Desafios Futuros

Com os desenvolvimentos tecnológicos que se verificaram nas últimas duas décadas, a informação e o conhecimento assumiram uma importância decisiva. O sucesso das organizações passou a depender, em larga medida, da forma como asseguram a gestão desse recurso vital que é a informação, e como ela contribui para a criação e partilha de conhecimento. O presente trabalho teve como objectivo a identificação dos desafios que se colocam às Forças Armadas Portuguesas (FFAA) no âmbito da Gestão da Informação (GI). Para o efeito, foram investigados os conceitos atinentes ao tema, permitindo a sua caracterização e a verificação da importância da informação, e da sua gestão. Com base na literatura consultada e na análise dos modelos de GI adoptados pela NATO e pelas Forças Armadas de uma nação aliada, o Reino Unido, estabeleceu-se um quadro referencial com os aspectos considerados essenciais para uma GI eficiente e eficaz. A avaliação do “estado da arte” da GI nas FFAA foi desenvolvida com base nesse referencial. Estabelecidos os pontos de partida (situação actual da GI nas FFAA) e de chegada (situação desejável), foram deduzidas as linhas de acção que, no âmbito da GI, permitirão explorar as oportunidades e vencer os desafios com que as FFAA se confrontam. O ambiente em que as FFAA têm hoje que actuar é fortemente marcado pela necessidade crescente de partilha de informação, seja no plano nacional, multinacional ou de organizações internacionais, relevando o requisito de interoperabilidade. Ao mesmo tempo, as novas Tecnologias de Informação e Comunicação permitem a disponibilização, de forma fácil e rápida, de volumes crescentes de informação, e a introdução de novos conceitos operacionais baseados no funcionamento em rede. Tais realidades suscitam, contudo, novas questões que sublinham a importância da GI. Numa abordagem de edificação de uma capacidade de GI, a gestão deliberada de um conjunto de alterações chave nas suas componentes da doutrina, organização, treino, material, liderança, pessoal, e interoperabilidade, permitirá melhorar a GI nas FFAA. São factores críticos de sucesso, o reconhecimento da importância da GI, a definição de uma política abrangente para a GI, desejavelmente aplicável a toda a estrutura do Ministério da Defesa Nacional (MDN), e a sua execução coerente, coordenada e sincronizada. A um nível mais elevado de eficiência e eficácia da GI nas FFAA, corresponderão melhores condições para a tomada de decisão. O trabalho termina formulando algumas recomendações relativas à forma como se perspectiva a edificação da capacidade de GI na estrutura do MDN. Abstract: With the technological developments of the past two decades, information and knowledge have assumed a decisive importance. The success of organizations will rely, in large scale, on how this vital resource called “information” is managed, and how it contributes to knowledge creation and sharing. The purpose of this work is to identify the challenges faced by the Portuguese Armed Forces regarding Information Management (IM). The investigation began by looking at the related concepts and the importance of both the information and its life cycle management. Based on IM literature and on the analysis of the IM models adopted by NATO and the United Kingdom Armed Forces, key aspects for an efficient and effective IM were identified and used as reference for evaluating the situation in the Portuguese Armed Forces on that regard. Having defined a departure point (current IM status in the Portuguese Armed Forces) and an arrival point (desirable status), the courses of action to explore the opportunities and to overcome the challenges were then deduced. The current Armed Forces operating environment is strongly characterized by an increasing need for information sharing, either at a national, multinational or international organizations level, emphasising the requirement for interoperability. At the same time, recent information and communication technologies allow both the easy and fast access to growing volumes of information and the introduction of new network based operating concepts. However, both realities raise new issues which underline the IM importance. Taking the development of an IM capability as the approach, the deliberate management of key changes in doctrine, organization, training, material, leadership, personnel and interoperability, will improve the IM in the Armed Forces. In particular, the acknowledgement of the IM importance for the Armed Forces, the definition of a comprehensive IM policy, ideally applicable across the Ministry of Defence structure, and its coherent, coordinated and synchronised execution, are critical success factors. A higher level of IM efficiency and effectiveness within the Armed Forces will favour better conditions for the decision making process. The work ends up by putting forward a set of recommendations concerning the development of the IM capability within the Ministry of Defence structure

Voorbij de virtuele organisatie. Over de bestuurskunde betekenis van virtuele variëteit, contingentie en parallel organiseren

Rede In verkorte vorm uitgesproken bij de aanvaarding van het ambt van bijzonder hoogleraar Informatie- en communicatietechnologische infrastructuren in de publieke en private sector, namens de Stichting CMG Academie, aan de Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam op vrijdag 17 november 200

The applicability of a use value-based file retention method

The determination of the relative value of files is important for an organization while determining a retrieval service level for its files and a corresponding file retention policy. This paper discusses via a literature review methods for developing file retention policies based on the use values of files. On basis of these results we propose an enhanced version of one of them. In a case study, we demonstrate how one can develop a customized file retention policy by testing causal relations between file parameters and the use value of files. This case shows that, contrary to suggestions of previous research, the file type has no significant relation with the value of a file and thus should be excluded from a retention policy in this case. The case study also shows a strong relation between the position of a file user and the value of this file. Furthermore, we have improved the Information Value Questionnaire (IVQ) for subjective valuation of files. However, the resulting method needs software to be efficient in its application. Therefore, we developed a prototype for the automatic execution of a file retention policy. We conclude with a discussio

Advocaat en Kennismanagement

Oskamp, A. [Promotor

What do innovators do to succeed? A case study of Sage plc

What do innovators do in their efforts to succeed? Successful innovation is embedded and leveraged by the management strategy. Sage plc, the third largest management software company in the world, is analysed. Various factors are seen to foster an innovation culture at Sage: an open organizational culture, a responsive market orientation coupled with a proactive market orientation, an international expansion strategy according to a multi-domestic orientation, and a horizontal internal communication policy. Sage Portugal was visited and its CEO interviewed, several times, in-depth. Sage Portugal Nº2 was also interviewed. Company documents, reports, newsletters, Internet site and Intranet were also analysed

An empirical investigation on the balanced scorecard in the context of analytical applications

For an organisation to achieve its goals in today’s digital global economy, the network is what is relied upon to deliver. Computers and applications once provided the back office support for a company, however now they contain the lifeblood of the whole organisation, the most precious of strategic resources- information. Traditionally networks were separate entities, supporting individual processes or tasks. Today the network is an integration of several different applications all joined together to provide a single accessible architecture. Thus realising huge cost savings to the organisation. However this was not enough, flexibility to change to meet the demands placed upon it in a changing environment became an essential attribute. To achieve competitive advantage in this respect, applications and networks have to be intelligent, carrying out several analytical functions with minimal instruction. Activity Based Costing/Management applications in networks are examples of this. Add to this then the presence of balanced scorecard applications and you have an integrated network that not only tells you how a particular organisational strategy is progressing but also how and where it is failing to achieve its goals. Using this as an analogy to the concept of analytical applications, it was discovered that the very analytical applications that support the balanced scorecard solutions, are themselves becoming solutions. These solutions are given the handle of the balanced scorecard, while in fact they represent very little of the scorecard techniques. The research shows that finding an alternative 'balanced' solution afforded by the technology, separates organisations from paying additional royalties to the balanced scorecard creators. Thus showing that the technology of the applications themselves is indeed changing what is essentially a balanced scorecard of information.For an organisation to achieve its goals in today’s digital global economy, the network is what is relied upon to deliver. Computers and applications once provided the back office support for a company, however now they contain the lifeblood of the whole organisation, the most precious of strategic resources- information. Traditionally networks were separate entities, supporting individual processes or tasks. Today the network is an integration of several different applications all joined together to provide a single accessible architecture. Thus realising huge cost savings to the organisation. However this was not enough, flexibility to change to meet the demands placed upon it in a changing environment became an essential attribute. To achieve competitive advantage in this respect, applications and networks have to be intelligent, carrying out several analytical functions with minimal instruction. Activity Based Costing/Management applications in networks are examples of this. Add to this then the presence of balanced scorecard applications and you have an integrated network that not only tells you how a particular organisational strategy is progressing but also how and where it is failing to achieve its goals. Using this as an analogy to the concept of analytical applications, it was discovered that the very analytical applications that support the balanced scorecard solutions, are themselves becoming solutions. These solutions are given the handle of the balanced scorecard, while in fact they represent very little of the scorecard techniques. The research shows that finding an alternative 'balanced' solution afforded by the technology, separates organisations from paying additional royalties to the balanced scorecard creators. Thus showing that the technology of the applications themselves is indeed changing what is essentially a balanced scorecard of information

Managing multimedia content databases

The Internet provides an effective means of dissemination of information in the Humanities, and so in many cases the Internet is becoming the primary or even only form for dissemination of information. In this context, the effective management of published resources becomes essential. Management of published multimedia content on the internet must deal with not only the Content Management but issues of technological obsolescence, effective management and reuse of the digital assets, and version control of information. Sites must address the established disciplines of effective description, classification and preservation to be more than just transient sources of information. Content Management systems on their own address only one part of the problem: the workflow management of publication and separation of content from presentation. The theory toward a Content Management System design that incorporates elements of digital asset management and version control will be described and a working system that implements these principles through internal XML definition of content structures and use of relational database techniques to provide database content management.Hosted by the Scholarly Text and Imaging Service (SETIS), the University of Sydney Library, and the Research Institute for Humanities and Social Sciences (RIHSS), the University of Sydney

Managing knowledge for through life capability

In 2005 the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) published a White Paper in which it detailed its Defence Industrial Strategy (DIS) (UK MoD, 2005). The strategy involved a rapid transformation of UK defence towards a product-service, business-like paradigm through the adoption of Through Life Capability Management (TLCM). TLCM has since been succeeded by other initiatives. However, for organisations involved in the management of capability through life, the associated principles of operation as well as the challenges remain, including that of the management of knowledge. The confederated capability enterprise is a distributed knowledge system. Knowledge of the systems, for which a particular organisation has through-life management responsibility, may be distributed throughout an enterprise that comprises several commercial organisations as well as the customer. The bringing together of different components of capability and perspectives makes managing knowledge difficult. This is complicated further by the observation that in a decade one can expect a significant proportion of the manpower involved in a capability will have changed. Success in this type of environment requires a clear understanding of the value of particular knowledge within the organisation as well as effective knowledge management in the wider enterprise. Dstl and EPSRC have jointly funded this research which addresses management of knowledge for through life capability through modelling of the capability enterprise, a workshop on TLCM benefits and behaviours, a comparative case study at a commercial service company and the UK MoD including Dstl, and knowledge mapping within a specific exemplar capability. The results of the modelling illustrated the Systems of Systems (SoS) nature of the enterprise and the need to align capability and management processes across the enterprise. How well this can be achieved depends on the extent to which both the UK MoD and industry are willing to share, access and process information and knowledge. This would require trust between the individuals and organisations involved. The need for trust was emphasised in an international workshop where the participants discussed the behaviours that were required for the perceived benefits of TLCM to be realised. The workshop members highlighted trust in long term planning as industry seeks to manage skills and knowledge over time. ServiceCo provides communication and media services to customers globally. It comprises four customer-facing divisions and two operational units. The case which was based on interviews in one customer-facing and one operational unit revealed the following: •Focus on corporate values supports knowledge management behaviours across the organisation. •Succession planning is needed for all skills and knowledge that are critical or essential to the business. •Once the continual renewal of knowledge slows down and/or stops in an organisation, the knowledge is lost. The second case of the study was the Royal Navy Command Head Quarters and Dstl. Dstl is a trading fund that provides UK MoD and the wider UK government specialist Science & Technology services and operates and manages the Chief Scientific Advisor’s research programme. The case study revealed: •Security regulations and considerations impact significantly on effective management of knowledge. •Knowledge retrieval can be “hit and miss” as complicated filing structures and indexing practices are applied inconsistently, leading to individuals adopting a number of strategies to share knowledge. •Succession planning for people with rare skills is an issue that impacts business continuation. Comparison between the two cases showed that the two organisations experienced different problems but that the knowledge behaviours adopted by the individuals involved were essentially the same. This pointed to the need to address the issues associated with the management of knowledge as cultural and organisational in nature. Personal strategies to manage and share knowledge included individuals retaining copies of files on desktop hard drives and keeping paper copies in drawers; documents were emailed to ensure the intended audience would get it or be able to access it; and asking a colleague for advice on where to find out things. An important difference between knowledge management between the two organisations was that the UK MoD relied on processes due to the rapid change of personnel whereas the service company relied on personal relationships as people remained in the roles for longer. The knowledge mapping of “moving personnel and materiel using vehicles” revealed that each Line of Development (LoDs) has its own constituent (LoDs) indicating the requirement to manage organisational capability in order to deliver capability to customers. It also illustrated all the active knowledge that is required in order for the capability to be delivered. The research main contributions are: •Theoretical models for exploring the use of knowledge in acquisition projects over time •Comparing two organisations at separate ends of the organisational spectrum and identifying common organisational factors that influence the management of knowledge for through life capability •Recognising that the enterprise is a capability SoS. In order to successfully delivery capability, knowledge about and within the components needs to be managed. Other findings include: •Management of knowledge for TLCM puts the focus on managing knowledge for future capability requirements rather than on retention of knowledge products, bringing in aspects such as business continuation planning and consequently impacting on the organisation’s future development. •There is a strong relationship between knowledge conservation, human resource management and company policies. •Managing changes in design and/or function requires a good understanding of the different processes used within the various disciplines involved across the capability components and how they contribute to the final product and to each other. •An organisation’s goals and the manner in which it organises itself to achieve them with regard to the management of knowledge does not appear linked. Instead, focus falls on the organisational architecture and the human resource polices that it implies. •‘Knowing’ is an individual capability and also a social one; communities of practice and networking are necessary components of an organisation’s knowledge base. •Knowing whom to ask and where to look is in a knowledge retrieval perspective nearly as important as knowing what to look for. •“Individuals know while documents, processes and tools support knowing”. This emphasises the need for a close connection between humans and IT-based knowledge repositories. •The role of IT in knowledge management can either be to correlate knowledge in people’s heads to relevant projects or to correlate individuals and knowledge in relevant projects depending on the key questions asked in the management of knowledge within the organisation. •The role of IT in determining issues related to the relevance and location of documentation differs depending of the organisation’s reliance on face to face interactions between employees as a means for communicating this information. •The capability end user is in some instances hard to define. How the end user is defined determines where the SoS boundaries are defined. It is probably better to define the boundary as a broad fuzzy border. The indeterminacy implied by this view becomes a complexity issue for management of knowledge. •The impetus to manage knowledge and how is influenced legal requirements and by the organisation’s relationships with its stakeholders including the extent it is subject to external scrutiny. Based on the research, a number of recommendations are made

Dovetailing of Business Intelligence and Knowledge Management: An Integrative Framework

The rapid advancement in Information and Communication Technology is driving a revolutionary change in the way organizations do business. The fast growing capabilities of both generating and collecting data has generated an imperative need for new techniques and tools that can intelligently and automatically transform the processed data into valuable information and knowledge for effective decision making. Business intelligence (BI) plays an important role extracting valuable information and discovering the hidden patterns in internal as well as external sources of data. The main purpose of the BI is to improve the knowledge with information that allows managers to make effective decisions to achieve organizational objectives. However majority of organizational knowledge is in unstructured form or in the minds of its employees. On the other hand, Knowledge Management (KM) encompasses both tacit and explicit knowledge to enhance s the organizations performance by providing collaborative tools to learn, create and share the knowledge within the organization. Therefore, it is imperative for the organizations to integrate BI with KM. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the importance of integration of BI with KM and provide a framework to integrate BI and KM. Keywords: Business Intelligence (BI), Knowledge Management (KM), Scorecard, Dashboard, ETL, Data Mining, OLAP, Tacit Knowledge, Explicit Knowledg