Six Steps to Assess Systemic Change (and Improve Your Strategy)
Abstract
This paper presents a practical six-step process for assessing systemic change that separates tangible concepts (actions, actors, behaviour changes, resources) from intangible ones (resilience, emergence, adaptation, innovation, norms, rules, supporting function, institutions, complexity). The framework divides into two phases: System Snapshot (Steps 1-3) which examines how the system performs through defining and describing actors and actions, and assessing their resource outputs; and System Dynamics (Steps 4-6) which explores why the system changes by understanding behaviour change processes and measuring their endurance. By using only four basic tangible concepts and repeating these steps over time, practitioners can establish a clear measure of scale and understand sustainability within their development programming.
Key takeaways
- Only four tangible concepts are needed to assess systemic change effectively: actions (what people do), actors (who does them), behaviour changes (what actors do differently), and resources (what actors have)
- The six-step process creates two distinct frameworks: a System Snapshot showing how the system performs, and System Dynamics showing why it changes -both essential for understanding scale and sustainability
- Repeated application of these steps over time provides a clear, operational representation of systemic change that integrates into strategy and measurement systems
- This approach translates complex system concepts into practical, measurable terms that practitioners can use without requiring specialized frameworks or abstract system theory