systems thinking

Examples of systems thinking in the following topics:

• The Systems Viewpoint

  • Systems thinking is an approach to problem solving that considers the overall system instead of focusing on specific parts of a system.
  • Systems thinking is the process of understanding how people and situations influence one another within a closed system.
  • In business, management also involves systems thinking.
  • Only a systems-thinking approach can lead to this realization because systems thinking provides insight into how problems that manifest in a specific location can spring from distant, seemingly unrelated locations.
  • Only a systems-thinking approach can lead to this realization because systems thinking provides insight into how problems that manifest in a specific location can spring from distant, seemingly unrelated locations.

• The Role of Management in an Organization

  • Management is tasked with generating an organizational system and integrating operations for high efficiency.
  • Organizational design is largely a function based on systems thinking.
  • Systems thinking involves identifying the moving parts within an organization that add value and ensuring that these parts function together as an effective and efficient whole.
  • Perspective is essential in systems thinking: a manager's role in organizational design is to refrain from thinking of departments, individuals, processes, and problems as separate from the system and instead think of them as indivisible components of the broader organizational process.
  • Organizations can be viewed as systems in which management creates the architecture for the system of production.

• Clean production defined

  • If you think that the word ‘production' only refers to factory assembly lines, think again.
  • Food service setups, service provider procedures, delivery routines, office systems, even agriculture are all good examples of ‘production' in that commodities (e.g. raw materials) flow from one area (or machine or department) to another whereupon a set of procedures, labour skills or other processes are performed so as to end up with a finished product (or service).
  • With office systems, the ‘raw material' is usually information that passes from one person (or department or computer) to another before the converted end result is made ready for distribution and sale.
  • The point here is not to think of production as pertaining only to manufacturers, but rather to assume that every system is a production line in one form or another.

• Social Context for Learning

  • Symbol systems, such as language, logic, and mathematical systems, are learned throughout the learner's life.
  • These symbol systems dictate how and what is learned.
  • Without the social interaction with more knowledgeable others, it is impossible to acquire social meaning of important symbol systems and learn how to use them.
  • Young children develop their thinking abilities by interacting with adults.

• Thermochemical Equations

  • The sign of the $\Delta H$ value indicates whether or not the system is endothermic or exothermic.
  • In an endothermic system, the $\Delta H$ value is positive, so the reaction absorbs heat into the system.
  • Notice that in an endothermic reaction like the one depicted above, we can think of heat as being a reactant, just like A and B.
  • In an exothermic system, the $\Delta H$ value is negative, so heat is given off by the reaction.
  • Notice that here, we can think of heat as being a product in the reaction.

• Why does lean thinking elicit strong emotions?

  • Lean thinking contradicts a number of established production theories taught in business schools because it advocates making a shift from conventional batch and queue' production practices (i.e. the mass production of large lots of a product based on anticipated demand) to a ‘one-piece flow' system that produces products in a smooth, continuous stream based on customer demand.
  • (Environmental Protection Agency, ‘Lean Thinking and Methods', Lean Manufacturing and the Environment) This means that customer wants must first be identified before manufacturing begins.

• Starting the journey

  • Lean thinking is based on fi ve principles that must be thoroughly understood and agreed upon before work can begin.
  • Tools, production equipment and information systems should be right-sized so they produce exactly what is needed – no more, no less.
  • Remember, the point of lean thinking is to create an enterprise that is responsive solely to providing what paying customers want, when they want it.
  • A streamlining of entire systems – not just parts of the system,
  • Just as with quality and efficiency, there is no finish line associatedwith lean thinking.

• Autonomic Nervous System

  • The autonomic nervous system (ANS) serves as the relay between the central nervous system (CNS) and the internal organs.
  • There are two divisions of the autonomic nervous system that often have opposing effects: the sympathetic nervous system and the parasympathetic nervous system .
  • One way to remember this is to think of the surprise a person feels when encountering a snake ("snake" and "sympathetic" both begin with "s").
  • The physiological effects of this norepinephrine release include dilating the trachea and bronchi (making it easier for the animal to breathe), increasing heart rate, and moving blood from the skin to the heart, muscles, and brain (so the animal can think and run).
  • One way to remember this is to think that during a restful situation like a picnic, the parasympathetic nervous system is in control ("picnic" and "parasympathetic" both start with "p").

• Divisions of the Autonomic Nervous System

  • The autonomic nervous system (ANS) contains two subdivisions; the parasympathetic (PSNS) and sympathetic (SNS) nervous systems.
  • The autonomic nervous system (ANS) is classically divided into two subsystems (see : the parasympathetic nervous system (PSNS) and sympathetic nervous system (SNS).
  • The enteric nervous system is sometimes considered part of the autonomic nervous system, and sometimes considered an independent system.
  • For an analogy, one may think of the sympathetic division as the accelerator and the parasympathetic division as the brake.
  • Many think of sympathetic as "fight or flight" and parasympathetic as "rest and digest" or "feed and breed. "

• The origins of lean thinking

  • Ohno in particular, became so good at eliminating waste while streamlining operations that the concepts and techniques he developed are now widely known as TPS (the Toyota Production System).
  • Having witnessed American supermarket systems in the United States, Ohno came to realize that the scheduling of work should not be driven by production targets, but rather by sales.
  • TPS concepts and techniques have since been reintroduced back into America under the umbrella of lean thinking or lean manufacturing.
  • (Alukal, George, and Manos, Anthony, ‘How Lean Manufacturing Can Help Your Mold Shop') In service firms such as banks, restaurants, hospitals and offices, lean-thinking concepts are referred to as ‘lean enterprise'.
  • (Lean Enterprise Institute, ‘What is Lean Thinking?