On the Influence of Tools on Collaboration in Participative Enterprise Modeling – An Experimental Comparison between Whiteboard and Multi-Touch Table

The paper presents an experiment about the influence of the modeling tool on group work in the context of enterprise modeling. A goal modeling task was set where three groups of three persons worked with a whiteboard, and three groups of three persons worked with a multi-touch table. Comparisons of working styles between the two tools indicate that multi-touch tables promote parallel working and that a team member’s position plays a role in taking on certain tasks. Whiteboard users may more easily lose track of what teammates are doing

THE DECISION SUPPORT SYSTEMS FOR THE INFORMATION SOCIETY (i-Society)

The globalization process needs exact information flows that should be collected in due time. The Information Society ensures the communication between people with different expertise from various geographical areas that have similar interests. The increase of the companies’ activities leads implicitly to the increase of the volume and the complexities of databases, as well as the continuous modernization of the integrated information systems in order to collect the information in due time, that is requested by the decision takers and the frequent use of DSS. The paper presents the DSS structure, the main facilities offered by the associated software products, an evolution of the databases technologies, as well as a list of the program products used to process the statistical data and data mining in order to obtain the main sources of information that is necessary to take decisions.Information Society (i-Society); Data Base; Information Systems; Decision Support Systems (DSS); Statistical Package, Portal technology

Domain-Driven Design and Soft Systems Methodology as a Framework to Avoid Software Crises

Crisis is considered to be an issue concerning complex systems like societies, organizations or even families. It can be defined as the situation in which the system functions poorly, the causes of the dysfunction are not immediately identified and immediate decisions need to be made. The type and the duration of a crisis may require different kinds of decision making. In a long-term crisis, when system changes may be required, the active participation of the affected people may be more important than the power and dynamics of the leadership. Software crises, in their their contemporary form as oganizational maffunctions, can still affect the viability of any organization. In this contribution we highlight the systemic aspects of a crisis, the complexity behind that and the role of systemic methodologies to explore its root causes and to design effective interventions. Our focus is on modeling as a means to simplify the complexity of the regarded phenomena and to build a knowledge consensus among stakeholders. Domain-Driven Design comes from software as an approach to deal with complex projects. It is based on models exploration in a creative collaboration between domain practitioners and solution providers. SSM is an established methodology for dealing with wicked situations. It incorporates the use of models and, along with Domain-Driven Design and other systemic methodologies can be employed to develop a common perception of the situation and a common language between interested parties in a crisis situation

The impact of Group Intelligence software on enquiry-based learning

Despite the increasing use of groupware technologies in education, there is little evidence of their impact, especially within an enquiry-based learning (EBL) context. In this paper, we examine the use of a commercial standard Group Intelligence software called GroupSystems®ThinkTank. To date, ThinkTank has been adopted mainly in the USA and supports teams in generating ideas, categorising, prioritising, voting and multi-criteria decision-making and automatically generates a report at the end of each session. The software was used by students carrying out an EBL project, set by employers, for a full academic year. The criteria for assessing the impact of ThinkTank on student learning were those of creativity, participation, productivity, engagement and understanding. Data was collected throughout the year using a combination of interviews and questionnaires, and written feedback from employers. The overall findings show an increase in levels of productivity and creativity, evidence of a deeper understanding of their work but some variation in attitudes towards participation in the early stages of the project

Youth Voice in the work of Creative Partnerships

This report summarises the findings of an 18-month research project into ‘Youth Voice in the work of Creative Partnerships ‘, 2007-9, conducted by Sara Bragg, Helen Manchester, Dorothy Faulkner at the Open University, funded by the Arts Council England. Creative Partnerships (CP) was established in 2002 and is a ‘flagship creative learning programme’. It aims to foster innovative, long term collaborations between schools (often in areas of socio-economic deprivation) and creative practitioners. In particular CP states that it places young people ‘at the heart of what we do’ and claims that its programmes are most effective when young people are actively involved in leading and shaping them. CP highlights three key areas: involving young people in governance (the design, delivery and evaluation of the programme of work); building and maintaining ‘positive relationships’ with young people; working as ‘co-constructors of learning’ with them. The report maps existing youth voice initiatives in Creative Partnerships in those three areas. In addition, it considers the nature of the links between creativity and participation; explores issues of access to youth voice, such as patterns of inclusion and exclusion; explores what skills, experiences, identities and relationships are developed through participation. More broadly it attempts to understand, analyse and theorise youth voice, starting from the empirical but aiming to interpret the features of particular activities or projects to understand them more fully