Replying to LO23966 --
Fred Nickols wrote:
> The two authors just cited are in the "open system" leg of "systems
> thinking" or what I have always thought of as "soft" systems. The other
> leg, "cybernetics," begins in a public way in 1948 with the publication of
> Norbert Wiener's book, Cybernetics. But it actually began during WWII
> with the development of gunfire control systems, in particular the
> servomechanism. These are "hard" systems.
What a marvelous thread! Could you elaborate a little on the gunfire
control systems and the servomechanism? I am a "connections" freak and I
sense there is something important here that will be very illustrative of
systems theory and its development. Did important theoretical work lead
to these gunfire control systems, or did the Navy produce them in the
emergency of the moment and then have them discovered by the
theoriticians?
> Some of you might recall that I spent 20 years in the Navy (1955-1974) and
> for most of that time I was a fire control technician, charged with the
> operation, maintenance and repair of those same gunfire control systems.
> I was also an internal organization development (OD) specialist, hence my
> interest in open or soft systems like organizations.
>
> Finally, I am a terribly devoted fan of Peter Drucker's. But I would
> never attribute to him the start of systems thinking.
I too am a devoted Drucker fan - 30 years later I still admire the power
of the simple but timeless ideas in The Effective Executive. Having a
background in math, physics and theology I decided to round out my
education a little by taking Management 201 a few years ago. Big Mistake.
I mentioned to my professor that I was a Drucker fan, and her curt reply
was "Many of us don't think much of his work because there's so little
rigorous research and statistical proof associated with it." Needless to
say I was dumbfounded. How much proof do we need that someone who lives
his life asking "What can I contribute?" will be more effective in helping
an organization advance than someone who doesn't?
Regards,
George Pinckney
pinckney@bellsouth.net
--George Pinckney <pinckney@bellsouth.net>
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