Systems Thinking and Action Research for Innovation introduces the Process Oriented Holonic (PrOH) Modelling Methodology, a novel systems thinking methodology, combining academic rigour with practical guidance for conducting action research in organisations. It equips readers to conduct high-impact research and drive systemic transformation.
Readers will gain a comprehensive understanding of systems thinking and action research, with a focus on the innovative PrOH Modelling Methodology. This book provides detailed practical rules and guidelines, enabling readers to apply the PrOH Modelling Methodology effectively in action research projects. Engaging exercises and mini tests throughout the text help reinforce learning, while visually striking diagrams illustrate key concepts in an accessible manner. Real-world case studies from industries such as manufacturing, supply chain, legal and public services demonstrate the practical application of PrOH Models, offering insights into systemic success factors, process improvements and innovations. Reflections on theory link practice to foundational principles, ensuring readers develop theoretical, methodological and practical expertise. Additionally, the book explores advanced topics such as building holarchies, gamification and the future of holonic thinking, making it a definitive systems thinking and action research guide for academics and practitioners alike.
This book is intended for postgraduate students, doctoral researchers and management consultants specialising in organisational change, technical innovation and process improvement.
Additional resources are available from an author-maintained companion website dedicated to PrOH Modelling: https://prohmodel.org/
Table of Contents:
Introduction. Part I A Short Guide to Systems Thinking and Action Research Chapter 1 The Essentials of Systems Thinking. Chapter 2 The Action Research Paradigm. Part II The PrOH Modelling Methodology Chapter 3 Rationale for Why the PrOH Modelling Methodology is Needed. Chapter 4 The PrOH Modelling Methodology: How to Construct a Single PrOH Model. Chapter 5 The PrOH Modelling Methodology: Building Sets of PrOH Models as Holarchies. Part III Cases Chapter 6 Case 1: GMRDSL’s SRL Factory – A Strategic Model: Part 1. Chapter 7 Case 2: Microcab: Upscaling Supply Chains for the Manufacture of Electric Vehicles. Chapter 8 Case 3: Chiltern Railways: Improving Passenger Information during Disruptions for a Train Operating Company. Chapter 9 Case 4: GMRDSL Holarchy of PrOH Models – Enrichment from Strategic Level to Tactical Level: Part 2. Chapter 10 Case 5: Metal Assemblies Ltd (MAL): Abstraction from Tactical to Strategic Level PrOH Model and Improving Leanness and Productivity in Automotive Manufacturing. Chapter 11 Case 6: Law Service – Higgs LLP: Transforming Legal Services for Greater Efficiency. Chapter 12 Case 7: Quality Management: SigmaPro. Chapter 13 Case 8: Reassessing a University School’s Portfolio Delivery. Part IV Reflection and Future Research Chapter 14 Reflections on over 25 Years of using the PrOH Modelling Methodology in Action Research. Chapter 15 Your Journey as an Action Researcher while Using Systems Thinking
About the Author :
Ben Clegg is Professor of Operations Management and Systems Thinking and Founder of the PrOH Modelling Methodology. His research has received millions of pounds of funding from industry and government that has recently focused on the digitalisation of small-to-medium sized organisations. He has previously worked with larger international companies and their supply chains to improve lean six sigma, concurrent engineering, enterprise management, service delivery and technical innovation. He specialises in MBA teaching and supervising researchers. He has 100+ publications including articles in top journals; he is the co-author of a leading textbook on Operations Management. He has been a Visiting Scholar at Stanford University and a European Operations Management Association (EurOMA) committee member. He is Advance-HE Fellow, Chartered Engineer and Fellow of the Institute of Engineering and Technology (IET). He has been Associate Dean for Business Engagement and Head of Department at Aston Business School. He is Editor-in-Chief of the Systems journal.
Krishna Chaitanya Balthu is Lecturer in Operations Management and Systems Thinking. His work focuses on applying systems thinking to design and implement change in organisations. He spent over a decade as a practitioner, leading process improvement and change initiatives across knowledge-intensive firms. Drawing on this industrial experience, Krishna has led industry-academia collaboration projects that bridge research and practice. He predominantly works on funded projects enabling organisations to adopt digital technologies, circular economy principles and systemic transformation using participatory approaches such as the PrOH Modelling Methodology. He has applied PrOH Modelling across diverse industrial contexts, enhancing and extending its application to deliver measurable impact. This body of work has featured in leading management journals and practitioner magazines. He is also actively involved in transnational education and capacity-building initiatives with India and Kenya, building collaborative learning and research partnerships. His teaching portfolio includes courses on Systems Thinking, Management Consultancy and Business Model Innovation.
Review :
It's clear to me that pursuing action research is the best way to advance systems thinking and practice. This book is a significant step forward in that regard bringing together as it does systems theory, methodological practice and case studies.
Professor Mike C Jackson OBE, Emeritus Professor, University of Hull
Research with impact is challenging to do, this book shows a way to do this. It gives a detailed methodology and techniques, show how to abduct to theory and illustrates its narrative with beautiful diagrams from real cases.
Professor Janet Godsell, Professor, Loughborough University
This book is highly recommended for its holistic and structured approach to understanding and improving organisational processes as dynamic, interrelated systems that drive sustainable performance. Although systems thinking underpins change it is difficult to practice; this book achieves this with gravitas.
Professor Umit Bititci, Emeritus Professor, Herriot Watt University
Action research is about accessing meaning through rigorous attention to how issues are constructed, how actions are planned, implemented, and evaluated, and how learning captured informs practical and theoretical knowledge; it can benefit from the scholarly application of a well-defined methodology as presented in this book.
Professor Paul Coughlan, Professor, Trinity College Dublin
