Design science in public policy and administration research: how to actually apply it?

This is a blog about our recent article in Policy & Politics, in which we argue that scholars in the field of public policy and administration need to rethink their usual ‘bystander’ approach to designing policy and, instead, engage more in experimentation and interventions that can help change and improve governance systems. In this respect, design science appears to provide an effective way of integrating traditional science with intervention-oriented design work

Intermediary role dynamics in system-level transitions:a case from energy transition

Systemic intermediaries are organizations that support socio-technical transition processes by bridging structural deficiencies in a transitioning domain. In doing so, intermediaries perform a number of transition-supportive roles. Previous research has identified what these roles are and how intermediaries perform them. However, while transitioning domains are by definition in a state of change, little is known about the dynamics in intermediation activities. That is, how intermediaries develop and adjust their transition-supportive roles, and what kind of organizational conditions enable an intermediary to be dynamic in its support to a transitioning domain. We explore these questions in an exploratory longitudinal case study (2011-2017) of the evolution of the transition service portfolio of a major systemic intermediary from the domain of sustainable energy. Four contributions to the literature on systemic intermediaries are made. First, we operationalize the concept of transition-supportive roles. Second, we explore on the micro-level how intermediaries design support services. Third, we articulate the mechanism by which systemic intermediaries can develop the transition-supportive roles they perform toward transition stakeholders. Fourth, we identify an organizational setup that enables an intermediary to be dynamic in its portfolio of transition services

Mixing Oil with Water: How to Effectively Teach Design Science in Management Education?

Abstract The methodology of design science (DS) has been emerging as a new form of engaged scholarship in which key managerial and organizational challenges are addressed and solved. These developments have major implications for management education, which has been repeatedly criticized for its lack of relevance to practitioners. However, design science methodology and its implications for management education are still unclear and disputed. Teaching and learning DS thus often suffers from the lack of a consistent methodology. In this respect, teaching DS is very much like mixing oil with water. The purpose of this paper is to compare various taxonomies for DS methodology proposed in the management literature and then develop a consistent taxonomy and integrative framework that may appeal to management students at undergraduate and graduate levels. The proposed framework for DS involves an iterative cycle of exploration, synthesis, creation and evaluation. Design principles arise from, but also connect and inform, these four steps in DS

The influence of personal-and business centre characteristics on knowledge sharing types in business centres

Knowledge sharing is a process where individuals mutually exchange knowledge to create new knowledge. Understanding the knowledge-sharing process, during which organizations share spaces, facilities and services, is highly important for owners/managers who seek to optimize their business centres and to attract more innovative tenants. For users of business centres, it is interesting to know how, where and what type of knowledge is shared. However, there is hardly any research into sharing different types of knowledge in business centres. The purpose of this paper is to analyse the influence of personal and organizational characteristics on sharing different types of knowledge within and between organizations in business centres