Communication Context-Dependent Technology Use in Virtual Teams

Global virtual teams (GVT) are increasingly using virtual workspace technology (VWT) which allow for multiple forms of interaction between team members. However, there is limited empirical and theoretical research on how the use of these technologies depends on the communication context of the teams. We extend recent theorizing about technology support for virtual communication to suggest that VWTs afford team members different forms of interaction. Further, we suggest that, to achieve better performance, teams choose interaction forms (using VWT) that match their communication context. More specifically, we propose that GVTs vary particularly along two dimensions of communication contexts: diversity and task innovativeness, and that VWTs can be used for two forms of interaction: virtual co-presence and knowledge evolution. We hypothesize that higher performing GVTs with high diversity use VWT for virtual co-presence and higher performing GVTs with high innovativeness of task use VWT for knowledge evolution. Data from 54 GVTs provide empirical support for our hypotheses

Emerging Web-Based Knowledge-Bases: Categories, Trends and Implications for the IS Research Community

The number of electronic knowledge bases on the world wide web is exploding. Organizations and individuals are investing time and resources to build and maintain knowledge bases. However, they have currently have minimal guidance in this effort. Identifying the underlying characteristics of existing knowledge bases and different paths they take for the creation, synthesis and organization of knowledge, is the first step towards determining the best model for designing knowledge bases in the future. In this paper we present an analysis of electronic knowledge bases which have a presence on the WWW and are related to information technology. This work is a preliminary effort in the development of a knowledge base design theory. A total of 38 such knowledge bases were identified and then categorized along two dimensions: Mode of Interaction and Approach for Knowledge Organization . The results show that the majority of current knowledge bases focus on low levels of interaction and give little thought to the organization of their knowledge. At the same time, several knowledge bases with innovative approaches are identified. Taken together, they can serve as models for building more effective web-based knowledge bases which not only capture and disseminate knowledge but leverage information technology to improve the process of knowledge creatio

Non Infantile Desmoplastic Astrocytoma: a case Report

Desmoplastic infantile astrocytomas (DIA) are huge cerebral masses with cystic and solid components in infants with a benigncourse. Less than 50 cases of have been reported in the literature and most of the cases are children below 24 months. We arepresenting a rare case of DIA which presented at the age of 4 years with vomiting and headache in neurosurgical OPD. He wasdiagnosed with a huge left temporal parietal tumor with midline shift which on histopathological examination was confirmedas DIA. Patient was operated and had good recovery and was followed up for two years

Serial Integration, Real Innovation: Roles of Diverse Knowledge and Communicative Participation in Crowdsourcing

Despite a burgeoning public and scholarly interest on open innovation and crowdsourcing, how to enable members of online temporary crowd to maintain knowledge integration and innovation remains underexplored. This study seeks to understand the ways in which online crowd members collectively generate more innovative and serial integrative solutions to crowdsourced open innovation challenges. Analyzing 3,200 unique posts generated by 486 participants of 21 organization-sponsored online crowdsourcing innovation challenges, this research demonstrates that crowd members contribute more innovative solutions when being exposed to explicitly shared diverse knowledge, and that crowd members’ communicative participation acts as a catalyst for the production of both innovation and serial knowledge integration. Findings suggest that managers who seek to generate knowledge integration and innovation should endeavor to implement systems that afford high-level communicative participation, as well as encourage crowd members to make their diverse knowledge explicit while minimizing their cognitive load in knowledge sharing

The Postpandemic Future of Work

Much of the attention on the future of work has been on the relationship between artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, and humans. A limited focus has been on what will be desired in the work itself. The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the pace of change in organizations toward the future of work. Individuals are now more than ever better equipped for global collaboration. They have realized new ways of accomplishing their tasks using technology. As individuals adapt to these new ways of working, organizations have to rethink how they structure themselves for the future of work. The Editorial team at the Journal of Management has commissioned this guest editorial to consider the challenges (Figure 1) that the postpandemic future of work poses to individuals and organizations. This editorial also highlights future research opportunities to address the questions (Table 1) related to the future of work in the postpandemic era

Understanding Collective Reflection in Crowdsourcing for Innovation: A Semantic Network Approach

Empowered by the wisdom of crowds, innovation nowadays is increasingly relying on diverse individuals’ knowledge collaboration. Research on crowdsourcing and open innovation has demonstrated that through deliberate understanding and reflective thinking, members of the online crowd collectively manage their knowledge to generate innovative ideas. However, the semantic patterns of how online crowd’s collective reflection ultimately leads up to innovation remains unclear. Employing semantic network approach, this study analyzed a total of 1,116 posts contributed by online crowds responding to two organization-sponsored crowdsourcing open innovation challenges. Findings show that the semantic patterns of online crowds’ knowledge collaboration evolve from one phase to another in accordance with crowd members’ collective reflection on their diverse knowledge. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed

Integrative Solutions in Online Crowdsourcing Innovation Challenges

Online crowdsourcing challenges are widely used for problem-solving and innovation. Existing theory has characterized such challenges as tools for tapping distant knowledge. By building on information processing theory we move beyond this characterization and present a perspective that describes innovation challenges as virtual places in which ideas are not simply submitted or commented upon but knowledge is integrated. This perspective shifts the role of crowdsourcing challenges from mere tools for gathering ideas to representing the locus of innovation. Our perspective suggests that three types of knowledge affect the quality of integrative solutions: elementary ideas, facts, and analogical examples. Based on a large dataset, we find that elementary ideas and analogical examples are related to increased solution quality, while facts are related to decreased solution quality. We expand the research on online crowdsourcing innovation challenges to include how crowd participants influence the quality of solutions through the content of their postings

Pro-socially motivated interaction for knowledge integration in crowd-based open innovation

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to study how the online temporary crowd shares knowledge in a way that fosters the integration of their diverse knowledge. Having the crowd integrate its knowledge to offer solution-ideas to ill-structured problems posed by organizations is one of the desired outcomes of crowd-based open innovation because, by integrating others’ knowledge, the ideas are more likely to consider the many divergent issues related to solving the ill-structured problem. Unfortunately, the diversity of knowledge content offered by heterogeneous specialists in the online temporary crowd makes integration difficult, and the lean social context of the crowd makes extensive dialogue to resolve integration issues impractical. The authors address this issue by exploring theoretically how the manner in which interaction is organically conducted during open innovation challenges enables the generation of integrative ideas. The authors hypothesize that, as online crowds organically share knowledge based upon successful pro-socially motivated interaction, they become more productive in generating integrative ideas. Design/methodology/approach: Using a multilevel mixed-effects model, this paper analyzed 2,244 posts embedded in 747 threads with 214 integrative ideas taken from 10 open innovation challenges. Findings: Integrative ideas were more likely to occur after pro-socially motivated interactions. Research limitations/implications: Ideas that integrate knowledge about the variety of issues that relate to solving an ill-structured problem are desired outcomes of crowd-based open innovation challenges. Given that members of the crowd in open innovation challenges rarely engage in dialogue, a new theory is needed to explain why integrative ideas emerge at all. The authors’ adaptation of pro-social motivation interaction theory helps to provide such a theoretical explanation. Practitioners of crowd-based open innovation should endeavor to implement systems that encourage the crowd members to maintain a high level of activeness in pro-socially motivated interaction to ensure that their knowledge is integrated as solutions are generated. Originality/value: The present study extends the crowd-based open innovation literature by identifying new forms of social interaction that foster more integrated ideas from the crowd, suggesting the mitigating role of pro-socially motivated interaction in the negative relationship between knowledge diversity and knowledge integration. This study fills in the research gap in knowledge management research describing a need for conceptual frameworks explaining how to manage the increasing complexity of knowledge in the context of crowd-based collaboration for innovation

Encouraging Collaborative Idea-Building in Enterprise-Wide Innovation Challenges

Innovation challenges are increasingly adopted for idea generation in inter- and intra-firm innovation to elicit novel solutions from employees to strategic and business-related problems of the firm. However, the current idea-oriented approach is limited in leveraging the full capacity of open innovation, as it focuses more on identifying the best ideas through competition rather than generating new idea through participants’ recombination and integration of their expertise. We argue that the capabilities of innovation challenges can be fully leveraged when participants engage in collaborative interactions during innovation challenges. We propose the notion of “collaborative challenge,” denoting innovation challenges in which individual participants behave in ways that foster knowledge integration across diverse ideas

Clinicopathological spectrum of uterine leiomyomas in a state of Northern India: a hospital based study

Background: Myometrial lesions form a diverse group amongst which leiomyoma is the commonest visceral neoplasm affecting females in the reproductive age group. They are noted clinically in 20-30% of women over 30 years of age; are rare prior to the menarche, common in reproductive life and have a tendency to regress after the menopause. Their gross appearances are often altered by various secondary changes. Subtypes of leiomyoma are chiefly of interest as they may mimic malignancy in some cases.Methods: All the hysterectomy and myomectomy specimens which were received in the department of pathology, ASCOMS hospital Jammu, Jammu and Kashmir over a period of one year, out of which 79 cases with leiomyomas were included in the study. The specimens were properly labeled, fixed (in NBF), examined grossly, processed, stained and examined microscopically.Results: Age range of the patients with leiomyoma was18-62 years. Majority of the patients were between 41-50 years (46.84% cases). Menorrhagia was the commonest symptom constituting 37.97% cases and fibroid uterus was the most common clinical diagnosis provided (44%). Most common location of leiomyoma’s was intramural (57.43%) followed by subserosal (30.69%). 56.96% leiomyoma’s were single and 43.04% were multiple. Degenerative changes were observed in 16.46% cases, amongst which hyaline change was the most common (6.33%). 9 types of leiomyoma variants were seen, amongst which cellular leiomyoma (6.33%) was the commonest. Adenomyosis was associated with leiomyoma in 19.23% cases.Conclusions: This study was conducted to analyze the clinic pathologic spectrum of uterine leiomyoma’s in northern India with regards to their clinical presentation, associated changes and variants, and to compare our findings with similar studies from different parts of the world