Michael Christopher Jackson OBE (born 1951) is a British systems scientist, consultant and Emeritus Professor of Management Systems and former Dean of

Hull University , mottoeng = Bearing the Torch f learning, established = 1927 – University College Hull1954 – university status , type = Public , endowment = £18.8 million (2016) , budget = £190 million ...

Business School, known for his work in the field of systems thinking and management.

Biography

Jackson studied

Politics Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that stud ...

, Philosophy and

Economics Economics () is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interactions of economic agents and how economies work. Microeconomics analyzes ...

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to th ...

from 1970 to 1973, where he received his PPE. After spending 4 years in the civil service, he received his MA in Systems in Management at the Lancaster University in 1978. Jackson spent his academic life teaching at the Lancaster University, the

University of Warwick , mottoeng = Mind moves matter , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £7.0 million (2021) , budget = £698.2 million (2020� ...

, the

University of Lincoln , mottoeng = Freedom through wisdom , established = 1861 – Hull School of Art1905 – Endsleigh College1976 – Hull College1992 – University of Humberside1996 – University of Lincolnshire and Humberside2001 � ...

and the

, appointed Professor of Management Systems in Hull from 1989 to May 2012.Emeritus Professor Mike C Jackson
at the Hull University Business School, retrieved Oct 2014. He was Visiting Professor at the Indian Institute of Technology (New Delhi) and Honorary Professor at the Universidad Ricardo Palma, Lima, Peru. In 1997 he was an Erskine Scholar at the University of Canterbury, New Zealand. Jackson is a past President of the UK Systems Society, of the

International Federation for Systems Research The International Federation for Systems Research (IFSR) is an international federation for global and local societies in the field of systems science. This federation is a non-profit, scientific and educational agency founded in 1980, and constitu ...

from 1996 to 2000, and of the International Society for the Systems Sciences in 2001. He has also served on the Council of the

Operational Research Society The Operational Research Society (ORS), also known as The OR Society, is an international learned society in the field of operational research (OR), with more than 3,100 members (2021). It has its headquarters in Birmingham, England. History The ...

. He is a Fellow of the British Computer Society, the Chartered Management Institute, the

Cybernetics Society The Cybernetics Society is a UK-based learned society that exists to promote the understanding of Cybernetics. The core activity of the Cybernetics Society is the organization and facilitation of scientific meetings, conferences, and social events ...

and the Operational Research Society. Jackson is Editor-in-chief of the journal '' Systems Research and Behavioral Science'', published by John Wiley, and he is on the editorial board of 5 other journals. He has delivered plenary addresses at numerous international conferences, and has undertaken many consultancy engagements with outside organisations, both commercial and non-profit. In 2009, his work was honored from the

Hellenic Society for Systemic Studies The Hellenic Society for Systemic Studies ( el, Ελληνική Εταιρεία Συστημικών Μελετών, ΕΕΣΜ) is a scientific non-profit society that was established in 2003. It is a member of the International Society for t ...

with their most prestigious

Medal A medal or medallion is a small portable artistic object, a thin disc, normally of metal, carrying a design, usually on both sides. They typically have a commemorative purpose of some kind, and many are presented as awards. They may be int ...

. He was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2011 New Year Honours for services to higher education and business. In 2017 he received the Beale Medal of the UK Operational Research Society for ‘an outstanding lifetime achievement in the philosophy, methodology or practice of OR’.

Work

Jackson's teaching and research interests are Systems thinking, Organizational cybernetics,

Creative problem solving Creative problem-solving (CPS) is the mental process of searching for an original and previously unknown solution to a problem. To qualify, the solution must be novel and reached independently. The creative problem-solving process was originally de ...

Critical systems thinking Critical systems thinking (CST) is a systems approach designed to aid decision-makers, and other stakeholders, improve complex problem situations that cross departmental and, often, organizational boundaries. CST sees systems thinking as essential ...

Management science Management science (or managerial science) is a wide and interdisciplinary study of solving complex problems and making strategic decisions as it pertains to institutions, corporations, governments and other types of organizational entities. It is ...

and Systems science.

Publications

Jackson has written 5 books, edited 6 others and has published over 70 articles in refereed journals,including Journal of Management Studies, Omega, Journal of the Operational Research Society, Systems Research, Systems Practice, SCOS, Journal of Information Systems, International Journal of General Systems, International Journal of Information Management, Kybernetes, System Dynamics Review, Organization. Books: * 1991, ''Systems Methodology for the Management Sciences''. * 1991, '' Creative Problem Solving: Total Systems Intervention'', with Robert L. Flood, Wiley. 268 p. * 2000, ''Systems Approaches to Management'', London: Springer 465 p. * 2003, ''Systems Thinking: Creative Holism for Managers'', Wiley. * 2019, ''Critical Systems Thinking and the Management of Complexity'', Wiley. Articles, a selection: * 1993, with Robert L. Flood, "Critical Systems Thinking", in: ''Organization Studies'' Vol 14, p. 613.

Notes and references

External links

Emeritus Professor Mike C Jackson
at the Hull University Business School.
Michael C. Jackson
IFSR Newsletter 34/35 - December 1994. {{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, Mike 1951 births Living people British business theorists British systems scientists Fellows of the British Computer Society Officers of the Order of the British Empire The Hellenic Society for Systemic Studies Medal Academics of the University of Hull Alumni of the University of Oxford Presidents of the International Society for the Systems Sciences