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systems-thinking

27
Nov
Common Sense Has Left the Building

Common Sense Has Left the Building

There was a time when engineering relied on something simple and powerful: shared understanding. Unwritten principles, basic reasoning, and a sense of direction that did not need to be re-explained every week. The obvious remained obvious. Today, the obvious is an endangered species.
5 min read
26
Nov
How to Dismantle a Chaos Monarchy

How to Dismantle a Chaos Monarchy

Every organisation has at least one: the engineer who built a personal kingdom out of chaos and called it “expertise”. The real tragedy is not the system they created, but the leadership that allowed it to exist.
5 min read
25
Nov
The System Lives Longer Than You

The System Lives Longer Than You

In every mature engineering discipline, the creator disappears and the system remains. Railways, bridges, aircraft, industrial plants, power grids, and
4 min read
24
Nov
Monday Myth: The Cult of Belief

Monday Myth: The Cult of Belief

The modern workplace has mistaken belief for competence. Leaders preach that unless you “believe in the mission”, “feel aligned”, or “find your spark”, you cannot deliver excellence. Emotional alignment has become a moral test. But this doctrine has produced fragility, not performance
3 min read
21
Nov
The Lemming That Saved the Branch

The Lemming That Saved the Branch

A cheerful parable about accidental brilliance, corporate physics, and why some companies survive against all logic.
4 min read
20
Nov
Clarity Is the First Platform

Clarity Is the First Platform

Every broken platform begins with a broken language. Semantic decay is the quietest organisational failure, and the most lethal. Systems drift, decisions degrade, and people hide behind vague words they never define. Then they blame engineering for the wreckage they created.
3 min read
19
Nov
Tech Through the Barbarian Lens

Tech Through the Barbarian Lens

Modern tech resembles an empire in decline. The barbarians are not outside the gates. They already run the place.
4 min read
18
Nov
The Modern Barabbas

The Modern Barabbas

The story of Pilate is remembered not because he chose evil, but because he chose nothing. He recognised the right path, understood the consequences, and stepped aside anyway. He performed neutrality while the worst forces advanced. This is the defining pattern of modern organisational decline.
4 min read
17
Nov
The Asimov Paradox: How Certainty Destroys Predictability

The Asimov Paradox: How Certainty Destroys Predictability

The Asimov Paradox describes a system in which Product and Engineering enter a self‑reinforcing loop of false certainty, eroded craft, and misaligned incentives. Each discipline believes it operates correctly. Each waits for the other. Neither generates information.
4 min read
14
Nov
Friday Fun: How to Blow Up a Scale-Up

Friday Fun: How to Blow Up a Scale-Up

Let us not pretend. Companies rarely collapse because of a single catastrophic decision. They collapse because of hundreds of small, confident, foolish choices compounding over time. If you ever wished to observe organisational self-destruction in its purest form, here is the fastest route.
2 min read