Systems Viewpoint

• inputs: the people, money, information, equipment, and materials required to produce an organization’s goods or services

• transformational processes: the organizations capabilities in management and technology that are applied to converting inputs into outputs

• outputs: the products, services, profits, losses, employee satisfaction or discontent, etc., produced by the organization

• feedback: information about the reaction of the environment to the outputs, which affects the inputs

Closed vs Open Systems

• closed systems: organizations that have little interaction with their environment; receive little external feedback

• open systems: organizations that continually interact with their environment; have the potential to produce synergy

• complexity theory - the ultimate open system: recognizes that all complex systems are networks of many interdependent parts that interact with each other according to simple rules

Contingency Viewpoint

• emphasizes that a manager’s approach should vary according to (be contingent on) the individual and the environmental situation

  • most practical because it addresses problems on a case-by-case bases; no one best way to manage an organization

    • managers make decisions that are best for employees; not necessarily based on a single theory

The Learning Organization

• learning organization: organization that actively creates, acquires, and transfers knowledge within itself and is able to modify its behavior to reflect new knowledge

  • gives employees the power to solve problems autonomously, as well as to benefit from the experience of their peers

• key features:

  • continous learning

  • knowledge generation and sharing

  • systems thinking

  • learning culture

  • workplace flexibility

How To Build A Learning Organization

• to create a learning organization, managers must perform 3 key functions or roles:

  1. build a commitment to learning

  2. work to generate ideas with impact

  3. work to generalize ideas with impact