The Role of the Mangement Sciences in Research on Personalization

We present a review of research studies that deal with personalization. We synthesize current knowledge about these areas, and identify issues that we envision will be of interest to researchers working in the management sciences. We take an interdisciplinary approach that spans the areas of economics, marketing, information technology, and operations. We present an overarching framework for personalization that allows us to identify key players in the personalization process, as well as, the key stages of personalization. The framework enables us to examine the strategic role of personalization in the interactions between a firm and other key players in the firm's value system. We review extant literature in the strategic behavior of firms, and discuss opportunities for analytical and empirical research in this regard. Next, we examine how a firm can learn a customer's preferences, which is one of the key components of the personalization process. We use a utility-based approach to formalize such preference functions, and to understand how these preference functions could be learnt based on a customer's interactions with a firm. We identify well-established techniques in management sciences that can be gainfully employed in future research on personalization.CRM, Persoanlization, Marketing, e-commerce,

Critical Factors of High-Speed Broadband Investments in Rural Areas from Perspective of Operators

Nopeasta tietoliikenneyhteydestä on tullut elintärkeä palvelu jokapäiväiselle elämälle ja yritystoiminnalle. Nopeita laajakaistoja on kuitenkin vaikea saada kannattamaan haja-asutusalueilla. Tästä johtuen Suomen hallitus käynnisti "Laajakaista 2015" -hankkeen, jonka tarkoituksena on tukea julkisen tuen avulla nopean laajakaistan leviämistä haja-asutusalueille Suomessa. Julkinen tuki ei ole kuitenkaan saanut aikaan odotettua investointiaktiivisuutta kaikkien operaattorien keskuudessa. Tähän tilanteeseen liittyen tämä tutkimus selvittää nopea-laajakaistainvestointien kriittisiä tekijöitä operaattorien näkökulmasta. Tutkimuksen taustalla oli tavoite määrittää eri operaattorien ominaisuuksia haja-asutusalueiden laajakaistahankkeissa ja löytää välineitä ymmärtää ja parantaa "Laajakaista 2015" -hanketta. Tutkimus toteutettiin teemahaastattelumetodin ja tekno-ekonomisen arvioinnin avulla. Tutkimusta varten haastateltiin asiantuntijoita kahdeksalta suomalaiselta operaattorilta. Lisäksi muutamia muita asiantuntijoita kuultiin eri organisaatioista kuten Viestintävirastosta. Tutkimuksessa nousi esille kolme keskeistä kriittistä tekijää nopea-laajakaistainvestoinneissa. Ensimmäinen tekijä, yhteensopivuus kokonaisstrategian kanssa, korostuu haja-asutusalueiden investoinneissa, jotka usein vaativat joustavia kannattavuustavoitteita ja tuotteiden räätälöintiä. Toinen kriittinen tekijä on penetraatio, joka muodostaa tavallisesti merkittävimmät riskit haja-asutusalueiden laajakaistainvestoinneissa. Alhainen asukastiheys nostaa kustannuksia tilaajaa kohden, mikä puolestaan laskee penetraatiota. Lisäksi penetraatioriskin merkitystä usein lisää todellisen kysyntätiedon puuttuminen verkon suunnitteluvaiheessa. Kolmas kriittinen tekijä, paikallinen aktiivisuus, tuo esille alueen asukkaiden ja kuntien merkityksen haja-asutusalueiden laajakaistainvestointien kannattavuudessa. Paikallinen aktiivisuus on yleensä jopa edellytys investointien kannattavuudelle. Tulosten perusteella haja-asutusalueiden nopea-laajakaistainvestointeja voitaisiin tehokkaimmin kehittää vähentämällä penetraatioriskiä. Tämä voitaisiin käytännössä toteuttaa esimerkiksi siirtymällä enemmän kysyntäperusteiseen verkkorakenteeseen ennakoivien kysyntäkartoitusten ja aikaista liittymistä suosivan hinnoittelun avulla.A fast broadband connection has become a vital service for everyday life and entrepreneurship. However, the profitability of high-speed broadband investments is a significant problem in rural areas. For this reason, the Finnish government has launched the Broadband 2015 Project, which aims to assist the extension of fiber networks in the rural areas of Finland by providing a public subsidy. However, this subsidy has not encouraged activity among all operators. Based on this situation, this research probes the critical factors of high-speed broadband investments from the perspective of operators. The underlying aim of the research is to define generally the characteristics of different operators in the rural area broadband investments as well as find tools for understanding and improving the Broadband 2015 project. The research was performed using the theme interview method and techno-economic evaluation. Eight different Finnish operators were interviewed for the research. In addition, several experts were interviewed in the government and other organizations. This research found three main critical factors affecting high-speed broadband investments in rural areas. The first factor, co-ordination with overall strategy, is emphasized in the rural area investments, which usually require flexible profitability targets and product tailoring. The market penetration is the second critical factor which usually becomes the most significant risk in the rural area broadband investments. The penetration is often hampered by low population density, which also increases costs per subscriber. Moreover, the penetration risk is increased in a network planning phase because demand is hard to forecast based on generally used methods in rural areas. The last critical factor, local activity, stresses the importance of local inhabitants and municipalities who can significantly affect the profitability of rural area broadband investments. Their activity is usually needed to facilitate profitable rural area broadband investments. The results show that the high-speed broadband investments in rural areas could be improved by diminishing the penetration risk. This risk could be reduced, for example, by moving toward more demand based network structure using advanced demand surveys and by promoting the preferential pricing of early connections

How to integrate real-world user behavior into models of the market diffusion of alternative fuels in passenger cars - An in-depth comparison of three models for Germany

The future market diffusion of alternative fuels in the passenger car sector is of great interest to both carmakers and policymakers in order to decrease CO$_{2}$ emissions. The decision to buy a car is not totally objective and only partly based on cost. For this reason, those modeling the future market evolution of cars powered by alternative fuels try to include behavioral and non-cost related aspects. This paper analyzes the integration of user behavior into market diffusion models and compares three models that include this aspect. The comparison comprises three parts: first, it compares the modeling approaches, then uses a harmonized data set to model the future market diffusion of alternative fuel vehicles, with and without behavioral aspects. The most important aspects of user behavior included in the models are the use of charging infrastructure, the limited model availability, the consideration of range anxiety as a hampering factor or the willingness-to-pay-more for alternative drivetrains as a supporting factor, as well as a distinction of users\u27 driving distances. User behavior is considered in various ways, but always has a limiting effect on electric vehicle market diffusion. While a model that distinguishes individual users and driving distances stresses the high relevance of this aspect, it is considered less important in models with a more aggregated inclusion of user behavior based on logit functions

CHORUS Deliverable 2.2: Second report - identification of multi-disciplinary key issues for gap analysis toward EU multimedia search engines roadmap

After addressing the state-of-the-art during the first year of Chorus and establishing the existing landscape in multimedia search engines, we have identified and analyzed gaps within European research effort during our second year. In this period we focused on three directions, notably technological issues, user-centred issues and use-cases and socio- economic and legal aspects. These were assessed by two central studies: firstly, a concerted vision of functional breakdown of generic multimedia search engine, and secondly, a representative use-cases descriptions with the related discussion on requirement for technological challenges. Both studies have been carried out in cooperation and consultation with the community at large through EC concertation meetings (multimedia search engines cluster), several meetings with our Think-Tank, presentations in international conferences, and surveys addressed to EU projects coordinators as well as National initiatives coordinators. Based on the obtained feedback we identified two types of gaps, namely core technological gaps that involve research challenges, and “enablers”, which are not necessarily technical research challenges, but have impact on innovation progress. New socio-economic trends are presented as well as emerging legal challenges

Market segmentation approaches in the mobile service business

Älypuhelinten yleistyessä matkapuhelinverkon päätelaitteina uudet, kehittyneemmät matkapuhelinpalvelut ovat tulleet yhä isomman käyttäjäjoukon ulottuville. Laajenevalla käyttäjäkunnalla on kuitenkin toisistaan poikkeavia tarpeita, ominaisuuksia ja käyttötapoja, ja siksi yhden tuotteen tai palvelun ei voi odottaa tyydyttävän yhtälailla kaikkia. Markkinasegmentointi on eräs modernin markkinoinnin olennaisimmista konsepteista, ja se tarkoittaa heterogeenisten markkinoiden jakamista pienempiin ja homogeenisempiin segmentteihin, joita on mahdollista palvella segmenttikohtaiset tarpeet tyydyttävillä tuotteilla ja palveluilla. Tämä diplomityö tutkii suomalaisten älypuhelinkäyttäjien segmentointia. Osana matkapuhelinten käytön akateemista tutkimusta on Suomessa vuodesta 2005 lähtien järjestetty vuosittainen paneelitutkimus. Paneelitutkimuksessa käytetään erityistä päätelaitepohjaista tiedonkeruumenetelmää osallistujien älypuhelinkäytön mittaamiseen. Tämä työ keskittyy arvioimaan kyseisen tiedonkeruumenetelmän potentiaalia markkinasegmentaatiotarkoituksiin ja perustuu vuoden 2007 paneelitutkimuksessa kerättyyn aineistoon. Perusteellisen kirjallisuuskatsauksen jälkeen tässä työssä arvioitiin kolmea esimerkkiskeemaa markkinasegmentoinnista. Käytön määrään perustuva segmentaatio osoitti potentiaalia yksinkertaisena tapana tunnistaa arvokkaimmat käyttäjät. Tavoiteltuihin hyötyihin perustuva segmentaatio osoittautui haasteelliseksi riittämättömien taustatietojen ja alhaisten käyttömäärien vuoksi, mutta voi tulevaisuudessa olla hyödyllinen työkalu käyttäjätarpeiden ymmärtämisessä. Henkilöön ja tilanteeseen perustuva segmentaatio osoitti käyttötilanteen merkityksen mobiilipalvelujen käytölle ja on lupaava aihe jatkotutkimukselle. Diplomityön tulokset kuvailevat päätelaitepohjaisen tiedonkeruun vahvuuksia ja heikkouksia sekä osoittavat että menetelmällä on potentiaalia kehittyä jatkossa varteenotettavaksi markkinasegmentoinnin apukeinoksi.As smartphones are becoming more common as end-user devices in mobile networks, new advanced mobile services are made accessible to a growing number of users. This broadening user base, however, exhibits a range of distinct needs, characteristics and behavior and therefore a single product or service cannot be expected to satisfy everybody equally. Market segmentation, one of the most fundamental concepts in modern marketing, means dividing heterogenous markets into smaller more homogenous segments that can be effectively served with products and services matching their unique needs. This thesis studies the segmentation of Finnish smartphone users. As a part of academic research on mobile phone usage, annual panel studies have been arranged in Finland since 2005. These studies employ a special handset-based data collection method to measure the participants' smartphone usage. In this thesis, the focus is on exploring the potential of this data collection method for market segmentation purposes based on the data from the study of 2007. After a thorough literature review, this study evaluated three exemplary market segmentation schemes. The heavy half segmentation showed potential as a simple way to identify the most valuable customers. Benefit segmentation proved to be challenging due to insufficient background data and low usage rates, but can be a useful tool for understanding user needs in the future. Person-situation segmentation expressed the effect of usage situation on mobile service consumption and is a promising topic for further research. The results of this thesis describe the strengths and weaknesses of handset-based data collection and indicate that the method has the potential to evolve into a working tool for market segmentation

Individual information systems : design, use, and a negative outcome in the business and private domain

Digitalization increasingly changes individuals business and private lives. Today, individuals build and use ever more complex individual information systems (IIS) composed of privately-owned and business-owned components. The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated this development since individuals were forced to work from home due to the social distancing measures associated with the pandemic. The ongoing digitalization comes with great opportunities for individuals, such as higher mobility and flexibility, as well as for organizations, such as lower costs and increased productivity. However, the increased use of IIS at the workplace also bears risks for individuals. Such risks include technostress, which refers to stress that is caused by digital technologies. Technostress, in turn, can lead to health-related issues, reduced productivity, and higher turnover intentions. Thus, to leverage the positive opportunities of digitalization while reducing its associated risk of technostress, a better understanding of IIS, their use, and its effect on technostress, and of individual resources that may affect this relationship is needed. The aim of this dissertation is threefold: First, to contribute to a better understanding of layers of IIS and their different components. Second, since a negative outcome of IIS use can be technostress, this dissertation seeks to advance knowledge on technostress creators and how they can be influenced by IIS use and by various IIS characteristics. Third, this dissertation aims to reveal which resources of individuals may help mitigate technostress. This dissertation uses quantitative methods, such as online surveys and structural equation modeling, and qualitative methods, such as literature analyses and semi-structured interviews. Thereby, the methodological focus lies on quantitative data collection and analysis, while some papers use a mixed-methods approach as a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods. Chapter 2 of this dissertation aims at providing a better understanding of IIS by investigating its various components. Therefore, Chapter 2.1 conceptualizes four layers of IIS: devices, digital identities, relationships, and information. It also considers that IIS have two more or less integrated subsystems: the business information systems with business-owned components and the private information systems with privately-owned components. An empirical validation supports this conceptualization as well as the definition of integration between the two sub-systems on each of the four layers. Chapter 2.2 studies IT consumerization, which refers to the use of private IIS components in the business domain and applies a risk-benefit consideration. The results imply that benefits of consumerization of IT services, such as better functionalities of a private IT service outweigh risks, such as the threat of sanctions for the use of private IT services. Chapter 3 focuses on technostress as a negative outcome of the increased IIS use. Chapter 3.1 analyzes how IT consumerization is related to the technostress creator unreliability of digital technologies. The results reveal a positive relationship between IT consumerization and unreliability and show that unreliability is perceived higher when the IT portfolio integration and the individuals computer self-efficacy are low. Chapter 3.2 proceeds with studying characteristics of digital technologies and how these are related to technostress. It presents ten characteristics that are associated with at least one technostress creator. Chapter 3.3 extends the concept of technostress and introduces a framework of twelve different technostress creators, reveals four second-order factors underlying the twelve technostress creators, and brings them into relation with work- and health-related effects. Chapter 4 also deals with technostress and investigates resources to mitigate technostress. Chapter 4.1 focuses on organizational measures and finds different relationships of the investigated measures with different technostress creators. While some of the technostress creators can be inhibited by the implementation of organizational measures, others are found to be even intensified by the organizational measures. Chapter 4.2 focuses on social mechanisms that function as technostress inhibitors. Findings differ between technostress creators and the investigated social support dimensions. Furthermore, the results highlight the fact that some of the social support dimensions gain even greater importance in light of increasing telework. In summary, this dissertation provides new insights into IIS and their use, the emergence of technostress in digitalized workplaces, and organizational as well as social mechanisms that help mitigate technostress. Hence, this dissertation supports current efforts in both research and practice to reduce technostress while leveraging the positive opportunities of workplace digitalization.Die Digitalisierung verändert unser berufliches und privates Leben zunehmend und hat dazu geführt, dass Individuen heute immer komplexere individuelle Informationssysteme (IIS) nutzen. Die COVID-19-Pandemie hat diese Entwicklung noch beschleunigt, da Beschäftigte durch Social-Distancing-Maßnahmen gezwungen waren, von zu Hause aus zu arbeiten. Die fortschreitende Digitalisierung der Arbeitswelt bringt sowohl für Individuen als auch für Organisationen große Chancen mit sich, wie höhere Mobilität und Flexibilität sowie geringere Kosten und eine gesteigerte Produktivität. Allerdings birgt die verstärkte Nutzung von IIS am Arbeitsplatz auch Risiken. Dazu gehört Technostress, also Stress, der durch digitale Technologien verursacht wird. Technostress wiederum kann zu gesundheitlichen Problemen, verringerter Produktivität sowie einer höheren Fluktuationsrate führen. Um die Chancen der Digitalisierung nutzen und gleichzeitig die Risiken des Technostresses reduzieren zu können, ist ein besseres Verständnis über IIS, deren Nutzung und deren Auswirkung auf Technostress erforderlich sowie darüber, welche individuellen Ressourcen diesen Zusammenhang beeinflussen. Die vorliegende Dissertation verfolgt drei Ziele: Erstens soll zu einem besseren Verständnis über IIS und deren Komponenten beigetragen werden. Zweitens soll das Wissen über Auslöser von Technostress erweitert werden sowie darüber, wie Technostress durch die Nutzung von IIS und durch verschiedene IIS-Charakteristika beeinflusst werden kann. Drittens strebt die Dissertation an, aufzuzeigen, welche Ressourcen helfen, Technostress zu verringern. Zu diesem Zweck werden quantitative Methoden (z.B. Online-Befragungen und Strukturgleichungsmodellierung) und qualitative Methoden (Literaturanalysen und semi-strukturierte Interviews) eingesetzt. Der methodische Schwerpunkt liegt dabei auf der quantitativen Datenerhebung und -analyse, wobei teilweise ein Mixed-Methods-Ansatz als Kombination quantitativer und qualitativer Methoden verwendet wird. Kapitel 2 zielt auf ein besseres Verständnis über IIS und deren verschiedene Komponenten ab. Dafür werden in Kapitel 2.1 vier Ebenen eines IIS konzeptualisiert: Devices, Digital Identities, Beziehungen und Informationen. Zudem berücksichtigt die Konzeptualisierung, dass ein IIS aus zwei mehr oder weniger integrierten Subsystemen besteht: dem beruflichen und dem privaten Informationssystem. Eine empirische Validierung unterstützt die Konzeptualisierung sowie die Definition der Integration zwischen den Subsystemen auf jeder der vier Ebenen. Kapitel 2.2 analysiert IT-Consumerization also die Nutzung privater IIS-Komponenten im beruflichen Kontext. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass der relative Nutzen, wie z.B. bessere Funktionalitäten des privaten IT-Services, die wahrgenommenen Risiken, wie z.B. die Androhung von Sanktionen für die Nutzung privater IT-Services, überwiegt. Kapitel 3 beschäftigt sich mit Technostress als negativer Folge der verstärkten IIS-Nutzung. In Kapitel 3.1 wird analysiert, wie IT-Consumerization mit dem Belastungsfaktor Unzuverlässigkeit digitaler Technologien zusammenhängt. Die Ergebnisse zeigen einen positiven Zusammenhang, der noch stärker wahrgenommen wird, wenn die IT-Portfolio-Integration und die Computer-Selbstwirksamkeit des Individuums niedrig sind. Kapitel 3.2 untersucht Charakteristika digitaler Technologien und deren Zusammenhang mit Technostress. Es werden zehn Charakteristika gesammelt, die mit mindestens einem digitalen Belastungsfaktor zusammenhängen. Kapitel 3.3 erweitert das Technostress-Konzept und präsentiert zwölf digitale Belastungsfaktoren. Zudem werden vier Faktoren aufgedeckt, die den zwölf Belastungsfaktoren zugrunde liegen, und mit arbeits- und gesundheitsbezogenen Folgen in Zusammenhang gebracht. Kapitel 4 untersucht Ressourcen, die helfen können, Technostress zu mindern. Kapitel 4.1 untersucht organisatorische Maßnahmen und findet unterschiedliche Zusammenhänge der untersuchten Maßnahmen mit verschiedenen digitalen Belastungsfaktoren. Während einige der Belastungsfaktoren durch die organisatorischen Maßnahmen gehemmt werden, werden andere sogar verstärkt. Kapitel 4.2 untersucht soziale Mechanismen, die Technostress verringern können. Die Ergebnisse zeigen unterschiedliche Auswirkungen der untersuchten Dimensionen sozialer Unterstützung auf die digitalen Belastungsfaktoren. Darüber hinaus wird deutlich, dass einige der Dimensionen sozialer Unterstützung angesichts der zunehmenden Arbeit von zuhause eine noch größere Bedeutung erlangen. Zusammenfassend liefert die vorliegende Dissertation neue Erkenntnisse über IIS und deren Nutzung, die Entstehung von Technostress und über organisatorische sowie soziale Mechanismen, die helfen, Technostress zu mindern. Damit leistet die Dissertation einen Beitrag zu den aktuellen Initiativen in Forschung und Praxis, Technostress zu reduzieren und gleichzeitig die Chancen der Digitalisierung der Arbeit zu realisieren

D:A4.1 Socio-economic impact assessment

The executive summary ends with six concise recommendations for facilitating more accountability for data management in cloud ecosystems: 1. Provide a stronger legal base for and enforcement of data protection and accountable behavior; 2. Facilitate independent auditing of responsible data stewardship; 3. Increase public awareness of the need for accountability; 4. Balance existing information asymmetries via partnerships; 5. Focus on larger enterprises working in the public sector first, as these can serve as an example for other types of businesses; 6. Demonstrate how A4Cloud tools and mechanisms can be turned into a business model in order to encourage greater uptake and use