Practical Systems Thinking

Practical Systems Thinking - Workshops that create Clarity within Complexity!

40% discount if you register the week commencing 12/28/2020

Systems thinking is used by leading companies to create competitive advantage, increase efficiencies, and to deal with complexity. Do you want to learn what makes companies like Zappos, Tesla, AWS, Nucor, and others so unique?

Systems Thinking is a relatively new problem-solving method used and referenced by frameworks (SAFe 5.0), professional groups, and subject matter experts. While Systems Thinking can be conceptual, it is a practical way of thinking which includes visual languages, modeling, simulations, patterns of mental models, and many other practical toolsets.

Our modular workshops (4 hours – two days) will introduce you to practical systems thinking and teach you how to use what practical systems thinking has to offer.

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Please register for this webinar. Once we’ll get your data, we’ll send the webinar link to the e-mail address you provide us.

Introduction To Systems Thinking

This program provides essential, immediately applicable knowledge for:

Any person – Leader or Future Leader – motivated to add new ways of thinking to resolve current and future challenges.
Leaders and Managers looking for ways to prepare their teams to optimally deal with increasing complexity & uncertainty.
Teams seeking practical tools & techniques to improve operations and to resolve reoccurring problems born of complexity.
Organizations leveraging (or planning to) the SAFe 5.0 model & looking to benefit most from agility through systems thinking.

Takeaway

When & why should systems thinking be used in real life?

How should systems thinking be used in real life? (Use cases)

Who should use systems thinking? What are the key catalysts?

Where should systems thinking be used? (Organization)

What must you do before truly applying systems thinking?

Agenda

What is Systems Thinking?

The origin of systems thinking.
The problem systems thinking is trying to resolve.
The main differences between systems thinking and common approaches being used today.

Why is Systems Thinking so needed?

What are the alternatives for systems thinking we are using today?
Why those alternatives have challenges and how systems thinking addresses those many challenges.

Main Elements of Systems thinking

Learn: What are the conceptual models/application of systems thinking?
Learn: What are the practical models/applications of systems thinking?
Learn: What are the advantages of practice systems thinking?

Mental Models

Learn: What are mental models?
Understand: Practical mental models’ framework – defining types of mental models and when to use them
Understand: Mental model patterns (including two examples of the most important mental models’ patterns)

Models Overview – to start Seizing Complexity

Learn: Basics of Causal Loop Diagrams (CLD)
Learn: Basics of System Dynamics (SD), aka Stocks and Flows diagrams
Learn: Basics of Agent-Based Modelling (ABM)

Outcomes-focused Learning: Simulations

Learn: to simulate System dynamics (& what are the benefits?)
Learn: to simulate Agent-Based Models (& what are the benefits?)

Applied Learning: How do all the elements fit together?

Demonstration: Walkthrough two real examples (visualize the usage and the value of all the models and active simulations.)

This program is most beneficial for:

Any person motivated to add new methods of thinking to resolve current and future problems and challenges.
Leaders and Managers looking for ways to prepare their teams to deal with increasing levels of complexity and uncertainty. Understanding of systems science is an absolute requirement of any modern Leader.
Teams looking for practical tools and techniques to improve their operations and to resolve re-occurring problems rooted in escalating systems complexity.
Organizations currently leveraging (or planning to) the SAFe 5.o model for agility who are looking to maximize the benefits of systems thinking in their initiative(s).

Takeaway

The 1 Day Practical Systems Thinking Program gives participants the knowledge and experience to create causal diagrams, the most common element of practical system thinking. The key focus is on applied learning.
It will equip participants with the knowledge and ability to translate systems and situations into Causal Loop Diagrams (CLD). Hands-on learning = understanding.
Creating causal diagrams based on a real example from your organization / a real organization ensures a deeper understanding of the benefits of CLD in participants’ day-to-day work or on specific projects, initiatives, and change.

Agenda

Purpose of Causal Loop Diagrams:

What are CLD benefits?
When to best leverage CLD?
Practical usage of CLD

Elements of CLD:

Variables, impacts, delays, behavior over time, and type of loops.
How all the elements come together into one meaningful and impactful diagrams.
Best practices (do’s and don’ts) for creating highly impactful CLD.

Identifying variables:

How to identify variables.
When is: a variable, goal, or input?
Capturing pertinent variables by using the Insight Maker tool.

Learning to define impact types:

Same direction (positive) and opposite direction (negative) directional impacts.
Impacts capture in Insight Maker.

Understanding & using delays:

Understand the role of delays in identifying and capturing impacts.
Identify Delays and distinguishing between short and long delays.
Capturing Delays in Insight Maker.

Defining & using Behavior Over Time (BOT):

Learn: How to determine BOT.
Learn: How to use BOT to verify CLD and understand the model.
Capture: BOT using Insight Maker.

Understanding how to determine Loop Types:

Learn: How to validate all variables are part of at least one loop.
Learn: When is a loop balancing or reinforcing? What are the signals?
Learn: When is loop reinforcement positive or negative? How to tell?
Identified loops vs. system goals.
Capturing loops in Insight Maker.

Understanding & using Archetypes:

Learn: What are archetypes?
Know: List of known archetypes.
Learn: How to identify archetypes.
Understand: How do archetypes help us all to resolve problems?
Mapping real-life organizational example:
Exercise to create a mental model

Advanced Systems Thinking

This program is most beneficial for:

Any person motivated to add new methods of thinking to resolve current and future problems and challenges.
Leaders and Managers looking for ways to prepare their teams to deal with increasing levels of complexity and uncertainty. Understanding of systems science is an absolute requirement of any modern Leader.
Teams looking for practical tools and techniques to improve their operations and to resolve re-occurring problems rooted in escalating systems complexity.
Organizations currently leveraging (or planning to) the SAFe 5.o model for agility who are looking to maximize the benefits of systems thinking in their initiative(s). Organizations looking to win.

Takeaway

The Advanced Systems Thinking Program gives participants the knowledge and applied experience to create System Dynamics (SD) aka “Stock and flows” diagrams, as well as Agent-Based Modeling (ABM), and to use them in real-world simulations.
It will equip all participants with both the knowledge and the ability to translate Causal Loop Diagrams (CLD) into System Dynamics (SD) diagrams, to run SD as an active simulation, and to create and run Agent-Based Modeling (ABM) in a simulation of a real system.
Participants will create System Dynamics (SD) & Agent-Based Modeling (ABM) based on a real example from their own company / organization – to ensure applied understanding of the key benefits of SD and ABM in participants’ day-to-day work.

Agenda

Creating System Dynamics diagrams and running active simulations:

Learn: Elements & rules of System Dynamics (SD).
Learn: how to create SD model in Insight Maker tool.
Learn: how to translate Causal Loop Diagrams (CLD) into SD (Stokes, flows & variables).
Learn: how to convert different types of units.
Learn: how to create a flow.
Learn: how to implement different types of delays.
Learn: how to use code to create logic of flows.
Learn: how to capture data to enable a simulation.
Learn: how to use “Insight Maker” to create, debug, and simulate SD.
Learn: how SD impacts CLD and vice versa.
Applied learning: Participant creates an SD & runs it as a simulation based on a real, own-organization CLD example. Participant experiences real benefit.
Applied learning: how to use SD simulation as validation. Attain a practical understanding of how changes might impact end results in a real example.

Creating Agent-Based diagrams and running simulations

1.Learn: elements and rules of Agent-Based Modeling (ABM).
Learn: how to create ABM in Insight Maker.
Learn: how to use States and Actions to define Agents’ rules of behavior and their impact on business metrics.
Learn: how to use code to create Agent’s logic.
Learn: how to capture data to enable a real simulation.
Learn: how to use “Insight Maker” to create, debug, and simulate ABM.
Understand: how does and will ABM impact SD & CLD, and vice versa.
Applied learning: Participant create ABM & runs it as a simulation of the organization of a real CLD example.
Applied learning: How to use simulation as validation and to achieve a deep understanding of how changes might impact your end results.

Register

Please register for this webinar. Once we’ll get your data, we’ll send the webinar link to the e-mail address you provide us.