Project management between will and representation

This article challenges some deep-rooted assumptions of project management. Inspired by the work of the German philosopher, Arthur Schopenhauer, it calls for looking at projects through two complementary lenses: one that accounts for cognitive and representational aspects and one that accounts for material and volitional aspects. Understanding the many ways in which these aspects transpire and interact in projects sheds new light on project organizations, as imperfect and fragile representations that chase a shifting nexus of intractable human, social, technical, and material processes. This, in turn, can bring about a new grasp of notions such as value,\ud knowledge, complexity, and risk

Using interactive documentary as a peacebuilding tool

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ICS Materials. Towards a re-Interpretation of material qualities through interactive, connected, and smart materials.

The domain of materials for design is changing under the influence of an increased technological advancement, miniaturization and democratization. Materials are becoming connected, augmented, computational, interactive, active, responsive, and dynamic. These are ICS Materials, an acronym that stands for Interactive, Connected and Smart. While labs around the world are experimenting with these new materials, there is the need to reflect on their potentials and impact on design. This paper is a first step in this direction: to interpret and describe the qualities of ICS materials, considering their experiential pattern, their expressive sensorial dimension, and their aesthetic of interaction. Through case studies, we analyse and classify these emerging ICS Materials and identified common characteristics, and challenges, e.g. the ability to change over time or their programmability by the designers and users. On that basis, we argue there is the need to reframe and redesign existing models to describe ICS materials, making their qualities emerge

Managing Civility in News and Information Organizations

Purpose: Explore media managers’ perspectives on covering issues of conflict, as well as analyze news coverage of issues related to civility in the Black Lives Matter conflict. Methodology: Summary translations were conducted on panel discussions of civility in media to identify issues of importance to media managers. A computational content analysis of newspaper articles on conflict was conducted to identify key words and phrases used in actual coverage.  Findings/Contribution: Media managers are concerned with bias in news reporting an­­d covering differing viewpoints especially in stories of conflict. Four themes emerged: Values, Practices, Sectors, Story Topics and Legal Considerations. In Black Lives Matter coverage, reporting themes related to violence prevailed leaving open more in-depth coverage of issues related to values, sectors and legal concerns

Experience Prototyping for Automotive Applications

In recent years, we started to define our life through experiences we make instead of objectswe buy. To attend a concert of our favorite musician may be more important for us thanowning an expensive stereo system. Similarly, we define interactive systems not only by thequality of the display or its usability, but rather by the experiences we can make when usingthe device. A cell phone is primarily built for making calls and receiving text messages,but on an emotional level it might provide a way to be close to our loved ones, even thoughthey are far away sometimes. When designing interactive technology, we do not only haveto answer the question how people use our systems, but also why they use them. Thus,we need to concentrate on experiences, feelings and emotions arising during interaction.Experience Design is an approach focusing on the story that a product communicates beforeimplementing the system. In an interdisciplinary team of psychologists, industrial designers, product developers andspecialists in human-computer interaction, we applied an Experience Design process to theautomotive domain. A major challenge for car manufacturers is the preservation of theseexperiences throughout the development process. When implementing interactive systemsengineers rely on technical requirements and a set of constraints (e.g., safety) oftentimescontradicting aspects of the designed experience. To resolve this conflict, Experience Prototypingis an important tool translating experience stories to an actual interactive product. With this thesis I investigate the Experience Design process focusing on Experience Prototyping.Within the automotive context, I report on three case studies implementing threekinds of interactive systems, forming and following our approach. I implemented (1) anelectric vehicle information system called Heartbeat, communicating the state of the electricdrive and the batteries to the driver in an unobtrusive and ensuring way. I integrated Heartbeatinto the dashboard of a car mock-up with respect to safety and space requirements butat the same time holding on to the story in order to achieve a consistent experience. With (2)the Periscope I implemented a mobile navigation device enhancing the social and relatednessexperiences of the passengers in the car. I built and evaluated several experience prototypesin different stages of the design process and showed that they transported the designed experiencethroughout the implementation of the system. Focusing on (3) the experience offreehand gestures, GestShare explored this interaction style for in-car and car-to-car socialexperiences. We designed and implemented a gestural prototypes for small but effectivesocial interactions between drivers and evaluated the system in the lab and and in-situ study. The contributions of this thesis are (1) a definition of Experience Prototyping in the automotivedomain resulting from a literature review and my own work, showing the importanceand feasibility of Experience Prototyping for Experience Design. I (2) contribute three casestudies and describe the details of several prototypes as milestones on the way from a anexperience story to an interactive system. I (3) derive best practices for Experience Prototypingconcerning their characteristics such as fidelity, resolution and interactivity as well asthe evaluation in the lab an in situ in different stages of the process.Wir definieren unser Leben zunehmend durch Dinge, die wir erleben und weniger durchProdukte, die wir kaufen. Ein Konzert unseres Lieblingsmusikers zu besuchen kann dabeiwichtiger sein, als eine teure Stereoanlage zu besitzen. Auch interaktive Systeme bewertenwir nicht mehr nur nach der Qualität des Displays oder der Benutzerfreundlichkeit, sondernauch nach Erlebnissen, die durch die Benutzung möglich werden. Das Smartphone wurdehauptsächlich zum Telefonieren und Schreiben von Nachrichten entwickelt. Auf einer emotionalenEbene bietet es uns aber auch eine Möglichkeit, wichtigen Personen sehr nah zusein, auch wenn sie manchmal weit weg sind. Bei der Entwicklung interaktiver Systememüssen wir uns daher nicht nur fragen wie, sondern auch warum diese benutzt werden. Erlebnisse,Gefühle und Emotionen, die während der Interaktion entstehen, spielen dabei einewichtige Rolle. Experience Design ist eine Disziplin, die sich auf Geschichten konzentriert,die ein Produkt erzählt, bevor es tatsächlich implementiert wird. In einem interdisziplinären Team aus Psychologen, Industrie-Designern, Produktentwicklernund Spezialisten der Mensch-Maschine-Interaktion wurde ein Prozess zur Erlebnis-Gestaltung im automobilen Kontext angewandt. Die Beibehaltung von Erlebnissen über dengesamten Entwicklungsprozess hinweg ist eine große Herausforderung für Automobilhersteller.Ingenieure hängen bei der Implementierung interaktiver Systeme von technischen,sicherheitsrelevanten und ergonomischen Anforderungen ab, die oftmals dem gestaltetenErlebnis widersprechen. Die Bereitstellung von Erlebnis-Prototypen ermöglicht die Übersetzungvon Geschichten in interaktive Produkte und wirkt daher diesem Konflikt entgegen. Im Rahmen dieser Dissertation untersuche ich den Prozess zur Erlebnis-Gestaltung hinsichtlichder Bedeutung von Erlebnis-Prototypen. Ich berichte von drei Fallbeispielen im automobilenBereich, die die Gestaltung und Implementierung verschiedener interaktiver Systemenumfassen. (1) Ein Informationssystem für Elektrofahrzeuge, der Heartbeat, macht den Zustanddes elektrischen Antriebs und den Ladestand der Batterien für den Fahrer visuell undhaptisch erlebbar. Nach der Implementierung mehrerer Prototypen wurde Heartbeat unterBerücksichtigung verschiedener technischer und sicherheitsrelevanter Anforderungen in dieArmaturen eines Fahrzeugmodells integriert, ohne dass dabei das gestaltete Erlebnis verlorengegangen ist. (2) Das Periscope ist ein mobiles Navigationsgerät, das den Insassensoziale Erlebnisse ermöglicht und das Verbundenheitsgefühl stärkt. Durch die Implementierungmehrere Erlebnis-Prototypen und deren Evaluation in verschiedenen Phasen des Entwicklungsprozesseskonnten die gestalteten Erlebnisse konsistent erhalten werden. (3) ImProjekt GestShare wurde das Potential der Interaktion durch Freiraumgesten im Fahrzeuguntersucht. Dabei standen ein Verbundenheitserlebnis des Fahrers und soziale Interaktionenmit Fahrern anderer Fahrzeuge im Fokus. Es wurden mehrere Prototypen implementiert undauch in einer Verkehrssituation evaluiert. Die wichtigsten Beiträge dieser Dissertation sind (1) eine intensive Betrachtung und Anwendungvon Erlebnis-Prototypen im Auto und deren Relevanz bei der Erlebnis-Gestaltung,beruhend auf einer Literaturauswertung und der eigenen Erfahrung innerhalb des Projekts; (2) drei Fallstudien und eine detaillierte Beschreibung mehrere Prototypen in verschiedenenPhasen des Prozesses und (3) Empfehlungen zu Vorgehensweisen bei der Erstellung vonErlebnis-Prototypen hinsichtlich der Eigenschaften wie Nähe zum finalen Produkt, Anzahlder implementierten Details und Interaktivität sowie zur Evaluation im Labor und in tatsächlichenVerkehrssituationen in verschiedenen Phasen des Entwicklungsprozesses

The women in IT (WINIT) final report

The Women in IT (WINIT) project was funded by the European Social Fund (ESF) from March 2004 until April 2006 under HE ESF Objective 3: Research into equal opportunities in the labour market. Specifically the project came under Policy Field 2, Measure 2: Gender discrimination in employment. The project was run in the Information Systems Institute of the University of Salford. One of the Research Associates has an information systems (IS) background, the other has a background in sociology. We begin this report with an overview of the current situation with regards women in the UK IT sector. Whilst gender is only recently being recognised as an issue within the mainstream IS academic community, thirty years of female under-representation in the ICT field in more general terms has received more attention from academics, industry and government agencies alike. Numerous research projects and centres (such as the UK Resource Centre for Women in Science, Engineering and Technology) exist to tackle the under-representation of women in SET careers, although the figures for women’s participation in the ICT sector remain disheartening, with current estimates standing at around 15% (EOC 2004). Various innovative initiatives, such as e-Skills’ Computer Clubs for Girls, appear to have had little impact on these low female participation rates. Additionally, these and other initiatives have been interpreted as a means to fill the skills gap and ‘make up the numbers’ to boost the UK economy (French and Richardson 2005), resulting in ‘add more women and stir’ solutions to the ‘problem’ of gender in relation to inclusion in IS and ICT (Henwood 1996). Given that there have been decades of equal opportunity and related policies as well as many government initiatives designed to address the gender imbalance in IT employment patterns, sex segregation in IT occupations and pay and progression disparity in the IT sector (including the latest initiative- a one million pound DTI funded gender and SET project), we could be forgiven for assuming that these initiatives have had a beneficial effect on the position and number of women in the IT workforce, and that even if we have not yet achieved gender equity, we can surely argue that there are positive moves in the right direction. Although we do not wish to make definitive claims about the success or failure of specific initiatives, our research, backed up by recent major surveys, paints a picture that remains far from rosy. Indeed a recent comparative survey of the IT workforce in Germany, Holland and the UK indicates that women are haemorrhaging out of the UK IT workforce (Platman and Taylor 2004). From a high point of 100,892 women in the UK IT workforce in 1999, Platman and Taylor (ibid., 8) report a drop to 53,759 by 2003. As the IT industry was moving into recession anyway, the number of men in the industry has also declined, but by nothing like as much, so the figures for women are stark. When it comes to number crunching who is employed in the UK IT sector and when trying to make historical comparisons, the first obstacle is defining the sector itself. Studies vary quite substantially in the number of IT workers quoted suggesting there is quite a bit of variation in what is taken to be an IT job. The IT industry has experienced considerable expansion over the past twenty years. In spring 2003 in Britain, it was estimated that almost 900,000 people worked in ICT firms, and there were over 1 million ICT workers, filling ICT roles in any sector (e-Skills UK, 2003). This growth has resulted in talk of a ‘skills shortage’ requiring the ‘maximization’ of the workforce to its full potential: ‘You don’t just need pale, male, stale guys in the boardroom but a diversity of views’ (Stone 2004). In spring 2003 the Equal Opportunities Commission estimated there to be 151,000 women working in ICT occupations compared with 834,000 men (clearly using a different, much wider job definition from that of Platman and Taylor (2004)) , whilst in the childcare sector, there were less than 10,000 men working in these occupations, compared with 297,000 women (EOC 2004). It is estimated that the overall proportion of women working in ICT occupations is 15% (EOC 2004). In the UK, Office of National Statistics (ONS) statistics indicate that women accounted for 30% of IT operations technicians, but a mere 15% of ICT Managers and only 11% of IT strategy and planning professionals (EOC 2004). Although women are making inroads into technical and senior professions there remains a ‘feminisation’ of lower level jobs, with a female majority in operator and clerical roles and a female minority in technical and managerial roles (APC 2004).

Environmentally sustainable brand identity co-creation in an industrial context

Abstract. Industrial companies are increasingly interested in sustainability and stakeholder pressure extends to all manufacturer and supplier chains. Also, industrial companies recognize the opportunities of sustainability as it becomes more important to their customers as well. However, how these industrial companies can become sustainable, what sustainability means for these companies and how it can be utilized in stakeholder relations and marketing communications is unclear. The purpose of this study is to further understand how industrial companies can become truly sustainable through co-creating an environmentally sustainable brand identity as well as utilizing it in their stakeholder relations. Sustainability in an industrial context, especially in industrial or corporate branding, is scarce. Thus, focusing on the specific context of industrial B2B companies and their brands allows to further understand their conditions rather than trying to apply the more researched B2C perspective on the industrial markets. Empirical data of this study were collected from 18 semi-structured online interviews. The interviews are from the case organization, a component producer factory, and its close stakeholder, a sales and assembly company, that together form the Finnish organization of their parent company. The parent company is a Central European industrial multinational. The interviewees varied from job title to position, and many groups of people from top management to employees were interviewed. The empirical research gave a deep understanding of the industrial context and how environmentally sustainable brand identities are and can be co-created. The study allowed to identify the process of environmentally sustainable brand identities are co-created as well as what are the enablers, actions, mediators, inhibitors, drivers, and actions of this process. Together they form a further understanding on how environmentally sustainable brand identities are co-created in an industrial context. The literature review provided a comprehensive model of the brand identity co-creation process, and the empirical research allowed to understand the industrial context and its concrete actions to foster sustainability in the brand identity co-creation process. Thus, the study offers understanding of environmentally sustainable brand identity co-creation on both processual and concrete level. Also, marketing and communications of environmentally sustainable brand identity is discussed