Introduction
Sociotechnical system is one of the performance-oriented systems that are commonly used by many organizations. The term “sociotechnical system” has been derived from the field of organizational development with the prime objective of improving performance in diverse institutions. Furthermore, the term ‘sociotechnical system’ was coined during the industrial era that saw the emergence of an interdependency of the technical and social aspect of organizational development (Mate & Silvia, 2005).
The concept of the sociotechnical system is gaining acceptance since it emphasizes on building a strong relationship between individuals and machines. Similarly, the system has been developed to facilitate effective coordination of activities in institutions. It enables effective coordination of various tasks by ensuring that the input of human beings and machines does not contradict in terms of efficiency (Mate & Silvia, 2005).
People are regarded to be at the center of the socio-technical system as they apply their useful knowledge in the integration of organizational components. This paper gives comprehensive information about sociotechnical system with focus on how it facilitates organizational development.
The significance of sociotechnical
Sociotechnical system plays a prime role in organizational development as it ensures that the workers are aware and well acknowledged about the introduced technologies within the organization. The system ensures that the psychological and social needs of the workers are recognized when introducing new technologies.
It is for this reason that the employees become motivated into giving out stellar performance as they become more professionals when installing and operating the new machines and technologies. The aspect ultimately leads to the continuous remarkable growth and development of the organization.
Furthermore, the system provides requisite performance incentives that help organizations to deal with the emerging issues in the current changing business environment. The system is also instrumental in the advancement of organizations in terms of profitability, structurally and quality service delivery (Mate & Silvia, 2005).
How sociotechnical system pertains to organizational development
The sociotechnical system has proved to be a valuable parcel especially in the software and systems engineering especially with the advent of a multitude of high-tech industries. The system’s approach is devoted to the effective blending of both the technical and social systems that fosters organizational development (In Borrás, S & In Edler, 2014)).
The social aspect of the organization can be seen in the normal daily routine within the organization where the employees can receive information, make decisions and guide actions. On the other hand, the technical systems are the machines present within the organization that employees interact with to achieve set goals and objectives.
The continuous technological development and advancement of the machines have led to massive transformations of the organizational practices and ultimately the set goals. The changes have created a favorable business environment allowing most institutions to expand their networks, product range and improve the quality of services provided to customers
The introduction of new technology within an organization demands a change in the relationship between the technical and the social systems that can only be redefined by the management. The organizational management thereby plays an eminent vital role in adjusting the business strategy by which both the social and technical systems become integrated in the right way to ensure that the organization achieves its desired goals (Van, Nikolic & Lukszo, 2013).
In terms of management, the sociotechnical system is known to carry out an analysis of the technical and social factors with an aim of revealing how each component contributes to the ultimate performance of the organization. For a sociotechnical system to be effective in an organization, it must comprise of the hardware, software, physical surroundings, people, procedures, laws and regulation and data and data structure (Pasmore, 2008).
Conclusion
Indeed, the sociotechnical system has been known to change from time to time with the advent of new advanced technologies. The continuous change in the technological world together with the social factors has made it challenging and daunting for the sociotechnical system to fulfill the organization’s objectives. It is with this profound reason that the management needs to play their role in coming up with an effective and stellar sociotechnical system that would see that all the objectives of the organization are fulfilled.
References
In Borrás, S & In Edler, J. (2014). The Governance of Socio-Technical Systems: Explaining Change. New York: J. Wiley.
Mate, J & Silva, A. (2005). Requirements Engineering for Sociotechnical Systems. Hershey, PA: Information Science Pub.
Pasmore, A. (2008). Designing Effective Organizations: The Sociotechnical Systems Perspective. New York: J. Wiley.
Van, H., Nikolic, I. & Lukszo, Z. (2013). Agent-based Modelling of Socio-Technical Systems. Dordrecht: Springer.