Systems Theory Is Systems Theory

Systems Theory

Is systems theory as it applies to management "old hat"?

It has been around for a long time, and since its introduction there have been many other concepts that have been introduced as new management techniques. Thus, has the time come to retire systems thinking in management?

Systems theory has its theoretical roots in the natural sciences and was only later incorporated into other disciplines. In management theory, it became defined as a way of integrating the natural science perspective of viewing an organism as an integrated system into the way that leaders conceptualized a corporation. "Too often in organizations (and in management training programs), we think we can break up the system and only have to deal with its parts or with various topics apart from other topics. Systems theory reminds us that if you break up an elephant, you don't have a bunch of little elephants." (Kauffman, 1980, cited by McNamara, 1999) When systems theory was introduced into management theory in the 1950s, it may have seemed refreshing or trendy to focus on the gestalt of the organization, or to stress that the whole was greater than the sum of its parts. For example, to use Kauffman's example of the elephant, when AT&T was broken down into a series of Baby Bells, the new, smaller companies did not function as organizations like the older, former behemoth corporation. Similarly, a team of employees working together is greater in terms of skills, abilities, and potential personality conflicts than any one individual working alone.