Siebert Benade

Nurturing a culture of resiliency in the age of fundamental change

Increasingly institutions function within an unprecedented context of fundamental discontinuous change. Karl Weick and Kathleen Sutcliffe [40] in researching how institutions deal with unexpected trends and events, suggest that managers are not all that skilled therein and events spiral, get worse and disrupt the operations of the institution. The researchers claim that commitment to resilience and an ability to bounce back from those inevitable errors are part of an indeterminate world. Van Opstal [35] suggests that globalization, technological complexity, interdependence, climate and energy volatility are increasing the level of risk that organizations now face. With this in mind the role of organizational culture, in the institutional response to unexpected emergent contextual conditions that impact on an institution and consequently its resilience capability and survival is the focus of analysis in this paper. It is suggested that organizational culture is complex in nature and emerges in response to a shared learning experience. The role of engineers and managers, using narrative and artefacts, in nurturing a culture of resiliency forms a key theme in the paper. Organizational culture and institutional resiliency are metaphorically intertwined as two strands of a rope flexing under the tremendous contextual strain of an age of fundamental change.

A SYSTEMS DYNAMICS APPROACH TO COMPETING TECHNOLOGIES: EXPLORING UNCERTAINTY OF INTERACTION AND MARKET PARAMETERS

Technology can be identified as the result of an innovation process that may be timedependent. Furthermore, technology is both an input to the innovation process and an output of it. When two competing technologies are diffused into the market, they are evaluated as a technology system by means of a systems dynamics approach. It is shown that systems thinking can be used initially to identify and assess the important factors that influence the competitive behaviour of the two technologies. Interesting dynamics of this technology management system are presented and discussed in the context of uncertainty of interaction between the two technologies. It is specifically shown that the life span of the existing technology, which resists competition, may be adversely affected under conditions of uncertainty. The effect of uncertainty in more than one systems dynamics model parameter – specifically, the interaction and market parameter in the competing technology system – is also addressed. The Lotka-Volterra approach of predator-prey interaction is used to model the interaction between and diffusion of the two technologies in the system. A qualitative assessment of the systems dynamics model without uncertainty is attempted in the exploration of a real case study of two competing technologies. OPSOMMING Tegnologie kan beskryf word as die resultaat van ’n innovasie proses wat tydsveranderlik kan wees. Tegnologie is beide ’n inset sowel as ’n uitset van die innovasie proses. ’n Geval waar twee kompeterende tegnologiee in die mark diffundeer word met behulp van sisteemdinamika geevalueer as ’n tegnologiestelsel. Dit word aangetoon dat stelselsdenke gebruik kan word as voorloper om die belangrike faktore wat die kompeterende gedrag van die twee tegnologiee beinvloed, te identifiseer en te assesseer. Interessante dinamiese gedrag van hierdie tegnologiebestuurstelsel word aangebied en bespreek in die konteks van onsekerheid van interaksie tussen die twee tegnologieё. Dit word spesifiek aangetoon dat die bestaande tegnologie wat weerstand bied teen kompetisie se lewenspan nadelig geraak kan word in onseker toestande. Die effek van onsekerheid van meer as een sisteemdinamikamodelparameter, spesifiek die interaksie en markparameter, word ook aangespreek. Die Lotka-Volterra benadering gebaseer op die interaksie van aanval en verdediging word gebruik om die samehang tussen en diffusie van die twee tegnologiee in die stelsel te modelleer. Kwalitatiewe assessering van die sisteemdinamikamodel sonder parameteronsekerheid word ook aangespreek deur ’n werklike gevallestudie van twee kompeterende tegnologieё.

Partnering on information management projects in South Africa

Previous studies regarding partnering on projects in the construction sector proved the value of approaching projects in this way. This paper aims to set a baseline for measurements on partnering on information management projects in South Africa. It documents the results from a survey amongst large South African companies regarding partnering on information management projects. The applicability of partnering is first explored by looking at the project types that it can be best applied to in terms of the complexity of these projects and the risk that the types of projects pose to business. The potential benefits resulting from a partnering approach to information management projects are rated to expose the most-, and least-important contributors. Critical success factors and inhibitors to effective project partnering are also rated. The paper concludes with recommended actions to implement a partnering approach to business.

The Value of Preparation in a Systems Engineering Masters Module: A Longitudinal Case Study

This research emanates from a systems-oriented process of investigation into the educational approach of masters in engineering management programmes in order to find ways to improve student through-put rate and the quality of learning. The document describes the educational process, with specific emphasis on student preparedness, including the value and impact of a pivotal preparation test. This process is guided by constructive alignment; learning cycles through interactive blended teaching; and a focus on student learning. A longitudinal descriptive case study of the programmes was undertaken, focusing on a systems engineering module, which is integral to all masters programmes. The case is described with regard to its context; the educational process and teaching approach; and an educational and statistical analysis of the preparation test.

SYSTEM ARCHITECTURE AND ENTERPRISE ARCHITECTURE: A JUXTA POSITION?#

A systems approach to creating a system is discussed. The system engineering process, and specifically the system architecture process, is formulated and applied to a typical (physical) system, enterprise, and project. These lead to the concepts of system architecture (SA), enterprise architecture (EA), and project architecture (PA) respectively. Similarities and inter-relationships among these architectures and related methodologies are investigated, seeking better interaction among them. ‘Work’ is proposed as an important conceptual building-block of these architectures, properly defined as activity with associated inputs, outputs, governances, and mechanisms. Techniques such as functional analysis, process modelling, and task analysis are used to demonstrate the interrelationships among these apparently unrelated organisational perspectives of product, process, and project. OPSOMMING ’n Stelselbenadering tot die daarstelling van ’n stelsel word bespreek. Die stelselingenieurswese,en spesifiek die stelselargitektuurproses, word geformuleer en toegepas op ’n tipiese (fisiese) stelsel, onderneming, en projek. Dit lei tot die konsepte van stelselargitektuur (SA), ondernemingsargitektuur (OA), en projekargitektuur (PA). Ooreenkomste en verwantskappe tussen hierdie argitekture word ontleed om beter onderlinge interaksie te bewerkstellig. ’n Belangrike konseptuele bousteen van hierdie argitekture word voorgestel as ‘werk’, behoorlik gedefinieer as aktiwiteit met gepaardgaande insette, uitsette, kontroles, en meganismes. Tegnieke soos funksionele analise, prosesmodellering, en taakanalise word gebruik om die onderlinge verbande tussen hierdie skynbaar onverwante organisatoriese perspektiewe van produk, projek, en proses, te demonstreer.

Requirements Engineering Principles Applicable to Technology and Innovation Management

In the field of Technology and Innovation Management, several key principles have been identified in literature. These include technology development, technology improvement, technology leadership, technology partnerships and supplier participation, technology pioneering, technological integration, technological value and technology standards. Many of these key principles are based on actions that are intended to provide a new or enhanced technology, product or service to the consumer market. It is however important that this new or enhanced product or service that results for the innovation process, does indeed address a market or user need. This is the focus of the field of Requirements Engineering in the determination of market and user need. Research in this field have identified various challenges and pitfalls that exist that may hinder the determination of the actual need and the consequential acceptance of the new or enhanced technology by the market or user. The purpose of this paper is to explore areas of commonality within the requirements engineering domain that may be applicable to technology and innovation management and that can be exploited to add value and reduce risk.

System convergence in the crafting and execution of a services directed strategy: A technology perspective

The focus of this paper is directed at gaining an insight into services strategy formulation and implementation, with specific reference to the integration of the diverse systems involved. These systems were identified in a previous paper presented at the 2014 PICMET conference entitled “Servitization: An Integrated strategic and operational systems framework”. A key difficulty encountered in practice is that as the future unfolds these various systems are subject to constant change, both at an individual, as well as at an interactive level, a reality that renders strategy creation and execution extremely complex. The convergent, emergent systemic effects and the uncertainty and unpredictably it engenders, exposes fundamental difficulties associated with traditional strategic management practice, based on underlying scientific management principles. The research study entails a multi-disciplinary literature review to determine if a complex adaptive systems approach may not be more effective in practice, a key finding emerging from the study being that this is in fact the case. The value of the research study is that the findings emanating from the literature review could inform future management practice.

Merging disciplines: An exploratory study

The challenge of most technology-based companies is to plan the next few years in terms of new systems, products and services to be delivered into the market and to decide which technologies to utilise to remain competitive. The basic make/buy question should also be addressed: whether a specific technology should be developed in-house or acquired. It comes down to meaningfully integrate the Marketing Strategy with the Technology Strategy of the enterprise. This sounds straight forward enough, also intellectually, but to successfully implement these strategies in real life proof to be extremely challenging. Disciplines such as Technology Management, Asset Management, System Engineering and Engineering Management try to expand their footprint and address more (all) of the above-mentioned challenges. This trend consequently creates bigger overlaps amongst the different disciplines. Each discipline typically has its own Professional Organisation(s), Body of Knowledge (BoK), and associated standards and practices. These developments pose new challenges to academic institutions. Universities should teach fundamentals (not “flavour of the month”) that can stand the test of time. Curricula and Programme Architectures should be integrated and not have too many overlaps and/or gaps and, most important, meaningfully prepare students for industry and business. These growing overlaps amongst disciplines cause considerable confusion as different definitions for the same/similar concepts are emerging.