NDLI: The Perils of Command and Control

Content Provider	Springer Nature Link
Author	Watts, Justin
Copyright Year	2012
Abstract	This paper is written by a manager working within a food manufacturing business specialising in the production of snack foods. It is based on a manager’s reflections and shows that the ‘command and control’ management logic (Seddon, Freedom from command and control: a better way to make the work work. Vanguard Education Ltd., Buckingham, 2003) can cause as many problems in manufacturing as it does in service organisations. The paper details how far command and control thinking had driven the business away from doing what its customers actually wanted. Although this paper will look particularly at this specific business, the findings are meant to be representative of what, in the author’s experience, are typical command and control discussions in conventionally managed organisations. The paper will describe the business’ background, its culture and the existing state of affairs. The organisation will be looked at from two perspectives: the business managers’ perspective and the perspective of the people in the work (front line workers and their line managers). The paper will then discuss the current business logic and its impact. It will examine what it was like to work in this system. The paper will go on to look at the model for ‘Check’ (Seddon 2003, p. 112) and its application in manufacturing, before detailing what the managers in the business would have seen if they had applied the model. Finally, it will describe what improvements could have been expected through the move to a logic built on systems thinking principles.
Starting Page	75
Ending Page	89
Page Count	15
File Format	PDF
ISSN	1094429X
Journal	Systemic Practice and Action Research
Volume Number	27
Issue Number	1
e-ISSN	15739295
Language	English
Publisher	Springer US
Publisher Date	2012-09-29
Publisher Place	Boston
Access Restriction	One Nation One Subscription (ONOS)
Subject Keyword	Vanguard Method Variation Demand System conditions Capability Flow Management thinking Business/Management Science Methodology of the Social Sciences Organization/Planning Sociology
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article
Subject	Strategy and Management Management of Technology and Innovation

Sl.	Authority	Responsibilities	Communication Details
1	Ministry of Education (GoI), Department of Higher Education	Sanctioning Authority	https://www.education.gov.in/ict-initiatives
2	Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur	Host Institute of the Project: The host institute of the project is responsible for providing infrastructure support and hosting the project	https://www.iitkgp.ac.in
3	National Digital Library of India Office, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur	The administrative and infrastructural headquarters of the project	Dr. B. Sutradhar bsutra@ndl.gov.in
4	Project PI / Joint PI	Principal Investigator and Joint Principal Investigators of the project	Dr. B. Sutradhar bsutra@ndl.gov.in Prof. Saswat Chakrabarti will be added soon
5	Website/Portal (Helpdesk)	Queries regarding NDLI and its services	support@ndl.gov.in
6	Contents and Copyright Issues	Queries related to content curation and copyright issues	content@ndl.gov.in
7	National Digital Library of India Club (NDLI Club)	Queries related to NDLI Club formation, support, user awareness program, seminar/symposium, collaboration, social media, promotion, and outreach	clubsupport@ndl.gov.in
8	Digital Preservation Centre (DPC)	Assistance with digitizing and archiving copyright-free printed books	dpc@ndl.gov.in
9	IDR Setup or Support	Queries related to establishment and support of Institutional Digital Repository (IDR) and IDR workshops	idr@ndl.gov.in

Systems Thinking and Higher Education: The Vanguard Method

Editorial for Special Issue of SPAR: The Vanguard Method in a Systems Thinking Context

The Vanguard Method as Applied to the Design and Management of English and Welsh Children’s Services Departments

Living the Life You Choose: The Introduction of the Vanguard Method into an Organisation Providing Support to People with Learning Disabilities

Negotiation, Management, and Systems Thinking

Systems Thinking and Management Epistemology

The Future of Systems Thinking

Engineering Systems Thinking: A Multifunctional Definition

Foreseeing Iron Ore Prices Using System Thinking and Scenario Planning

The Perils of Command and Control

Similar Documents

Systems Thinking and Higher Education: The Vanguard Method

Editorial for Special Issue of SPAR: The Vanguard Method in a Systems Thinking Context

The Vanguard Method as Applied to the Design and Management of English and Welsh Children’s Services Departments

Living the Life You Choose: The Introduction of the Vanguard Method into an Organisation Providing Support to People with Learning Disabilities

Negotiation, Management, and Systems Thinking

Systems Thinking and Management Epistemology

The Future of Systems Thinking

Engineering Systems Thinking: A Multifunctional Definition

Foreseeing Iron Ore Prices Using System Thinking and Scenario Planning

The Perils of Command and Control