Integrative thinking is for smart leaders

(For superheroes only)

Roger Martin, dean of the Joseph L. Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto, wanted to know how highly successful people such as Jack Welch think. He determined they are integrative thinkers, those who "have the predisposition and the capacity to hold in their heads two opposing ideas at once. And then, without panicking or simply settling for one alternative or the other, they’re able to creatively resolve the tension between those two ideas by generating a new one that contains elements of the others but is superior to both."

From the article "Becoming an Integrative Thinker" in Rotman Magazine, Martin said:

"...we think that what we see is what really is; but in fact, what we ‘see’ is based on our mental models...our models become indistinguishable from reality, and what constitutes ‘reality’ differs from person to person." Martin adds that "those who don’t agree with our model are seen as either uninformed or ill-intentioned, which creates tension, conflict and impasse."

Conventional thinkers believe

• they see and understand the true reality of a given situation;
• views that oppose theirs are "not reality," and are therefore wrong;
• no better model could exist, because they are looking at "reality"
• where opposing views exist, one must be crushed;
• must simplify and specialize to avoid unnecessary complexity; and
• they must always act quickly and decisively.

Integrative thinkers

• recognize that existing models do not equal reality;
• leverage opposing models;
• believe that better models always exist that cannot be seen;
• believe that they are capable of finding a better model;
• are willing and enthusiastic about wading into complexity; and
• give themselves the time to create; they aren’t rushed to find "the answer" to a problem.