The Functions of Financing in the Management of the German Federal Highways

Im Juni 2017 wurde eine Reform des Bewirtschaftungsmodells für Bundesautobahnen (BAB) beschlossen. Trotz positiver Erfahrungen mit der Einbindung privaten Kapitals auf Projektebene, finden sich im aktuellen Modell keine Ansätze zur Integration privater Finanzierung auf Netzebene wieder. Vor dem Hintergrund vermeintlich ungenutzter Optimierungspotenziale befasst sich die vorliegende Arbeit mit den Funktionen der Finanzierung bei der Bewirtschaftung der BAB. Hierbei werden die Funktionen der Finanzierung sowohl auf Projektebene am Beispiel von Projektfinanzierungen als auch bei der Bewirtschaftung von BAB auf Netzebene betrachtet. Im Ergebnis der systematischen Bildung einer Theorie wird die Hypothese aufgestellt, dass durch die Integration privater Finanzierung bei Öffentlich-privaten Partnerschaften (ÖPP) für den öffentlichen Auftraggeber vorteilhafte Funktionen entfaltet werden können, z. B. eine Steuerungs- oder Kontrollfunktion. In vergleichbarer Intensität können diese in keinem der betrachteten Bewirtschaftungsmodelle erreicht werden. Weitere Funktionen, z. B. die Controlling- und Reportingfunktion, können hingegen auch durch eine Reform des Bewirtschaftungsmodells vergleichbar erreicht werden. Obwohl im Vergleich zur konventionellen Beschaffung höhere Finanzierungs- und Transaktionskosten in Kauf genommen werden müssen, kann ÖPP insgesamt als vorteilhafte Beschaffungsvariante für angemessene Projektzuschnitte identifiziert werden. Zusätzlich zur Projektebene wird die Bewirtschaftung der BAB auf Netzebene betrachtet. Dabei wird mit Hilfe der gebildeten Theorie systematisch analysiert, ob die auf Projektebene herausgestellten positiven Effekte ihre Wirkung auch auf Ebene des Bewirtschaftungsmodells entfalten können. Als ein Ergebnis wird ein Bewirtschaftungsmodell skizziert, das den Anforderungen des Bundes hinsichtlich Wirtschaftlichkeit, Transparenz und Kontrolle in besonderem Maße Rechnung trägt. Im Vergleich zum aktuellen Modell, verfügt dieses z. B. über eine vollständige, kostendeckende und unmittelbare Nutzerfinanzierung, die losgelöst vom Haushalt erfolgt. Zudem besteht die Möglichkeit, privates Fremdkapital aufzunehmen, um Erlösschwankungen auszugleichen. Ein wesentlicher Vorteil des empfohlenen Modells besteht darin, dass die Finanzierung an einer langfristigen Strategie ausgerichtet werden kann, wodurch eine wichtige Bedingung zur effizienten Leistungserstellung erfüllt wird und dennoch gute Kontrollmöglichkeiten des Bundes gegeben sind.In June 2017, a reform of the management model for German federal highways (BAB) was adopted. Despite positive experiences with the integration of private capital at project level, the adopted model does not include any approaches for the integration of private financing at network (corporate) level. Against the background of supposedly untapped optimization potentials, this thesis deals with the functions of financing in the management of the BAB. In this context, the functions of financing are considered both at the project level, using the example of project financing, and in the management of BAB at the network (corporate) level. As a result of the systematic development of a theory, it is hypothesized that through the integration of private financing in public-private partnerships (PPP), advantageous functions are provided to the public client, e.g. a control or monitoring function. These functions cannot be achieved with comparable intensity in any of the management models considered. Further functions however, e.g. the reporting function, can be also achieved comparably by a reform of the management model. Although higher financing and transaction costs have to be accepted as opposed to conventional procurement methods, PPP can be considered an advantageous procurement option for suitable projects. In addition to the project level, the management of the BAB is considered at network (corporate) level. On the basis of the previously developed theory, it is systematically analyzed whether the positive effects highlighted at the project level can also be realized at network (corporate) level. As a result, a management model is outlined that particularly takes into account the requirements of the federal government in terms of economic efficiency, transparency and control. Compared to the adopted model, this outlined model is based on a full, cost-covering and direct user financing that is completely separated from the federal budget. In addition, it provides for the possibility to raise private debt capital to compensate for revenue fluctuations. A key advantage of the recommended model is that the financing can be aligned with a long-term strategy, thus fulfilling an important condition for the efficient provision of BAB while still providing good control options for the federal government

Reconsidering the Role of Research Method Guidelines for Qualitative, Mixed-methods, and Design Science Research

Guidelines for different qualitative research genres have been proposed in information systems (IS). As these guidelines are outlined for conducting and evaluating good research, studies may be denied publication simply because they do not follow a prescribed methodology. This can result in “checkbox” compliance, where the guidelines become more important than the study. We argue that guidelines can only be used to evaluate what good research is if there is evidence that they lead to certain good research outcomes. Currently, the guidelines do not present such evidence. Instead, when it is presented, the evidence is often an authority argument or evidence of popularity with usability examples. We further postulate that such evidence linking guidelines and outcomes cannot be presented. Therefore, it may be time for the IS research community to acknowledge that many research method principles we regard as authoritative may ultimately be based on speculation and opinion, and thus, they should be taken less seriously as absolute guidelines in the review process

Measuring and Controlling Social Desirability Bias: Applications in Information Systems Research

Despite the potential risks that social desirability (SD) bias poses to the validity of information systems (IS) research, little is known about the extent of such bias. This study examines the extent of SD bias in the IS domain and compares alternative techniques for measuring it. Our findings suggest that despite the popularity of the Marlowe-Crowne scale in IS research, the impression management scale functions better in assessing the extent of SD bias. We also found that under certain circumstances, SD bias can threaten the validity of IS research. This study contributes to the IS literature by showing the difference in SD bias across IS contexts and suggesting an effective way to test for the presence of SD bias

Towards an Internationalization of the Information Systems Curriculum

Globalization has changed the requirements to professionals and students in all branches and sectors significantly in the past decade. However in the domain of Information Systems, these changes have not yet found their way into current study programs and curricula. We identify and validate core internationalization competences and their relation to IS specific competences based on an initial set of competence categories. This is the basis for designing learning services of the future. The presented study aims at validating both and identifying additional categories and competences. In this paper, we present the first results of this study focusing on the internationalization and knowledge management competences. The results can be used for different purposes exploring the human perspective on information systems development

Solution Provider's Microfoundations in the Development of Product-Service Innovations

Purpose: The present paper was set out to study how a solution provider manages organisational processes and routines to support product-service system (PSS) development. Design/Methodology/Approach: This single-case study investigates in-depth one large international solution provider to understand the detailed microprocesses and routines shaping the microfoundations of product-service system development. Findings: The study suggests that technology companies should consider creating a flexible structure to unleash many types of innovations instead of establishing tailored models to foster different innovation types and avoid falling into the exploitation trap of using innovation to only support the existing business without aiming for new explorative openings. Originality/Value: The present study opens up the black-box of new product-service innovation (PSI) development model.©2020 Authors. Published by The Advanced Services Group & Aston University.fi=vertaisarvioitu|en=peerReviewed

Unfolding the simple heuristics of smart solution development

Purpose The present study intends to foster understanding of how a traditional manufacturer can utilize the “simple rules” approach of managerial heuristics to facilitate its smart solution development (SSD) process. Design/methodology/approach The study uses an in-depth single case research strategy and 25 senior manager interviews to understand the application of simple rules in smart solution development. Findings The findings reveal process, boundary, preference, schedule, and stop rules as the dominant managerial heuristics in the case and identify how the manufacturer applies these rules during the innovation process phases of ideation, incubation, transformation, and industrialization for attaining project outcomes. Research limitations/implications The study contributes to the new service development (NSD) literature by shedding light on simple rules and how managers may apply them to facilitate SSD. The main limitations stem from applying the qualitative case study approach and the interpretative nature of the study, which produces novel insights but prevents direct generalization to other empirical cases. Practical implications The resulting framework provides guidelines for managers on how to establish formal and clear simple rules that enable industrial solution providers to approach decision-making in smart solution development in a more agile manner. Originality/value The study comprises one of the first attempts to investigate managerial heuristics in the context of SSD and puts forward a plea for further NSD research applying psychological conceptualizations to enrich the simple rules perspective.© Tuomas Huikkola, Marko Kohtamäki, Rodrigo Rabetino, Hannu Makkonen and Philipp Holtkamp. Published by Emerald Publishing Limited. This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) licence. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this licence may be seen at http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode.fi=vertaisarvioitu|en=peerReviewed

A novel approach towards skill-based search and services of Open Educational Resources

Ha, K.-H., Niemann, K., Schwertel, U., Holtkamp, P., Pirkkalainen, H., Börner, D. et al (2011). A novel approach towards skill-based search and services of Open Educational Resources. In E. Garcia-Barriocanal, A. Öztürk, & M. C. Okur (Eds.), Metadata and Semantics Research: 5th International Conference MTSR 2011 (pp. 312-323), Izmir, Turkey, October 12-14, 2011. Springer.Open educational resources (OER) have a high potential to address the growing need for training materials in management education and training. Today, a high number of OER in management are already available in a large number of repositories. However, users face barriers as they have to search repository by repository with different interfaces to retrieve the appropriate learning content. In addition, the use of search criteria related to skills, such as learning objectives and skill-levels is not generally supported. The European co-funded project OpenScout addresses these barriers by intelligently connecting leading European OER repositories and providing federated, skillbased search and retrieval web services. On top of this content federation the project supports users with easy-to-apply tools that will accelerate the (re-) use of open content

D1.1 Analysis Report on Federated Infrastructure and Application Profile

Kawese, R., Fisichella, M., Deng, F., Friedrich, M., Niemann, K., Börner, D., Holtkamp, P., Hun-Ha, K., Maxwell, K., Parodi, E., Pawlowski, J., Pirkkalainen, H., Rodrigo, C., & Schwertel, U. (2010). D1.1 Analysis Report on Federated Infrastructure and Application Profile. OpenScout project deliverable.The present deliverable aims to report on functionalities of the first step of the described process. In other words, the deliverable describes how the consortium will gather the learning objects metadata, centralize the access to existing learning resources and form a suitable application profile which will contribute to a proper and suitable modeling, retrieval and presentation of the required information (regarding the learning objects) to the interested users. The described approach is the foundation for the federated, skill-based search and learning object retrieval. The deliverable focuses on reporting the analysis of the available repositories and the best infrastructure that can support OpenScout’s initiative. The deliverable explains the motivations behind the chosen infrastructure based on the study of available information and previous research and literature.The work on this publication has been sponsored by the OpenScout (Skill based scouting of open user-generated and community-improved content for management education and training) Targeted Project that is funded by the European Commission’s 7th Framework Programme. Contract ECP-2008-EDU-42801