Systems Approach Applied to Engineered Systems

This Knowledge Area (KA) provides a guide to an approach to complex problems and opportunities based on systems science and the application of systems thinking . This knowledge is not specific to Systems Engineering, but is part of a wider systems body of knowledge. We have not attempted to capture all of the system knowledge here, but to identify those aspects relevant to the systems engineering body of knowledge.

The framework of activities and principles described in the KA are mapped to the other sections of the SEBoK to provide a guide to the system foundations of systems engineering practices.

To download a PDF of all of Part 2 (including this knowledge area), please click here.

Topics

The topics contained within this knowledge area include:

• Engineered System Context
• Identifying and Understanding Problems and Opportunities
• Synthesizing Possible Solutions
• Analysis and Selection between Alternative Solutions
• Implementing and Proving a Solution
• Deploying, Using, and Sustaining Systems to Solve Problems
• Stakeholder Responsibility
• Applying the Systems Approach

What is a Systems Approach?

The term systems approach defined by authors such as Churchman (Churchman 1979) is an aspect of Systems Thinking through which we consider a System from the view point of those outside its boundary. In particular, we can gain significant insight by understanding the "enemies" of viewing the system holistically. While this is an important foundation for the system thinking which underpins the Systems Approach, this Knowledge Area uses the term to describe both systemic understanding and action as discussed below.

The systems approach is defined as a set of principles for applying systems thinking to engineered system contexts. According to Jackson et al (2010, pp. 41-43), the Systems Approach is a problem solving paradigm. It is a comprehensive problem understanding and resolution approach based upon the principles of systems thinking; and utilizing the concepts and thinking tools of systems science along with the concepts inherent in engineering problem solving. It incorporates a holistic systems view of the system that includes the larger context of the system, including engineering and operational environments, stakeholders, and full life cycle. This Systems Approach forms the foundation for the descriptions and standards which define the practices of Systems Engineering. Systems engineering-related competency models generally agree that a fully capable systems engineer must employ Systems Thinking when undertaking these practices.

According to Checkland (1999, 318), Systems Thinking is “an epistemology which, when applied to human activity is based on basic ideas of systems.”

Senge (1990) provides an expanded definition as follows: “Systems thinking is a discipline for seeing wholes. It is a framework for seeing interrelationships rather than things, for seeing patterns of change rather than static "snapshots." It is a set of general principles -- distilled over the course of the twentieth century, spanning fields as diverse as the physical and social sciences, engineering, and management. During the last thirty years, these tools have been applied to understand a wide range of corporate, urban, regional, economic, political, ecological, and even psychological systems. And systems thinking is a sensibility for the subtle interconnectedness that gives living systems their unique character.”

These sources and others discussed in the Systems Thinking knowledge area associate at least three different ideas to Systems Thinking. The first is a set of concepts to assist in learning how to think in terms of systems; the second is a set of principles to ensure a holistic approach to problems whatever there domain and the third is a set of tools to support the approach. The Systems Approach utilises all three of these aspects of Systems Thinking.

In the Introduction to SEBoK Part 2 we make the following distinctions:

• systems thinking is a fundamental set of ideas which encapsulate a way of thinking about something as a set of related systems.
• systems science is an interdisciplinary field of science that studies the nature of complex systems in nature, society, and science. It aims to develop interdisciplinary foundations, which are applicable in a variety of areas, such as engineering, biology, medicine and social sciences. The outputs of this work can be summarized by:
  • A System of systems concept , defining ideas which can be used to better understand the systemic nature of a situation or thing, independent of its application domain
  • A number of Systems Methodologies , which organize these ideas into a problem exploration and/or solution creation approach. These methodologies are often based upon a particular world view or paradigm, which influences the approach they take and the models they use.
• systems approach is a combination of the above into a generic problem resolution approach which spans the whole life of an engineered system context, as part of the exploration and resolution of one or more real world problem situations or opportunities.

Note, the definitions above have been produced for the SEBoK to provide a framework of ideas to help understand the relationships between systems ideas and the practice of Systems Engineering. While they are not inconsistent with the literature in outline some authors have used different combinations of terminology to express them. It is our aim for the above ideas to help SEBoK readers to understand the literature and its relevance to them, without becoming too confused by slight differences, or even contradictions, in the detailed language used.

This Knowledge Area describes the Systems Approach in the context of applying Systems Thinking to an engineered system through its whole life.

References

Works Cited

Checkland, P. 1999. Systems Thinking, Systems Practice. New York, NY, USA: John Wiley & Sons.

Churchman, C. West. 1979. The Systems Approach and Its Enemies. New York: Basic Books.

Hitchins, D. 2009. "What are the General Principles Applicable to Systems?". INCOSE Insight. 12(4).

Jackson, S., D. Hitchins, and H. Eisner. 2010. "What is the Systems Approach?". INCOSE Insight. 13(1): 41-43.

Senge, P. M. 1990. The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of the Learning Organization. New York, Doubleday/Currency.

Primary References

Checkland, P. 1999. Systems Thinking, Systems Practice. New York, NY, USA: John Wiley & Sons.

Hitchins, D. 2009. "What are the General Principles Applicable to Systems?". INCOSE Insight. 12(4).

Jackson, S., D. Hitchins, and H. Eisner. 2010. "What is the Systems Approach?". INCOSE Insight. 13(1): 41-43.

Lawson, H. 2010. A Journey Through the Systems Landscape. London, UK: College Publications, Kings College.

Senge, P. M. 1990. The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of the Learning Organization. New York, Doubleday/Currency.

Additional References

No additional reference have been identified for SEBoK 0.75. Please provide any recommendations on additional reference in your review.

---

< Previous Article | Parent Article | Next Article > SEBoK v. 1.9.1 released 30 September 2018

SEBoK Discussion

Please provide your comments and feedback on the SEBoK below. You will need to log in to DISQUS using an existing account (e.g. Yahoo, Google, Facebook, Twitter, etc.) or create a DISQUS account. Simply type your comment in the text field below and DISQUS will guide you through the login or registration steps. Feedback will be archived and used for future updates to the SEBoK. If you provided a comment that is no longer listed, that comment has been adjudicated. You can view adjudication for comments submitted prior to SEBoK v. 1.0 at SEBoK Review and Adjudication. Later comments are addressed and changes are summarized in the Letter from the Editor and Acknowledgements and Release History.

If you would like to provide edits on this article, recommend new content, or make comments on the SEBoK as a whole, please see the SEBoK Sandbox.

blog comments powered by Disqus