Innovative Information And Communication Technology Research Articles

Patterns of Combined ICT Use and Innovation in the European Regions

ABSTRACTThis article investigates the existence of combined patterns of regional innovation and the information and communication technologies (ICT) use, and the factors explaining them at a regional level in the European Union (EU). The use of canonical correlation analysis (CCA) allows us to identify two differentiated patterns of regional innovation and ICT use. The main pattern is defined by those regions combining high levels of ICT use and innovation. This pattern is mostly explained by institutional factors, such as the quality of government, and by region-specific characteristics, such as total employment in knowledge-intensive services, total research and development (R&D), lifelong learning (LifeLong), and gross domestic product (GDP). We also identified a second pattern that corresponds with regions showing strong disparities between innovation and ICT use levels. This pattern is mainly determined by R&D and by institutional variables such as government quality and fiscal decentralization. Our findings shed light on the factors that jointly explain innovation and ICT diffusion, and could be useful in the design of innovation and ICT diffusion policies at both regional and national levels.

The Proliferation of ICT and Digital Technology Systems and their Influence on the Dynamic Capabilities of Construction Firms

Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) are changing the way we work and play. Such changes are evident in the design, construction and operation of large construction projects. Programs such as building information modelling (BIM) and various other innovative digital technologies and engineering systems are changing the way we materialise all aspects of construction projects. This proliferation of ICT and digital technologies facilitated the adoption of various innovative approaches in processes and various ICT systems throughout a project life-cycle and across its supply chain. This has great implication on construction firms providing a new challenge by reconfiguring their resources to rise to the new challenges of large construction projects. ICT is changing three different aspects of large scale projects. As a tool during the build, i.e. BIM, for the ongoing building functionality i.e. BMS and lastly benefiting occupants experience. The integration of these three ICT aspects are forcing firms to rethink their current ICT management systems. Through a case study in a large scale healthcare project, this paper uses a case study to investigate the application of various innovative ICT and digital technology systems on the dynamic capabilities of a construction firm and across the supply chain of a project. The case study presented is the New Royal Adelaide Hospital (nRAH) in South Australia. This is a joint venture project under a Public Private Partnership agreement to design and construct AUS$1.85b hospital. The case study showed that various challenging examples of functional complexity exists that required innovative process management approaches by the construction firm to withstand the test and trial of such a complex project, to successful completion. This has further contributed to the elevation of the dynamic capabilities of the construction firm as well as to its overall reputational assets and branding, nationally as well as internationally.

Economic growth: The role of knowledge economy in the context of selected Asian countries

This study examines the role of different knowledge economy com-ponents in economic growth as well as the simultaneous effects of information and communication technology (ICT) infrastructure, education, and innovation on economic growth of selected Asian countries over the 1990–2014 period, using Driscoll-Kraay estima-tion method and seemingly unrelated regression (SUR) and three stage least squares (3SLS). The results confirm that there exists a positive association between economic growth and four components of the knowledge economy framework. Furthermore, there is also evidence of the multidimensional effects of ICT infrastructure, edu-cation, and innovation on economic growth. As a result, policy makers should pay more attention to improving innovation, educa-tion, information and communication infrastructure, and institu-tional regime systematically to achieve sustainable economic growth.

ICT Use, Innovation, and Productivity: Evidence from Sub-Saharan Africa

This paper examines empirically the links between adoption of information and communications technology (ICT), defined as usage by firms, innovation, and productivity using firm-level data for a sample of six Sub-Saharan African countries: the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Ghana, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia. Although adoption of information and communications technology in these countries is still lagging behind OECD countries, there is significant heterogeneity on adoption rates across the countries. Kenya has the largest adoption rate of computer, software, and Internet usage. The Democratic Republic of Congo and Tanzania experience lower adoption rates. The degree of internationalization of the firm, use of technology, and extent of competition are important factors explaining firm-level use of ICT. The results of the estimates suggest that ICT use is an important and robust enabler of product, process, and organization innovation across all six countries. However, the final impact on productivity depends on the degree of novelty of the innovation introduced by the firm.

Innovation and ICT use in the EU: an analysis of regional drivers

Innovation and the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) are key areas for the European Cohesion Policy. Studies available at the regional level explore innovation and ICT use incorporating different variables, while those investigating ICT use mainly focus on that of households. This paper investigates the existence of common factors for innovation and ICT at the regional level, considering not only ICT use by households but also that of firms. Using factorial and spatial regression analysis, we find that although ICT use and innovation are mainly explained by different variables, knowledge-intensive services and the percentage of population aged 15–64 are common to all of them. In addition, ICT use by households and ICT use by firms are basically driven by different factors. Government quality is the main factor explaining ICT use at home, while ICT use by firms is mostly driven by employment in knowledge-intensive services. R&D is the main variable explaining innovation. We also find positive spatial effects, which are particularly notable in ICT use by households. The results stress the importance of promoting specialization strategies based on the knowledge economy that may contribute to creating synergies between innovation and ICT use in different environments.

Accelerating System Development for the Food Chain: A Portfolio of over 30 Projects, Aiming at Impact and Growth

Supply of fresh food is of vital importance to feed Europe in a healthy way, while Europe has also an important role in feeding the world. Food products and other perishables such as flowers impose very challenging demands on the management of its supply chains. Food networks are struggling with an integrated usage of information and communication technology (ICT) that enables the heterogeneous stakeholders in the food chain to exchange information in real-time and control workflows based on requirements with respect to quality, costs and schedule. Innovative ICT systems that are addressing such challenges are currently being developed by a large European initiative, called FIWARE. Within this paper, we will discuss a portfolio of 31 projects that are realising solutions for the food chain in close collaboration with supporting business partners. Diverse food related topics are addressed, such as logistics, transport, planning and control, tracking and tracing, information management as well as new ways to realise e-commerce within the chain as well as for consumers. The FIWARE initiative is accelerating startups and supporting SME type technology developers that are realising solutions for real world business cases, which are serving as reference customers and test cases to assure an end-user acceptance and valid business models. This paper discusses the main food chain related topics and innovation potentials that are addressed as well as outlines the related methodological and technological approaches that are used to facilitate the realisation of impact and growth for commercial exploitation.

Ethics of emergent information and communication technology applications in humanitarian medical assistance.

New applications of information and communication technology (ICT) are shaping the way we understand and provide humanitarian medical assistance in situations of disaster, disease outbreak or conflict. Each new crisis appears to be accompanied by advancements in humanitarian technology, leading to significant improvements in the humanitarian aid sector. However, ICTs raise ethical questions that warrant attention. Focusing on the context of humanitarian medical assistance, we review key domains of ICT innovation. We then discuss ethical challenges and uncertainties associated with the development and application of new ICTs in humanitarian medical assistance, including avoiding harm, ensuring privacy and security, responding to inequalities, demonstrating respect, protecting relationships, and addressing expectations. In doing so, we emphasize the centrality of ethics in humanitarian ICT design, application and evaluation.

Information and communication technology and climate change adaptation: Evidence from selected mining companies in South Africa.

The mining sector is a significant contributor to the gross domestic product of many global economies. Given the increasing trends in climate-induced disasters and the growing desire to find lasting solutions, information and communication technology (ICT) has been introduced into the climate change adaptation mix. Climate change-induced extreme weather events such as flooding, drought, excessive fog, and cyclones have compounded the environmental challenges faced by the mining sector. This article presents the adoption of ICT innovation as part of the adaptation strategies towards reducing the mining sector’s vulnerability and exposure to climate change disaster risks. Document analysis and systematic literature review were adopted as the methodology. Findings from the study reflect how ICT intervention orchestrated changes in communication patterns which are tailored towards the reduction in climate change vulnerability and exposure. The research concludes with a proposition that ICT intervention must be part of the bigger and ongoing climate change adaptation agenda in the mining sector.

ICT-based solution approach for collaborative delivery of customised products

Growing interest on business collaboration motivates today’s industries, especially small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to establish and manage dynamic and non-hierarchical business networks to respond to market opportunities with added business benefits. This business environment requires concurrent work and real-time information sharing between key business partners in order to design and develop customised products. The use of traditional communication media such as e-mail, phone and fax is not satisfactory to get real-time information and is time-consuming and most often ineffective. In such environments, an Information and Communication Technology (ICT)/Web-based technology supports real-time information sharing among networked SMEs for the collaborative design and manufacturing of customised products. This study proposes an innovative ICT platform supporting SMEs collaboration, through Web and the Internet of Things technologies, which follows the Net-Challenge conceptual approach and methodological guidelines for SMEs to form and operate virtual organisations for the collaborative development and delivery of customised products. The ICT Platform was assessed in three different industry domains, namely the textile and apparel, the footwear and the machine tools, respectively. This ICT solution promotes collaboration, with substantial advantages for SMEs including the reduction of costs and delivery time and improvement of the innovation potential.

IMPROVING QUALITY AND ACCESS TO HEALTHCARE BY ADOPTING EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES

Shortage of healthcare workers (HCWs) hampers treatment outcomes in Sub-Sahara Africa (SSA). There is also a great need for scalable, cost-effective and long-term strategies in healthcare. The benefits of eGovernment, the integration of innovative Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) to conveniently provide access to services and data, are yet to be realized. m-Health is an emerging concept with potential to revolutionize delivery of healthcare. Mobile phones and other emerging technologies have the potential to change healthcare for the better when used as an enabler to provide immediate and secure access to critical clinical information. This exploratory study aims to discover ideas and insights on the integration of emerging technologies with Electronic Health Records (EHRs). The research identifies constraints and concerns associated with the setup of EHR systems as well as outline the potential for integrating emerging technologies to the provision of quality access and healthcare and treatment outcomes.

Responsible Research and Innovation in Construction

The issue of ethics and responsibility is gaining attention among the creators of scientific policy, funding agencies and society at large. Responsible research is defined as research that aligns both the process and the outcomes with the values, needs and expectations of society. In an EU funded project “Responsible Research and Innovation in Information and Communication Technology (ICT)” a four dimensional framework for defining and monitoring responsibility in that kind of research projects has been defined. The four dimensions are (1) actors who are responsible or to whom research is responsible, (2) kinds of responsibility – in what way are they responsible, (3) how much they are responsible and (4) in what area of ICT responsible research and innovation can take place. After presenting the framework we apply the concept of responsibility to research in the field of architecture, engineering and construction (AEC). We are finding that the particular feature that sets responsibility in construction apart from other research topics is the impact it has on life and safety of large number of people and on the critical infrastructures. While responsibility is important we conclude with a warning that the first responsibility of research is scientific quality and that other responsibilities cannot be a substitute for that.

A Novel Energy Management Approach for Smart Homes Using Bluetooth Low Energy

Smart grids are an evolution of the existing electric distribution systems due to the growing demand of energy, the expansion in the use of renewable energy sources, and the development of novel and innovative information and communication technologies (ICT). The installation of systems based on wireless networks can play a key role in the extension of the smart grid toward smart homes, that can be deemed as one of the most important components of smart grids. In fact, monitoring and control applications, energy harvesting, and innovative metering methodologies through smart wireless devices are becoming increasingly important. This paper proposes a novel energy management approach for smart homes that combines a wireless network, based on bluetooth low energy (BLE), for communication among home appliances, with a home energy management (HEM) scheme. The proposed approach addresses the impact of standby appliances and high-power rating loads in peak hours to the energy consumption charges of consumers. Simulation results show that the proposed approach is efficient in terms of reducing peak load demand and electricity consumption charges with an increase in the comfort level of consumers.

From concept to implementation: The development of the emerging cloud computing industry in China

Cloud computing has emerged as an important ICT (information and communication technology) innovation that could potentially revolutionize the way computing resources are consumed and provided. In emerging economies, such innovation is regarded as the new way to provide information infrastructure that has the potential for further economic upgrading. In this paper, we investigate the initiation and growth process of the cloud computing industry in China, based on an in-depth case study. We discover that the development of China׳s cloud computing industry that emerged from an initial concept involves the co-evolution of technological and institutional infrastructure leading to a preliminary cloud ecosystem. We also find that such a process involves a wide range of different actors, from the government side to the business side, the interaction among which, in pursuing their own interests, drive the development of the cloud computing industry into being. Finally, situated in the institutional context of China, the government–business relationship is witnessed to have changed and evolved along development of such an emerging industry, demonstrating the important and unique roles of both sides in industrial (or even national) wide diffusion of the ICT innovation.

Mobile phones, smartphones, and the transformation of civic behavior through mobile information and connectivity

Information and communication technology (ICT) use in e-governance has grown in significance for contemporary scholarship on government administration and civic engagement. But the unique contribution of types of mobile phone devices has not been well distinguished in the overall relevance of ICT. This paper makes a theoretical and empirical case for exploring these relationships in the context of South Africa, a country where mobile technology plays a uniquely prominent role in society. Using multivariate regression analysis with data from the Afrobarometer Survey it compares the direct effect of basic mobile phones and smartphones on civic engagement and its behavioral opposite, civic deviance. The paper then tests the interaction effect of mobile phone technology with an important construct in democratic theory: the relationship between social capital and civic behavior. The results of the analysis show that the use of mobile phone technology can cut both ways, increasing both civic engagement and deviance. However, when moderated with social capital, mobile phone use is strengthened only in its effect on civic engagement, while the effect on deviance is made insignificant. This suggests that there is a complementary socio-technical process at work for positive civic behaviors involving mobile phones and social capital. The findings are explained through the lens of technological dimensions information, communication, and connectivity, and suggestions are made for applying these findings to public sector mobile ICT innovation.

Measurement of Satisfaction with ICT Services Implementation and Innovation in Restaurants (Case Study: Isfahan, Iran)

ABSTRACTNowadays, Restaurant is one of the most important factors in the choice of holiday destinations for tourists and contributes to the development of the local economy. This research is an initial attempt to investigate consumer behavior (tourist behavior) and the attitude of restaurant managers to the application of innovation and information and communication technology (ICT) in hotel restaurants. On the basis of the results of this study it can be concluded that tourists and restaurant managers in the city of Isfahan are interested in exploiting the application of innovation and ICT in hotel restaurants.

Assessing the Role of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in Enhancing Employees’ Performance in a Selected Local Government Administration (LGA) in South Africa

Assessing the Role of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in Enhancing Employees’ Performance in a Selected Local Government Administration (LGA) in South Africa

Perception of Ultimate Utilization of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) as an Impetus in Enhancing Employee Performance in a Few Selected Municipalities in the Eastern Cape of South Africa

Perception of Ultimate Utilization of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) as an Impetus in Enhancing Employee Performance in a Few Selected Municipalities in the Eastern Cape of South Africa

Learner's Satisfactions on ICT Innovations: Omani Learners Viewpoints

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has significantly improved the educational environment to higher degrees. The teaching and learning methodologies have been changed to greater extends to motivate the instructors and learners. The learner’s satisfaction on these ICT innovations depends on their impact in day to day knowledge gaining processes. This paper discusses some major ICT factors that influence the Omani learners and their corresponding satisfaction levels. This research also identified that these technological innovations motivate the learners in selflearning and in future continuing education. The study identified that the overall significant development educational processes and encouragement in the learning processes by information and communication technology innovations have higher impacts on the learners’ satisfaction.

Emerging technologies and sports events

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to review the development and potential applications of emerging information and communication technologies (ICTs) in sports. The case studies are presented in details: computer system for tracking and visualisation in TV broadcasting and players/teams performance analysis in football. The paper concludes with the authors’ opinion that future implementation of digital technologies, in the first instance, goal-line technologies, to support accurate, practical and reliable decision making in sports is highly needed and represent a basis for further increase in the commercial value of the pre-eminent global sport. Design/methodology/approach – The research utilised an exploratory approach to data gathering due to the fact that the topic is new and data are difficult to collect. The topic is analysed using case study method. Findings – The research found that there is an emerging market to extend the reach of digital technologies adapted for sports industry and sports events. Increasingly, developers are exploring and exploiting the vast potential of the ICTs to create value in the field of sports events. The development of emerging technologies create new opportunities that sports industry demands a growing range of innovative solutions for the purposes of decision making to be tested and accepted in the near future. Research limitations/implications – The research is based on data limitations related to the innovative ICT solutions, the rules of the game which significantly limit the scope for product innovation and a need to make a decision on application of an adequate solution within a short time period. In order to develop the extensive research results in the future, more information will be available after the termination of ongoing testing procedure. Practical implications – It is evident that digital video processing has found many applications in sports content analysis and TV broadcasting of competitive sports. The governing bodies should be aware of their role to support successful innovation which requires the coordinated action of all the actors who play vastly different roles in its commercialisation process. Originality/value – The paper emphasises how much technology has added to communication and economic potential of sports events, underlying that issue of video technology application to ease decision making in football is currently one of the most pressing matters due to constant arrival of new cases concerning “incorrect” decisions that add fuel to the controversy. The football authorities have finally recognised that the game has to be responsive to the concerns and suggestions of its customers.

Political Entrepreneurialism: Reflections of a Civil Servant on the Role of Political Institutions in Technology Innovation and Diffusion in Kenya

This paper narrates how an innovative political institution in Kenya gained support from private sector players in the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) sector. The paper is centered on the reflections of a top civil servant who leveraged Lewin’s theoretical foundations and leadership to propel Kenya from obscurity to global renown in the ICT arena. The paper details the leadership of key players in the political system explaining on how their tolerance for risk encouraged ICT diffusion and innovation in Kenya. The paper delves into the details of executive decision making and how those decisions influence different stakeholders. The analysis reveals why Kenya succeeded where its neighbours did not. It shows that Kenya’s continued success in ICTs depends upon its stability – endemic corruption and previous political decisions could threaten this. The paper will also highlight the emergence of a new crop of innovators developing new applications across all sectors including education, health, agriculture and financial services.