THE SYSTEMS CONCEPT-3

Today we continue our discussion on System Concept. The importance of the systems concept to the manager is that it helps him to identify the critical sub-systems in his organization and their inter-relationships with each other and the environment. It is a responsibility of a manger to use the system in such a way that it can generate internet profit. 

A system is always seeking an equilibrium state, that is, where all the sub-systems are at the optimum level, in tune with and at rest with each other, and the desired output is being achieved. In an open system, this level of equilibrium is never static but is always dynamic. This is because the environment is never static, it is always changing and since the open system is all the time interacting with environment, what may have been an equilibrium level today will not be so tomorrow. It is the concern of the manager to seek this equilibrium level. An individual can make money from home while it is a responsibility of a manager to establish en equilibrium level which helps company to make internet profits.

One of the most important interactions between an organization and the environment is that of information. A manager who has information about the impending government legislation which will affect his organization can suitably modify his decision and avoid costly mistakes. Similarly, a manager who is well informed about his employees’ activities, expectations, opinions and grievances can take corrective action much before a crisis develops. We now turn our attention to this information flow and see how best it can be organized from the manager’s viewpoint.

THE SYSTEMS CONCEPT-2

A system can be biological (human body), physical (machine) or social (commercial organizations, voluntary bodies, etc.). Social systems re man-made systems and the relationships of the sub-systems is the most critical element. Further, since social systems involve human beings, their beliefs, values, attitudes and perceptions have an important bearing on the working of the system. This aspect is dealt with in the section on motivating and leading. 

A system can be closed or open. A closed system is self-sufficient and self-regulatory and has no interaction with the environment in which it exists. The feedback from the output triggers off a control mechanism which then regulated the input to bring back the output to the desired level. 

An open system is one which interacts with the environment in which it exists. All living, biological and social systems are examples of open systems. An organization is an open system and its sub-systems are its various divisions and departments. But at the same time, it is a sub-system of the environmental system within which it operates. The environment itself consists of social, economic, political and legal sub-systems. 

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THE SYSTEMS CONCEPT-1

A system has the following components: 

1.      A number of parts of sub-systems which when put together in a specific manner form a whole system

2.      Boundaries within which it exists

3.      A specific goal or goals. This goal is expressed in terms of an output which is achieved by receiving input and processing it to form the output

4.      Close inter-relationship and inter-dependency amongst the various sub-systems

 

The inter-relationship of the sub-systems can be define in terms of: 

• The flows which exist among them, such as flow of information, money, materials, etc. The most important of these is the information flow which we shall discuss in the next section.
• The structure within which they related to each other. This structure may be physical, geographic or organizational and shall be dealt with in the section entitled ‘organizing’.
• The procedures by which the sub-systems relate to one another. By procedures we mean those planned activities which affect the performance of the entire system. In the context of an organization, this refers to planning and we shall discuss these under the heading ‘planning’
• The feedback and the control process and mechanisms which exist to ensure that the system is moving towards its desired objectives. In this unit, we have dealt with this in the section on controlling.