Luma Mahairi on What High-Functioning Teams Can Learn From The Blood System
Luma Mahairi, Clinical Research Coordinator III at DM Clinical Research, shared on LinkedIn:
”What high-functioning teams can learn from the blood system
In human physiology, health depends on a precise balance between procoagulant and anticoagulant forces, integrating cellular actors and plasma systems.
Too much clotting → thrombosis
Too much inhibition → hemorrhage
The goal is not maximum action or maximum restraint.
The goal is context-sensitive responsiveness.
Procoagulant forces equals activation and execution.
These are the drivers in teams: quick decisions, ownership, urgency, and momentum.
Without them, no progress.
Anticoagulant forces equals safety and reflection.
These regulate the system: psychological safety, quality checks, ethical guardrails, pause-and-review. Without them, chaos or burnout.
The real power comes not from choosing one over the other but from their dynamic interplay.
This is where systems thinking comes in. As leaders today navigate complexity across markets, culture, technology, and regulation, the ability to see patterns, feedback loops, and interdependencies is arguably the most crucial leadership skill.
The insight:
These forces aren’t opposites.
They’re co-dependent.
In the body:
• Cells alone can’t stabilize a clot
• Plasma systems alone can’t localize damage
• The endothelium continuously signals when to act and when to stop
In teams:
• Individuals don’t succeed without structure
• Policies fail without human judgment
• Leadership senses context and signals:
– Act now
– Pause
– Contain
– Resolve
High-performing teams behave like healthy hemostasis
Rapid activation at the site of need
Strong inhibition everywhere else
That means:
• Decisive action during crises
• Calm restraint during normal operations
• Escalation without blame
• Controls without paralysis
Pathology shows up when balance is lost
• Hyper-activation → micromanagement, blame culture
• Over-inhibition → analysis paralysis, disengagement
• Chaos everywhere → constant firefighting
In teams that function like healthy hemostasis:
• Action is rapid at the point of need.
• Restraint is strong elsewhere.
• Controls don’t stifle initiative.
• Escalation doesn’t breed blame.
A systems view helps leaders move beyond isolated fixes to understand the whole, exactly what Mary Johnstone-Louis highlights in her recent Forbes piece on why modern leadership must embrace systems thinking.
Read more: Today’s Most Crucial Leadership Skill Is Systems Thinking — Forbes
Balance isn’t passive.
Balance is adaptive.
Balance is context-aware.”
Article: Today’s Most Crucial Leadership Skill Is Systems Thinking
Author: Mary Johnstone-Louis
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