IT/IS Project Portfolio Selection in the Presence of Project Interactions – Review and Synthesis of the Literature

Adequately considering interactions among IT/IS projectsin the process of constructing an IT/IS project portfoliois an important requirement for value-based IT/IS projectportfolio selection. A lot of articles already deal with modelingapproaches to incorporate such interactions, but theliterature lacks a common terminology and a structured perspectiveon the manifold types of interactions and their effects.When applied in business practice, this may lead toa systematically wrong project portfolio selection. Basedon a comprehensive literature review, our contributions are(1) an identication of relevant classication dimensions ofIT/IS project portfolio selection, (2) the development of aframework that provides a structured perspective on deterministic,intratemporal interactions, and { as the main contribution{ (3) a unication of the terminology and the semanticsof interactions among IT/IS projects. This workshall support decision-makers in the identication of possibleinteractions among IT/IS project proposals

Creativity Through Cognitive Fit: Theory and Preliminary Evidence in a Business Model Idea Generation Context

There are two major types of problems: routine problems and creative problems. Extant research has established the validity of cognitive fit theory for routine problems. However, its validity for creative problems has been left unaddressed. To advance cognitive fit theory to a (more) general theory of problem solving, we extend its original formulation to creative problems. We illustrate our extension through a contextualization to a specific creative problem, business model idea generation with the Business Model Canvas, and provide preliminary experimental evidence for our propositions. Thereby, we contribute to advancing the theory of cognitive fit, and provide a first step towards theory-guided design of modeling languages for business models

Behavioral Mechanisms Prompted by Badges: The Goal-Gradient Hypothesis

This paper describes our research which empirically investigates the applicability of the goal-gradient hypothesis to the activation of user contributions on a popular German Question & Answer community through badges. The goal-gradient hypothesis states that the motivation to reach a goal increases with proximity to the goal. The issue – of interest to academics and website managers alike – is to understand the role played by badges on the quantity and quality of user contributions. Our dataset enables us to measure activity levels both quantitatively and qualitatively. We find that the quantity of user contributions increases substantially in the days shortly before earning the next badge, and peak on the day of the promotion, whereas the quality of user contributions declines only slightly. Hence, our findings empirically support the goal-gradient hypothesis in the context of online communities, and provide nuanced insights into the effect of badges on online user behavior

The Role of Technology Pivots in Software Startups: Antecedents and Consequences

Software startups implement and deploy innovative software-based products and services, for which they are in search of a viable and scalable business model. In the well-established Lean Startup Approach, pivoting – testing new fundamental hypotheses about a product, strategy, or engine of growth – is a standard method applied in this process. Failing to pivot at the right time and for the right reasons can substantially jeopardize a startup’s chance to develop into a viable business. Given the alleged importance of pivots, surprisingly little is known about the events leading up to and resulting from pivots. Our study starts to fill this gap in theoretical knowledge by empirically investigating the circumstances under which it is beneficial to perform pivots and what to expect from them for product development, business model development and innovation. Focusing on technology pivots – one specific type of pivot – we use an embedded inductive multi-case research design to propose a preliminary model that identifies three prerequisites, five antecedent and nine consequence categories of technology pivots. Lastly, we discuss the impact of technology pivots on individual business model dimensions

Achieving more by saying less? On the Moderating Effect of Information Cues in Paid Search

Research on ad copy design is well-studied in the context of offline marketing. However, researchers have only recently started to investigate ad copies in the context of paid search, and have not yet explored the potential of information cues to enhance customers’ search process. In this paper we analyze the impact of an information cue on user behavior in ad copies. Contrary to prevalent advice, results suggest that reducing the number of words in an ad is not always beneficial. Users act quite differently (and unexpectedly) in response to an information cue depending on their search phrases. In turn, practitioners could leverage the observed moderating effect of an information cue to enhance paid search success. Furthermore, having detected deviating user behavior in terms of clicks and conversions, we provide first indicative evidence of a self-selection mechanism at play when paid search users respond to differently phrased ad copies

OVERCOMING SILOS: A REVIEW OF BUSINESS MODEL MODELING LANGUAGES FOR BUSINESS ECOSYSTEMS

Digital technologies have led to the emergence of new ways of creating value and, by enabling business ecosystems, to a change in the way businesses are organized. However, due to their non-hierarchical and complementary nature, business ecosystems are not easy to create or sustain. To support the systematic design and analysis of business ecosystems, business modeling has emerged as a valuable tool. Our structured review of the literature on business model modeling languages has found 45 potentially relevant publications. Although a preliminary analysis shows that existing modeling languages only provide limited support for business ecosystems, they can provide a useful conceptual basis to enable further research. This research-in-progress paper outlines first steps taken to identify recently developed business model modeling languages and to synthesize and organize the knowledge dispersed across disciplines. Thus, the future results of study are expected to contribute to research on business model collaboration and business ecosystems

Over-Paid Search: When Bricks-and-Mortar Retailers Should Not Use Paid Search

Current research on paid search highlights its ability to enhance online as well as offline sales but is limited to pure online players and multi-channel firms. This paper presents a controlled field experiment which investigates whether paid search can increase sales for bricks-and-mortar retailers who solely sell their products via local stores and rely on informational websites to reach their customers. Results suggest that paid search increases the number of potential customers by enhancing the reach of online marketing initiatives. Yet, using a difference-in-differences analysis, our findings show that paid search fails to increase offline sales. Local store customers primarily use paid search as a navigational shortcut to the chain’s website which they would have reached even without being exposed to paid search. Consequently, bricks-and-mortar retailers should approach paid search cautiously: whilst it can enhance the reach of marketing initiatives, it seems to have little effect on improving offline purchases

All Things Considered? – Technology Design Decision-making Characteristics in Digital Startups

Digital startups offer innovative products, for which they require a suitable technology solution. Choosing an appropriate technology design among the range of available designs is crucial, as the wrong design decision could have disastrous consequences for product development and quality, and waste valuable resources. While the literature has highlighted the role played by the decision context, little is known about ‘how’ technology design decisions are reached in digital startups. Using an exploratory research design, we investigate how technology design decisions are made in digital startups, and identify decision-making characteristics, consisting of three decision paradigms and seven decision attributes. Our empirical evidence suggests that in addition to the decision context, these decision-making characteristics play an important role in enabling digital startups to reach satisfactory technology design decisions. Our study thus lays the basis for more research on the topic, contributing to knowledge and practice of digital startups

Behavioral Mechanisms Prompted by Virtual Rewards: The Small-area Hypothesis

In a natural experiment on a popular German Question & Answer community we investigate the applicability of the small-area hypothesis to the activation of user contributions through virtual rewards in the form of badges. Koo and Fishbach’s small-area hypothesis states that individuals in pursuit of a goal exhibit stronger motivation when they focus on whichever is smaller in size: the area of their completed actions or their remaining actions needed to reach a goal (e.g., focusing on 10% of completed actions is more motivating than on the 90% remaining). This has direct implications for the optimal design of virtual reward systems and especially for the framing of progress towards virtual rewards, which represent goals to users. Consistent with theoretical predictions, we find that the small-area effect activates online user contribution behavior. Our findings thus provide empirical evidence for the influence of the framing of progress towards virtual rewards on user behavior