Interpretive Structural Modeling

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Interpretive Structural Modeling (ISM) is an advanced Interactive Planning methodology that allows a group of people, working as a team, to develop a structure that defines the interrelationships among a set of elements. The structure is obtained by answering a set of simple questions. The elements to be structured (such as objectives, barriers, activities, etc.) are defined by the group at the beginning of the ISM planning session. The group also specifies a relational statement that defines the type of relationship desired (such as "aggravates", "enhances", "contributes to", "precedes", etc.).

ISM is a very efficient structuring technique. If there are N elements in the set that needs to be structured, the group would have to answer N x (N - 1) questions in order to fully define the relationships. Using the mathematics of ISM the group can fully define all the interrelationships by answering a much smaller number of questions.

ISM was developed by Prof. John N. Warfield, Director of the Institute for Advanced Study of George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, when he was at the University of Virginia and at Battelle Memorial Institute. Toscano Management Consulting has implemented ISM in a user-friendly proprietary program suitable for Interactive Planning, where the mathematics is totally transparent to the group using the program.

 

 

 

 

INTERPRETIVE STRUCTURAL MODELING (ISM)

 

 

 

 
  • ISM is a computer-based interactive methodology for group learning
  • With ISM the group analyzes a complex problem and develops its structure by sharing their individual knowledge and viewpoints
  • The ISM methodology can be applied to a wide variety of situations. It is of greatest benefit when the group is facing a complex situation and it needs to define and understand the problem before developing action plans to solve it.
  • The group starts by identifying the many component elements of the problem. It then establishes a "relational statement" that will be used to relate these components and thus create the structure that describes the problem. The group develops the structure by interacting with the ISM program.
  • After the component elements and the relational statement is entered into the ISM program, the program will prompt the group with a series of questions (using the relational statement) that must be answered "yes" or "no" by the group. Based on these answers, ISM applies mathematics (in a manner totally transparent to the group) to infer the structural relationships
  • To fully structure a set of N elements, the group would need to provide the answers to (N x (N - 1)) questions (e.g., for 20 elements, 380 questions). ISM will provide a complete structure with 15% to 20% of that number of questions
  • The ISM methodology is generalized so it can be used to analyze any type of complex problem.
  • ISM is an extremely powerful tool to clarify complexity, achieve group learning, and develop consensus. It is ideal for group decision-making and team building, and greatly increases the productivity of the group.
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EXAMPLE: DEVELOPING A MARKETING STRATEGY

 

 

 

 

PROBLEM STATEMENT - Software program "X" is not selling as anticipated. A group representing different functions (marketing, sales, programming, management, etc.) meets to develop a strategy that will solve this problem.

INPUTS DEFINED BY THE GROUP - The group meets and during an interactive planning session agrees on the following:

  1. Objective to be achieved
  2. Barriers that prevent achieving the objective
  3. Relational statement

The results of this session are:

  1. OBJECTIVE: To increase the sales of Program X
  2. BARRIERS
    1. Lack of sales office interest
    2. Complexity to install
    3. Insufficient documentation
    4. Little contact with the end users
    5. Difficult to demonstrate
    6. Inadequate marketing programs
    7. Unable to clearly relate program to specific problems
    8. Intense competition
    9. Difficult to use
    10. Insufficient end user education
  3. RELATIONAL STATEMENT: " Does barrier ______ aggravate barrier______ ? "

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SAMPLE OF ISM INTERACTIVE DIALOGUE

 

 

 

ISM: Does lack of sales office interest aggravate complexity to install?

GROUP ANSWER: NO

ISM: Does complexity to install aggravate lack of sales office interest?

GROUP: YES

ISM: Does insufficient documentation aggravate complexity to install?

GROUP: YES

ISM: Does lack of sales office interest aggravate insufficient documentation?

GROUP: NO

ISM: Does little contact with end users aggravate lack of sales office interest?

GROUP: YES

ISM: Does lack of sales office interest aggravate little contact with end users?

GROUP: NO

  • The dialogue between the group and ISM continues until ISM announces: "STRUCTURE COMPLETED", and displays the resulting structure:
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  • The structure provides the basis for the development of an effective strategy and of action plans to solve the problem. In this example, the resulting structure indicates that there is a 3-element cycle in level 1 (elements that aggravate each other and form a closed loop). This cycle needs to be broken up by eliminating one or two of those barriers, since a cycle represents an unstable, self-aggravating situation that will continually get worse and worse.
  • ˇ The structure also shows three distinct paths. The barriers for the one on the left deal with the nature of the program itself and should be the responsibility of the Programming Department. The center path reflects poor user and sales personnel education and should be addressed with training courses. The path on the right identifies marketing barriers and should be addressed by the sales people.
  • ˇ The bottom two elements in the structure are root causes that need to be solved if a permanent solution to the problem is to be achieved.-.
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Toscano Management Consulting Inc., 2005

 

 

 

38 Rolling Hills Lane, Harrison, New York 10528-1712 Phone 914-777-1901 E-mail: mail@toscano-consulting.com

 

 

 

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