Episode 105 - Systems Change with David Peter Stroh

Your system is set up perfectly to get the results you are currently getting! If you want things to change, you have to change the system. Systems change expert and author David Peter Stroh visits with Patrick to discuss what systems change actually means, and how to go about addressing social issues at a systemic level. David is a founding partner of Bridgeway Partners, a consulting firm dedicated to helping mission-centered leaders reframe and resolve intractable social and environmental problems. He is also a founding director of the consulting group and informational website www.appliedsystemsthinking.com and a member of the systems thinking faculty for the Academy for Systems Change. David was previously one of the founders of Innovation Associates, the consulting firm whose pioneering work in the area of organizational learning formed the basis for fellow co-founder Peter Senge’s management classic The Fifth Discipline. David is internationally recognized for his work in enabling leaders to apply systems thinking to achieve breakthroughs around chronic, complex problems and to develop strategies which improve system-wide performance over time. He has been described as “a magician” and “the master at providing interesting and useful ways to look at the complexity of systems thinking”, who “helped us tremendously in getting to the core issues” with “the mind of a scientist and the heart of a healer.” His clients have included The Nature Conservancy, National Centers for Disease Control, U.S. Institute of Peace, Foundation for the Carolinas, Omidyar Group, Kellogg Foundation. David is also the author of the highly regarded book Systems Thinking for Social Change: A Practical Guide for Solving Complex Problems, Avoiding Unintended Consequences, and Achieving Lasting Results, a #1 Best-Seller in Non-Governmental Organization Policy which readers praise as "an essential - and long overdue - guide to applied systems thinking" that "shows you how to enlist others in the effort" by "masterfully weaving metaphor, story, and practical tools" using "down-to-earth language."