The Crucial Shift Towards Systems Thinking
For the past few months, I’ve consistently encountered roadblocks with service providers and projects. Regardless of the business domain, there are these recurring hiccups – instances where decisions are made or steps are overlooked because the person in charge doesn’t fully grasp the implications. This isn’t about intelligence or effort; those issues are actually pretty easy to address.
The real issue stems from vendors placing subject matter experts (SMEs) at the helm of projects rather than technical experts. And it’s becoming painfully apparent that relying on SMEs to spearhead projects is a flawed approach in a world so intertwined with data and intricate systems.
As technology has progressed, our interactions with it have grown considerably more complex. Traditional linear processes have given way to intricate systems that interconnect in various ways. Success now relies on a team’s ability to understand these connections, see the bigger picture, and anticipate the potential cascading effects of one’s actions within that system.
Simply put, an individual having expertise in a given area no longer qualifies them as a decision maker. Full stop. They also need understanding of topics well outside their sandbox, the systems and data they affect….and most importantly extremely strong systems thinking.
To be clear, systems thinking is not just about understanding technology; it’s about grasping the interrelatedness of various components within any given context. In business, this could be how departments interact with each other, how geography and region effects product offerings, or how a single system configuration decision could have ramifications across an entire organization.
A modern workplace demands a holistic understanding of operations rather than a mere task-based approach. Systems thinking equips individuals with the ability to not just follow instructions, but to understand the “why” behind them, anticipate potential problems, and devise more efficient solutions.
Unfortunately, in our pursuit of digital transformation business forgot this issue – everyone overlooked the need to develop the “why” and not just the “how”. This leaves a gap in the skill sets of almost everyone interacting with systems and data, and its creates untold hours of rework and system repairs.
I wonder if there is a point where our integrations and systems require such a high level of abstract thought and logic that its untenable with standard workforce models and with existing titles. How can we expect people to navigate a sea of intricate system webs and also be experts on a subject? It’s not a reasonable expectation.
We are reaching a cognitive load tipping point. And all the layered abstractions, role specialization and primary-colored-UX is only making things worse.
I honestly think we are 5 years from Digital Translator job titles being a necessity for every company.