Essay on "Systems Roelofs (N.D.) Defines an Open"

Quoted Instructions for "Systems Roelofs (N.D.) Defines an Open" Assignment:

Fedorov, G.S. (2001) The Military Unit as Part of the Armed Forces*****' Economic System . Military Thought . July. Retrieved May 18, 2010, from http://dlib.eastview.com/browse/doc/400163 Also available here.

Now let*****'s look at a rather different kind of organization, one with which many of you are probably not so familiar. You might not expect a professor of violin and viola to have a lot to say about organizational systems, but these two short presentations of system ideas in the context of the orchestra are very clear and helpful:

Roelofs, L. (N.D.) Organizational Change: Open System Concepts. Symphony Orchestra Institute. Retrieved May 18, 2009, from http://www.soi.org/reading/change/concepts.shtml

Roelofs, L. (N.D.) Organizational Change: Open Systems Applied. Symphony Orchestra Institute. Retrieved May 18, 2009, from http://www.soi.org/reading/change/concepts.shtml

Case Assignment

Read the Federov and Roelofs article in light of the material that you have read on organizational systems behavior, supplemented if you wish with material from the optional readings and perhaps the supplementary background as well, and even other outside reading you might find by yourself to be useful. Then write a short paper comparing the *****"military unit*****" and the *****"symphony*****" as examples of different kinds of living systems, noting both similarities and differences and the degree to which applying systems thinking helps you understand both.

Case Assignment Expectations

Your paper should be short (4-6 pages, not including cover sheet and references) and to the point. You are expected to deal with these issues in an integrated fashion, rather than treating them as a series of individual questions to be answered one by one and left at that. To help guide your thinking, however, you will need to consider issues such as:

*****¢ What are the most important system problems faced by the military unit? How does it routinely deal with them?

*****¢ What are the most important system problems faced by the orchestra? How does it routinely deal with them?

*****¢ How are the military unit and the orchestra similar in terms of how they function as living systems?

*****¢ Does a systems approach to these two kinds of organizations highlight any important differences between them (leaving aside the obvious contrast between an M-15 and a viola as tools of the trade)

*****¢ Consider for a moment a university such as TUIU. Considering them all as living systems, does the university seem more like a military unit or more like the orchestra? Explain your answer, referring to system properties as needed.

*****¢ To what degree do you see the idea of a living system as helpful to someone trying to understand an unfamiliar organization? Why?

*****¢ What, if anything, that thinking about an *****"organization as an organism*****" adds to what we have learned by thinking about an *****"organization as a machine*****".

You will be particularly assessed on:

*****¢ Your ability to see what the module is all about -- the *****"big picture*****" is the organism-like aspects of organizations-- and structure your paper accordingly.

*****¢ Your informed commentary and analysis -- this is as important as your summary of the material in the article -- simply repeating what the articles say does not constitute an adequate paper.

*****¢ Your ability to apply the professional language and terminology of the underlying model -- in this case, organizational systems ***** correctly and helpfully. However interesting your paper about battalions or symphonies, it*****'s not going to be complete unless you also show that you can write about it in systems terms.

*****¢ Your ability to apply the language of the organism metaphor effectively.

*****¢ Your effective and appropriate use of in-text citations to the assigned readings and other source material to support your arguments.

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Please make sure you read the provided link/and respond accordingly. I will upload the link for viewing and also use scholarly database as a resource. *****

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