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Building Awareness and Competency in Systems Thinking
Within Computer Sciences Corporation
Dr. Ralph R. Miller, PhD
Dr. Pascal Gambardella, PhD
Computer Sciences Corporation
304 West Route 38
Moorestown, NJ 08057
The Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC) is a large
multi-national information technology company serving a wide variety of
corporate and government clients. Our challenge is to develop and maintain
computer and business systems of the most complex and critical nature -
banking, insurance, emergency services, military, space, and many more. To help
us to communicate, coordinate and collaborate (the 'three C's') within CSC, we
have hundreds of on-line "Communities of Interest." Several years ago we
established a Systems Thinking Community to give voice to our growing needs in
this vital area.
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However, as a space and as a medium, a simple
community didn't provide the pro-active involvement needed to grow an awareness
of Systems Thinking in CSC. A simple community wasn't helping with the three
C's. To push the ball forward, we decided to develop and run on-line study
classes in Systems Thinking. Our first course involved over 60 CSC people
around the world using John Sterman's "Business Dynamics". This book comes with
a CD-ROM filled with useful models from the book. The models come in several
versions including those modeled using iThink (version 5.1). We found
that the iThink models ran reliably and provided our study groups with a
clear picture of system thinking processes. Similarly, we are currently
completing a course on-line with our next generation of students using Kim
Warren's book, "Competitive Strategy Dynamics". As before, iThink has
proven to be useful to our students when discussing and modeling the concepts
in Warren's book.
Our Systems Thinking Community sponsors an exhibit at our annual in-company
Technical and Business Solutions Conference. Hundreds of CSC and invited
business partners and clients visit our booth. These walk-by attendees leave
with a heightened awareness of the usefulness and power of Systems Thinking.
This year, ISEE kindly provided a number of prizes (including fully functional
software of iThink
) for our attendees.
Over the years, George Simpson, and the authors have worked to increase
awareness and use of Systems Thinking at CSC. More and more we are finding
clients who need and request Systems Thinking as a part of the overall mix of
technology and business thinking in their programs. As our awareness level has
risen, we are finding that the members of the Systems Thinking Community within
CSC are being called upon as in-house consultants. This is in no small measure
a result of our active training and study program; and to powerful and useful
modeling programs such as iThink.
Dr. Ralph R. Miller, PhD
rmiller@csc.com
Dr. Pascal Gambardella, PhD
pgambard@csc.com
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