Developing Strategic Capability through Business Intelligence Applications: A case study from the German Healthcare Insurance Industry

Wynn, M. and Brinkmann, D., (2018), in Yeoh, W. and Miah, S. (eds) Business Intelligence in Organisational Settings, IGI-Global. Company performance can be measured at all levels across an organisation, and in the German healthcare industry, Business Intelligence systems play a crucial role in achieving this. For one major health insurance company (discussed here as an alias - AK Healthcare), the deployment of Business Intelligence applications has supported sustained growth in turnover and market share in the past five years. In this article, these tools are classified within an appropriate conceptual framework which encompasses the organisation’s information infrastructure and associated processes. Different components of the framework are identified and examples are given - systems infrastructure, data provision/access control, the BI tools and technologies, report generation, and information users. The use and integration of Business Intelligence tools in the strategy development process is then analyzed, and the key functions and features of these tools for strategic capability development are discussed. Research findings encompass system access, report characteristics, and end-users capabilities

A framework and tool to manage Cloud Computing service quality

Cloud Computing has generated considerable interest in both companies specialized in Information and Communication Technology and business context in general. The Sourcing Capability Maturity Model for service (e-SCM) is a capability model for offshore outsourcing services between clients and providers that offers appropriate strategies to enhance Cloud Computing implementation. It intends to achieve the required quality of service and develop an effective working relationship between clients and providers. Moreover, quality evaluation framework is a framework to control the quality of any product and/or process. It offers a tool support that can generate software artifacts to manage any type of product and service efficiently and effectively. Thus, the aim of this paper was to make this framework and tool support available to manage Cloud Computing service quality between clients and providers by means of e-SCM.Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación TIN2013-46928-C3-3-RJunta de Andalucía TIC-578

Cloud-based manufacturing-as-a-service environment for customized products

This paper describes the paradigm of cloud-based services which are used to envisage a new generation of configurable manufacturing systems. Unlike previous approaches to mass customization (that simply reprogram individual machines to produce specific shapes) the system reported here is intended to enable the customized production of technologically complex products by dynamically configuring a manufacturing supply chain. In order to realize such a system, the resources (i.e. production capabilities) have to be designed to support collaboration throughout the whole production network, including their adaption to customer-specific production. The flexible service composition as well as the appropriate IT services required for its realization show many analogies with common cloud computing approaches. For this reason, this paper describes the motivation and challenges that are related to cloud-based manufacturing and illustrates emerging technologies supporting this vision byestablishing an appropriate Manufacturing-as-a-Service environment based on manufacturing service descriptions

Characterization of Industrial Coolant Fluids and Continuous Ageing Monitoring by Wireless Node-Enabled Fiber Optic Sensors

Environmentally robust chemical sensors for monitoring industrial processes or infrastructures are lately becoming important devices in industry. Low complexity and wireless enabled characteristics can offer the required flexibility for sensor deployment in adaptable sensing networks for continuous monitoring and management of industrial assets. Here are presented the design, development and operation of a class of low cost photonic sensors for monitoring the ageing process and the operational characteristics of coolant fluids used in an industrial heavy machinery infrastructure. The chemical, physical and spectroscopic characteristics of specific industrial-grade coolant fluids were analyzed along their entire life cycle range, and proper parameters for their efficient monitoring were identified. Based on multimode polymer or silica optical fibers, wide range (3–11) pH sensors were developed by employing sol-gel derived pH sensitive coatings. The performances of the developed sensors were characterized and compared, towards their coolants’ ageing monitoring capability, proving their efficiency in such a demanding application scenario and harsh industrial environment. The operating characteristics of this type of sensors allowed their integration in an autonomous wireless sensing node, thus enabling the future use of the demonstrated platform in wireless sensor networks for a variety of industrial and environmental monitoring applications

An Ontology for Product-Service Systems

Industries are transforming their business strategy from a product-centric to a more service-centric nature by bundling products and services into integrated solutions to enhance the relationship between their customers. Since Product- Service Systems design research is currently at a rudimentary stage, the development of a robust ontology for this area would be helpful. The advantages of a standardized ontology are that it could help researchers and practitioners to communicate their views without ambiguity and thus encourage the conception and implementation of useful methods and tools. In this paper, an initial structure of a PSS ontology from the design perspective is proposed and evaluated

Modelling a conceptual framework of technology transfer process in construction projects: an empirical approach

Technology transfer (TT) is crucial to social infrastructure and economic development in developing countries (DCs). In Ghana’s construction sector, foreign firms provide an invaluable source of innovation and technological advancement for local contractors. However, TT models published in existing literature are rarely applicable to the construction industry in DCs. This paper therefore presents a conceptual framework of the TT process as a tool for measuring construction performance. Utilising the results from a questionnaire survey of Ghanaian construction industry professionals, eight different perspectives on TT were formulated using exploratory factor analysis. These perspectives represent the enablers and outcomes of the TT process, namely transferor and transferee characteristics, knowledge advancement, the transfer environment, government influence, the learning environment, project performance, communication, and relationship building and absorptive capability. The research outcomes provide useful guidance to local and international funding agencies, governments of developing or newly industrialised countries, and construction firms that seek to effectively evaluate the success (or otherwise) of the TT process. Future research should seek to validate the research findings presented, and to expand the work to include other DCs

MODELLING A CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK OF TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER PROCESS IN CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS: AN EMPIRICAL APPROACH

Technology transfer (TT) is crucial to social infrastructure and economic development in developing countries (DCs). In Ghana’s construction sector, foreign firms provide an invaluable source of innovation and technological advancement for local contractors. However, TT models published in existing literature are rarely applicable to the construction industry in DCs. This paper therefore presents a conceptual framework of the TT process as a tool for measuring construction performance. Utilising the results from a questionnaire survey of Ghanaian construction industry professionals, eight different perspectives on TT were formulated using exploratory factor analysis. These perspectives represent the enablers and outcomes of the TT process, namely transferor and transferee characteristics, knowledge advancement, the transfer environment, government influence, the learning environment, project performance, communication, and relationship building and absorptive capability. The research outcomes provide useful guidance to local and international funding agencies, governments of developing or newly industrialised countries, and construction firms that seek to effectively evaluate the success (or otherwise) of the TT process. Future research should seek to validate the research findings presented, and to expand the work to include other DCs