Coevolving Innovations

… in Business Organizations and Information Technologies

Beyond the Tavistock and S-cubed legacy

While it’s important to appreciate the systems thinking foundations laid down by the Tavistock Institute and U. Pennsylvania Social Systems Science (S3, called S-cubed) program, practically all of the original researchers are no longer with us.  Luminaries who have passed include Eric L. Trist (-1993), Fred E. Emery (-1997), and Russell L. Ackoff (-2009).  This does not mean that systems research has stopped.

One individual who participated in it all is David L. Hawk.

We have been continuously been collaborators ever since.  DLH served as the thesis advisor for Aalto University on my Open Innovation Learning research.

The recent revisiting of the Tavistock legacy and Eric Trist’s work, combined with the pandemic shutdown of face-to-face meetings has led us to change the format of Systems Thinking Ontario meetings.  Traditionally, these sessions have purposively been face-to-face meetings without electronic options.  Since we’ve been forced into web meetings, the changed dynamics of human interaction levels the playing field on presence and interaction.

Since I know DLH too well, I asked my friend and colleague Dan Eng to lead a conversation with him.  This was recorded, and is now available for viewing on Youtube as a 149-minute streaming web video.

Those who prefer to listen or watch while mobile can download video files.

Video H.264 MP4
August 10
(2h29m)
[20200810_ST-ON_DavidLHawk Tavistock-SocialSystemsScience-ActionLearning]
(WXGA 2101kbps 2.3GB) [on archive.org]

The digital audio originally in M4A format has also been transcoded to MP3.

Audio
August 10
(2h29m)
[20200810_ST-ON DavidLHawk Tavistock-SocialSystemsScience-ActionLearning.m4a]
(58MB)
20200810_ST-ON DavidLHawk Tavistock-SocialSystemsScience-ActionLearning.mp3]
(84MB)

Here is the original description for the Systems Thinking Ontario August 10, 2020, session.

— begin paste —

Tavistock, Social Systems Science, Action Learning

Organization studies in the systems sciences have a long history, from:

  • the post-WWII Tavistock Institute in the UK circa 1946-1966 (e.g. with Eric Trist and Fred Emery);
  • the Social Systems Science (S3) program circa 1964-1986 (e.g. with Russell Ackoff, Eric Trist, Hasan Ozbehkhan) and
  • the Action Learning Group at York University (Toronto) circa 1967-1989 (e.g. with Eric Trist, Rafael Ramirez, Gareth Morgan).

With decades of publications as a legacy, there are some individuals to knew many of the figures, first-hand.

With our August session convening over the Internet, we are honoured to welcome David L. Hawk to join us in conversation.

  • David Hawk was a professor at the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) from 1981 to 2010. His appointments included dual professorships to the School of Management and School of Architecture. He is (in)famous as Dean of the School of Management, 2005-2008.
  • In his educational history, David Hawk was at University of Pennsylvania from 1972 to 1979. After completing master’s degrees in architecture and city planning, he graduated with a Ph.D. in Social Systems Science, naming professors Russell Ackoff, Hasan Ozbehkhan and Eric Trist as his mentors.
  • Upon the 40th anniversary of his dissertation, David Hawk has written a new introduction and republished its contents as Too Early, Too Late, Now What? (See on AuthorHouse.com, on Amazon.ca , on Amazon.com, on GoogleBooks.ca, on GoogleBooks.com, and on Chapters.Indigo ).
  • David Hawk has taught at many universities globally (Stockholm School of Economics, Helsinki U. of Technology (now Aalto University), Tsinghau University) and consulted with multinational enterprises (IBM, Nokia, China Construction America). He now runs a corporate rehabilitation centre in Fairfield, Iowa.
  • Full disclosure: David Hawk has served as a guide for David Ing to the systems sciences community since first meeting at an Ackoff conference in 1999, and through ISSS meetings. He also served as thesis advisor on Open Innovation Learning, for Aalto University.

The web conference will be moderated by Dan Eng, one of the cofounders of the Systems Changes Learning Circle, and a former instructor at Humber College.

Participants are welcomed to continue the dialogue online at the Open Learning Commons.

Some recent blog posts on the legacy of the Tavistock Institute (in socio-psychological, socio-technical and socio-ecological systems perspectives) through to the Action Learning Group at York University have be written:

— end paste —

2 Comments

  • Hi David, thanks for posting the video. I actually listened to all of it, although it could/should have been better. I’m sorry. I was a bit down that day, which got a bit worse afterwards. Now I’m recovered (it was not the Trump virus) after a visit to the hospital.

    Note: What I said in the video to compare Parmenides and Heraclitus was EXACTLY WRONG. 100%. Parmenides, like most humans, dreamed of a state of changelessness and working hard to get other to believe in such, even if is the essence of the artificial. His argument was “If it changes then its not there anyway, so forget about it.” ha..ha.

    Heraclitus, like those few who want to make a difference to the human condition, believed in change as alignment with nature, in that what does not change is dead. Thus, why emphasize it?

    Sorry for being dumb, forgetful, not awake, or having temporarily become some kine of American follower of t Rump?


Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

  • RSS qoto.org/@daviding (Mastodon)

    • daviding: “Reporting on research-in-progress on Sciencing and Philosoph…” August 18, 2023
      Reporting on research-in-progress on Sciencing and Philosophizing on Threads in #SystemsThinking tracing history of #pragmatism of #EricTrist + #FredEEmery & #WestChurchman + #RussellAckoff. Web video with #GarySMetcalf after #InternationalSocietyForTheSystemsSciences meetinghttps://coevolving.com/blogs/index.php/archive/sciencing-philosophizing-st-on-2023-07-10/
    • daviding: “Philosophical criticism of RfPs by #CWestChurchman (one of t…” August 6, 2023
      Philosophical criticism of RfPs by #CWestChurchman (one of the luminaries of #SystemsThinking). > All planning begins with a problem; however, it should not be confined to the problem statement. Also, the beginning should not be a clear problem formulation, but rather should be an utterance of moral outrage. John Dewey once said that problems arise […]
    • daviding: “How does #SystemsThinking relate to #Pragmatism? Within #Ph…” July 9, 2023
      How does #SystemsThinking relate to #Pragmatism? Within #PhilosophyOfScience, #CWestChurchman and #RussellLAckoff continued the #experimentalism of #EdgarASinger to put nonrelativistic pragmatism at the core of systems thinking in an entanglement of facts and values. https://coevolving.com/blogs/index.php/archive/nonrelativistic-pragmatism-and-systems-thinking/
    • daviding: “For those who think that open standards can be easily added …” July 7, 2023
      For those who think that open standards can be easily added on after code had already shipped, there's an extensive case study on Microsoft Office and OOXML. Here's a fun question: how long did it take Microsoft to meet the specification that they themselves wrote?http://openinnovationlearning.com/online/
    • daviding: “Threads doesn't initially support ActivityPub open standard,…” July 7, 2023
      Threads doesn't initially support ActivityPub open standard, and is not open source. Adding ActivityPub support doesn't preclude withdrawal later.> Will Meta embrace-extend-extinguish the ActivityPub protocol?> There are comparisons to be made between Meta adopting ActivityPub for its new social media platform and Meta adopting XMPP for its Messenger service a decade ago. There was a […]
  • RSS on IngBrief

    • Introduction, “Systems Thinking: Selected Readings, volume 2”, edited by F. E. Emery (1981)
      The selection of readings in the “Introduction” to Systems Thinking: Selected Readings, volume 2, Penguin (1981), edited by Fred E. Emery, reflects a turn from 1969 when a general systems theory was more fully entertained, towards an urgency towards changes in the world that were present in 1981. Systems thinking was again emphasized in contrast […]
    • Introduction, “Systems Thinking: Selected Readings”, edited by F. E. Emery (1969)
      In reviewing the original introduction for Systems Thinking: Selected Readings in the 1969 Penguin paperback, there’s a few threads that I only recognize, many years later. The tables of contents (disambiguating various editions) were previously listed as 1969, 1981 Emery, System Thinking: Selected Readings. — begin paste — Introduction In the selection of papers for this […]
    • Concerns with the way systems thinking is used in evaluation | Michael C. Jackson, OBE | 2023-02-27
      In a recording of the debate between Michael Quinn Patton and Michael C. Jackson on “Systems Concepts in Evaluation”, Patton referenced four concepts published in the “Principles for effective use of systems thinking in evaluation” (2018) by the Systems in Evaluation Topical Interest Group (SETIG) of the American Evaluation Society. The four concepts are: (i) […]
    • Quality Criteria for Action Research | Herr, Anderson (2015)
      How might the quality of an action research initiative be evaluated? — begin paste — We have linked our five validity criteria (outcome, process, democratic, catalytic, and dialogic) to the goals of action research. Most traditions of action research agree on the following goals: (a) the generation of new knowledge, (b) the achievement of action-oriented […]
    • Western Union and the canton of Ticino, Switzerland
      After 90 minutes on phone and online chat with WesternUnion, the existence of the canton of Ticino in Switzerland is denied, so I can’t send money from Canada. TicinoTurismo should be unhappy. The IT developers at Western Union should be dissatisfied that customer support agents aren’t sending them legitimate bug reports I initially tried the […]
    • Aesthetics | Encyclopaedia Britannica | 15 edition
      Stephen C. Pepper was a contributor to the Encyclopaedia Britannica, 15th edition, on the entry for Aesthetics.
  • Recent Posts

  • Archives

  • RSS on daviding.com

    • 2023/08 Moments August 2023
      Catching up with family and friends, locally in Toronto, west to Iowa, and east to Nova Scotia
    • 2023/07 Moments July 2023
      Busy with family visits and celebrations in first half of month. Return to quiet time in second half of month.
    • 2023/06 Moments June 2023
      Enjoyed early summer in Toronto with multiple festivals, and made a quick trip to Vancouver to visit family
    • 2023/05 Moments May 2023
      Spring full of cultural and family activities.
    • 2023/04 Moments April 2023
      Sightseeing one day in Vilnius, then variable weather in spring in Toronto.
    • 2023/03 Moments March 2023
      Right ring finger in splint discouraged activities, yet last week of month saw flying through Vienna to an intensive research visit to Kaunas University of Technology in Lithuania.
  • RSS on Media Queue

    • 2021/06/17 Keekok Lee | Philosophy of Chinese Medicine 2
      Following the first day lecture on Philosophy of Chinese Medicine 1 for the Global University for Sustainability, Keekok Lee continued on a second day on some topics: * Anatomy as structure; physiology as function (and process); * Process ontology, and thing ontology; * Qi ju as qi-in-concentrating mode, and qi san as qi-in-dissipsating mode; and […]
    • 2021/06/16 Keekok Lee | Philosophy of Chinese Medicine 1
      The philosophy of science underlying Classical Chinese Medicine, in this lecture by Keekok Lee, provides insights into ways in which systems change may be approached, in a process ontology in contrast to the thing ontology underlying Western BioMedicine. Read more ›
    • 2021/02/02 To Understand This Era, You Need to Think in Systems | Zeynep Tufekci with Ezra Klein | New York Times
      In conversation, @zeynep with @ezraklein reveal authentic #SystemsThinking in (i) appreciating that “science” is constructed by human collectives, (ii) the west orients towards individual outcomes rather than population levels; and (iii) there’s an over-emphasis on problems of the moment, and…Read more ›
    • 2019/04/09 Art as a discipline of inquiry | Tim Ingold (web video)
      In the question-answer period after the lecture, #TimIngold proposes art as a discipline of inquiry, rather than ethnography. This refers to his thinking On Human Correspondence. — begin paste — [75m26s question] I am curious to know what art, or…Read more ›
    • 2019/10/16 | “Bubbles, Golden Ages, and Tech Revolutions” | Carlota Perez
      How might our society show value for the long term, over the short term? Could we think about taxation over time, asks @carlotaprzperez in an interview: 92% for 1 day; 80% within 1 month; 50%-60% tax for 1 year; zero tax for 10 years.Read more ›
    • 2020/07/13 “Making Growing Thinking” |Tim Ingold (web video)
      For the @ArchFoundation, #TimIngold distinguishes outcome-oriented making from process-oriented growing, revisiting #MartinHeidegger “Building Dwelling Thinking”. Organisms are made; artefacts grow. The distinction seems obvious, until you stop to ask what assumptions it contains, about the inside and outside of things…Read more ›
  • Meta

  • Creative Commons License
    This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License
    Theme modified from DevDmBootstrap4 by Danny Machal