Prototyping and the New Spirit of Policy-Making

This conceptual paper discusses the use of co-design approaches in the public realm by examining the emergence of a design practice, prototyping, in public policy-making. We argue that changes in approaches to management and organisation over recent decades have led towards greater flexibility, provisionality and anticipation in responding to public issues. These developments have co-emerged with growing interest in prototyping. Synthesising literatures in design, management and computing, and informed by our participant observation of teams inside government, we propose the defining characteristics of prototyping in policymaking and review the implications of using this approach. We suggest that such activities engender a ‘new spirit’ of policymaking. However this development is accompanied by the further encroachment of market logics into government, with the danger of absorbing critiques of capitalism and resulting in reinforced power structures

Incremental development and prototyping in current laboratory software development projects: Preliminary analysis

Several Laboratory software development projects that followed nonstandard development processes, which were hybrids of incremental development and prototyping, are being studied. Factors in the project environment leading to the decision to use a nonstandard development process and affecting its success are analyzed. A simple characterization of project environment based on this analysis is proposed, together with software development approaches which have been found effective for each category. These approaches include both documentation and review requirements

Designing for disability: Guidance for designers when working with users with Specific, Critical, Additional Needs (SCAN)

This study provides guidelines to help designers make reasoned methodological choices when working with those that have disabilities, in order to enable the effective interpretation of the views of these users and to ensure that these are taken into account in the design of products and services. A new way of categorising such users led to a definition by the researcher of Specific, Critical, Additional Needs (SCAN). Individuals with SCAN have additional needs that have to be met in order to maintain their quality of life, health, safety and wellbeing but are additional to those of everyday critical needs. Following an extensive review of models of disability and design, together with the legal and social contexts (including public attitudes to disability), as well as resources from the design and ergonomics communities and existing research methods available to designers when working with SCAN users, it was found that there were relatively few studies that examined the appropriateness of methods for understanding the requirements of these users in design and evaluation processes. Through focus groups, advice was gathered from designers, some of whom were experienced in working collaboratively with disabled persons. Following this, several semi-structured interviews took place with a representative sample of SCAN users, carers, support workers, health and social care professionals and family members. Analysis of these interviews, backed by evidence from the literature, led to the creation of guidelines. The guidelines take account of best practice in designing from a user-centred viewpoint, and a number of tried and tested research methods are reviewed in detail. The study also highlights the range of disabilities that should be considered by designers in shaping specifications for new products and services, and the need to treat users appropriately to ensure an accurate account is taken of their needs

An Empirical investigation into management and control of software prototyping.

In response to the so-called "software crisis', software prototyping has been widely used as a technique in various stage of systems development since the late 70's, and, with the growing sophistication of 4GLs tools and environments, it has becoming a popular alternative to conventional development approaches. A study of the literature revealed that, unlike tools and environments, the management and control of software prototyping practice has been widely reported as being problematic. The study also suggested that there were very few reported studies of prototyping projects in practice. In order to contribute to the understanding of the management and control of prototyping, it was therefore decided to conduct an empirical study. The empirical investigation comprises three interrelated stages: preliminary survey, field modelling and semi structured interviews. The findings of each stage provided inputs and formed a base for the following stage. From the survey to practitioners it became apparent that the concerns of the literature, regarding the management and control of prototyping projects, were justified. The next stage involved a detailed study using process modelling techniques of ten prototyping projects at eight software development organisations. This was then followed up by semi structured interviews of managers and prototypers at five organisations. In addition a number of documents, minutes and standards were also analysed, and personality tests conducted. The main lessons learnt include the 'process diversity', the inadequate methods and standards, and lack of quality control, particularly in regard to future maintainability and extensibility. Recommendations are given for each key management and control area identified, including team selection, initial requirement gathering, prototypes building, change requests and quality controls. Finally the thesis concludes that further work should be extended to areas such as developing 'lean methods' and an easy to use toolset for better management and control of the process

Hypermedia for prototyping and system integration in information systems development.

This thesis investigates information systems development with special regard to the area of Geographical Information Systems. It addresses the area through the investigation of the software life-cycle development model and its augmentation by the use of prototyping. Observations are made on empirical experiments conducted to assess the usefulness of the new techniques of hypertext and hypermedia and their suitability within this field of study. This investigation is complemented by a case study, the Norfolk and Suffolk Broads Authority. The Norfolk and Suffolk Broads are designated by statute with similar status to the National Parks of Great Britain, and are managed by the Norfolk and Suffolk Broads Authority. Through cooperation with the Norfolk and Suffolk Broads Authority, a prototype information system was created. This system makes use of geographical data from the Broads Authority. The development stages of this system were used to conduct experiments for this thesis. The tools and techniques used for the development of this system are described. These include a hypertext tool called FIELD (Fully Integrated Environment for Layered Development) which has been especially designed for the complete storage of all information for each stage throughout this development. The use of this tool and hypertext for the development of the geographically based information system for the Norfolk and Suffolk Broads Authority are discussed

Organisations and networks: theoretical considerations and a case study of networking across organisations.

This dissertation considers the rise of new and emergent organisational forms characterised as networks. The work presents an analysis of the underlying themes that motivate such developments by drawing upon modern models of organisation together with contemporary perspectives on information systems. A network is seen as interlinked work processes supported by communication technologies; work processes which, in particular, can transcend space and time and enable team based approaches. The characteristics that might distinguish the network are set out in terms of technology, the nature of the work process, and approaches to traditional organisational functions. Associations of individuals, institutions and groups of people and institutions; and societal considerations affecting inter-governmental and regional developments are also considered. An analysis of these characteristics is presented within a layered model and further developed by the use of tools and techniques drawn from social network analysis. A detailed case study is presented using this theoretical approach. The case examined is the Commonwealth Network of Information Technology for Development (COMNET-IT). This is an initiative of the Commonwealth aimed at bringing together expertise and organisations from around the world to coordinate their efforts in utilising information technology in pursuit of development goals. The focus of COMNET-IT's activities is on adding value to the work of a group of geographically dispersed experts through the utilisation of electronic networks. The study provides a detailed theoretical analysis of the network phenomenon. Using structuration theory and social network analysis, this research provides insights into processes of network formation and evolution, network structure and the behaviour of network participants. The processes of appropriation of technology are observed and analyzed, and this work is supported by detailed empirical research investigating electronic group meetings

Prototyping in Business Model Innovation: Exploring the Role of Design Thinking in Business Model Development

This study proposes a theoretical framework for business model prototyping (BMP), one in which design thinking is applied as a means of facilitating business model innovation (BMI). The value of design-led approaches in the development/management of innovation have received increasing recognition in the past decade, as the concept of design thinking (e.g., Brown, 2008; Martin, 2009) has gained broader application and credibility. In parallel, the concept of BMI has been discussed increasingly in research on innovation, as business models have garnered enhanced acknowledgement as a fundamental aspect in innovation management (Schneider & Spieth, 2013). Although experimentation for BMI is argued to be of importance (e.g., Chesbrough, 2010), the ways in which design thinking might inform prototyping of BMI is less articulated. Thus, the research provides a framework for prototyping business models in the process of BMI, and a first theoretical foundation for the subject. The framework is developed by combination of insights from a thoroughgoing literature review with expert interviews, multiple institution-level case studies, and a series of validation interviews. The literature review articulates the concept of prototyping in BMI and covers three topics in-depth: innovation, business models and design thinking. Expert interviews capture the perceptions and orientations of practitioners, and case studies explore various contexts of business model development in social enterprise, university division, governmental organisation and private company. The validation interviews use feedback from industrial experts to aid and revise the framework and combining theoretical and practical perspectives. On the basis of integrated findings, the thesis contributes to knowledge in three ways. First, it aims to bridge design methodology research and innovation management 3 research by articulating prototyping in design with business model innovation. Second, it proposes a theoretical framework for business model prototyping that incorporates four dimensions — purpose, process, context and engagement. This framework provides a theoretical foundation for further research in the area. Third, the thesis reframes prototyping not as a method or a tool but as a methodology (i.e., a conceptual framework and mode of thinking) that supports the management of business model development and innovation

A Multiple Perspective Approach Towards the Assessment and Development of Expert Systems in Manufacturing. Volume 1

Current approaches to technology innovation often fail because they are conceived and assessed from a single perspective or dimension. Thus, current considerations in expert systems development are characterised by a strong focus upon the technology and technical issues without a prior process of wider appraisal and technology assessment. A central theme of this study is that the business, organisational and human factors, which determine how effectively the technology will be used in practice, must be an integral part of the assessment process. The thesis describes a ‘multiple perspective approach’ to technology assessment applied to expert systems innovation in a large manufacturing organisation. This research therefore embraces detailed technical, organisational and individual perspectives of expert systems assessment and development and describes how each perspective adds new concepts, methods and tools. In practice, this has meant modelling activities and information flows in a two-site manufacturing organisation, the identification of a variety of potential areas for expert systems development, the narrowing down and selection of particular areas according to technical, organisational, business and personal criteria, and the eventual design, development, ‘operationalisation’ and evaluation of a single application. This study is placed in a wider context by complementary analyses of other manufacturing users and suppliers of expert systems. The work aims to contribute towards an understanding of expert systems innovation and to improved methodologies for technology assessment and technology transfer.Ph