42b: Systems and Design Thinking

We can define traditional systems thinking as separating the system into parts, looking at the relationships between them, and designing the overall system while thinking about these relations. In systems thinking, the problem is considered holistically. It is a logical exercise where we solve the problem in parts. We separate the problem into smaller parts, try to understand the interconnections between these parts and solve these smaller ones. Design thinking is missing in traditional systems thinking. In design thinking, we first understand the full context and then prototype solutions. In architectural thinking, we look at how the parts need to connect to the needs defined in design thinking.

• Related Note(s):
  • 43: The Role and Responsibility of Software Architect;
  • 51: Consistency Models in Distributed Systems Index;