Showing papers in "Journal of Information Technology in 1994"
TL;DR: It is argued that existing frameworks, emanating separately from the respective disciplines (cognitive, social and organizational) do not present an adequate means of studying the dynamics of collaborative activity in situ, and an alternative framework, advocated in this paper, is distributed cognition.
Abstract: This paper examines the theoretical and practical problems that arise from attempts to develop formal characterizations and explanations of many work activities, in particular, collaborative activities We argue that even seemingly discrete individual activities occur in, and frequently draw upon a complex network of factors: individual, social and organizational Similarly, organizational and social constraints and practices impact upon individual cognitive processes and the realization of these in specific tasks Any adequate characterization of work activities therefore requires the analysis and synthesis of information from these traditionally separate sources We argue that existing frameworks, emanating separately from the respective disciplines (cognitive, social and organizational) do not present an adequate means of studying the dynamics of collaborative activity in situ An alternative framework, advocated in this paper, is distributed cognition Its theoretical basis is outlined together with examples of applied studies of computer-mediated work activities in different organizational settings
313 citations
TL;DR: By reading business process reengineering breakpoint strategies for market dominance, you can take more advantages with limited budget.
Abstract: Make more knowledge even in less time every day. You may not always spend your time and money to go abroad and get the experience and knowledge by yourself. Reading is a good alternative to do in getting this desirable knowledge and experience. You may gain many things from experiencing directly, but of course it will spend much money. So here, by reading business process reengineering breakpoint strategies for market dominance, you can take more advantages with limited budget.
296 citations
TL;DR: Comparisons of the views expressed by IS executives vis à vis those with a ‘non-IS’ role are provided and the findings of this study are compared with those of a previous similar British study undertaken in 1987.
Abstract: Survey research amongst senior information systems (IS) and non-IS executives in UK organizations was conducted in order to identify their views as to the most important and problematic issues they face in managing information systems. The survey mirrored similar research that has been undertaken in the USA and elsewhere, thus enabling international comparisons in the future. The aim of this paper is to provide comparisons of (i) the views expressed by IS executives vis a vis those with a ‘non-IS’ role and (ii) the findings of this study with those of a previous similar British study undertaken in 1987.
131 citations
TL;DR: Organizational-related issues which ranged from senior management involvement to end-user participation in the project development process were the most widespread and dominant of the factors.
Abstract: The study identified several factors as contributing to the abandonment of IS development projects. Organizational-related issues which ranged from senior management involvement to end-user participation in the project development process were the most widespread and dominant of the factors. Organizational issues were also found to influence factors dealing primarily with economic and technological matters in project development.
115 citations
TL;DR: The significant issues relating to BPR are discussed and a distinction between business re-engineering and business process redesign is made and the vital issues of whether BPR is hype, hope or hypocrisy are addressed.
Abstract: There have been few management concepts, even including ‘Total Quality’, ‘World Class Manufacturing’ and ‘Excellence’ to have generated such enormous media interest so quickly as the phenomenon of Business Process Redesign (BPR). The IT community in particular has latched on to the concept, although since its inception it has broadened its appeal. This paper discusses the significant issues relating to BPR and makes a distinction between business re-engineering and business process redesign. Based on a study of a number of organizations who claim to be active, the essential ingredients of BPR are presented. The paper then identifies how organizations are managing their redesign initiatives and presents emerging themes. The paper concludes with some of the lessons learned from the research to date and addresses the vital issues of whether BPR is hype, hope or hypocrisy.
50 citations
TL;DR: This note addresses the problem of choosing an appropriate method when evaluating an IT investment as set out in a previous work and proposes a matching method derived by trial and error which had, at the time, no theoretical foundations.
Abstract: This note addresses the problem of choosing an appropriate method when evaluating an IT investment as set out in a previous work. The problem arises immediately because there are many methods on offer for performing the evaluation and a great number of different situations in which those methods could be applied. There is thus a problem of matching the method to the situation across many dimensions. In the previous paper the authors spelled out some of these dimensions on the basis of empirical work and proposed a matching method derived by trial and error which had, at the time, no theoretical foundations. Further research has suggested a possible rationale and it is that which is presented here, together with a further dimension on which the matching may be carried through.
45 citations
TL;DR: A case study of successful implementation which did not use the ETHICS method explicitly is described and techniques of software process modelling are applied to both the case study and the methodology in an attempt to gain greater insight into user participation and to understand why the implementation was successful.
Abstract: User participation in information system development is considered to be an important factor influencing implementation success or failure. The ETHICS (Effective Technical and Human Implementation of Computer-based Systems) method was developed as a guide to user involvement in system design. A case study of successful implementation which did not use the ETHICS method explicitly is described. The case study and the ETHICS methodology are then compared and contrasted in an attempt to gain greater insight into user participation and to understand why the implementation was successful. Furthermore, techniques of software process modelling are applied to both ETHICS and the case study with the intention of more closely defining the user participation process and potentially also guiding it in future developments. The case study is used as a vehicle both to examine user participation and also to investigate the modelling of user participation.
39 citations
TL;DR: A framework is proposed which supports analysis of the distinctions and interactions between technical practice and organizational aspects of the development process, and also explains the interdependence between product diffusion and process innovation.
Abstract: Software is acknowledged to be crucial in enabling the widespread diffusion of information technology (IT), but is inadequately dealt with in analyses of technological change and often misrepresented in accounts of IT phenomena. The tools that are used to analyse conventional innovation processes are found to be inappropriatte for software. The characteristics of software which present conceptual difficulty, and the features which drive change in the software development process are identified. Three lines of technological development in software are discussed: product diffusion, innovation in the organization and management of the development process, and innovation in technical practice. These reflect currently dominant and emergent trends, in particular the shift away from wholly custom-built towards packaged software; concern with process issues, including quality accreditation; and technical developments including CASE (computer aided software engineering) and object orientation. A framework is proposed which supports analysis of the distinctions and interactions between technical practice and organizational aspects of the development process, and also explains the interdependence between product diffusion and process innovation.
34 citations
TL;DR: The study found that organizations tend to emphasize either cross-functional business process redesign or intrafunctional automation projects, and suggests that corporations that wish to take advantage of the rewards available from information technology-enabled change should recognize the risks associated with cross- functional change and process redesign.
Abstract: Information technology-enabled business process redesign is a means of levering the power of information technology to change organizational processes radically resulting in substantial improvements in corporate effectiveness and efficiency. Some of the greatest opportunities for organizational improvement using IT are associated with the support of processes that cross functional boundaries. In this search for improvement, it is important to recognize that there are both process risks associated with business process redesign and structural risks associated with crossing functional boundaries. This paper proposes a model that relates the risks and rewards of IT-enabled change and reports on the experience of 59 organizations. The study found that organizations tend to emphasize either cross-functional business process redesign or intrafunctional automation projects. The results suggest that corporations that wish to take advantage of the rewards available from information technology-enabled change should recognize the risks associated with cross-functional change and process redesign.
34 citations
TL;DR: A linear programming approach (Data Envelopment Analysis) is described to determine the relative merits of a set of multi-input, multi-output systems, in which more output for less input is considered good.
Abstract: A linear programming approach (Data Envelopment Analysis) is described to determine the relative merits of a set of multi-input, multi-output systems, in which more output for less input is considered good The method is applied to benchmarks of microcomputers, and is contrasted with a multiple regression analysis of the same data It is also argued that the essence of two opposing strategic outlooks can be captured within the method
33 citations
TL;DR: A review of the state-of-the-art of CSCW is offered and three sources of the aforementioned tension are explored: the role of technology in driving or being derived from the science; conceptions of working and cooperative working in particular; and the relationship between CSCw and organization.
Abstract: Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW) is a young research field, no more than ten years old, concerned with the development and use of computer systems to support cooperative working. Although researchers and practitioners in this area have many interests in common, there is a great deal of diversity in definitions of and approaches to CSCW. This diversity has arisen despite the clarity of intention of the early seminal papers that attempted to set the agenda for CSCW research. Ten years into the development of this research area, a number of tensions appear to be diluting this initial clarity. These tensions reveal themselves in apparent disjunctions between theoretical papers and statements of intent on the one hand and CSCW practice (research and design) on the other. In this paper a review of the state-of-the-art of CSCW is offered. Some existing systems, and related design and evaluation research, are described. Then three sources of the aforementioned tension are explored: the role of technology in driving or being derived from the science; conceptions of working and cooperative working in particular; and the relationship between CSCW and organization.
TL;DR: A longitudinal experiment designed to evaluate the relationship between DSS effectiveness and two such factors: DSS sophistication and task complexity.
Abstract: All Decision Support Systems (DSS) are, by their nature, designed to improve decision making effectiveness, yet a review of the experimental literature reveals that achievement of this objective is mixed. We propose that this is because DSS effectiveness is contingent upon a number of factors related to the task and DSS under investigation. This paper reports a longitudinal experiment designed to evaluate the relationship between DSS effectiveness and two such factors: DSS sophistication and task complexity. In comparison to unaided human judgement, two levels of DSS were evaluated: a deterministic spreadsheet model and a probabilistic model with a graphical risk analysis aid. Our subjects made decisions in a business simulation providing two successive phases of increasing task complexity. Initially, when task complexity was low, we found that neither DSS affected subjects' performance. In the more complex phase, both types of DSS users performed significantly better than unaided subjects. However, risk analysis users performed no better than model-only users. Interestingly, DSS users performed less homogeneously than unaided subjects in the complex phase. DSS users had greater confidence and considered more alternatives than their unaided counterparts. Risk analysis users took longer making decisions in the early stages, while model-only users became the most efficient in the later stages.
TL;DR: It is argued that new systems in both advanced manufacturing technology and office automation have been predominantly technology-led in their development and implementation, excluding adequate attention to their human and organizational aspects.
Abstract: In this paper we review two application areas in the field of IT concerning advanced manufacturing technology and office automation. We argue that new systems in both these areas have been predominantly technology-led in their development and implementation, excluding adequate attention to their human and organizational aspects. We describe two case studies as illustrations of these points and argue that the reasons for this technology-led approach lie in a complex interacting set of social systems that work effectively to marginalize the human and organizational aspects of the new technologies.
TL;DR: The study findings suggest that IS department push and EIS envy are factors which play a significant role in the emergence of EIS in organizations.
Abstract: Several factors have been proposed by researchers to explain why organizations are motivated to introduce executive information systems (EIS) now. These are identified and categorized in this paper and the results of an empirical study which examined the relevance of these factors in practice are presented. The findings of the study question the relevance and validity of some of the factors that have been identified – most notably that EIS are being introduced at the request of executives who are becoming increasingly computer literate and see EIS as a means of coping with today's extremely competitive business environment. The study findings suggest that IS department push and EIS envy are factors which play a significant role in the emergence of EIS in organizations.
TL;DR: A user-oriented two-dimensional taxonomy utilizing user type (institution or individual) and type of system support provided to the user (data, communication, information, or decision) is developed.
Abstract: Dramatic advances in technology, evolving organizational structures and increasing user influence are impacting the types of information systems (IS) being developed. These are not recognized adequately by existing taxonomies which tend to be incomplete, unclear, simplistic, unwieldy, inflexible or some combination of these. Fourteen models from the literature are described and discussed in light of today's myriad systems. A user-oriented two-dimensional taxonomy utilizing user type (institution or individual) and type of system support provided to the user (data, communication, information, or decision) is developed.
TL;DR: The suggestion is that, for the impact of CSCW to be understood, conventional theories of organization should be replaced by theories of collective activity.
Abstract: The paper reviews the ways organizations are thought to be changing as a result of Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW). While claims which exaggerate the impact of technological changes should not be taken seriously, within the context of current developments in world capitalism CSCW assumes particular importance raising cultural and organizational problems at least as much as economic and technological ones. The flexibility, variety and disorder associated with ‘post-modern’ organizations (i.e. organizations characteristic of the epoch after modernism) necessitate the adoption of ‘postmodern’ approaches to understanding (i.e. approaches to the theory of knowledge developed in linguistics and philosophy) which emphasise the significance of communication, interpretation, improvization, negotiation and learning processes. The suggestion is that, for the impact of CSCW to be understood, conventional theories of organization should be replaced by theories of collective activity.
TL;DR: A model of the history of information systems management within user organizations is presented here, which specifies a series of phases the IS field has gone through, which can be used to predict new pressures on IS executives and new directions for focusing research and education resources.
Abstract: We argue that the organization's internal time-path of computer usage should be located in a context of changes in the IS field as a whole. A model of the history of information systems management within user organizations is presented here, which specifies a series of phases the IS field has gone through. Each phase is defined by a critical problem or set of constraints. The phases model can be used to predict new pressures on IS executives and new directions for focusing research and education resources as well as supplementing Nolan's stages model of computer usage within organizations.
TL;DR: This article outlines the evolution of KBS methodologies and the recent change of emphasis from a technology-driven to a business-led approach and illustrates how IS methodologies could be used as a basis for the joint strategic planning of IS and KBS systems.
Abstract: It is first argued that the commercial failure of knowledge-based systems (KBS) is due to the lack of business emphasis of KBS development methodologies. This article outlines the evolution of KBS methodologies and the recent change of emphasis from a technology-driven to a business-led approach. It further examines the ‘application identification and selection’ activities of two KBS methodologies, KADS and STAGES. Their weaknesses are highlighted and it is argued that an integrated strategic methodological approach to the development of information systems and knowledge-based systems is required. The strategic phase of an IS methodology is then summarized; specific points within it where KBS-related activities could be incorporated are identified. This exercise illustrates how IS methodologies could be used as a basis for the joint strategic planning of IS and KBS systems.
TL;DR: Initial conclusions suggest that BPR concepts have an impact for large scale and highly structured working activities but seems to have an interestingly inverse relationship with information-oriented cooperative and user-enhanceable approaches to process coordination and improvement.
Abstract: The advent and growth of recent discussion on business process re-engineering (BPR) has been accompanied by its increasing application to a myriad of research areas and approaches. This paper examines its tenets using sociological and organizational paradigms and investigates its significance for software geared to enhancing coordinative and cooperative working methods and relationships within organizations. By taking the experience of implementors of such software and using a grounded and interpretive approach, initial conclusions suggest that BPR concepts have an impact for large scale and highly structured working activities but seems to have an interestingly inverse relationship with information-oriented cooperative and user-enhanceable approaches to process coordination and improvement. Taking these themes, this paper outlines some conceptual interpretations and theoretical managerial considerations for cooperative/coordinative and process work flow implementations.
TL;DR: The background to concerns about resistance to change and how this particular organization dealt with them are evaluated and the results broadly support many of the observations revealed in the literature.
Abstract: The paper addresses the human resource issues associated with the implementation of IT into the Production facilities of a company operating in the process industry. The primary focus of the research is a field study based on a questionnaire issued to the process workers who would be most affected by the changes. Management was initially concerned that resistance to change could pose a significant problem. In this respect there was particular concern that the age and background profile of the workforce could exacerbate any underlying tendency to change resistance. This paper evaluates the background to these concerns and illustrates how this particular organization dealt with them. The questionnaire results indicated a very low level of initial familiarity with any form of computer based technology. Nonetheless the results indicated a very positive response to the IT implementation proposals with virtually no evidence of attitudinal rigidity. In this sense, the results broadly support many of the observations revealed in the literature.
TL;DR: Investigation of the potential for interorganizational networks (IONs) to facilitate a challenge to the current hegemony of integrated production indicates that while IONs do represent an opportunity for the emergence of new, more collaborative modes of production such an outcome is by no means assured.
Abstract: This paper seeks to investigate the potential for interorganizational networks (IONs) to facilitate a challenge to the current hegemony of integrated production. From a transaction cost perspective the choice between market and hierarchical modes of production depends upon their relative coordination costs. The argument developed here is that uncertainty has precipitated market failure and the consequent rise of large, integrated concerns. IONs, however, by facilitating the cost-effective diffusion of information can reduce the coordination costs associated with the market place and permit the deintegration of production. The greatest benefits are held to be realized where the development of common knowledge between connected trading partners permits the ‘free flow’ of information. Supporting empirical work consists of a comprehensive survey of the uptake of IONs in the Scottish electronics industry and the development of case studies in a variety of companies highlighting the specific processes at work. Tentative conclusions indicate that while IONs do represent an opportunity for the emergence of new, more collaborative modes of production such an outcome is by no means assured. ‘changes consist primarily in relative decline in the importance of Fordist mass production and an enormous expansion of manufacturing activities based on less rigid and more highly adaptable(i.e., flexible) technological and institutional structures’ (scott, 1988, p. 171).
TL;DR: The findings suggest that management accountants may lack both awareness of the term and understanding of the nature of expert systems and that they generally do not believe that software can be trusted to make their job easier and improve the consistency of their decision making.
Abstract: This article considers why, despite forecasts to the contrary and in spite of being apparently well-suited to the technology, management accounting-based expert system developments appear to be virtually non-existent. The manner in which organizational change develops and the theoretical justification for the suitability of the management accounting domain for expert systems developments are reviewed, and a number of hypotheses are considered before describing and reporting the results of a survey into the attitudes and environment of UK practising management accountants. The findings suggest that management accountants may lack both awareness of the term and understanding of the nature of expert systems and that they generally do not believe that software can be trusted to make their job easier and improve the consistency of their decision making. It is concluded that a major educational initiative may be required if there is to be any likelihood of a significant change from the current position.
TL;DR: An approach adopted in the development of a DSS to support complex decision making in a Public Sector body is presented, which incorporates the use of Soft System Methodology (SSM).
Abstract: The decision making process in complex domains involves inconsistent, incomplete and uncertain information and a lack of established models or theories. These characteristics influence the nature of approach to be used in the development of any decision aids to support the process. This paper presents an approach adopted in the development of a DSS to support complex decision making in a Public Sector body. The approach incorporates the use of Soft System Methodology (SSM). The role of SSM in Information Systems in general and in the development of DSS in particular is not well understood. This paper attempts to enhance this understanding by presenting the role of SSM in the development life cycle. SSM was found to be useful especially at the initial stage of DSS development, namely in understanding the problem area, as well as in identifying models and information to be used as inputs to the DSS design.
TL;DR: This paper describes further a view of the organization of organizations that has been sketched briefly elsewhere, and proposes a strategy for the formal modelling of cooperative group work.
Abstract: The emerging new breed of IS (group decision support systems and decision simulation, multimedia, next-generation knowledge-based systems, deductive databases and DBMSs, and such like, together with the evolving networking capabilities) will have a more significant impact on the way people work than have ‘conventional’ IT products. This will have implications for what one might call the ‘cognitive style’ of the user interaction. This paper describes further a view of the organization of organizations that has already been sketched briefly elsewhere (Hutchison & Rosenberg, 1993; Hutchison, 1994), and proposes a strategy for the formal modelling of cooperative group work.
TL;DR: The definition and methodologies of computer capacity planning are discussed and the importance of CCP for IS people as well as business people is emphasized.
Abstract: Information systems (IS) managers are asked to provide services and cut computer costs. Computer capacity planning (CCP) provides them with a tool to assess the future computing needs and new technologies. Effective CCP is an important step in providing users with the lowest cost solution that meets their computing requirements. This paper discusses the definition and methodologies of CCP. The importance of CCP for IS people as well as business people is emphasized. Five phases for developing a capacity plan are presented and a few examples for illustration are provided. A real life example is also presented and suggestions and recommendations are offered.
TL;DR: In this paper, Howard Rheingold describes his own experience over several years as a user, particularly of a system called WELL, in which he has watched history unfold as it happens, participated in fund-raising for sick members of the community, watched romances made and broken and in extreme cases met people in real life once he had got to know them over the net.
Abstract: This book could almost be subtitled 'Confessions of a Spod' to adopt the slang by which users of bulletin boards and virtual discussions refer to themselves. Howard Rheingold bases it around his own experience over several years as a user, particularly of a system called WELL. But Rheingold is no preoccupied hacker with limited social skills. He joined an electronic community in the mid-1980s, attracted by the chance to watch a society growing, developing its own conventions and learning how best to use its own peculiar method of communication. His (real life) family became used to seeing him in earnest discussion with the computer, and his description of this society and its members as he meets them is varied, absorbing and at times touching. Without leaving his home, he has met students, medics, librarians and lawyers, many with a story to tell about themselves. He has watched history unfold as it happens, participated in fund-raising for sick members of the community, watched romances made and broken and in extreme cases met people in real life once he had got to know them over the net. Even when he addresses the allegations that such systems are for the lonely, it is refreshing to see that he refuses to be pejorative about users who are lonely: 'one honest answer... is that most people don't have a terribly glamorous life'. Within the virtual world there are numerous communities general fora for asking specialized questions, cult discussions, live chats (the most addictive and potentially damaging to productivity) where users can watch words appear on a screen as their counterpart types them, pornographic bulletin boards with their attendant ethical problems and multiuser dungeons (the connotations of the word dungeon vary amongst different people). There are people hiding behind multiple identities, crafting their own personalities, sometimes creating complete fictitious characters and joining the network in character, sometimes disguising their gender (Rheingold is rather over-charitable on this; in practice most networks have more male than female users, so presenting as a woman is a way of attracting attention). The book is an engaging account of what it feels like to join such a borderless community. While clearly enthused by the network's possibilities, Rheingold ends by looking at some of the drawbacks, not so much of virtual community but of a society where there are no restrictions on spreading information (unfortunately there is no mention of the British Data Protection Act) and the infrastructure to distribute it is very cheap. His (powerful) analogy for people feeling imprisoned by technology is the Panopticon, a prison proposed in the 19th century by Jeremy Bentham where every inmate would be under constant surveillance but unable to see anybody else. Nevertheless, Rheingold raises more questions for the researcher than he answers. When do bulletin boards become addictive? What are the implications of users revealing or concealing their identity? What sort of ethical code is needed to control interactive behaviour on the network? How close to universal access will such networks get in the future? Rheingold has given us a readable and evocative account, but it remains a valuable starting point, with much work still to be done. MARTIN RICH City University Business School