Systems Leadership - the Theory

Systems Leadership enables the leaders in an organization to create the conditions where people at all levels can work productively and to their potential and to ensure the right people are in the right role doing the right work. It uses basic assumptions about human behaviour to create models of good leadership, organizational strategy, systems design and social process.

It provides leaders with tools that • predict the behaviour in their organization and encourage productive behaviour. • build effective systems which drive productive behaviour and lead to the more effective realisation of the organization’s purpose.

Systems Leadership has been developed by Dr Ian Macdonald throughout his career as an academic and a management and organizational behaviour expert, Professor Catie Burke of the University of Southern California and Karl Stewart, first as a Managing Director and now as a consultant. It has a basis in the work of Elliot Jaques and has since been added to by the MAC Associates and clients.

See the topics at the left for a short introduction to our approach in a range of areas.