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Developing Leadership Through Systems Thinking

By Jennifer Browne,
DP Coordinator

Developing Leadership Through Systems Thinking: Reflections from a Transformative 3-Day Workshop

Unpacking what it takes to be an effective leader was at the core of this 3 day workshop that I attended at the end of September 2024.  I found myself amongst experienced Principles and Heads of School from China, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Australia, Thailand and Vietnam, all wanting to learn from the workshop leader and each other in this very practical and interactive workshop.

As someone who is new to leadership, over the past year, seeing the “big picture” of an educational institution has helped me to understand the reasons behind decision making and  this “systems thinking” formed an integral part of my leadership workshop. Exploring many of the ideas of Peter Senge, in his book Schools that Learn we were able to apply these concepts to real life situations in our own contexts. Sharing thoughts on challenges and solutions and creating a case study in order to execute a strategic solution that considers all stakeholders in our school environment, it was useful to discuss practice and not just theory.  

On day two we shared ideas on Team Learning, acknowledging that all successful leadership teams will learn and grow together for the purpose of bettering teaching and learning, and student outcomes. With differing experiences and contexts, all school leaders have something to contribute and being open to each other's experiences, ideas and opinions is vital for improvement.  We explored the challenges of conflict as opposed to “healthy” conflict in a leadership team, and how being able to play devil's advocate at times is necessary in order to consider all possible outcomes of decision making.  

Breaking down the IB Leadership Intelligences Framework was another useful activity, especially when applied to my case study.  I found the reflective aspect particularly interesting as I was encouraged to reflect on my leadership style and the impact my leadership is having on others. 

Finally, we were given a considerable amount of time to put together all we had learnt and apply it to a new Programme Development plan. Combining systems thinking, Mental Models, leadership intelligences and Stonehill’s vision and mission to develop a plan for the IB Diploma programme at our school gave me an opportunity to really think about all aspects of this goal, all stakeholders needs and scrutinise the why and how of any decision making. I am very much looking forward to implementing this new programme development plan going forward. 

Reflecting on my experience at the workshop, I was brought back to the Approaches to Learning and the fact that these skills are essential for both students and adults. Thinking both creatively and critically, communicating effectively, using developed social skills such as collaboration and reflection, analysing and discussing our research and setting goals were all skills that I used during the workshop. They are skills we need as leaders and skills that will allow our students to become effective leaders of the future. 

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