This book is primarily concerned with how people come together to achieve a productive purpose. That can only happen when Productive Social Cohesion can be sustained. Our survival as a species has always depended upon our ability to form and sustain social relationships and build organisations. People have a deep need to be creative and to belong. By creating positive organisations we can fulfil these needs and build a worthwhile society. We spend so much of our lives in organisations of one sort or another. Our lives are hugely impacted by the extent to which such organisations encourage or discourage our creativity. Indeed our mental health is heavily influenced by our experiences of working in organisations. Positive organisations do not happen by chance. In this book we have identified different types of social organisation with different purposes that require different structures and systems if they are to achieve their purposes and support their members and those who interact with them. We have identified sound, general principles of behaviour. We have tried to outline the work necessary to create such organisations and to give examples of these principles in action. We have argued that although we expect to approach the Technical and Commercial Domains with rigour we are often much more cavalier with the Social Domain. It is as if it is all just ‘common sense’ or should just happen. However, it is hard work to create positive organisations. We are often tempted by the magic of the latest best-selling book revealing the few, simple secrets to guaranteed success. However, understanding the concepts of Systems Leadership, applying them with discipline (not dogma) and creativity, and sustaining and modifying them over time requires persistence and consistency. We have observed and admired what good leaders and team members do and tried to distil the essence of productive, value-based relationships.

We do not claim to be totally original. Clearly we have been in influenced by Jaques in particular, but also by numerous others. We do not believe that creativity is an individual activity. Ideas and efforts are the products of social relationships, which is why we are sceptical of ‘gurus’. In the final analysis people are not creative because of a contract, a job title or even pay; we are not, primarily, externally motivated. We believe people are inherently creative, energetic and positive – just observe small children. However, we also have a perverse way, from childhood, of inhibiting, stultifying and depressing that creativity by poor organisational design, inappropriate leadership, capability and the use of power to name but a few.

We have argued that a significant amount of material in the area of organisational behaviour is based on fads and fashion. It is often purely descriptive and is not based on sound theory or propositions that can be tested.

When organisations fail, often spectacularly (for example, Banks in 2008), people will claim how this was only understandable with ‘the benefit of hindsight’. We disagree.

By using Systems Leadership to understand how the whole organisation works and interacts with its environment we can make confident predictions of the likely outcomes. Systems Leadership gives you ‘the benefit of foresight’. We can predict what will happen when an unclear structure creates confusion; roles are filled with people unable to do the work; systems are poorly designed and consequently drive counter-productive behaviour and create negative mythologies. We can predict the effects of lack of clarity around work, poor leadership and confusion around teamwork. That is because Systems Leadership is built upon sound theory, tested principles of behaviour and implementation in many companies, cultures and countries around the world. We have included case studies in the book but also refer to cases on the related website. In summary we do not simply say WHAT should be done; ‘build trust’, ‘appoint good leaders’, ‘innovate’ or ‘empower’ or ‘collaborate’, ‘deal with complexity’ but we actually write about HOW to do that. We simply ask that other approaches be critiqued in the same way.

We have offered the principles and practices in this book to help build social organisations that encourage the creative expression of capability. We have had the privilege of working with people who have tried to do just that and if we, through this book, have contributed to that most worthwhile of endeavours; to help build positive organisations and contribute to a just society then we have turned our intention into reality. As for all work, it is for you to judge.