Systems Thinking: Three System Archetypes Every Manager Should Know

This paper gives a brief introduction to systems thinking and practical insights project managers and business leaders can use in day-to-day interactions. We describe three common systems archetypes: limits-to-growth, fixes-that-fail, and drifting-goals. We illustrate each structure with a description of how system structure drives system behavior in the context of a project-based organization trying to resolve delays. We provide examples of the archetype in other contexts as well as simple suggestions on how to use systems thinking to improve these scenarios. Further reading is suggested with additional sources.