Leadership: Embracing complexity
We often speak of the system as something larger than ourselves. The system is complex. The system is demanding. The system resists. By continuing to think of it this way, we sometimes end up believing that it exists independently of us. Yet, when I walk into a health care facility, I never meet “the system”. I meet people who welcome, care, innovate, question, search for solutions, and give the best of themselves despite very real challenges.
Of course, the system does exist, and we often inherit it. Its structures and constraints are real. They influence our ability to act. And yet...no policy welcomes a patient. No procedure reassures a family. No organizational chart creates trust. People do.
We are never entirely free. But neither are we entirely determined.
Philosopher Edgar Morin reminds us that every human being is a singular universe. Behind every title, every uniform, and every role lies an invisible world: a story, values, doubts, dreams, strengths, contradictions. Our organization is much more than just a collection of structures. It is the meeting of these universes around a shared purpose.
There lies a space between what we inherit from the system and what we pass on. I believe that’s where leadership comes to life: where constraints and possibilities meet, where experience encounters innovation, where convictions coexist with doubt, where the urgency to act meets the time needed to understand.
It is also a space of tension. Perhaps the challenge of leadership is not to eliminate these tensions, but to learn to embrace them. Embracing tension means neither controlling it nor simply enduring it. It means sitting with complexity, setting aside judgment, listening before drawing conclusions, and allowing different perspectives to come together in dialogue so that shared meaning can emerge.
These meaning influences what we choose to do next. Major transformations do not only arise from large-scale projects. They also take root in the infinitely small: listening proactively, asking questions with curiosity, navigating disagreement with respect, explaining a decision transparently, having the courage to say, “I don’t know yet.” The system evolves when the interactions that bring it to life change.
Developing leadership, then, cannot be limited to acquiring tools or skills. It also means cultivating a way of being; consciously, humbly and courageously embracing the space between the system and the people, between what has been handed down to what we choose to pass on.
In the morning, the health care system doesn't wake up. Buildings remain silent. Policies wait patiently on a shelf. People are the ones who walk through the doors. They welcome a patient, support a colleague, make decisions, show courage, choose whether to listen or act. That's when the system comes to life. What if leadership began precisely there? In this deeply human responsibility to create meaning of the world we inhabit. In the end, perhaps leadership is never more meaningful than when we accept the responsibility of embracing, together, the complexity of what we are trying to build.
Charline Morrison
Executive Director, Engagement
The “Voice of Our Leaders,” the blog of Vitalité Health Network’s Leadership Team, covers various topics related to transformation of the health system. The team members share their thoughts – transparently and from their own perspectives – on the issues, challenges and priorities within their areas of responsibility and the health system as a whole. Happy reading and happy reflection!
If you would like to share your thoughts or comments on this blog, please contact us at
