An Outsider View: The Journey of Leadership. Part 5: System Thinking. Creating synergies

Abstract

In the complex world of healthcare reform, the concept and tools of systems thinking offers to leaders and organizations in their search for how to manage the impact of reform initiatives so their organization is best positioned for sustained superior performance. “System thinking” is a useful approach to reduce complex issues and challenges into simpler and more understandable terms. Regrettably, many organizational challenges leave leaders without a structured process to analyze and then create innovative solutions. In fact, when critically analyzed, most solutions to problems are merely reactions to the symptoms problems generate while the underlying causes are left unexplored. “System thinking” allows widening the opportunities and taking into account of a large spectrum of neccesary changes. When we talk about health system reform, things get more complex, and leadership must be manifested both at the entire system and each organization level. Leaders must know and develop complex skills to enable them to forecast the necessary fundamental changes, to apply long-term learning strategies, to monitor performance regarding all aspects and also to help them planning and selecting the best scenario in the given situation. In addition to these skills, a leader needs of the other elements already discussed in the previous articles; without these elements, a leader is a mere observer without the ability to look deeper into the phenomenon in its complexity. Leaders must look beyond the challenges and, in the same time, they have to identify the best solution for various problems. For simple solutions for various situations which healthcare managers are confronted with, it is neccesary that the organization to have leaders with multiple and complex skills. Keywords: system thinking, learning strategies, performance monitoring, scenario planning.