Full Papers

ID

Author(s)

Paper Title

Abstract

1

Gottschalk Peter

Business Benefits from Data Warehousing: the Case of Oil Rig Åsgard B in the North Sea

Data warehouses have emerged because of business needs and advances in hardware and software technology. Statoil started building and operating a data warehouse for all technical aspects of Åsgard B in parallel with rig construction to support the development project. Business benefits from Statoil's data warehousing can be identified in both the automation and information area. But the main potential seems to be in the transformation area, where business benefits such as time savings for data suppliers, enhancements in change management, improvements in transfer of LCI to the client, improvements in suppliers' materials management and improvements in business unit management arise. A research model is suggested for future survey on realized business benefits.

3

Mutch Alistair

Lessons from history; or, reflections on the field of information systems following a reading of Checkland and Holwell

In this paper, I want to use a number of aspects of history as a foil to and reflection on current developments in the field of information systems. This endeavour has been prompted by the book Information, Systems and Information Systems (Checkland and Holwell, 1998). However, this is only a prompt. This paper is emphatically not an extended commentary, review or critique of that work, although I will return to its themes at frequent intervals. Rather, a number of starting points are drawn upon. There is the book’s explicit use of history as a source of illustration and example, as seen in a chapter length treatment of the RAF’s handling of the Battle of Britain. There are the comparisons to, not history, but other disciplines, such as geography in the book’s contention that the field of information systems is under-developed. And there is the use of historical metaphors in the assertion that IS remains in some form of disciplinary and conceptual Stone Age (Checkland and Holwell, 1998: xii). So there is enough in the book to spark off a number of reflections.

4

Chester Myrvin F.

Formal Methods and the Scientific Approach to Software Development

Proponents of Formal Methods for the development of software make strong claims for the correctness of its products. This paper challenges those claims from the standpoint of the modern philosophy of science and the scientific approach to software development previously expounded by the author.

5

McIntosh Steve.B.

Beyond Components: a flexible approach to information systems design

Component based development is a popular approach to constructing information systems, and has been used by numerous vendors such as SAP/R3, Oracle (Cartridges) and others. However, the claimed benefits of components have not come to fruition, and unless component granularity is small, and generally, unless components come from the same vendor, interoperability is tedious at best. Current software components are also dependent on known environments and must bind to components of known types. Such needs are hard to sustain when business requirements change, or when new requirements are identified, often leading to major changes in the information system implementing a business process. Problems with object-centric component design, based on UML, are outlined, and a methodology based on Soft Systems Modelling is presented. The approach involves three steps in translating buisness need to adaptive components with behaviour. A Java prototype is used to demonstrate the approach.

7

Feng Li

Barriers to Virtual Teams

Electronic networking is fuelling the rise of a new organisational form, often called the virtual organisations. The virtual team is a core component of such organisations, which can offer a wide range of potential benefits to both the organisations and individuals involved. However, for virtual teams to work effectively, many difficult technical and other barriers have to be overcome. Using recent empirical evidence gathered from a series of case studies in different sectors, this paper systematically examines the main barriers to effective team-working over space and time. One main conclusion from this research is that some of the most difficult barriers to virtual team working have been derived from the misconception that ‘geography will be eliminated by information and communications technologies (ICTs)’. To overcome these barriers, the new geography of the information economy must be fully appreciated. Several new themes for further research are also highlighted.

8

Bandula Jayatilaka

IS Success: an organisational Learning Perspective

Several definitions of IS success can be seen in IS research literature. Moreover, from the practitioner aspect IS success plays an important role. Organizational learning provides ability for an organization to survive and be successful in today’s changing conditions. This paper investigates, using case research method, the success of IS from the perspective of Organizational learning. Use of IS in two firms were examined. During the research conducted, it was found the use of IS to facilitate Organization Learning properly could contribute to IS success as well.

9

Philippe Aniorté

Turning non-cooperative applications into cooperative ones by adding dynamics to the information system

Because we want our method to be operational, we propose to use a set of tools based on the well known concept of ECA (Event-Condition-Action) rules, inheritated of the Active DataBase (ADB) domain, but extended to cooperative and distributed applications. They are used to automatically create missing information and to manage dynamics of the workgroups.

10

Aligning e-Commerce with Business Strategy: the case of the Bank of Scotland

To be competitive in Internet trade, the traditional organisation must leverage its own, existing primary competencies through a virtual function which does not hold the inherent disadvantages of a physical structure.

11

Grzeszczyk Tadeusz Adam

Rough Sales Forecasting System

In this paper the author presents a new concept of accomplishment of intelligent sales forecasting system. According to the author’s idea the system employs widely used Artificial Neural Network (ANN) as well as not so commonly used network known as Rough Neural Network (RNN). The latter exist due to more and more popular rough set theory. This theory is a new mathematical tool to deal with vagueness and uncertainty. The author claims, that the use of the rough set theory for the analysis of data provides sometimes much better results from those achieved in case of fuzzy set theory. The proposed forecasting system can consider the quantitative factors as well as the non-quantitative factors. In this paper a new concept for such systems is introduced namely: Rough Sales Forecasting System (RSFS). The RSFS presented below consists of the following parts: (1) database, (2) ANN, (3) RNN and (4) integration ANN. This system makes the use of time effect. The initial analyses and experiments indicate that the proposed approach to sales forecasting provides minor error in predicting than conventional statistical methods and single ANN. RSFS seems also to be better from the system through integration of ANN and Fuzzy Neural Network (FNN).

12

Jackson Fiona

A framework of intent for re-engineering the medical profession

The study concluded that process improvement would not deliver all of the anticipated benefits without process replacement. Late 1990’s thinking on process re-engineering was examined to establish the viability of this. However, the definition of re-engineering required a broadening of system boundaries to the organisational limits since the cultural concerns were by no means local. The clinical versus administrative friction needed lubrication or resolution that could only be carried out at health service level and beyond.

15

Sutherland Frances

Marketing Information Systems

The importance of customer relationships as the key to future prosperity and even survival is currently being stressed by many businesses. In order to build and maintain these relationships, the use of IT by the marketing function is growing rapidly. The study reported here sought to identify the factors that determine the successful development and adoption of marketing IT applications and to identify if any of these factors are unique to this organisational activity. Interviews were undertaken with staff in a range of organisations with experience in developing marketing information systems. Fifteen success factors were identified of which six had not been identified in previous studies of IT developments in other functional areas. These novel success factors are discussed.

16

Calero Coral

Formalisation of Metrics for Conceptual Data Models

Quality is gaining importance in Information Systems. However, quality in information system design has been a neglected area. Conceptual data models determine what information can be represented by an information system, so that the quality of the model is crucial. Some frameworks addressing conceptual data modelling quality have been recently published, but only a few metrics have been proposed. Metrics for conceptual data models must be defined on a rigorous scientific basis. In this work we put forward some metrics for assessing conceptual data models, and we evaluate them in a well-known formal measurement framework.

17

Genero Marcela

Metrics for Relational Database Maintainability

Software measurement is widely recognised as an effective means to understand, control, predict and improve software development and maintenance projects. In the last decades a huge amount of software metrics has been proposed, but they focused primarly on programs. Metrics for databases have been neglected, mainly because databases have developed a secondary role in Information Systems (IS) infrastructure until a few years ago. But nowadays, databases are the core of IS, influencing considerably their maintenance. Maintainability is achieved by three factors: understandability, modifiability and testability, which in turn are influenced by complexity. This paper proposes different metrics for measuring relational database complexity. These measures are characterised using the measurement theory, particularly the formal framework put forward by Zuse [37]. Some empirical experiments were carried out in order to validate the proposed metrics.

18

Butler Tom

Beyond Simple Causal Models: Capturing the Context and Process of User Participation

Over thirty years of empirical research on the phenomenon of user participation has failed to provide a consistent set of findings on the causal relationships that are assumed to exist between user participation and the successful development of information systems. With the information systems (IS) research agenda in a state of constant flux, and the emergence of an abundance of 'fashionable' topics for study, there is a danger that some of the IS field's more enduring research questions will be ignored and go unanswered. Providing an unequivocal answer to the question of how best to view user participation and its impact on the process and product of systems development is one such challenge. This paper conducts a comprehensive overview of previous research in order to propose an integrative model of the phenomenon that is intended to act as both a stimulus and a guide for future research in the area.

19

Huang G Q

Distributed and Synchronized Process Planning on the Web

This paper is concerned with a web-based system to provide process-planning services on the Internet. The clients can visit the web site through the standard web browser to download related facilities dynamically and retrieve process planning knowledge from remote database with the help of special application servers. These facilities are distributed in various application servers, mainly including feature editor, feature based part description, process planning, NC programming, etc. The clients using various facilities can collaborate with each other with the system. The effects of their activities are sent to all working team members synchronously. A simple assistant facility is also provided to resolve various ideas among team members based on an action-based methodology.

20

Benson S.

An Effective Framework for Policy and Infrastructure Issues for E-Commerce: Implications for Business and University Education and Research

The growth in electronic commerce has led a number of countries to develop national level plans and statements on electronic commerce or the information economy. The evaluation of these plans is difficult. An evaluation framework taken from the economics field is used to assess the value and the emphases of these plans. The factors considered are efficiency, justice, growth and stability. A revised model for evaluating electronic commerce/information economy policies is presented and discussed. This takes into account the significance of economic globalisation, cultural and linguistic concerns and security issues. Three national plans are evaluated to determine relevant factors for inclusion in such a framework. The policies are then compared and the implications for businesses, university educators and researchers are discussed. Companies should expect the trend of globalisation to continue and therefore they should attempt to re-position themselves to take advantage of new markets and new ways of doing business via the Web. Universities must position themselves for the improvements in telecommunications infrastructures by developing on-line multi-media courses and making sure all students are equipped with skills for the information economy. Researchers must start to develop links with industry since the funding for future research will inevitable come from the private sector if the guiding principles of these plans are taken seriously.

21

Gay Virginia

Using the Case Method in Teaching Information Systems to Undergraduates

This paper studies the work of the Information Systems group of the University of Surrey in introducing the case method into a final year undergraduate module in Information Strategies. It considers the purposes of the case method, explaining how these have been integrated into the module and assessing their effects upon learning. The paper ends by reflecting upon the conclusions drawn from this experience.

22

Hutchinson W.

Terrorism on the Web

The aim of the paper is to show the way in which the Internet is being used by terrorist/groups for their own purposes. The paper will show the current usage of the Internet for their aims and also highlight how these groups are developing their capabilities. The paper will highlight new criteria that have been developed by the author, they can be used to define the level of these groups. The paper will also show at what point organisations may find themselves at more risk of becoming targets for future Internet attacks.

23

Wainwright David

The research outlined in this paper demonstrates why many organisations are failing to successfully implement integrated information systems. The first section takes an historical perspective which critically examines the major contributors to the integrated systems rhetoric and indicates where academic research has been missing. It then considers the reality today by analysing a case study of an UK Automotive Industry Supplier which purchased an ERP system to handle its Finance and Supply Chain and the difficulties it encountered.

24

McBride Neil

hermeneutics of strategic information systems planning

This paper explores the mainstream assumptions which support current thinking on strategic information systems planning (SISP). A critical analysis of the classical approach to SISP leads to the adoption of a perspective which is noted to be inadequate for contemporary organisations subject to continuous change - out of tune out of time. Alternative schools of thought from the strategic management literature are outlined and their relevance to SISP is examined. A more valid approach to SISP is argued to represent the processes whereby the ‘soft complexity’ of the organisation is considered. A case study analysis is undertaken in a large insurance company which attempts to transpose these concepts to reflect perceived awareness of SISP in context. The study suggests deficiencies in relation to the theoretical underpinning for contemporary SISP which is believed to have a significant impact upon commonly reported empirical findings.

25

Dias de Figueiredo Antonio

Interaction in Organisations: a missing element in information systems planning

Current approaches to information systems planning tend to concentrate on the definition of data/process or object/activity models that almost ignore the multiple interactions taking place between the actors inside and across organizations. To take this increasingly important aspect of information systems into account, we present a method to model interactions in organizations and their environment. We propose an open classification scheme based on the identification of key parameters and also show how it can be used both to guide design options and to lead to the most convenient choice of technologies for implementation.

26

Hlupic Vlatka

Improving the Success of Business Process Change: The REBUS Strategy

In order to respond to competitive pressures, many organisations undertake Business Process Re-engineering (BPR). BPR is a change management concept that could result in improved efficiency, cost reduction and improved customer service. Despite potential benefits, there are high risks associated with radical changes of business processes and the failure rate of BPR projects is reported to be as high as 70%. The Centre for Re-engineering Business Processes (REBUS) was established at Brunel University to provide a multidisciplinary environment for research into BPR, and factors that contribute to its success and failure. This paper describes the REBUS approach to research concerning the success of business process re-engineering projects, and presents an example of the business process modelling and some other projects carried out by members of the Centre .

28

Hobbs Mike

An Agent-Based Information System for the NHS Electronic Health Record

Agent-based technologies have been presented as the next big thing in software development [5]. However, despite the potential advantages there are few large information systems that rely on intelligent software agents to provide the core functionality [10]. This paper evaluates the potential for an agent-based information system to implement the Electronic Health Record (EHR) proposed by the Department of Health [1]. The EHR system is presented both as a suitable application to demonstrate the potential for intelligent agents, and as a system that is unlikely to be successful using conventional approaches. The main issues for the implementation of an EHR are discussed and linked to necessary features of an agent-based information system.

29

Kelly Jacquie

Information Systems Design: enabling students to be more creative

This paper is a synopsis of a DfEE funded project: ‘Enabling Students to be more Creative in Fashion and Systems Design’. In this paper I discuss creativity, its relevance to information systems design and possible ways in which creativity may be enabled during systems design teaching. The views of some industrialists, lecturers and students will be presented together with practical ideas used during the study. Recommendations for further work are presented.

33

Bergvall-Kåreborn Birgitta

Using the Concept Qualifying Function as a Conceptual Tool for Modelling – A case Study

In this paper I explore potential benefits with using the concept qualifying function as a tool for systems design, both in the analysis and the modelling phase. The concept originates from the Philosophy of the Cosmonomic idea and refers to the function or character that guides and directs the internal structure of an entity or activity. This means that if the qualifying function for an entity or activity changes, its structure as a whole will change as well. Due to this the concept and its related theory can help people to view situations from new and different perspectives and to explore the consequences of different views. It can provide a common base for the design around which accommodation more easily can be reached, and from where further discussions can be continued. Finally, it has the potential to point at fundamental differences of opinion between participants or stakeholders.

35

Taylor W Andrew

Information Systems Success and Effectiveness: under the microscope one more time

The IS success/effectiveness model introduced by DeLone and McLean (1992) gained wide prominence and was to a large extent considered to be the base model for a large amount of the subsequent information systems’ effectiveness/success research. This paper will reevaluate the path of development of the DeLone and McLean model.

37

Estay-Niculcar Christian A.

the social construction of information systems in projects

The importance of the information systems in the area of businesses is recognized widely. This statement has led to worry by the use as well as for the development of the information systems. However, in terms of a project, converge in it two processes of construction of an information system, one technical and another social. Therefore, the study and understanding of these processes results from great importance for the investments and expectations of the business. So, in this paper we propose the structure of activities involved in the social construction of an information system, based in the literature on diffusion of technology and, a perspective of projects from the Theory of the Project. This is the missing structure ('la estructura ausente') in projects. At the end of the work are commented some ideas about the work realized.

38

Gouveia Feliz Ribeiro

A design for a Group Memory System using Ontologies

Organisations are increasingly recognising the importance of managing what they consider their most valuable asset: Knowledge. Our work is a contribution towards that end, proposing a system for representing, recording, using, retrieving, and managing knowledge. This paper begins by briefly outlining the concept of an Organisational Memory. It will then discuss the high-level conceptual taxonomy that could be used for the design of an Organisational Memory System based on a form of knowledge representation used in Artificial Intelligence: Ontologies. The paper will then discuss a specific implementation of an Organisational Memory System: a Group Memory System using Design Rationale Systems and Case-Based Reasoning. Examples to illustrate the application of such a Group Memory System in a real organisational setting are provided.

39

Selby William

An Interdisciplinary study of information systems: Christopher Alexander and IS Failure.

This paper provides an example of how insights into the field of IS can be gained by looking at it from the perspective of other academic disciplines. Based on the idea that physical and virtual office spaces exist to serve parallel organisational requirements, it is argued that designers of information systems (IS) should be able to learn from the experience of architects in order to improve their methods and redefine their objectives. Firstly, the work of Christopher Alexander is reviewed to show how his work on architectural patterns has been of value to the designers object-oriented systems. Secondly, similarities in the literature between notions of failure in architecture and IS design are identified. These are then examined through interviews with practitioners to establish the relevance of the approach. Finally, the area that Alexander described as ‘the quality without a name’ is highlighted as a topic for further research.

40

Bowers David S.

Database schema improvement techniques for CASE tools

Much interest has been directed to the adoption of CASE technologies and to the extent to which benefits are realised. One factor that may impede reliance on CASE is that the quality of output is dependent entirely on the quality of input: problems in the former may well be translated into errors in the latter. Input problems may derive from user-centric perspectives that tolerate duplication of information; the duplication may then result, for example, in redundancy within a database schema. This paper describes a prototype "intelligent" CASE tool which automates the process of identifying and eliminating, by means of dialogue with the user, implicit redundancies in an input Entity Relationship diagram, and then generating a fully normalised minimal relational schema. It is proposed that similar techniques could be applied also to other graphical modelling approaches wherein user-centred perspectives might introduce modelling redundancies.

41

Stowell Frank

Interpretivist Discovery for Information System Design

Discovering requirements for information system (IS) design is fraught with difficulty. In this paper we suggest applying systems ideas to enable a practical interpretivist approach for IS design. Current engineering processes are driven by the pressure to provide a technical solution to a situation. The challenge is to develop methods that do not intrude upon the development of a design. We suggest that by engaging clients in a process of interpretivist inquiry and by the application of interpretivist modelling methods, IS requirements can be discovered and established. A record of defined elements of the inquiry is made throughout, to facilitate the authenticity of the learning to be demonstrated to those implicated by the inquiry. The mnemonic PEARL, made up from the elements of Participants, Engagement, Authority, Relationships and Learning, is offered as an aide memoir to the IS practitioner in making this record. This paper is also intended as a ‘declaration in advance’ of an Action Research approach to a field study.

42

Patel Dilip

Generic Reusable Business Object Modelling for Strategic Information Systems Development

This paper outlines a process for building business models utilising the Generic Reusable Business Object Modelling (GRBOM) framework. A GRBOM framework is a five dimensional framework with at its heart the core business model. The five dimensions are genericity, reuse, change, patterns and business object modelling. A GRBOM is a conceptual model which accurately specifies the business knowledge in the form of an object-oriented model. It captures the core business processes and business objects of a particular domain within an industry, independent of any application development. A GRBOM can be reused in multiple projects either within the same organisation that built the model or by other organisations within different industrial sectors. It utilises some general systems theory concepts in capturing the appropriate generic business knowledge and uses the object-oriented modelling constructs to represent that knowledge in a form that can be understood by both the business and information systems people within an organisation so that strategic information systems can be developed.

44

Mann Joan

The Dynamics of Runaway Information Systems Development Projects:
Two Taxonomies of Escalated Projects

Many researchers have investigated the role of escalation behavior in information systems development projects but none have explicitly attempted to develop a taxonomy of escalated projects. This paper reports on some exploratory qualitative research that resulted in two taxonomies. One taxonomy which classifies projects based on the degree of escalation and the other that classifies projects using basic scenarios. Both taxonomies are useful to theory and practice because the projects they characterise can be considered as prototypes (projects with similar characteristics and behavior).

46

Standing Craig

Synergising The Personal-Corporate Knowledge Nexus

Drucker in his 1993 book Post Capitalist Society argues that we have passed through two discrete stages in the application of knowledge to wealth creation. The first of these was knowledge applied to "tools, processes and products" and played a substantial role in the rise of capitalism and the industrial revolution. The second stage is "knowledge applied to human work" i.e. the application of Taylor’s scientific management theories to production. It may be argued that we are entering a third stage of wealth creating knowledge, "knowledge applied to knowledge" in which productivity depends on the activity of specialist knowledge workers. It is apparent that businesses which are able to master organisational learning and knowledge management will enjoy sustainable competitive advantages over those which do not. As we move toward knowledge based economies, organisations are looking to their information systems practitioners and managers to provide the necessary support for knowledge related activities. Historically, technical support and data have been the driving forces in IS and informational activities are comparatively recent. We argue that most organisations are ill equipped to deal with knowledge due to the lack of a conceptual framework and as a consequence are unlikely to succeed in the new paradigm. The primary purpose of this paper is to compare several conceptual frameworks and present a useable framework of our own devising. We examine some Human Computer Interface issues and propose complementary, cognitively viable approaches which have the potential to synergise the Personal-Corporate knowledge nexus. Additionally, future research directions are advanced.

47

Cowell John

AM/OO Modelling: Achievements and Problems

This paper proposes AM/OO as a possible modelling method of deriving Object-Oriented (OO) models from Activity Models (AM), so that a client’s description of a named system may be transformed to a technical specification. This modelling method is described and illustrated by using an example based on a field study. However, due to the different nature of AM and OO, a complete transformation has not been achieved. The problems identified are also discussed in this paper.

52

Business Process Modelling of a Telephony System

This paper demonstrates how Business Process Modelling (BPM) was used to redesign a business process that exists within the Telephony System of a large multi-national company. The paper begins by providing a simple explanation of Business Process Re-engineering along with a brief introduction to the system in question. Following this a description of the case study is provided including details of how existing processes within the Telephony System were discovered. It continues with an outline of all the problems identified with the existing processes and details of which of these processes was selected for redesign. This is followed by a description of the business process model development phase which involves the selection of a methodology, data collection and analysis techniques, and, model testing and experimentation with alternative processes. The paper concludes by discussing recommendations made in light of the results obtained through experimentation with various business process models

53

Orange Graham

A Knowledge Management Meta-Model for Systems Development: A Cultural Perspective

Organisational learning and the effective management of corporate knowledge is becoming more important to businesses, as they attempt to remain competitive in increasingly competitive environments. Contemporary organisations rely heavily upon information and communications technology to enable their business through the use of information systems. Much of the development of these systems is performed using some form of structured methodology. Previous work (Page, 1998) has introduced a cultural meta-model as a way of linking hard and soft approaches to systems development; whereas work by Orange et al. (1999) has resulted in the COLA model for supporting knowledge management activities. This paper extends the work performed to date by introducing reflection and subsequent organisational learning (from COLA) into the systems development process using the cultural meta-model. It is envisaged that these new additions to the model will result in systems being developed that are accepted by, and acceptable to, both workers and management, whilst additionally enhancing organisational learning through enabling project participants to learn from both collective experience and the knowledge of individuals.

54

Stephens Robert

Authenticity and Ethics in IS: the limits of theoretical thinking

This paper examines the concept of authenticity in IS ethics from a position informed from work in progress on Bakhtin’s theory of dialogism. Three approaches to ethical resolution are described: technicism and reflective practice are found wanting with respect to authenticity, while answerability generally conflicts with IS agendas.

55

Moggridge Anne

Practice in IS Education: live projects for livelier students

This paper explains and reviews the way in which student projects are used at every stage of the Information Systems curriculum at the University of the West of England. While practical projects in the final year are used in a number of places, our work rests on the conviction that the best way to prepare for them is to require students to undertake work with clients in earlier years of their studies: the best way prepare for live projects is to undertake them. A stream of three modules, comprising an IS Practice theme, have been created with the aim of providing a learning curve in which the autonomy given to student teams increases with the academic level. Project work proceeds from being heavily supervised and tightly specified to a stage at which students are required to negotiate the required outputs with their clients and reflect on their activities with minimal tutorial intervention. The justification for using these modules, rather than other forms of gaining practical experience, as the essential preparation IS team projects is explained. The educational thinking behind the IS Practice theme is brought out: concentrating on the objective of stimulating reflective practice. Finally, some of the practicalities of implementing the stream of modules are discussed: issues to be reviewed include the acceptance of students who enter the 2nd year module directly without having taken the theme from the start and the way in which it is assessed.

56

Wood-Harper Trevor

The dissemination of Information Systems (IS) research is an important issue for IS practice. Researchers and practitioners are stakeholders in that process, and whilst the IS literature provides some insights into practitioners, it is only just beginning to describe the presence of researchers. In this paper, academic leaders of IS in UK universities talked to a practitioner looking-in on the academic world about their backgrounds, what motivates them and the criteria they use for a ‘good researcher in IS’. These findings are a small part of a project investigating the dissemination of IS research and will be of interest to researchers in that field, as well as providing insights into IS leaders for novice researchers in the area, academics in other disciplines and to practitioners of IS and business managers. The leaders emphasise their roles as influencers of change through engagement, and encourage the improvement of quality in IS research through the development of personal skills and interaction with research collaborators from other disciplines and from practice.

57

Patel Dilip

Modelling Issues in a Transport Information System

59

Parry Mark

Factors Affecting the Successful Outcome of Systems Development Projects

The factors that influence the ultimate level of success or failure of systems development projects have received considerable attention in the academic literature. However, despite this the numbers of systems development projects culminating in complete or partial failure remain stubbornly high. Consequently, the research, reported in this paper, adopts an innovative approach by reviewing the relationship between three major groups of variables, namely best practice, organisational impact and risk factors, with systems success. An analysis of the data, collected through a detailed survey instrument, identifies statistically signification relationships between both best practice and organisational impact with systems success. The findings are discussed, in the context of the literature, before their importance is reviewed in the concluding sections.

62

Doherty Neil

Managers’ Use of New Technologies: managing the barriers to the use of Videoconferencing and the Net

This paper considers the use of new technologies by managers at a global, knowledge based corporation. It assesses the use of the new technologies of the world wide web (incorporated into internet and intranet technologies by the company, and referred to as 'the net') and videoconferencing. Twenty two senior managers were interviewed and a questionnaire was used to gauge the importance they attributed to a range of media. The findings suggest that the group as a whole ranks electronic mail and person to person contact as the two major ways in which they perform a range of tasks. However, eleven of the managers are new technology users and taking this group separate to the non users suggests that there is an important role for the net in information broadcast activities. The paper notes the factors which are implicated by managers in the use of electronic mail and new technologies. However, the paper argues that these factors do not explain the use of new technologies. The paper offers an alternative explanation, based on the argument that the users differ from the non users, and begins to offer a way of looking at individual managers and their viewpoints as a way of explaining the use of new technologies.

63

Gilchrist Robert

The Effect of Studying an Information Systems Module on Students' Results in a Software Engineering Module

This paper reports a study designed to show the effect of having Systems Analysis and Design as a prior study for a newly validated module, Software Engineering for Computer Science, giving possible statistical models supporting students' performance. The implication of the result of this study is discussed with respect to software engineering courses in The UK, concluding with the analysis of students' performance by course.

64

Singh Gurmak

The Changing Role of IT departments in Large Organisations

The 1990s are being characterised by the rapid changes in the development of information systems. The drivers for these changes stem from the increasing knowledge base of the business managers, the availability of application software and the political dimensions of information systems. Recent studies show the IT expenditure is no longer rising, moreover, the IS staffing levels are being reduced. The role of IT department within large organisations is being questioned. This project reports on the perspectives held by IT managers and middle managers in the evolving new role of personnel in IT departments. The findings show that both IT managers and Business managers expect cultural and structural will take place within most large organisations.

65

Cragg Paul

Identifying IT Alignment in Small Firms

This study investigated the alignment of business strategy and IT strategy among 256 small UK manufacturing firms. Instruments were developed to measure business strategy and IT strategy in small firms and a method of measuring IT alignment or fit in small firms was explored. Factor analysis was used to test and refine the measures which identified different levels of IT alignment in small firms. Cluster analysis was used to identify a particular group of small firms which provided evidence of high IT alignment.

67

Plant Nick

Rural Regeneration and Community Information Systems in Context: "joined up thinking" in practice?

This paper concerns recent research on the potential of information and communications technologies to support rural regeneration. The findings of an in-depth qualitative investigation of five community enterprises in the county of Devon are summarised briefly, but a complementary analysis of the context of this project is given greater attention, due to the spotlight recently placed on "joined up thinking" in public policy. A number of gaps between public policy developments and grass roots practice are found by analysing this context, and it is concluded that steps to bridge these gaps may be a way to help ensure that "joined up thinking" will in future be practised in community information systems work.

69

Beeson Ian

Flow and Convergence in Information Systems Evaluation

70

Wood JRG

Knowledge Tools within a Knowledge Organisation: How to support communication in a multinational organisation.

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71

Lloyd-Williams Michael

IS failure, Evaluation and Organisational learning

The aims of the paper are as follows. First, to review the literature on IS evaluation particularly in the light of lessons from the areas of IS failure and organisational learning. Second, to describe a preliminary model which attempts to integrate approaches to IS evaluation into the life-cycle of the development process, incorporate the ideas of failure assessment into the evaluation process, and to incorporate a number of organisational feedback loops into the model with the aim of promoting organisational learning. Third, to describe plans for validating elements of this model in further empirical work.

73

Feng Junkang

The notion of ‘information bearing capacity’ of a conceptual data schema

A conceptual data schema specifies the structure of the ‘data basis’ for a formal information system. Data stored in the data basis bear information that the information system provides. Thus the schema ultimately determines the capacity of the information system’s of providing information. How this is achieved and more importantly how this capacity can be examined and captured are of a great importance and interest. It would seem that the literature has not provided sufficient knowledge on this issue. We will propose in this paper a notion of ‘information bearing capacity’ of a conceptual data schema and give a systematic way for analyzing such a capacity of a data schema in the Entity-Relationship model. The foundation for such a treatment is Mingers’ framework (1995) and Dretske’s theory (1981), and semiotics (Stamper 1997, Andersen 1997). The result seems insightful and encouraging.

74

Hussain Zahid

Metaphorical Assumptions Of Stakeholders Involved In Constructing IS Requirements

This paper highlights the use of metaphors (Morgan 1997) in revealing the process of constructing information systems requirements in three National Health Service (NHS) hospitals. Our research goals are, firstly, to apply approach(es) concerning social behaviour relevant to IS to seek to explain the factors which, in these hospitals, shape the process involved in obtaining the IS requirements. We anticipate that, by focusing more on the social (rather than the technological) nature of this process we will generate proposals for methodologies which are better suited to the needs of IS users. The aim is to develop theory to understand the social aspects of the requirements construction process. The primary objective of this research is to explain the assumptions held in the minds of those responsible for constructing IS requirements through using metaphors. Our ultimate aim is to refine and generate relevant theory through the use of the chosen theoretical approaches.

76

Paul Ray J.

Simulation Modelling as an Informative Tool in Healthcare Management Decision-Making

This paper suggests that simulation modelling is beneficial as an informative decision support technique, and that it can usefully serve as a means for decision-makers to better understand problems. It is argued that simulation should not be regarded merely as a tool for deriving solutions to certain problems but instead is better suited for understanding the problem and enhancing debate between those involved in the decision-making process. Simulation has been applied in the example from the healthcare sector described here, where modelling a randomised clinical trial for adjuvant breast cancer has been used to facilitate debate between the problem owners. This paper also demonstrates the usefulness of combining different software in order to provide a comprehensive tailor-made package (ABCSim) for this task.

78

Collins Janet

Preparing for the Millennium: A Study of Public Sector Organisations

This paper presents the results obtained to date from a longitudinal study of the actions taken to overcome the Y2K problem by three public sector organisations. The paper reports on how the organisations approached the problem in terms of the project set-up, awareness of the problem, creating inventories of equipment/systems, risk analysis, testing, fixing problems, compliance and contingency planning. Problems encountered are discussed along with their solutions, where they exist. The study includes a comparison of the strategies employed by each organisation in their preparations for the millennium, and the progress made against their original time frames.

80

Nicholson Isobel A.

A Longitudinal Study of Software Developers' Views about How to Talk with Stakeholders

What do software developers know about how to talk to stakeholders? We compare results of two studies a decade apart. We found developers' attitudes and knowledge had improved significantly over the last decade. They were interested in using DSDM standards for JAD (Joint Application Design). Ordinary organisations may not pay for everything that the DSDM standards require.

82

Galal Galal H

Grounding Systems Requirements

In this paper we discuss the issues that surround the engineering of complex information systems requirements, and how these issues are characterised by the predominance of qualitative data. We advocate the view that a comprehensive approach to requirements engineering needs to have at its centre a sound method for handling qualitative data, and reaching requirements-oriented formulations from them. This paper outlines an approach that relies on rigorous qualitative data analysis using the Grounded Theory method to support the analysis and incremental determination of requirements. The method is only presented in outline, but we spell out why we believe it presents a valuable addition to the repertoire of the techniques for engineering the requirements of complex information systems.

84

Tovstiga George

Information systems have been recognised as playing a role in the process of making this tacit knowledge more explicit, in its storage and later accessibility. Information systems have a role in generating new knowledge by supporting the creative and problem solving processes. Additionally, information systems knowledge will be a key competence that will be embedded into new products and services, into processes for production and delivery. Making these knowledge-driven competencies or capabilities more recognisable and establishing their positioning in relation to the strategic thrust of the business is essential if organisations are to be in a position to leverage their internal assets for long term benefit. Without this strategic understanding, many organisations will fail to develop their information systems strategy to support the long-term needs of the business. In this paper the authors develop a methodology for utilising a strategic capabilities positioning matrix for integrating the information systems opportunities and needs into the strategic direction of the organisation thus forming the basis for developing the information systems strategy.

85

Kiddle Laurence

This paper examines the efficacy of using the concept of Critical Success Factors (CSF) as a pseudo measure information systems (IS) success/failure. In order to do this it starts from the position of discussing IS success/failure itself, and the inherent difficulties. Thereafter, using a set of generic CSFs it investigates a specific telecommunications case and identifies that what might be a short-term 'success', looks also likely to be a longer term 'failure'. While not the answer to IS failure questions, one potential outcome might be to extend the business analysis to include remedial action to deal with the findings.

86

Leong Ang Cheng

Systematic Derivation of IDEF1x Modeils from IDEF0 MODELS

In the design of manufacturing systems, models are typically created from two views among others: function and information. Two modelling methods from the IDEF (ICAM DEFinition Language) family have been extensively used for these purposes. They are IDEF0 and IDEF1x. The former is used to describe what a system must do to achieve planned business objectives, while the latter what the system needs to know to do what it must do. In practice, the two models are often created independently using separate CASE tools. In order to ensure that the IDEF1x model does describe exactly what the system needs to know, consistency checking is carried out to ensure compatibility between the two models. This is unproductive. As far as the authors know, no CASE tools that are available on the market are able to support integrated IDEF0 and IDEF1x modelling. Attempts by the users to create connections often risk introducing considerable maintenance overhead. This paper proposes an integrated approach to IDEF0 and IDEF1x modelling, and describes a multi-view CASE tool that has been developed to support the approach.

89

Baldwin Lynne P

Factors Impacting The Selection Of IT/IS Evaluation Methods

In this paper we further the discussion on the factors that complicate IT/IS investment decision making by adding a third dimension to the model first suggested by Khalifa et. al. 1999. The third dimension is intended to give the model the ability to partially quantify the effects of these factors. The paper concludes that a large portion of the factors that complicate IT/IS investment decision might cause the system to be deployed but suffer from serious defect, performance problems, or lack sufficient functuality. Also, they might cause the system might to be implemented but not used.

90

Beynon-Davies Paul

A survey of SSADM usage: the case for teaching design techniques

A survey of how software development practitioners analysed and designed information systems revealed how they used information system design methods, especially SSADM. The results revealed how practitioners selected techniques from among the wide range available. Respondents were also asked to rate the usefulness of each technique. Interestingly, some widely-used techniques were found to be of only moderate usefulness; other infrequently-used techniques were considered to be quite useful. The paper makes recommendations to practitioners, educators and the designers of SSADM on how to improve the use of design methods.

91

Stocking Sue

Intra-Vendor System Migration in a Publicly Funded Organization

As organizations evaluate and implement changes to their information systems infrastructure, change and migration have become an increasing part of "business as usual" for many organizations. This paper describes a study of one such instance of change; the migration from one information system to another within a publicly funded organization. The Objectives of the study were threefold; to consider the social aspects of system migration, to explore the relationship between expectations and results during the migration process; to determine whether being the first clients to migrate to a newly developed system had its own special set of problems or advantages. Results of the study are presented, along with a series of conclusions that may be used to alert future migration managers of areas likely to be problematic. The conclusions also cover aspects and procedures that were seen to work well in this particular case.

92

Shah Mahmood Hussain

Evaluating ERP Systems: a framework for decision making

93

Metioxitis Kostas

Towards the integrated monitoring and evaluation system IMES

This paper aims to present the concept and the architecture of the Integrated Monitoring & Evaluation System IMES. IMES was developed for the needs of the European Commission (DG1A) and its main objective was to improve the Management Reporting on Tacis (Technical Assistance Programme) progress and results, by extracting relevant information on Technical Assistance projects’ performance from the monitoring and evaluation reports and by producing overall statistics at NIS (New Independent States) level.

95

Dowsland William

This paper presents the results of a survey of SMEs in South West Wales with respect to their attitudes towards e-commerce. We argue that, given the nature of current business practice in the region, its SMEs should be leading the field in investing in the new opportunities associated with online trading. We show, however, that despite a high level of interest and awareness of the potential of e-commerce, take-up is low as compared with the UK average. We discuss the possible reasons for the reticence shown by the SMEs surveyed.

Short Papers

ID

Author(s)

Paper Title

Abstract

34

Blackwell Geoff

(or - A Paulean conversion: It seemed like the answer)

In this paper a new doctoral student investigates the methodological approach appropriate to his research into the difficulties encountered in SME's where they fail to optimise their information systems. The initial decision to adopt a grounded theory approach is developed and having surfaced the schism between Glaser and Strauss and the later work of Strauss with Corbin, the author decides to pursue interpretive analysis in the style of grounded theory.

48

Casimir Rommert J.

A logistic View of Data Warehousing

This paper shows how the use of a data warehouse can be compared to other means of data storage by using concepts from production control, such as make-to-order and make-to-stock. It is argued that the advantage of using a physically separate instead of a virtal data warehouse stems from increasing software complexity rather than technical progress.

49

Maritz Mark

A Model to Support South African University Faculty in their use of the Internet

Considerable time and money is spent on providing support to faculty members and students at a university. Faculty are often not consulted as to their requirements and needs leading to much frustration. This paper seeks to briefly outline the difference between a centralised (local), and decentralised (distributed) model of IT support and the challenges facing IT support departments. In addition, some strategies that can improve the support situation, and specific faculty support needs are discussed.

61

Dingley Sharon

Meta-framework for multiple technique component-based development

The design, development and implementation of information systems, which meet the demands of organisations, remains a significant challenge to information systems researchers and practitioners. The complexity of the challenge increases with the pressure to incorporate advancements in systems thinking and technology in the design process. This paper reports on on-going work towards the development of a meta-framework for multiple technique component-based development of information systems. It is based upon a cellular analogy of components incorporating the principles of rapid application development and reuse. The paper discusses the separation of components from object-based development and proposes a neutral conceptual foundation on which to base further work in component-based design.

75

Dingley Sharon

Experience with major UK organisations adopting e-business has exposed a number of critical issues that need to be addressed before such a profound change in how the business works can be accommodated. This paper reviews two cases of large organisations that have made a strategic commitment to e-business as a primary business delivery mechanism. The first organisation is a major motor car manufacturer based in the West Midlands and the second a major soft drinks manufacturer based in the southeast. The analysis of the two case studies focuses upon the way in which the organisations addressed four challenges in establishing the skill sets required for engaging in e-business. These challenges reflect the needs for skills to deliver immediacy, accuracy, trust and deep structural penetration to the domain of e-business. The results of the studies are discussed within the context of literature from the areas of human resource management and e-business system implementation. The paper concludes by presenting a preliminary framework for viewing skills management as a critical issue in implementing e-business.

77

Wilson David W.

Maturity Models and Information Systems: from s-Curves to e-Commerce

81

Makewita Sumedha M.

Potential Knowledge Vs Realised Knowledge: a theory for the effectiveness of knowledge networks

83

Rawlings Peter

Information systems and the changing nature of international zoological field research

Internationalization of scientific research is drawing attention to regional and global issues that demand the use of small scale mapping techniques like digital satellite imagery matched by ground-based observations. Awareness of modern software and use of integrated applications has brought valuable instruments onto the desks of researchers from many disciplines, even biologists. Combining the use of these applications with event-driven programming environments may allow academic research to move out its relatively narrow domain onto the desktops of governments and appropriate regional authorities.

94

Wilson Melanie

Rescuing reality in information systems research

The aim of this paper is to establish the validity of critical realism as an appropriate and consistent methodology for reconciling interpretivism with a scientific method. Any research enterprise that entails both description and explanation cannot help but encounter the major divide in social science studies usually formulated as realism versus relativism. By means of a brief engagement with the philosophical debates pertaining to the information systems and social studies of technology literature, we aim to provide a case for challenging the assumed incompatibility of social constructivism with materialist explanations for phenomena observed. Using gender as an illustration, we show that it is not only possible but desirable, to weave between the relativism of social constructionist method and the realism of materialist explication to help understand why things are the way they are, and not otherwise. The alternative philosophy and methodology of Critical Realism is presented as a means by which this objective may be achieved.

Discussion Papers

ID

Author(s)

Paper Title

Abstract

2

Selamat Mohamad Hisyam

A discussion of the relationship of formal and informal information systems with reference to accounting

This paper argues that to enrich our understanding of the relationship between IT and organisations from the perspective of accounting, we should pay as much attention to the process of its adoption as we do to its impacts. Doing this however requires us to expand our notion of what constitutes process to include the full range of activities that accompany information processing and utilisation. This includes the informal means of information processing, particularly in strategic planning and decision making. These informal means of information processing become a complement in appraising information that is provided by a formal means of information processing. They can materially influence both the conduct of implementation and adjustment and the eventual impact of the IT adoption.

6

Keith Patching

The IT Sterotype and its Organisational Implications

This paper is about the behaviour of senior IT people, and how they differ from other business people. It describes the ‘stereoptypical’ IT person as seen through the eyes of many senior business interviewees. The consequences of the stereotype are examined in relation to the reputation, image and impact of the IT function.

13

Hughes Robert T.

A case study is presented that explores the characteristics of an example of dispersed co-operative working which has increasingly employed ICT. Conventional project management principles by themselves are difficult to apply effectively in such an environment and complementary measures, based on the introduction of protocols, are suggested to reduce some of the difficulties inherent in dispersed co-operative working.

14

Beynon-Davies Paul

Trust and Electronic Commerce

In this paper we discuss the issue of trust and its relationship to the take-up of electronic commerce. We develop a model of trusted relationships in this domain, based on recent literature from the social science literature, and use it to explain some of the contemporary difficulties experienced in this area. This is conducted particularly in terms of a close analysis of the differences between telephone and internet shopping.

31

Macredie Robert

Software Life Cycle Based Interorganisational Systems Development Projects

In this paper the recent phenomena of interorganisational systems development is compared to information systems development particularly with regards to the underlying framework against which systems development methodologies are modeled at present. That is the software life cycle approach. It is argued here that the hard product oriented nature of the latter may make it inappropriate for the development of systems which a high social content such as interorganisational systems. In this paper we explore the experiences of a large multinational in the UK in delivering an online sales and marketing interorganisational system, with the aim of gaining a deeper understanding of the way in which we currently build them. This is seen by us as a necessary first step that may in turn inform future interorganisational systems development methodologies. It is expected that the results of the study will be presented at the conference.

32

Latham Ann

Matching Graduates with Organisational Needs

There is no one view of what constitutes Information Systems and there are conflicting views about the appropriate subject matter and boundaries of Information Systems. There is a need for Information Systems Education to balance the subject knowledge and the interpersonal skills necessary for graduates to enter the world of work. This paper will present findings on research that has been conducted to obtain the views of employers and recent graduates on the importance and relevance of key knowledge and skills in Information Systems Education.

36

McClelland Robert James

Campus Wide Information Systems: an integration development for higher education

This paper considers whether the strategic planning at Liverpool John Moores University has influenced the development and usefulness of a Campus Wide Information System (CWIS). Consideration is made of the management of two initiatives, the possibility of their integration, linked to action research studies, an institutional transformation process and by analysis of the planning processes involved.

45

Hlupic Vlatka

Identifying and Understanding the Human and Organisational Aspects that Affect the Teams Undertaking Business Process Engineering

Business Process Reengineering (BPR) is a change management approach that still attracts the attention of researchers. Research into the area has mostly examined issues such as finding an appropriate definition of the approach, the impact of IT or business process modelling. Theorists also began to emphasise some of the human and organisational aspects, however, without explaining why they were selected and the theory behind them. Teams are a crucial element of BPR and are one of the attributes leading to the failure of BPR. There has been substantially little written about the human and organisational aspects that have an impact on the teams undertaking BPR. This paper is an attempt to eliminate that gap by identifying certain human and organisational aspects that affect the development and/or performance of the teams undertaking BPR which in turn could lead to more successful teams. This objective will be fulfilled utilising a case study strategy.

58

Robinson Phil

The Impact of Organisational Issues on the Implementation of a Community Information System: A Case Study Approach

The appropriate treatment of human and organisational issues has long been recognised as playing an important role in the successful outcome of systems development projects. Unfortunately, to date there has been little detailed research to explore the treatment and importance of a wide range of specific human and organisational issues. This paper presents a progress report on a piece of work that is currently reviewing the treatment of organisational issues in the development of a community information system. Although the research project is far from complete, this paper presents a provisional analysis of some of the factors that have facilitated and inhibited the treatment of human and organisational issues. It is envisaged that the research will ultimately provide many important insights that will guide IT practitioners in the effective treatment of organisational issues.

60

On the Relationship of Structuration Theory to Interpretive Information Systems Research

Anthony Giddens’ social theorisation has formed a particular association with Geoff Walsham’s widely cited interpretive approach to conducting empirical IS research in an organisational setting. This paper critically evaluates this association by examining the way Gidden’s structuration theory has been presented in the UK IS literature. This evaluation serves to illustrate that there may be reasons to question the compatibility of structuration theory with Walsham’s interpretive research philosophy and method.

68

Korn J

Analysis of Information Systems

Based on previously given definition, the components of information as meaning, message carrier and medium, are described. The notion and role of information system is incorporated into a problem solving scheme. The scheme is intended as a means for constructing and delivering total, or a bundle of, information carried by a medium suitable for a receiver : the product for changing the mental state of a receiver. An example is used to show how the scheme operates and to demonstrate an application of linguistic modelling of a scenario for computing the uncertainty incurred in delivering information.

79

Greenwood Anthony

The decision making behaviour of small businesses acquiring computer systems.

The decision making behaviour of small businesses is investigated in order to assess the relevance of the "characteristics approach" to consumer demand. Use is made of a prior telephone questionnaire undertaken during the summer of 1998. Concerns are expressed about the measurability and objectivity of the characteristics mentioned by respondents leading to a call for a richer qualitative and quantitative investigation of decision making behaviour in small firms acquiring computer systems.

88

Beeson Ian

Modelling Multiple Software Processes in the Business Context

Research in software process modelling has been flourishing in the last two decades. In this position paper, we look very briefly at the different developments in software process modelling. Problems associated with the current approaches are identified. Arguments for a wider view of software process are presented.

Panels and Tutorials

ID

Author(s)

Panel/Tutorial Title

Abstract

P1

Brian Fitzgerald, Paul Beynon-Davies

Information Systems Development

Information systems development (ISD) has traditionally been seen to lie at the core of the discipline of information systems. In more recent times some concern has been expressed over the demotion of ISD to a lesser area of concern by IS academics. We define ISD very loosely here as that area concerned with the construction of information technology systems within organisations. The aim of this panel is to review the past, current position and possible future of of information systems development. Each panelist was given the specific task of considering this topic in terms of research, practise and teaching consonant with aims of UKAIS conference.

P2

Feliz Ribeiro Gouveia, Jennifer Jerrams-Smith

Content Management and Personalisation

The increasing challenge in design of advanced interactive hypertext systems such as closed corpus (e.g. multimedia courseware) and open corpus (e.g. WWW) is to enable the user to access and manipulate large heterogeneous digitised resource bases efficiently, effectively and comfortably. Research into content management, usability mining and personalisation models, ontologies, tools and techniques will crucially underpin much of the work to provide the 21st century personal and business computing requirements for knowledge discovery, access, manipulation , learning and management. Thus to cope with the massive rates of information exchange in the new digital economy, the emergent IS environment will need to be able to rely on efficient contextually-aware navigation, retrieval and transaction systems. This will have to be made available on both multicasted or on-demand media systems to serve a wide variety of social and business needs such as life-long e-learning, e-commerce and general e-foraging for leisure, pleasure, cultural interests etc. We outline the central issues in capturing and interpreting the roots of, and the routes to, user (dis)satisfaction, and briefly describe our research focus in integrating our computer-aided navigation system (CAIN) with our on-line usability evaluation system (PopEval_MB).

T1

Joseph Feller

8. Recommended Resources