1,162,145 research outputs found
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Systems approaches to managing sustainable development: experiences from developing supported open-learning.
It is argued that a failure to consider ecological sustainability within a systemic framework constrains the design of learning systems which are needed for taking effective purposeful action for 'managing' sustainable development. The arguments put forward are grounded in the author's experience of developing supported open learning curricula delivered in a distance teaching mode in the area of systems practice for managing complexity as well as the supervision of post-graduate student research
A Generic Agent Organisation Framework For Autonomic Systems
Autonomic computing is being advocated as a tool for managing large, complex computing systems. Specifically, self-organisation provides a suitable approach for developing such autonomic systems by incorporating self-management and adaptation properties into large-scale distributed systems. To aid in this development, this paper details a generic problem-solving agent organisation framework that can act as a modelling and simulation platform for autonomic systems. Our framework describes a set of service-providing agents accomplishing tasks through social interactions in dynamically changing organisations. We particularly focus on the organisational structure as it can be used as the basis for the design, development and evaluation of generic algorithms for self-organisation and other approaches towards autonomic systems
The Link between BPR, Evolutionary Delivery and Evolutionary Development
In this paper we intend to show how the challenges of managing a Business Process Reengineering (BPR) project are consistent with the ones of a Systems Development project. As traditional management techniques were no longer appropriate in the changing business environment, companies employed BPR to achieve elevated business performance. Similarly, as traditional systems development approaches delivered disappointing results, system developers experimented with other models, including Evolutionary Delivery and Evolutionary Development, in order to enable successful technology exploitation by businesses. Both these business and systems initiatives embrace elements of cultural change, management flexibility, empowerment, organisational readiness, and technology introduction in a changing environment. We will present the similarities of the two initiatives and show how progress in one initiative could contribute in the progress of the other
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Bells that still can ring: systems thinking in practice
Complexity science has generated significant insight regarding the interrelatedness of factors and actors constituting our real world and emergent effects from such interrelationships. But the translation of such rich insight towards developing appropriate tools for improving real world situations of change and uncertainty provides a further significant challenge. Systems thinking in practice is a heuristic framework based upon ideas of boundary critique for guiding the use and development of tools from different traditions in managing complex realities. By reference to five systems approaches, each embodying more than 30 years of experiential use, three interrelated features of the framework are drawn out â contexts of systemic change, practitioners as change agents, and tools as systems constructs that can themselves change through adaptation. The âbells that still can ringâ refer to tools associated with the Systems tradition which have demonstrable capacity to change and adapt by continual iteration with changing context of use and different practitioners using them. It is in the practice of using such tools whilst being aware of significant âcracksâ associated with traps in managing complex realities that enables systems thinking in practice to evolve. Complexity tools as examples of systems thinking can inadvertently invite traps of reductionism within contexts, dogmatism amongst practitioners, and fetishism of our tools as conceptual constructs associated with ultimately undeliverable promises towards achieving holism and pluralism. The heuristic provides a guiding framework on monitoring the development of tools from different traditions for improving complex realities and avoiding such traps
Working Notes from the 1992 AAAI Spring Symposium on Practical Approaches to Scheduling and Planning
The symposium presented issues involved in the development of scheduling systems that can deal with resource and time limitations. To qualify, a system must be implemented and tested to some degree on non-trivial problems (ideally, on real-world problems). However, a system need not be fully deployed to qualify. Systems that schedule actions in terms of metric time constraints typically represent and reason about an external numeric clock or calendar and can be contrasted with those systems that represent time purely symbolically. The following topics are discussed: integrating planning and scheduling; integrating symbolic goals and numerical utilities; managing uncertainty; incremental rescheduling; managing limited computation time; anytime scheduling and planning algorithms, systems; dependency analysis and schedule reuse; management of schedule and plan execution; and incorporation of discrete event techniques
Determining Sustainable Development Density using the Urban Carrying Capacity Assessment System
Diverse urban problems in the capital region of Korea occur due to over-development
and over-concentration which exceed the regionâs carrying capacity. Particularly,
environmental problems such as air and water pollution have become more evident and
become central issues for urban planners and decision-makers. In achieving
sustainable environment through resolving such problems, practical approaches to
incorporate the concept of environmental sustainability into managing urban
development are needed.
This research aims at developing an integrated framework for assessing urban
carrying capacity which can determine sustainable development density, and has yielded
the following. First, seven determining factors for urban carrying capacity including
energy, green areas, roads, subway systems, water supply, sewage treatment, and waste
treatment were identified, and the assessment framework was developed by integrating
such factors. Second, the UCCAS, a GIS-based carrying capacity assessment system
was developed based upon the framework. Finally, through a case study of
determining carrying capacity of an urban area, it was revealed that decision support
with the UCCAS demonstrated in this research could play a pivotal role in planning and
managing urban development more effectively
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Web-based information systems development and dynamic organisational change: the need for emergent development tools
This paper considers contextual issues relating to the problem of developing web-based information
systems in and for emergent organisations. It postulates that the methods available suffer because of
sudden and unexpected changing characteristics within the organisation. The Theory of Deferred
Action is used as the basis for the development of an emergent development tool. Many tools for
managing change in a continuously changing organisation are susceptible to inadequacy. The insights
proposed are believed to assist designers in developing functional and relevant approaches within
dynamic organisational contexts
Teacher education in the UK in an era of performance management
In common with all education systems world wide, those of the United Kingdom have been subject to rapid change and development in recent years. Much of the management of this change has been supported by methods, including performance management of individuals, borrowed from industrial or commercial spheres of activity (Peters et al, 1999). This has led to a redefinition of concepts of teacher professionalism. In the two principal UK systems - those of England (often itself referred to as the UK system) and Scotland - there have been different emphases in terms of managing and developing the profession, although concerns of staff development and professional accountability are encapsulated in both. In this paper we argue, firstly, that staff development - of whatever variety - has to result in better learning for young people within schools. Secondly, we assert that the construction of teacher professionalism is a contested area in the UK, both in terms of initial teacher education and in terms of continuing professional development and that there has to be a recognition of this debate. Ultimately, however, both sides need to come together to create systems which support and develop pupil learning
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