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REVISION AND PRACTICE

Week 10 — Quick Revision

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On this page 5 headings

Start here Systems thinking, all on one page.

Systems, examples, the systems view and the habits of a systems thinker.
Systems, examples, the systems view and the habits of a systems thinker.
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Week 10 at a glance

What is a system?

  • System = elements + interconnections + purpose (digestive system: organs + links + digesting food).
  • Heap vs system: remove a stone from a heap and nothing changes; remove a wall from a house and it falls.
  • Systems thinking = a holistic approach: how parts connect, how a system relates to larger systems, and how one change affects the rest.
  • Food chain: kill the snakes, rats multiply, the grass dies.
  • Doctor: treats the whole body because everything is connected.
  • Blind men and the elephant: the whole is not the sum of its parts.

Examples and the systems view

  • IIT Madras (students, faculty, facilities; linked to government, parents, alumni).
  • Cricket match (fans are an element too).
  • Food delivery (rider → restaurant → supply chain → farmer → monsoon).
  • Systems view: everything is connected; no problem exists in a silo.
  • Wolves in Yellowstone changed the rivers. We are part of the system too (hot shower, traffic jam).

Habits of a systems thinker (lecture examples)

Habit Example
Big picture Helicopter view of your life; the band; rainwater harvesting
Consequences (short, long, unintended) Sugar → kidneys → work; Operation Cat Drop; outbound training; “no tooth!”
Mental models Single parent’s promotion belief; “I’m not creative”
Structure → behaviour Table vs side-by-side; snack jars; WhatsApp routine; sweet shop on the way home
Don’t rush to a conclusion Student’s supervisor change: hear both sides
Leverage points Projector on another phase; LTAP time audit
Connections Plant ↔︎ bees, birds, sun, water; draw cause-and-effect diagrams
Feedback loops Hunger cycle; office rumours; the king in disguise
Time delays Education policy consultation
Accumulations Votes; inventory, dead stock, just-in-time
Change over time Rainwater system 20 years later
Test assumptions Hybrid work: “What if 2 days in office?”

Guidelines

  • 14 habits (Waters Center). Master one every 15 days.
  • Ask: Beyond the problem? Others’ views? Long run? Unintended effects?
  • Books: The Fifth Discipline (Peter Senge); Thinking in Systems (Donella Meadows).

Practice questions

  1. What three things make up every system?
Elements, interconnections, purpose.
  1. Removing one part changes nothing. Heap or system?
Heap.
  1. Which habit does “change the structure to change behaviour” belong to?
Recognising that a system’s structure generates its behaviour.
  1. DDT → fewer cats → more rats. Which type of consequence is this?
Unintended consequence.
  1. Plugging the projector into a working phase is an example of what?
Using system structure to find a leverage point.
  1. Results of exercise appear only after weeks. Which habit helps you understand this?
Recognising the impact of time delays.
  1. Which video showed how wolves changed the course of rivers?
“How Wolves Change Rivers” (Yellowstone National Park).
  1. Name Prof. Shiva’s life-changing book on systems thinking.
“The Fifth Discipline” by Peter Senge.
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