What is the role of a system?

A system is a formalised methodology or approach for achieving a pre-defined purpose. If you dont have a purpose, then you have no way of establishing the suitability of the system. The purpose is the key value but it is not the only one. There is a whole context in which we set values, and most importantly, if we are talking about a human system, then we are talking about a hierarchy of values. So we need to factor in all those values that help humans achieve their goals, as well as ameliorating those factors that can frustrate the achievement of goals.

That is not to say that systems need to have a human element to them, but in the bigger picture, if we are talking about systems that serve humans, or if we are talking about systems which we would want to serve humanity, then we need to consider the human context.
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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com