Download or read book The Laws of Software Process written by Phillip G. Armour and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2003-09-25 with total page 207 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Within one generation, software has become one of the principal sources of wealth in the world. The development and use of software has grown faster than for any artifact in the history of the world. Probably no topic or subject in history has accelerated in its rate of practice as software has. Software development now needs to mature into a disciplined activity to overcome the difficulties that have traditionally plagued it. Software developers, engineers, and project managers need a reference that describes the evolution of software: where it has been, and where it is going. The Laws of Software Process: A New Model for the Production and Management of Software reveals a novel and compelling structure for development that redefines the very nature and purpose of software. The author explains how, in the modern "knowledge economy," software systems are not "products" in the classical sense, but is the modern medium for the conveyance of information. Literally, software is the currency of the knowledge basis of wealth in today's society. From this definition flows a new assessment of the basics of software development: the purpose of methods and processes; a comparison of programming languages; and an analysis of quality management, cost estimation, and project management and completion. The groundbreaking perspective outlined in this book serves as an expert guide for successful planning and execution of development projects.

Download or read book Critical Systems Thinking and the Management of Complexity written by Michael C. Jackson and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2019-03-15 with total page 728 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The world has become increasingly networked and unpredictable. Decision makers at all levels are required to manage the consequences of complexity every day. They must deal with problems that arise unexpectedly, generate uncertainty, are characterised by interconnectivity, and spread across traditional boundaries. Simple solutions to complex problems are usually inadequate and risk exacerbating the original issues. Leaders of international bodies such as the UN, OECD, UNESCO and WHO — and of major business, public sector, charitable, and professional organizations — have all declared that systems thinking is an essential leadership skill for managing the complexity of the economic, social and environmental issues that confront decision makers. Systems thinking must be implemented more generally, and on a wider scale, to address these issues. An evaluation of different systems methodologies suggests that they concentrate on different aspects of complexity. To be in the best position to deal with complexity, decision makers must understand the strengths and weaknesses of the various approaches and learn how to employ them in combination. This is called critical systems thinking. Making use of over 25 case studies, the book offers an account of the development of systems thinking and of major efforts to apply the approach in real-world interventions. Further, it encourages the widespread use of critical systems practice as a means of ensuring responsible leadership in a complex world. Comments on a previous version of the book: Russ Ackoff: ‘the book is the best overview of the field I have seen’ JP van Gigch: ‘Jackson does a masterful job. The book is lucid ...well written and eminently readable’ Professional Manager (Journal of the Chartered Management Institute): ‘Provides an excellent guide and introduction to systems thinking for students of management’

Download or read book The 7 Indisputable Laws of Financial Leadership written by Rodney Ballance and published by Ambassador International. This book was released on 2013-06-03 with total page 92 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Rodney Ballance a financial industry insider with over 20 years experience will reveal secrets the banking, investment and insurance industries never wanted you to know. Rodney gives readers facts about how money and financial tools really work, and how the very wealthy use these tools to make money work for them. The Seven Indisputable Laws of Financial Leadership will teach you how to make your money work hard for you, so you don't have to work so hard for your money.

Download or read book Records Computers and the Rights of Citizens written by United States. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. Secretary's Advisory Committee on Automated Personal Data Systems and published by . This book was released on 1973 with total page 396 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Thinking in Systems written by Donella Meadows and published by Chelsea Green Publishing. This book was released on 2008-12-03 with total page 242 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The classic book on systems thinking—with more than half a million copies sold worldwide! "This is a fabulous book... This book opened my mind and reshaped the way I think about investing."—Forbes "Thinking in Systems is required reading for anyone hoping to run a successful company, community, or country. Learning how to think in systems is now part of change-agent literacy. And this is the best book of its kind."—Hunter Lovins In the years following her role as the lead author of the international bestseller, Limits to Growth—the first book to show the consequences of unchecked growth on a finite planet—Donella Meadows remained a pioneer of environmental and social analysis until her untimely death in 2001. Thinking in Systems is a concise and crucial book offering insight for problem solving on scales ranging from the personal to the global. Edited by the Sustainability Institute’s Diana Wright, this essential primer brings systems thinking out of the realm of computers and equations and into the tangible world, showing readers how to develop the systems-thinking skills that thought leaders across the globe consider critical for 21st-century life. Some of the biggest problems facing the world—war, hunger, poverty, and environmental degradation—are essentially system failures. They cannot be solved by fixing one piece in isolation from the others, because even seemingly minor details have enormous power to undermine the best efforts of too-narrow thinking. While readers will learn the conceptual tools and methods of systems thinking, the heart of the book is grander than methodology. Donella Meadows was known as much for nurturing positive outcomes as she was for delving into the science behind global dilemmas. She reminds readers to pay attention to what is important, not just what is quantifiable, to stay humble, and to stay a learner. In a world growing ever more complicated, crowded, and interdependent, Thinking in Systems helps readers avoid confusion and helplessness, the first step toward finding proactive and effective solutions.

Download or read book Evaluation for Health Policy and Health Care written by Steven Sheingold and published by SAGE Publications. This book was released on 2019-08-21 with total page 337 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Evaluation for Health Policy and Health Care: A Contemporary Data-Driven Approach explores the best practices and applications for producing, synthesizing, visualizing, using, and disseminating health care evaluation research and reports.

Download or read book The Power of the 2 x 2 Matrix written by Alex Lowy and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2011-03-23 with total page 359 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: By studying the work of hundreds of the most original and effective business minds, the authors present a common architecture that illuminates exceptional analysis and creative performance. 2 x 2 Thinking is characterized by a fundamental appreciation for the dynamic and complex nature of business. The best strategists go out of their way to tackle dilemmas rather than merely solve problems. They use opposition, creative tension, iteration and transcendence to get to the heart of issues and involve critical others in finding the best solutions. The authors demonstrate how to apply the 2 x 2 approach to a wide range of important business challenges.

Download or read book The Art of Problem Solving written by Russell Lincoln Ackoff and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 1978 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "A witty, literate and, most of all, convincing reflection...[Ackoff] shines an often bright light into corners where problems hide, showing the manager how to understand the consequences of his own behavi identify real, rather than supposed, elements of problems; perceive another's aims; determine what is controllab and deal with other nettlesome factors." -Inc. The Art of Problem Solving Russ Ackoff-author, consultant, and teacher extraordinaire. During his long career, he has shown thousands of managers, architects, engineers, attorneys, advertising people, software developers, and scientists the way to more creative, artful problem solving. This new paper edition of The Art of Problem Solving is perhaps the best example of Ackoff in action. Step by step, this practical guide shows you how to develop an understanding of the art of creative thinking and the design of creative solutions. Using "Ackoff's Fables"-humorous yet eminently practical parables, based on real problems by real managers-you'll see why solving a problem seldom solves the problem, but why approaching it from a new, unorthodox angle often does. The result is vintage Ackoff-controversial, funny, and always on target. If you like to dig beyond simple solutions-to imaginative solutions that work-this book is for you.

Download or read book Mcdp 5 Planning written by Department of Defense and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2017-05-22 with total page 104 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This publication describes the theory and philosophy of military planning as practiced by the U.S. Marine Corps. The intent is to describe how we can prepare effectively for future action when the future is uncertain and unpredictable. In so doing, this publication provides all Marines a conceptual framework for planning in peace, in crisis, or in war. This approach to planning is based on our common understanding of the nature of war and on our warfighting philosophy of maneuver warfare as described in Marine Corps Doctrinal Publication (MCDP) 1, Warfighting.

Download or read book Engaging Emergence written by Peggy Holman and published by Berrett-Koehler Publishers. This book was released on 2010-09-06 with total page 265 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this work, change specialist Holman reframes how we deal with chaos and change, and explains to leaders how to turn upheaval into opportunity and renewal.

Download or read book The Biology of Business written by John Henry Clippinger and published by Jossey-Bass. This book was released on 1999-10 with total page 326 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Increasingly interconnected, volatile, and complex, today's organizations cannot be controlled by any conventional approach to management. Indeed, an entirely new definition of what it means to manage is called for. In The Biology of Business, John Clippinger and nine outstanding contributors introduce managers to the Complex Adaptive System (CAS) of management, a system that takes into account all of the variables that impact modern enterprises and allows managers to take control from the bottom up. Here, the authors show how McKinsey & Co., Capital One, and Optimark have employed CAS to achieve specific business goals and improve overall corporate fitness. And they bridge theory and practice to provide managers with proven tools and techniques they can use to transform their enterprises into self-renewing, self-organizing systems that are maximally responsive to changing market conditions and opportunities.[subhead] Featuring Cutting-Edge Contributions by These Noted ScholarsW. Brian Arthur Andy Clark Philip AndersonWilliam G. Macready Christopher Meyer John Julius SvioklaBrook Manville David R. Johnson David Stark

Download or read book Social Science Law and Public Policy written by Stuart S. Nagel and published by . This book was released on 1992 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book provides a grand sweep of the relations among social science, law, and public policy over the past 30 years. The emphasis is on three stages in social science development. They include establishing relationships, optimizing decisions, and multi-criteria decision-making with decision-aiding software. The applications are in law, public policy, and other substantive aspects of social science. The book provides an integration of the behavioralism of the 19 60s, the policy relevance of the 1970s, and the software revolution of the 1980s. For each time period there were important developments in the integration of law, policy and social science. Some of the underlying goals beneath those developments include obtaining knowledge from empirical sources, useful knowledge, causal explanations, improved quality of life, technological innovation, encouragement of socially desired behavior, and still higher goals.

Download or read book Systems Thinking written by Jamshid Gharajedaghi and published by Elsevier. This book was released on 2011-08-09 with total page 374 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Systems Thinking, Third Edition combines systems theory and interactive design to provide an operational methodology for defining problems and designing solutions in an environment increasingly characterized by chaos and complexity. This new edition has been updated to include all new chapters on self-organizing systems as well as holistic, operational, and design thinking. The book covers recent crises in financial systems and job markets, the housing bubble, and environment, assessing their impact on systems thinking. A companion website is available at interactdesign.com. This volume is ideal for senior executives as well as for chief information/operating officers and other executives charged with systems management and process improvement. It may also be a helpful resource for IT/MBA students and academics. Four NEW chapters on self-organizing systems, holistic thinking, operational thinking, and design thinking Covers the recent crises in financial systems and job markets globally, the housing bubble, and the environment, assessing their impact on systems thinking Companion website to accompany the book is available at interactdesign.com

Download or read book Tactical Management in Complexity written by Renata Petrevska Nechkoska and published by Springer. This book was released on 2019-08-10 with total page 288 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book draws on the author’s own experience as a practitioner, collaborations with professionals from small and medium-sized businesses with international scope in North Macedonia and Belgium, and academic research. Its goal is to bring together tactical management and information systems research in complex environments. By developing the “DENICA” managerial method it re-introduces tactics as an important managerial function and underestimated source of competitive advantage. The book also offers a roadmap for dynamic reconfiguration of the managerial systems in complex environment, while considering adaptability, sustainability and effectiveness in the process. Furthermore, the book introduces a methodological “kaleidoscope” which combines IS methodology with the managerial sciences, offering a model that can be adapted and replicated to specific contexts in order to achieve fitting solutions. Real-world case studies from North Macedonia and Belgium apply these methods and illustrate their practical implications.

Download or read book The Practitioner s Path in Speech Language Pathology written by Wendy Paper-Bernstein and published by Plural Publishing. This book was released on 2017-11-01 with total page 433 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Practitioner's Path in Speech-Language Pathology: The Art of School-Based Practice bridges the gap between theory and practice, evidence-based practice and practice-based evidence, and the science and artistry of speech-language pathology. This book takes a critical look at areas related to wellness, professional development, and growth that can impact the personal self along with the professional self. It examines each area through an overview of inter-disciplinary research in addition to personal narratives illustrating key principles and strategies and offers the reader a professionally balanced perspective. The first section of the book helps us understand the importance of building a foundation for our clinical path through a discussion about scientific and evidence-based principles, different types of knowledge systems, and development of wisdom. The second section of the book helps us understand the importance of supporting our foundation through an introduction to reflection, counsel and care, balance and harmony, growth and detachment. The third section of the book includes chapters that serve as pillars of practice: organizational frameworks, materials and activities, measuring progress, best practices, and the importance of community. The fourth and final section of the book highlights shared vision, clinical expertise, emotional intelligence, leadership trends, the scholarship of teaching and learning, and research dissemination. This book challenges us to consider our own perceptions about the explicit nature of professional practice, and facilitates the development of four attitudes that can have a profound impact on both clinical success and professional satisfaction: a scientific attitude, a therapeutic attitude, a professional attitude, and a leadership attitude. It contains a blend of clinical evidence and research, practitioner views, common sense, philosophical stances, and historical overviews. The Practitioner's Path in Speech-Language Pathology is designed for students and practitioners who are actively involved with the process of knowledge acquisition, and targets issues we encounter along our path to becoming reflective practitioners, as they relate to the excellence behind and scholarship within teaching and learning.

Download or read book Systemic Choices written by Gregory A. Daneke and published by University of Michigan Press. This book was released on 2010-05-25 with total page 198 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The revolution in social scientific theory and practice known as nonlinear dynamics, chaos, or complexity, derived from recent advances in the physical, biological, and cognitive sciences, is now culminating with the widespread use of tools and concepts such as praxis, fuzzy logic, artificial intelligence, and parallel processing. By tracing a number of conceptual threads from mathematics, economics, cybernetics, and various other applied systems theoretics, this book offers a historical framework for how these ideas are transforming the social sciences. Daneke goes on to address a variety of persistent philosophical issues surrounding this paradigm shift, ranging from the nature of human rationality to free will. Finally, he describes this shift as a path for revitalizing the social sciences just when they will be most needed to address the human condition in the new millennium. Systemic Choices describes how praxis and other complex systems tools can be applied to a number of pressing policy and management problems. For example, simulations can be used to grow a number of robust hybrid industrial and/or technological strategies between cooperation and competition. Likewise, elements of international agreements could be tested for sustainability under adaptively evolving institutional designs. Other concrete applications include strategic management, total quality management, and operational analyses. This exploration of a wide range of technical tools and concepts will interest economists, political scientists, sociologists, psychologists, and those in the management disciplines such as strategy, organizational behavior, finance, and operations. Gregory A. Daneke is Professor of Technology Management, Arizona State University, and of Human and Organization Development, The Fielding Institute.

Download or read book Systems Thinking for School Leaders written by Haim Shaked and published by Springer. This book was released on 2017-03-02 with total page 145 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book presents a new approach to school leadership – Holistic School Leadership, whereby school leaders lead schools through systems-thinking concepts and procedures. Facing growing complexity, change and diversity, school leaders need to regularly apply the systems view and perform at the systems level. This book proposes a holistic approach, providing school leaders with systemic principles of action for excellence in education. “What a wonderful book – once I started it, I couldn’t put it down. The book masterfully makes a systems leadership perspective accessible and grounded in the reality of the daily life of educators. Holistic School Leadership is a “must read” for anyone who has the responsibility for making schools better places, from professors to emerging teacher leaders.” Karen Seashore (Louis), Regents Professor of Organizational Leadership, Policy and Development, University of Minnesota “Shaked and Schechter have constructed a much needed bridge to the future of educational leadership, a future of systemic thinking and positivity.” Joseph Murphy, Professor of Education and Public Policy, Peabody College of Education, Vanderbilt University “Shaked and Schechter offer a comprehensive yet concise account of the meaning of systems thinking. The authors systematically develop their Holistic School Leadership approach with compelling examples, carefully attending to the perennial challenge of implementation. Important reading for scholars and practitioners of school leadership and management!" James P. Spillane, Olin Professor in Learning and Organizational Change, Northwestern University “This is the most important book on systems thinking since Senge’s (1990) seminal work on learning organizations. Shaked and Schechter demonstrate the critical and practical utility of systems thinking for school leaders—a must read for all reflective practitioners.” Wayne K. Hoy, Professor Emeritus, The Ohio State University. “Holistic School Leadership provides an innovative and exciting look into a new perspective on educational leadership that holds tremendous potential in reshaping educational research, policy, and practice. The idea of interdependence alone makes this powerful new book required reading for anyone concerned with the future of education and educational leadership in particular. Give yourself, your colleagues, your students, and your system the gift of the wisdom in this book.” Alan J. Daly, Chair and Professor, Department of Education Studies, University of California, San Diego “In this informative book, Shaked and Schechter offer a fresh application of systems thinking to schools and to the work of school leaders. This book is a useful addition to the bookshelves of both those who prepare and those who support school leaders.” Megan Tschannen-Moran, Professor of Educational Leadership, College of William and Mary