Systems Perspectives on Resources, Capabilities, and Management Processes

by John Morecroft (Editor), Ron Sanchez (Editor), Aimé Heene (Editor)

Overview

Traditional notions of stand-alone, "atomistic" organizations are giving way to new concepts about organizations and new modes of organizational interaction. Systems thinking is now becoming an essential skill for managers and management researchers who want to understand new kinds of competitive and cooperative interrelationships between organizations. This volume brings together systems and strategy thinkers to develop a number of systems perspectives and approaches that are essential in managing today's organizations. A main feature of this volume is its careful integration of systems concepts with contemporary strategic management ideas about organizational resources, capabilities, and management processes. The work explains essential systems concepts and their central role in current ideas about organizational competence. Papers in the volume apply systems concepts to: modelling practical management problems; reconceptualizing the nature of organizations and their internal processes; improving managerial sensemaking capabilities in complex environments; devising "simple rules" for reducing and managing organizational complexity. Several case studies and examples are used to illustrate key systems concepts and their application to management practice. The book also provides a solid grounding in essential systems concepts for management researchers developing new management theory for today's complex environments, as well as practical insights for managers who must manage increasing complexity in their organizations today.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780080437781
Publisher:	Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Publication date:	02/26/2002
Series:	Advanced Series in Management , #2
Edition description:	1ST
Pages:	246
Product dimensions:	6.50(w) x 9.45(h) x 0.63(d)

Table of Contents

Introduction: systems thinking and competence concepts; Integrating systems thinking and competence concepts in a new view of resources, capabilities, and management processes, J. Morecroft et al; Systems Concepts, Modelling Techniques, and the Analysis of Organizations as Dynamic Resource Systems; Resource management under dynamic complexity, J. Morecroft; Operationalizing the impact of competence-building on the performance of firms' resource systems, K. Warren; Innovation management under uncertainty - a systems dynamics model of R+D investments in biotechnology, L.M. Cloutier, M.D. Boehjle; Systems Approaches to Building and Leveraging Organizational Competences; A systems view of strategic organizational change and strategic flexibility, R. Sanchez, A. Heene; A competence view of firms as resource accumulation systems - a synthesis of resource-based and evolutionary models of strategy making, E. Mollona; From resources to processes in competence-based strategic management, P. Lorino, J.-C. Tarondeau; Systems Concepts and Models for Improving Management Decision Processes; Cognitive complexity in decision making and policy formation - a system dynamics perspective, J.M. Spector, P.I. Davidsen; Managing speed in competence-driven strategic renewal, V. Mahnke, J.H. Aadne; Systems thinking in managerial decision making, Jenshou Yang; Systems Concepts for Self-Managing Organizations; Strategic management at the point of inflection - systems, complexity, and competence theory, R. Sanchez.