System Sculpting

Choose this exercise

Purpose: Map current and target system arrangements to pinpoint specific structural friction points and areas for change.

Use it when: Use when a team needs to examine complex structural bottlenecks or transitions in a shared workflow rather than debating personal opinions.

Skip it when: Skip when the focus is purely on rapid brainstorming, linear task tracking, or when participants lack common experience with the system being evaluated.

Group arrangement: Subgroups of 3 to 6 people. If 7 participants attend, form one group of 3 and one group of 4.

Timing: Source indicates 30 to 60 minutes. UWT standard plan allocates 45 minutes.

Materials and tools

• 1 flipchart pad or large whiteboard per subgroup
• 4 assorted markers per subgroup
• 1 pad of sticky notes per subgroup
• 1 timer per subgroup (or smartphone timer)
• 1 printed Question Card per participant

Before participants arrive

1. Place a large flipchart pad or whiteboard surface at each table or breakout area.
2. Ensure tables have ample space for participants to stand and move around the canvas.
3. Distribute markers, sticky notes, and a timer to each subgroup area.
4. Place one printed Question Card at each seat.

Say this to open

Today we will map out how our current system really functions. In small groups, you will sketch a visual model of our current reality, inspect it from different perspectives, reshape it into an intended future state, and identify key intervention points. Start by mapping what happens right now, not what should happen.

How to run it

1. Introduce and launch current map 5 minutes

   Explain the four stages: current state model, four-way review, future state reshape, and bottleneck selection. Each subgroup selects a process keeper to manage the subgroup timer and read prompts, and a scribe to record key notes. Groups immediately start drawing their current workflow or organizational arrangement on their shared chart.

2. Build current state visual model 15 minutes

   Each person takes turns drawing or adding a component, actor, flow arrow, or barrier to the canvas. For example, draw a box for intake, an arrow for client review, or a red line for an approval delay. After each addition, the contributor speaks for 15 seconds to explain it. Peers listen without debate and build directly upon the drawing. Stop when the timer sounds.

3. Reflect from four perspectives 8 minutes

   Group members stand on different sides of the chart or shift their viewing position. The process keeper reads the four prompts from the Question Card one by one: 1) What is most obvious? 2) What is hidden or neglected? 3) Where does energy stop? 4) What would an outside user notice first? Each person shares one brief observation per prompt. The scribe writes key notes on sticky notes and places them on the map.

4. Reshape toward desired future 10 minutes

   Teams alter their model directly using a contrasting marker color or new sticky notes to represent their target operational state. Focus on the core functions that must exist. Each group selects and marks 2 or 3 critical intervention points or bottlenecks that must shift to move from the current reality to the future state.

5. Share and debrief 7 minutes

   Each subgroup shares their 2 or 3 intervention points in under 60 seconds. Facilitator opens the floor for 2 to 3 whole-room observations focusing on common bottlenecks across teams. End with the chosen debrief questions.

Debrief questions

• Which elements of your current system model surprised you once drawn out visually?
• What changed when you viewed the diagram from a different physical or conceptual angle?
• Which of the identified intervention points can be influenced by this team this month?

Finished output: A revised system diagram identifying 2 to 3 agreed intervention points for strategic action.

Remote

Run in breakout rooms of 3 to 6 people using a digital whiteboard with pre-loaded sticky notes and drawing tools. Participants take sequential turns placing cards and speaking for 15 seconds. For the reflection phase, the process keeper shares the four prompt cards sequentially on screen while participants zoom in on different quadrants of the digital canvas.

Hybrid

Keep in-person and remote participants in separate subgroups. In-person groups use physical whiteboards; remote groups use digital whiteboards. Bring both back together for the intervention-point share using a shared screen or physical room camera broadcast so both groups can see each other's visual maps.

Access and participation choices

• Participants may sketch, write text cards, or verbally dictate their element to the group scribe.
• Physical rotation around the table is optional; participants can review the card prompts from their seat.
• Any participant may pass during individual sharing rounds without explanation.

If the session gets stuck

One participant dominates the drawing and controls the narrative.

Remind teams that each person adds one item per turn followed by a strict 15-second explanation, handing the marker to the next person.

Groups draw an idealized process instead of the actual current workflow.

Intervene and instruct them to include workarounds, friction points, delays, and undocumented steps currently in place.

Terms used here

• Intervention point: A specific place in a system where a small structural shift can produce significant lasting improvements.