CYBERNETIC LOOPS FOR BUSINESS GOAL CONTROL

摘要

Different methods for systems analysis and design contain an activity where the requirements of the system are identified. These requirements are based on goals for the system that are built on business goals. The business goals are related to business processes. Such processes are value added processes, that is they are supposed to create a value for the customer, a value that the customer is willing to pay for. The opinion of what is of value differs between different situations and cultures. The vendor and the customer may therefore have different views on what is of value. When the vendor describes the value of his products, for example through marketing activities, he must make certain that the customers appreciate the products in the same way as their advantages are marketed. To evaluate market reactions on different activities to see if the business goals are reached is a most dynamic activity. The goal analysis however, is a static activity in most systems analysis methods, where the goals are identified and will then guide the system developer through the process of designing the system. In such cases there is no further analysis of how a goal control process could be created, that is how feedback could be taken into the system to secure that the system guides the business towards the goal in question. This paper presents a method where a systems science perspective has been used to create cybernetic loops to take care of feedback from different activities. It is thus possible to introduce processes that can modify present activities or create new activities in order to guide the business towards the goal. The scope of the method is to create a control system by using cybernetic principles through feedback loops. The loops should contain considerations about what to measure, what to control, which activities to perform and the effects of these activities. The effects can then be measured again and a new turn in the loop can be run through. This method will create a dynamic view of goal analysis which enhances the efficiency of the system and increases the possibilities for the business to reach the goal. Some models are presented in the paper that describe the cybernetic loop and how the loop can be integrated into the information system. The technique described in this paper has been tested on about 200 university students with a very good result. It is possible to introduce this simple method with little effort and gain an understanding of how cybernetic loops can be used to create a better understanding of the dynamics of goal control.