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Exploring Governance of Complex Systems: A Shared Learning Journey

Since the York Report (2019) , laid the groundwork for understanding safety in complex systems, our research journey has revealed governance as a recurring and critical theme. Across 18 global case studies, followed by the govern project, governance emerged as a powerful influence on a system’s resilience and safety.

Recognising this, we’ve worked with researchers, practitioners, and expert advisors to shape a set of emerging principles for safer governance in complex systems. These principles synthesised years of investigation and learning, grounded in real-world experience.

To test and refine these ideas, we brought together a diverse group of stakeholders in a roundtable. Their reflections helped us assess whether the principles resonated with practical realities and sparked a deeper dialogue on how governance must evolve in the face of complexity. This roundtable marked not an endpoint, but a shared step forward, a moment to pause, reflect, and shape the way we think about governing systems that are constantly changing.

Governance of Complex Systems Roundtable 2024

This roundtable, held on 3 December 2024, brought together 27 diverse leaders from nine countries to share perspectives and build a dialogue towards improved governance in complex systems.  It aimed to bring forward the findings from previous Governance reports, share and validate the emerging principles that aim to strengthen governance practices and foster agility in decision-making. 

At the core of the roundtable was a commitment to enable the coproduction of knowledge, foster new systemic connections, and surface fresh insights to guide better governance practices.

This report aims to capture the dialogue and debate that emerged, serving as an entry point for further discussions and collaboration. It is hoped that as these principles continue to evolve, the goal is to lay the foundation for a wider movement aimed at learning together and improving safety outcomes across complex systems and environments.

Read the full list of the emerging governance principles that were discussed. We invite all stakeholders - those who joined us and those engaging now to explore these principles and consider how they might be applied to your own systems.

Who was at the workshop?

The roundtable gathered global representatives from academia, government, industry, civil society, and the systems community, who discussed their roles in their sectors. The roundtable was carefully designed to integrate research insights with lived experience from attendees. Participants engaged in structured dialogue around an ecosystem map and in the second half focused on how these principles could be evolved and applied in practice, surfacing tensions, opportunities, and examples of system convening already happening. The report captures this discussion, including new insights, provocations, and practical signposts.

Key reflections on the principles

Participants at the roundtable engaged deeply with the emerging principles, reflecting on their relevance, clarity, and applicability across diverse contexts. This collective reflection was crucial- not only to validate the insights drawn from previous reports and the journey that led us here but also to ensure the principles resonate with real-world challenges and experiences. By grounding the principles in shared understanding and lived expertise, the roundtable laid a strong foundation for the next phase of the programme: translating these principles into actionable strategies, tools, and policies that can drive safer outcomes in complex systems. You can find a summary of these reflections below. 

1. Developing a systems mindset

Systems thinking has been mentioned as one of the crucial skills of our century. It should be promoted and encouraged both in formal education and in organisational training spaces. As decision-makers and teams develop this skill within their learning and working environments, improved systems stewardship could also emerge as a result.

2. Building internal capabilities

Systems approaches are a valuable toolkit that allow organisations to think holistically about the ways they approach problems and create solutions. Applying these might need an internal upskilling strategy with selected individuals that can become organisational systems champions.

3. Enforcement and accountability

Enforcing accountability in complex, multi-actor systems is a significant challenge for governments. Strengthening formal governance is essential: improving policies, codes, and regulations is critical, as many existing frameworks are not fit for purpose. A balance must also be struck between formal regulation and informal governance systems, which often provide valuable insights.

4. Enhance monitoring and adaptation

Effectively addressing emerging issues and monitoring complex systems is crucial for adaptive governance. Technology and data processing can be helpful in this aim, for example in the use of comprehensive monitoring tools, such as whole system scanners, to quickly identify and manage new challenges.

5. Foster meaningful inclusion

Diversity and inclusion are crucial to incorporate different viewpoints. This can ensure well-rounded solutions and improve ownership. Following that, recommendation is to value inclusion over participation, address power dynamics, consider political influence, enhance communication, and use technology wisely.

6. Re-evaluate approaches to failure

Organisations must cultivate environments where failure is recognised as a valuable learning opportunity, feedback mechanisms are embedded, and individuals are empowered to take ownership of outcomes

Join the conversation

The roundtable was an opportunity to bring stakeholders together to reflect on governance and various mechanisms that are challenging but vital levers for enabling better and safer systems. The development and testing of emerging principles have been a step forward in looking for actionable ideas that decision-makers can take forward in their work. We would like to use this as a opportunity to collaborate with others on emerging impact pathways and look towards exploring these ideas further. Recognising a gap in the governance of complex systems, we believe there is a need for more organisations to take on the role of system conveners. We are committed to playing an active role in this process, working alongside others to co-design innovative solutions.

As a next step, we want to hear from you.

  • We would love to know what you think about the emerging principles.
  • Do they resonate with you?
  • What might be missing?
  • Do you have any experiences that could serve as an example of innovative approaches to improve safety in complex systems?

Contact us

For more information about this report, please contact Ana Andrade 

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Explore how governance must evolve in order to deal with complexity and promote safety.

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Analysis and insights

Explore views from our working group chair, team, and collaborators to provoke your thinking. We welcome more inputs into this conversation and these insights will evolve as we hear from more people.