Use Cases and Collaboration Scenarios: how employees use socially-enabled Enterprise Collaboration Systems (ECS)

In recent years we have seen the emergence of a new type of collaboration software, the so-called “Enterprise Social Software”. The “social features” of this software type have stimulated a renewed interest in Enterprise Collaboration Systems (ECS). In this article we present findings from a longitudinal research project on the introduction and use of ECS in companies. We argue that ERP Systems and ECS are inherently different and that the process-paradigm that is common to ERP cannot be applied identically to ECS. To address this issue, we suggest the two concepts use case and collaboration scenario for the analysis and description of collaboration activity in companies. From the literature and 26 case studies we identified typical use cases and collaboration scenarios that can serve as blueprints for ECS introduction projects. The longitudinal objective of our research is to assist companies with their ECS initiatives and to provide them with a catalog of existing use cases and collaboration scenarios from various industry settings

The digitalization of supply chain: A review

The emergence of new digital technologies as part of Industry 4.0 has enabled the supply chain to be managed more efficiently. We talk about digitalization of the supply chain and this trend refers to the evolution towards a smarter model that involves digital technologies such as Blockchain, IoT, Machine Learning, etc. These technologies actually increase and enhance the ability to optimize planning, sourcing and procurement strategies. Since this topic is of relevant interest for the scientific community, this paper aims to investigate the main discussion themes related to supply chain digitalization using a keyword-based organizing framework to identify, classify and investigate relevant intellectual contributions in this field. Results showed which are the main issues regarding supply chain digitalization as well as promising future research avenues

A Historical Observation of the Intellectual and Institutional Structures of the Field

In this paper, we examine the evolution of the institutional and intellectual structures of the IS field. We argue that, though the field’s institutional structures—academic programs, journals, conferences, and professional associations—have developed admirably, the state of the field’s intellectual structure is less clear. We employ a co-citation lens to analyze the development and evolution of subfields across three periods. We rely on Culnan’s (1987) second co-citation study as a point of departure for our analysis. We then extend her work through two additional studies that individually assess the state of subfield development at distinct periods during the field’s history. Over the three periods, we note that the field has experienced change in subfield diversity and cohesion. Culnan’s study exhibits low levels of cohesion and diversity among topics. Our first study shows continued isolation but growth in subfield diversity. This period is indicative of a fragmented adhocracy. Our second study suggests increasing levels of integration despite only a slight reduction in subfield diversity. While we largely only describe the field’s evolution, any assessment of whether this evolution represents a positive or negative trajectory for the field will be subject to interpretation and debate

A meta-analysis of industry 4.0-related technologies that are suitable for lean manufacturing

Industry 4.0 and lean production are two key topics in manufacturing in the last decades, and they have attracted a great interest both from practitioners and researchers, as it is testified by the great number of studies and projects on those two topics. The diffusion of lean principles has revolutionized the industrial context, both from a manufacturing and from a logistics point of view. Several studies suggest that the right way to achieve the main goals of lean, i.e. reducing wastes and increasing value through the five concepts that aim at perfection, lies in the integration of physical machines and electronic devices through networks of sensors and software to forecast, plan, manufacture, and control products in a ‘digitised’ way. It is generally agreed that the digitisation of firms needs the adoption of key enabling technologies. What is not clear is which of these key enabling technologies are ‘lean enablers’, in the correctly redesigned business processes of a lean organisation. The objective of this article is to identify and analyse which key enabling technologies can be considered in a lean-oriented future state process or, alternatively, which other context of application is suitable for those technologies. The analysis is based on published literature, and it makes use of a quantitative systematic method known as meta-analysis, aimed at identifying future topics and research trends concerning Industry 4.0, its key enabling technologies and their implementations as possible enablers of lean thinking and lean manufacturing

ENTERPRISE-LEVEL PACKAGED SOFTWARE ACQUISITION: A STRUCTURED LITERATURE REVIEW THROUGH THE LENS OF IT GOVERNANCE

Enterprise-level packaged software is gaining in importance across organizations. Increasingly, organizations decide to purchase packaged software solutions. However, the acquisition of these software packages is carried out in risky and complex acquisition projects. Implementing the right governance structures and procedures can help to avoid errors and problems in this phase, which could severely impact implementation and usage of the procured systems in the future. The current body of knowledge on software acquisition governance is scarce, scattered, and in need of integration. Therefore, this study endeavors to perform a structured literature review which assesses the current state-of-the-art in software acquisition, focusing on IT governance-related aspects. Three main topics are identified and elaborated: the selection of software, the software acquisition process, and influncing factors. Based on these extant findings, this study integrates and synthesizes the separate research streams through the conceptual lens of IT governance. This literature review can help decision makers in organizations with optimizing their software procurement processes, governance, and behaviors and builds a foundation for further research on this increasingly relevant topic

Managing European R&D projects in the Industry 4.0 context: the perspective of a small consulting firm

open1noopenMersico, LuigiMersico, Luig

A knowledge management architecture for information technology services delivery

Knowledge Management is a scientific area related to the organizational value of knowledge and is understood as a multidisciplinary field of research. Notions and practices are emerging and incorporated in organizations in different areas, as is the case of IT Service Management. Today’s business environment is increasingly unstable, characterized by uncertainties and changes, where technology changes rapidly, competitors multiply, and products and services quickly become obsolete. In this context, management is increasingly focused not only on people management, but on the knowledge they have and how to capture it. An Information System aligned with Knowledge Management and Intellectual Capital aims to represent and manage explicitly the different dimensions associated with an organizational competence. If organizations integrate Knowledge Competencies, Knowledge Engineering, Information Systems and Organizational Memories, these will improve the organization's knowledge and subsequently improve the quality of the service provided to users and customers. This research will use Design Science Research methodology to create an artifact to be applied in a case study from an organization aligned with ITIL best practices. This organization is supported by an Intranet and an ERP for laptop repair process. The outcome of this dissertation aims to demonstrate if Knowledge Management improves the IT services delivery

Mapping the emergence of a new organisational form: An exploration of the intellectual structure of the B Corp research

This paper explores the emergence of B Corp as a new research field through a bibliometric analysis of the B Corp literature, based on a database of 142 documents collected by Scopus and published between 2009 and 2020. This emergent field is an important component of the structural change occurring in our society, which, in recent years, has seen the emergence of new for-profit organisational forms with a strong social consciousness. The bibliometric analysis reveals the foundational works and the historical evolution of the research field, pinpointing the connections between similar concepts in the literature on sustainable enterprises, such as B Corp, hybrid organisation, benefit corporation, and corporate social responsibility. Through a social network analysis, we sustain a relational view of B Corp research, and propose a taxonomy of concepts and terminology, which shows that the concept of B Corp defines an emergent organisational form

Editorial

It is tradition that the Electronic Journal of Information Systems Evaluation (EJISE) publish a special issue containing the full versions of the best papers that were presented in a preliminary version during the 8th European Conference on Information Management and Evaluation (ECIME 2014). The faculty of Economics and Business Administration of the Ghent University was host for this successful conference on 11-12th of September 2014. ECIME 2014 received a submission of 86 abstracts and after the double-blind peer review process, thirty one academic research papers, nine PhD research papers, one master research paper and four work-in-progress papers were accepted and selected for presentation. ECIME 2014 hosted academics from twenty-two nationalities, amongst them: Australia, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Finland, France, Greece, Ireland, Lebanon, Lithuania, Macedonia (FYROM), Norway, Portugal, Romania, Russia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, The Netherlands, Turkey and the UK. From the thirty-one academic papers presented during the conference nine papers were selected for inclusion in this special issue of EJISE. The selected papers represent empirical work as well as theoretical research on the broad topic of management and evaluation of information systems. The papers show a wide variety of perspectives to deal with the problem

Social Capital in Information and Communications Technology Research: Past, Present, and Future

Social capital is a very influential concept in social science in understanding contemporary societies. It is found to directly and indirectly influence many aspects of social life, such as quality of life. It is also increasingly explored in relation to Information and Communications Technology (ICT). However, little is known about the relationship between ICT and social capital. The study of the relationship is still in its early stages and has not produced consistent results. This paper sets out to provide an analytical review of the literature focusing on the relationship between the two in order to understand how ICT affects social capital and vice versa. It begins by presenting a review of social capital and then builds a framework to classify and organize ICT related social capital studies. Using this framework, we provide an analysis of existing studies in the area. On the basis of this analysis, we identify three gaps in the ICT related social capital research: an imbalance in the levels of analysis between the collective and the individual levels, a lack of theoretical explanation of why and how social capital changes due to ICT, and the limited ability of the research findings to be generalized. We then make suggestions for future research