Rozprawy doktorskie: „Systems thinking”

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Lamb, Caroline Marie. "Collaborative systems thinking : an exploration of the mechanisms enabling team systems thinking". Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/54602.

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Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Aeronautics and Astronautics, 2009.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 197-214).
Aerospace systems are among the most complex anthropogenic systems and require large quantities of systems knowledge to design successfully. Within the aerospace industry, an aging workforce places those with the most systems experience near retirement at a time when fewer new programs exist to provide systems experience to the incoming generation of aerospace engineers and leaders. The resulting population will be a set of individuals who by themselves may lack sufficient systems knowledge. It is therefore important to look at teams of aerospace engineers as a new unit of systems knowledge and thinking. By understanding more about how teams engage in collaborative systems thinking (CST), organizations can better determine which types of training and intervention will lead to greater exchanges of systems-level knowledge within teams. Following a broad literature search, the constructs of team traits, technical process, and culture were identified as important for exploring CST. Using the literature and a set of 8 pilot interviews as guidance, 26 case studies (10 full and 16 abbreviated) were conducted to gather empirical data on CST enablers and barriers. These case studies incorporated data from 94 surveys and 65 interviews. From these data, a regression model was developed to identify the five strongest predictors of CST and facilitate validation. Eight additional abbreviated case studies were used to test the model and demonstrate the results are generalizable beyond the initial sample set. To summarize the results, CST teams are differentiable from non-CST teams.
(cont.) Among the most prevalent differentiators is a team's self-reported balance between individual and consensus decision making. Teams that engage in consensus decision making reported stronger engagement in collaborative systems thinking. Another differentiator is the median number of past program experiences on a team. Teams whose members reported more past similar program experiences also reported more engagement in collaborative systems thinking. Data show the number of past similar programs worked is a better predictor than years of industry experience. The apparent enabling effects of qualitative team traits are also discussed. The conclusions of this document propose ways in which these findings may be used to improve training and team intervention within industry, academia, and government.
by Caroline Marie Twomey Lamb.
Ph.D.

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Saritas, Ozcan. "Systems thinking for foresight". Thesis, University of Manchester, 2006. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.516738.

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Chung, Kristie (Kristie J. ). "Applying systems thinking to healthcare data cybersecurity". Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/105307.

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Thesis: S.M. in Engineering and Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, 2015.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 85-90).
Since the HITECH Act of 2009, adoption of Electronic Health Record (EHR) systems in US healthcare organizations has increased significantly. Along with the rapid increase in usage of EHR, cybercrimes are on the rise as well. Two recent cybercrime cases from early 2015, the Anthem and Premera breaches, are examples of the alarming increase of cybercrimes in this domain. Although modem Information Technology (IT) systems have evolved to become very complex and dynamic, cybersecurity strategies have remained static. Cyber attackers are now adopting more adaptive, sophisticated tactics, yet the cybersecurity counter tactics have proven to be inadequate and ineffective. The objective of this thesis is to analyze the recent Anthem security breach to assess the vulnerabilities of Anthem's data systems using current cybersecurity frameworks and guidelines and the Systems-Theoretic Accident Model and Process (STAMP) method. The STAMP analysis revealed Anthem's cybersecurity strategy needs to be reassessed and redesigned from a systems perspective using a holistic approach. Unless our society and government understand cybersecurity from a sociotechnical perspective, we will never be equipped to protect valuable information and will always lose this battle.
by Kristie Chung.
S.M. in Engineering and Management

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4

Mani, Kashani Mina. "The carbon cycle and systems thinking : Conceptualizing a visualization-based learning system for teaching the carbon cycle that supports systems thinking". Thesis, Linköpings universitet, Institutionen för datavetenskap, 2021. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:liu:diva-177716.

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Today, climate change, has become one of the greatest societal challenges of our time. This challenge requires an accurate understanding of climate change for making informed decisions regarding the environmental issues. The carbon cycle is one of the earth’s complicated cycles that has a critical role in the planet’s climate. Developing a thorough perception about this complex cycle uncovers how human activities impact the planet and reveals the connection between multiple environmental issues.Perceiving this complex cycle requires systems thinking skills that enable students to recognize components of the carbon cycle and understand the interrelating dynamic relationship between them. Establishing systems thinking skills and developing a thorough perception about the carbon cycle is a difficult matter for students. Adaptive visualisation-based tutoring systems have a great potential for facilitating teaching and learning cyclical models and systems thinking in schools. Such systems consider the students’ needs and provide personalised feedback that can guide individuals more effectively throughout the learning process. This thesis project intends to use diagrammatic visualizations, systems thinking, and adaptive tutoring systems as three technical approaches for conceptualising a learning system that aims to teach the carbon cycle. The framework of this thesis project is formed in relation to a research project called ‘Tracing Carbon’ focusing on science education for pupils on grade 7-9.

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Cao, Guangming. "Systems thinking and managing organisational change". Thesis, University of Bedfordshire, 2001. http://hdl.handle.net/10547/293966.

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This thesis is about how systems thinking might contribute to the successful management of change (MOC). The motivation is the increasing importance of MOC in an environment where competition and internationalisation of markets are ever intensifying: organisations either "change or die", yet MOC suffers adversely with unacceptably high failure rates. A critique of MOC literature shows that current MOe methodology is characterised by reductionist approaches with a diversity of confusing and contradictory suggestions and recipes. This is seen to be impoverished where different types of organisational change are interacting. All these suggest that MOC methodology itself needs to be improved and a systemic approach is more appropriate. In search of methodological underpinnings for proposing a systemic approach to MOC, literature on systems thinking is reviewed, indicating that systems approaches, especially critical systems thinking, are potentially powerful to inform the development of MOC. Nevertheless, important questions are raised about applying systems ideas to MOC. Further research is needed. And this has been done by triangulating data, theory and method to develop a fuller understanding of systems perspectives and their relevance to MOC. By combining MOC and systems thinking together in a theoretically informed way, a systemic MOC framework is suggested and revised. This framework is seen to provide a characterisation of MOC by identifying the conceptual components, a coherent theoretical structure by specifying and ordering the relationships between these components, and a way of helping understand and manage the diversity in organisational change systemically. This framework is theoretically underpinned and applied to a case study where different types of organisational change and their interactions are surfaced. The outcomes firmly support the view that MOe is characterised by different types of organisational change and their interactions, for which systemic approaches are more appropriate; thus the systemic MOC framework developed is seen to be useful in helping understand and manage organisational change more effectively. The findings are critiqued within the study, and from this come out the conclusions, and recommendations for future research.

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Dolak, Jessica. "Enabling process improvements through systems thinking". Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2006. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/37128.

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Thesis (M.B.A.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management; and, (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division; in conjunction with the Leaders for Manufacturing Program at MIT, 2006.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 78-79).
Manufacturing organizations around the world strive to improve processes with varying degrees of realization. There is no right way or latest and greatest process that can guarantee success, therefore the approach, and not necessarily the process, is critical. Since every process improvement project is different, using the systems thinking approach decreases the risk of failure as the implementer(s) is/are more aware of critical items on the fringe which might otherwise be neglected. Process metrics are vital for many reasons including motivating employees, determining the level of need for process improvement, and evaluating the outcome of a process improvement project. When evaluating whether a project should be pursued, the expected results on the subsystem and other subsystems should be estimated and tied to the highest level metric, which ultimately should equate to bottom line impact. This evaluation technique ensures a positive impact on the entire system, rather than producing only a subsystem optimum. A subsystem metric indicates a project's success through the use of a hypothesis test. This usage requires that the subsystem metric, which will be used to measure a process improvement, must be stable before initiating the project.
(cont.) The individual, team, and organization all play a vital role in a company embracing systems thinking. Individuals and teams need to keep an open mind to issues outside the focus department and accept and encourage involvement of cross-functional representatives on process improvement teams. An organization where systems thinking is integral becomes a learning organization and has a higher percentage of successful projects through a systematic evaluation and approach to projects. To maintain the systems thinking culture, an organization as a whole must encourage the hiring of individuals with varied experiences and who believe in systems thinking.
by Jessica Dolak.
S.M.
M.B.A.

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7

Shane, Douglas. "The application of systems thinking in cattle production". Diss., Kansas State University, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/2097/34570.

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Doctor of Philosophy
Department of Diagnostic Medicine/Pathobiology
Robert L. Larson
Bradley J. White
Applying systems methods to cattle production requires investigators to think about whole systems when addressing study objectives. The research conducted for this dissertation emphasized studying whole systems using different methods. We studied cattle production systems through mathematical simulation and new indirect monitoring technologies. While the methods used for the research in this dissertation may be very different, all utilized systems methods to address the study objectives. Firstly, we applied systems thinking methods and developed a dynamic, deterministic systems simulation of cow-calf production over a 10-year horizon. This model was used to investigate the effects the duration of postpartum anestrus (dPPA) has on reproductive performance. A large range of dPPA have been reported, so various primiparous cow and multiparous cow dPPA were simulated. We found that increasing the dPPA for primiparous and multiparous cows had a negative impact on herd performance and that the dPPA is an important factor in determining cow-calf performance success. We then used the cow-calf simulation to explore the effects of breeding nulliparous cows prior to the rest of the herd, known as providing Heifer Lead Time (tHL). We found that increasing tHL improved herd performance, especially with longer dPPA for primiparous cows. Secondly, real-time location systems (RTLS) were used to indirectly monitor cattle behavior. These systems have been used to determine the amount of time cattle spend at eating and drinking locations. We modeled the probability of cattle participating in eating and drinking behavior when determined to be at these locations by RTLS and found that significant differences exist between individual calves and period of the day. Finally, we explored associations between bovine respiratory disease (BRD) and animal-to-animal contacts as determined by RTLS in beef cattle. We found that the probability of BRD diagnosis was associated with the amount of time 4 days’ ago that a calf was in calf-contact with calves assumed to be shedding BRD pathogens.

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8

Wooliston, Gary. "The architecture and acuity of critical systems thinking". Thesis, University of Hull, 1992. http://hydra.hull.ac.uk/resources/hull:7950.

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This thesis looks at two critical urges in Critical Systems Thinking that both complement and critique each other. Firstly, there is an urge to construct in a critical manner. Secondly, there is an urge to be critical about such constructions. They complement and critique each other in the manner in which the second urge requires the first urge in order to understand what it means when one begins to create by construction, and also in which the first urge requires the second in order to understand the privileged position that construction is given in epistemology. These two urges give two stages. Construction relates to four clear conditions that develop from an Architectural study. This study offers two definitions of Architecture : structural longevity and relational modification. Consequently, a Structure and Process are established (first two stages) which together content an Architecture of Critical Systems Thinking (third stage). This Architecture is then applied to Systems Thinking through a study of five Systems Thinkers, this application offers an Architecture as commensurability (fourth stage). The Architecture is thereby offered as author. De-construction relates to four clear conditions that develop from the Architecture of Critical Systems Thinking. Each condition questions the Architectural authority to construct. The Process (reversed to complement and critique) questions the Structural consistency of the Architecture (first). A Structure of Acuity develops that maintains meaning where the Architecture neutralised meaning (second). A Contentless Acuity follows (third), thereby allowing the contentlessness of paradigm (in)commensurability to be discussed as an application of the Acuity of Critical Systems Thinking. The Acuity is thereby offered as reader. To balance these two urges is to read with authority.

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9

Grohs, Jacob R. "Developing a Measure of Systems Thinking Competency". Diss., Virginia Tech, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/51996.

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Institutions of higher education often promise to graduate individuals capable not only of excelling in their area of expertise but also qualified as exceptional leaders and citizens. Yet, what are the competencies needed from leaders in order to address the most challenging issues facing society? How would higher education cultivate the next generation of leaders for a world of problems we currently cannot solve, and how would it be determined if some graduates were 'more prepared' than others to face these challenges? This dissertation seeks to answer these questions through the work of two distinct manuscripts. The first argues that human processes for meaning-making play critical formative roles in the setting and solving of our most complex problems. In essence, that problem-solving can be considered as embodied acts of meaning-making. This link is made through analysis of Bruner's concept of narrative and highlights the importance played by naming and framing through one's unique perspective while attempting to interpret an ill-structured problem. The second manuscript develops a tool to measure 'systems thinking,' a competency that describes the sort of cognitive flexibility that might be beneficial for graduates to be emerging leaders capable of addressing critical societal issues. A framework for considering systems thinking competency is presented and used as the foundation of a scenario-based assessment tool. Results from a qualitative pilot study are shown as part of introducing the tool with primary findings: (a) the tool elicited meaningful data on each of the constructs for which it was designed; (b) emergent within each construct were possible means of characterizing the data that will allow for future study of variation across respondents.
Ph. D.

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10

Roman, Tamlyn. "Universal health coverage: a systems thinking approach". Master's thesis, University of Cape Town, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/11976.

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Includes abstract.
Includes bibliographical references.
This dissertation uses a systems thinking approach to investigate how current health system frameworks conceive of universal coverage schemes and the conditions which led to their implementation and sustainability.

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Benson, Tracy Anne. "Systems thinking: Teachers' emerging conceptions and implementation". Diss., The University of Arizona, 2001. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/279872.

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A systems thinking approach to classroom instruction is a relatively new instructional method, and effects of this approach have not been comprehensively documented even though interest in this approach is growing rapidly. This study examines teachers, emerging conceptions and implementation of systems thinking as a instructional methodology. The investigation explores the challenge of developing a systems thinking orientation among educators. Findings are based on the learning experiences of four middle school teachers working in an urban Northwestern school setting. A case study, ethnographic approach was used to investigate the teachers' emerging conceptions and implementation of systems thinking in their classrooms. Data were derived from journal entries, interviews, observation and classroom artifacts. Findings suggested that teachers perceived systems thinking as a beneficial classroom methodology, yet evidence supporting the validity of this perception was insufficient. In addition, teachers viewed systems thinking as an important life-long orientation and incorporated this view in their teaching. The impact of professional development structures such as training, resources, coaching, planning time, outside assistance, and a collegial atmosphere was significant. It was evident that teachers involved with systems thinking developed and articulated theories about the effects of systems thinking on their students.

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Tan, Peihao Raymond. "Applying systems thinking towards countering hybrid warfare". Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2019. https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/121799.

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Thesis: S.M. in Engineering and Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, System Design and Management Program, 2019
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 121-124).
Carl von Clausewitz, a famous Prussian general and military theorist asserted that war's nature of being violent, interactive, and fundamentally political, does not change - only its character does. According to Clausewitz, the character of war is a dynamic phenomenon that manifests differently with the "spirit" of each age. In our current digital age, technology has heavily influenced interactions, including warfare. In addition to boosting traditional military means, technology has enabled rapid and widespread weaponization of social, information and infrastructural instruments for political coercion. A rising trend of combining national instruments of power to wage war simultaneously across the political, military, economic, social, information and infrastructural domains is a rapidly emerging threat, characteristic of modem "hybrid wars" being fought today. Traditional military-centric defense policies and strategies are ill-prepared to address such threats that deliberately operate in the "grey zone", playing on ambiguity and tailoring coercion to remain just below detection and response thresholds. In this research, a combination of literature review, descriptive study, inductive approach, normative research, case study and systems thinking are applied to analyze the hybrid warfare threat and then construct a suitable response framework, treating it as system with interrelated constituent parts, synergistically working together over time, within the wider international context, to deliver an emergent counter hybrid warfare capability.
by Peihao Raymond Tan.
S.M. in Engineering and Management
S.M.inEngineeringandManagement Massachusetts Institute of Technology, System Design and Management Program

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Davidz, Heidi L. "Enabling systems thinking to accelerate the development of senior systems engineers". Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2006. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/34200.

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Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, 2006.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 210-213).
As engineering systems become more complex, the roles involved in developing and managing such systems also become more complex. Thus, there is increasing interest in educating and training engineering professionals to think more systemically. In particular, there is an increasing need to accelerate the development of senior systems engineers. As new educational degree programs in systems rapidly emerge and as companies scurry to establish systems training programs to meet this need, fundamental questions still remain about how systems thinking develops in engineers. Increased understanding of the mechanisms that develop systems thinking will enable effective and efficient development of senior systems professionals. After reviewing related literature, an exploratory and inductive study was designed to gather data on enablers, barriers, and precursors to systems thinking development in engineers. In a field study conducted primarily in the United States aerospace sector, 205 interviews were conducted in 10 host companies. Senior systems engineers were studied to better understand how they developed systems thinking, and information was collected on company procedures for developing systems engineers. Using interview and survey data, comparisons were made of two control groups and senior systems engineers.
(cont.) Proven stellar systems thinkers were also interviewed. To summarize the results, even though systems thinking definitions diverge, there is consensus on primary mechanisms that enable or obstruct systems thinking development in engineers. In order to reconcile the divergent definitions observed, a systems thinking framework, definition, and accompanying conceptual illustration are given. The data show that the primary mechanisms that enable systems thinking development include experiential learning, specific individual characteristics, and a supporting environment. This document defines the research space on this topic and suggests applications for the results. Better understanding of systems thinking development provides a foundation for educational interventions and employee development in systems thinking for engineering professionals across industry, government, and academia.
by Heidi Leoti Davidz.
Ph.D.

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14

Lindskog, Magnus. "On systems thinking in logistics management - A critical perspective". Doctoral thesis, Linköpings universitet, Kommunikations- och transportsystem, 2012. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:liu:diva-77119.

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Systems thinking. Systems theory. The systems approach. All these concepts have in various guises been claimed as central to logistics management, since its dawning in the mid twentieth century. Such claims are the starting point of this dissertation, the purpose of which is to contribute to an increased understanding of systems thinking in logistics management research, both present and for future advances. The primary unit of analysis in this dissertation is thus logistics management research. The purpose is pursued through a strategy of triangulation of research approaches, via two research objectives: To describe the nature of systems thinking in logistics management research. To explore the merits for logistics management research of an interpretive approach to actors’ systems thinking. The term systems thinking in this dissertation denotes any somewhat ‘organised’ bodies of thought with aspirations to be ‘holistic’ in the sense of aiming for comprehensiveness. This part relates mostly to the systems part of the term. With regard to the other part, systems thinking is also regarded as a term that encompasses thinking about, and in terms of, systems; either that of researchers or that of actors in logistics practices. Systems thinking can sometimes be theorised on in such a way that it seems fair to label it as systems theory. Another term that is also frequently employed is systems approach. This denotes any approach to intervene in and/or conduct research on enterprises, with a holistic ambition. Such approaches can or cannot be informed by systems theory. By approach is meant the fundamental assumptions of the effort, such as ontological and epistemological positions, views on human nature, and methodologies. This dissertation employs an approach informed by a strand of systems theory labelled Critical Systems Thinking (CST). This builds on a pluralist strategy, which entails an awareness of the strengths and weaknesses of all types of systems approaches, and thus strives towards putting them to work under such circumstances in which they are best suited. The first objective is pursued by means of a combined inductive-deductive approach presented mainly through two peer-reviewed, published journal articles. The first is an extensive literature review of academic publications in logistics management; the second is a survey of logistics management academics. Results show that the systems thinking within the discipline most often is not informed by systems theory, and is oriented towards a narrow section of the available systems approaches. This is an approach that builds on an objective world-view (realist ontology), and which seeks knowledge in terms of different kinds of law-like regularities. There are variations to the kinds of knowledge that are sought, in the sense that some search for deeper, underlying generative mechanisms (structuralist epistemology), some seek causal relationships among observable phenomena (positivist epistemology). The common view on human nature is determinist, and methodologies are often quantitative. It is concluded that logistics management employs a functionalist systems approach, which implicitly assumes homogeneity in actors’ systems thinking in mutual contexts (i.e. shared logistics practices). The second objective is pursued by adopting an interpretive systems approach, thus embracing a nominalist ontology and interpretivist epistemology, in order to explore what benefits such a perspective can lend to logistics management. Informed by the pluralist commitment of CST, theoretical constructs and methods grounded in cognitive psychology are employed to study logistics management practitioners’ systems thinking through cognitive mapping. If this reveals heterogeneities in systems thinking among actors of a mutual context, in which a high degree of homogeneity can be expected, the rationale is that the dominant homogeneity assumption is insufficient. The study, presented through an unpublished working paper, concludes that actors’ systems thinking can differ in ways that render the assumptions of the functionalist systems approach inadequate. More thought, debate, and research on an interpretive systems approach within logistics management is called for. With constant expansions in the scope of ambition for logistics management in mind – towards larger enterprise systems in the spirit of supply chain management, towards more goals for enterprises than the traditional financial ones, and towards new application areas (e.g. healthcare) – it is recognised that more and more actors become stakeholders in the practices that logistics management research seeks to incorporate within its domain of normative ambitions. This leads to an expanding scope of voices that ought to be heard in order to legitimise efforts to improve logistics management practices. This in turn motivates that we should seek to accommodate not only interpretive systems approaches, but also emancipatory, in order to ensure normative prescriptions that are legitimate from the perspectives of as many stakeholders as possible, not only from the common a priori efficiency perspectives of functionalist logistics management research.

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Safdari, Ghandehari Roozbeh. "Systems Thinking and Culture in International Relations: A Foreign Policy Approach". Thesis, Université d'Ottawa / University of Ottawa, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/10393/34829.

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The mainstream theories of international relations (IR) can be categorized under two approaches: Cultural and Systems. Although the two approaches appear to be at the opposite ends of the spectrum, this paper aims to evaluate both approaches, and to provide a systemic approach to foreign policy: The systems thinking and culture (STC). STC attempts to incorporate domestic culture, a unit-level force, in analyzing states’ behavior in the international system, while still preserving the structure, as emphasized in systemic theories like neorealism. The STC model shows how the domestic culture as a unit-level force, and the structure as a systems-level force, can shape a state’s behavior and policies in the international political system.

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Reyes, Eumir P. (Eumir Paulo Reyes Morales). "A systems thinking approach to business intelligence solutions based on cloud computing". Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2010. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/59267.

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Thesis (S.M. in System Design and Management)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, 2010.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 73-74).
Business intelligence is the set of tools, processes, practices and people that are used to take advantage of information to support decision making in the organizations. Cloud computing is a new paradigm for offering computing resources that work on demand, are scalable and are charged by the time they are used. Organizations can save large amounts of money and effort using this approach. This document identifies the main challenges companies encounter while working on business intelligence applications in the cloud, such as security, availability, performance, integration, regulatory issues, and constraints on network bandwidth. All these challenges are addressed with a systems thinking approach, and several solutions are offered that can be applied according to the organization's needs. An evaluations of the main vendors of cloud computing technology is presented, so that business intelligence developers identify the available tools and companies they can depend on to migrate or build applications in the cloud. It is demonstrated how business intelligence applications can increase their availability with a cloud computing approach, by decreasing the mean time to recovery (handled by the cloud service provider) and increasing the mean time to failure (achieved by the introduction of more redundancy on the hardware). Innovative mechanisms are discussed in order to improve cloud applications, such as private, public and hybrid clouds, column-oriented databases, in-memory databases and the Data Warehouse 2.0 architecture. Finally, it is shown how the project management for a business intelligence application can be facilitated with a cloud computing approach. Design structure matrices are dramatically simplified by avoiding unnecessary iterations while sizing, validating, and testing hardware and software resources.
by Eumir P. Reyes.
S.M.in System Design and Management

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Gregory, Wendy Jane. "Critical systems thinking and pluralism : a new constellation". Thesis, City University London, 1992. http://openaccess.city.ac.uk/8262/.

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This thesis explains theoretical issues concerned with paradigm incommensurability and the solutions offered by various critical systems writers. The problems of "imperialism" are outlined together with an analysis of the meta-theoretical views which purport to avoid imperialism. It is suggested that researchers attempting to understand alien or incommensurable paradigms or cultures often succumb to imperialism in its various guises. Three models of methods used by such researchers are described. The last of these, the model of critical appreciation, incorporates two crucial components advocated by Habermas and endorsed by Bernstein: critical self-reflection based upon an analogy of Freud's model of dream analysis, and an explicit critique of ideology. Methodological guidelines are offered which draw on an analogy of dream-analysis and on historical reconstruction as ideology-critique. It is suggested that any social inquiry must contain elements of "reflexive" (philosophical) and "scientific" (practical) inquiry together with ideology-critique and critical self-reflection in order to bring about the emancipation of individuals and groups. A model of self-society dynamics reveals the need for reflexive inquiry, discourse and action (as exemplified in the critical appreciation process) in any efforts to transform 'self' or 'society'. Consideration turns to the relationship between critical thinking and pluralism. The enriched version of critical appreciation is shown to require an a prior commitment to a new, discordant pluralism, which it also suggests in its modus operandii. In particular, the 'either/or' problematique presented by many writers is transformed into a 'both/and' juxtapositioning which lends its support to the form of pluralism involving both critical self-reflection and ideology-critique. The fully elaborated model of critical appreciation will finally be shown to fulfil the demands of the commitments of critical systems thinking.

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Che, Haron Roziha. "Systems thinking paradigm in construction cost estimating reliability". Thesis, University of Reading, 2017. http://centaur.reading.ac.uk/75021/.

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This thesis advocates the application of systems thinking in the cost estimating system. It describes research aimed at improving cost estimation reliability prepared by a quantity surveyor at the design stage. This research seeks to provide greater insight and added value to cost estimating practices. The systems thinking paradigm improves the current understanding and the technical performance among quantity surveyors in preparing reliable cost estimates. Cost estimation will be able to forecast construction cost for a new project with minimal project information as it is not a simple and straightforward task due to the integration of multiple variables and uncertainties. Current traditional cost estimation techniques have limitations adapting to real world projects. Further, the unit price rate for cost estimation does not provide a reliable and dynamic link between estimates corresponding to the duration and complexity of a new project. This flaw has a negative influence on project performance such as cost overrun. Hence, systems thinking can be a suitable system paradigm to improve construction theory and practice. An improved cost estimates technique enables more effective control of time and cost in construction projects. To achieve this, the objectives of this research include identifying factors affecting cost estimating accuracy, to investigate the influence of factors towards cost estimating, and to propose a systems thinking paradigm for improvement in cost estimating reliability. The systems thinking paradigm is proposed as an alternative methodology in tackling cost prediction challenges in which the interconnectedness among the variables is explained through the causal effects loops. It is the theoretical framework in which knowledge about systems is expressed in relation to cost estimating. The significance of this research will assist quantity surveyors improve cost prediction reliability. The research adopts a non¬experimental approach using the constructivism paradigm. It adopted a mixed method approach using content analysis of cost data from 1,170 Malaysian public education projects, document analysis, and conducting interviews with experienced quantity surveyors. The relationships between time and cost were examined through quantitative analysis, i.e. cross tabulation, correlation, and regression. Findings from this research reveal that traditional cost estimating techniques have a higher probability of error and are unlikely to be reliable. However, by adopting systems thinking, a new approach is recommended as a new paradigm to produce a more reliable cost estimation to support business investment decision making. Substantial benefits can be gained from this alternative which can minimize risks in cost estimation and support the successful management of construction projects.

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19

Hodgson, Anthony Malcolm. "Time, pattern, perception : integrating systems and futures thinking". Thesis, University of Hull, 2016. http://hydra.hull.ac.uk/resources/hull:16878.

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Peper, Nathaniel Arthur. "Systems thinking applied to automation and workplace safety". Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/111586.

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Thesis: M.B.A., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management, in conjunction with the Leaders for Global Operations Program at MIT, 2017.
Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics, in conjunction with the Leaders for Global Operations Program at MIT, 2017.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 107-109).
This thesis presents the results of a study to compare Systems-Theoretic Process Analysis (STPA), a hazard analysis methodology based on a new model of accident causation called Systems-Theoretic Accident Model and Processes (STAMP), with the traditional assessments recommended by industry standards for analyzing safety risks in modern manufacturing workplaces that are increasingly incorporating automated systems. These increasingly complex, modern socio-technical systems are introducing new problems in the manufacturing environment that traditional methods of analysis were not designed to analyze. While these traditional methods have previously proven effective at analyzing hazards, the increasing levels of complexity and technological advancement in the factories are surpassing the limits of traditional assessment capabilities. Today's continuous search for opportunities to automate manufacturing process makes this a critical time to ensure that the hazard analysis methodologies in use are capable of providing an effective and efficient analysis. STAMP and STPA were developed specifically to understand and analyze modern, complex socio-technical systems that are introducing new types of accidents with causes beyond traditional component failures. This thesis provides background and discussion of traditional models and methods, of the current industry standard method, and of the proposed method. The current and proposed methods are then used on an actual semi-automated manufacturing process being implemented in an aerospace manufacturing company and analyzed with a set of criteria to determine their effectiveness and efficiency. The results of this analysis determine that STPA is better equipped for the modern manufacturing environment.
by Nathaniel Arthur Peper.
M.B.A.
S.M.

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Galanakis, Kostas. "The 'creative factory' : an innovation systems model using a systems thinking approach". Thesis, University of Warwick, 2002. http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/1269/.

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The author has designed, developed and applied, employing a system dynamics approach, a new innovation system concept - the Creative Factory - in order to communicate innovation theory to the different actors in the system using a common perspective and to reveal the complexity of innovation systems. Furthermore, the model aims to create a dynamic framework that can be used to analyse and assess the innovation activity of a firm against best practice and to illustrate, through simulation, the short and long-term influences of managers' decisions or external factors on innovation outcomes and between the different factors in the system. The concept has at its centre the firm's knowledge creation, the new product design and development process and the competencies that separate successes from failures. These core elements are affected by other business activities of the firm such as the corporate strategy, the risk taking policy and the organisational structure. Additionally, it is influenced by the National Innovation Environment within which the firm operates. The creative factory model has been used in this project as an assessment tool in three different firms. Then, action-scenarios are simulated, which demonstrate how to improve and control the innovation activity of these three firms. Additionally, the author designed scenarios in order to demonstrate the effects of external influences on the innovation activity of the firms. Studying the results of the creative factory's simulation, the interconnection between the elements of an innovation system is illustrated. The need for capital investment in research in parallel with organisational improvements is shown to be a key factor for the success of the innovation process. The importance of the early stages of the new product design and development process in the overall performance of a firm is demonstrated. Finally, the influence of the national innovation environment on the innovation process and on the related business activities is identified.

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Dunford, Charlotte Natalie. "Making systems thinking routine systems engineering capability improvement in Rolls-Royce plc". Thesis, University of Bristol, 2015. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.702498.

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The business of Rolls-Royce pic makes the routine use of systems thinking a requirement for excellence. Systems Engineering enables systems thinking and their combination is systems practice. This study investigates the improvement of systems practice, focusing on the defence aerospace project design engineers at the Bristol site of the company. Best practice for the assessment and improvement of systems practice in engineering has not been established. Evidence of Systems Engineering impact is lacking. This study contributes to these areas. Systems practice is, in part, a way of thinking so a participative approach to conducting this research is necessary for success. An action research spiral is used as a framework for the research methodology. This research uses surveys, interviews and workshops to build a grounded theory, shown graphically as influence and system dynamic models, describing the engineers' ways of working, how systems practice contributes to it and how to better enable systems practice. The models articulate dynamic hypotheses of abstract concepts to the engineers in an accessible, engaging way and are used to aid discussions of the research findings and develop a shared understanding of the situation. This theory informs the development, implementation and assessment of improvement activities to assist engineers in choosing and using Systems Engineering techniques. This study found that among the engineers involved in the research the use of formal Systems Engineering techniques is usually valuable. Systems Engineering is valued but its lack of application does not reflect this. This study shows that the methodology used provides a means to identify the issues preventing systems practice, and the connections between these issues. This brings clarity and an evidence-base to the Systems Engineering capability improvement work within a company. This knowledge leads to specific improvement activities and a method through which to validate their success.

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De, Meij Garcia-Montoya Luisa Fernanda. "Systematic narratives : a study of an information system for the Colombian coffee industry". Thesis, University of Lincoln, 1997. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.387701.

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Salim, Hamid M. "Cyber safety : a systems thinking and systems theory approach to managing cyber security risks". Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/90804.

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Thesis: S.M. in Engineering and Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, System Design and Management Program, 2014.
Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 2014.
93
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 148-156).
If we are to manage cyber security risks more effectively in today's complex and dynamic Web 2.0 environment, then a new way of thinking is needed to complement traditional approaches. According to Symantec's 2014 Internet Security Threat Report, in 2012 more than ten million identities that included real names, dates of birth, and social security were exposed by a single breach. In 2013 there were eight breaches that each exposed over ten million identities. These breaches were recorded despite the fact that significant resources are expended, on managing cyber security risks each year by businesses and governments. The objective of this thesis was twofold. The first objective was to understand why traditional approaches for managing cyber security risks were not yielding desired results. Second, propose a new method for managing cyber security risks more effectively. The thesis investigated widely used approaches and standards, and puts forward a method based on the premise that traditional technology centric approaches have become ineffective on their own. This lack of efficacy can be attributed primarily to the fact that, Web 2.0 is a dynamic and a complex socio-technical system that is continuously evolving. This thesis proposes a new method for managing cyber security risks based on a model for accident or incident analysis, used in Systems Safety field. The model is called System-Theoretic Accident Model and Processes (STAMP). It is rooted in Systems Thinking and Systems Theory. Based on a case study specifically written for this thesis, the largest cyber-attack reported in 2007 on a major US based retailer, is analyzed using the STAMP model. The STAMP based analysis revealed insights both at systemic and detailed level, which otherwise would not be available, if traditional approaches were used for analysis. Further, STAMP generated specific recommendations for managing cyber security risks more effectively.
by Hamid M. Salim.
S.M. in Engineering and Management
S.M.

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Pilecký, Jakub. "Kritické systémové myšlení a jeho potřeba v obchodní společnosti". Master's thesis, Vysoká škola ekonomická v Praze, 2013. http://www.nusl.cz/ntk/nusl-199735.

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This thesis deals with the critical systems thinking (CST) and its necessity and usability within a commercial company. Critical systems thinking is defined and explained from different perspectives, first as a specific way of approaching a problem, but as a tool for problem solving as well. The thesis also details the specific skills of critical systems thinking and systems archetypes and identifies some interrelations between CST and a specific commercial company with its needs. The practical part is focused on the process of solving specific problems using critical systems thinking, it also discusses the benefits and limitations and evaluates the overall necessity of CST for a commercial company.

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Dimond, Anthony James. "Systems thinking in technical change : an analogical modelling approach". Thesis, City University London, 1990. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.276617.

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Mvula, Aubrey Harry. "Critical systems thinking and social systemic transformation in Malawi". Thesis, University of Hull, 1999. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.484226.

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This thesis considers whether critical systems thinking (CST) may assist with social transformation in Malawi, a largely pre-modem and poverty stricken Third World nation. In the process, which must include modernisation, the country's public services appear to be the most viable catalyst and are, therefore, the focus of this research. However, the services are fraught with multiple interlocking problems, most of which emanate from the fact that public services are inextricably connected to a forbidding context and reality in which they work. Most of the problems are cultural and historical. It is argued in this thesis that the most significanteffect of theforbidding context is in the area of the cognitive development of Malawi's people, including the public servants. Colonial socialisation, State political domination and suppression of social discourse, absence of a democratic ethos in governance and society, lack of investment and fluidity have over the centuries impoverished the context, which is also Malawi's social framework of knowledge. This has hampered the cognitive development of a huge majority of Malawians, and prevented progress in socio-political development. It has also interlocked with other problems to reproduce this reality. The other problems include those of language, deep poverty, wide spread ignorance and illiteracy, ethnic division and lack of opportunity for the majority; lack of socio-economic resources, sub-optimal management, low productivity and paucity of oppositional thinking. It is argued that, in its present form, CST is inadequate for the task of intervening in such a forbidding situation and dealing anywhere near adequately with it. This thesis observes the following as major problems with CST: an inappropriate philosophical grounding, confusion between the ontological order and the epistemic order, lack of appropriate approaches to social reality and inadequacy of theory. The thesis narrates a brief history and development of systems thinking and traces the emergence of CST, which it tests. The initial critical intents of CST are examined together with the philosophy underpinning it, exposing its limitations. Critical realism, represented by the works of Roy Bhaskar, is examined for its suitabilityas new philosophy for science and CST. It is found to be appropriate and is endorsed. Implications for this are considered. This helps to resolve the confusion between the ontological order and the epistemic order in CST and leads to CST's new configuration based on critical realism as the enabling critical framework/meta-theory.Following these gains, a more appropriate approach to social reality is elaborated for CST. The approach projects for CST the basis of a materialistic and science-based method for intervening and achieving social transformation in that context and possibly similar others. It recognises that social structures are activitydependent, concept-dependent, time-space-dependent and social-relation-dependent, and that human activity is dependent on given materials (means, media, resources, and rules), which it transforms. It also recognises that society is the condition of human agency and that human agency is equally a condition for society, which, in continuity, it reproduces and/or transforms. Working with this belief, the thesis explores new material and proposes a theory of development relevant for Malawi, and capable of addressing significantly, the problem of inadequacy of theory in CST. The theory proposed concerns human socialisation and efficacious agency; and directionality of transition, politics of, and limits to social transformation in a society such as Malawi. The utility of this theory has been examined theoretically in this thesis and against findings of field empirical investigations and critical realist analyses thereof. Ideas for methods for a CST intervention in the forbidding context in Malawi are also proposed from there. Additionally, this thesis shows how political thought and action are legitimate social systemic forms of endeavour that need to be included in CST if it is to make any significant impact in coercive contexts. This is considered within a conception of CST in a permanent dialectical relationship between itself as social science and society as the social object that it seeks to deal with and transform. In this relationship, CST is seen as involved and interested in the way social reality must be like and taking an active part in its transformation.

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Smith, Lucille. "Student experiences of learning in a systems thinking course". Master's thesis, University of Cape Town, 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/5471.

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Spain, Stephen. "Rethinking the Australian Curriculum through a Systems Thinking perspective". Thesis, Spain, Stephen (2021) Rethinking the Australian Curriculum through a Systems Thinking perspective. PhD thesis, Murdoch University, 2021. https://researchrepository.murdoch.edu.au/id/eprint/63457/.

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The key aim of this thesis was to explore a Systems Thinking approach to curriculum design and construct a Systems Thinking curriculum model informed by vertical curricula design as an alternative to the current Australian Curriculum (AC). The rationale for this was based on the contention that the current curriculum is reductionist and age-stratified and therefore no longer caters for the contemporary educative needs of all students. This research critically analysed the Australian Curriculum by applying a Systems Thinking framework and methodology with Qualitative Content Analysis as a research instrument. The key findings suggest a more integrated learning curriculum is required to replace the current knowledge based curriculum or syllabus as the AC was determined as being too convergent and homogenous posing a serious impediment to metacognitive learning and collaborative learning; compounded by assessment determinism. Finally, this research proposes an alternative curriculum model based on Systems Thinking (ST) to more effectively address the inadequacies of the current AC model. This new ST model proposes a shift in teacher/student relationships towards a more collaborative co-researcher learning focus, free from age stratification with greater emphasis upon student growth, metacognitive learning, critical thinking, student self-efficacy and an interconnected ecological world view. This thesis asks two key questions: ‘what does Systems Thinking offer the Australian Curriculum (AC)’ and ‘what would the Australian Curriculum look like if it had been designed using Systems Thinking?’ The thesis conclusion contends that Systems Thinking more effectively promotes metacognitive learning, student agency and an authentic environment necessary for learner adaptation and learner autonomy. The conclusion also suggests that a ST approach to curriculum and pedagogy is less reductionist and is more sensitive to individual student learning and learner engagement as exemplified by the Vertical Cubic Curriculum informed by ST in Chapter six. Key Words: Systems Thinking, Curriculum, Pedagogy, Holism, Reductionism, Ecosystem

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Alidrisi, Hassan. "Systems Thinking and Construction Safety: Leadership Competencies and Behaviours". Thesis, Griffith University, 2018. http://hdl.handle.net/10072/382727.

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Many research studies have been conducted on how the leadership of construction project managers affects safety performance. A number of leadership styles influencing safety performance in construction have been identified, but there is little agreement as to which style should be adopted. For project managers, the transformational–transactional style is one behavioural leadership concept that has had a beneficial effect on safety performance. However, some studies have argued that, because of its structure, this kind of leadership style is not the most suitable in the safety field. These studies observe that leadership in complex environments—wherein the when and how of leadership are essential—requires more than merely practising a form of behaviour. They argue that project managers need to be more flexible when applying their safety leadership behaviours to enhance safety performance. Flexible leadership behaviour requires a holistic leadership perspective, but such a perspective is lacking, making it important to explore this view of leadership in the context of construction safety. One way of promoting a flexible approach to safety leadership behaviour is to view leadership in terms of Systems Thinking. This study examines the relationship between Systems Thinking leadership competencies and the safety leadership behaviours of construction project managers. It also explores the effect that the safety leadership behaviours can have on safety behaviour as an indicator for safety performance. In this study, Systems Thinking comprises three leadership competencies: emotional, social and cognitive. Emotional competency has been defined as “the ability to recognise, understand, and use emotional information about oneself that leads to or causes effective or superior performance”. As for social competency, it has been described as “the ability to recognise, understand, and use emotional information about others that leads to or causes effective or superior performance”. The last of the Systems Thinking competencies, cognitive competency, has been defined as “the ability to think and analyse information and situations that lead to or cause effective or superior performance”. This study examines the relationship of these three components of Systems Thinking to safety leadership behaviours as represented by (1) workforce involvement, (2) relationship management, (3) visibility and leading by example and (4) proactive management. Ultimately, the effect of safety leadership behaviours on safety performance was empirically tested. Safety performance was represented by safety behaviour (participation and compliance), to determine whether Systems Thinking offers a suitable leadership style for project managers. The influence of cognitive capability on emotional and social competencies was also tested. To achieve the study’s purpose, a conceptual model was developed comprising constructs of the three leadership competencies along with the four leadership behaviours as well as safety behaviour. These constructs were linked by eight hypotheses that were established according to theoretical relationships. To validate the conceptual model, a quantitative research method was adopted in this study. To test and refine the conceptual model, a series of multivariate statistical approaches was employed for the data, which were collected from 180 project managers and employees who played the same safety-related roles as project managers in the construction industry in Saudi Arabia. The series began using exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis, which were performed to reveal robust model structures. Then, regression analysis was applied to test the developed hypotheses. The analyses demonstrated that emotional, social and cognitive competencies positively and directly influence safety performance. Regarding the mediating role of safety leadership behaviour, the analysis showed only two leadership behaviours moderating the relationship between emotional competency and safety performance, namely, workforce involvement, and visibility and leading by example. As for the hypothesised relationship between social competency and safety performance, all four leadership behaviours arbitrated this relationship when safety performance was represented by safety compliance, except for visibility and leading by example. Additionally, the relationship between cognitive competency and safety performance was mediated by three leadership behaviours, namely, workforce involvement, visibility and leading by example, and proactive management. The influence of cognitive competency on emotional and social competencies proved to be positive. Finally, structural equation modelling (SEM) was used to refine and confirm the findings of the regression analysis. The SEM analysis confirmed that emotional competency has a direct and an indirect influence on safety behaviour as a result of safety leadership behaviour. In addition, it established that social competency has only an indirect effect on safety behaviour under the influence of safety leadership behaviour; likewise, cognitive competency has only an indirect effect on emotional and social competencies. While the direct and indirect influences of cognitive competency, as well as the direct effect of social competency, on safety behaviour were not confirmed, the influence of cognitive competency on emotional and social competency was confirmed. In summary, the current research study provides a deeper understanding of the implications of leadership competencies for safety leadership behaviour and safety performance in the Saudi construction industry. It also provides a framework that enables safety managers to flexibly guide and lead their followers. These findings and implications will facilitate the improvement of construction safety through making a number of recommendations to expand the knowledge of leadership in the context of safety.
Thesis (PhD Doctorate)
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
School of Eng & Built Env
Science, Environment, Engineering and Technology
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Torlak, N. Gokhan. "Improving total systems intervention through theory and practice". Thesis, University of Lincoln, 1999. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.312887.

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Jeong, Hyunsoo. "Predictive analytics for smart manufacturing : use and impact from a systems thinking perspective". Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/106252.

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Thesis: S.M. in Engineering and Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, System Design and Management Program, Engineering and Management Program, 2016.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 115-122).
The manufacturing industry has, recently, been facing tremendous challenges, including cost efficiency, system safety, and process automation, and manufacturing companies are required to adopt new technologies to keep themselves sustainable in the fast-changing world of technology. This research focuses, in particular, on how to prevent cutting tool failures and catastrophic accidents in Computerized Numerically Controlled (CNC) machining processes by using a predictive model based on the cutting sound data. With advances in machine learning algorithms and predictive analytics techniques, it becomes possible to create a noise-robust predictive model from an unstructured dataset of sound data. It is an obviously desirable decision to make use of every technology as required and benefit from it. The predictive model introduced in this research uses cutting sound data rather than acoustic emission or force/torque sensor data, which have been widely used for machine failure detection but have shown some limitations. The model is an important stepping stone for realizing an unmanned and fully automated manufacturing system, the so-called "smart factory," and it would be a meaningful movement for the government side as well, taking into account government's responsibility to keep people safe in the workplace. In this research, several experiments were carried out to collect sound data in the CNC machining center in Korea, and particular features were extracted from the analog waveform signals, using the unstructured data to make the predictive model using various advanced data analytics techniques and cutting-edge machine learning algorithms. Then, several analysis methods with systems thinking were used to explore potential impacts of the predictive model on the manufacturing system because the systems thinking approach is the most effective way to analyze a wide range of potential impacts from a holistic perspective. Specifically, the impact analysis was successfully conducted by using a "Causal Analysis based on STAMP (CAST)," which is a system safety analysis method. Also used was "system dynamics modeling," which is generally employed to identify dynamic behaviors in a complex system. Finally, a "complete value template" was constructed to portray how the new system delivers value to its stakeholders from a system architecture perspective.
by Hyunsoo Jeong.
S.M. in Engineering and Management

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de, Raadt Veronica D. "A normative application of multi-modal systems thinking to a non-viable social system /". Luleå, 2001. http://epubl.luth.se/1402-1544/2001/30/index.html.

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Zhang, Meng. "Systems thinking in the construction of information systems theory: A set of methodological inquiries". Thesis, Queensland University of Technology, 2016. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/92275/1/Meng_Zhang_Thesis.pdf.

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This thesis examines the nature of research methods and explores novel approaches to developing richer and more realistic theory concerned with information systems. The conceptual analysis offers a solid basis for flexibly configuring research methods and for systematically constructing complex theory. The frameworks provided can help researchers better deal with increasing complexities arising from the interaction between human and technological systems.

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Valero-Silva, Néstor. "A critical history of the origins of critical systems thinking". Thesis, University of Hull, 1999. http://hydra.hull.ac.uk/resources/hull:10470.

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This thesis provides a critical history of the origins of Critical Systems Thinking (CST). Its theoretical framework is based upon a detailed analysis of the work of the French philosopher Michel Foucault. It is aimed at demystifying CST's claims of pursuing some "neutral" human interests, while arguing that CST's origins are grounded on managerial interests and practices. After providing a comprehensive review of Foucault's ideas, it examines the main approaches found in the history of the management sciences. It shows how each new management approach made its contribution by producing a new type of worker according to changing historical circumstances; a worker that is increasingly supposed to freely and democratically pursue his/her own interests, which "coincidentally" follow those of the management. It also discusses how different strands of systems thinking, such as OR and soft systems, were produced to support these managerial paradigms. Finally, it examines the role that current managerial techniques, as exemplified by TQM, have played in the production of CST in the 1980s. In this context, it argues that CST's role in modern organisations is to contribute to the refinement of current managerial techniques. CST's discourse is portrayed, thus, as contributing to the masking of the micro-techniques of normalisation present in contemporary organisations.

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Sambo, Luis Gomes. "Health systems thinking : the need for a more critical approach". Thesis, University of Hull, 2009. http://hydra.hull.ac.uk/resources/hull:2487.

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The present study intends to bring more insights and added value to health systems thinking using systems ideas. It inquires about the current state of health systems thinking, analyses different strengths of alternative systems approaches, and suggests what systems thinking can offer in order to improve the current understanding and the technical performance of health systems. It does not intend to develop a blue print model but rather a more critical approach to deal with some of the intractable problems encountered in current health sector reforms. The thesis is not expected to serve public health practitioners only but also systems thinking theorists, particularly those interested in social systems and pluralism in management sciences. Specifically, this thesis aims at analysing the current state of Health systems thinking; explores what other systems approaches can offer to enlighten health systems; and yields knowledge on critical health systems thinking. To achieve these aims the researcher articulated the study on the basis of the definition of health by the World Health Organisation, the interconnectedness among key health determinants and the global health challenges with particular emphasis in Sub-Saharan Africa. Critical systems thinking is the theoretical framework in which knowledge about systems is expressed and the current state of Health systems thinking is the area of concern in relation to which the researcher has aspirations. The methodology consists in two major steps conducting thought experiments in the context of three scenarios from the researcher's own experience. The first step uses Jackson's four major systems approaches and associated methodologies and yields learning about the current state of health systems thinking; and the second step, using critical systems practice in mode 2, generates a more critical approach to health systems thinking.

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Hill, Joanna Florence. "Poaching in Uganda : a crime science and systems thinking perspective". Thesis, University College London (University of London), 2018. http://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/10059993/.

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Poaching is problematic in many developing countries but tackling the problem is severely hampered by a lack of data and resources to develop cost-effective solutions. In particular, a key conservation concern is that anti-poaching rangers are unable to provide complete spatial and temporal coverage of protected areas, which means that much poaching activity goes undetected. This affects understanding of poaching activities and the effectiveness of strategies based upon them. Guided by theoretical and practical techniques from the fields of crime science and systems thinking, the purpose of this thesis is to explore how agent-based modelling (ABM) and data collected through qualitative methods can help to understand and prevent poaching. The core empirical chapters describe a series of discrete but interconnected research activities that start with the construction of a preliminary agent-based model intended to explore poaching activities, followed by an 18-month fieldwork project conducted in Uganda to develop the behavioural rules used in the model and to fill in gaps in the empirical record. Two different but complementary qualitative approaches were used with communities that interact with wildlife in Murchison Falls Conservation Area. The research included the completion of 13 focus groups and 26 one-to-one interviews, followed by the collection of data concerning environmental factors that influence poacher decision making using three novel qualitative mapping exercises (sketches, jigsaw maps, simulation map) with eight individuals who poach wildlife. Overall, the thesis provides new insights into the situational factors that influence poaching, including the role of preventers and promoters, the methods people use to locate poaching opportunities and avoid detection, and also the spatial and temporal factors that facilitate poaching. It then discusses how these new data can be used to develop future poaching models for theory and policy testing.

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Bobrow, Jonathan. "AutomaTiles : tangible cellular automata for playful engagement with systems thinking". Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/106059.

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Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning, Program in Media Arts and Sciences, 2016.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (page 56).
There is an increasingly vital awareness that our world is an aggregate of complex systems, emergent behavior, and system dynamics. The perceptual and analytical tools for exploring and studying these systems, however, have generally been relegated to scientists (whether mathematicians, physicists, biologists, economists, or computer scientists). Thus, as more and more people become aware of such systems, most people are still excluded from engaging with complex systems. By inventing a new tool and interface, consisting of playful objects called AutomaTiles, I propose a new approach for fostering a more aware society of systems thinkers. AutomaTiles provide a three-tiered approach to making systems thinking more accessible. Firstly, AutomaTiles are a friendly and approachable set of playful objects; seen simply as toys, they afford the surprising effects of emergent behavior when brought together in aggregate. Secondly, AutomaTiles can be a tool for exploring collective behavior, distributed algorithms, and models of systems (whether forest fires or social phenomena) from a hands-on perspective. Lastly, AutomaTiles are a new kind of platform for games, bringing computational intelligence to table-top games, bringing together the social dynamics of face-to-face interaction with the complexity afforded by conventional video-games. Expanding the work on the future of board games from Playful Systems, we have created a novel digital-physical interface for playing games that allows for modes of gameplay never before possible in a table-top game. This thesis will illustrate the design decisions and affordances of AutomaTiles as a platform for engaging with these three tiers of the exploration and manipulation of complex systems.
by Jonathan Bobrow.
S.M.

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Myburgh, Roche Francois. "Theories of non-linear systems : a paradigm for organizational thinking". Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2003. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/53663.

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Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2003.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The advent of the computer age has seen many fundamental changes in the economics. The ease with which organisations can store and transmit information in unprecedented quantities and speeds has changed the face of the economy as well as the way in which organisations conduct their day to day operations. Information has become the primary resource for organisational competitiveness and this has seen an increasing drive for efficient information generation and management in an economy that is interconnected on a global scale. The demand for better information management practices is driven by the realisation that the global economy is susceptible to sudden and unpredictable changes that can potentially have global consequences. The more information organisations have at their disposal, the better their chances are of remaining competitive and relevant in the global economy. The informational economy confronts organisations with two very significant problems, the first is information overload due to the sheer volume of information that is available to them. The second problem is that despite the volume of available information organisations still are not privy to all the information that is required to lessen the impact of uncertainty that is so characteristic of the global economy. Organisations therefore always run the' risk of becoming irrelevant if they do not change constantly. This drive for continuous change and the dependence on information has led some organisational theorists and economists to compare the global economy and organisations to nonlinear systems found in nature. Examples of nonlinear systems are living organisms, ecologies and solar systems. All of these systems are characterised by high levels of interconnectedness and interdependence among individual units within a shared environment, which they co-create. Nonlinear systems are of particular interest to organisational theorists because these systems process information about the environment to adapt in an unpredictable way to unpredictable changes. Such systems are incredibly resilient because they are able to learn and adapt to different conditions. Another notable aspect of nonlinear systems is the clear structured and complex organisation that they exhibit in the absence of centralised control mechanisms. Every unit has the liberty to experiment with new designs and from the success of individual units an organised and stable system emerges with a strong link between the success of individuals and the whole system. The order that exists within nonlinear systems is known as self-organisation because it is not superimposed but emerges instead in a spontaneous manner. Nonlinear systems are therefore more than just the sum of their parts. The notion of nonlinear systems and self-organisation has seen authors such as Stacey, Wheatley and Senge develop new ideas about organisational development, leadership and organisational strategic thinking. Their ideas are based on what is popularly known as 'The New Science'. These ideas attempt to encourage organisations realise that the global economy functions as a nonlinear system and that organisations stand a better chance of success if they learn to understand the principles of nonlinear systems and to utilise the inherent creative and organising characteristics of such systems.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die aanvang van die rekenaar era het verskeie fundamentele veranderinge in ekonomie mee gebring. Die gemak en snelheid waarmee organisasies informasie kan stoor en versprei is ongekend en het terselfde tyd die voorkoms van die ekonomie verander asook die wyse waarop organisasies op 'n daaglikse basis funksioneer. Informasie het die belangrikste hulpbron geword vir organisasies in terme van kompetering en dit het 'n groter dryfkrag vir doeltreffende informasie ontginning en bestuur mee gebring in 'n ekonomie wat op 'n wereldwye skaal in mekaar gevleg is. Die aanvraag vir beter informasie bestuur praktyke word gedryf deur die wete dat die wereld ekonomie vatbaar is vir skielike en onvoorspelbare veranderinge wat potensieel 'n wereldwye impak kan he. Hoe meer informasie organisasies tot hul beskikking het hoe beter is hul kans om relevant en kompeterend te bly in die wereld ekonomie. Die informasie ekonomie konfronteer organisasies met twee fundamentele probleme. Die eerste gevaar is dat organisasies oorlaai kan word met informasie as gevolg van die absolute volume van beskikbare informasie. Die tweede probleem spruit voort uit die feit dat ten spyte van die beskikbare informasie, lei organisasies steeds aan 'n gebrek aan algehele informasie, organisasies kan dus nooit toegang he tot al die informasie wat benodig word om die impak te verminder van die onsekerheid wat so kenmerkend is van die wereld ekonomie. Organisasies loop dus altyd die gevaar om irrelevant te raak as hulle nie konstant aanpas by nuwe omstandighede nie. Hierdie soeke na konstante verandering en die afhanklikheid op informasie het verskeie organisasie teoretici en ekonome daartoe gelei om 'n vergelyking te tref tussen die wereld ekonomie en organisasies aan die een kant en nie-Iiniere sisteme wat in die natuur voorkom. Voorbeelde van sulke sisteme sluit lewende organismes, ekostelsels en sterre stelsels in. Die komponente van al hierdie sisteme is op 'n komplekse wyse inmekaar geweef en interafhanklik op mekaar binne die raamwerk van gemeenskaplike omgewing waarvoor hierdie komponente mede verantwoordelik is. Nie-liniere sisteme is van besondere belang vir organisasie teoretici omdat die betrokke sisteme informasie verwerk aangaande hul omgewing om op 'n onvoorspelbare wyse aan te pas by onvoorspelbare veranderinge in die omgewing. Sulke sisteme is uitsonderlik standvastig deurdat hulle kan leer en aanpas by verskillende omstandighede. Nog 'n merkbare aspek van sulke sisteme is die duidelik gestruktureerde en komplekse organisasie wat bestaan ten spyte van 'n algehele gebrek aan gesentraliseerde beheer meganismes. Elke komponent is vry om met 'n nuwe ontwerp te eksperimenteer en vanuit die sukses van die komponente spruit die sukses van die sisteem. Die organisasie wat sigbaar is in nie-liniere sisteme staan bekend as self-organisasie omdat dit nie voortspruit uit 'n sentrale beheer meganisme nie maar instede spontaan onstaan as 'n gevolg van die aksies van komponente. Nie-Iiniere sisteme het die potensiaal om meer te kan wees as die somtotaal van hul komponente. Die beginsel van nie-liniere sisteme en selforganisasie het skrywers soos Stacey, Wheatley en Senge daartoe gelei om nuwe idees te ontwikkel rakende organisasie ontwikkeling, leierskap en strategiese beplanning in organisasies. Hierdie idees is gegrond in wat algemeen bekend staan as 'The New Science'. Die idees van hierdie skrywers is gemik daarop om organisasies aan te moedig om raak te sien dat die wereld ekonomie soos 'n nie-liniere sisteem funksioneer en dat organisasies as sulks 'n beter kans staan om sukses te behaal as hulle sou leer om die beginsels van nie-liniere sisteme te begryp en die inherente kreatiewe en organiserings eienskappe van sulke sisteme uit te buit.

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Ghadge, Abhijeet. "A systems thinking approach for modelling supply chain risk propagation". Thesis, Loughborough University, 2013. https://dspace.lboro.ac.uk/2134/13561.

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Supply Chain Risk Management (SCRM) is rapidly becoming a most sought after research area due to the influence of recent supply chain disruptions on global economy. The thesis begins with a systematic literature review of the developments within the broad domain of SCRM over the past decade. Thematic and descriptive analysis supported with modern knowledge management techniques brings forward seven distinctive research gaps for future research in SCRM. Overlapping research findings from an industry perspective, coupled with SCRM research gaps from the systematic literature review has helped to define the research problem for this study. The thesis focuses on a holistic and systematic approach to modelling risks within supply chain and logistics networks. The systems thinking approach followed conceptualises the phenomenon of risk propagation utilising several recent case studies, workshop findings and focus studies. Risk propagation is multidimensional and propagates beyond goods, finance and information resource. It cascades into technology, human resource and socio-ecological dimensions. Three risk propagation zones are identified that build the fundamentals for modelling risk behaviour in terms of cost and delay. The development of a structured framework for SCRM, a holistic supply chain risk model and a quantitative research design for risk assessment are the major contributions of this research. The developed risk assessment platform has the ability to capture the fracture points and cascading impact within a supply chain and logistics network. A reputed aerospace and defence organisation in UK was used to test the experimental modelling set up for its viability and for bridging the gap between theory and practice. The combined statistical and simulation modelling approach provides a new perspective to assessing the complex behavioural performance of risks during multiple interactions within network.

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Thornton, Robert F. (Robert Francis). "A systems thinking approach to defining a space force architecture". Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2019. https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/121801.

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Thesis: S.M. in Engineering and Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, System Design and Management Program, 2019
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 87-89).
The United States military services, government, and civilian population rely on the US military's historic technical dominance in outer space. Space-enabled capabilities have become fundamental across the spectrum of military and civilian activities. The space superiority gap that the US military has held for decades is narrowing as access to space technology, and to space itself, becomes more widespread, allowing more nations, private industry, and non-state actors to become significant players in space. In response to this trend, the US Department of Defense and Congress are seeking to establish the Space Force as an independent branch of the Armed Forces. This thesis applies a systems thinking method to designing the structure and function of the Space Force. Through review of open-source literature, the study summarizes the current state of the military space enterprise and assesses the arguments made by advocates of various approaches to organizing the space forces.
The US military possesses extensive space power, executing critical missions such as navigation, imagery, and communications. US government space functions also include space intelligence, managing space traffic, and regulating the space industry. The literature review enables understanding of the existing architecture, five proposed alternative architectures and the eight key decisions on which they are based, and eight utility and cost metrics for evaluating the options. Tradespace analysis reveals the relative value of the six architectures and how they compare to other possible configurations to inform the Space Force debate. This limited investigation expressly does not include classified information or insider perspectives, and therefore does not offer policy recommendations, but within its limitations and assumptions the tradespace analysis offers some useful conclusions.
First, creating the Space Force as a separate branch of the military is consistent with national security priorities and the current circumstances of the military and industry. Second, making the Space Force a whole-of-government organization yields the highest utility, though at the highest cost, amongst the six architectures under consideration. Third, military space capability commercialization can allow reduced cost and improved utility compared to the current architecture. Finally, consolidated space acquisitions only, without additional steps toward a separate Space Force, might not improve the military space enterprise compared to the existing baseline. Recommendations for future study include incorporating classified data and key stakeholder input into the framework, further decomposing the military space functions to elaborate the tradespace in greater detail and defining criteria for commercialization of space capabilities.
These additional steps will enable the research to reliably inform policy decisions.
by Robert F. Thornton.
S.M. in Engineering and Management
S.M.inEngineeringandManagement Massachusetts Institute of Technology, System Design and Management Program

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Gómez, Martín Eulalia [Verfasser]. "Thinking in Systems, Thinking in Nature: Evaluating the long-term performance of Nature Based Solutions / Eulalia Gómez Martín". Hamburg : Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Hamburg Carl von Ossietzky, 2020. http://d-nb.info/1234658364/34.

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Lathan, Jaguanana. "Community schools, empowerment, systems thinking, and race| A model for change". Thesis, Mills College, 2016. http://pqdtopen.proquest.com/#viewpdf?dispub=10181993.

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According to the U.S. Department of Education, the 2012-2013 national high school completion rate for Latino (75%), African American (73%), American Indian (70%), and limited English proficient (63%) students increased slightly compared to the 2011 national graduation data. While the national trend shows a one percentage point gain in the overall high school graduation rate across all subgroups, the numbers for African Americans, Latinos and other ethnic groups far trail that of their White (87%) and Asian (89%) peers. It is also far more likely that ethnic groups trailing in high school completion rates live in economically disadvantaged communities that are plagued with the disparate effects of poverty, such as single-family households, poor nutrition, and community safety concerns. As a result, there has been an increase in local and national conversations about how to best amend inequitable educational outcomes for these groups of students.

The conceptual framework for this study is oriented around systems thinking, race, empowerment theory, and community schools and partnerships. More specifically, this study sought to explore systems thinking and opportunities that schools can explore to eradicate the current negative racialized outcomes for African American, Latino, other ethnic minorities, and socially disadvantaged students. The one-year study took place at Roses in Concrete Community School, a newly designed charter school located in Oakland, California.

Findings suggest that during its first year implementation, the school’s leadership team and staff focused primarily on supporting students and families by (a) establishing a foundation of responding to basic needs, (b) partnering with community organizations, universities, and activists to provide additional school and community supports, (c) analyzing the system that produces the current outcomes with the intention of not reproducing inequities, and (d) empowering students and families to have a voice and increase their sense of agency.

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Flint, Shayne, i shayne flint@anu edu au. "Aspect-Oriented Thinking - An approach to bridging the disciplinary divides". The Australian National University. Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology, 2006. http://thesis.anu.edu.au./public/adt-ANU20080731.204756.

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Engineering is often described as the application of scientific and technical knowledge to solve problems. In this thesis, I support a more general view that engineering should be treated as a continuous process of learning and action that aims to make well understood improvements within dynamically complex environments of co-evolving social, man-made and natural systems. I argue that this can only be achieved by adopting an approach that systematically develops, manages and integrates the knowledge and expertise of many disciplines to conceive, develop, modify, operate and retire systems. A novel implementation of such an approach, called Aspect-Oriented Thinking, is presented. ¶ Aspect-Oriented Thinking begins with the development and verification of a set of domain Models. Each Domain Model represents knowledge about a separate, autonomous and possibly discipline specific concern or view within a given context. Domain models are developed by engineers, scientists, sociologists, psychologists, lawyers, philosophers, economists and others, using languages and techniques with which they are familiar. Knowledge captured in a set of Domain Models is then woven together, in accordance with a set of separately developed patterns and rules, to construct, modify, operate and retire systems, including models, hardware, software, processes and simulations. This is a continuous process which, in the first instance, involves those systems used to learn about a given context and to make decisions regarding required changes. Later, the process involves those systems used to implement and evaluate the impact of these decisions. ¶ The significance of Aspect-Oriented Thinking lies in its broad applicability to any situation in which the expertise and knowledge of diverse disciplines is required to understand and make improvements within complex multifaceted environments such as those that involve sustainable development and national security. ¶ A proof-of-concept within the context of software engineering is provided to demonstrate the mechanics and viability of Aspect-Oriented Thinking. The results of this demonstration are used to support an argument for future experimentation aimed at evaluating the effectiveness of Aspect-Oriented Thinking in a more general interdisciplinary environment.

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M'Bayia, Caliste Claude. "System thinking approach to economic growth and poverty reduction in Cote d'Ivoire". Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/106233.

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Thesis: S.M. in Engineering and Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, System Design and Management Program, Engineering and Management Program, 2015.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 96-99).
The present thesis work aims to propose a pathway to a sustainable economic growth and a fast reduction of poverty in Cote d'Ivoire. Poverty is a major social phenomenon that affects more than 50% of the world's population. In Cote d'Ivoire, 49% of the population is living under the poverty line with less than $1.25 a day, and the country is struggling to lift them out of poverty. But poverty is a complex issue to tackle. One solution, which most experts now agree on, consists in enhancing prosperity through the implementation of economic growth policies. The question this research aims to address is to know what specific growth policies would best suit to the social, economical, cultural and environmental situation of Cote d'Ivoire. The main lesson is that Cote d'Ivoire should focus on the development of its agricultural sector and build an agriculture innovation system that will foster the transfer of knowledge and the adoption of new technologies especially in the country's rural areas. This thesis work is original in that it uses systems thinking approach and systems engineering concepts and tools, to address the issues of economic growth and poverty reduction. By doing so, it brings new insights that increase the chances of success of the National Development Plan of Cote d'Ivoire and therefore contributes to the materialization of the country's ambition to become an emerging nation by 2020.
by Caliste Claude M'Bayia.
S.M. in Engineering and Management

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Marufu, Masiya Passmore Alex. "ICT-based innovation using service dominant logic in healthcare : a design thinking perspective". Thesis, University of Pretoria, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/2263/64294.

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Health professionals in the developing world face the twin challenge of growing populations requiring services and dwindling resources in the face of reduced funding. Developments in information and communication technologies (ICT) present an opportunity to streamline service offering in a way that maximises the available meagre resources. Such innovations require the input and support of the public that these institutions serve. Design thinking has over the last 20 years developed into a “design paradigm” that can assist service providers to craft solutions to problems that take into account the views of the stakeholders involved. This work explored how information technology can be used to improve service delivery. Adopting a pragmatic philosophical paradigm and a design science research approach, the researcher used concepts underlying the theory of service dominant logic, coupled with technology capability concepts, to develop a conceptual framework for use in design thinking projects. The development of the Technovation Framework continued over three design cycles, in which a number of design teams focused their efforts on how ICT could be used to improve post-natal care services. The empathy input for these workshops was derived from an eight-week-long in-depth study into the lives of new mothers, using journals and interviews. Interviews with midwives and doctors provided a healthcare perspective of the provision of post-natal care. The first design workshop was made up of four teams, each consisting of two midwives, two mobile developers and two mothers in a design thinking workshop. The workshop resulted in the development of four prototypes of mobile applications aimed at assisting midwives in educating mothers as well as providing off-site monitoring. Two further workshops were conducted, providing two more iterations of the design process and resulting in further prototypes of potential solutions for use in healthcare. A final evaluation workshop was conducted to validate the fully developed Technovation Process. This study contributes to knowledge in a number of ways. The first is a deep understanding of the lives of new mothers and challenges they face in a low-resource environment as they struggle with raising their babies in the first eight weeks after giving birth. The second contribution is a framework and an enhanced design thinking process that streamlines the process of consolidating empathy output while providing a mechanism to apply technology capabilities to proposed solutions. A third contribution is the set of lessons that arise from observing design teams at work. The final contribution is in the form of a number of prototypes that could be developed into solutions for use in a developing environment healthcare setting. Keywords: ICT in healthcare, e-Health, innovation, co-creation, design thinking, developing country, post-natal care, design science research, Technovation, technology capabilities
Thesis (PhD) - University of Pretoria, 2017.
Informatics
PhD
Unrestricted

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Laurenti, Rafael. "Applications of Systems Thinking within the Sustainability Domain : Product Design, Product Systems and Stakeholder Perspectives". Licentiate thesis, KTH, Industriell ekologi, 2013. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:kth:diva-122415.

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Many of the sustainability challenges our society currently face have arisen as unanticipated side effects of our own modern developments. This thesis investigates if unintended consequences and perspectives are fully addressed by traditional methods for providing decision-making support within the sustainability domain. For that purpose, Systems Thinking is utilised in three cases: in the first, Systems Thinking is used to analyse sustainability issues relating to the current product design paradigm. In the second case, Systems Thinking is applied to two product systems – household washing machines and conventional passenger vehicles. The third case discusses different stakeholder perspectives in environmental decision-making and proposes a way to combine the ESA tools LCA, LCC and CBA in order to consider the different stakeholder perspectives. Results of the first case point out that the practices within the current design paradigm are focused on innovations and improvements in material and energy efficiency. These practices have led to the following unintended consequences: consumption rebound effects, increased waste, pollution, negative externalities, economic inequalities and other environmental and social negative impacts. These unintended consequences are represented in a Causal Loop Diagram (CLD). The diagram graphically illustrates how these unintended consequences influence one another and interact by means of cause-effect linkages and reinforcing feedback loops. A novel conceptual framework named Sustainability-Driven Systems-Oriented Design is proposed to work within broader system boundaries in order to address possible negative side effects that micro-level gains could have on macro-level losses. In the case of the two product systems, a CLD for household washing machines and conventional passenger vehicles is developed. The CLDs represent how selected variables interact by means of cause-effect associations to affect environmental impacts of the products. The CLD technique appears to be a useful way to connect quantitative assessment (from Life Cycle Assessment) with qualitative analysis (from Systems Thinking). In the third case it is argued that stakeholders tend to adopt different system boundaries and make assumptions according to their perspective when they use ESA tools in environmental decision-making. A way to combine ESA tools is suggested to facilitate the observation of the environmental decision from different viewpoints. It concludes, to some extent, that traditional methods for providing decision-making support can handle certain parameters that may result in unintended consequences. Systems Thinking may assist in the process of performing qualitative analyses of what is important to consider in order to strengthen the robustness of, and improve on the recommended actions from, quantitative detailed analyses.

QC 201305330

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Fradinho, Jorge Miguel dos Santos. "Towards high performing hospital enterprise architectures : elevating hospitals to lean enterprise thinking". Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/67757.

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Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, 2011.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 608-630).
This research is motivated by the National Academy of Engineering and the Institute of Medicine's joint call for research in healthcare, promoting the application of principles, tools, and research from engineering disciplines, and complex systems in particular. In 2005, the US healthcare expenditure represented 16% of its GDP, with hospitals representing the largest source of expenditure, as is the case in the United Kingdom. Consequently, the strategies and operations developed and implemented by hospitals have a significant impact on healthcare. Today, it would be hard to find a hospital that is not implementing a Lean initiative or who isn't familiar with its concepts. However, more often than not, their approach has narrowly focused at a process level and inside individual service units like an emergency department. This research seeks to elevate traditionally narrow hospital definitions of lean and explore the broader concepts of lean enterprise principles and Enterprise Architecture (EA) while enhancing our knowledge of hospitals' socio-technical complexity and enriching an emerging EA Framework (EAF) developed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Following an extensive longitudinal multidisciplinary literature review, a number of expert interviews, and preliminary empirical findings, an exploratory inductive and deductive hybrid study was designed to collect and concurrently analyze both qualitative and quantitative empirical data from multiple hospital settings over two main phases: * The first phase consisted of recorded interviews with the Chief Executive Officers of seven leading Massachusetts hospitals, who also provided sensitive internal strategy and operations documents. We explored how hospitals currently measure their hospital performance and how their explicit and implicit practices may be improved using lean enterprise principles. e The second phase comprised two in-depth case studies of large leading multidisciplinary hospitals, one located in the US and other in the United Kingdom, and included a total of 13 embedded units of analysis. Multiple sources of evidence were collected including electronic medical records, 54 interviews, observation, and internal documents. Findings were categorized and sorted, as phenomena of interest consistently emerged from the data, and enriched both the EAF, and our understanding of hospitals' EA in particular. In both in-depth hospital cases we found that their EA consisted of multiple internal architectural configurations, and in particular, those with an enriched understanding of EA had made decisions which had improved not only their local performance, but also enhanced their interactions with other service units upstream and downstream. Conversely, worse performing configurations demonstrated a limited understanding of their hospital's EA. We conclude that hospital performance can be improved through an enriched understanding of hospital EA. Furthermore, whilst considering all hospitals included in this study, we propose general and specific recommendations, as well as diagnostic questions, performance dimensions, and metrics, to assist senior hospital leaders in architecting and managing their enterprise.
by Jorge Miguel dos Santos Fradinho.
Ph.D.

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Davies, Christopher. "The contribution of lean thinking to the maintenance of manufacturing systems". Thesis, Cranfield University, 2003. http://dspace.lib.cranfield.ac.uk/handle/1826/3501.

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Despite many significant contributions and advances of lean thinking recorded in articles, books, and industrial case studies, its impact upon the maintenance function has not been fully investigated. From a maintenance perspective, excluding TPM, little or no insight into the use of lean thinking concepts in maintenance can be found in the literature, despite prominent contributors advocating greater management and business integration. An objective of the research described in this thesis was to satisfy the need for industry to understand the contribution of lean thinking to the maintenance of manufacturing systems. A research hypothesis (lean thinking improves the effectiveness of the maintenance function) was therefore devised that aimed to bridge this gap in knowledge in which the researcher developed two new tools alongside existing methodologies for further investigation. The first novel research tool, a lean concept reference framework, was used to comprehensibly represent fe--antfiffikifig concepts possible within a company, and maintenance in particular. Ihe sec n oyýý _411 measure of maintenance performance comprised a number of indicators that sign ough ify c maintenance activity. This was used to reflect the impact of lean concept use by maintenance through change in activity performance. The research investigates the current views of lean thinking and maintenance within the UK, and particularly in the automotive industry. It exposes the diversity of maintenance as a function within this industry, and highlights the scope of lean concept use and understanding. As an outcome of the research, it was found that each company investigated had different reasons for adopting and using lean concepts within their maintenance function. Similarly, each company differed in the management and use of their performance data. Nonetheless, all those investigated accepted the role of lean concept use within maintenance, and considered certain elements useful. These elements were used as an aggregation of tools to assist maintenance in their activities rather than using them to develop an alternative maintenance strategy. However, perception of lean concept use, and the perceived benefits gained differed according to different viewpoints. Although it was generally accepted that lean use bought about or improved overall skills, and helped provide the basis of a more robust and standardised maintenance department, concern was expressed concerning the difficulty in translating essentially lean manufacturing techniques to suit maintenance.

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Milliner, Lloyd A., i n/a. "Systems Thinking and Strategic Decision-Making: A Consideration of Chaos Theory". Griffith University. Griffith Business School, 2006. http://www4.gu.edu.au:8080/adt-root/public/adt-QGU20070212.162743.

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Strategic decision-making is a fundamental process in business management as strategic decisions affect the long-term health of the organisation. However, a constantly and unpredictably changing business environment, becoming progressively more complex as time passes makes strategy formulation increasingly difficult. Shock events such as terrorist attacks, rapidly spreading communicable diseases, and unexpected business failures of large and well-established companies greatly affect organisations by making it difficult to effectively plan for the future. This thesis contributes to the strategic decision-making literature by investigating the role of shock events in a complex system, namely strategic decision-making. Using chaos/complexity theory as an intellectual platform this thesis argues that strategic decision-making is a complex, open, dynamic and non-linear system and that shock events can represent an opportunity in strategic decision-making. A number of contemporary writers are calling for more integrated models. In response this research proposes a generic and integrative framework that highlights the complexity of strategic decision-making and its processes. The research is qualitative and a single-case study approach was chosen, examining the decision-making processes in a large Australian regional airport. Data collection was triangulated, consisting mainly of in-depth interviews with executives but also included questionnaires, and quantitative and qualitative archival data. It was found that shock events influenced strategic decision-making by causing evolutionary changes in the strategic decision-making processes. In addition it was found that shock events impacted on internal drivers such as cognition and organisational culture. The shock event was perceived as an opportunity, which resulted in changing decision-making processes a change in business strategy. It was concluded that environmental perception, intuition and an opportunity-seeking culture can play an important part in strategic decision-making following a shock event.

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