Culture dimensions in software development industry: The effects of mentoring

Software development is a human centric and sociotechnical activity and like all human activities is influenced by cultural factors. However, software engineering is being further affected because of the globalization in software development. As a result, cultural diversity is influencing software development and its outcomes. The software engineering industry, a very intensive industry regarding human capital, is facing a new era in which software development personnel must adapt to multicultural work environments. Today, many organizations present a multicultural workforce which needs to be managed. This paper analyzes the influence of culture on mentoring relationships within the software engineering industry. Two interesting findings can be concluded from our study: (1) cultural differences affect both formal and informal mentoring, and (2) technical competences are not improved when implementing mentoring relationships

A virtual campus for e-learning inclusion : the case of SVC-G9

Academics and professionals agree that, to adapt higher education institutions to the XXI century, it is imperative to extend the use of ICT as well as the virtualization of many human-interaction activities. There is therefore a need to move from the use of ICT as support tools to e-learning instruments based on virtual environments. These environments can be used for e-inclusion. That is, systems can be used to remove communication and interaction barriers that people with disabilities may face in the real world. This paper presents a project which implies the implementation of a virtual interuniversity campus where nine Spanish higher education institutions took part. To enhance Web accessibility as the usability of the system by users with disabilities is one of the main project’s objectives. In addition, the paper analyses the teen-year experience of an e-business course for engineers offered simultaneously by the nine universities through this platform. The main conclusions of this work can be valuable to higher education institutions which have implemented or intend to implement a virtual interuniversity campus

An investigation of the effect of electronic business on financial performance of Spanish manufacturing SMEs.

This paper aims to fill research gaps in the existing literature on the effect of electronic business on financial firm performance within the specific context of manufacturing Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). More specifically, this research analyzes not only the direct effects of e-business on firm performance but also the mediating effect of organizational innovation the relationship. Building on the knowledge and resource-based views, the proposed research model and its associated hypotheses are tested by using partial least squares (PLS) structural equation modeling on a dataset of Spanish manufacturing SMEs. Results suggest that electronic business has a direct effect on financial performance and is positively associated to organizational innovation. In addition, results show that the relationship between electronic business and financial performance is mediated by organizational innovation

An empirical analysis of the relationship between IT training sources and IT value

Information technology (IT) training has been identifie as a key factor for the success of IT applications and the most frequently applied coping mechanism to handle changing IT. However, there is a question as to how IT training has to be conducted to obtain desired outcomes (higher levels of IT value). This paper analyses the presence of IT training sources used by firm and examines the influenc on IT business value. Here, IT training is studied according to three IT training sources: in-house IT training, outside IT training, and self IT training by employees. In addition, differences in IT training sources are analysed according to two contingency factors: business size and business industry. Results show a positive relationship between IT training sources (outside and self IT training) and IT business value and confir that IT training sources are positively related to business size and differ moderately by business industry.Publicad

Examining whether highly e-innovative firms are more e-effective.

The resource-based view (RBV) ascribes superior firm performance to firm resources and capabilities. In recent years, much debate about the value of e-business has been raised because of the costly investments required. Although studies have found positive relationships between e-business and firm performance, there is a need to further investigate into these topics. Since innovation has become a key factor for increasing the competitiveness of firms and e-business has been proposed as complement to innovation, this paper analyses, based on the RBV perspective, whether companies with high level of Internet resources and with high e-innovation are more effective electronically. The methodology involved a large sample firms and data collected by the European e-Business Market Watch, an established e-business observatory sponsored by the European Commission. Results indicated that differences of e-sales effectiveness of firms with high and low Internet resources were not statistically significant, while on the contrary firms with a high level of e-innovation outperformed on e-sales effectiveness

A discussion on the Role of People in Global Software Development.

Literature is producing a considerable amount of papers which focus on the risks, challenges and solutions of global software development (GSD). However, the influence of human factors on the success of GSD projects requires further study. The aim of our paper is twofold. First, to identify the challenges related to the human factors in GSD and, second, to propose the solution(s), which could help in solving or reducing the overall impact of these challenges. The main conclusions of this research can be valuable to organizations that are willing to achieve the quality objectives regarding GSD projects

A case analysis of a product lifecycle information management framework for SMEs.

Information management during the product lifecycle has received a great deal of attention over the last few years, mainly because firms work in a complex business environment characterized by information overload, high levels of competitiveness and the acceleration of technological change. In this context, Product Lifecycle Management(PLM) software has been evolving rapidly and,today, powerfultools in the market enable high levels of information to be managed. However, commercial PLM software is mostly oriented towards large-sized firms, which poses a big challenge for small and mid-sized enterprises (SMEs). To address this issue, SMEs can develop their own Product Lifecycle Information Management (PLIM) Frameworks for managing data and information throughout the product lifecycle processes. This article presents a successful example of a PLIM Framework: the case of Pladomin’s PLIM Framework

Making a connection between counter-knowledge and student achievement goal orientations

[SPA] En este trabajo, hemos analizado las relaciones entre el contexto de desaprendizaje y el counter-knowledge (chismes, cotilleos o rumores que afectan a los alumnos y profesores) mediante un estudio empírico de 210 estudiantes con el fin de identificar si el impacto de desaprender afecta al rendimiento de los estudiantes (SGO). La metodología utilizada en este trabajo consiste en la construcción y el análisis de tres modelos estructurales. Mientras que en el primer modelo el counter-knowledge afecta las SGO directa e indirectamente a través del desaprendizaje intencional, en el segundo modelo que probamos, el counter-knowledge sólo afecta indirectamente a través del desaprendizaje intencional a las SGO. En el tercer modelo, se prueba un modelo de no mediación en el que el counter-knowledge sólo tiene efectos directos sobre el desaprendizaje y las SGO. El primer modelo es estadísticamente mejor que los otros dos modelos alternativos, lo que significa que el counterknowledge es un detonante importante para desaprender ya que contribuye a fomentar un proceso de desestabilización de los ambientes de las aulas.[ENG] In this paper, we have analyzed the relationships between an unlearning context and counter-knowledge using an empirical study of 210 students in order to identify whether the impact of unlearning on student achievement goal orientations (SGO) can be strength. The methodology used in this paper involves the construction and analysis of three structural models. Whereas in the first model counter-knowledge affects SGO directly and indirectly via the intentional unlearning, in the second model we test a fully mediated models in which counter-knowledge only affects SGO indirectly via the intentional unlearning. In the third model we test a nonmediated model in which counter-knowledge has only direct effects on the unlearning context and the SGO. The first model fitted better than the other alternative models, which means that counter-knowledge is an important trigger for unlearning as it contributes to a process of destabilization of the classroom environments

Learning management systems and cloud file hosting services: A study on students’ acceptance

The aim of this paper is to investigate the motivations that lead higher education students to replace several Learning Management Systems (LMS) services with cloud file hosting services for information sharing and collaboration among them. The research approach is based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). More specifically, the model is devoted to identifying barriers and enablers to the acceptance of these technologies. A questionnaire comprising three factors (Attitude toward using technology, Perceived ease of use and Perceived usefulness) was applied to a sample consisting of 121 higher education students. Results show that the perceived ease of use of cloud file hosting services is above that of LMS tools and services and that cloud file hosting services presented higher levels of perceived usefulness than standard learning management tools. In addition, attitude toward using cloud file hosting services is well above that of using LMS tools