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- Mankevich, Vasili, 1988-
(författare)
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Digital innovation management : investigating digital trace data in online communities
- 2019
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Firms and individuals are interacting online on an unprecedented scale. These interactions may lead to new digital products, services and practices, all of which are manifestations of digital innovation. This process relies on records users leave on various digital platforms which carry information about their activities – digital trace data. The data is generated on a massive scale, yet is just data until it is confronted with meaning – its value remains latent. Digital trace data is agnostic about future use, it carries records of interactions with digital artifacts and is available to wide numbers of actors to reinterpret them as sources of innovation and value creation. Online communities where data is generated can be sources of innovation, but are also extremely vulnerable. Digital trace data are not finitely expendable but may be used and passed along to any other individuals, partners, customers, or suppliers. To remain competitive, firms increasingly need to manage dynamic interactions of online community members, confront digital trace data with meaning, and facilitate innovation that is decentralized and requires heterogeneous knowledge resources.This dissertation explores how digital innovation can be leveraged in the context of online communities. It is based on four empirical investigations in the context of firms interacting with online communities that are rich with digital trace data. Collectively, these studies illustrate the potential utility of digital trace data generated by online communities for digital innovation, and suggest possible strategies for effective management of digital innovation for value creation. The dissertation contributes to both theoretically and empirically oriented discourses on the use of digital trace data. Specifically, it does so by providing propositions for dealing with digital trace data through platform design, community sociality, and narration for digital innovation.
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| 2. |
- Jonsson, Katrin, 1978-
(författare)
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Digitalized industrial equipment : an investigation of remote diagnostics services
- 2010
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- With the ubiquity of digitalization, digital convergence of applications, devices, networks and artifacts presents both challenges and opportunities for individuals, organizations and society. Physical artifacts that were not digital in the recent past are now increasingly becoming intertwined with digital components, providing them with digital capabilities. As a consequence, vast amounts of information that used to be invisible can now be captured, digitized and used in new places and novel ways. Organizations thus seek to innovate IT-enabled services based upon the flows of information across both internal and external organizational boundaries. Because IT-enabled services support organizational actors in communicating and collaborating both inside and outside the organizations’ boundaries, they can also assimilate and diffuse knowledge across these boundaries. The thesis is a collection of five papers and a cover paper reporting an exploration of the role of digitalized equipment in boundary-spanning practices as a contribution to the design and implementation of IT-enabled services. Three embedded case studies of Swedish industrial organizations provide an opportunity to address the research question. The findings are based on studies of remote diagnostics services for industrial equipment enabled by remote diagnostics systems, an application family within ubiquitous computing. The thesis illustrates that remote diagnostics systems have a profound impact on how organizational boundaries that were drawn as ‘cross-overs’ are becoming less limited by constraints of time, space and the type of data shared. These systems permit workers at remote sites to gain access to information about external dispersed equipment and production processes. They also create new boundaries between entities that were not previously connected and across existing boundaries with new information and knowledge. This thesis gives insight into how such information sharing across boundaries may leverage multicontextual practices. This thesis contributes to the existing literature with the development of a conceptual apparatus for understanding how embedded technology transforms boundary-spanning practices from a pure social activity to a boundary-spanning assemblage. Boundary spanning is an increasingly complex sociomaterial practice that fundamentally rests on technology as well as human competencies. The technology is deeply intertwined in the boundary-spanning activity as the sensors installed in the monitored equipment serve as the remote technicians’ eyes and ears. Together, the technology and the technicians form a boundary-spanning assemblage. While information systems research has called for attention to the ‘IT artifact’, this thesis underscores the importance of the characteristics of the specific technology and the profound effects it has had on its surroundings. In contrast to predominant ubiquitous computing research that mainly explores mobile applications, this thesis also shows how the increased embeddedness of IT makes technology an invisible but ever-present part of everyday work practices. Digitalized equipment with embedded technology thus raises not only novel opportunities but also novel challenges for both users and researchers. We can design IT solutions today where people close to the technology have no access to or awareness of it. People can be monitored without visual cues revealing the monitoring. Furthermore, developing or using an IT-enabled service is not merely about developing/using a technology or a system; it also involves issues about the technology’s value creation, its ownership, competencies and customer relationships. IT and services should thus not be considered as separate and subsequent processes: they are deeply intertwined and mutual. This thesis thus suggests that digitalized equipment with embedded technology deserves critical scrutiny.
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| 3. |
- Lagsten, Jenny, 1967-
(författare)
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Utvärdera Informationssystem : Pragmatiskt perspektiv och metod
- 2009
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Syfte: Det övergripande syftet med avhandlingen är att utveckla en intressentbaseradutvärderingsmetod för att utvärdera informationssystem. Jag har valt attkalla utvärderingsmetoden för VISU (Verksamhetsutvecklande InformationssystemUtvärdering). I VISU uppfattas utvärderingsprocessen som en socialprocess där människor arbetar tillsammans för att bestämma sig för egenskaperoch värden hos det informationssystem som utvärderas. Utgångspunkten förutvärderingsprocessen enligt VISU är att utvärdering ska användas praktiskt avmänniskor för att skapa utveckling och förbättring i verksamheter. Frågor: Tvåövergripande forskningsfrågor har drivit avhandlingsarbetet:1. Hur bör en metodför utvärdering av informationssystem vara utformad för att bidra till enverksamhets utveckling?2. Vad innebär en pragmatiskt grundad modell för ISUtvärdering?Forskningsmetod: I avhandlingsarbetet utvecklar jag VISU ochundersöker hur metoden fungerar samt vilka konsekvenser som användandet avVISU ger i praktiska utvärderingssammanhang. Forskningsarbetet har bedrivitsenligt Canonical Action Research. Aktionsforskningsstrategin har valts för attmotsvara undersökningsbehovet vid metodutveckling - behovet av att prövametoden i praktiska utvärderingsprocesser där metoden är avsedd att användas.Vidare grundas och förankras VISU i pragmatiska kunskapsteorier och teorier omutvärdering (särskilt intressentmodellen). VISU är också grundad i forskning omIS-utvärdering och förankrad i skolan om interpretativ IS-utvärdering.Kunskapsbidrag: Det praktiska bidraget från avhandlingen är en metod, VISU,för att utvärdera informationssystem. De teoretiska kunskapsbidragen är:rationalitet för en pragmatisk utvärderingsprocess, en multiparadigmmodell förIS-utvärdering samt en modell för utvärderingsbruk.
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| 4. |
- Löfgren, Alexander, 1979-
(författare)
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Making Mobile Meaning : expectations and experiences of mobile computing usefulness in construction site management practice
- 2008
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- During the last decade, anticipated and realized benefits of mobile and wireless information and communication technology (ICT) for different business purposes have been widely explored and evaluated. Also, the significance of ‘user acceptance’ mechanisms through ‘perceived usefulness’ of ICT applications has gained broad recognition among business organizations in developing and adopting new ICT capabilities. However, even though technology usefulness is regularly highlighted as an important factor in ICT projects, there is often a lack of understanding of what the concept involves in the practical work context of the actual users, and how to deal with the issues of usefulness in organizational ICT development processes. This doctoral thesis covers a 1,5 year case study of a mobile computing development project at a Swedish international construction enterprise. The company’s mobile ICT venture addressed the deficient ICT use situation of management practitioners in construction site operations. The study portrays the overall socially shaped development process of the chosen technology and its evolving issues of usefulness for existing construction site management practice. The perceived usefulness of mobile computing tools among the ‘user-practitioners’ is described as emergence of ‘meaningful use’ based on initial expectations and actual experiences of the technology in their situated fieldwork context. The studied case depicts the ongoing and open-ended conversational nature of understanding adequate ICT requirements in work practice, and the negotiation of mobile computing technology design properties between users and developers over time towards the alignment of diverse personal, professional and organizational needs and purposes of ICT use. The studied introduction of mobile computing technology in construction site management fieldwork practice serves as an illustrative actual example of how to interpret, understand and approach issues of usefulness and user acceptance of ICT resources in operative work contexts when managing ICT development processes in organizations.
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| 5. |
- Ahonen, Mikko, PhD, post-doc researcher, 1968-
(författare)
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Designing an Information System for Open Innovation – Bridging the Gap between Individual and Organisational Creativity
- 2011
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- History shows that those companies that continue to invest in their innovative capabilities during tough economic times are often those that prosper when growth returns. Recently, information systems (IS) have been harnessed to support innovation. Even with IS support, innovation campaigns and suggestion management systems often end up in failure. Employees and customers are reluctant to share their best ideas. Individuals interests, motivation, creativity and life-long learning are seldom adequately supported by companies. In the information systems research area there is very little research on creativity and creativity has traditionally been studied mainly within the decision support systems (DSS) research area. This DSS area has focused on rather mechanistic idea-generation processes lacking a focus on individuals and their creativity. Even in the emerging open innovation paradigm, individual and group levels have come in for little research. From these starting points, we became interested in ways to improve existing information systems and innovation practices. The research question here is: How to design an artefact to support learning and creativity within the open innovation paradigm. Since we are interested in building new artefacts, we will utilise design research methods, particularly the Design Science Research Methodology (DSRM) process model. Our three artefacts are the results of our work. The first artefact, the Mobile Personal Development Plan, is focused on extending development talks between an employer and employees within human resource management to support innovation. Curiosity and emerging interests are seen here as idea seeds and future competences. The second artefact, the iPortfolio, extends this with a life-long learning and problem-solving focus. The third artefact, the Brokering Platform for Open Innovation, finally focuses on collaboration with customers and crowds. The software development was time consuming in our work and only the first artefact is demonstrated as a functional software prototype. Our pilot in an SME company illustrates practical requirements and usability issues related to the software. Additionally, a Delphi study with international open innovation experts served to identify future related requirements. Given the lack of creativity research in the IS field, we claim that our work makes an appropriate contribution. To the design research literature our input is new usage cases of the previously mentioned DSRM process model. Our results apply to organisations, where the employees work in dispersed teams and need an information system to communicate their emerging ideas and interests for more systematic problem-solving. The managers in our study reported that there are plenty of ideas available, but the challenge is to ensure the commitment of external resources to the actual innovation building. The integration of learning into the innovation and problem-solving activity should be motivational. We therefore discuss human resource management in relation to creativity and innovation. Surprisingly, in our pilots we noticed difficulties in time management in mobile settings and the current health risk debate gradually changed our artefact design, so this work also provides a critical view on mobility and on the access anytime, anywhere phenomenon. Finally, we suggest improvements to existing innovation practices in organisations.
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| 6. |
- Ghazawneh, Ahmad
(författare)
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Towards a Boundary Resources Theory of Software Platforms
- 2012
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The last few years have witnessed a significant increase in the frequency and magnitude of involving third-party application developers in software platforms. While this involvement offers great opportunities in building and sustaining platform innovation, it also exposes platform owners to significant challenges. Typically, platform owners facilitate the involvement of third-party developers by providing resources, referred to in this thesis as boundary resources, that give access to the platform, shift design capability, and facilitate the use of the platform’s core technologies. At the same time, these resources have the potential to be used to maintain platform control. This involves seemingly conflicting goals that creates a challenge for platform owners in finding the right balance.The main objective of this thesis is to investigate and understand the role of boundary resources in platform owners’ efforts to stimulate third-party development. To this end, this thesis proposes a theoretical model of boundary resources. This model centres on various drivers behind boundary resources design and use, and how these drivers interact in third-party development. The thesis also presents a comprehensive view of governance and strategizing practices used by platform owners through boundary resources. This thesis comprises a cover and a collection of five published research papers. The thesis applies a qualitative research method and employs multiple case studies. Boundary resources, innovation networks and platform governance perspectives have been synthesized to build a theoretical basis to analyze the empirical findings.This thesis complements and extends the literature on software platforms, and the insights derived from the thesis enhance previous research on third-party development. In addition, it provides a focused theoretical account of the interfaces between platform owners and third-party developers that contributes to the body of knowledge developed around using tools for innovation.
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| 7. |
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| 8. |
- Sandberg, Johan, 1981-
(författare)
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Digital Capability : Investigating Coevolution of IT and Business Strategies
- 2014
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- This dissertation investigates the role of information technology (IT) in organizational strategy. Specifically, it examines how organizations can persist in turbulent competitive landscapes characterized by IT innovations. Underlying premises for this dissertation are that: (1) ubiquitous IT implies constant disruptions from digital innovation, (2) IT and practice are becoming fused, and (3) organizational strategies are dynamically linked with practice, i.e. they are reciprocally related through what organizations do rather than have. To investigate such IT strategizing processes, I outline a conceptual framework for analyzing how organizations can generate digital capability, i.e. a collection of routines for strategizing by leveraging digital assets to create differential value. Digital assets here refer to the complement of available resources and competencies for IT design and implementation. Based on the notion of dynamic capability and evolutionary theory, this framework emphasizes the importance of sensing, seizing and transforming abilities for generating digital capability.As organizational practices are becoming fused with IT scholars have argued that attempting to disentangle them analytically is futile. In a similar vein, organizational strategy is increasingly reliant on available IT resources for both formulation and execution. In the IS field it is widely acknowledged that IT has both enabling and inhibiting consequences for organizations. Drawing on the resource-based view of the firm and theory on organizational capabilities, the notion of IT capability has been widely used as a conceptual tool for analyzing these dual strategic effects of IT. Considering the explosive advances in computing, network and interaction that have resulted in IT being ubiquitous and deeply embedded in contemporary practices, recent research argues for the need to move beyond the functional view of technology implicit in the IT capability notion. A key aspect to address for such broadening of the perspective is the coevolution of IT and business practices, i.e. who (or what) leads, who or what follows, and whether such a causal distinction is meaningful.Grounded in the outlined conceptual framework, this dissertation examines how organizations can build digital capability to both enable large variation and complexity of feasible competitive actions, and reduce inhibiting effects of IT. The empirical investigation is situated in three distinct domains: boundary spanning IT innovation, transformation of existing IT resources, and hybridization of technology through digitalization of production equipment. These investigations are presented in five research papers.The dissertation contribute to knowledge of IT strategy by: (1) explicating the construct of digital capability, (2) providing a framework for coevolutionary strategizing processes, (3) presenting an empirical illustration of the coevolution of IT and business strategies, and (4) offer specific insights on design and orchestration of processes for digital capability generation.
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