The Business Diagnostic
How to Use Systems Thinking and Causal Inference to:
*Diagnose the Causes of Important Business Problems
*Discover the Sources of Valuable Opportunities
All Ambitious Professionals
Use The Business Diagnostic to Gain Rare, Valuable, and Difficult-to-Imitate Skills, Knowledge, and Abilities that Can Transform and Accelerate Your Career by Learning…
How to Gain Deep Insights Using The Performance Gap (TPG) Model
Traversing the Performance Gap (TPG) is a systematic approach to gaining unrivaled understandings of the causes of business & technology behavior and performance then effectively intervene with solutions to important problems or pursuit of valuable opportunities.
The Importance of Detecting and Understanding Non-Obvious Cycles
Applied Systems Thinking reveals not only the visible and obvious behavior and performance elements affecting a business or technology, but the (far more important) not-visible and non-obvious elements which tend to have outsized effects.
How to Understand & Explain Dynamic Behavior and Performance Based on Structure, Flows, Policies, Delays & Latencies, and Feedback…and much more.
The mental models and “language” of Systems Thinking is a powerfully expressive way to discern and communicate the complex causes of business & technology behavior & performance.
All Business & Technologies are Systems
Because all businesses and technologies are systems, the causes of their behavior and performance can be understood using systems principles, practices, and archetypes.
How to Gain Unmatched Insights with Powerful and Easy Causal Loop Diagrams (CLDs)
One of the simplest, most powerful, and visually expressive ways to explain and communicate dynamic mechanisms is the Causal Loop Diagram (CLD) which provides unparalleled abilities to peer into and understand the complexities of business and technology behavior and performance,
How to Create Compelling Arguments
Logical analysis is best conveyed via a logical communication structure. The “Toulmin Model of Argumentation” is one of the most powerful and easy-to-learn ways to craft compelling arguments.
All Effects Have Discoverable Causes
Every effect on a business’ or technology’s behavior and performance is attributable to one or more causes—which are discoverable and confirmable.
Why It’s Important to Avoid Event Thinking
Event Thinking is the mistaken perception that events occur in isolation; the erroneous belief that events are random and never predictable. Seemingly isolated—events are predictable results/ outcomes/ current state(s) of the dynamic behavior and performance of a business or technology.
A Systematic, Repeatable Diagnostic Process
The Business Diagnostic (TBD) is a systematic & repeatable ten plus one stage diagnostic method developed, refined, and proven over ~five decades.
You Will Also Learn:
Directed Acyclic Graphs (DAGs)
Directed Acyclic Graphs (DAGs) are used in Causal Inference to graphically model cause-and-effect relationships.
Ten Perspectives to Gain Unique Insights into Any Business or Technology
Deep insights into business/technology behavior and performance can be obtained by measuring ten types of elements common to all systems.
System Dynamics Stock and Flow (S&F) Models
System Dynamics Stock & Flow Models are powerful tools used to delve into the dynamic (over time) causes of business & technology performance & behavior by modeling accumulators, flows, rates, delays & latencies, and feedback.
Counterfactuals: Gaining Unique Insights by Evaluating What Did Not Happen
Business & technology behavior & performance insights can be enhanced by considering “counterfactuals,” decision paths not taken. (E.g., What would have happened if {ADVERTISING_CAMPAIGN} were not executed?)
How to Identify and Understanding Feedback in its Many Forms
There are two types of feedback present and operating in all systems all the time. One type is “destabilizing,” moving the system (business/technology) AWAY from equilibrium. The other type is “balancing,” moving the system TOWARD equilibrium.
Understanding Delays & Latencies
To understand business/technology behavior and performance, it is imperative to understand that there exist indeterminable latencies between a change in one (or more) causes and observing a change in one (or more) effects.
What Others Say…
—Senior Global Technology Analyst: R. Towry
—Global Professional Services VP: D. Lichner
—Global Technology Supply Chain Executive: P. Calonico
—Business Development Executive: J. Anderson
Rick Hubbard
Business Diagnostic Coach
The Business Diagnostic (TBD)
Dr. Rick Hubbard
The Business Diagnostic Coach
Since joining a prestigious global consulting firm in 1980—after serving as a US Air Force Officer designing and developing reconnaissance and surveillance software systems in an Intelligence Agency—Dr. Rick Hubbard’s career spanned professional advisor, business & technology executive, strategist, enterprise software solutions architect, and university professor.
Rick is a life-long systems scientist.
In a career spanning five decades, he developed deep expertise and unique insights applying systems-thinking, GST (General Systems Theory), cybernetics, system dynamics, causal inference, decision science, and data science to demanding business & technology problems & opportunities. While doing so, he earned multiple degrees in Computer Science and an MBA (Finance).
Based on decades of applying systems principles to demanding challenges, Dr. Hubbard developed, refined, and proved The Business Diagnostic across hundreds of demanding, complex problems and opportunity pursuits.
Dr. Hubbard has led Business Diagnostic engagements in such varied industries as:
- Financial services,
- Telecommunications,
- Manufacturing,
- Distribution,
- Enterprise Software,
- Air Transportation,
- Consumer Marketing,
and many others.