Wirtschaftsinformatik – Evolution of the Discipline as Reflected by Its Journal

In 1959, the journal “elektronische datenverarbeitung” (electronic data processing) was founded. Later it was renamed as “Angewandte Informatik” (applied computer science). Due to the diversification of computer science and the emergence of the discipline “business and information systems engineering” (BISE) the journal was focused on this discipline. Accordingly, the name was changed to WIRTSCHAFTSINFORMATIK (the German word for BISE). Fifty volumes of the journal reflect major developments and varying topics of the discipline. By installing a broad editorial board comprised of researchers and practitioners as well as by cooperation with the major scientific associations the journal became the central publication in the field. The paper gives a survey of organization, design, thematic focuses, and important subjects. Thus, by browsing through the contents of the journal the development of the scientific discipline Wirtschaftsinformatik is illustrated

UTILIZING PATTERNS IN DEVELOPING DESIGN THEORIES

Aside from specialized design artifacts solving \u27wicked\u27 problems in a distinct organizational context, prescriptive (design) theories for solving classes of problems are well-accepted results of design science research. Especially for intricate problem fields, as IT service management or EA management, the development of such theories remains a highly complex research endeavor spanning a longer period of time. In this paper, we discuss how patterns, i.e. practice-proven, re-usable solutions to recurring problems, can be used to ease the establishment of a design theory, and to provide practice-relevant intermediary results prior to theory completion

Value of IS Research: Is there a Crisis?

This debate section article examines the notion of value or worth of IS research. It suggests that how others value the product of Information Systems (IS) research may be the underlying problem triggering various forms of anxiety discourses that are frequently recurring. The value of IS research is examined from the perspectives of ends-means, basic and applied research, and the significance of IS problems. The article also proposes ways of maintaining the value of IS research by emphasizing originality, being active and not passive , and making evident what is not. The article argues that the value of IS research is found not in duplicating research already undertaken in management, computer science, psychology, economics or its other reference disciplines, but in asking questions that other disciplines are not asking or in addressing problems that others are incapable of addressing

Views on the Past, Present, and Future of Business and Information Systems Engineering

‘‘The times they are a-changin,’’ a famous song title by Bob Dylan, also applies to our profession and our subject of study. Information technology has always been a driver for innovation. The recent years, however, have seen IT-based innovations that truly impact everybody’s lives. Everything that can be digitized will be digitized, and this trend is continuing at an amazing speed. For a discipline that looks at the design and utilization of information systems these are exciting times. Yet, it is also a time full of challenges. While our discipline has much to contribute, it competes with other disciplines for topics and ideas. Also, the scope of topics studied has become broader and broader, and so have our methods. While initial work in Business and Information Systems Engineering (BISE) was often rooted in artificial intelligence, database systems, or operations research, the community has adopted new approaches to address new types of problems. Nowadays, we also have a strong group of academics working primarily with empirical methods or methods from microeconomics, to name just a few. This development towards a more multiparadigmatic discipline also had its challenges and there were controversial discussions along the way

Six Principles for Governing Mobile Platforms

Mobile platforms enable third-parties to extend and enhance functionalities of products and services by mediating these to consumers. A tremendously successful example is Apple’s App Store where third-party developers contribute applications that add to the usefulness of the mobile device. However, research and practice still struggle with understanding why and when such mobile platforms prosper or wither. In this paper, we develop a framework to study how companies use governance mechanisms to attract customers and third-party developers. We demonstrate the usefulness of our framework by analyzing how governance mechanisms were used to change the interaction of platform, customers, and third-party developers. We derive six principles for governing mobile platforms that highlight the need to further investigate how governance mechanisms align the value propositions to platform operator, customers and third-party developers

Six Principles for Governing Mobile Platforms

Mobile platforms enable third-parties to extend and enhance functionalities of products and services by mediating these to consumers. A tremendously successful example is Apple’s App Store where third-party developers contribute applications that add to the usefulness of the mobile device. However, research and practice still struggle with understanding why and when such mobile platforms prosper or wither. In this paper, we develop a framework to study how companies use governance mechanisms to attract customers and third-party developers. We demonstrate the usefulness of our framework by analyzing how governance mechanisms were used to change the interaction of platform, customers, and third-party developers. We derive six principles for governing mobile platforms that highlight the need to further investigate how governance mechanisms align the value propositions to platform operator, customers and third-party developers

Charting the landscape of enterprise architecture management

Todays enterprises are faced with the challenge of an everchanging environment, which they continuously have to adaptto. A commonly accepted means to support an enterprisein the transformation process and furthermore enhance thealignment between business and IT is enterprise architecture(EA) management, which provides a holistic perspectiveon the enterprise. In order to support an enterprise inthe transformation process, EA management creates architecturaldescriptions of current, planned, and future statesof the enterprise. Reecting the aforementioned importanceof EA management a plurality of approaches for establishingan EA management function in an enterprise have beenproposed by researchers, practitioners, and standardizationbodies. The approaches vary widely in respect to the proposedmethods, models, and languages.The objective of this article is to analyze the state-of-theartin EA and EA management respectively. Therefore, anextensive literature survey on publications in the area is performed.Criteria for the analysis are inter alia the distribution of papers over time, their regional distribution, type ofpublication, number of references of an article, and the involvedauthors groups. Thereby the article seeks to give anoverview on the current research occupation in the eld ofEA management

An Exploration of Enterprise Architecture Research

Management of the enterprise architecture has become increasingly recognized as a crucial part of both business and IT management. Still, a common understanding and methodological consistency seems far from being developed. Acknowledging the significant role of research in moving the development process along, this article employs different bibliometric methods, complemented by an extensive qualitative interpretation of the research field, to provide a unique overview of the enterprise architecture literature. After answering our research questions about the collaboration via co-authorships, the intellectual structure of the research field and its most influential works, and the principal themes of research, we propose an agenda for future research based on the findings from the above analyses and their comparison to empirical insights from the literature. In particular, our study finds a considerable degree of co-authorship clustering and a positive impact of the extent of co-authorship on the diffusion of works on enterprise architecture. In addition, this article identifies three major research streams and shows that research to date has revolved around specific themes, while some of high practical relevance receive minor attention. Hence, the contribution of our study is manifold and offers support for researchers and practitioners alike