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University of California, Davis

Systems Thinking: Becoming a Systems Leader

University of California, Davis via Coursera

Overview

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Complex systems rarely provide leaders with complete information, simple solutions, or total control. This course helps professionals develop a more thoughtful approach to leading within that uncertainty. In this course, you will examine how cognitive limitations and biases affect decisions in complex systems and how organizational practices can help people overcome those limitations. You will explore how rules, incentives, trust, and communication shape zero-sum situations; and how changing those conditions can create opportunities for mutual benefit. You will also learn to distinguish immediate responses from systemic interventions, anticipate unintended consequences, and communicate the value of a systems-based approach to change. Through real-world examples, interactive experiences, and applied activities, you will practice looking beyond individual events to recognize relationships, hidden functions, and broader patterns. You will leave better prepared to approach organizational challenges with curiosity, humility, and the mindset of a systems leader.

Syllabus

  • Getting Started and Built To Be Wrong
    • Human beings have natural cognitive limits and biases that affect how we interpret and respond to complex systems. In this module, you will examine how group structures and organizational practices can either amplify these limitations or help compensate for them. You will then apply what you learn by proposing a cognitive repair for a familiar workplace situation.
  • Identifying Win-Win Solutions
    • Situations that appear to require winners and losers may be shaped by rules, incentives, and relationships that can be changed. In this module, you will explore how trust, communication, and repeated interactions influence cooperation. You will analyze a zero-sum dynamic and consider creative ways to redesign its conditions so that mutual benefit becomes possible.
  • Changing a System You Don't Understand
    • Systems leaders are often called upon to make decisions without fully understanding every part of a complex system. In this module, you will examine the differences between addressing immediate symptoms and creating systemic change. You will consider hidden functions, tradeoffs, and unintended consequences as you practice proposing and communicating a thoughtful approach to change.

Taught by

Seth Frey

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