John Pourdehnad
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
This article is orphaned as few or no other articles link to it. Please help introduce links in articles on related topics. (May 2008) |
John Pourdehnad has a Ph.D. in Social Systems Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia and over 30 years of experience in research, education, consulting, and management with organizations in both developing and industrialized countries. Particular strengths are ability to communicate in the intellectual/conceptual and operational world, global mindset and interpersonal skills.
Contents |
[edit] Qualifications
Areas of expertise include:
- Research - Conducted both theoretical and applied research. Recent
activities include: Co-PI for industry-sponsored research in human computer interface design; Co-PI for university-sponsored research in game simulator development, addressing urban youth obesity problem.
- Education - Designed and conducted educational courses and seminars in
systems thinking, organizational transformation and IT, organizational learning and knowledge management, and project management for degree and non-degree programs. Supervised numerous student design projects and Ph. D theses. Current courses taught: Project Management, Systems Thinking, Organizational Learning and Knowledge Management and Strategic Thinking.
- Consulting - Since 1979, mostly as associate of Russell Ackoff, worked in
broad range of industries including aerospace, chemicals, computer equipment, data services and software, electronics, energy, food and beverages, healthcare, hospitality, industrial equipment, automotive, insurance, metals, mining, pharmaceuticals, telecommunications, utilities, and transportation.
- Management - Since 2000, as associate director of the Ackoff Center for
Advancement of Systems Approaches at the University of Pennsylvania, managed daily activities of Center, including overseeing Internet presence via website design and weblog management. Recently coorganized two successful conferences: "Systems Approach to Terrorism" and "Third International Conference on Systems Thinking in Management."
[edit] Education
John graduates in 1971 from the Brunel University, Uxbridge, Middlesex, England as B.S. in Mechanical/Production Engineering.
[edit] Career
In 1971 he starts his career in British Leyland, Leyland, Lancashire, England as Design Engineer. After one year he joins General Industrial Group in Teheran, Iran as Vice-President responsible for Manufacturing. After that John is Senior Consultant and project Manager in the Industrial Management Institute of Iran. For short period he goes back to the practical experience in 1978-1979 as a President of Systems Development Company (Micro-Data), Teheran. In 1980 he becomes a System Research Associate and Project Manager in the Busch Center of The Wharton School in the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia. Since 2000 until now he is an Adjunct Professor and Associate Director of the Ackoff Center for Advancement of Systems Approaches (A-CASA) which is a part of the Department of Electrical and Systems Engineering in the same university.
[edit] Current & Recent Engagements
Anheauser-Busch Companies, Chrysler Corporation, Dupont, Eastman Kodak, Imperial Oil Limited (Canada), Martin Marietta, Super Fresh Food Markets, World Wide technology, Briggs and Stratton Corporation, General Motors Corporation, Analog Devices, Inc., Aetna Insurance Company, Ford Motor Company, Northern Telecom, University of Pennsylvania (School of Veterinary Medicine), University of Pennsylvania (Dental School), Compania Antarctica Paulista (Brazil), The White House (Communications Agency and the Military Office), Mount Carmel Health, Marriott Corporation, Hoechst-Roussel Pharmaceuticals Inc., Registry Magic, PanCanadian Petroleum Company (EnCana), Canadian Pacific Leadership Institute, Express Scripts, North Coast Energy, Inc., Johns Hopkins University Health Systems, McKesson Health Corporation, University of Pennsylvania (UCKIZ Economic Development Planning), IDS Scheer (North America), The Philadelphia Singers, Shell Canada.
[edit] Additional professional activities
He is a co-founder and obtaining equity financing for a multi-million dollar high technology communications venture, which designed, manufactured and marketed data security hardware and software products. John raised $1,000,000 in funding for the establishment of A-CASA (from General Motors, Anheuser – Busch and Analog Devices). He is also a Member of the Editorial Board, Systems Research and Behavioral Science Journal, a John Wiley Publication and Member of the Academy of Management.
John Pourdehnad is a honorary member of the Society for Organizational Excellence.
[edit] Publications
- Co-edited the book Internal Markets: Bringing the Power of Free Enterprise Inside Organizations. Published by John Wiley & Sons, 1993.
- “From Downsizing to Rightsizing to Selfsizing,” (with William Halal and Erwin Rausch), Total Quality Review, July/August 1995.
- “The Irresponsibility and Ineffectiveness of Downsizing,” (with Russell L. Ackoff, Systems Practice, Vol. 10, No.1 1997.
- “What Drives Organizational Learning at GM?” (with Wendy Coles), Handbook of Business Strategy, Faulkner & Gray, 1999.
- “Building Corporate ‘Black Boxes’: A Different Perspective on Organizational Learning.” Proceedings, International Conference on Systems Thinking in Management, Deakin University, Geelong, Victoria, Australia, November 2000.
- “Systems Approach to Knowledge Development for Creating New Products and Services,” (with Patrick Robinson), Systems Research and Behavioral Science Journal, A Wiley Publication, Vol 18, Issue 1, January/February 2001, Pages: 29-40.
- “On Misdirected Systems”, (with Russell L. Ackoff), Keynote speech presented at the 44th Annual Conference of The International Society for the Systems Sciences. Toronto, July 2000, Systems Research and Behavioral Science Journal, Vol 18, Issue 3, May/June 2001, Pages: 199-205.
- “Beyond Knowledge Management,” (with Vince Barabba and Russell Ackoff), The Strategic Management of Intellectual Capital and Organizational Knowledge: A Collection of Readings, Oxford University Press, New York, 2002.
- “Redesigning the Academy of Vocal Arts (AVA),” (with Adele Hebb), Systems Research and Behavioral Science Journal, Vol 19, Issue 4, to be published by Wiley Publication, New York, 2002.
- “Re-Creating the Capital Project: A Social Systemic Approach,” (with Mark Steele), Proceedings, the 2nd International Conference on Systems Thinking in Management, April, 2002, University of Salford, Salford, UK.
- “On Misdirecting Management,” (with Vince Barabba and Russell Ackoff), Strategy & Leadership, Emerald/MCB Journals, New York, September/October, 2002.
- “System Dynamics and Intelligent Agent-Based Simulation: Where is the Synergy?” (with Kambiz Maani and Habib Sedehi), Proceedings for the Twentieth International Conference of the System Dynamics Society, July 28 – August 1, 2002, Palermo, Italy.
- “Systems Thinking and Its Implications in Organizational Transformation,” (with Gnana Bharathy), Proceedings for the 3rd International Conference on Systems Thinking in Management, May, 2004, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA.
- “User Interface Design -- An Experimental Study,” (with Barry Silverman et al), Proceedings for the American Society For Cybernetics (ASC) 2005 Conference. October 2005, The George Washington University, Washington, D.C.
- ”Social Influence And Climate Change: Entertainment And Advertising.” Instruments For Exploring The Training And Aesthetic Dimensions Of Edutainment: Case of the Heart Sense Game. (with Barry Silverman at al.), Technical Report. 2005, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA.
- “Social Systems Simulation For Group Learning: Adding Realism To Modeling,” (with Gnana Bharathy et al.) proceedings for the Systems Thinking and Complexity Science. In Systems Thinking and Complexity Science: Insights for Action. A Volume in ISCE Publishing’s Complex Systems Series. 2006 ISCE Publishing, Mansfield, MA.
- “Unlearning/Learning Organizations – The Role of Mindset,” (with Bruce Warren, Maureen Wright and John Mairano), Proceedings of the 50th Annual Meeting of the International Society for the Systems Sciences. ISSS 2006 Papers, Sonoma State University, Sonoma, CA
- “Individual Consumer Differences and Design Implications for Web-Based Decision Support,” (with Barry Silverman et al.), Ackoff Center for the Advancement of Systems Approaches (ACASA), 2006, University of Pennsylvania. Submitted for Publication to Erg Soc. J of Behavior and Info Tech.
- “Synthetic (Integrative) Project Management,” to be published in the Handbook of Business Strategy, 2007, Emerald Publications, New York, NY.
[edit] External links
- ACASA Ackoff Collaboratory for Advancement of the Systems Approach, center for the vanguard of systems approaches, since July 2000.
- Ackoff Center WeblogProf. John Pourdehnad is a co-author of the blog.
- University of Pennsylvania The homepage of prof. Pouderhnad at the University of Pennsylvania
- Profile at Amazon Prof. Pourdehnad's reviews of books at Amazon.
