Making  sense  of  messy  problems

Johanna  Kollmann @johannakoll !     Interaction  16,  Helsinki

Systems  thinking  for  Interaction  Designers

Illustration  by  David  Wicks:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/sansumbrella/467998944/

       The  next  4  hours  of  your  life:

Introduction  to  Systems  Thinking  

Tools  for  modeling  systems  

Systems  behaviour  over  time  

Changing  systems  

Systems  Thinking?

In  the  past  the  man  has  been  first;    in  the  future  the  system  must  be  first.    !~  Frederick  Winslow  Taylor  (1911)

In  the  past  the  man  has  been  first;  in  the  future  the  system  must  be  first.  !This  in  no  sense,  however,  implies  that  great  men  are  not  needed.      !~Frederick  Winslow  Taylor  (1911)

“At  the  root  of  every  seemingly  technical  problem  is  a  human  problem.”  

~  Taiichi  Ohno

http://visitmix.com/work/descry/awebsitenameddesire/

“Systems-­‐based  thinking  is  the  process  of  understanding  how  things  influence  one  another.      !Then  drawing  on  that  knowledge  to  create  efficiencies  of  process,  infrastructure  and  communication.”

~  Abby  Covert

“A  system  is

~  Donella  Meadows

a  set  of  elements  or  parts  

oGen  classified  as  its  funcHon  or  purpose.”  

that  is  coherently  organized  and  inter-­‐connected  in  a  paKern  or  structure  that  produces  a  characterisHc  set  of  behaviors,  

Peter  Checkland

Human  activity  systems

Soft  Systems  Methodology

       Leverage  points…

…places  within  a  complex  system  where  a  small  shift  in  one  thing  can  produce  big  changes  in  everything.  

…are  often  counterintuitive.

Systems  Thinking  &  UX

1)  Modeling

2)  Behavior  over  time

3)  Change

1)  Modeling

Mental  Model

System  Model

Conceptual  Model

Personas  from  Design  Jam  London,  by  Jeff  Van  Campen  http://www.flickr.com/photos/otrops/tags/designjamlondon/

Flickr  User  Model  by  Bryce  Glass  http://www.flickr.com/photos/bryce/58299511/

!“Only  by  building  a  model  of  customer  behaviour  and  then  showing  our  ability  to  use  our  product  or  service  to  change  it  over  time  can  we  establish  real  facts  about  the  validity  of  our  vision.”  

~  Eric  Ries

1)  Modeling 2)  Behavior  over  time 3)  Change

       Rich  Picture

1.  Construction  of  the  Humber  Bridge  (adapted  from  Stewart  and  Fortune,  1994)  ©  The  Open  University

2.  Distance  Learning  Situation  ©  Wood-­‐Harper  et  al,  Information  Systems  Definition:  The  Multiview  Approach,  Blackwell  Scientific  Publications  1985  

1)  Modeling 2)  Behavior  over  time 3)  Change

       Rich  Picture  elements

Stakeholders

Worldview

Connections

Conflicts

2.  Distance  Learning  Situation  ©  Wood-­‐Harper  et  al,  Information  Systems  Definition:  The  Multiview  Approach,  Blackwell  Scientific  Publications  1985  

1)  Modeling 2)  Behavior  over  time 3)  Change

1)  Modeling 2)  Behavior  over  time 3)  Change

1)  Modeling 2)  Behavior  over  time 3)  Change

       Rich  Picture  elements

Stakeholders

Worldview

Connections

Conflicts

2.  Distance  Learning  Situation  ©  Wood-­‐Harper  et  al,  Information  Systems  Definition:  The  Multiview  Approach,  Blackwell  Scientific  Publications  1985  

1)  Modeling 2)  Behavior  over  time 3)  Change

       Business  Model  Canvas

Job  seekers

Recruiters

Jobs

Candidates

Manage,   promote  platform

Platform

Manage  and  develop  platform Marketing  costs

Job  ads Hiring  fee

2)  Behavior  over  time

1)  Modeling 2)  Behavior  over  time 3)  Change

       Flows

inflow outflow

information feedback,  control

stock

1)  Modeling 2)  Behavior  over  time 3)  Change

       Feedback  loops

George’s  ability  to  solve  problems

Number  of  problems  solved

Number  of  remaining  problems

Time  available  per  problem

Project  in  trouble

Management  pressure  to  solve  

problems

R1 R3

R2

Need  to  involve  Paul

B1

1)  Modeling 2)  Behavior  over  time 3)  Change

       Behavior  over  time  graphs

inventory

days

1)  Modeling 2)  Behavior  over  time 3)  Change

       Behavior  over  time  graphs

inventory

days

1)  Modeling 2)  Behavior  over  time 3)  Change

       Cohort  analysis

1)  Modeling 2)  Behavior  over  time 3)  Change

       Cohort  analysis

1)  Modeling 2)  Behavior  over  time 3)  Change

       Custom  tools  to  monitor  interactions

by  @lukew

1)  Modeling 2)  Behavior  over  time 3)  Change

1)  Modeling 2)  Behavior  over  time 3)  Change

Photo  by  Anders  Zakrisson  http://www.flickr.com/photos/anders-­‐zakrisson/4982281184/

DATA

MEANING

3)  Change

1)  Modeling 2)  Behavior  over  time 3)  Change

inventory

days

       Flows  and  loops

1)  Modeling 2)  Behavior  over  time 3)  Change

10.    Numbers  (subsidies,  taxes,  standards).  

9.    Material  stocks  and  flows.  

8.  Delays  

7.    Balancing  negative  feedback  loops.  

6.    Reinforcing  positive  feedback  loops.  

5.    Information  flows.  

4.    The  rules  of  the  system  (incentives,  punishment,  constraints).  

3.    The  power  of  self-­‐organization.  

2.    The  goals  of  the  system.  

1.    The  mindset  or  paradigm  out  of  which  the  goals,  rules,  feedback  structure  arise.  

1)  Modeling 2)  Behavior  over  time 3)  Change

       Leverage  points

       Take-­‐aways

The  ‘worldviews’  that  people  and  elements  in  the  system  hold

The  processes  that  are  necessary  to  deliver  value  to  customers

!How  to  gather  and  visualize  information  holistically

How  user-­‐centered  design  and  empathy  help  to  reduce  uncertainty

!What  is  the  right  level  for  the  impact  you  are  aiming  for?

What  enables  the  change,  where  are  conflicts,  who  can  be  your  change  agent?

This  matters  because

Business  trends.

Humane  systems.

The  intuitive  mind  is  a  sacred  gift  and  the  rational  mind  is  a  faithful  servant.  We  have  created  a  society  that  honors  the  servant  and  has  forgotten  the  gift.   !We  will  not  solve  the  problems  of  the  world  from  the  same  level  of  thinking  we  were  at  when  we  created  them.  More  than  anything  else,  this  new  century  demands  new  thinking:   !We  must  change  our  materially  based  analyses  of  the  world  around  us  to  include  broader,  more  multidimensional  perspectives. !~Albert  Einstein

       Resources

The  Lean  Startup  by  Eric  Ries  !Systems  Thinking,  Systems  Practice  and  Soft  Systems  Methodology  by  Peter  Checkland  !Thinking  in  Systems:  A  Primer  by  Donella  Meadows  !Business  Model  Generation  by  Alexander  Osterwalder  and  Yves  Pigneur  !Donella  Meadow’s  article  Places  to  Intervene  in  a  System  can  be  found  at  http://www.developerdotstar.com/mag/articles/places_intervene_system.html  !Peter  Senge  is  a  key  systems  thinker,  I  haven’t  included  any  of  his  material  directly,  but  read  about  this  perspectives  especially  on  organisational  change.  Check  him  out.  !For  the  design  geek  in  you,  read  up  on  Buckminster  Fuller’s  Design  Science.  !Peter  Morville’s  Intertwingled.