REPLY to: LO3055
Subj: Philosophy of Management
I believe that Stuart Umpleby's interest in the work of E.A. Singer is
warranted by the fact that two of his disciplines, namely R.L. Ackoff and
C.W. Churchman have created works which have shaped the general field
commonly referred to as systems theory and had a dramatic impact of what
Michael Jackson has termed 'soft' systems thinking. One of the most
useful pieces which I have read on this subject is Jackson's (1982) "The
Nature of 'Soft ' Systems Thinking: the work of Churchman, Ackoff, and
Checkland", JOURNAL OF APPLIED SYSTEMS ANALYSIS, 9, pp 17-29. I have
personally tried to capture the essence of this stream of thought in
chapter #6, 'The Soft Systems Approaches'in MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS (1993)
Wadsworth Publishing, co-author Krzysztof Obloj. My own conclusion is
that people in organizations must be facile in their use of 'soft' systems
thinking as a prerequisite to organizational learning. In an article
titled, 'Soft Systems Thinking: A Pre-Condition for Organizational
Learning" (in HUMAN SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT, 13, 4, pp.259-268 I suggest that
only the soft systems approach is sufficient to support learning since
'hard' systems thinking is bound to short-circuit any learning process by
making the presumption that problems are eminently solvable. The
perception that a problem has been solved, ie the symptoms have fallen
below the relevant threshold, serve to divert attention away from the
underlying dynamic structures and from self...two essential elements for
organizational learning in my view.
-- Steven A. Cavaleri Ph.D. Dept. of Management & Organization Central Connecticut State University E-mail "Cavaleri@CCSUA.Ctstateu.edu"