Real-Time Value Chain Management

Value creation in the digital economy of the 21st century is characterized by the instantaneous processing and coordination of value chain activities across extended enterprises. Value chain management has evolved from automation and integration to the optimization of the entire value chain in real-time. This paper examines the real-time characteristics for each of the activities in the demand and supply value chains. A model is presented for real-time value chain management enabled by technologies in e-business, knowledge management and business intelligence

The Development of an Internet Reverse Auction; an Alternative to e-Procurement

E-commerce is expected to growth tremendously as the economic shifted into global market. This has encouraged Small and Medium sized Enterprise (SME) to use the changes in the way they procured goods and services and should not miss the emergence of technology. The aim o f this research is to understand and analyze the principles of online reverse auction, to design online reverse auction website and to develop a prototype called W eb b ased Intermediary R everse A uction (WIRA). T he m ethodology that been adopted in order to develop this project are the planning phase, analysis phase, design and development phase, testing and debugging phase and implementation phase. The prototype of the online reverse auction is developed based on the research and analysis conducted by using several important tools. Tools that being used in this project are, Macromedia Dreamweaver, Adobe Photoshop, Macromedia Flash MX, Microsoft Access, ASP and IIS. By having this website, SMEs should realized that they can gained much profits as the product's price is much cheaper then they can get in e-procurement

The Development of an Internet Reverse Auction; an Alternative to e-Procurement

E-commerce is expected to growth tremendously as the economic shifted into global market. This has encouraged Small and Medium sized Enterprise (SME) to use the changes in the way they procured goods and services and should not miss the emergence of technology. The aim o f this research is to understand and analyze the principles of online reverse auction, to design online reverse auction website and to develop a prototype called W eb b ased Intermediary R everse A uction (WIRA). T he m ethodology that been adopted in order to develop this project are the planning phase, analysis phase, design and development phase, testing and debugging phase and implementation phase. The prototype of the online reverse auction is developed based on the research and analysis conducted by using several important tools. Tools that being used in this project are, Macromedia Dreamweaver, Adobe Photoshop, Macromedia Flash MX, Microsoft Access, ASP and IIS. By having this website, SMEs should realized that they can gained much profits as the product's price is much cheaper then they can get in e-procurement

Delineating knowledge management through lexical analysis - a retrospective

PURPOSE - Academic authors tend to define terms that meet their own needs. Knowledge Management (KM) is a term that comes to mind and is examined in this study. Lexicographical research identified KM terms used by authors from 1996 to 2006 in academic outlets to define KM. Data were collected based on strict criteria which included that definitions should be unique instances. From 2006 onwards, these authors could not identify new unique instances of definitions with repetitive usage of such definition instances. Analysis revealed that KM is directly defined by People (Person and Organisation), Processes (Codify, Share, Leverage, and Process) and Contextualised Content (Information). The paper aims to discuss these issues. DESIGN / METHODOLOGY / APPOACH – The aim of this paper is to add to the body of knowledge in the KM discipline and supply KM practitioners and scholars with insight into what is commonly regarded to be KM so as to reignite the debate on what one could consider as KM. The lexicon used by KM scholars was evaluated though the application of lexicographical research methods as extended though Knowledge Discovery and Text Analysis methods. FINDINGS – By simplifying term relationships through the application of lexicographical research methods, as extended though Knowledge Discovery and Text Analysis methods, it was found that KM is directly defined by People (Person and Organisation), Processes (Codify, Share, Leverage, Process) and Contextualised Content (Information). One would therefore be able to indicate that KM, from an academic point of view, refers to people processing contextualised content. RESEARCH LIMITATIONS / IMPLICATIONS – In total, 42 definitions were identified spanning a period of 11 years. This represented the first use of KM through the estimated apex of terms used. From 2006 onwards definitions were used in repetition, and all definitions that were considered to repeat were therefore subsequently excluded as not being unique instances. All definitions listed are by no means complete and exhaustive. The definitions are viewed outside the scope and context in which they were originally formulated and then used to review the key concepts in the definitions themselves. SOCIAL IMPLICATIONS – When the authors refer to the aforementioned discussion of KM content as well as the presentation of the method followed in this paper, the authors may have a few implications for future research in KM. First the research validates ideas presented by the OECD in 2005 pertaining to KM. It also validates that through the evolution of KM, the authors ended with a description of KM that may be seen as a standardised description. If the authors as academics and practitioners, for example, refer to KM as the same construct and/or idea, it has the potential to speculatively, distinguish between what KM may or may not be. ORIGINALITY / VALUE – By simplifying the term used to define Knowledge Management, by focussing on the most common definitions, the paper assist in refocussing Knowledge Management by reconsidering the dimensions that is the most common in how it has been defined over time. This would hopefully assist in reigniting discussions about Knowledge Management and how it may be used to the benefit of an organisation.http://www.emeraldinsight.com/loi/ajimhb201

User driven modelling: Visualisation and systematic interaction for end-user programming with tree-based structures

This thesis addresses certain problems encountered by teams of engineers when modelling complex structures and processes subject to cost and other resource constraints. The cost of a structure or process may be ‘read off’ its specifying model, but the language in which the model is expressed (e.g. CAD) and the language in which resources may be modelled (e.g. spreadsheets) are not naturally compatible. This thesis demonstrates that a number of intermediate steps may be introduced which enable both meaningful translation from one conceptual view to another as well as meaningful collaboration between team members. The work adopts a diagrammatic modelling approach as a natural one in an engineering context when seeking to establish a shared understanding of problems.Thus, the research question to be answered in this thesis is: ‘To what extent is it possible to improve user-driven software development through interaction with diagrams and without requiring users to learn particular computer languages?’ The goal of the research is to improve collaborative software development through interaction with diagrams, thereby minimising the need for end-users to code directly. To achieve this aim a combination of the paradigms of End-User Programming, Process and Product Modelling and Decision Support, and Semantic Web are exploited and a methodology of User Driven Modelling and Programming (UDM/P) is developed, implemented, and tested as a means of demonstrating the efficacy of diagrammatic modelling.In greater detail, the research seeks to show that diagrammatic modelling eases problems of maintenance, extensibility, ease of use, and sharing of information. The methodology presented here to achieve this involves a three step translation from a visualised ontology, through a modelling tool, to output to interactive visualisations. An analysis of users groups them into categories of system creator, model builder, and model user. This categorisation corresponds well with the three-step translation process where users develop the ontology, modelling tool, and visualisations for their problem.This research establishes and exemplifies a novel paradigm of collaborative end-user programming by domain experts. The end-user programmers can use a visual interface where the visualisation of the software exactly matches the structure of the software itself, making translation between user and computer, and vice versa, much more direct and practical. The visualisation is based on an ontology that provides a representation of the software as a tree. The solution is based on translation from a source tree to a result tree, and visualisation of both. The result tree shows a structured representation of the model with a full visualisation of all parts that leads to the computed result.In conclusion, it is claimed that this direct representation of the structure enables an understanding of the program as an ontology and model that is then visualised, resulting in a more transparent shared understanding by all users. It is further argued that our diagrammatic modelling paradigm consequently eases problems of maintenance, extensibility, ease of use, and sharing of information. This method is applicable to any problem that lends itself to representation as a tree. This is considered a limitation of the method to be addressed in a future project

Conception et mise en place sur le web d'un système interactif d'aide à la décision utilisant des bases de connaissances

La facilité grandissante de la communication entre les intervenants d’une équipe de projet n’a pas résolu le problème de la capitalisation des connaissances malgré l’apparition de l’Internet. La construction d’une logique d’exécution adaptée aux projets lors de la phase de conception est souvent une étape répétitive. Nous chercherons à fournir une méthodologie de conception d’un outil d’aide à la décision basé sur des connaissances en ordonnancement dont le but est de générer des échéanciers. Ces connaissances seront capitalisées à une grande échelle grâce au Web. Notre premier objectif sera de stocker et gérer des connaissances portant sur la logique d’ordonnancement. Les planificateurs pourront contribuer à l’amélioration continue du système de décision en maintenant les connaissances sur une base publique. Nous mettrons ensuite en place un protocole d’évaluation et de consolidation des connaissances par des experts désignés au sein du système. Enfin nous présenterons l’outil d’aide à la décision basé sur les connaissances, pour la génération d’une logique d’ordonnancement. Nous développerons donc une méthodologie de conception d’un SIAD dans un environnement Web 2.0. Nous étudierons la conception de la base de connaissances, du système d’inférence, de l’outil d’ingénierie des connaissances et des comportements de l’interface. L’application de cette méthodologie aboutira sur la conception d’un prototype. Une validation sera effectuée à travers la construction d’une base de connaissances de 4000 activités permettant de s’assurer de la fonctionnalité du prototype. L’environnement Web permettra ensuite de le valider à grande échelle à travers des tests d’application effectués en simultané à travers le monde

User driven modelling : visualisation and systematic interaction for end-user programming with tree-based structures

This thesis addresses certain problems encountered by teams of engineers when modelling complex structures and processes subject to cost and other resource constraints. The cost of a structure or process may be ‘read off’ its specifying model, but the language in which the model is expressed (e.g. CAD) and the language in which resources may be modelled (e.g. spreadsheets) are not naturally compatible. This thesis demonstrates that a number of intermediate steps may be introduced which enable both meaningful translation from one conceptual view to another as well as meaningful collaboration between team members. The work adopts a diagrammatic modelling approach as a natural one in an engineering context when seeking to establish a shared understanding of problems. Thus, the research question to be answered in this thesis is: ‘To what extent is it possible to improve user-driven software development through interaction with diagrams and without requiring users to learn particular computer languages?’ The goal of the research is to improve collaborative software development through interaction with diagrams, thereby minimising the need for end-users to code directly. To achieve this aim a combination of the paradigms of End-User Programming, Process and Product Modelling and Decision Support, and Semantic Web are exploited and a methodology of User Driven Modelling and Programming (UDM/P) is developed, implemented, and tested as a means of demonstrating the efficacy of diagrammatic modelling. In greater detail, the research seeks to show that diagrammatic modelling eases problems of maintenance, extensibility, ease of use, and sharing of information. The methodology presented here to achieve this involves a three step translation from a visualised ontology, through a modelling tool, to output to interactive visualisations. An analysis of users groups them into categories of system creator, model builder, and model user. This categorisation corresponds well with the three-step translation process where users develop the ontology, modelling tool, and visualisations for their problem. This research establishes and exemplifies a novel paradigm of collaborative end-user programming by domain experts. The end-user programmers can use a visual interface where the visualisation of the software exactly matches the structure of the software itself, making translation between user and computer, and vice versa, much more direct and practical. The visualisation is based on an ontology that provides a representation of the software as a tree. The solution is based on translation from a source tree to a result tree, and visualisation of both. The result tree shows a structured representation of the model with a full visualisation of all parts that leads to the computed result. In conclusion, it is claimed that this direct representation of the structure enables an understanding of the program as an ontology and model that is then visualised, resulting in a more transparent shared understanding by all users. It is further argued that our diagrammatic modelling paradigm consequently eases problems of maintenance, extensibility, ease of use, and sharing of information. This method is applicable to any problem that lends itself to representation as a tree. This is considered a limitation of the method to be addressed in a future project.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

Redes institucionais de conhecimento : estudo de uma rede na indústria têxtil e do vestuário

Dissertação de Mestrado em Contabilidade e AdministraçãoO conhecimento constitui uma fonte de vantagem competitiva no actual ambiente turbulento dos negócios. Gerir o conhecimento é uma tarefa complexa, difícil e exigente. A gestão do conhecimento é assumida como uma parte integrante e fundamental da estratégia que envolve quatro actividades – codificação, criação, transferência e armazenamento – e seis características: subjectividade, transferência, sedimentação, auto–valorização, perecibilidade e espontaneidade. A coordenação destas variáveis potencia a excelência organizacional. A gestão eficaz do conhecimento permite diferenciar, inovar e criar vantagem competitiva. Esta constatação foi analisada através de um estudo empírico efectuado junto de oito actores institucionais da indústria têxtil e do vestuário portuguesa. Com o objectivo de observar as características identificadas e compreender de que forma os oito actores estudados codificam, criam, transferem e armazenam conhecimento, foram estudadas as relações diádicas existentes entre o Centro Tecnológico da Indústria Têxtil e do Vestuário (CITEVE) e cada um dos restantes sete actores estudados, bem como a respectiva rede institucional, delimitadapor estes actores em torno do CITEVE. No total, foram realizadas 19 entrevistas. O estudo mostra que as relações diádicas e a cooperação em rede são importantes para obter valor acrescentado na criação e na transferência do conhecimento. A concentração é reforçada pela proximidade física e/ou institucional entre actores e pela criação de centros de conhecimento como, por exemplo, a escola tecnológica do têxtil. Através deste esforço, a rede estudada procura concentrar saberes complementares e multidisciplinares no sentido de promover conhecimento tácito e explícito, e contribuir para desenvolver a inovação na indústria têxtil e do vestuário portuguesa.Knowledge is a source of competitive advantage in the nowadays turbulent environment. Managing knowledge is a complex, difficult, and demanding task. Knowledge management, as a crucial element of strategy, comprises four activities – codification, creation, transference, and storage – and six characteristics: subjectivity, transferability, sedimentation, auto-valuation, perishablity, and spontaneity. Managing these variables develops differentiation, innovation, and competitive advantage. This was analysed through an empirical study with eight institutional actors from the Portuguese textile and apparel industry. Aiming to study the mentioned characteristics and to understand how the eight actors codify, create, transfer, and storage their knowledge, it were studied the dyadic relationships between Centro Tecnológico da Indústria Têxtil e do Vestuário (CITEVE) and each of the other seven actors, as well as the institutional network having CITEVE as the focal actor and comprising the remaining seven actors. It were carried out 19 interviews. The study shows that dyadic relationships and network cooperation are important to add value in the processes of knowledge creation and transference. This conclusion is supported by the physical and/or institutional proximity between actors and on the launch of knowledge centres such as a school of textile technology. Through this effort, the studied network aims to focus on complementary and multidisciplinary know-how, and to promote tacit and explicit knowledge, as well as to develop innovation in the Portuguese textile and apparel industry.La connaissance constitue une source d'avantage compétitif dans l'actuel environnement turbulent des affaires. Faire la gestion de la connaissance est une fonction complexe, difficile et très exigeante. La gestion de la connaissance est assumée comme une partie intégrante et fondamentale de la stratégie, qui conceme quatre activités - la codification, la création, le transfèrement et le magasinage - et six caractéristiques: la subjectivité, le transfèrement, la sédimentation, l'auto valorisation, le dépérissement et la spontanéité. La coordination de ces variables développe I'excellence organisationnelle. La gestion efficace de la connaissance permet de distinguer, d'innover et de créer l'avantage compétitif. Cette constatation a été analysée à travers une étude empirique effectuée à huit acteurs institutionnels de l'industrie textile et de vêtement portugaise. Ayant l'objectif d'observer les caractéristiques identifiées et de comprendre la façon dont les huit acteurs étudiés codifient, créent, transferent et magasinent la connaissance, ont été étudiées les relations dyadiques existantes entre le Centre Technologique de l' Industrie Textile et de Vêtement (CITEVE) et chacun des autres sept acteurs étudiés, aussi bien que le respectif réseau institutionnel, délimité par ces acteurs autour du CITEVE. Dix-neuf entrevues ont été réalisées. L' étude nous fait voir que les relations dyadiques et la coopération en réseau sont relevantes pour obtenir valeur accroit dans la création et transferement de la connaissance. La concentration est renforcée par la proximité physique et/ou institutionnelle entre acteurs et par la création de centres de connaissance, tels que l'École Technologique du Textile. C'est par cet effort que le réseau étudié cherche à concentrer des savoirs complémentaires et multidisciplinaires, au sens de promouvoir la connaissance tacite et explicite, et encore contribuer au développement de l'innovation dans l'industrie textile et du vêtement portugaise

O conhecimento como vetor estratégico para a inovação

O conhecimento e a inovação constituem fontes de vantagem competitiva sustentável no atual ambiente complexo e turbulento, motivado, na sua essência, pela globalização. Gerir o conhecimento é tarefa árdua, difícil, complexa e exigente. A gestão do conhecimento é assumida como uma parte integrante e fundamental da estratégia que envolve várias atividades, designadamente, a codificação, a criação e a transferência; e seis características agrupadas em quatro grandes grupos, com base no modo de inovação STI e DUI, nomeadamente: (1) A subjetividade, (2) A transferência e sedimentação, (3) A autovalorização, e (4) A perecibilidade e espontaneidade. A gestão e a coordenação destas variáveis potenciam a excelência organizacional. A gestão eficaz do conhecimento permite diferenciar, inovar e criar vantagem competitiva. Esta constatação foi analisada através de um estudo de caso efetuado junto de dois atores institucionais da indústria portuguesa dos moldes. Com o objetivo de observar as características identificadas e compreender de que forma os dois atores estudados codificam, criam e transferem o conhecimento, foi estudada a relação diádica, ou seja, a cooperação existente entre a Associação Nacional da Indústria de Moldes (CEFAMOL) e o Centro Tecnológico da Indústria de Moldes, Ferramentas Especiais e Plásticos (CENTIMFE). No total, foram realizadas duas entrevistas em profundidade. O estudo mostra que a cooperação é fundamental para obter valor acrescentado na codificação, na criação, na transferência do conhecimento e como a inovação é influenciada. A concentração é reforçada pela proximidade geográfica e/ou institucional entre os atores e pela criação de centros de conhecimento, que além de contribuir para a promoção da inovação, visa estimular a cooperação empresarial, quer numa perspetiva regional, quer de âmbito nacional, como, por exemplo, o Centro de Incubação de Oportunidades de Negócio (OPEN). Através deste esforço, ambos os atores procuram dinamizar, concentrar saberes complementares e multidisciplinares, no sentido de promover conhecimento tácito e explícito, e contribuir para cultivar, dinamizar e desenvolver a inovação na indústria portuguesa dos moldes. Como complemento ao estudo de caso, foi realizado um estudo quantitativo com base no CIS de 2010, cuja amostra foi de 584 empresas. A produção deste estudo teve, por um lado, o intuito de reconhecer e identificar, na inovação organizacional, que centros interagem para produzir e codificar conhecimento no modo de inovação STI, e quais as fontes externas que fomentam a troca de conhecimento, experiências e saberes no modo de inovação DUI; por outro, visou reconhecer, no cômputo da inovação organizacional, se os fatores, designadamente, a dimensão, o volume de negócios, a orientação do mercado e os níveis de qualificação do capital humano influenciam a inovação. Neste âmbito, ficou demonstrado que existem várias fontes externas e fatores que interagem na criação de conhecimento, que influenciam a inovação, e que as organizações adotaram, pelo menos, uma nova prática ou método da inovação organizacional