Three Domains of Systems Thinking
Transforming a business model to align with a net zero economy is big job. Each of the four Pathways requires a team of talented executives with the appropriate mix of three domains of systems thinking to handle the complexity of the transition to a net zero economy.
The operations domain is the least complex and covers fundamental businesses processes and systems. Operational systems thinking is commonly applied in operations to improve existing products and processes. In the context of net zero, the operations domain will cover most eco-efficiency processes and systems, which generally will only require operational systems thinking.
The business systems domain is more complex than the operations domain and covers a company’s core business model. Systems thinking is commonly applied to design new business models and create new zero carbon products and services. In the context of net zero, the business systems domain will cover changes to a company’s fundamental business model to achieve net zero, which generally require business systems thinking.
The global systems domain is more complex than the business systems domain and covers industry-wide and economy-wide systems and eco-systems. Global systems thinking is applied to transform the global economic system and entire industries and to establish new global business and industry norms. In the context of net zero, the global systems domain will cover transformations of entire industries and the global economic system to achieve net zero.