Systems thinking has been a hot button topic inside and outside the tech industry, as it promises a straightforward and structured approach to make sense of the world and its complexities. By looking at systems in terms of elements and their relationships, Systems Thinkers can understand and predict behaviours, as well as affect long-lasting change. Understanding that tech organisations, dev teams and their individual members are themselves systems, following their own purposes and structures, can help us better support developers in their goals.

In this talk, we will learn about the basics and mechanisms that inform systems thinking. We will look at examples from the real world to understand why systems behave the way they do and how we can enable change. Finally, we will adapt what we learned to development organisations and discuss how systems thinking can help us improve developer efficiency and happiness.