Break the Silos: A Systems Thinking Simulation
About the event
• This is an in-person event
In her latest book, *Strong Ground*, Brene Brown highlights why systems thinking is a foundational leadership requirement for the modern age. The punchline? Building new tools, transformation initiatives, or AI onto fundamentally dysfunctional systems only amplifies existing problems instead of fixing them. As the complexity of our global challenges increases, the need to see and understand the web of cross-functional and interconnected relationships driving systems outcomes is even more critical.
Developed over 30 years ago to support systems thinking in hospital settings, Friday Night at the ER (FNER) is an experiential learning program that teaches enduring principles of system thinking and system improvement strategies through the engaging medium of a game. The core principles and systems improvement strategies it teaches are as relevant today as ever and resonate far beyond the hospital setting. Companies from Disney to FedEx, from healthcare to academia to literal sausage making, have used FNER to affect the personal and organizational transformation necessary to overcome silos and manage systems holistically.
Come experience this fun and engaging tool for yourself! We’ll break into teams and spend the first half of the session playing the simulation before debriefing the experience and surfacing critical takeaways that you can carry into your day-to-day work, no matter what that may be. As a community of practitioners, we’ll also discuss the potential applications for this type of experiential learning in our various circles. No prior knowledge or familiarity with systems thinking necessary!
Agenda: 6:30 – Networking 6:40 – Welcome, Objectives, + Simulation Instructions 7:00 – Let the Game Begin! 7:45 – Scoring + Stretch Break 7:50 – Debrief the Experience + Overview of Systems Learning 8:20 - Discussion of Use Cases and General Q&A 8:30 – Event End
About our presenter: Glenn Love is a designer and strategist who has spent her career leading change for public sector and mission driven organizations. She founded the Design Thinking & Innovation team at FINRA, the nonprofit regulatory agency overseeing Wall Street, and most recently lead the redesign of the organization’s target operating model. This work gave her a front row seat to the transformational power of well-designed systems.
After experiencing Friday Night at the ER for herself, she joined the team behind it—Breakthrough Learning—as the director of product and business strategy.
Glenn holds an MBA from Georgetown McDonough School of Business and a certificate in Design Thinking and Innovation from the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business. She has worked for organizations across the financial, healthcare, education, defense, and economic development industries. In a prior life, she was also a Peace Corps Volunteer—an experience that started her down the path of human-centered design and systems thinking before she’d heard of either one.
