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System Dynamics for Business Policy >> Content Detail



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We have noted the days for which the articles and cases should be prepared (before the class in which we discuss them). The table below also indicates which sections of the text you should be sure to read to learn the material you will need to do the assignments, and which sections you can skim ('skim' ≠ 'skip').

"BD" refers to the course textbook: Amazon logo Sterman, J. Business Dynamics: Systems Thinking and Modeling for a Complex World. Irwin/McGraw Hill, 2000. ISBN 0-07-238915-X (Text and CD-ROM); see the textbook's web site for information about the book, including software models.


LEC #TOPICSREADINGS
1Introduction and Overview: Purpose, Tools and Concepts of System DynamicsBusiness Dynamics [BD], Ch. 1
2System Dynamics Tools Part 1: Problem Definition and Model PurposeBD, Ch. 3, Ch. 4
3System Dynamics Tools Part 2: Building Theory with Causal Loop DiagramsBD, Ch. 5 (Skim Sections 5.4, 5.6)
4System Dynamics Tools Part 3: Mapping the Stock and Flow Structure of SystemsBD, Ch. 6 (Skim Sections 6.2.7, 6.2.8, 6.2.9, 6.3.4, 6.3.6)
5System Dynamics Tools Part 4: Dynamics of Stocks and FlowsBD, Ch. 7
6System Dynamics Tools Part 5: Linking Feedback with Stock and Flow StructureBD, Sections 8.1-8.4
7System Dynamics Tools Part 6: Linking Feedback with Stock and Flow Structure (continued)BD, Ch. 8.5 to end
8Growth Strategies Part 1: Modeling Innovation Diffusion and the Growth of New ProductsBD, Ch. 9.1 (Skim 9.1.2, 9.1.3); 9.2, 9.3 (Skim Sections 9.3.5 to end)
9Growth Strategies Part 2: Network Externalities, Complementarities, and Path DependenceBD, Ch. 10 (Skim Section 10.2)
10Growth Strategies Part 3: Modeling the Evolution of New Medical TechnologiesPlease Prepare: Homer, Jack, edited by J. Sterman. The Evolution of a Radical New Technology: The Implantable Cardiac Pacemaker. MIT Sloan School of Management, 1996/1984.
11Interactions of Operations, Strategy, and Human Resource Policy: People ExpressPlease Prepare: Schlesinger, Leonard A., and Debra Whitestone. People Express (A). Boston, MA: Harvard Business Publishing, 2000. Case No. 9-483-103.
12Guest Lecture: Business Dynamics at General Motors (Nick Pudar, Mark Paich)Please Prepare: Christensen, Clayton M., and Erik A. Roth. OnStar: Not Your Father's General Motors. Boston, MA: Harvard Business Publishing, 2002. Case No. 9-602-081.
13Managing Hyper Growth: Lessons from People Express.

End of 15.871
14System Dynamics in Action: Re-engineering the Supply Chain in a High-Velocity IndustryBD, Ch. 11 (Skim Sections 11.6, 11.7)
15Managing Instability Part 1: Formulating and Testing Robust Models of Business ProcessesBD, Sections 13.1, 13.2.1-13.2.7, 13.3 and 13.4
16Managing Instability Part 2: The Supply Line and Supply ChainsBD, Sections 14.1, 17.1, 17.2 and 17.3
17Managing Instability Part 3: Forecasting and Feedback: Bounded Rationality or Rational Expectations?BD, Ch. 16
18Managing Instability Part 4: Business Cycles: Real Estate and Oil TankersBD, Sections 17.4 and 17.5
19Guest Lecture: Jay W. ForresterForrester, Jay W. From the Ranch to System Dynamics: An Autobiography. In Management Laureates: A Collection of Autobiographical Essays. Edited by Arthur G. Bedeian. Vol. 1 of 3. Greenwich, CT: JAI Press, 1992.
20System Dynamics in Action: The Dynamics of Project Management-On Time and Under BudgetBD, Sections 2.3 and 6.3.4
21System Dynamics in Action: Applications of System Dynamics to Environmental and Public Policy IssuesMeadows, D. H., D. L. Meadows, J. Randers, and W.W. Behrens, III. Groping in the Dark: The First Decade of Global Modeling. New York, N.Y.: Wiley, 1974. (Excerpts)

Meadows, Donella H., and Donella Meadows. The Global Citizen. Island Press, 1991. (Selections)
22System Dynamics in Action: Process Improvement in the Semiconductor IndustryPlease Prepare: Kaplan, Robert S. Analog Devices, Inc.: The Half-Life System. Boston, MA: Harvard Business Publishing, 1993. Case No. 9-190-061.

Stata, Ray. Organizational Learning: The Key to Management Innovation. Boston, MA: Sloan Management Review, Spring 1989.
23Guest Lecture: System Dynamics in Action - Jim Lyneis
24System Dynamics in Action: The Implementation Challenge Conclusion: How to Keep Learning, Follow-up Resources, Career Opportunities, Course EvaluationsBD, Ch. 22

 








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