SYSTEM MANAGEMENT THEORY
Selected by Dr Seck.
Every business has to follow a process, and that process
is the result of a system. The systems management theory
focuses on systems and how they work and function
within an organization.
What Is a System?
People seem to have systems for just about everything:
how to get ready for work in the morning, how to cut the
lawn, and even how to do the dishes. The facts are we are
a society of systems. Even people that do not have a
system, well, that is their system for doing things. One
way or another, systems are all around us, and they are
part of our world.
Taking this a step further, the systems management
theory believes that a system is a collection of parts
brought together to accomplish some end goal or
objective. Looking at it from that perspective, if one part
of the system fails or is taken out, the system itself cannot
work. Think about if you have a system to get ready for
work in the morning and part of that system is taking a
shower. If there is no hot water (or worse yet, no water at
all), the system breaks down, and it is changed. There is
still a system, just not the one you are used to, and you
have to change the system in order to get out the door and
go to work.
That concept is really the foundation of the systems
management theory. For this theory, everything is part of a
system. All pieces go together, and while it can indeed
function if one part is taken out, the functionality is
impaired and the system itself has changed.
The Company and the System
If we take that thought process behind this theory, it is
safe to say we can begin to see how this theory helps with
a global representation. What I mean is if we have
systems, and they work, we can reproduce them all around
the world (okay, with some modifications). Take
McDonald's, for example. While the food in other countries
might be different (there are no hamburgers at McDonald's
in India), the system to get the food is the same: walk up,
look at the menu on the board, order combo meal number
4, and you're on your way.
Thus, the system is duplicated around the world, and it
works. Again, we do have to make some modifications, but
I don't want you to think that one system works the same
everywhere. But even with modifications, the system
makes it much easier for an organization to produce a
similar customer experience around the world. While
McDonald's is only one example, there are many more,
such as Starbucks, Walmart, and boarding an airplane. The
list goes on and on.
As you can see, there is usually a company behind the
system, but the system is part of how the company runs.
In a few moments we are going to talk about different
viewpoints on systems, and that will also help you to
understand the systems management theory. The best
way to understand this concept is to imagine
transportation and different modes of transportation. We
can say we are going to California, but we could take a
bus, car, or plane. The same applies to the different
viewpoints of the system types involved in systems
management theory.
System Types
While systems themselves can be duplicated and go
global, there are aspects of system types (or architecture,
if you will) that help frame the type of system being used.
In systems management theory, we have three basic
system types:
Open System: A system that continually interacts
with the environment around it. For example, a
manufacturer might use several different suppliers of
flour to make the product they produce, or an
organization might have to move or change as the
demands of consumers change.
Closed System: Is the opposite of an open system. It
is a system (or company) independent of the
environment around it. Usually when we look at
closed systems, we are looking at very high tech
types of products that have limited sources of input
and produce a consistent product or output (like
space satellites). In fact, satellites are produced in a
protected environment, like a lab, to ensure there is
no contamination.
One of the simplest images that can help you grasp these
first two types is a jar. When it's open, it's an open system.
It can interact with air, water, and anything else around it.
When it has a lid on it, it's a closed system. It can only
interact with what's inside the jar - there are no outside
influences on it.
The third basic type is a:
Subsystem: This is much easier to understand. This is
a system that is part of a larger system - much like
how the train system around an airport can get you
from terminal to terminal (the larger part of the
system).
Another way to get a mental image of subsystems is to
think about the human body. One large system makes us
what we are. However, we have the subsystems of the
digestive system, nervous system, and circulatory system
contained within us.
The different types of systems exist - as odd as this
sounds - where they are needed. It is best not to really
look at them as separate systems, but rather as a
viewpoint on what type of system (or we could say
product) is present. Like our example of the company that
needs flour, it is only an open system because the
company does interact with the environment around it (a
wide range of suppliers and then, ultimately, a wide range
of consumers). A closed system could be represented by
the messages one might get from corporate headquarters.
Those messages go out and tell you what to do, and they
are not looking for feedback or interaction.
