Information Technology IMS5024 Information Systems Modelling Human Activity modelling

School of Information Management & Systems 9.2 Content Soft Systems Methodology

School of Information Management & Systems 9.3 Why consider human behaviour? Started with participation History of participation - refer back to Hirschheim et al. Early ISD payed lip service to participation System technically viable – but fails because?

School of Information Management & Systems 9.4 History of ISD methodologies GenerationPrinciple management and organisational issues Formal life-cycle approaches Control of SDLC; guidance through standardization Structured approaches Productivity, better maintainable systems, control over analyst/programmer Prototyping and evolutionary approaches Speed and Flexibility, overcome communication gap, right kind of system instead of getting system right

School of Information Management & Systems 9.5 History of ISD methodologies(2) GenerationPrinciple management and organisational issues Socio-technical, participatory approaches Control of ISD by users through participation; conflict management; joint optimisation Sense-making and problem formulation approaches Multiple perspectives in problem framing; software development as social reality construction

School of Information Management & Systems 9.6 History of ISD methodologies(3) GenerationPrinciple management and organisational issues Trade-Union led approaches Labour/ management conflict; workers rights; industrial democracy Emancipator approaches Improve communication; furthering emancipatory effects of ISD

School of Information Management & Systems 9.7 Answers to these problems: More than interviews HCI End user computing JAD and JRP Prototyping

School of Information Management & Systems 9.8 Three levels of participation: Consultative – lowest level Representative – design group, equal say Consensus- involve all user department staff, user driven

School of Information Management & Systems 9.9 Human Activity modelling view of ISD: Conventional Human-oriented after Fig 7.1 Avison & Fitzgerald

School of Information Management & Systems 9.10 Soft Systems Methodology (always abbreviated to SSM) came from the failure of systems engineering to solve management problems applies systems thinking to messy problems not a development methodology

School of Information Management & Systems 9.11 rationale for SSM humans attribute meaning to what they experience and observe we form intentions and take action based on the meanings we derive new experiences can change the meaning we attribute this is called learning

School of Information Management & Systems 9.12 application of SSM people take purposeful action using Information Systems as tools if analysts understand their intentions we can build better tools SSM brings rigour to the process of understanding

the basic shape of SSM Checkland and Scholes (1990) p29

School of Information Management & Systems 9.14 the process of doing SSM a situation is interpreted by some as being a problem which they want to fix the situation is a product of history it has a cultural dimension and a logic- based dimension the one informs the other so that agreed action is both culturally feasible and systemically desirable

School of Information Management & Systems 9.15 activities in an SSM study identify and engage the problem situation express the problem situation define “systems” which might be relevant model the relevant systems compare them with the real world and discuss identify changes agreed to be feasible and desirable take action to change the situation

School of Information Management & Systems 9.16 the cultural enquiry understand the situation record your understanding diagrammatically analyse the intervention identify the roles being played place the roles in their social context try to identify the political dimension in the problem situation

School of Information Management & Systems 9.17 understanding the situation Rich Picture Diagram interested parties alliances feuds values constraints perceptions documents the people-related issues

School of Information Management & Systems 9.18 Rich Picture Diagrams you don’t have to be an artist! it would take too many words to express shows complexity better than linear prose for the use of the analyst alone; not a communication tool refer: Lewis, Avison & Wood-Harper, Avison & Fitzgerald

Rich Picture Diagram Checkland and Scholes (1990) p47

School of Information Management & Systems 9.20 RPD examples Checkland and Scholes (1990) figures 2.13, 2.14 pp46-47 Avison and Fitzgerald (1995) figure 4.2 p112 Lewis P.J in EJIS 1,5 pp

School of Information Management & Systems 9.21 Analysis One analysis of the intervention itself who is the client? who is the would-be problem solver? who is the problem owner?

School of Information Management & Systems 9.22 Analysis Two roles norms values the interaction of these three determines the social fabric of the situation

Analysis Two Checkland and Scholes (1990) p49

School of Information Management & Systems 9.24 Analysis Three who has power in the situation? how is it manifest? who can you believe? you can’t ask straight questions what do you do when they wont tell you? can the politics ruin the whole exercise?

School of Information Management & Systems 9.25 Content Rich pictures Root definitions Conceptual models SSM Others (Multiview, Ethics) Place in ISD Evaluation of Human Activity modelling

School of Information Management & Systems 9.26 Reading for next week Checkland and Scholes Chapter 2, pp Lewis, P European Journal of Information Systems 1, 5, pp Davies, L Journal of Applied Systems Analysis 15, 1, pp31-36

School of Information Management & Systems 9.27 like natural systems and designed systems, they are useful descriptors different from the actions which people undertake in life a conceptual rather than a descriptive model but, a conceptual model from somebody’s point of view human activity systems

School of Information Management & Systems 9.28 Relevant Systems a system to… ….perfectly perform some function each person involved will have a point of view on what is the perfect performance

School of Information Management & Systems 9.29 selecting relevant systems no system is inherently relevant to a given problem situation Primary Task system Issue-based systems metaphors can help conceptualise systems

School of Information Management & Systems 9.30 Relevant system a system (in the philosophical sense) that is helpful for understanding a real-world situation scope / boundary defined purpose input - transformation - output consistent / dependable it is a human activity system

School of Information Management & Systems 9.31 naming relevant systems a Root Definition (the name) expresses the essence of a particular relevant system It is a transformation from input to output “A system to do X by means of Y in order to achieve Z” best done by considering the elements of the CATWOE mnemonic

School of Information Management & Systems 9.32 CATWOE mnemonic C ustomers A ctors T ransformation W eltanschauung O wners E nvironment The Core issues

School of Information Management & Systems 9.33 Relevant system / Root Definition There may be many for any one real world situation One primary task Root Definition Many issue-based task Root Definitions

School of Information Management & Systems 9.34 conceptual models the minimum set of activities necessary to undertake the transformation based on logical contingency may be hierarchically decomposed represented as process bubbles linked by contingency arrows includes monitoring and control

School of Information Management & Systems 9.35 conceptual model structure Do this activity first 1 Then you can do this activity 3 Only do this after the other activities 4 Must do this before the last activity 2 Monitor Define performance criteria Take control action

School of Information Management & Systems 9.36 what use is the model? it is an ideal type relevant to the problem it is neither valid nor invalid, only defensible or indefensible in terms of the problem Used to start a discussion about the model and its relevance to the problem Does this model suggest some action for improvement of the problem situation?

School of Information Management & Systems 9.37 achieving results several methods of testing the models search for agreement not compromise the whole problem wont be “solved” make the agreed changes reflect on their outcome do the whole process over again until agreement to finish

comparison matrix from Checkland & Scholes (1990) p43

School of Information Management & Systems 9.39 Advantages/ Benefits of Human Activity modelling Include different perspectives on a problem situation Compare reality with the conceptual model Participation of affected people essential Change is a central element of the process Others??

School of Information Management & Systems 9.40 Disadvantages of Human Activity modelling Only useable in soft problems Can take a long time to reach consensus Some managers see this as silly Not well used Others??

School of Information Management & Systems 9.41 References Checkland and Scholes (1990) Soft Systems Methodology in Action. John Wiley & Sons Avison and Fitzgerald (2003) Information Systems Development. 3 rd edn. McGraw- Hill Stowell (1995) Information Systems Provision. McGraw-Hill.