1st Edition

Managing Information in Complex Organizations Semiotics and Signals, Complexity and Chaos

By Kevin C. Desouza, Tobin Hensgen Copyright 2005
    264 Pages
    by Routledge

    264 Pages
    by Routledge

    This seminal work presents an effective design for processing information through five stages from data to actionable knowledge in order to influence behavior within organizations. The authors incorporate such concepts as evolution, semiotics, entropy, complexity, emergence, crisis, and chaos theory in an intriguing alternative to crisis management that can be applied to any organization. Their model shows how to evaluate and share information to enable the organization to avoid disaster rather than simply respond to it. Additionally, the text presents the first attempt at a multi-disciplinary view of information processing in organizations by tying associated disciplines to their respective impacts on the information process. Illustrations used in the text include an overlay that demonstrates how the non-use of information between agencies contributed to the 9/11 disaster, and an appendix addresses Organizing for Cyberterrorism.

    The American health care system is a unique mix of public and private programs that critics argue has produced a two-tier system - one for the rich and the other for the poor - that delivers dramatically unequal care and leaves millions of Americans seriously underinsured or with no coverage at all. This book examines the root causes of the inequalities of the American health care system and discusses various policy alternatives. It systematically documents the demands on and the performance of our health care system for different population groups as defined on the basis of gender (women), age (children), race and ethnicity (African Americans, Hispanics, Native Americans), and residence in high poverty areas (rural and inner city locales).For each population, the book documents: historical and demographic profile, data on health status, aspects of inequality including access; quality of care; and endemic, cultural, and lifestyle issues affecting health; policies, laws, and programs relevant to health care; and, indicators of improvement or negative trends.

    Biography

    Kevin C. Desouza, Tobin Hensgen