Supporting the JAD Facilitator with the Nominal Group Technique

Abstract

Joint application development (JAD) was introduced in the late 1970s to solve many of the problems system users experienced with the conventional methods used in systems requirements determination (SRD) and has produced noteworthy improvements over these methods. However, a JAD session is conducted with freely interacting groups, which makes it susceptible to the problems that have curtailed the effectiveness of groups. JAD outcomes are also critically dependent on excellent facilitation for minimizing dysfunctional group behaviors. Many JAD efforts are not contemplated (and some fail) because such a person is often unavailable. The nominal group technique (NGT) was designed to reduce the impact of negative group dynamics. An integration of JAD and NGT is proposed here as a crutch to reduce the burden of the JAD facilitator in controlling group sessions during SRD. This approach, which was tested empirically in a laboratory experiment, appeared to outperform JAD alone in the areas tested and seemed to contribute to excellent group outcomes even without excellent facilitation.