Discussing five decades of legacy of soft systems methodology in operational research and other fields of knowledge

The UK Operational Research (OR) community has developed a good number of “soft” Operational Research approaches. Amongst those methodologies, Checkland’s Soft Systems Methodology (SSM) occupies a prominent place. This discussion paper examines SSM achievements and legacy in the UK, within the wider context of OR development. After outlining the main SSM features, the paper provides a 50-year span citation analysis to corroborate SSM’s prominent status. Three themes that SSM has brought to the fore exerting important effect in shaping the OR and systems thinking movements, are discussed: (i) SSM emphasis on the use of systems thinking as a means to tackle complexity and its insistence in transferring systemicity to the process of enquiry; (ii) SSM contribution to the emergence and development of the learning/interpretative view in OR practice; and (iii) SSM’s rational model for any research study, based on its constituent elements: Framework of ideas, Methodology and Area of interest. Reflecting on SSM trajectory and these themes, we advance the thesis that SSM has played a crucial role on shaping the soft end of the OR spectrum of approaches. Some initial conclusions are provided in the form of reflections to invite further discussing the legacy and impact of SSM.