Design Science Research Methodology Research Articles

What are the main drivers of Blockchain Adoption within Supply Chain? – an exploratory research

This paper aims to identify the main drivers for Blockchain adoption within Supply Chains, following the Design Science Research (DSR) methodology and focusing on defining, validating, and reducing a myriad of factors with the aid of experts on both fields. Based on the literature review, and through means of questionnaires, factors were rated and refuted according to the relevance given. Two rounds narrowed the results, and upon consensus nine drivers were identified fitting under two categories: Challenges and Incentives. Considering the results are based on a limited number of factors, and the impact of firm-level influences were disregarded, respondent’s perceptions could have slightly varied if the sample of participants differed. Overall, it provides academics with a theoretical framework combining existing literature into a set of drivers. Providing insights to vendors on how their reputation may influence clients’ adoption, whilst fulfilling a literature gap in the supply chain area.

Opening the Dynamic Capability Black Box: An Approach to Business Model Innovation Management in the Digital Era

The digital era is reshaping the competitive landscape, creating a more turbulent environment where digital technologies play a significant role in enabling innovative business models. Companies need to promote business model innovations, readapting their business models, and create new digital business models to thrive in this scenario. The literature emphasizes that dynamic capabilities are the main antecedent to business model innovation. However, the dynamic capabilities construct is poorly operationalized, lacking proper measurements that effectively translate them to practice, remaining a black box. This paper aims to further understand, operationalize and measure the distinctive dimensions of dynamic capabilities for business model innovation. To this end, we follow the design science research methodology, building a tool for dynamic capabilities evaluation through a systematic literature review. We then evaluate the tool based on a three-year, in-depth case study of a software company. Our findings show that the current business model has a central role in shaping dynamic capabilities for business model innovation. The proposed measures encompass activities and practices and business model structure, highlighting the relevance of the co-evolution between business model and dynamic capabilities. Thus, we propose creating what we call a “business model innovation engine” as a function that reshapes the business model to incorporate dynamic capabilities as part of the value creation architecture. We contribute to theory by better translating dynamic capabilities for business model innovation to observable (and measurable) organizational phenomena, linking it to the extant strategic management literature, and elucidating how to measure and guide the build-up of such capabilities. We also add to practice by developing a practical tool for management to use as a means to evaluate their current dynamic capabilities state, therefore guiding for informed strategic action.

Embedded vision device integration via OPC UA: Design and evaluation of a neural network-based monitoring system for Industry 4.0

Sensor application is a basis for digitized industrial value creation. However, for existing production and logistics systems, sensor retrofitting is accompanied by challenges, including plant heterogeneity and lack of standards. This work addresses this issue through the design, implementation and evaluation of an embedded vision high-bay shelf monitoring system of an Industry 4.0 demonstrator. Utilizing design science research methodologies, the artifact unites the concepts of computer vision, convolutional neural networks and OPC UA for widely applicable and cost-efficient retrofitting. Design principles derived from the artifact’s design and evaluation cycles can serve as abstracted guidelines for designing retrofit visual sensor systems.

DisBot: A Portuguese Disaster Support Dynamic Knowledge Chatbot

This paper presents DisBot, the first Portuguese speaking chatbot that uses social media retrieved knowledge to support citizens and first-responders in disaster scenarios, in order to improve community resilience and decision-making. It was developed and tested using Design Science Research Methodology (DSRM), being progressively matured with field specialists through several design and development iterations. DisBot uses a state-of-the-art Dual Intent Entity Transformer (DIET) architecture to classify user intents, and makes use of several dialogue policies for managing user conversations, as well as storing relevant information to be used in further dialogue turns. To generate responses, it uses real-world safety knowledge, and infers a dynamic knowledge graph that is dynamically updated in real-time by a disaster-related knowledge extraction tool, presented in previous works. Through its development iterations, DisBot has been validated by field specialists, who have considered it to be a valuable asset in disaster management.

Managing business model innovation: an innovative approach towards designing a digital ecosystem and multi-sided platform

PurposeThis study aims to increase understanding regarding the transformation of traditional business models, integrating digital technologies. The significance of digitisation within business models has increased dramatically in recent years. Because of this, new knowledge on how to transform traditional business models into digital business models in a systematic way is needed. Digital technologies, embedded in previously non-digital goods, force companies to rethink their business models.Design/methodology/approachA design science research methodology was chosen for this study. A literature review and semi-structured interviews served as the theoretical foundation to integrate behavioural science into the design science process. From the design science perspective, an artefact is introduced to provide an architectural framework to manage business model innovation in a systematic way. The artefact's application is demonstrated through a case study conducted at a real company and evaluated afterwards by means of structured interviews with experts.FindingsThe authors propose a highly useable and valuable conceptual framework for systematic business model innovation. However, one limitation of the research is that it was conducted among construction professionals in Germany, and so the result might not hold true for other firms or industry branches.Research limitations/implicationsThe research was conducted among construction professionals in Germany, and this acts as a limitation, as the result might not hold true for other firms or industry branches.Originality/valueThe purpose of this study is to provide managers with a framework for business model innovation, helping them systematically integrate digital technologies to create customer-added value. The proposed framework presents an innovative conceptual analysis of systematic business model innovation, which has not been addressed in prior studies.

A Design Guide for Usable Web APIs

Cloud computing trends such as Software as a Service (SaaS) enable providers to host complex applications over the Internet, making them available to external consumers through an Application Programming Interface (API). The success of a SaaS, and in some sense any distributed system, is greatly influenced by its API. Highly usable APIs improve the efficiency of the development process and its quality, ensuring that programmers continue to appreciate other aspects of the API while increasing their productivity. Different studies state that the design phase within the development process of an API is the most appropriate to address usability issues. Therefore, usability should be considered as an explicit criterion in the design of an API. In this paper, we propose a design guide for web APIs with an emphasis on usability, using the best practices of usable web APIs design. Our design guide is based on an adaptation of the design science research methodology (DSRM), and it is complemented with a systematic literature review and gray literature analysis concerning methods, techniques, and tools used to develop usable APIs.

Scalability of generative knowledge management systems: designing for individuals’ and institutions’ mutual benefit

PurposeIn further conceptualizing a novel generative knowledge management system (KM/KMS), this paper aims to focus on identifying and mitigating the risks related to its envisaged scaling from a prototype to an application with a rapidly growing user base.Design/methodology/approachIt follows up on prior publications using design science research (DSR) methodologies in compliance with theory effectiveness, a principle expecting system designs to be purposeful in terms of utility and communication. The KMS perspective taken prioritizes a decentralizing agenda benefiting knowledge workers while also aiming to foster a fruitful co-evolution with conventional organizational KM approaches.FindingsThe utilization and further extension of the CKDT and a “scalable innovation” heuristic are assisting the detecting of potential scaling risks related to the logics and logistics, generative interoperability, technological capacitating, knowledge dynamics and value chain which further validates the viability of the proposed KM concept and system.Research limitations/implicationsAlthough the prototype development is still in progress, the paper conforms to the DSR practice to report on early visions of technology impact on users, organizations and society but also reflects on expectations of viability, desirability and commitment, as well as the system’s prospect as a general-purpose-technology or disruptive innovation.Originality/valueIn addition to the novel KM-related perspectives, the paper’s practical emphasis on the scaling of more complex systems is rarely dealt with in the literature due to the respective projects’ often large-scale collaborative nature, broad methodological scope and diverse stakeholders’ interests. In this case, the task is eased as prior DSR outputs can be referred to.

An immersive performative architectural design tool with daylighting simulations: a building information modeling-based approach

PurposeIn performative architectural design, daylighting is a crucial design consideration; however, the evaluation of daylighting in the design process can be challenging. Immersive environments (IEs) can create a dynamic, multi-sensory, first-person view in computer-generated environments, and can improve designers' visual perception and awareness during performative design processes. This research addresses the need for interactive and integrated design tools for IEs toward better-performing architectural solutions in terms of daylighting illumination. In this context, building information modeling and performance simulations are identified as critical technologies to be integrated into performative architectural design.Design/methodology/approachThis research adopts a design science research (DSR) methodology involving an iterative process of development, validation and improvement of a novel and immersive tool, HoloArch, that supports design development during daylighting-informed design processes. HoloArch was implemented in a game engine during a spiral software development process. HoloArch allows users to interact with, visualize, modify and explore architectural models. The evaluation is performed in two workshops and a user study. A hybrid approach that combines qualitative and quantitative data collection was adopted for evaluation. Qualitative data analyses involve interviews, while quantitative data analyses involve both daylighting simulations and questionnaires (e.g. technology acceptance model (TAM), presence and system usability scale (SUS)).FindingsAccording to the questionnaire results, HoloArch had 92/100 for SUS, a mean value of 120.4 for presence questionnaire (PQ) and 9.4/10 for TAM. According to the simulation results, all participants improved the given building's daylighting performance using HoloArch. The interviews also indicated that HoloArch is an effective design tool in terms of augmented perception, continuous design processes, performative daylighting design and model interaction. However, challenges still remain regarding the complete integration of tools and simultaneous simulation visualization. The study concludes that IEs hold promising potentials where performative design actions at conceptual, spatial and architectural domains can take place interactively and simultaneously with immediate feedback.Originality/valueThe research integrates building information modeling (BIM), performative daylighting simulations and IEs in an interactive environment for the identification of potentials and limitations in performative architectural design. Different from existing immersive tools for architecture, HoloArch offers a continuous bidirectional workflow between BIM tools and IEs.

Digital Tourism Security System for Nepal

Nepal is a sensitive and disaster-prone country where safety and security risk are of high concern for travelers. Digital technologies can play a vital role in addressing safety and security issues in the country. This research work proposes a Digital tourism security system design for addressing the safety and security issues in tourism industry of Nepal. The study uses Design science research methodology to identify artifacts, interactions, information flow and dependencies between them which are then mapped with existing prevalent technology to provide design solutions. Data is obtained from interview of tourist and experts as a primary source and technical documents/draft, software documentations, surveys as secondary source. Generalized information model, Use cases model, Network architecture model, Layered taxonomy model and Digital tourism technology reference model are the outcomes of the study. The work is very important as it talks specifically about implementation and integration of digital technologies in tourism security governance at federal, provincial, municipal and rural level. The research supplements as a knowledge document for design and implementation of digital tourism security system in practice. As there is very less work on digital systems in tourism security of Nepal, this work is a pioneer and first of its kind.

Customer knowledge management and smart tourism destinations: a framework for the smart management of the tourist experience – SMARTUR

Purpose This paper aims to demonstrate how customer knowledge management (CKM) can assist destination management organizations (DMOs) in the smart management of the tourist experience to contribute to the creation of smart solutions and the promotion of smart tourism destinations (STDs). To accomplish it, a CKM conceptual framework aligned with smart tourism and composed of eight processes is developed to guide managers in this management. Design/methodology/approach This research adopts the design science research methodology and applies its steps. It was supported by a systematic integrative literature review on CKM models and frameworks and their main elements, as well as by semi-structured interviews with tourism specialists in the context of Santa Catarina, Brazil. Findings From the literature it appears that tourist experiences are customer knowledge essential to the improvement and innovation of tourism products and services, and that CKM, still little explored in this scenario, tends to contribute to the management of this crucial knowledge for smart tourism. The analyses and improvements to the structure developed by specialists show its applicability and contributions to the management of STD experiences. Originality/value This paper offers an original contribution to the integration of the theoretical constructs of CKM, tourist experience and STDs by showing how the CKM, from tourism experiences, technologies and social networks, can assist DMOs in the management of experiences and promotion of STDs.

Key Indicators for Linguistic Action Perspective in the Last Planner® System

Since 2001, a link has been established between the Last Planner® System (LPS) and Linguistic Action Perspective (LAP). However, to date, it has not been studied in sufficient depth. This research developed a system of indicators to measure and control the management of commitments, through the Design Science Research (DSR) methodology, and thus contribute to the development of the social dimension of sustainability that is often neglected in construction management research. The main contributions of this paper are a proposal of five main activities to apply the DSR method, a checklist to analyze the engagement of meeting participants, a notebook for last planners, delve into the variations that can occur to the basic movements of LAP, and the creation of a system of indicators hence updating the Percent Plan Complete (PPC) with a reliability indicator. The main limitation of this research is that the system was only validated in two South American countries that implemented LPS. In future studies, we propose to apply case studies in weekly planning meetings in other industries worldwide and to determine the recommended values to improve communication and achieve the proper implementation of LAP with LPS and without LPS.

Process Model with Quality Control for the Production of High Quality Linked Open Government Data

Governments worldwide have invested resources in publishing open data to promote new business and services and to promote transparency and accountability of public policies. However, due to different factors, such as different file formats and different information granularity, these data end up in informational silos, without having additional value besides what is contained in the data file itself. The linked data technology supports addressing this sort of problem, providing principles - based on Web standards - to connect distributed and heterogeneous data sources. Nevertheless, studies in the literature have shown that the perception of quality around open linked datasets is low, what impacts the consumption and reuse of these information by the society. In this work, we propose a model of process which embeds quality control activities (verification and validation) during the process. We adopted the Design Science Research (DSR) methodology to conceive and assess the method, using an illustrative case study. A quality assessment framework was applied and the case studys results were compared to others in the literature, showing an improvement in overall quality, through the selected metrics.

Blockchain Application to the Cancer Registry Database

Blockchain, since its 2008 conceptual inception, has largely been contextualized in crypto currencies. Today, blockchain technology has matured to a level that allows the exploration of its application to other and diverse domains, including the management of cancer registries. When collecting and handling data relating to cancer diagnosis and treatment as mandated by law in many municipalities, the process is both time-consuming and requires significant coordination among multiple levels of data collecting jurisdictions. This often leads to inconsistent data vis-à-vis the various levels of data storage. This paper calls for using a blockchain-based mechanism to alert the data users on possible inconsistencies prior to applying the collected data in cancer research. A system framework drawing on the design science research methodology is found to result in increased data quality so as to improve cancer research outcome accuracies.

Do you have confidence in how your rolling stock has been maintained? A blockchain-led knowledge-sharing platform for building trust between stakeholders

This study explores the potential of blockchain technology in enhancing trust among the stakeholders responsible for the maintenance of rolling stock. Although the technology has been widely successful in the financial sector, it is still novel in the maintenance field. Given the customized nature of maintenance processes, it is unclear if a suitable consensus protocol can be identified that can enhance trust among stakeholders. This problem is investigated through the lens of the Design Science Research Methodology. First, the theoretical background of blockchain technology and its role in enhancing trust are explained, followed by the analysis of a current case at a Railway company to test the proof of concept. A business network archive is developed for the maintenance management of the sliding step of the train door system. The archive encompasses the business logic and transactional data required to enhance trust among stakeholders in the quality of performed maintenance. The developed archive is deployed on Hyperledger Fabric and the effectiveness of the solution is evaluated through a survey. The results show that the developed business network, deployed on a customized Hyperledger Fabric consensus protocol, enhanced trust among the stakeholders involved.

Search and Evaluation of Coevolving Problem and Solution Spaces in a Complex Healthcare Design Science Research Project.

From a managerial perspective, studying the design process provides the knowledge that research project managers need for managing and guiding DSR projects. In particular, research project managers can guide the search process by understanding when and why to explore different search spaces, to expand the solutions investigated, and to focus on promising solutions and to evaluate them. Overall, this research contributes to our knowledge of design and the design process, especially for highly research-oriented problems and solutions.

Lean Management Framework for Healthcare Facilities Integrating BIM, BEPS and Big Data Analytics

An increase in the usage of information and communication technologies (ICT) and the Internet of Things (IoT) in Facility Management (FM) induces a huge data stack. Even though these data bring opportunities such as cost savings, time savings, increase in user comfort, space optimization, energy savings, inventory management, etc., these data sources cannot be managed and manipulated effectively to increase efficiency at the FM stage. In addition to data management issues, FM practices, or developed solutions, need to be supported with the implementation of lean management philosophy to reveal organizational and managerial wastes. In the literature, some researchers performed studies about awareness about building information modeling (BIM)-FM, and FM-related data management problems in terms of lean philosophy. However, the comprehensive solution for effective FM has not been investigated with the application of lean management philosophy yet. Therefore, this study aims to develop an FM framework for healthcare facilities by considering lean management philosophy since more stable workflow, continuous improvement, and creating more value to customers will help to deliver a more acceptable solution for the FM industry. Within this context, the integration of BIM, Building Energy Performance Simulations, and Big Data Analytics are proposed as a solution. In the study, the Design Science Research (DSR) methodology was followed to develop the FM framework. Depending on the DSR methodology, two scenarios were used to investigate the issue in a real healthcare facility and develop the FM framework. The developed framework was evaluated by four experts, and the revisions of the proposed framework were realized.

Demonstration of a Mobile Education Artifact in a Tanzania’s Higher Education Institution

<p class="0abstract">This study reports the demonstration of the effectiveness of a mobile education tool (MET) that was co-designed and developed at the College of Business Education (CBE) in Tanzania by a team of teachers, researchers, and a developer using the Design Science Research (DSR) methodology. The demonstration of the CBEMET Prototype as an artifact was done to 30 teachers who had participated in the co-designing of the prototype phase, 3 members of CBE management team and 20 students in Bachelor II degree program as the observers and representative of those who will use the prototype at a later stage. Different sets of questionnaires were administered to the teachers, the members of the management team and the students. The demonstration confirmed that it is easy to access the prototype, share learning contents, and provide education through mobile devices. Nonetheless, teaching materials prepared for testing the prototype were insufficient and thus needed improvement. Furthermore, teachers and observers proposed for more options to the prototype such as the inclusion of timetables, alerts of events like examination dates, and news on innovation activities. The feedback from the participants has thus been considered to reduce errors in the usage of the prototype before its final deployment.</p>

BIM for facilities management: A framework and a common data environment using open standards

BIM for Facilities Management (BIM for FM) is a relatively new and growing topic of inquiry aiming to fulfil the informational needs of the operational phase of assets within increasingly digitalised project workflows. Research into the management of structured (i.e. graphical and non-graphical) and unstructured data (i.e. documents) has largely focused on design and construction phases. Information management in facilities management and maintenance is still challenged by the lack of a structured framework that can simultaneously fulfil these three capabilities: (1) the delivery of information models (i.e. Asset Information Models) from distributed data sources; (2) the validation of these information models against the requirements; and (3) the use of their information in facilities management (e.g. operation and maintenance). This research aims to develop and test a framework and a prototype Common Data Environment (CDE) to achieve these three capabilities.The framework and the developed CDE are entirely based on use open standards and integration of existing technologies. A requirements model, underpinning the framework and the CDE was developed during three iterative stages of interviews –in line with the adopted Grounded Theory and Design Science Research methodologies– with industry experts and through a three-stage coding process at each iteration. The framework and the CDE were tested in pilot demonstrations with a use case focused on preventive and reactive maintenance. The testing demonstrated that the implementation of ‘BIM for FM’ processes is feasible with the proposed framework and CDE relying entirely on open standards and existing technologies. Some additional requirements for BIM for FM processes were also identified during the verification sessions with industry and are proposed for future research.

Factors Affecting University Choice Behaviour in the UK Higher Education

Although regulations and established practices in academia have focused on a data-rich model of performance information, both to evidence operational capability and to support recruitment, it is considered that this approach has been largely ineffective in addressing student choice behaviour. Historical studies, business, psychology, and technology theories have pointed to the oversimplification that a data-led strategy can result in for mapping human behaviour. In this case, decision processes of students are understood to be nuanced by a vast range of factors with variable relevance for everyone. The effort of the study is to address how Systems Thinking, related policy development, and associated enabling techniques can be applied to the field to provide both a deeper understanding of the dictates of student behaviour and, by extension, the appropriate foci for data provision, enabling comparative business performance assessment of Higher Education Providers. This research has followed the Design Science Research (DSR) methodology; the developed model has been successfully evaluated against the understanding of education practitioners in an interview consultation process of the methodology. The analysis of interview feedback and the development and refinement of the proposed model generate the principle findings of the study. The model outlines the factors that might affect students’ choices in the UK Higher Education.

Method to assess the adherence of internal logistics equipment to the concept of CPS for industry 4.0

Industry 4.0 foresees benefits to companies and is supported by technologies such as Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS), Internet of Things (IoT), Internet of Services (IoS), among others. CPS, one of Industry 4.0's key technologies, can be applied in many areas including health, mobility, production and logistics. The partial or total incorporation of CPS technologies into internal logistics equipment can present such advantages to businesses as reductions in logistics operational costs and in production cycle times. Although this application is still under development, several manufacturers already offer to the market internal logistics equipment incorporating CPS technologies, presenting them as fully capable of operating in the Industry 4.0 environment. However, it is observed that there is no effective method of assessing whether these devices effectively integrate such technologies and at what level this integration occurs. This manuscript adopted the design science research methodology to propose a method for assessing the adherence of internal logistics equipment to the CPS concept for Industry 4.0. The method is based on a guide for collecting data with questions that identify information about the CPS technologies embedded in the internal logistics equipment, associated with a tool for processing this information. The tool is supported by a properly trained artificial neural network that measures the equipment's adherence to the CPS concept. The method has proved to be adequate because in its application it assessed fifteen equipment, from worldwide-renowned manufacturers, with an error of less than 2%.