Synthetikos is a boutique global consultancy based in Toronto, Ontario that offers tailored strategy consulting to government, private industry and non-profit organizations.

Synthetikos is co-founded by husband and wife team Alex Ryan and Eleanor Joel. Alex and Eleanor have worked together for a decade across three countries to develop a world-leading practice in systemic design. In Canada, they were co-founders of Alberta CoLab, the first government systemic design lab globally. Alberta CoLab has completed over 60 systemic design projects, ranging from natural resource management and energy strategy to health system transformation and social innovation. In the U.S., they were members of Booz Allen Hamilton’s Center for the Application of Design, which introduced systemic design into the U.S. Army’s operational planning process, taught systemic design at the School of Advanced Military Studies, and stood up design teams in U.S. Special Operations Command, U.S. Strategic Command, and U.S. Cyber Command. In Australia, they helped the Australian Army adapt to complex warfighting through the development of Adaptive Campaigning and supported its application in Afghanistan.

Alex Ryan’s PhD in applied mathematics advanced a multidisciplinary approach to complex systems design. Eleanor Joel’s degree in multimedia studies led to the development of innovative approaches to near real-time digital graphic recording. Together, Alex and Eleanor bring analytics and aesthetics together to create Synthetikos.

Synthetikos is highly networked. Alex Ryan is a co-founder of the Systemic Design Research Network, a member of OCEAN Design Research Network, a member of Overlap, a member of the Responsive Organization Group, and a member of the INCOSE Complex Systems Engineering Working Group. We bring this network to every engagement, leveraging the freshest thinking and diverse experiences of our colleagues. As a small yet highly connected consultancy, we can assemble the right mix of people to generate breakthroughs on your most complex challenges and accelerate your organization’s learning from those who are creating the future today.