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Soft Systems Methodology in Action
  

Soft Systems Methodology in Action (Paperback)

by Peter Checkland (Author) "We are all of us aware of ourselves as beings in the world, and we are aware also of a very complex world outside ourselves,..." (more)
3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)

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Product details

  • Paperback: 346 pages
  • Publisher: John Wiley & Sons; 1990 edition reprint 1997 edition (26 Sep 1990)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0471927686
  • ISBN-13: 978-0471927686
  • Product Dimensions: 23.5 x 15.9 x 1.9 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 155,033 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in this category:

    #35 in  Books > Computing & Internet > Computer Science > Systems Analysis & Design
  • See Complete Table of Contents

Product Description

Review

"...a primer and hidden gem..." (Health Service Journal, 20 June 2002)

"...a primer and hidden gem..." (Health Service Journal, 20 June 2002) --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Description

Soft Systems Methodology in Action "Whether by design, accident or merely synchronicity, Checkland appears to have developed a habit of writing seminal publications near the start of each decade which establish the basis and framework for systems methodology research for that decade." Hamish Rennie, Journal of the Operational Research Society, 1992 Thirty years ago Peter Checkland set out to test whether the Systems Engineering (SE) approach, highly successful in technical problems, could be used by managers coping with the unfolding complexities of organizational life. The straightforward transfer of SE to the broader situations of management was not possible, but by insisting on a combination of systems thinking strongly linked to real–world practice Checkland and his collaborators developed an alternative approach – Soft Systems Methodology (SSM) – which enables managers of all kinds and at any level to deal with the subtleties and confusions of the situations they face. This work established the now accepted distinction between ′hard′ systems thinking, in which parts of the world are taken to be ′systems′ which can be ′engineered′, and ′soft′ systems thinking in which the focus is on making sure the process of inquiry into real–world complexity is itself a system for learning. Systems Thinking, Systems Practice (1981) and Soft Systems Methodology in Action (1990) together with an earlier paper Towards a Systems–based Methodology for Real–World Problem Solving (1972) have long been recognized as classics in the field. Now–Peter Checkland has looked back over the three decades of SSM development, brought the account of it up to date, and reflected on the whole evolutionary process which has produced a mature SSM. SSM: A 30–Year Retrospective, here included with Soft Systems Methodology in Action closes a chapter on what is undoubtedly the most significant single research programme on the use of systems ideas in problem solving. Now retired from full–time university work, Peter Checkland continues his research as a Leverhulme Emeritus Fellow.

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We are all of us aware of ourselves as beings in the world, and we are aware also of a very complex world outside ourselves, of which we are a part. Read the first page
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4 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
3.8 out of 5 stars (4 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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14 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars The founding work for SSM, 2 May 1999
By A Customer
This book is the primary publication for Soft Systems Methodology. In it, Peter Checkland desrines the rise of systems thinking, and argues the case for the soft systems approach. The methodology is explained, and various considerations which arose through it's use explored. SSM, which has been continuously evolving over the last 25 years, is as relevant to problems in social research, management studies and intervention in social systems as it ever was. I also liked the sequel Soft Systems Methodology in Action.
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12 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Soft Systems Methodology a must for management consultants, 11 Jan 2001
By A Customer
An excellent book. detailing must have skills for all strategy consultants. If you dont know soft systems you can't be a very good strategic consultant. SSM promotes the handling of complex non linear chaotic and confused situations SSM gives consultants a tool box which enables them to handle the hardest and most inpenetrable of problems and promotes shared learning and real vision building. Buy it Read it Live it Coin it!!
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8 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars Academic treatise - not for the new Business Analyst, 27 April 2004
By Mr Geoffrey Rose (Bushey Heath, Herts United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
This is not a text book for newcomers to Soft Systems Modelling. Checklanduses a large amount of text to explain the history of the development ofSSM and to explain how other academics have misunderstood some of SSM'sbasic thinking. You will learn little that is not already in Soft SystemsMethodology in Action.
Leave this book to the academics that enjoy thecut and thrust of debate and the 'meaning of words'
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Review of 'Soft Systems Methodology' by Checkland and Scholes
Having read this book, I must say that it serves its purpose to a very great degree. If you are looking for a book that gives expression to the subject of Soft Systems, this book... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Abiye Irisominabo

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