Big W Engineering Values - Systems Thinking

One of the most important concepts I picked up designing and building Formula SAE racecars in college was systems thinking. A team could easily have "the best engine" or "the best suspension" or "the best controls" and get beat in every category by a car that wasn't the best in any particular area, but successfully integrated all components into one harmonious system.

What made the winning teams' cars not only fast but exciting from a design standpoint were things like how their component layouts flowed together, how two systems integrated in a way that reduced weight or improved serviceability, or the overall craftsmanship of a car where everything just fits together like a priceless portrait. Any of its attributes could be copied, but their success came in how it all came together in perfect balance.

My favorite FSAE Car, but I'm biased because this was the last one I was Technical Director for. Iowa State University's 2010 car, CR-16.

Systems thinking forms the linkage between strategy and execution. It is how one idea informs the common goals of all of the components or processes that define the system. I've often described it as being able to zoom out and see the big picture beyond your process, and it's also how the inputs, outputs, and sequence and interactions with other processes affect the final product.

If the second half of that last sentence sounds familiar, it's because it was stolen right out of ISO 9001 / AS9100 clause 4.4.1. Being able to communicate how these processes interact to define your quality management system is not only critical in an audit, but also defines a common vision of how your organization operates.

Building systems thinking into your culture

Systems thinking is crucial for success at higher levels of management within an organization, but how do you develop it throughout your team? Assigning members of your team to lead cross-functional projects is a great start. In general, continuous improvement projects as a whole have been found to break down silos and expand understanding of challenges across functions.

Another technique to reinforce systems thinking is through the 5 Whys method, or more particularly the 3-Legged 5 Whys. While there are many methods of root cause analysis out there, the advantage of 5 Whys is that it is the simplest and therefore the most efficient method to implement at scale. It also tends to be very versatile.

The biggest advantage of 5 Whys is that it drives exploration beyond what is expected. Usually by Why #2-3, you've already started venturing outside of your comfort zone and are learning things about functions you've likely never dealt with before. It's rare to get to a true root cause without leaving the department where the issue occurred.

3-Legged 5-Whys directly drive systems thinking. The second leg directly focuses on which systemic failure(s) contributed to the issue, and the third leg directly focuses on how the system failed to detect the issue. The key advantage of the detection leg is that by its very nature it drives detection upstream in the system. As a general rule detection gets cheaper the further you go upstream, so this often has compounding benefits.

Summary

Systems thinking is the connective tissue between strategy and execution. It requires understanding not just your own process, but how it feeds into and shapes everything around it. Like a championship FSAE car that wins through integration rather than individual component superiority, a high-performing organization wins through coherent, well-understood processes. ISO 9001 and AS9100 are built on this recognition: Clause 4.4.1 requires organizations to define process sequences and interactions because quality is a system property, not a departmental one. Cross-functional projects and tools like the 3-Legged 5 Whys build that systems awareness into your team's daily thinking; not as a training exercise, but as a cultural habit that compounds over time.

ISO 9001 and AS9100 aren't checklists bolted onto your operation, but a language for describing how your operation actually works. Every requirement exists to help your organization define, communicate, and improve the system of processes that delivers quality to your customer. When your team can answer "how does my work connect to everyone else's?" not just in an audit room but on the shop floor and in a corrective action, that's when a QMS stops being a binder on a shelf and starts being a genuine competitive advantage.