OBSERVATIONS AND STUDY CONCLUSION
5.11 Conclusions
The study described here illustrates how SSM may be used improve project management processes in an environment that is rigid, bureaucratic, politicised and conservative. The author believes that the methods used may well be applicable to bringing about changes in organisations with a similar culture. This would include changes that are not project related. Organisations that could also benefit from this would also include parastatals and government agencies where the current level of bureaucracy is stifling productivity in
South Africa. If the country is serious about improving the efficiencies within the civil service, then this approach should be given serious consideration.
The objective of this particular study was to see whether applying a systems thinking approach and action research paradigm to a complex problem situation in a large project environment within a highly politicised and conservative organisation would lead to any significant improvements. The systems thinking process that was described in chapter 3 and the application of participative action research and SSM discussed in chapter 4 led to the identification of appropriate intervention points and the implementation of a new process for change management on the project. Subsequent to this, the problem owners acknowledged that the situation had improved significantly and that good progress was being made to catch up time lost on the project due to the unnecessary bureaucracy that was in place prior to this situation.
In a broader context, the methodology adopted and described in this study indicates that the soft systems approach in dealing with what is largely a human activity system is able to produce results in large organisations where it would be more usual to apply hard systems approaches to problems. By using SSM it was possible to facilitate a better understanding of the problem situation, define the system's purpose; check connectivity between activities, establish indicators so that improvements in performance can be measured, and ensure sustainability.
In the organisation under discussion, the project management methodologies and
processes are continuously changing due to problems experienced in particular situations.
However, similar situations occur in many other large bureaucratic organisations that have a similar culture. The use of SSM is advantageous not only because it results in systemic improvements to the situation, but because the stakeholders' knowledge of the overall system is enhanced which can lead to further system improvements due to their having a better understanding of the viewpoints of the other role-players.
From a personal perspective, the research question that was raised at the beginning of the study was whether one could effectively use systems thinking to better understand a very messy situation and whether action research was an effective methodology that could bring beneficial changes within an organisational climate that would not normally be
conducive to this type of intervention. There was certainly an increased amount of conscious learning that took place from the experiences gained by doing this study. This individual learning could not have been achieved by studying the theory alone. The author also derived a better understanding of the collaborative approach that took place amongst the stakeholders, particularly during the action research period of the study, but also whilst applying systems thinking at the early phase of the endeavour. The
understanding of the application of systems thinking in a real situation was enhanced significantly and a number of concerns that the author had prior to the study were clarified. In particular, the choice of systems thinking tools and the actual outcomes derived by using these tools provided some important insights for the time that the author may need to do a similar exercise again in future.
The authors understanding of action research as applied to real day-to-day situations was enhanced during the course of this study. His own capacity for critical thinking and analysis was enhanced significantly by constantly requesting information to clarify issues and then reflecting on the possible solutions to these. The successful application of action research within what is usually considered a hard systems environment provides an indication of the fact that the action research paradigm should be considered when faced with similar situations by this and other comparable organisations.
As a result of this study, the author believes that he has met the objectives set at the beginning. He improved his own understanding of systems thinking and how it can be used to create learning organisations, how complexity theory can be used to drive change within organisations, and the use of action research to learn about a particular problem situation and introduce change in order to bring about improvements. These
improvements also had a positive effect on the project in that lost time was being caught up and the morale and productivity of the project team had greatly improved. Finally, there is a better relationship that exists between the various role players who participated in this exercise due to a better understanding of each other's perspectives. The author would thus have no hesitation to recommending this approach to others which to emulate it.