Part 1: Thinking in Systems (3–4 pages)

In Part 1 of your business report, you are to evaluate the workings of Benevento Foods—including production, quality control, and maintenance processes—through the lens of systems thinking. Through your evaluation, you should address the following:

• Justify the value that systems thinking can bring to an organization’s operations.
• Identify two to three areas where Benevento Foods applied key principles of systems thinking and where this thinking appears to be lacking. Explain why.
• By applying the concept of a learning organization, evaluate the core issues that you think led to the dilemma. Note: Be sure to consider the 11 laws of systems thinking as you perform your evaluation.
• Apply the concept of moral imagination to the scenario and explain how it could help bring positive change within the organization. Be sure to consider who the stakeholders are and explain how the framework would impact them.

Part 2: Understanding Cause and Effect (3–4 pages)

For Part 2 of your business report to the company owner, you are to use a systems approach toward the dilemma at Benevento Foods and address the following:

• Develop a robust effect-cause-effect logic tree diagram using the 5-Whys tool to identify the root cause(s) of the quality issue. The diagram itself can be drawn by hand or with software. (Note: Tables are not appropriate; it must be in the form of a diagram.)
• In addition to the diagram, explain the effect-cause-effect flow leading to the root cause(s). (Reminder: The concept of systems thinking and its associated tools are new to the owner.)
• Create an appropriate causal loop diagram to capture the fundamental system behaviors, outcomes, and causes of the quality issue at Benevento Foods. The diagram itself can be drawn by hand or with software. (Note: Tables are not appropriate; it must be in the form of a diagram.)
• In addition to the diagram, explain the causal loop flow of the diagram. (Reminder: The concept of systems thinking and its associated tools are new to the owner.)
• There are both detailed and dynamic complexities at work at Benevento Foods. Through a systems thinking viewpoint, evaluate the complexities that have led to the identified dilemma.

Part 3: Recommendations for Improvement (2 pages)