LaPio – The Lapland Pioneers Project

The Lapland Pioneers Project focuses on the study of the earliest pioneer settlement of Lapland and its connections with other areas of northern Europe particularly as reflected by lithic technology. The project began in 2002 with a survey in Utsjoki, followed by excavations in 2004–2006, additional surveys in Utsjoki and in the Varangerfjord area in Norway in 2007–2015, collections research in several countries in 2008–2015, the founding of the international Nordic Blade Technology Network (NBTN) in 2009, and several international workshops and teaching workshops in 2009–2014. The project’s findings have led to a radical change in views concerning the early settling of Scandinavia

Legacy system evolution - A comparative study of modernisation and replacement initiation factors

Decisions regarding information system evolution strategy become topical as the organisation’s information systems age and start to approach the end of their life cycle. An interview study was conducted in order to compare factors influencing modernisation and replacement initiation. System age, obsolete technology and high operation or maintenance costs were identified as triggers for both modernisation and replacement projects. The results show that the most prevalent individual reason for modernisation initiative is business development. Common initiation factors for replacement projects were end of vendor support and system’s inability to respond to organisation’s business needs.peerReviewe

ISEBA – A Framework for IS Evolution Benefit Assessment

Decisions regarding information system evolution strategy, including modernization or replacement, are economically significant. Selection of a proper method for analyzing potential options, acquisition of suitable metrics or follow-up data, and evaluation of the results are major challenges in the evolution strategy decision making. In order to address these challenges, a framework for Information System Evolution Benefit Assessment (ISEBA) was developed. ISEBA provides assistance in the selection of a benefit-evaluation method for the investment situation at hand. It is based on empirical research on industrial decision making and co-operation projects, and examination of existing research results from information technology investment-evaluations. Based on the experiences from real world industrial cases, it can be alleged that ISEBA suits its purpose. It makes a decision maker take note of relevant issues in evolution investment decision making, leads to the selection of suitable appraisal method, and promotes discussion of the value of the results. Among the results of the industrial cases, the following was found. Firstly, resources are an important factor influencing the selection of an investment assessment method. Secondly, the appearance of both tangible and intangible benefits is scattered with respect to time and organizational structure. Thirdly, a dichotomy exists between upper management decisions and lower level organizational goals. The benefit appraisal was focused on an operative level while real project objectives were set on a strategic level. It is concluded, that a need for a practical framework, such as ISEBA, exists.peerReviewe

IS evolution benefit assessment: Challenges with economic investment criteria

In this paper, eight financial investment criteria and their advantages and disadvantages with respect to IS evolution benefit assessment are studied. As a result, it can be suggested that it is unattainable to define one appropriate evaluation method for IS evolution assessment in general. However, NPV and ROI appear to be the most appropriate methods for IS evolution evaluation. Their results can be reinforced with the supporting investment criteria, including AAR, IRR and payback method. The following potential challenges in evolution investment decision making were identified: selection of an appropriate criteria, acquisition of suitable metrics and follow-up data, data conversion, and comparison of different types of evolution options. A preliminary framework, ISEBA, was developed to address these challenges.peerReviewe