How to Apply a Systematic Approach to Complex, Multi-Team Projects
Handling complex, multi-team projects can sometimes make you feel as though you’re an orchestra conductor and each musician is playing his own song. It can be a real challenge to sync teams together and timelines up, making sure each piece works toward the end goal. To be successful, any integrated design project must have more than being well-meaning; it requires a structured and unified Strategy. This is when project management starts becoming systematic.
This guide shares how integrating systematic and systemic thinking is the key to shifting project chaos into streamlined success.
Systematic vs. Systemic: What’s the Difference?
When it comes to managing complex projects, there’s a critical difference between two key approaches: systematic and systemic.
- Systematic Approach: It is done in a very linear way. Think of it as a recipe. 1You follow a sequence of directions to reach an expected result. “Branches” or alternate pathways will arise, but the fundamental concept is a sequential, structured approach.
- Systemic System: This perceives the project to be a whole system made up of many interacting parts that are all working towards a common goal. Any part or subsystem affects the rest. This view can help you understand the big picture, how changes in one place may affect the entire project.
The best project management approach combines both. You require the granular clarity of a methodical approach, and you need them both.
Breaking Down Project Objectives
This is a classic example of mistaking project outputs for project outcomes. A systemic approach can provide some insight into three levels of objective:
- Sub-objectives: These are the most detailed objectives, as they pertain directly to the project’s performance requirements. For instance, finishing a piece of a software puzzle or putting the last touches on an architectural drawing.
- Objectives: This level corresponds to the end product or deliverable of the project. It’s the totally functional software, the finished building, or the launched marketing campaign.
- Meta-goals: The high-level goals or impacts on society that the project product will fulfil. The thing is nothing more than a means to an end. The meta-goal is the outcome you want to achieve, like “gain more market share”, or “become more efficient,” or “delight my customers even further”.
But successful projects work on all three levels to make sure the end-product will have its intended real-world effect.
Key Elements of an Integrated Approach
Integrating systematic and systemic thinking demands a model based on three main foundations:
- Leadership & Teamwork: Effective leadership is essential for enabling a systems thinking culture. It is the leader’s responsibility to inspire cross-team cooperation and see that everyone knows what the meta-goals of any project are, not just their own tasks in it.
- Systems Thinking: This means to see the project consistently as an integrated whole. It compels teams to be less insular and consider the ramifications of their actions in a broader sense. Critical thinking exercises can help teams cultivate this ability to recognize ripple effects better and identify problems before they get out of hand.
- Contemporary Analysis Skills: To be effective systems thinkers, project managers are provided with a range of tools for making use of systems thinking. Causal loop diagrams, system dynamics simulation, and agent-based modeling are methods for visualizing complex relationships between factors affecting the system’s behavior over time.
| Technique | Description | Application |
| Causal Loop Diagrams | Visualizes the relationships and feedback loops between different variables in a system. | Helps identify root causes of problems and understand unintended consequences of actions. |
| System Dynamics | A simulation modeling approach to understand the behavior of complex systems over time. | Forecasts long-term project outcomes and tests different management policies. |
| Agent-Based Modeling | Simulates the actions and interactions of autonomous agents (e.g., teams, individuals). | Predicts emergent behaviors and optimizes resource allocation in dynamic environments. |
| Lean Methodology | Focuses on maximizing value while minimizing waste in processes. | Increases efficiency and reduces bottlenecks, as seen in high-rise building design. |
How to Implement Your Framework
Developing and executing on systems doesn’t need to be complex. Here’s how to begin:
- Draft the skeleton structure: As a first iteration, describe the main processes of your project (systematic) and enter those responsible subsystems (e.g., teams, divisions, etc.) which will be involved in each process into it (systemic).
- Make It Your Own: Personalize the framework so that it works for your specific project. Establish how the subsystems are to relate and where data and resources will pass between them.
- Implement and Adapt: Roll out the model and see how well it’s working. Prepare for change as the project develops. The goal is a flexible structure that helps, without being rigid.
Achieve Greater Project Success
When you combine structured methodology and systems thinking, you get a powerful project management method. This holistic approach allows you to anticipate roadblocks, use resources efficiently, and keep all parties marching together in the same direction. It takes you beyond just doing tasks to contributing real impact and results.
So, are you all set to enhance the results of your projects? Implement these principles in your next multi-team endeavor and see your efficiency and effectiveness skyrocket.
