"In one of my favorite books, Systemantics: How Systems Work and Especially How They Fail, John Gall (1977) warns against the rising tide of “systemism” — “the state of mindless belief in systems; the belief that systems can be made to function to achieve desired goals.” Gall’s point is that “the fundamental problem does not lie in any particular system but rather in systems as such.” These systems become the goal rather than the means to a goal. Adherents of these “systemisms” would argue that implementing these programs should not result in losing track of the primary goal (results rather than process). But Gall points out how this subversion becomes inevitable through two of his axioms: 1) “Systems Tend to Expand to Fill the Known Universe” and 2) “Systems Tend to Oppose Their Own Proper Functions, Especially in Connection with the Phenomenon of ‘Administrative Encirclement’ ”(Gall 1977)."
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Academics from the United StatesNon-fiction authors from the United StatesYale University alumniSystems scientistsPhysicians from Minnesota
Original Language: English
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Jim Highsmith (2004) Agile Project Management: Creating Innovative Products.. p. 33
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/John_Gall
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John Gall
John Gall (September 18, 1925 - December 15, 2014) was an American pediatrician, known for his 1975 book General systemantics.
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