Waters Center for Systems Thinking

Name

Waters Center for Systems Thinking

Legal name

Waters Center for Systems Thinking Inc.

Website

https://waterscenterst.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Education and Training

NAICS

Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services (54169), Software Publishers (513210)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Critical Thinking & Problem Solving (EDABAMAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Critical Thinking, Problem Solving & Decision-Making (EDAAAKAH)

Keywords

• Systems thinking training
• Facilitator credentialing
• Thinking tools education
• Organizational capacity building
• Education consulting services

Headquarters

HQ city

Tucson, AZ

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Professional Services & Consulting: Revenue from consulting engagements, organizational development services, and customized workshops delivered virtually or in-person to schools, districts, businesses, government agencies, and communities. Services include pre-designed workshops, executive coaching, speaking engagements, and fully customized engagements.
2. Advanced Facilitator Credential Program: Intensive 1-year credentialing program priced at $3,200-$3,400 per person with limited partial scholarships available. Designed for experienced systems thinkers advancing facilitation and coaching skills.
3. Product Sales: Sale of physical products including Habits of a Systems Thinker card sets (2020 edition), toolkits for forums, and books such as The Systems Thinking Facilitator's Toolkit through the Shopify store.
4. Donations & Charitable Contributions: Tax-deductible donations as a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Accepts monthly recurring donations, one-time contributions via PayPal or check. Tax ID: 83-2041181.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

The Waters Center for Systems Thinking is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that delivers systems thinking education, training, and capacity-building services. Its offerings include a free online Thinking Tools Studio platform, the proprietary Habits of a Systems Thinker framework, an Advanced Facilitator Credential certification program, customized consulting, workshops, virtual forums, and webinars. Customers are organizations and individuals across education, healthcare, business, government, and nonprofit sectors.

Product overview

The Waters Center for Systems Thinking offers a comprehensive portfolio of systems thinking education and capacity-building products and services. The core offering is the Habits of a Systems Thinker™ framework—the foundational methodology underpinning all programs—which includes digital flip cards, downloadable resources, and physical card sets. The primary digital platform is the Thinking Tools Studio, a free self-guided online learning system featuring 33 courses organized into three tracks: Habits (15 courses), Tools (9 courses), and Archetypes (9 courses), plus additional resources. The organization delivers structured learning through online workshops, the Advanced Facilitator Credential program (a 1-year intensive), Open Studio Webinars (free monthly sessions), and Building Pathways for Systems Thinkers Virtual Forums. Consulting services encompass tailored organizational development, leadership development, and sector-specific solutions for healthcare, education, government, non-profits, and corporations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 90% of 150 teacher and leader participants showed evidence of active ST applications to classroom instruction and leadership (W.K. Kellogg Foundation project)
• +9 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments12 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

15 partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• W.K. Kellogg FoundationflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2017Grant-funded project 'Systems Thinking in School Communities' from July 2017 to December 2019. Over 90% of 150 teacher and leader participants showed evidence of active ST applications. Worked with Alabama and Kentucky regions including Auburn University, Kentucky Valley Education Cooperative (KVEC), and Central Kentucky Head Start.
• United Way of Tucson and Southern ArizonacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGreat Expectations for Children and Families program - nationally recognized communities of practice focused on early childhood education. Waters Center provided initial two-day training laying foundation for the initiative. After building sufficient capacity, practitioners now conduct ongoing professional development independently.
• Catalina Foothills School DistrictflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerFirst Waters Foundation project (1989), becoming demonstration site in partnership with Waters Center since 2011. District of 5,200 students has embedded ST concepts throughout curriculum as a deep learning proficiency alongside citizenship, critical thinking, and collaboration.
• National Governors AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWaters Center worked with NGA staffers to build systems thinking capacity, creating common language using Habits. Staffers used Ladder of Inference for policy decisions and understanding mental models of those with different viewpoints.
• Twin Rivers Unified School DistrictcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFollowing California state merger of four districts into one large urban district, Waters Center supported reorganization and leadership development. Nearly a decade of work resulted in improved attendance, decreased suspensions, increased academic proficiency, and internal promotion of systems-thinking leaders.
• Auburn UniversityminorOthersLearning partnership developed as part of W.K. Kellogg Foundation Systems Thinking in School Communities project.
• Kentucky Valley Education Cooperative (KVEC)minorOthersRegional partner in Kentucky for W.K. Kellogg Foundation Systems Thinking in School Communities project.
• Central Kentucky Head StartminorOthersLearning partnership in Kentucky developing systems thinking capacity in early childhood education settings.
• Center on Enhancing Early Learning Outcomes (CEELO)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCEELO established in 2014 sponsored 5 cohorts of state-level early childhood leader Fellows. Inspired ongoing cohort opportunities now sponsored by NASLEE. Several CEELO Fellows earned Waters Center Advanced Facilitator Credential.
• NASLEE (National Association of State Leaders in Early Education)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNow sponsors the NASLEE Leadership Academy with Waters Center credentialed facilitators (former CEELO Fellows) as systems thinking trainers and coaches.
• Disha India Education Foundation and the Heritage SchoolsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational partner organization in Gurgaon, India, as part of Waters Center global network.
• Systems Thinking Association, TurkeyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational partner organization as part of Waters Center global network spanning 80+ countries.
• Pacific UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSystems thinking course for doctoral nurse practitioners applying Habits and tools to healthcare leadership, strategic planning, and workplace culture systems.
• Office of Population AffairscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMultiple non-profits focused on adolescent health and well-being partnered with Waters Center through OPA support to take more systemic approach to their work.
• AMA Education ConsortiumflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerHabits of a Systems Thinker reprinted in chapter 2 of the AMA Education Consortium: Health Systems Science textbook (2nd ed., 2021) with explanations and examples connecting each habit to healthcare.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Skillsoft: Public corporate digital learning company offering content, leadership development, and professional training at scale across L&D and HR markets. Represents the broad incumbent competitive alternative for corporate and government training budgets that Waters Center also targets.

Direct peers

• Generon Consulting: Management consulting firm specializing in system change, dialogue, and organizational transformation using systems thinking frameworks. Co-founded by board member LeAnne Grillo; comparable consulting methodology and client types.
• Reos Partners: Global systems change and multi-stakeholder facilitation consultancy employing systems thinking, leverage analysis, and collective-impact methodologies. Board member LeAnne Grillo co-founded the firm, indicating methodology and practitioner overlap with Waters Center's consulting practice.
• Society for Organizational Learning (SoL): Global learning community originally catalyzed by Peter Senge (MIT) advancing systems thinking, learning organizations, and the Fifth Discipline lineage. Same intellectual tradition (Forrester/Senge) as Waters Center and a natural organizational counterpart.
• Academy for Systems Change: Education and capacity-building nonprofit (successor to Pegasus Communications) focused on systems change facilitation for practitioners and organizations. Comparable methodology, comparable consulting and training product, and shared lineage through board member LeAnne Grillo.
• Pegasus Communications: Historical systems thinking training, publications, and consulting firm that shaped the systems thinking-in-education movement in the 1990s–2000s. Co-founded by board member LeAnne Grillo and direct methodological predecessor to much of Waters Center's content library.
• Creative Learning Exchange: Nonprofit dedicated to embedding systems thinking in K–12 education via teacher workshops, the Waters Foundation-derived Habits of a Systems Thinker, and educational materials. Overlaps almost entirely with Waters Center's core PreK-12 segment.

Emerging players

• Sustainable Food Lab: Multi-stakeholder collaboration applying systems thinking and leverage-point analysis to global food systems. Comparable methodology and co-founded by board member LeAnne Grillo, but narrower sector focus.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/waterscenterforsystemsthinking

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Waters Center for Systems Thinking