Systems Thinking

A system as a collection of things, entities, or people that relate to

each other in specific ways, i.e. that are organized and follow
specific rules of interaction.

What have all real-life problem situations in common?

1. There is somebody who sees scope for doing something better
or more effectively.
2. The answer to the problem, or the solution, is not obvious.
3. The interactions between various elements or aspects have a
degree of complexity that the limited computational capacity of
the human mind cannot evaluate in the detail necessary to make
an informed decision.
4. The settings within which these problems exist are systems.
Why is there a need for systems thinking?
 Why are the traditional analytic methods
no longer adequate to come up with the
‘right’ solutions?
1. Increased complexity of today’s decision making