Visual Analytics: Transferring, Translating and Transforming Knowledge from Analytics Experts to Non-technical Domain Experts in Multidisciplinary Teams

2023 | Information Systems Frontiers | Citations: 0

Authors: Marjanovic, Olivera; Patmore, Greg; Balnave, Nikola

Abstract: Today’s complex problems call for multidisciplinary analytics teams comprising o ... Expand

Abstract: Today’s complex problems call for multidisciplinary analytics teams comprising of both analytics and non-technical domain (i.e. subject matter) experts. Recognizing the difference between data visualisaion (DV) (i.e. static visual outputs) and visual analytics (VA) (i.e. a process of interactive visual data exploration, guided by user’s domain and contextual knowledge), this paper focuses on VA for non-technical domain experts. By seeking to understand knowledge sharing from VA experts to non-technical users of VA in a multidisciplinary team, we aim to explore how these domain experts learn to use VA as a thinking tool, guided by their knowing-in-practice. The research described in this paper was conducted in the context of a long-term industry-wide research project called the ‘Visual Historical Atlas of the Australian Co-operatives’, led by a multidisciplinary VA team who faced the challenge tackled by this research. Using Action Design Research (ADR) and the combined theoretical lens of boundary objects and secondary design, the paper theorises a three-phase method for knowledge transfer, translation and transformation from VA experts to domain experts using different types of VA-related boundary objects. Together with the proposed set of design principles, the three-phase model advances the well-established stream of research on organizational use of analytics, extending it to the emerging area of visual analytics for non-technical decision makers. Collapse

Topics: knowledge sharing data visualization implicit knowledge knowledge management participatory design

Methods: kernel theory design science action design research exploratory data analysis theory development

Theories: boundary objects theory

Design process knowledge for crisis-driven information systems solutions: Insights on building digital resilience from an action design research study

2023 | Information Systems Journal | Citations: 0

Authors: Tim, Yenni; Chiew, Thiam Kian; Lim, Hooi Min; Teo, Chin Hai; Ng, Chirk Jenn

Abstract: As global disruptions escalate, digital resilience (DR)—the capacity to anticipa ... Expand

Abstract: As global disruptions escalate, digital resilience (DR)—the capacity to anticipate, absorb, and adapt to external shocks by leveraging Information Systems (IS)—has become crucial for individuals and organisations confronting and managing unprecedented crises. This research advances understanding on how to develop DR, drawing on insights from an Action Design Research (ADR) study conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Our research explores a particular facet of DR: the capacity to manage exogenous shocks through the design of new IS solutions. We introduce the ADAPT framework, comprising five key enablers—Agility, Designation, Alignment, Participation, and Trust—recommended to support design teams developing IS solutions during and for crises. Our ADR project, which resulted in the creation of a telemonitoring system used by over 115 frontline healthcare workers to monitor the symptoms of more than 1000 COVID-19 patients, demonstrates the instrumental role these five enablers play in supporting a crisis-propelled IS design process that is urgent, resource-limited, and multi-partite. By presenting new design process knowledge and practical recommendations that guide crisis-driven IS design, we aim to equip design teams with the understanding they need to effectively navigate similar challenges in the future. We also hope to inspire and support IS researchers to apply their expertise in the design, deployment, and use of IS solutions to contribute to crisis-driven design endeavours that tackle the pressing and urgent challenges of our time. Collapse

Topics: systems design digital dashboard pandemic participatory design Telegram

Methods: design process design artifact design science chatbot expert panel

Theories: boundary objects theory lemon market theory

Consequences of Project Team Member Turnover for agile Information Systems Development Teams: A Multiple Case Study

2023 | International Conference on Information Systems | Citations: 0

Authors: Wiesche, Manuel; Nguyen, Mai

Abstract: Turnover of IT professionals has been at the center of IT workforce research, m ... Expand

Abstract: Turnover of IT professionals has been at the center of IT workforce research, mainly focusing on individual level drivers and consequences. This paper explores how turnover events affect the dynamics of agile software development (ISD) teams. We conducted 25 semi-structured interviews in seven cases to understand team-level consequences of turnover events. We found that ISD teams who directly or indirectly experienced turnover events are confronted with the following four consequences on the group level: (1) group dynamics shift, leading to (2) interpersonal voids, and (3) voids of expertise which consequently leads to (4) rebalancing resources. Through our work, we contribute to a better understanding of how coping processes that start after collective turnover occurs in agile ISD teams are shaped at the group level. Collapse

Topics: agile software development IT workforce Scrum IT personell turnover project management

Methods: qualitative interview design methodology case study qualitative coding personal interview

Theories: theory of shared mental models

Value co-creation for digital innovation: An interorganizational boundary-spanning perspective

2023 | Information & Management | Citations: 0

Authors: Shi, Yunfei; Cui, Tingru; Kurnia, Sherah

Abstract: Despite the enthusiasm for engaging in interorganizational collaboration to enab ... Expand

Abstract: Despite the enthusiasm for engaging in interorganizational collaboration to enable digital product innovation, firms often face challenges in integrating knowledge across organizational boundaries. Our research examines how collaborating firms use Interorganizational Systems (IOS) tools and project coordinators to overcome knowledge boundaries in different types of ideation tasks. Drawing on boundary-spanning theory, we concep­ tualize IOS tools as boundary objects, project coordinators as boundary spanners, and the interdependence of ideation tasks as moderators of the impacts of boundary objects and spanners on knowledge integration. Our findings suggest that IOS tools help overcome syntax and semantic knowledge boundaries by transferring and sharing information when the interdependence of idea implementation tasks is high, and project coordinators help overcome pragmatic knowledge boundaries by building reciprocity of innovation participants when the interdependence of idea generation tasks is high. Our research contributes to value co-creation literature by developing a boundary-spanning mechanism to explain the roles of boundary objects and boundary spanners in overcoming different knowledge boundaries to enable digital product innovation at the inter-firm level. Collapse

Topics: innovation management digital innovation task interdependence idea generation boundary spanning

Methods: survey design methodology qualitative interview survey design post-hoc analysis

Theories: boundary objects theory

SISP as practice: De-isolating SISP activity across multiple levels

2021 | Journal of Strategic Information Systems | Citations: 0

Authors: Hughes, Jeffrey; McDonagh, Joe

Abstract: The strategic information systems planning (SISP) literature has retained a narr ... Expand

Abstract: The strategic information systems planning (SISP) literature has retained a narrow focus on organizational level activity to date. Limited empirical research has explored SISP’s multi-level interlinkages and complexities. Studies that have attempted to explore the micro activity of strategizing via a practice-based perspective have had their significance to academic and practitioner audiences questioned on grounds of micro-isolationism. Using a strategy as practice (SAP) lens, this study investigates how senior managers practice SISP through case studies of two public sector organizations (PSOs). The research’s primary contribution is a multi-level framework representing the practice of SISP. We ‘de-isolate’ SISP activity by empirically revealing how it is linked across macro, meso, and micro levels by SISP’s practitioners. Relating seemingly mundane strategic activity to matters of consequence has proven an enduring issue. Yet, at a time when organizations are facing grand challenges of increasing frequency and scale, we argue that the situating of day-to-day information systems (IS) strategy work within its broader context has never been more important. We propose a future research agenda premised upon moving ‘upstream’ to position SISP relative to grand challenges and ‘downstream’ to capture more open and inclusive forms of SISP. Collapse

Topics: information systems strategy electronic commerce innovation management Chief Information Officer IT workforce

Methods: case study qualitative interview theory development ethnography design methodology

Managing Tensions between Architectural Debt and Digital Innovation: The Case of a Financial Organization

2021 | HICSS | Citations: 7

Authors: Rolland, Knut H; Lyytinen, Kalle

Abstract: In recent years, Information System (IS) scholars have increasingly explored the ... Expand

Abstract: In recent years, Information System (IS) scholars have increasingly explored the malleability and recombinability of digital artifacts that facilitate innovation and change. In this paper, we focus on how architectural debt thwarts evolvability of complex IT architectures and systems founded on them. We conduct a case study in a major Scandinavian financial institution and explore their how they managed architectural debt during fast paced service innovation. Our analysis suggests that the firm’s capability to innovate depended on software developer’s ability to work across multiple syntactic, semantic, and pragmatic knowledge boundaries whilst addressing architectural debt. The paper offers two contributions. First, we add to the nascent body of socio-technical research on technical debt by illustrating how architectural debt cuts across multiple developer teams and architecture layers making it hard to identify and resolve. Second, we expand studies of digital innovation by identifying two interconnected tensions faced when innovators have to evolve complex IT architectures that lay the foundation for artefact malleability. We tie how the tensions are addressed to the firm’s capability to manage architectural debt. Collapse

Topics: innovation management digital innovation enterprise architecture IT governance systems development

Methods: case study qualitative interview design methodology theory development narrative analysis

How Organizational Transparency Strengthens Digital Innovation Capabilities in Startups

2021 | European Conference On Information Systems | Citations: 0

Authors: Goncalves, Dulce

Abstract: Organizational transparency has been identified as an essential principle for o ... Expand

Abstract: Organizational transparency has been identified as an essential principle for organizations to adopt since it enables organizational agility and digital innovation capability, which have become crucial for companies to handle today's volatile digital market. Startups seem to embrace transparency, but there is little empirical evidence in the literature describing how startups use transparency to develop their organizational agility and increase their digital innovation capability. We conducted a qualitative study based on 23 semi-structured interviews on nine globally active automotive startups to understand how organizational transparency strengthens digital innovation capability. The result shows that in the cases where transparency enables trusting relationships and commitment between employees and across company borders, transparency can strengthen the startups' digital innovation capability and making more use of people's creativity. We conclude that startups that apply an external transparency strategy to open innovation can enhance their digital innovation pace and the likelihood of market success. Collapse

Topics: innovation management digital innovation open innovation social media boundary spanning

Methods: qualitative interview personal interview literature study design methodology design artifact

A Theory of Coordination: From Propositions to Hypotheses in Agile Software Development

2021 | HICSS | Citations: 0

Authors: Kanaparan, Geetha; Strode, Diane

Abstract: Coordination is crucial in agile software development projects and a Theory of C ... Expand

Abstract: Coordination is crucial in agile software development projects and a Theory of Coordination in co-located agile software development projects explains coordination in this context. This theory has propositions based on case study research. To improve the generalisability of theory built from case studies, researchers often transition to a theory testing phase involving a large-scale field study using the survey method. Prior to a large-scale field study, the propositions generated during theory building must be converted to testable hypotheses. There is little guidance explaining the complexity of this transition process and the challenges involved. Therefore, this paper explains the operationalisation process of transitioning from research propositions to research hypotheses and illustrates the process using the Theory of Coordination. The paper offers six practical guidelines, identifies seven challenges encountered, and potential solutions for each challenge. This paper contributes to agile software development and theory testing research offering seven recommendations for research practice. Collapse

Topics: boundary spanning agile software development organization structure situation awareness IT development project

Methods: theory development survey case study design methodology conceptual modelling

Digital transformation of business ecosystems: Evidence from the Korean pop industry

2020 | Information Systems Journal | Citations: 32

Authors: Tan, Felix T. C.; Ondrus, Jan; Tan, Barney; Oh, Jungsuk

Abstract: The notion of business ecosystems is gaining prominence among academics and prac ... Expand

Abstract: The notion of business ecosystems is gaining prominence among academics and practitioners. Scholars advise that business ecosystems are inherently fluid, unbounded and amorphous and thus that their boundaries can shift. Practitioners further suggest that business ecosystems are characterised by inter-network – as opposed to inter-firm – competition, and, moreover, that they are mainly driven by technological advancements. And yet few studies examine the role of information technology (IT) in driving boundary practices that enable the formation and transformation of business ecosystems. Through an in-depth case study of technology-enabled transformations within the Korean pop music (K-pop) industry, our study examines how the digital transformation of business ecosystems unfolded. Our study contributes to the emergent body of knowledge on business ecosystems in a number of ways. Our investigations uncover the conditions under which the constituent firms operate and analyse the role of IT and its implications on new organisational forms. From our analysis, we present a framework that reveals insights on critical boundary practices and formative strategies for digital business ecosystems. We illustrate how these boundary practices drive industry change, from a largely linear content delivery system resembling a value chain to a new value network of co-specialisation and self-organisation among firms in a new digital business ecosystem. Collapse

Topics: digital ecosystem boundary spanning innovation management digital transformation participatory design

Methods: case study qualitative interview design artifact design methodology literature study

Conceptualizing smart service systems

2019 | Electronic Markets | Citations: 178

Authors: Beverungen, Daniel; Müller, Oliver; Matzner, Martin; Mendling, Jan; vom Brocke, Jan

Abstract: Recent years have seen the emergence of physical products that are digitally net ... Expand

Abstract: Recent years have seen the emergence of physical products that are digitally networked with other products and with information systems to enable complex business scenarios in manufacturing, mobility, or healthcare. These “smart products”, which enable the co-creation of “smart service” that is based on monitoring, optimization, remote control, and autonomous adaptation of products, profoundly transform service systems into what we call “smart service systems”. In a multi-method study that includes conceptual research and qualitative data from in-depth interviews, we conceptualize “smart service” and “smart service systems” based on using smart products as boundary objects that integrate service consumers’ and service providers’ resources and activities. Smart products allow both actors to retrieve and to analyze aggregated field evidence and to adapt service systems based on contextual data. We discuss the implications that the introduction of smart service systems have for foundational concepts of service science and conclude that smart service systems are characterized by technology-mediated, continuous, and routinized interactions. Collapse

Topics: smart device mobile system participatory design value creation boundary spanning

Methods: qualitative interview design methodology literature study personal interview qualitative coding

Theories: boundary objects theory