Systems Theory & Human Capability

Learning to see organizations as complex and dynamic systems is fundamental for professionals who aspire to lead those organizations. This course will provide an overview of select theories of systems as these pertain to complex social organizations (cybernetics, organic, cognitive/computational, social resource allocation)and an understanding of the basic building blocks of systems (feedback loops, stock, flow, delays and dynamics). Applying these theories and building blocks, the learner will analyze case examples of typical problems which emerge in diverse, social organizations and identify pathways for critical examination of these problems to propose solutions within the dominant systems theories using the basic building blocks.