Awareness of Systems

Awareness of systems is an essential characteristic of Whole Systems Leadership.

Conventional models of leadership highlight the role of the individual, often in the figure of the “heroic” leader. From a conventional view, the idea of leadership as a collective activity can seem strange and confusing. Our cultural bias is to frame leadership as the actions of an individual when, in fact, that is often not the case.

Whole Systems Leadership understands communities, organizations, and groups as adaptive, changing systems. From this perspective, the individual is part of an interconnected and dynamic web of relationships. How could leadership be anything other than a collective behavior?

A Story about “Setting Conditions” for Systemic Change

On December 1, 1955 when Rosa Parks was arrested after refusing to give up her seat on a bus to a white passenger, her spontaneous act set off a boycott that served as a pivotal moment in the civil rights movement.

“Our society teaches history through stories of remarkable individuals, and while Rosa Parks was indeed remarkable, her story is also about collective action, willed risk, intentional plans and mass movement.”  
http://www.highlandercenter.org/n-rosa-parks.asp

Rosa Parks’ act was unplanned, but it was not unprepared. Prior to December 1, she had been trained in non-violent civil disobedience at what is now the Highlander Center in Tennessee.

Contrary to common legend, Rosa Parks’ act was neither random, nor taken in isolation. Nine months earlier, Claudette Colvin had been arrested for refusing to abide by racist bus regulations and the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King had stepped into the political arena to fight her arrest. Another young teenager had also refused to give up her seat on a bus prior to Rosa.

But Rosa Parks, with her calm and her dignified presence, was the right person to serve as a symbol for the movement. Civil rights leaders, who had been waiting for the right case to come along, organized the boycott that followed her arrest. (For more about this story see Parting the Waters: America in the King Years 1954-63 by Taylor Branch.)

Although the collective leadership of the civil rights movement did not pre-script the events leading up to the Montgomery bus boycott, they did set the conditions for what took place: an informed, yet spontaneous, act of defiance, an outpouring of protest, and a transformational change in the nation’s racial justice policies.

Reflection Question

As you reflect on the story of Rosa Park above, what different human systems do you notice and how did they interact?

Why Awareness of Systems is Important

Even when you cannot predict or control behaviors in complex systems, you can recognize and influence their patterns. Keep the following in mind:

• There is no one generic solution that fits all similar systemic challenges. What may work in one place and time may not work in another. Whole Systems Leadership involves generating the appropriate approach for unique situations.
• Living systems are by nature dynamic. Each snapshot in the life of a community or organization is just one moment in time.
• Communities and organizations can achieve preferred futures because of ideas that emerge from the interactions of interdependent members within the system rather than from a leader at the top.

Practices to Follow

Below are some practical things you can do to build your awareness of systems and become more effective at initiating change within them.

• Look for patterns in systems. Patterns are a basis of understanding what the system is and how it works. The more you practice looking for patterns, the better you will be at seeing them.
• Pay attention to what has gone before this moment in time and to the unfolding future. 
• Recognize the strengths and assets within a system in order to amplify what is already present in the system. Example: Rosa Parks was a respected elder with an “unflappable” personality. Her personal strengths were an asset as a symbol of the civil rights movement.
• Encourage group processes that enable system members to interact on an ongoing basis. Convene conversations that matter.

Benefits

With an awareness of systems, you get a fuller perspective of the situation, which expands and refines your options for action. 

Moreover, groups are more likely to accept changes that come from understanding and modifying aspects of a system as opposed to interventions that are imposed on a system. 

If you work to bring change within a system by amplifying or damping down aspects of patterns inherent in that system, your efforts are more likely to be integrated and sustained.

Exercises to Deepen Understanding

• Exploring Systems

References and Further Reading

The following resources can provide more information and ideas for enhancing your awareness of systems.

Highlander Center in Tennessee - http://www.highlandercenter.org/n-rosa-parks.asp

Human Systems Dynamics – http://www.hsdinstitute.org

Linsky, M., Heifetz, R. (2002). Leadership on the Line. Harvard Business Press.

Whitney, D. (2010). The Power of Appreciative Inquiry. Berrett-Koehler Publishers.