Introducing argumentative and discursive enterprise leading and management

Leading an enterprise requires, obviously, decision making. However, these decisions require explanations in order to make it possible for stakeholders to get an understanding about the enterprise's strategic direction. This is even more important when these stakeholders are in charge to transpose such strategic decision into their tactical or operational work. Enterprise modelling may be capable of depicting strategies per se, but it is rather a vessel of communication than of explanation. Whilst, a strategy may be accordingly modelled, those who receive such a model needs to purposeful interpret and successfully implement it. However, without any insights, justifications or references that go beyond the claim of a model, it is dificult to embrace the theory of the actual modeller. Therefore, in this paper argumentative modelling will be specifically applied to the domain of strategic management. Moreover it will be elucidated how modelled strategic arguments can be used as a basis for enterprise architecture alignment and management. As it will be shown in the paper, the application of argumentative modelling overcomes classical restrictions and makes it possible to support a discourse, which can be later on used as an explanation for the intentions of the modeller

A language oriented extension to Toulmin's argumentation model for conceptual modelling

The constructive step of modelling must account for the specific requirements of various stakeholders. Further, the quality of a model in terms of goodness-of-fit, completeness or other aspects may vary, because of future, as yet unknown, requirements. Natural language underpins the process of modelling as it is the predominant form through which models are acquired, negotiated and agreed. Whilst a model defines system requirements, it does not capture the assumptions, discussions and negotiations that led to the requirements. The ability to access this information, which is lost by most development processes, may significantly improve the utility of models with respect to changing requirements and system maintenance. This paper proposes a form of ‘literate modelling’ that can be used to capture the steps in model development and is based on Toulmin’s Argumentation model. The paper contributes the design of an argumentation modelling language and a set of rules for integrating multiple languages (or domains) with the Toulmin approach. The language and approach is applied to the domain of business process modelling. Keywords Conceptual modelling – Meta-model – Toulmin’s argumentation model – Argumentatio

IT Support through CAATTs - Systematic Requirements Analysis and Design for Process Audit

Due to the increasing operation of automated and autonomous Accounting Information Systems (AIS) in the recent decades, the audit of financial statements through process audits has risen in complexity. Additionally, process audits have to be managed in a field of tension because of intensified legal framework and the ever-growing size of data. Therefore, auditors demand for solutions, which support an efficient and high quality examination of financial statements. According to the principles of Design Science, an analysis of essential requirements of the auditors is examined in this work. With respect to the auditor’s needs, a specification of process audit is conducted from expert interviews. This sets the baseline for the design of innovative IT artifacts for a guided and systematic support for all activities of process audit. The paper concludes with a critical discussion and highlights the implications for future work