Rethinking competence systems for knowledge-based organizations

Existing competence systems are based on a rationalistic view of competence. While these competence systems might work in job-based organizations, we argue that in more dynamic settings, such as in knowledge-based organizations, the interest-informed actions that capture the emergent competencies of tomorrow require different types of information technology support. The main objective of this paper is to elaborate on the possibilities and implications of using interest-activated technology as a design rationale for competence systems. This paper is based on an action case study of an implemented interest-activated Intranet recommender system prototype at Volvo Information Technology AB in Gothenburg, Sweden. On the basis of how organizational members used this prototype to find information they were interested in, our research team was able to inquire into how personal interest, embodied in information-seeking activities, could be a means for identifying competence. Building on the relation between personal interest and competence, we discuss competence systems design and spell out explicit implications for managerial practice in knowledge-based organizations.     

Information technology in support of individual decision-making

Abstract. The use of computers in organizations has often been justified by reference to the ‘improved decision-making’ which will result from the use of new technology. Rarely, if ever, is any precise measurement given as to how such improvements will be judged. Phrases such as ‘better information leads to better decisions’ and ‘what managers require is more information’ dominate the literature on management information systems (MIS). Alistair Preston argues that this alignment with top management allowed MIS to legitimize and elevate itself as both a serious practice and an academic discipline. The two dominant themes in the relationship between information technology (IT) and managerial decision-making have been the use of Herbert Simon's work on decision-making and Anthony's pyramidal structure of types of application system, the latter model leading to a powerful categorization of types of computer-based information systems (i.e. transaction processing, management information systems, decision support systems, executive information systems). The models of decision-making employed at each level of this hierarchy are those characterized by Simon as ‘objective rationality’ and ‘bounded rationality’ and these models encourage a view of information as representing some objective reality which can be captured, stored and processed within some form of technology. Dick Boland has argued forcibly that Simon's work has been crucial to the current level of understanding of information and technology within organizations. Less concern has been given, however, to the role which IT itself plays in reinforcing this rationalistic view of information and decision-making. As Mitroff has pointed out, to represent (or model) a problem is to conduct an inquiry into its nature. Likewise, Dick Boland suggests that information technologies are themselves social inventions that are malleable and shaped during use but that such sets limits and opens possibilities that shape the users as well. Hence, information technologies both incorporate and give rise to changes in our vocabularies for knowing ourselves and our institutions. It will not be enough, therefore, for us merely to change our existing models of managerial decision-making, it will also be necessary to design new technologies which will reflect and encourage the use of such models. In this paper we shall use the framework provided by Mitroff to try to consider a number of different paradigms of inquiring system and to see what technological forms would need to be developed in order that we may provide technological support for individual decision-making based on each paradigm.     

Workflow Automation: Overview and Research Issues

Workflow management systems, a relatively recent technology, are designed to make work more efficient, integrate heterogeneous application systems, and support interorganizational processes in electronic commerce applications. In this paper, we introduce the field of workflow automation, the subject of this special issue of Information Systems Frontiers. In the first part of the paper, we provide basic definitions and frameworks to aid understanding of workflow management technologies. In the remainder of the paper, we discuss technical and management research opportunities in this field and discuss the other contributions to the special issue.     

Logistics information system auditing using expert system technology

This paper brings together two methodological strands of thinking. These are the managerial problem solving methodology of Logistics Information System auditing and the structured development of expert system technology. The investment being made in logistics in organizations is enormous and, although much effort has been devoted to creating structured methods to aid the development of information systems to support these organizations' logistics, the area of Logistics Information System auditing remains less developed.

The major aim of this paper is to provide a systemic approach of the application of expert system technology to Logistics Information System auditing. Taking a strategic view of Management Information System (MIS) in logistics, this paper describes the application of INFAUDITOR, an audit expert system, to logistics information systems auditing.

INFAUDITOR has two fundamental features. First, it covers all domains of information systems, managerial (like logistics) as well as technical aspects. Secondly, it helps to determine, in a given audit situation, the respective importance that should be given to the different audit domains and tests of control. INFAUDITOR can be viewed as consisting of several expert systems as in blackboard systems. Its fact bases include the characteristics of the enterprise, its logistics information system and the audit objectives. Its rule bases encompass the audit criteria represented as a hierarchical tree.

INFAUDITOR is used to assess the ability of a Logistics Information System (LIS) to provide decision makers with relevant, timely information for designing, planning and maintaining an efficient production system, for securing materials necessary for production, and for facilitating achievement of low operating and maintenance costs. We present and discuss results obtained by using INFAUDITOR in auditing the logistics Management Information System of a large European company.     

Mixing Multiple Criteria Decision Making with soft systems thinking techniques for decision support in complex situations

This paper shares experiences of the authors with combining Multiple Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) and techniques from soft systems approaches for decision support at particular stages of complex problem solving. These are based on their involvement in three projects within the Information and Communications Technology sector. The justification for the combined use of MCDM and separate techniques from systems thinking is discussed. The contribution of this paper is in the demonstration of how combinations of methods that are parts of soft systems methodologies and MCDM may support multiple perspective representations of complex managerial problems, and in the lessons learned from the three cases.     

An Australian Perspective on Research and Development Required for the Construction of Applied Legal Decision Support Systems

At the Donald Berman Laboratory for Information Technology and Law, La TrobeUniversity Australia, we have been building legal decision support systems for a dozenyears. Whilst most of our energy has been devoted to conducting research in ArtificialIntelligence and Law, over the past few years we have increasingly focused uponbuilding legal decision support systems that have a commercial focus.In this paper we discuss the evolution of our systems. We begin with a discussion ofrule-based systems and discuss the transition to hybrid rule-based/case-based systems.We next discuss how we have used machine learning in building legal decision supportsystems. Our focus on using machine learning led us to investigate the domains ofexplanation and argumentation. We conclude by discussing our current work onbuilding negotiation support systems and tools for constructing web-based legaldecision support systems.     

Multi-metaphor method: organizational metaphors in information systems development

Abstract.  Conventional methods have been criticized for their positivist philosophy and for either ignoring the organizational context of information systems development (ISD) or using only a simplistic, machine-based conceptual model of organizations. We have developed an approach to enable systems developers to use a richer view of organizations and a more interpretive approach. Multi-Metaphor Method (MMM) supports developers via a range of metaphors as cognitive structuring devices to understand an organization so that developers can learn to move between different ways of 'reading' the social context in which ISD occurs. We explain the rationale and theoretical underpinnings of MMM and then discuss our action research to investigate the viability and relevance of MMM during ISD practice. We show how the developers' use of organizational metaphors via MMM did not just enable rich conceptualizations of the client organizations but also influenced the ISD process and final product. We review the learning outcomes and discuss the implications for systems development practice of our research.     

Navigating the Gap Between Action and a Serving Information System

Creating, or adapting, information systems to support people undertaking purposeful action in organizational settings involves moving from: exploring the problem situation and thinking about what action to take, to thinking about how to support that action. In business settings this support will inevitably entail technology-based information systems. Most information system design approaches neglect the importance of the initial exploration and sense making phase and move directly to specifying the business process to be operationalised through the application of some software. The ideas described here have been developed with the intention of supporting a group of people navigating an inquiry through the shift in focus from: thinking about action, to thinking about support in a manner that promotes Client-led information system design. The ideas have been applied in practice through an Action Research field study in a UK banking organization and here we describe our navigational approach to IS design.     

Information systems as social systems: Implications for developing countries

Abstract

Computer‐based information systems should be conceptualised as social systems in which technology is only one of the dimensions. This broader perspective on information systems offers opportunities for a deeper understanding of their development and use. The social systems approach is illustrated in the paper by two research projects in the UK on the evaluation of information systems and information systems strategy formulation. The relevance of the UK research to a developing country context is discussed and it is argued that methodologies which aim to provide an understanding of the organisational, social and political context are highly suitable for organisations in developing countries. Some implications are drawn for research, education and practice related to information systems in developing countries.     

Autopoiesis and systems education: Implications for practice

In this paper, I will discuss the application of Maturana and Varela's theories of autopoiesis, cognition and language to the notions of worldview, worldview change and curriculum design. The context for this discussion is the education of systems concepts, thinking and practice. It has been argued that systemic thinking requires the adoption of particular assumptions into the worldview of the student, independent of the systems concepts under study. This raises the question of how best to structure a curriculum to meet this end. It will be argued that autopoietic theory, when applied to systems education has significant implications for curriculum design.     

Uncertain context data management in dynamic mobile environments

Building systems that acquire, process and reason with context data is a major challenge. Model updates and modifications are required for the mobile context-aware systems. Additionally, the nature of the sensor-based systems implies that the data required for the reasoning is not always available nor it is certain. Finally, the amount of context data can be significant and can grow fast, constantly being processed and interpreted under soft real-time constraints. Such characteristics make it a case for a challenging big data application. In this paper we argue, that mobile context-aware systems require specific methods to process big data related to context, at the same time being able to handle uncertainty and dynamics of this data. We identify and define main requirements and challenges for developing such systems. Then we discuss how these challenges were effectively addressed in the KnowMe project. In our solution, the acquisition of context data is made with the use of the AWARE platform. We extended it with techniques that can minimise the power consumption as well as conserve storage on a mobile device. The data can then be used to build rule models that can express user preferences and habits. We handle the missing or ambiguous data with number of uncertainty management techniques. Reasoning with rule models is provided by a rule engine developed for mobile platforms. Finally, we demonstrate how our tools can be used to visualise the stored data and simulate the operation of the system in a testing environment.     

Information systems use as strategy practice: A multi-dimensional view of strategic information system implementation and use

Information systems (IS) are strategic in so far as they are used to realize strategic intent. Yet, while much has been said about aligning IS functionality with the strategic intent and how to organizationally implement strategically aligned systems, less is known of how to successfully implement strategic change associated with system use – a truly critical challenge within strategic IS implementation. Drawing on a strategy-as-practice perspective we address this gap by developing a multi-dimensional view of IS strategy, conceptualizing three key challenges in the IS strategy process, to explain how and why a paper mill, despite successfully implementing a strategic production management system, failed to produce intended strategic change. We call this outcome strategy blindness: organizational incapability to realize the strategic intent of implemented, available system capabilities. Using a longitudinal case study we investigate how cognitive rigidity of key actors and fixed, interrelated practices shaped the implementation of the new production system. We also identify core components and dynamics that constitute a richer multi-dimensional view of the IS strategy implementation (alignment) process. In particular, we identify three salient factors that contribute to strategy blindness – mistranslation of intent, flexibility of the IT artifact and cognitive entrenchment – and discuss how they affect strategic implementation processes. We conclude by discussing implications of our findings for IS strategy theory and practice, especially the contribution of strategy-as-practice to this stream of research.     

Do I really have to? User acceptance of mandated technology

Extensive research supports the notion that usefulness and ease of use are primary drivers of user intentions to adopt new technology. However, this research has been conducted primarily in environments in which adoption was voluntary. When technology use is mandated, as it is in many organizations, we expect that the underlying relationships of traditional technology acceptance models will be different. In this paper, we discuss our current understanding of technology acceptance, as well as the notion of mandated use. We then discuss a field study conducted in the banking industry to examine technology acceptance models in a mandated use environment. The results indicate that there are, in fact, differences in the underlying relationships of technology acceptance models in this mandatory use situation. The paper concludes with a discussion of the implications for research and practice.     

Quantum ergonomics: shifting the paradigm of the systems agenda

Abstract

A paradigm is an accepted world view. If we do not continually question our paradigm then wider trends and movements will overtake the discipline leaving it ill adapted to future challenges. This Special Issue is an opportunity to keep systems thinking at the forefront of ergonomics theory and practice. Systems thinking prompts us to ask whether ergonomics, as a discipline, has been too timid? Too preoccupied with the resolution of immediate problems with industrial-age methods when, approaching fast, are developments which could render these operating assumptions an irrelevance. Practical case studies are presented to show how abstract systems problems can be tackled head-on to deliver highly innovative and cost-effective insights. The strategic direction of the discipline foregrounds high-quality systems problems. These are something the discipline is well able to respond to provided that the appropriate operating paradigms are selected.

Practitioner Summary: High-quality systems problems are the future of the discipline. How do we convert obtuse sounding systems concepts into practical interventions? In this paper, the essence of systems thinking is distilled and practical case studies used to demonstrate the benefits of this new paradigm.     

Towards an understanding of the role of business intelligence systems in organisational knowing

Recent advances in information technology (IT), such as the advent of business intelligence (BI) systems, have increased the ability of organisations to collect and analyse data to support decisions. There is little focus to date, however, on how BI systems might play a role in organisational knowledge creation – in organisational knowing. We develop a conceptual framework of organisational knowing based on a synthesis of the literature, and use this as a framework to investigate how BI systems facilitate knowing in a case organisation. We identify two practices triggered by BI systems that distinguish them from prior applications of IT: the ability to initiate problem articulation and dialogue, and that of data selection (e.g. to address information needs of organisational decision makers at different managerial levels). This study provides empirical evidence of the performative outcome of BI systems in relation to organisational knowing through the practices of articulation and data selection. It provides a practice perspective on BI and focuses on the role of BI systems in organisational knowing thereby opening up a new departure for BI research that considers the implications of BI systems in organisations with actual practice in mind.     

More than providing ‘solutions’: towards an understanding of customer‐oriented citizenship behaviours of IS professionals

Information systems (IS) support in organizations has undergone dramatic changes over the years. IS professionals in the support function have become an important knowledge source to colleagues who seek assistance with their IS usage. Our understanding of IS professionals' customer‐oriented behaviours is limited, however. Focusing on IS post‐implementation support and drawing upon organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB) theory, this paper seeks to understand IS professionals' citizenship behaviours in supporting colleagues. Our analysis of 630 support tasks performed by IS professionals with regard to two systems at three periods reveals five types of customer‐oriented OCB: anticipation, education, justification, personalization‐technology and personalization‐business. Our results also show different associations between four contextual factors of IS support (i.e. system, user, task and problem) and the OCBs. In instances of user deficiency, more personalization‐business and anticipation OCBs were observed across all the four problem domains (functionality, data, workflow and role). By contrast, in instances of system deficiency, more personalization‐technology OCBs were observed among the two problem domains of data and functionality. Moreover, the occurrence of OCBs revealed a temporal pattern such that personalization‐business OCBs are more pronounced in early post‐implementation periods whereas anticipation OCBs and personalization‐technology OCBs become more dominant later. The categorization scheme of the customer‐oriented OCB, the OCB dynamics and the patterns between OCB types and the contextual factors advance our understanding of the evolving and challenging work of organizational IS support. Our findings extend the OCB literature on customer orientation and enrich the limited studies on knowledge‐intensive IS support work. Practical implications of the findings on IS management and policies are discussed.     

Human performance and embedded intelligent technology in safety-critical systems

Information technology continues to evolve rapidly. We see this particularly in the evolution of embedded intelligent systems—knowledge-based systems deployed in larger hosts with real-time response requirements, which provide real-time advice, guidance, information, recommendations and explanations to their users. These systems have recently been deployed in safety-critical large-scale systems, where humans and technology are jointly responsible for executing tasks, monitoring operations, and providing system safety. Thus, human interaction with intelligent technology in safety-critical systems has important implications. Those interactions can enhance or reduce system efficiency, enhance or compromise safety, and augment or negate the other benefits that technology provides. In this paper, we focus on interactions between human operators and embedded intelligent systems. We first consider the role of technology in safety-critical systems, and discuss studies of the impact of technology on human operators in such systems. We then describe embedded intelligent systems, and studies of their impacts on human operators. To illustrate these points, we consider the case of embedded intelligent technology introduction in one such setting, and the results of an empirical investigation of the impact of the technology on human performance in that system. We conclude with a discussion of the implications of the study and of the importance of understanding the impact of embedded intelligent technology on human operators in safety-critical systems.     

Network effects and embedded options: decision-making under uncertainty for network technology investments

The analysis of network effects in technology-based networks continues to be of significant managerial importance in e-commerce and traditional IS operations. Competitive strategy, economics and IS researchers share this interest, and have been exploring technology adoption, development and product launch contexts where understanding the issues is critical. This article examines settings involving countervailing and complementary network effects, which act as drivers of business value at several levels of analysis: the industry or market level, the firm or process level, the individual or product level, and the technology level. It leverages real options analysis for managerial decision-making under uncertainty across these contexts. We also identify a set of real options—compatibility, sponsorship and ownership option—which are unique to these settings, and which provide a template for managerial thinking and analysis when it is possible to delay an investment decision. We employ a hybrid jump-diffusion process to model countervailing and complementary network effects from the perspective of a user or a firm joining a network. We also do this from the perspective of a network developer. Our analysis shows that when countervailing and complementary network effects occur in the same network technology context, they give rise to real option value effects that may be used to control or modify the valuation trajectory of a network technology. The option value of waiting in these contexts jumps when the related business environment experiences shocks. Further, we find that the functional relationship between network value and the option value is not linear, and that taking into account a risk premium may not always result in a risk-neural investment. We also provide a managerial decision-making template through the different kinds of deferral options that we identify for this IT analysis context.

Effective Knowledge Management: Knowledge, Thinking and the Personal—Corporate Knowledge Nexus Problem

We argue that the intimate relationship between computer architecture and software has produced a professional mindset that is unsuited to the newer, knowledge-based business paradigms. Major software projects are ending in failure or do not yield their maximum potential and we suggest reasons why this is the case. In conclusion, we propose that Management Information Systems Curricula need to be revised to provide students with exposure to and practice in a variety of thinking styles. Organisations must change their structures and management styles if they are serious about managing knowledge. In making our case we briefly review the development of information systems as a discipline and the role of methodologies in the articulation of its paradigm. We end our paper with suggestions for future research.