TITLE:
Does Deming’s “System of Profound Knowledge” Apply to Leaders of Biodiversity Conservation?
AUTHORS:
Simon A. Black, Jamieson A. Copsey
KEYWORDS:
Systems Thinking, Leadership, Environmental Management
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Leadership,
Vol.3 No.2,
June
17,
2014
ABSTRACT: The challenges of
ecological and environmental change are significant and solutions remain largely
under the influence of people and the decisions of governments, interest
groups, national and local communities and individuals. Evidence suggests that
despite 20 years of effort, conservation initiatives have failed to achieve the
targets set for protecting biodiversity in the UN Convention on Biological
Diversity 2010. A common factor influencing effectiveness of conservation work
undertaken by the diverse mix of government, non-government and civil
organisations is leadership. A command-and-control approach to leadership is
commonly encountered in conservation and previous reviews suggest this as a
major factor in ineffective conservation initiatives. This suggests that
conservation leaders should consider a fundamentally different approach to
leadership. We examine whether an alternative paradigm, Deming’s System of
Profound Knowledge, offers a suitable new basis for leadership in biodiversity
conservation. This “Systems Thinking” approach should encompass (i) an
understanding of natural systems, (ii) a sense of how human behaviour is
influenced, (iii) an understanding of how knowledge should inform
decision-making and problem solving, and (iv) an understanding of variation in
natural systems. Current paradigms of conservation management fail to address
these four fundamentals and therefore do not represent the most effective way
to manage conservation. Conversely, challenges and opportunities encountered in
biodiversity conservation are well-aligned to a Systems Thinking approach.
Leadership approaches defined in Deming’s “System of Profound Knowledge” offer
significant positive impacts on biodiversity conservation achievement and
provide lessons for leaders in other areas of human activity.