3rd International Conference on Systems Thinking in Management

Co-Hosts

The Association for Enterprise Integration (AFEI) is a non-profit association for corporate and individual members whose common goal is to advance enterprise integration, network centric operations and world-class electronic business practices for industries and governments around the globe. AFEI builds government and industry inter-relationships that cut across national and organizational boundaries and promotes the development of a global information infrastructure. AFEI is a member of the National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA) family of associations.

AFEI's vision is to:

Promote global partnering and networking opportunities for government and industry.
Exchange world-class practices that bring about cultural change, business efficiency and global competitiveness in a dynamic, changing environment.
Present legal and ethical forums to interpret and support government and industry missions to achieve network centric operations, electronic business, and e-government.
Influence policy decisions and explore innovative ways to promote the best interest of AFEI membership.

The Ackoff Center for the Advancement of Systems Approaches (ACASA), named for Dr. Russell L. Ackoff, Anheuser-Busch Professor Emeritus of the Wharton School, was launched in October, 2000. The Center operates as a think tank in the vanguard of systems thinking. The Center is the result of generous contributions of Ray Stata (chairman of the board, Analog Devices), the Anheuser-Busch Foundation, and the General Motors Foundation.

ACASA is dedicated to education, research and service to industry, government and education, using systems sciences and systems thinking and global knowledge and competency resources.

Under the auspices of ACASA, faculty from Engineering, Wharton, Medicine and other schools at the University of Pennsylvania work on multi-disciplinary research topics. "The intention is for the Ackoff Center to develop innovative ideas in systems approaches that will enable the Center to evolve into a world class institution with contributions to solving intractable problems, wherever they exist," says Eduardo Glandt, Dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Science. ACASA will extend its offerings beyond the walls of Penn through the application of information technology and the Internet and plans a competency bank of knowledge for all Systems Thinking-related academic activities, research and practices that are scattered around the world.