In this critical antidote to the personal bias that dominates much of our thinking about organizations, Oshry demonstrates how much of the costly breakdowns are systemic – not personal – how they develop out of our blindness to the human systems of which we are a part. He shows how powerful, productive, and satisfying partnerships are created when we are able to recognize and stop destructive system “dances”.
SEEING SYSTEMS takes us to a whole new level of understanding of ourselves as human beings. It is like turning on the lights in a room when we thought they were already on.
See these insights in action:
The Organization Workshop
REVIEWS
“Precious few business books reveal know-how that fundamentally changes the way we operate and experience our world of work. Seeing Systems helps us grasp what really happens beneath the surface in organizations. Regardless of whether you are an executive, executive coach, middle manager or individual contributor, Seeing Systems provides powerful insights and applications for enhancing your effectiveness.”
Julian D. Kaufmann, Chief HR Officer, G100 Companies
“Oshry, one of the truly great management educators of the era, has offered a whole generation a new way of thinking about leading human systems. Every manager, executive, and leader benefits from the insights that jump out of his provocative writings. His ideas will still be sparkling decades from now.”
Kenwyn Smith
Professor, Wharton Business School and the Fels School of Government
"This is an incredibly wise book about how each of us behaves in the systems of our lives. Its abundant insights can profoundly affect our perceptions of why we do what we do."
Margaret Wheatley, Author of LEADERSHIP AND THE NEW SCIENCE
"Barry Oshry is the world's master teacher about power and systems, and now he has put his wisdom on the pages of this book. SEEING SYSTEMS makes paradoxes comprehensible, dilemmas resolvable, and complexities easier to grasp. It will help people in every walk of life or ethnic group gain insights into what drives their behavior, and tools for coping with their roles in social systems at work and at home."
Rosabeth Moss Kanter, Harvard Business School Author of WHEN GIANTS LEARN TO DANCE and THE CHANGE MASTERS
"Part poetry, part philosophy, part practical advice, SEEING SYSTEMS offers a creative lens for examining our own behavior."
Marvin Weisbord, Author of PRODUCTIVE WORKPLACES and co-author of DISCOVERING COMMON GROUND
"...offers a new way of looking at systems and how we can use these insights to improve our lives both at work and at home."
Business Savvy
Some e-mail from readers:
"I think (SEEING SYSTEMS) is the best book available for teaching people about systems."
Kristin Cobble
"I just finished your book, SEEING SYSTEMS and just wanted to tell you what a WONDERFUL book it is! You took a complicated subject and made it understandable and entertaining. Your work sheds some serious light on the world's problems and how we might choose differently! Powerful Stuff!! Thanks for a great book."
Jane Totko
"I have read with enormous interest your book, SEEING SYSTEMS, and must say that through many years of being involved in entities dedicated to systemic thinking, this has been the most exciting reading."
Professor Enrique G. Herrscher Dean, Graduate School of Business Administration, ICED, Argentina
"I have just read your book, SEEING SYSTEMS. What a joy!"
Johann Roux, South Africa
"I have just finished reading and thinking through your book and in my opinion it's a brilliant one."
Michael Godet 