Assessment 1A: MGT603 Systems Thinking Peer Paper Critique

This assignment provides a critical analysis of two peer papers focusing on the application of systems thinking to address business challenges. The first paper, by Pranay Mishra, is evaluated for its understanding of systems thinking, particularly its incorporation of solutions and recommendations, but is critiqued for the improper implementation of the CATWOE model and the oversimplified rich picture. The second paper, anonymously written, is praised for its professional writing but criticized for lacking the application of key systems thinking tools like the CATWOE model and rich picture, and for providing vague solutions. The critique highlights the importance of holistic problem-solving approaches and the effective use of systems thinking methodologies in providing practical and insightful solutions.

Running head: PEER PAPER CRITIQUE
PEER PAPER CRITIQUE
Name of the Student
Author note

1PEER PAPER CRITIQUE
The first peer reviewed paper that is to be analyzed and critiqued is by Pranay Mishra.
The paper has been overall very good in terms of addressing the key issue. The
recommendation that has been provided by the student in the context of systems thinking
indicates the fact that the concept has been well understood by him, especially because of the
fact that he has incorporated some solutions that look compelling. Also, it can be understood
from the paper that the solution that has been provided by the student ensures that he has
solely addressed the problem of the research.
However, there have been a few lags in the paper. First of all, the CATWOE model
has not been implemented properly. CATWOE model is the virtual core for systems thinking.
Since systems thinking requires the solution of complex problems, it is important to get a
view of the problem in a holistic manner, to get to the root definition of the problem. This is
why CATWOE model is so important but it has not been implemented in the paper.
Furthermore, in the rich picture, it shows that monetary incentives give way to increase in the
number of customers. This cannot be the case. The factor of employee motivation as a result
of the monetary incentives has been completely ignored in the paper. Furthermore, the rich
picture looks very simple to say the least, and could have included different perspectives of
the problem to give a holistic view of the problem and how that could be solved.
The next paper to be critiqued is an anonymous one. First of all, the paper has been
written in a very professional manner, with little to no grammatical errors. However, it has t
be noted in this regard that the main thing that matters in this context is that of the knowledge
in the field of systems thinking. The paper provides some concepts about the application of
systems thinking tools and models, such as the rich picture and CATWOE model. The
identification of the problem itself has been very clear, and the explanation of the problem
further breaks it down for better understanding.

2PEER PAPER CRITIQUE
However, there has been a problem in applying soft systems methodology. Neither
does the paper incorporate CATWOE model, nor does it include a rich picture. This makes
the paper look like unrelated to the topic of systems thinking. This gives a general look to the
paper in a lot of ways. While there has been a very in depth explanation of how systems
thinking can solve the problem of the distribution channel that the company has been facing,
there has been little to no demonstration on how that could be achieved. As a result, the
solution that has been provided by the author is a vague one. The problem has not been
provided from a holistic view, and therefore, there is little linkage between the problem and
the proposed solution that has been provided.