Master of Systems Thinking. Unfortunately, most systems are complex and the master will not understand them.

Even a system with few components can be considered as complex – elements can be in multiple states, relations and participate in many interactions inside and outside of the system. People spend billions dollars on research of relatively simple systems as interaction of elementary particles and best minds cannot still can get the right theory. I doubt that anybody will spend large effort on research of more complicated peculiarities of your software development ecosystem and projects. In most cases, you are on your own to deal with problems.

Three properties of non-trivial systems make us almost incapable to understand them: Complexity, Metamorphosis and Delusion.

There are few sources of complexity:

• internal– system structure and behavior under specific circumstances and inputs (software system testing in lab, company employment policies)
• feedback loops – the system output becomes new system input causing complex and unpredictable behavior (live software system crushes, changing requirements in process of development)
• external – other systems and environment alter system behavior all the time (client doesn’t like final software system, management shifts business strategy)

In short, complex systems exhibit complex odd behavior.

• new structures introduce new functions and problems (e.g. software system after development and patching over time can completely departs from original design ideas – a convenient utility becomes bloated software suite)
• lose of basic functionality – as system grows in size and complexity, it tends to alter or lose basic functionality and initial purpose (e.g. small agile startup can grow into large sluggish company )
• self-serving goals – the system develops unintended goals (behave as it has will to live) and start to work for them (e.g. PM office is more concerned about adherence to the process than software delivery)
• encroaching – the system tends to slowly expand to fill known Universe (e.g. meetings and documents take more time than development)

• operational fallacy – the people in system do not do what system says they are doing and the system itself doesn’t do what it reports doing [Systemantics] (e.g. productivity improvement campaign consume people time and delay project).
• distortion by system – people and their wills are absorbed by the system; their judgment and perspective become impaired (e.g. developers don’t see that their software completely unusable)
• misinterpretation – obscure and difficult to get information (e.g. nobody has clue about software system logic and documentation is outdated)
• ignoring reality – the system sees the world from reports, and “a system is not better than its sensory organs” [Systemantics] (e.g. project manager commits to delivery date without talking with developers)

D. Systems Thinking in Action

4. You can still master complex systems if you realize that you cannot change complex systems as you wish and get predictable results.

You will be engaged into complex dance with the system until you can get positive results. I recommend five step dancing procedure: