Numerous software products claiming to improve work group productivity are making
their way into the marketplace. How is a manager to decide whether or not to invest in
these products? This paper proposes a suitable method of formulating the evaluation
problem for work group application products. The issue of normal software evaluation
is considered first. Then group work is described and contrasted with individual work
activities. A two-level evaluation strategy consisting of broad coverage and detailed
analysis is introduced. Detailed analysis consists of functional performance,
administration, and fit applied across task, group and communications domains.
Examples, drawn from some of the products demonstrated at this Symposium, are used
to illustrate how this methodology may be applied.Information Systems Working Papers Serie