ISCAP Proceedings: Abstract Presentation
End-To-End Systems Thinking (A Guide for Competing in The Age of Artificial Intelligence)
Vincent Whitelock
Central Michigan University
Abstract
End-to-End (E2E) Thinking, or Systems Thinking, is the practice of viewing an activity or series of activities holistically, from the beginning to the end. It is the strategic talent that will enable workers to survive and thrive in the Age of Artificial Intelligence (AI). The workshop presented, herein, contains a hands-on simulation of the end-to-end business process integration framework, using systems thinking and activities in the procure-to-pay (buy), plan-to-produce (make), order-to-cash (sell), and record-to-report (finance) business processes, associated with Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Systems and Intelligent Enterprise (IE) Systems. The simulation features upstream and downstream members of the supply chain to describe the steps of a typical business process that is followed, to order and purchase automotive vehicles, purchase supplies, assemble components, deliver products, collect revenues, and pay expenses, in the automotive, bus, and truck industry. The workshop delivers high-value, easy-to-consume knowledge, and digital content, to academic, professional, and other audiences, globally. This workshop demonstrates experiential, active-learning pedagogy using a hands-on business process integration simulation (BPIsim) that is effective at taking difficult enterprise resource planning concepts and simplifying them so virtually any participant will come away from the simulation more enlightened. In this simulation, participants role-play with tangible products and learn by hearing and listening, by seeing, and by touching and doing, enabling them to really “connect the dots.”
Keywords: AI, End-to-end business process integration, Industrial revolutions, Simulations, Supply chain management, Systems thinking