Semantic discovery and reuse of business process patterns

Patterns currently play an important role in modern information systems (IS) development and their use has mainly been restricted to the design and implementation phases of the development lifecycle. Given the increasing significance of business modelling in IS development, patterns have the potential of providing a viable solution for promoting reusability of recurrent generalized models in the very early stages of development. As a statement of research-in-progress this paper focuses on business process patterns and proposes an initial methodological framework for the discovery and reuse of business process patterns within the IS development lifecycle. The framework borrows ideas from the domain engineering literature and proposes the use of semantics to drive both the discovery of patterns as well as their reuse

Achieving supply chain integration using RFID technology: The case of emerging intelligent B-to-B e-commerce processes in a living laboratory

Purpose: Despite the high operational and strategic potentials of RFID technology, very little studies have been conducted about its role as enabler of supply chain integration to achieve high-level operational efficiency. Therefore, this study is an initial effort towards bridging the existing knowledge gap in the literature. Design/methodology: This exploratory research was conducted in one retail supply chain. A multi-method approach combining a longitudinal real-life case study and a methodology integrating several steps, including a “Living Laboratory” strategy was used and involved all members of a product line to analyze in terms of their contributing activities and their interface with other supply chain members, the aim being to explore the impact of RFID technology on inter- and intra-organizational processes and information systems. Findings: Our results provide support to the role of RFID as enabler of better integration of timeliness and accuracy data flows into information systems, business process optimization through automation, better system-to-system communication and better inter- and-intra-organizational business process integration. Furthermore, they also validate the unique characteristics of RFID technology such as enabler of realtime multiple tags items data collection and exchange within the supply chain and the read-and-write capability that may help, for example, to reuse some RFID tags within the supply chain and therefore reduce the cost related to the purchase of the said RFID tags. Finally, the study also reveals the importance of business process renovation and complementary investments during the adoption of RFID technology in order to achieve high level of business value from the technology

Utilising radio-frequency identification technologies as knowledge management enablers in academic libraries: a case study of the University of South Africa

The quest to generate, preserve and utilise knowledge is driving firms and organisations towards a knowledge-based approach to managing organisational knowledge assets. Therefore, knowledge management (KM) is becoming increasingly important for organisations such as academic libraries to enhance their competitive edge in performance, to become more effective and to keep the organisation’s knowledge for future use. The importance of KM cannot be overemphasised in terms of how academic libraries can find meaningful and effective ways to manage knowledge resources to improve the services rendered to information users. Pressure is mounting for academic libraries to attain, retain and share knowledge for strategic planning, decision-making and remaining competitive. The adoption of radio-frequency identification (RFID) technologies is one of the preferred approaches to managing organisational knowledge assets; therefore, this was the motivation for undertaking this study in order to understand how these new technologies can change the knowledge management landscape in academic libraries. A qualitative research methodology, informed by the interpretivist research philosophy, was adopted in this study. Data were collected from a sample of 12 participants using non-probability purposive and convenience sampling techniques. The use of purposive and convenience techniques was ideal for this study because the participants were readily available and possessed the relevant data required to address the research questions and research problem of the study. Open-ended questions were designed to form an interview guide, which was the main data collection instrument. Annual reports, system manuals and user manuals were consulted to augment the primary data collected to address the problem at hand. The findings from the study showed that RFID technologies improved efficiency, tracking and tracing, inventory management and assisted with planning. It was revealed that users of RFID technologies required further training and development to fully utilise these systems for the benefit of the organisation. The study was conducted using a small sample of 12 participants; therefore, it was recommended that further studies could be conducted with large sample sizes using different research strategies. It was suggested that further research should be conducted to establish how change programmes have been managed before in other departments or sections and how the staff exodus was managed. An organisation-wide research would be recommended to ascertain the views and opinions of a larger population so that findings can be generalisable.Information ScienceM. Inf. (Information Science

Cultural Heritage Tradition and Innovation in the Internationalization of Family Business: A Case Study from the Italian Fashion Industry

The fashion industry is one of the main businesses in the global economy in terms of employment, investment, trade and revenue and Italian companies are worldwide recognized as representative of cultural heritage, expertise and high-quality standards. The adoption of traceability technologies, such as Radio Frequency Identification (RFId), from the very early stage of the production chain, may help to obtain a more effective process and may also assure the origin of the garments, a key aspect in the fashion industry. The chapter aims at presenting an Italian family business, Oscalito, which has adopted the RFId technology, joining tradition and innovation in its production. A qualitative case study methodology has been adopted, to explore this experience within its context. Oscalito has applied RFId tags to each label, to ensure complete traceability throughout the production chain for each single item (and not merely by lots), fine-tuned control over the production process, and timely and accurate shipment. Thanks to their application, the production chain has been monitored and the Italian origin of the garments has been guaranteed. This research has undoubtedly some limitation due to the applied method. Deeper studies are requested in order to check a general fashion industry trend with reference to the application of RFId technology