The role of readiness factors in E-learning outcomes: An empirical study

Although many researchers have studied different factors which affect E-Learning outcomes, there is little research on assessment of the intervening role of readiness factors in E-Learning outcomes. This study proposes a conceptual model to determine the role of readiness factors in the relationship between E-Learning factors and E-Learning outcomes. Readiness factors are divided into three main groups including: technical, organizational and social. A questionnaire was completed by 96 respondents. This sample consists of teachers at Tehran high schools who are utilizing a technology-based educating. Hierarchical regression analysis is done and its results strongly support the appropriateness of the proposed model and prove that readiness factors variable plays a moderating role in the relationship between E-Learning factors and outcomes. Also latent moderated structuring (LMS) technique and MPLUS3 software are used to determine each variable’s ranking. Results show that organizational readiness factors have the most important effect on E-Learning outcomes. Also teachers’ motivation and training is the most important factor in E-Learning. Findings of this research will be helpful for both academics and practitioners of E-Learning systems.     

Managing End-User Computing as a Value-Added Resource

Because end-user computing (EUC) is playing a more significant role in the overall performance of organizations, EUC and its associated technologies should be viewed as a set of distinct value activities — that is, activities that contribute to an organizations competitive advantage. Management should emphasize those EUC attributes that have a positive influence on the organization —direction, support, and control. This article discusses these attributes, the major issues associated with each, and the timing of each attribute in conjunction with organizational strategy.     

A Systematic Approach to Long-Term Planning for OA Implementation

Abstract

Because end-user computing (EUC) is playing a more significant role in the overall performance of organizations, EUC and its associated technologies should be viewed as a set of distinct value activities — that is, activities that contribute to an organizations competitive advantage. Management should emphasize those EUC attributes that have a positive influence on the organization —direction, support, and control. This article discusses these attributes, the major issues associated with each, and the timing of each attribute in conjunction with organizational strategy.     

A Five-Step Method to Tune Your ITSM Processes

Efficient and effective processes and knowledgeable employees separate high-performing organizations from average or low performing organizations. In this paper, we develop a five-step method to tune IT Service Management processes by focusing on the knowledge needs for each role and identifying the employee who possesses the needed knowledge. This five-step method employs a Dynamic Network Analysis (DNA) model that includes three classes, Persons, Roles, and Knowledge, and four important relationships between and within these classes.     

Information flow analysis of scientific workflows

Recently, scientific workflows have emerged as a platform for automating and accelerating data processing and data sharing in scientific communities. Many scientific workflows have been developed for collaborative research projects that involve a number of geographically distributed organizations. Sharing of data and computation across organizations in different administrative domains is essential in such a collaborative environment. Because of the competitive nature of scientific research, it is important to ensure that sensitive information in scientific workflows can be accessed by and propagated to only authorized parties. To address this problem, we present techniques for analyzing how information propagates in scientific workflows. We also present algorithms for incrementally analyzing how information propagates upon every change to an existing scientific workflow.     

Gestaltung der nächsten Inkarnation von Business Intelligence

The body of knowledge generated by Business Intelligence (BI) research is constantly extended by a stream of heterogeneous technological and organizational innovations. This paper shows how these can be bundled to a new vision for BI that is aligned with new requirements coming from socio-technical macro trends. The building blocks of the vision come from five research strings that have been extracted from an extensive literature review: BI and Business Process Management, BI across enterprise borders, new approaches of dealing with unstructured data, agile and user-driven BI, and new concepts for BI governance. The macro trend of the diffusion of cyber-physical systems is used to illustrate the argumentation. The realization of this vision comes with an array of open research questions and requires the coordination of research initiatives from a variety of disciplines. Due to the embedded nature of the addressed topics within general research areas of the Information Systems (IS) discipline and the linking pins that come with the underlying Dynamic Capabilities Approach such research provides a contribution to IS.     

浅谈隐性知识管理研究

隐性知识高效管理是企业获得持续竞争优势的关键,是实现知识创造和技术的核心环节。该文对隐性知识的必要性进行了分析,从影响隐性知识因素着手,指出隐性知识显性化是企业隐性知识管理的核心,并提出加强隐性知识管理的有效举措。     

A knowledge broker for collaboration and sharing for SIDS: the case of comprehensive disaster management in the Caribbean*

ABSTRACT

Knowledge sharing can be hindered by barriers that prevent the free flow of information, especially across organizational and other boundaries. Therefore information produced at one location might not be available to entities elsewhere even if there are benefits to sharing this information. This can often lead to 'reinventing the wheel' and wasted investments in duplicating resources and ultimately will lead to the development of knowledge silos. Information technologies can be used to address this problem as they provide opportunities to lower the barriers to knowledge sharing and increase collaboration. This need for knowledge sharing and collaborative technologies can be important for Small Island Developing States (SIDS) within particular regions that are exposed to similar environmental and economic issues that can hinder their development. Although each SIDS may have Knowledge Resources that it uses to address its own issues, there would be benefits to collaborating and sharing these resources to collectively tackle these regional issues. Even when there is a willingness to share and collaborate and entities have been established to foster this collaboration, there is a void in the availability of tools and technologies needed to support collaboration and sharing of resources. This paper describes the research that has been done to help fill this void by designing and developing a technological solution, a Knowledge Broker, for the identification and sharing of Knowledge Resources that may be spread across various locations (e.g. countries). The Design Science Research methodology was used to develop the Knowledge Broker architecture, which provides a single point of access to the knowledge resources within a particular domain. A critical component of this Knowledge Broker is a common, online interactive vocabulary of the domain of interest which provides the terms which are used to describe and search for the knowledge resources available. The Knowledge Broker was evaluated using informed arguments and an illustrative scenario in the Comprehensive Disaster Management domain in the Caribbean region. The initial evaluations that have been reported in this paper indicates that the Knowledge Broker has the potential to increase the efficiency of solving regional issues through the sharing of knowledge resources.     

Illusions of control and social domination strategies in knowledge mapping system use

In recent years, the overload of information has driven companies to develop visualization technologies as a way to graphically represent knowledge for decision making. On the basis of visualization technologies and on knowledge modeling techniques, knowledge maps (Kmaps) help represent the knowledge assets of a company as graphical discrete objects. Yet such systems, because of their visual representation of knowledge, are prone to creating illusions. Using a case study of three firms’ use of Kmaps in their Human Resource departments and drawing upon Bourdieu's social theory, illusion of control theory, and IS as signal and symbol theory, our study provides a critical perspective on the use of Kmaps by groups of actors to reinforce their social domination in business organizations. We find that Kmap use can lead to illusions of knowledge control and illusions of executive control and that in response to the potential for knowledge illusions, three social domination strategies – a signal and symbol strategy, an avoidance strategy and an evidence strategy – are employed. Implications of these results on Knowledge Management and Information Systems Management future research are discussed.     

基于知识的网络管理模块的扩展

智能网络系统管理是一个多agent的系统。传统的网络管理平台和体系结构主要基于面向对象的网络信息管理,其具体的实现主要由标准化组织如ISO、ITU-T和IETF规范。知识共享研究组织(KSE)主要定义了基于知识的agen的内部和外部的行为,而TINA-C集中研究分布处理环境下的信息网络。该文试图将知识系统扩展到网络资源对象中并建立新的信息模型来支持复杂的网络管理作业所需的智能操作。该文的思想将有助于实际系统的进一步研究和实现     

The impact of enterprise risk management on competitive advantage by moderating role of information technology

The main purpose of this paper is to examine the influence of Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) on Competitive Advantage (CA) by moderating role of information technology dimensions including Information Technology (IT) strategy and Information Technology (IT) structure. A total of 84 valid questionnaires were obtained through self-administered survey conducted at Iranian financial institutions. Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) approach was conducted for the analysis of data and hypotheses testing. The findings of this study showed that ERM had a positive relationship with the firms’ competitive advantage. The results also showed that IT strategy and IT structure had a direct effect on the competitive advantage as a well as moderating effect on ERM-competitive advantage relationship. This study extends on previous ERM studies by considering Iran as a developing country which is neglected among previous empirical researches. It also extends previous ERM works by empirically evaluating ERM, IT, competitive advantage and relationships among them. This paper provides insights into the value of implementation of ERM among organizations which could lead to improve competitive advantage. In addition, this study provides implication in terms of manager's planning and decision making to consider IT as one of the critical success factors of ERM practices.     

Entrepreneurship, knowledge integration capability, and firm performance: An empirical study

From the knowledge-based view, an organization is considered an entity that integrates and distributes knowledge to produce products and services. Knowledge is acknowledged as a sustainable basis of competitive advantage that many organizations possess. Entrepreneurial activity also has been viewed as an essential feature for organizations to survive and prosper in today??s turbulent environment. In this study, we explore the effect of entrepreneurship on organizational performance through knowledge integration capability. Our research model depicts the firm as a knowledge integration institution that produces its offerings through specialized knowledge integration capability that consists of learning culture, knowledge management process, and information technology capability. The results show a strong support for the relationship between entrepreneurship and knowledge integration capability. We also found that the effect of entrepreneurial activities on firm performance was mediated by knowledge integration capability.     

A framework for designing the enterprise-wide e-commerce portal for evolving organizations

The number of organizations offering e-commerce solutions is growing exponentially each year. Without a doubt, e-commerce will no longer be a choice for organizations rather it will be a competitive necessity to ensure business prosperity. Integral to the success of e-commerce is having good e-commerce software that can enable organizations to offer online products and services as well as integrate their business processes and supply chains within and with their collaborators or partners in a perfect, seamless manner. One of the main obstacles for adoption of e-commerce faced by many organizations; however, has been the lack of such proper integrated e-commerce software. There have been few ready-made software solutions offered by vendors, which can be customized for organizations’ business models and processes, and these solutions are based on “piece meal” approaches and thus lack much of the enterprise capabilities organizations need to adopt. In this paper, we suggest a framework for developing an enterprise-wide integrated e-commerce portal for evolving organizations. Such a framework will help any organization to design a distributed, extensible, cross-platform, collaborative and integrated e-commerce portal. Sushil K. Sharma is currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Information Systems and Operations Management at Ball State University, Muncie, Indiana. Prior to joining the faculty at Ball State, Dr. Sharma held the Associate Professor position at the Indian Institute of Management in Lucknow (India) and Visiting Research Associate Professor at the Department of Management Science at the University of Waterloo, Canada. He is of two text books (Programming in C, and Understanding Unix), and Co-editor of four edited books. Dr. Sharma has published more than 100 refereed research papers in many peer-reviewed national and international journals and conference proceedings. His contributions have appeared in journals such as; International Journal of Information Management, International Journal of Healthcare Technology and Management (IJHTM), Electronic Government Journal, Journal of Electronic Commerce in Organizations (JECO), Journal of Global Information Technology Management (JGITM), The Journal of Computer Information Systems (CIS), Journal of Logistics Information Management (JLIM), and International Journal of Management. He currently serves as an Associate Editor for International Journal of Cases on Electronic Commerce (IJCEC) and is on Editorial board for the International Journal of Electronic Finance (IJEF) and the Journal of Electronic Commerce in Organizations (JECO). In the past, he has also been a guest editor for special issue of Global Journal of Flexible Systems Management and Journal of Global Information Technology Management (JGITM). Dr. Sharma’s primary teaching and research interests are in e-commerce, computer and network security, ERP Systems, database management systems, and knowledge management. Jatinder (Jeet) N. D. Gupta is currently Eminent Scholar of Management of Technology, Professor of Management Information Systems, Industrial and Systems Engineering and Engineering Management at the University of Alabama in Huntsville, Huntsville, Alabama. Most recently, he was Professor of Management, Information and Communication Sciences, and Industry and Technology at Ball State University, Muncie, Indiana. He holds a PhD in Industrial Engineering (with specialization in Production Management and Information Systems) from Texas Tech University. Co-author of a textbook in Operations Research, Dr. Gupta serves on the editorial boards of several national and international journals. Recipient of the Outstanding Faculty and Outstanding Researcher awards from Ball State University, he has published numerous papers in such journals as Journal of Management Information Systems, International Journal of Information Management, Operations Research, INFORMS Journal of Computing, Annals of Operations Research, and Mathematics of Operations Research. More recently, he served as a co-editor of several special issues including the Neural Networks in Business of Computers and Operations Research and books that included Decision Making Support Systems: Achievements and Challenges for the New Decade and Creating Knowledge-based Healthcare Organizations published by Idea Group Publishing. He is also the coeditor of the book: Managing E-Business published by Heidelberg Press, Heidelberg, Australia. His current research interests include e-Commerce, Supply Chain Management, Information and Decision Technologies, Scheduling, Planning and Control, Organizational Learning and Effectiveness, Systems Education, Knowledge Management, Information Security, and Enterprise Integration. Dr. Gupta has held elected and appointed positions in several academic and professional societies including the Association for Information Systems, Production and Operations Management Society (POMS), the Decision Sciences Institute (DSI), and the Information Resources Management Association (IRMA). Nilmini Wickramasinghe, PhD, MBA, GradDipMgtSt, BSc. Amus.A (piano) Amus.A(violin): Currently, Dr Wickramasinghe is an associate professor and the associate director of the Center for the Management of Medical Technologies at Stuart Graduate School of Business, Illinois Institute of Technology. Her teaching interests cover the areas of knowledge management as well as e-commerce and m-commerce, IT for competitive advantage, organizational impacts of technology and healthcare issues. In addition, Dr Wickramasinghe teaches and presents regularly in many universities in Europe and Australiasia. She is currently carrying out research and is well published having written numerous book chapters, refereed journal articles and some books in the areas of management of technology, in the field of healthcare as well as focusing on IS issues especially as they relate to knowledge work and e-business. Dr Wickramasinghe is honored to be able to represent the United States of America for the Health Care Technology Management (HCTM) Association (URL http://www.hctm.net/events/2005/conference_2005.html).     

Development and validation of an instrument to measure organizational cultures’ support of Business Process Management

The purpose of Business Process Management (BPM) is to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of organizational processes through improvement and innovation. Despite a common understanding that culture is an important element in BPM efforts, there is a dearth of theoretical and empirical research on culture as a facilitator of successful BPM. We develop the BPM culture construct and propose a validated instrument with which to measure organizational cultures’ support of BPM. The operationalization of the BPM culture concept provides a theoretical foundation for future research and a tool to assist organizations in developing a cultural environment that supports successful BPM.     

Application of knowledge management in production management

Knowledge Management (KM) addresses the critical issues of organizational adoption, survival, and competence in the face of an increasingly changing environment. Knowledge management embodies organizational processes that seek a synergistic combination of the data and information processing capabilities of information and communication technologies (ICT), and the creative and innovative capacity of human beings. Knowledge is rapidly becoming the most important asset of virtually all organizations. Manufacturing is no exception. The ability to manage and exploit knowledge will be the main source of competitive advantage for the manufacturing industry of the future. In that role, knowledge management will improve production management and avoid or minimize losses and weakness that usually come from poor performance as well as increase the competitive level of the company and its ability to survive in the global marketplace. In this article, we are concerned with the improvement of production management theory, in the manufacturing context, through the application of some core principles. The best production practices worldwide have a common core. The cores principles investigated are the reduction of cycle time, reduction of variability, increase in transparency, and build of continuous improvement into the process. The fundamental rationale underlying these principles is the concept of flow, where production is seen as composed of waiting, transporting, inspecting, and transformation (processing) activities. According to this concept, transformation activities are the only ones that actually add value. Hence, all other activities should be reduced or eliminated from the flow while increasing the efficiency of transformation activities. We develop a knowledge management perspective in production management appropriate for the manufacturing industry. It is anticipated to serve as a foundation for wider applications of knowledge management in other sectors of the manufacturing industry. We also argue for more than simply gathering data to be utilized and managed in the form of tacit and explicit knowledge. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Hum Factors Man 15: 249–257, 2005.     

Integrating knowledge flow mining and collaborative filtering to support document recommendation

Knowledge is a critical resource that organizations use to gain and maintain competitive advantages. In the constantly changing business environment, organizations must exploit effective and efficient methods of preserving, sharing and reusing knowledge in order to help knowledge workers find task-relevant information. Hence, an important issue is how to discover and model the knowledge flow (KF) of workers from their historical work records. The objectives of a knowledge flow model are to understand knowledge workers’ task-needs and the ways they reference documents, and then provide adaptive knowledge support. This work proposes hybrid recommendation methods based on the knowledge flow model, which integrates KF mining, sequential rule mining and collaborative filtering techniques to recommend codified knowledge. These KF-based recommendation methods involve two phases: a KF mining phase and a KF-based recommendation phase. The KF mining phase identifies each worker’s knowledge flow by analyzing his/her knowledge referencing behavior (information needs), while the KF-based recommendation phase utilizes the proposed hybrid methods to proactively provide relevant codified knowledge for the worker. Therefore, the proposed methods use workers’ preferences for codified knowledge as well as their knowledge referencing behavior to predict their topics of interest and recommend task-related knowledge. Using data collected from a research institute laboratory, experiments are conducted to evaluate the performance of the proposed hybrid methods and compare them with the traditional CF method. The results of experiments demonstrate that utilizing the document preferences and knowledge referencing behavior of workers can effectively improve the quality of recommendations and facilitate efficient knowledge sharing.     

Knowledge Management Competence for Enterprise System Success

This study conceptualizes, operationalises and validates the concept of Knowledge Management Competence as a four-phase multidimensional formative index. Employing survey data from 310 respondents representing 27 organizations using the SAP Enterprise System Financial module, the study results demonstrate a large, significant, positive relationship between Knowledge Management Competence and Enterprise Systems Success (ES-success, as conceived by Gable et al., 2008); suggesting important implications for practice. Strong evidence of the validity of Knowledge Management Competence as conceived and operationalised, too suggests potential from future research evaluating its relationships with possible antecedents and consequences.     

Parallels in knowledge cycles

Knowledge management as an academic discipline is realizing phenomenal growth and international acceptance. However, there still exists no universally accepted framework or model. This paper reviews three of the most well known KM models from similar epistemological and ontological views. The three models reviewed are: Nonaka’s SECI (Japan), March’s Ex-Ex (USA) and Boisot’s I-space (Europe). A number of recommendations for future research based on the similarities and differences among these models pertaining to knowledge management are presented.     

Harnessing business analytics value through organizational absorptive capacity

Business analytics (BA) is a resource-intensive, risky endeavor. However, the literature has not addressed the important question of how to assimilate BA technologies for competitive advantage. We build a research framework and outline the BA assimilation mechanisms through organizational absorptive capacity (AC). Data were collected from 600 companies across six countries and analyzed using partial least squares. The findings revealed that organizational AC plays a crucial mediating role between BA competency and BA assimilation, leading to competitive advantage. This study contributes significantly to both information technology assimilation and BA value research by incorporating the role of organizational AC.     

Capitalising Knowledge: Corporate Knowledge Management Investments

Knowledge is increasingly recognized as the key resource of business. Digital networks provide access to vast amounts of data and information but knowledge management tools and systems are required to translate this in a meaningful way. Knowledge management initiatives are unlikely to be successful unless they are integrated with business strategy, and related to the development of the core capabilities of the organisation. Sharing the discovery and synthesis of intellectual activity involves the creation of knowledge communities of practice. There is much evidence of commercially inspired corporate initiatives in this direction across all industrial sectors: leveraging existing intellectual capital; sharing best practice across multiple locations; data mining to build customer relationships; and creating knowledge networks to allow state–of–the–art solutions in professional services.