A recent HBR article by Bansal and Birkinshaw (2025) suggests we should use systems thinking more, especially when it comes to complex, wicked problems.
They argue that we often reach first for two approaches that seem to promise quick results.
Breakthrough thinking cuts through the mess, dealing with a knotty problem by simply cutting the knot.
Design thinking focuses on users – how they interact with products and services and how that can be made better.
But some situations seem intractable. They’re so complex and wicked that something else is needed.
Systems thinking looks at the big picture, at the interconnections between elements, and what might happen if we intervene – including knock on effects elsewhere.
We try and engage with the complexity of a situation but some systems thinking approaches can feel quite muted, like they almost lack ambition.
They seek to incrementally improve situations, not radically transform them.
That’s partly because radical approaches cause pain. And demolishing existing institutions without a coherent plan for a replacement tends to cause more problems down the line. And it’s partly because you’re working with people and have to deal with politics and culture along with the situation itself.
There’s no clear cut answer, and there’s a place for all these approaches.
The trick is knowing when you to cut, when to fix, and when to improve – and choosing the approach that helps most.
REFERENCES
Bansal, T., Birkinshaw, J., 2025. Why You Need Systems Thinking Now. Harvard Business Review 103, 124–133.
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