Only systems thinking approaches can address the complex systemic challenges that surround us. As the professional body for Systems Thinking Practitioners, SCiO is unique for its focus on systems practice through the breadth and depth of the systems approaches we use. We support this with free resources, professional courses on systems practice and intervention skills, professional qualifications, and communities that support practitioners. Our chapters operate in several countries and languages.
What is SCiO?
Professional Body
Acknowledged by the UK Institute of Apprenticeships as the professional body for Systems Thinking Practitioners, SCiO is dedicated to the advancement of the awareness and knowledge of Systems Thinking, and its recognition as a profession.
SCiO has three main goals:
- Developing practice in applying systems ideas to a range of organisational and institutional issues,
- Disseminating the use of systems approaches in dealing with complex situations,
- Supporting practitioners in their professional practice.
SCiO develops, supports, and promotes systems thinking practice for technical and ethical competence, and provides professional development training, events and networking opportunities. SCiO also maintains working relationships with partner bodies internationally and the UK, to support its goals, and complimentary goals of those federations and societies.
Competency Framework
SCiO has created a framework of competencies for practitioners of systems thinking, based on our Systems Thinking Body of Knowledge (SysBoK) and the systems laws, and this is aligned to the Institute for Apprenticeship (IfA) Systems Thinking Practitioner L7 accreditation and their framework of Knowledge, Skills & Behaviours.
This framework gives the details of competencies, in the fields of..
- Systems Knowledge and Skills
- Systems Thinking Knowledge and Skills
- Intervention Skills
The CF resource guide provides references & links for each item in the competency framework.
Professional Development
Professional development through learning is a key objective for SCiO. To further this aim we have been heavily involved in the development of the Systems Thinking in Practice L7 apprenticeship.
The modules from this apprenticeship , closely linked to the topics in the Competency Framework, provide the basis for a substantial set of professional courses that are now available online (or as webinars or face to face by arrangement).
Professional Accreditation
Systems Practitioner Assessment Ltd (SPA) is a company that has been set up by SCiO - the professional body for systems practitioners - to carry out End Point Assessment of the Systems Thinking Practitioner Apprenticeship qualification.
SPA also assesses professional qualifications, on SCiO's behalf, using SCiO’s professional grading structure based on the Competency Framework (see above).
Resources
SCiO has hundreds of recordings of speakers at systems events (in several languages) and has also created a list of most of the systems books currently in print.
English
Pacing Changes: Seeing Living Systems as Rhythms
How do you approach systems change when there’s no “pause” button? This presentation shifts how we see systems: from the default spatial-static to a more processual-dynamic perspective. We integrate concepts drawn from this living systems perspective found in anthropology, architecture, and classical Chinese medicine, amongst others. Pacing Changes is introduced as a method for working with the...
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English
Pacing Changes: Seeing Living Systems as Rhythms
How do you approach systems change when there’s no “pause” button? This presentation shifts how we see systems: from the default spatial-static to a more processual-dynamic perspective. We integrate concepts drawn from this living systems perspective found in anthropology, architecture, and classical Chinese medicine, amongst others. Pacing Changes is introduced as a method for working with the...
English
0:23
How can a small charity make a meaningful impact on the entrenched, complex system of animal use in medical research?
Carla Owen and Nicola Reeves of Animal Free Research UK describe their charity’s shift from traditional grant-making towards a systems-thinking approach to ending animal testing. Recognizing a limited impact after decades of funding, the organization adopted tools such as SSM, VSM, and Patterns of Strategy to reframe its role—moving from simply funding research to convening networks, restructuring...
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Confidential – Members Only
English
0:23
How can a small charity make a meaningful impact on the entrenched, complex system of animal use in medical research?
Carla Owen and Nicola Reeves of Animal Free Research UK describe their charity’s shift from traditional grant-making towards a systems-thinking approach to ending animal testing. Recognizing a limited impact after decades of funding, the organization adopted tools such as SSM, VSM, and Patterns of Strategy to reframe its role—moving from simply funding research to convening networks, restructuring...
Confidential – Members Only
English
0:22
Overcoming the boundaries between stakeholders for project success
Failure to identify the right stakeholder at the right stage of a project creates a likely risk the project will fail. The stakeholders are the providers of the support needed by the project, be it resources, knowledge, or consent. Not identifying may lead to incorrect assumptions and hidden barriers impacting time, cost and quality. The Stakeholder environment is usually complex and is...
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Contact the Author
English
0:22
Overcoming the boundaries between stakeholders for project success
Failure to identify the right stakeholder at the right stage of a project creates a likely risk the project will fail. The stakeholders are the providers of the support needed by the project, be it resources, knowledge, or consent. Not identifying may lead to incorrect assumptions and hidden barriers impacting time, cost and quality. The Stakeholder environment is usually complex and is...
Contact the Author
English
0:23
System Leadership
This presentation explores an emerging approach to systemic leadership, questioning whether current interpretations adequately connect leadership practices to the real-time state of systems. While mainstream systems leadership often emphasizes individual skills and interpersonal behaviours, Gavin argues that such perspectives risk overlooking the structural and dynamic conditions that actually...
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Confidential – Members Only
English
0:23
System Leadership
This presentation explores an emerging approach to systemic leadership, questioning whether current interpretations adequately connect leadership practices to the real-time state of systems. While mainstream systems leadership often emphasizes individual skills and interpersonal behaviours, Gavin argues that such perspectives risk overlooking the structural and dynamic conditions that actually...
Confidential – Members Only