Understanding the mental models that underpin our nation’s governance arrangements helps us understand current trends and the direction of travel that would promote a better balance of power in the system, improved relationships and more constructive debates between players.

Our society, economies and indeed, the future of the planet, are threatened when influential leaders sidestep inter-dependence and instead, promote individualism.

What lessons for systemic leadership can emerge from the messy and complex world of public inquiries? Can such inquiries promote culture change?

How will Ayn Rand’s advocacy for individualism affect the leadership of Sajid Javid – a great admirer of hers – at the Home Office. Will it prevent him from seeing the system that he is part of?

Amber Rudd had a lightbulb moment when the system came into view in the immigration crisis. But it came too late to save her reputation. It can be hard for leaders and organisations to learn systemic lessons.

Watch out! Targets are a widely used management device to force performance, but they spell trouble. Targets stem from the now-outdated scientific management model and take no account of modern systems and complexity science.

‘One-size-fits-all’ best practice is a mistaken idea. Complexity calls for a variety of ‘good practice’ by permitting more personal discretion and judgement.

Where frameworks add value and where they don’t – and how specifying and assessing competency sucks up energy and disregards peoples’ real performance challenges and results.

The Second Amendment of the US Constitution speaks of the right of the people to keep and bear arms. This confuses the rights of people as individuals with the rights of people collectively and in general. Organisations make a similar mistake when they speak of ‘individuals’.

Tony Blair’s favourite question was ‘How can we now make this fly’. The question recognises that the best technical solution to a problem and the most rational decision about it do not in themselves guarantee acceptance. (Originally published 11th May 2011)

Moving beyond McGregor’s ‘Theory X’ and ‘Theory Y’ of the 1960s, and drawing on the work of Hannah Arendt and Andreas Weber, suggesting a feelings-based interior subjectivity as a measure of a system that is truly alive.