The Relevance of Systemic Approaches in Business Sciences

Our times are characterized by intense changes in the viable logics of markets and, generally speaking, of business systems. Business scenarios today are typified by connectivity, dynamism, nonlinearity, and emergent behaviors - in other words by \u201ccomplexity\u201d (Dominici, 2012). Reductionist models are unable to completely depict, or to allow us to totally understand the new business scenarios. Today, more than ever, it is necessary to recognize the need for a paradigm shift that can carry science beyond the analytical reductionist approach, and towards a more comprehensive systemic perspective. Systems thinking can be critical to unlock new perspectives and enhance holistic views for a better understanding of the dynamics of social and business systems. In the last decades we have witnessed a paradigm shift in the managerial approach from the whole/part model to the systemic-environmental approach. This shift initiated the epistemological shift in social sciences in the fields of sociology, management and economic

Guest editorial Preface Special issue on Managing Complex Business Management Systems: Revised Papers from the 2nd B.S.Lab Symposium, Rome 2014

Editoria

Why Does Systems Thinking Matter?

The social and economic complexity of our times triggers intense transformations in the competitive logics of markets and, broadly speaking, of business systems. Business scenarios today are typified by dynamism, connectivity, nonlinearity, and emergent properties\u2014in other words by "complexity". Asserting that the world, and consequently business systems, are complex means that it is impossible to understand them by considering their individual elements separately, and that there is no option of predicting the future, but only of grasping and proactively influencing future scenarios. Reductionist models are unable to fully depict, or to allow us to deeply understand, new complex and dynamic business scenarios. Today more than ever, it is necessary to recognize the need for a paradigm shift that can carry science beyond the analytical reductionist approach, and towards a more comprehensive systemic perspective. This, of course, does not imply rejecting all the discoveries and benefits that the reductionist approach has brought to science, but it does mean going further, being aware that the analytic way alone is not sufficient for obtaining a deeper understanding of complex phenomena. Hence, without rejecting the old paradigm, we must move ahead to embrace a systemic view of social and economic facts

Complexity and Action: Reflections on Decision Making and Cybernetics.

This paper highlights some theoretical and epistemological reflections about the relevance of action for managerial studies. These reflections show how the cybernetic paradigm of complexity management can be used for better decision making that unites knowledge and action in a comprising, dynamic, and evolving approach. Cybernetics can help to overcome the fear of decision making in the face of uncertainty in complex scenarios, and can be an effective tool for improving the viability and competitiveness of firms in the twenty-first century

The incubation process for the creation of viable firms: the case of ARCA Consortium

The aim of this study is to demonstrate that academic incubators play a key role in firm viability. This study develops a new analytic systemic framework that reveals the processes and factors that determine the effectiveness of the incubation process supported by university incubators. We analyse the effectiveness of the incubation process in the incubator of the ARCA Consortium by means of a single case study with an embedded design. In this study, adopting a systemic perspective, we shift the focus from the firm to the context, shedding light on the systemic actions that create the prerequisite conditions for the achievement of the firms\u2019 viability

Decoding the XXI Century\u2019s Marketing Shift: An Agency Theory Framework

Since the beginning of the XXI century, marketing theory has moved through a series of epistemological shifts from modern positivism to postmodern constructivism. This has resulted in a series of changes to the main concepts of \u201ctraditional\u201d marketing such as: market, product, customer, and value. These shifts can be better viewed under a social cybernetics approach such as agency theory. This is because there is now a view that the linear concept of value creation needs to give way to the more complex process of value cocreation, where value is created collectively. Agency theory is one approach that is able to shed light on how customers and providers are able to recursively create collective value during interaction in a market. The theoretical framework provided here is able to provide improved understanding of the interactions betfween (and among) customers and providers in the value cocreation process. In this theory, value cocreation is depicted as an interactive process between a set of \u201cliving system\u201d agencies (providers and customers) in a given market arena. The framework can be an effective tool for the managers involved in marketing to contribute to providers\u2019 policies by supplying a clearer portrait of the systemic relations involved in the value cocreation dynamics

Polynomial solutions of nonlinear integral equations

We analyze the polynomial solutions of a nonlinear integral equation, generalizing the work of C. Bender and E. Ben-Naim. We show that, in some cases, an orthogonal solution exists and we give its general form in terms of kernel polynomials.Comment: 10 page

Revision of the Italian magnetic database for the Albegna basin(South Tuscany, Italy)

A comparison between ground level total magnetic field intensity anomaly map (F) of Italy and the total intensity aeromagnetic map by ENI/AGIP, had shown that an anomaly pattern for the Albegna basin (South Tuscany), quite evident from ground measurements, doesn’t show in the aeromagnetic map. Ligurian units, made of ophiolite blocks (metagabbros, basalts, serpentinites), intrusives and subordinate volcanic products, all able to trigger a strong magnetic signal, could not be excluded in the area, and for this reason the magnetic anomaly estimated by ground level measurements was not considered unreasonable. In this paper the result of a magnetic survey finalized to verify the authentic existence of such a large magnetic total intensity anomaly in the Albegna basin, is reported. On the basis of the new result, the suspected ground level total intensity anomaly in the Albegna basin, was demonstrated to be non-existent and then the Italian Magnetic Database corrected accordingly. Measurements and procedures that brought to the magnetic elements elaboration and new anomaly maps for Albegna basin, are shown here

Functional characterization and structure-guided mutational analysis of the transsulfuration enzyme cystathionine γ-lyase from toxoplasma gondii

Sulfur-containing amino acids play essential roles in many organisms. The protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii includes the genes for cystathionine β-synthase and cystathionine γ-lyase (TgCGL), as well as for cysteine synthase, which are crucial enzymes of the transsulfuration and de novo pathways for cysteine biosynthesis, respectively. These enzymes are specifically expressed in the oocyst stage of T. gondii. However, their functionality has not been investigated. Herein, we expressed and characterized the putative CGL from T. gondii. Recombinant TgCGL almost exclusively catalyses the α,γ-hydrolysis of L-cystathionine to form L-cysteine and displays marginal reactivity toward L-cysteine. Structure-guided homology modelling revealed two striking amino acid differences between the human and parasite CGL active-sites (Glu59 and Ser340 in human to Ser77 and Asn360 in toxoplasma). Mutation of Asn360 to Ser demonstrated the importance of this residue in modulating the specificity for the catalysis of α,β-versus α,γ-elimination of L-cystathionine. Replacement of Ser77 by Glu completely abolished activity towards L-cystathionine. Our results suggest that CGL is an important functional enzyme in T. gondii, likely implying that the reverse transsulfuration pathway is operative in the parasite; we also probed the roles of active-site architecture and substrate binding conformations as determinants of reaction specificity in transsulfuration enzymes

Extension of Tycho catalog for low-extinction windows in the galactic bulge

We present in this work secondary catalogs up to $m_{Val} \sim 13$ based on the Tycho reference frame (ESA, 1997) for 12 selected low-extinction fields towards the galactic bulge. The observations have been performed with the Askania-Zeiss Meridian Circle equiped with a CCD camera, located at the Abrah\~ao de Moraes Observatory (Valinhos, Brazil) and operated by the Institute of Astronomy and Geophysics, S\~ao Paulo University. The presented catalog, though not complete, has been designed to help in intensive search programmes (e.g. microlensing and variable searches) and therefore the selected standards have a high astrometric and photometric ($V$ band, approximately) quality. The mean precisions obtained were $0.0018^{s}$ in $\alpha$, 0.013'' in $\delta$, 0.030 for the standard deviation in magnitude and 0.0042 for the magnitude when weighted with the error bars in each night (in the mean, 42 stars for the catalog of each window). Tables B.1 to B.12 are also available in eletronic form at the CDS via anonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or via http://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/Abstract.html.Comment: 16 pages, 6 figures, A&A Latex style. Published in A&A