State of Systems Approaches in Organisations - Paper Intro
Watch on YouTubeVideo summary
The video introduces a new publication titled "Data Systems Approaches in Organizations," which aims to review and map the current landscape of systems thinking within modern management and organizational change. The authors present this work as an ecosystem comprising various dimensions, factors, resources, methods, and ideas that collectively unlock the potential for transforming organizations through systemic approaches. A significant portion of the content draws from 20th-century research in systems theory and cybernetics but rebrands these classic concepts to fit contemporary contexts like reinventing change and addressing organizational complexity. The guide serves as a comprehensive resource containing case studies, initiatives, tools, and learning platforms designed to help professionals connect with others who possess relevant skills or are already implementing such approaches within their organizations.
A key argument presented in the paper is that traditional linear change management methods have become insufficient for dealing with the inherent messiness of transformation, leading many practitioners toward complexity theory and systems thinking. The document highlights several emerging trends that illustrate this shift, including the rise of platforms and ecosystems as new business models which necessitate adaptive organizational strategies. Furthermore, there has been substantial growth in fields such as systems leadership and systemic coaching over the past year or so, driven by a recognition that individual-focused coaching often fails to address broader structural issues. The publication also critically examines the limitations of Agile methodologies, noting that while they foster pockets of innovation and flexibility within teams, they struggle to drive enterprise-wide transformation without the integration of deeper systems thinking principles.
The authors emphasize that many insights discussed in the paper are not strictly tied to the year 2026 but rather reflect broader trends arising over the past couple of decades as organizations grapple with increasing complexity. The guide is designed to be relatively light yet informative, spanning approximately seventy pages and offering diverse resources for those looking to deepen their understanding of these evolving dynamics. By synthesizing historical ideas with modern applications, the paper provides a clear pathway for leaders who wish to move beyond isolated improvements toward holistic organizational change. It addresses how organizations can adapt to new ways of working while leveraging established theoretical foundations that have been updated and recontextualized for today's challenges.
To further disseminate these findings, the creators are hosting an online event on August 18th where they will officially launch the paper with guest speakers sharing their experiences and insights into key themes covered in the text. The video encourages viewers to download the free publication from their website and participate in the upcoming discussion to explore how systems thinking can be practically applied to transform complex organizations. All relevant links for accessing the document and joining the event are shared via chat, inviting a global audience of practitioners, researchers, and leaders to engage with this evolving field. Ultimately, the initiative seeks to foster a connected community where ideas from different dimensions converge to support meaningful and sustainable change in how businesses operate today.
Read the full video transcript
Okay. Hi there people. This is Joss from
the SI network. I'm here to share a
little bit about one of our latest
publications.
Here it is the data systems approaches
in organizations. This is for 2026
and uh we're essentially trying to
review what is the the landscape the
state of the ecosystem around systems
thinking and systems approaches in
organizations and management. So we lay
it out a bit like this, an ecosystem of
different uh dimensions and factors that
need to come together for us to really
to be able to unlock the potential of
systems thinking uh and apply it towards
transforming and changing organizations.
So you can see um there are things uh
like research all the ideas meth methods
the books and resources that a lot of
them come from the 20th century and we
are uh looking into those we're adding
them into the paper so you can find
different resources uh different tools
people are using places where you can
learn about this uh you can connect with
others people have these kinds of skills
organizations that are are doing this
and we highlight different initiatives
and case studies um in the paper also.
So, it's a guide uh relatively light.
It's about 70 uh pages long and you'll
find a lot of different uh resources and
insights into what's uh going on going
on along these different dimensions. We
also draw some key insights into where
we are at this time in terms of how this
is being applied and uh different
changes uh particularly at this time.
These aren't necessarily specific to
2026. uh many of them arising over the
past couple of decades. But just quickly
to touch upon these uh the great
rebranding. So a lot of the ideas from
original systems theory and cybernetics
and and complex in the 20th century are
being uh rebranded should we say and
brought into modern management and
organizational uh organization change uh
under new names. [clears throat]
Reinventing change. A lot of people are
getting fatigued with the classic
classical classical change management um
approaches the the linear kind of
stepby-step change uh approaches and
they're very interested in how
complexity theory can help them dig into
the reality of uh you know
transformation and the the messiness and
complexity of that uh rise of
ecosystems. You probably know about
this. So
we're seeing uh broad of platforms and
ecosystems rise as as new ways of um
doing business and working and uh
organizations are looking to adapt to
that and try and understand what's going
on and that's definitely uh introducing
a lot of systems thinking ideas. We've
got systems leadership and um systemic
coaching is a major rising trend uh over
the past year or so. A lot of people um
seeing the limitations of traditional
kind of coaching focused on individuals
and um asking for more systemic uh kind
of coaching but also the need for
systems leadership. Uh both those areas
are experiencing a big growth. We've got
agile limitations. That's been something
that's been growing for over a decade.
I'd say that people are recognizing that
agile creates a lot of pockets of um
innovation and flexibility and
adaptation but it doesn't necessarily
uh transform the entire enterprise
should we say how do we do uh those
broader changes is a lot more to do with
systems thinking and agile um can't
really get us there. So the limitations
of agile a lot of people uh interested
in systems approaches coming out of
that. So that's just some of the
highlights. We go into all of that um in
the paper. Going to put a link in the
chat. Encourage you to take a look and
download it on our our website. It's
available for all to access. We also
have this event coming up on the 18th of
August. You're welcome to join us for
we're going to be launching the paper.
Uh we've invited some guest speakers to
talk about and share their insights,
their experience, and also discuss with
us some of those uh key findings. And
that's going to be happening August 18th
online. We welcome you to join us. And
that is all for me. Uh we'll share all
the relevant links to the paper to the
event uh in the chat uh below.