Design Science as Design of Social Systems – Implications for Information Systems Research

This article summarizes the current state-of-the-art of design science research (DSR) in the management discipline and shows implications for DSR in Information Systems (IS). The objective is to provide a novel perspective for IS DSR beyond a focus on the IT artifact and its application context. Based on a review of the management literature, the current state-of-the-art of management DSR is condensed into a comprehensive approach. Its benefits for the IS discipline are illustrated by applying the approach to two typical directions of IS research: traditional IT artifact-centric DSR and DSR for IS/IT management or IT project management organizations. In addition, a novel approach to define IS DSR artifacts, as well as more differentiated views of artifact relevance and of the impacts of artifact instantiations are presented and discussed

Designing Innovative Education through Action Design Research: Method and Application for Teaching Design Activities in Large Lecture Environments

Today’s fast-changing global environment has created unprecedented challenges for the university sector worldwide. Consequently, educational innovation has become more important than ever before, especially in dynamic design-oriented disciplines, including information systems (IS). Action design research (ADR) offers great but yet-to-be-explored potential for designing educational innovations. In this paper, I present ADR as a method for educational innovation. I also showcase this method using the example of teaching design activities in large lecture environments. More precisely, I offer an innovative organization design solution, the team net-based learning (TNBL) model, which I designed and other educators later independently adopted. They continue to use the model to this day. In this paper, I report on the ADR project of initiating, designing, implementing, and evaluating the TNBL model in a large undergraduate MIS class over a two-year period in a real-life setting from the standpoint of a reflective practitioner/designer engaged in ADR in her own practice. Even though I implemented the project in the IS domain, the main design artifact is discipline and content agnostic, and, as such, could be used in any other design-oriented discipline. I also provide important directions for future research

Enterprise reference architectures for higher education institutions: Analysis, comparison and practical uses

Enterprise Architecture (EA) is currently accepted as one on the major instruments for enabling organisations in their transformation processes to achieve business-technology alignment. Despite that over the last years EA has been successfully adopted in many industries, Higher Education still represents one of the sectors with lower levels of adoption and maturity of EA practices. The present thesis puts the emphasis particularly on the study Enterprise Reference Architectures (ERAs), as a particular type of EA artefact, in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). After formally clarifying the concept of ERAs and giving a panoramic view of the current state-of-the-art of existing HEI-oriented ERAs, the thesis proposes an artefact framework build through a Design Science Research (DSR) approach aimed to facilitate practitioners their (re-)use or application in their own real practical settings. The purpose of the constructed artefact is to support practitioners when conducting the necessary adjustments to exiting HEI-oriented ERAs in order to be successfully applied for their specific needs.La Arquitectura Empresarial (AE) es actualmente reconocida como una disciplina que permite configurar procesos de trasformación organizativa a objeto de alinear el negocio con la tecnología. A pesar de que en los últimos años la AE se ha ido adoptando progresivamente de forma exitosa en diversas industrias, la educación superior representa todavía hoy en día uno de los sectores con menores niveles de adopción y de madurez en lo que se refiere a las prácticas de AE. La presente tesis hace especial hincapié en el estudio de las Arquitecturas de Referencia Empresariales (AREs), entendidas como un artefacto específico de AE, en Instituciones de Educación Superior (IES). Así, después de clarificar formalmente el concepto de ARE y de ofrecer una visión panorámica del estado del arte relativo a las AREs para IES existentes, la tesis propone un framework de trabajo construido a través de un enfoque de investigación basado en la Ciencia del diseño destinado a facilitar su (re-)utilización o aplicación práctica en dominios de trabajo reales. El objetivo del artefacto es proporcionar soporte práctico a los profesionales para realizar los ajustes necesarios a las AREs para IES existentes para que puedan aplicarlas con éxito a sus necesidades específicas.L'Arquitectura Empresarial (AE) és actualment reconeguda com una disciplina que permet configurar processos de transformació organitzatius a fi d'alinear el negoci amb la tecnologia. Tot i que en els darrers anys l'AE s'ha anat adoptant progressivament amb èxit en diverses indústries, l'educació superior representa encara avui dia un dels sectors amb menors nivells d'adopció i de maduresa pel que fa a pràctiques d'AE. Aquesta tesi posa especial èmfasi en l'estudi de les Arquitectures de Referència Empresarials (AREs), enteses com un artefacte concret d'AE, a Institucions d'Educació Superior (IES). Així, després d'aclarir formalment el concepte d'ARE i oferir una visió panoràmica de l'estat de l'art relatiu a les ARE per a IES existents, la tesi proposa un framework de treball construït a través d'un enfocament de recerca basat en la ciència del disseny destinat a facilitar-ne la seva (re-)utilització o aplicació pràctica en dominis de treball reals. L'objectiu de l'artefacte és proporcionar suport pràctic als professionals per realitzar els ajustaments necessaris a les AREs per a IES existents de forma que les puguin aplicar amb èxit a les seves necessitats específiques.Tecnologies de la informació i de xarxe

A Design Science Research Approach to Smart and Collaborative Urban Supply Networks

Urban supply networks are facing increasing demands and challenges and thus constitute a relevant field for research and practical development. Supply chain management holds enormous potential and relevance for society and everyday life as the flow of goods and information are important economic functions. Being a heterogeneous field, the literature base of supply chain management research is difficult to manage and navigate. Disruptive digital technologies and the implementation of cross-network information analysis and sharing drive the need for new organisational and technological approaches. Practical issues are manifold and include mega trends such as digital transformation, urbanisation, and environmental awareness. A promising approach to solving these problems is the realisation of smart and collaborative supply networks. The growth of artificial intelligence applications in recent years has led to a wide range of applications in a variety of domains. However, the potential of artificial intelligence utilisation in supply chain management has not yet been fully exploited. Similarly, value creation increasingly takes place in networked value creation cycles that have become continuously more collaborative, complex, and dynamic as interactions in business processes involving information technologies have become more intense. Following a design science research approach this cumulative thesis comprises the development and discussion of four artefacts for the analysis and advancement of smart and collaborative urban supply networks. This thesis aims to highlight the potential of artificial intelligence-based supply networks, to advance data-driven inter-organisational collaboration, and to improve last mile supply network sustainability. Based on thorough machine learning and systematic literature reviews, reference and system dynamics modelling, simulation, and qualitative empirical research, the artefacts provide a valuable contribution to research and practice

Investigating the impact of building information modeling on collaboration in the architecture, engineering, construction and operations industry

The research work presented in this thesis investigates collaboration in the Architecture, Engineering, Construction and Operations (AECO) industry. More precisely, it investigates the characteristics of collaboration, their dynamics in the context of temporary and permanent organizations as well as the impact that the transition to innovative project delivery approaches, namely Building Information Modeling (BIM), is having on this collaboration. The research was practically motivated through our industrial partners’ desire to better understand the impact of BIM and other innovative project delivery approaches on project outcomes. The research was theoretically motivated by the lack of a clear definition of collaboration in the AECO industry and its seemingly amorphous nature. This scarcity of systematic and structured approaches to investigate collaboration and its outcomes in the literature confirmed this. The research was therefore both exploratory and prescriptive in nature. Its principal aim was to develop an artifact that allows consistent development, management and assessment of innovation enabled collaboration. As such, the research project was conducted using a design science research design. The research process continuously iterated between the development and building of the artifact and its local evaluation in context. In parallel, the artifact was concurrently evaluated to ensure its relevance and maintain the rigor of its development. A critical realist perspective was adopted to frame the epistemic and ontological foundation of knowledge being developed and also contradistinguish the predominantly pragmatic perspective traditionally adopted in design science research. The development and building of the artifact followed a systematic combining methodology. Showing similarities with grounded theory, this particular methodology accepts the a priori framing of knowledge to inform the investigation. It recognizes also that the knowledge held within this frame will evolve as the project progresses and as new insight is gained into the phenomena Under investigation. Mixed-methods of data collection were conducted on two main research sites to inform and support the research project. The first site was that of a large institutional designbuild project located in Edmonton, Alberta. Data collection on this site started in February 2013 and is still being carried out. The data collected on this site allowed an in-depth investigation of collaboration within a temporary project organization having fully implemented BIM. The second site was that of a specialty mechanical contracting small enterprise located in Vancouver, British Columbia. Data collection on this site started in April 2012 and ended in April 2015. The data collected on this site allowed a breadth of investigation into collaboration from an organizational perspective. Data was collected on four other sites to support relevance checks of the artifact being developed. The findings of the work are presented through the artifact, namely the constructs developed to characterize collaboration, a multi-layered model representing the relationships between the constructs and the method of operationalization of this model. The artifact serves to inform, manage and assess BIM-based collaboration in the context of this particular research work, though it could be extended to include other innovative project delivery approaches as future work. The artifact also evokes a substantive theory of collaboration in the AECO industry in the form of alignments amongst constructs developed in the model. Lastly, the artifact is operationalized to investigate the impact of BIM on collaboration in the AECO industry. The evolution of the different constructs and indicators, both measured and perceived, the alignments and misalignments uncovered as well as the outcomes of collaboration are evaluated through the artifact. Furthermore, the evolution of the constructs and the alignments uncovered through the artifact can serve as an indicator of performance within collaborative environments. Thus, the artifact developed in this research project solves the problem that was set out by the industrial partners. It also addresses the gap that was uncovered in the literature with respects to collaboration through innovation. Further work is required to fully evaluate the artifact, however, it is believed that the groundwork to move towards a more systematic and structured investigation into collaboration in the AECO industry has been laid

Design and Evaluation of a Suitable Research Method

Gegenstand dieser Arbeit ist der Entwurf und die Evaluation (theoretisch und praktisch) einer Forschungsmethode zur gestaltungsorientierten IT-Management-Forschung. Ihr Einsatz hat zum Ziel, eine Verknüpfung von wissenschaftlicher Strenge und praktischer Relevanz der IT-Management-Forschung auf hohem Niveau zu erreichen. Konkret führt ihr Einsatz zur Abgabe theoretisch fundierter und empirisch validierter Gestaltungsempfehlungen in Form von begründet konstruierten Managementartefakten für zukünftige organisationale Realitäten. Diese dienen dazu, Lösungsmöglichkeiten für vorliegende Problemklassen von IT-Organisationen aufzuzeigen. Der Prozess der Einführung – oder Instanziierung – eines entworfenen Managementartefaktes für einen spezifischen Kontext wird dabei als komplexer, nicht-deterministischer Prozess organisationalen Wandels verstanden, welcher sich kontextabhängig entweder eher pfadabhängig-evolutionär oder eher pfadkreierend-radikal ausprägen kann.In this dissertation, a design science research method for IS/IT management research is developed and evaluated (on the theoretical and the practical level). Its goal is to lead to both scientific rigorous and practically relevant IS/IT management research. Its application leads to the development of theoretically grounded and empirically-validated design propositions for IS/IT organizations, which take the shape of constructed and justified management artifacts pointing towards future organizational realities. These artifacts provide possible solutions for classes of real-world problems of IS/IT organizations. The process of introducing - or instantiating - such management artifacts in a specific context is understood as complex, non-deterministic process of organizational change which can take a path-dependent (evolutionary) or path-creating (radical) shape, depending on the context

Communities in new media. Inclusive digital: Forming community in an open way. Self-determined participation in the digital transformation. Proceedings of 26th conference GeNeMe

Die jährliche Konferenz GeNeMe „Gemeinschaften in Neuen Medien“ diskutiert insbesondere Online Communities aus integraler Sicht auf mehrere Fachdisziplinen wie Informatik, Medientechnologie, Wirtschaftswissenschaft, Bildungs- und Informationswissenschaft, sowie Sozial- und Kommunikationswissenschaft. Als Forum für einen transdisziplinären Dialog ermöglicht die GeNeMe den Erfahrungs- und Wissensaustausch zwischen Teilnehmenden verschiedenster Fachrichtungen, Organisationen und Institutionen mit dem Fokus sowohl auf Forschung als auch Praxis. Die GeNeMe 2023 öffnete sich insbesondere der Diskussion von Fragen rund um Inklusion und Teilhabe im Rahmen digitaler Formate und Innovationen. Dabei wurden unter anderem folgende Fragen reflektiert: Wie kann Inklusion durch Digitalisierung umgesetzt werden und welche Möglichkeiten zeichnen sich dafür ab? Wie kann Teilhabe an und durch Digitalisierung gelingen? Wie steht es um Architekturen und professionelle Skills im Kontext spezifischer Zielgruppen? (DIPF/Orig.

Entanglements in the E-service of land record in Bangladesh: an action design ethnographic study

This thesis was submitted for the award of Doctor of Philosophy and was awarded by Brunel University LondonUnderstanding dynamic, unpredictable, multiple, pluralistic and entangled relations in technology and organization is an inherent endeavor of the Information System (IS) research. However, recent innovation and changes in technology and organizations have posed significant challenges to the existing theoretical and methodological lens to analyze mutually dependent, ensemble, inseparable, ceaselessly intra-actable and constitutively entangled relations in technology and organizations. In line, this study employed sociomateriality as a wider theoretical lens to analyze constitutive entanglements and disentanglements in technology and organization illustrated with a case of E-service of land record in Bangladesh. This study has applied sociomateriality along with intra-actions, diffraction, relational ontology and performativity lens to trace continuous constitutive entanglements and disentanglements in the E-service. Thus, this study identified significance of constitutive entanglement lens through tracing unprecedented changes, unintended consequences and unexpected outcomes from the intra-actions, diffractions, relationalities and performativity in the organizational context and technological process of the E-service. This study has developed ‗action design ethnographic research' (ADER) as an in-depth methodological framework through conducting 'action design research‘ (ADR) in the process of ethnographic research (ER). In line, this study has formulated problems in organizational contexts, designed and redesigned solutions through mutually reciprocal relations between the researcher and clients, conducted concurrent evaluation and identified learning. Consequently, this study has addressed the practitioners' problems through engaging and intervening in the organizational contexts and technological processes of the E-service of land record in Bangladesh. Thus, both the sociomaterial lens and ADER offered potentials to design and redesign the organizational contexts and the E-service processes. Along the line, the study has contributed to theory and practice of IS research through applying sociomateriality and addressing practitioners‘ problems. Therefore, this study has made significant contribution to knowledge and practice.Bangabandhu Fellowship on Science and ICT, Bangladesh Ministry of Science and Technolog