Seeing the big PICTURE: A framework for improving the communication of requirements within the Business-IT relationship

The relationship between the business and IT departments in the context of the organisation has been characterised as highly divisive. Contributing problems appear to revolve around the failure to adequately communicate and understand the required information for the alignment of business and IT strategies and infrastructures. This study takes a communication-based view on the concept of alignment, in terms of the relationship between the retail business and IT within a major high street UK bank. A research framework (PICTURE) is used to provide insight into this relationship and guide the analysis of interviews with 29 individuals on mid-high management level for their thematic content. The paper highlights the lessons that can be derived from the study of the BIT relationship and how possible improvements could be made

Grounded Analytic Research: Building Theory from a Body of Research

Track II: Recent Developments in Inductive Research MethodsInternational audienceIn this paper, we present Grounded Analytic Research (GAR) as a method to build theory by synthesizing empirical findings from multiple studies that has been conducted by a single researcher. GAR incorporates concepts from grounded theory, analytic research and systematic literature review. The method was applied in a doctoral dissertation work to build the theoretical concept of Demand Sustainability of public Internet access in the context of bridging the digital divide. We describe GAR and compare it with existing theory building methods that are similar to it in epistemology and ontology

Online Shopping and Human Factors

The purpose of advertising on the Internet is to promote and sell products, services and information around the world. This media is considered a quick access to information and is luring customers away from queues at shopping malls and turning them to the conveniences of the Internet. However, the online market can bring various drawbacks, which make the consumers hesitate about buying products online. This study is restricted to investigating two drawbacks of online shopping: the lack of face-to-face human interaction and lack of physical touch. These factors need to be addressed by online retailer in order to avoid the possible frustration experienced by consumers who are using online media. These problems can be prevented by addressing three factors in the user interface design of a website. Firstly, Human–Computer Interaction (HCI) and usability evaluation need to be considered in user interface design to increase the efficiency of the staff, thereby increasing profits, and to address the issue of safety. Secondly, navigation, interaction and feedback need to be taken into consideration by the website developer as they provide easy access, friendly interface, and human interaction. Thirdly, in order to improve consumer satisfaction, reduce operational costs and increase revenue, several methods and tools can be adopted such as 3DCart, NetSuite, and SensAble Technologies. Results from this study show that when these factors have been taken into consideration, a big difference is made to customer support services as most consumers are motivated and encouraged to revisit the Web business more often. On the other hand, this study points out that more research needs to be done in website design, especially in relation to the end-user who has disabilities

HCI and Usability Principles and Guidelines in the Website Development Process: An International Perspective

This chapter provides an answer to the question “Do industry practitioners consider that human computer interaction (HCI) and usability principles and guidelines are essential in the website development process?” The answer was sought by means of an online survey (N = 126), of Information Systems(IS)/Information Technology (IT) personnel in Australia and Portugal, that allowed the collection of both quantitative and qualitative data. Explanatory analysis was conducted using descriptive statistics, including frequencies and an independent sample T-test. The study findings suggest that both HCI and Usability were significant aspects of the website development process especially in the marketing websites, as their inclusion will encourage users to revisit these websites and thereby increase businesses’ profits. Usability and HCI features are especially important in the design stage to improve the structure and functionality of a website. The conclusions drawn in this chapter will assist IS/IT industry practitioners in Australia and Portugal to implement HCI and usability approaches by means of a New Participative Methodology for Marketing Websites (NPMMW)