Systemic Leadership: Build holistic thinking into the DNA of your organization

Systemic leadership represents not just a trend, but a significant evolution in the way we manage and shape organizations. It's about looking beyond the obvious and realizing that any organization is more than just the sum of its departments or processes. It's like examining the deep inner workings of an organism, where all elements are connected in a way that shapes its essence.

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In a world of complexity and constant change, it's crucial to embrace this approach. It's about seeing the connections that aren't always visible at first glance and recognizing that changes in one place can have far-reaching consequences across the organization.

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In this session, we will delve into the concept of 'systemic leadership', uncover its core principles and explore how it can act as a driver for organizational innovation and sustainable growth. We will explore the practical aspects of implementation, identify the potential benefits and challenges, and provide you with tools to navigate this transformative approach to leadership.

What is systemic leadership?

Systemic leadership represents a holistic approach that views organizations as living ecosystems rather than mechanical structures. The paradigm focuses on seeing the connections between people, decisions and what happens in the business, with a built-in understanding that decisions and actions can have complex and unpredictable consequences. Fundamental principles include acknowledging feedback loops, understanding the dynamics between parts and whole, and being aware that organizations are embedded in larger systems such as society and the market.

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Read more: How to create learning through feedback and dialog

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When you use systemic leadership, it can make your organization more agile. It can also push people to think outside the box and find new ways to solve problems. Systemic leadership has the potential to create organizational flexibility, promote innovation and strengthen the ability to tackle complex challenges. It also involves understanding that leadership is a collective process in which all levels of the organization play an important role. 

Principles of systemic leadership

If you want to explore and embrace systemic leadership, you are in for an enriching journey into a leadership paradigm that looks beyond the traditional. We will now dive into the basic principles that form the foundation of systemic leadership. Understanding these principles will give you the tools to create a more cohesive and dynamic organization that can thrive in an ever-changing world.

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• Holistic thinking: Systemic leadership is about seeing the organization as more than just the sum of its parts. It's about recognizing that every action, decision or change can have a domino effect that extends far beyond the immediate action. Imagine a department implements a new work process. Instead of just looking at this change in isolation, holistic thinking is about understanding how this change will affect other departments, processes or even employee workflows throughout the organization. It's looking at the organization as an interconnected network of relationships and interactions, where one action can have far more far-reaching consequences.
  
  
• Relational leadership: In systemic leadership, relational leadership is at its core. It involves understanding that an organization is not simply a collection of separate departments, but rather a complex network of connections between people, teams and departments. Focusing on relational leadership means building trusting relationships, fostering open communication and supporting an environment where collaboration and cross-functional working thrives. To support an open and trusting environment, it's important to also focus on psychological safety.

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Read more here: 8 tips: How to create psychological safety in the workplace

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• Feedback loops: Introducing feedback loops in your organization is essential to ensure regular and open communication. This can be through regular meetings, feedback sessions or digital platforms that enable a constant flow of feedback. This fosters a culture where feedback is a natural part of the work process and employees are encouraged to share thoughts, ideas and constructive criticism. By integrating feedback loops into systemic leadership, organizations gain the ability to adapt quickly, learn from mistakes and continuously improve.

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Want to learn how to create a culture where feedback and dialog is so natural that it becomes a competitive advantage? Read more about how Feedwork can help you foster a culture of feedback and dialog.

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• Managing complexity: A systemic approach embraces complexity rather than trying to simplify everything. This means recognizing that problems and situations are often complex and require flexible solutions. For example, an organization can navigate through complexity by creating agile ways of working instead of rigid and rigid processes.

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By integrating these principles into your leadership practice, you can shape a more agile, innovative and resilient organization that not only responds to, but also shapes the complex world we operate in.

Benefits and challenges of systemic leadership

Integrating systemic leadership into an organizational structure can be a catalyst for change and innovation. This approach opens the doors to a wide range of benefits, but it's also important to recognize that it doesn't come without challenges. Let's explore some of the potential benefits and the typical challenges of adopting a systemic approach to leadership.

Advantages

Integrating systemic leadership into an organizational structure opens the door to a range of potential benefits that strengthen the organization's foundation and its ability to manage dynamic change. Below are our suggestions for the most significant benefits you can gain by integrating systemic leadership into your organization.

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• Increased innovation: Systemic leadership allows your organization to be more agile in responding to change. By understanding how different elements of the business influence each other, management can adjust and adapt to changing market conditions, technology and customer needs. This creates a more adaptable and flexible organization that can quickly respond to change and remain competitive.
  
  
• Better problem solving: By promoting open dialog and collaboration across departments and teams, systemic leadership encourages different perspectives and ideas. This approach creates an environment that stimulates innovation and creative thinking. By valuing and integrating different viewpoints, the organization can develop innovative solutions and discover new opportunities.
  
  
• More robust decision-making processes: Systemic leadership creates a solid platform for robust decision-making processes. The approach allows management to make well-informed decisions based on a comprehensive understanding of the organization's internal and external conditions. By analyzing and understanding all aspects of a situation, the organization can make more strategic and long-term decisions.
  
  
• More agile organization: Overall, systemic leadership creates an organization that is more agile, innovative and able to deal with complexity and change. This approach gives the organization a clear competitive advantage by enabling rapid adaptation to changing conditions and gives it the ability to thrive in an ever-changing business environment.

Challenges

Of course, when implementing new processes and ways of doing things, it's almost inevitable that you'll encounter challenges and obstacles. And of course, it's no different with systemic leadership. Adopting a systemic approach requires a shift in mindset and practice, and this can be met with resistance from those used to more traditional methods of management and leadership. This can result in a number of challenges, including:

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• Resistance and skepticism: People tend to be skeptical of the unknown. The implementation of systemic leadership often requires people to think and act in new ways, which can be met with resistance from those who prefer to stick with known methods.
  
  
• Need for effective change management: Shifting to a systemic approach is a change process that requires effective change management. Dealing with resistance, communicating benefits and creating a culture that embraces change is key.
  
  
• The complexity of implementation: Implementing systemic leadership is not a simple task. It requires a thorough understanding of the organization's structure, culture and processes, as well as the ability to navigate through the complexity of change.
  
  
• The need for support: The adoption of systemic leadership often requires training and support for employees and managers to ensure they have the necessary skills and knowledge to embrace and apply this approach effectively.

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Read more: Create a healthy learning culture through coaching and curiosity

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Despite these challenges, the transition to systemic leadership can be extremely rewarding as it creates a more dynamic and adaptable work environment that can better manage complexity and change. It's a journey that requires commitment, persistence and open dialog to overcome the challenges that arise along the way.

Implementing systemic leadership

Implementing systemic leadership requires a structured approach and a clear commitment across the organization. 

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Here are some key steps to start implementing:

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1. Create awareness: Start by creating awareness and understanding of the concept of systemic leadership among managers and employees. Communicate the benefits it can bring and create a clear vision for how it can improve the organization.
   
   
2. Leadership training: Educate leaders at all levels of the organization on the principles of systemic leadership. This can include training in relational leadership, holistic thinking and effective communication strategies.
   
   
3. Include employees: Include employees in the process. Create space for open dialog and invite feedback so that employee voices and perspectives are heard and integrated into the implementation.
   
   
4. Gradual implementation: Start with pilot projects or smaller areas of the organization where systemic leadership can be implemented and tested. Evaluate the results and adapt the strategies as needed before rolling them out to the entire organization.
   
   
5. Culture change: Work to create a culture that supports and promotes systemic leadership. This may require changes in communication, collaboration and decision-making styles.
   
   
6. Continuous evaluation and adaptation: Systemic leadership is a continuous process. Continuously evaluate how it is being received and adapt implementation strategies accordingly. Openness to feedback and a willingness to adapt are key elements in ensuring successful implementation.

By following these steps, organizations can gradually integrate a systems approach into their management structure and culture. This creates a foundation for managing complexity, fostering innovation and increasing the organization's ability to adapt to changing conditions.

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