Framing multidisciplinary teams : sense making through the POM model

• In this paper we focus on Living Labs for promoting and developing collaborative working environments (CWEs). The issues we address in this context are related to knowledge-sharing for innovation. More precisely we explore methodologies for appreciative inquiry that stimulate creativity and facilitate the process for co-creative needfinding and innovation. Additionally we contribute to a European state-of-the-art in utilizing Living Labs to user-centric ICT innovation and to establishing a foundation for a European Network of Living Labs. A pan-European Network of Living Labs brings the extreme benefit of leveraging the concept of a Europe of Regions. However, when interactions are conducted at a distance across organisational, geographical and cultural boundaries, placing at risk the overall competiveness of an organisation, the challenge is to develop tools, methods, and work-practices to manage this interaction. This is the aim of this research. The context and content for this paper is transformation processes in higher education in which knowledge from distinct disciplines are integrated into new multidisciplinary education and research. Checkland's and Holwell's model of Process for Organisational Meanings (POM) is used to present and appreciate the efficacy of these set-up processes. The POM-model is found to be useful for making sense of design work across boundaries and for identifying best practices as it visually represents the important processes of making meaning by interactions among participants in various organisational settings and by means of technology. The results of the study point to best practices for creating shared vision across disciplinary boundaries. Shared visions enable knowledge creation and integration, in turn generating common ground for aligned action and design. Important insights for how to cultivate the fragile processes of setting up multidisciplinary teams are currently lacking. Hence, the findings from this study contribute to set up of multidisciplinary teams successfully. Aware of the start up issues, chances of successful implementation will be enhanced.

Subject headings

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Medie- och kommunikationsvetenskap -- Systemvetenskap, informationssystem och informatik med samhällsvetenskaplig inriktning (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Media and Communications -- Information Systems, Social aspects (hsv//eng)

Keyword

Informatik

Informatics

Publication and Content Type

ref (subject category)

kon (subject category)