Introduction to Systems Thinking for Civil Servants
Summary
Government faces many challenges. Some of these are simple, where the objectives are clear, stakeholders’ motivations align and possible solutions are relatively easily evaluated and implemented. However, many challenges, such as ‘Levelling Up’, can be difficult to define and understand, and ways of influencing them to improve outcomes are hard to design, evaluate and implement.
Such challenges and opportunities involve many people and organisations with competing priorities and have a bearing on many adjacent policy areas. The success of an intervention often relies on collective action taken across boundaries. No single individual, agency or department can tackle a complex problem alone. Nor should they have to. Civil servants need different tools and approaches to deliver desired outcomes in these complex situations – a systems thinking approach.
This document is a short introduction to systems thinking for civil servants. It is one component of a suite of documents that aims to act as a springboard into systems thinking for civil servants unfamiliar with this approach. This suite of documents includes: the Systems Thinking Journey; the Systems Thinking Toolkit; and the Systems Thinking Case Study Bank.