Ten principles of good business process management

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to foster a common understanding of business process management (BPM) by proposing a set of ten principles that characterize BPM as a research domain and guide its successful use in organizational practice. Design/methodology/approach The identification and discussion of the principles reflects our viewpoint, which was informed by extant literature and focus groups, including 20 BPM experts from academia and practice. Findings We identify ten principles which represent a set of capabilities essential for mastering contemporary and future challenges in BPM. Their antonyms signify potential roadblocks and bad practices in BPM. We also identify a set of open research questions that can guide future BPM research. Research limitation/implication Our findings suggest several areas of research regarding each of the identified principles of good BPM. Also, the principles themselves should be systematically and empirically examined in future studies. Practical implications – Our findings allow practitioners to comprehensively scope their BPM initiatives and provide a general guidance for BPM implementation. Moreover, the principles may also serve to tackle contemporary issues in other management areas. Originality/value This is the first paper that distills principles of BPM in the sense of both good and bad practice recommendations. The value of the principles lies in providing normative advice to practitioners as well as in identifying open research areas for academia, thereby extending the reach and richness of BPM beyond its traditional frontiers.

Diophantine equations as a context for technology-enhanced training in conjecturing and proving

Solving indeterminate algebraic equations in integers is a classic topic in the mathematics curricula across grades. At the undergraduate level, the study of solutions of non-linear equations of this kind can be motivated by the use of technology. This article shows how the unity of geometric contextualization and spreadsheet-based amplification of this topic can provide a discovery experience for prospective secondary teachers and information technology students. Such experience can be extended to include a transition from a computationally driven conjecturing to a formal proof based on a number of simple yet useful techniques.

Social engineering in social networking sites : how good becomes evil

Social Engineering (ES) is now considered the great security threat to people and organizations. Ever since the existence of human beings, fraudulent and deceptive people have used social engineering tricks and tactics to trick victims into obeying them. There are a number of social engineering techniques that are used in information technology to compromise security defences and attack people or organizations such as phishing, identity theft, spamming, impersonation, and spaying. Recently, researchers have suggested that social networking sites (SNSs) are the most common source and best breeding grounds for exploiting the vulnerabilities of people and launching a variety of social engineering based attacks. However, the literature shows a lack of information about what types of social engineering threats exist on SNSs. This study is part of a project that attempts to predict a persons’ vulnerability to SE based on demographic factors. In this paper, we demonstrate the different types of social engineering based attacks that exist on SNSs, the purposes of these attacks, reasons why people fell (or did not fall) for these attacks, based on users’ opinions. A qualitative questionnaire-based survey was conducted to collect and analyse people’s experiences with social engineering tricks, deceptions, or attacks on SNSs.

Social engineering in social networking sites : the art of impersonation

Social networking sites (SNSs), with their large number of users and large information base, seem to be the perfect breeding ground for exploiting the vulnerabilities of people, who are considered the weakest link in security. Deceiving, persuading, or influencing people to provide information or to perform an action that will benefit the attacker is known as “social engineering.” Fraudulent and deceptive people use social engineering traps and tactics through SNSs to trick users into obeying them, accepting threats, and falling victim to various crimes such as phishing, sexual abuse, financial abuse, identity theft, and physical crime. Although organizations, researchers, and practitioners recognize the serious risks of social engineering, there is a severe lack of understanding and control of such threats. This may be partly due to the complexity of human behaviors in approaching, accepting, and failing to recognize social engineering tricks. This research aims to investigate the impact of source characteristics on users’ susceptibility to social engineering victimization in SNSs, particularly Facebook. Using grounded theory method, we develop a model that explains what and how source characteristics influence Facebook users to judge the attacker as credible.

IT-enabled sustainability transformation—the case of SAP

This teaching case describes how SAP, a leading global information technology (IT) solutions provider, embarked on a large-scale transformation program to implement a dual sustainability strategy of: (a) internally transforming the organization, and (b) addressing a business opportunity by developing IT solutions that enable their customers to become more sustainable. This case provides students with significant information about the development of SAP towards sustainability, including the company's underlying motivation, their approach to change and related challenges, and their use of IT to enable the transformation. The teaching case provides an opportunity to critically examine the benefits and risks of using IT in an effort to improve the sustainability of an organization, and to develop appropriate models for sustainable strategies and IT implementation efforts.

On governance structures for the cloud computing services and assessing their effectiveness

This research suggests information technology (IT) governance structures to manage the cloud computing services. The interest in acquiring IT resources as a utility from the cloud computing environment is gaining momentum. The cloud computing services present organizations with opportunities to manage their IT expenditure on an ongoing basis, and access to modern IT resources to innovate and manage their continuity. However, the cloud computing services are no silver bullet. Organizations would need to have appropriate governance structures and policies in place to manage the cloud computing services. The subsequent decisions from these governance structures will ensure the effective management of the cloud computing services. This management will facilitate a better fit of the cloud computing services into organizations’ existing processes to achieve the business (process-level) and the financial (firm-level) objectives. Using a triangulation approach, we suggest four governance structures for managing the cloud computing services. These structures are a chief cloud officer, a cloud management committee, a cloud service facilitation centre, and a cloud relationship centre. We also propose that these governance structures would relate directly to organizations cloud computing services-related business objectives, and indirectly to cloud computing services-related financial objectives. Perceptive field survey data from actual and prospective cloud computing service adopters suggest that the suggested governance structures would contribute directly to cloud computing-related business objectives and indirectly to cloud computing-related financial objectives.

Why the energy technology revolution hasn't happened

The main thrusts of this TEDx talk are rooted in findings from original research by Rob Perrons concerning the role of industry clockspeed on technology-focused startups. The study involved extensive exposure to five member companies from the Shell Technology Ventures portfolio of companies over a three-year period, and shed new light on the specific mechanics that were contributing to these companies’ inability to get traction for their respective innovations within the marketplace. This evidence is also being coalesced into scholarly and scholarly publications—but this TEDx talk was a first release of a few of these high-level findings.

Theorizing Masculinity in Information Systems Research

INTRODUCTION: I want to argue that understanding masculinity is an important part of understanding gender and sexuality as it relates to information and communications technologies (ICTs), specifically those under the lens of the information-systems community. In order to do this, the landscape of gender and sexuality research in general is referred to along with such research in the field of information systems (IS), with reference as necessary to masculinity studies. I will then suggest some possible areas where a more thorough going theorization may prove useful. In sum, future research might focus on the relation-ship between marginalised masculinities and the construction and consumption of is in work organisations and society…

Being innovative without being creative

Not all innovations require a creative genius, an IT nerd, or a statistician. Smart organizations follow a playbook with four different strategies.

From idea to transaction

Organizations often have some innovation capability but typically not across all stages of the innovation process. Understanding key requirements of each stage helps shifting the capability focus to cover the entire innovation process.

Untangling the evidence : introducing an empirical model for evidence-based library and information practice

Introduction This research is the first to investigate the experiences of teacher-librarians as evidence-based practice. An empirically derived model is presented in this paper. Method This qualitative study utilised the expanded critical incident approach, and investigated the real-life experiences of fifteen Australian teacher-librarians, through semi-structured interviews and inductive data analysis. Data collection utilised semi-structured interviews, on-site observations, journaling and the rubric for contextual information. These approaches allowed each of the interviewees to tell their own story and provided richness to the data. Analysis The analysis involved two types of data categorisation: binary and thematic. Binary classification was used to identify factual details. Thematic analysis involved categorising the emerging themes. Results An empirically derived model for evidence-based practice was devised and associated critical findings identified. The results demonstrate that evidence-based practice for teacher-librarians is a holistic practice. It is not a linear, step-by-step process. Conclusions This study is significant for teacher-librarians and library and information professionals as it provides new understanding of evidence-based practice.

Exploring the impact of shared domain knowledge on strategic alignment in the Australian public sector

In this age of ever-increasing information technology (IT) driven environments, governments/or public sector organisations (PSOs) are expected to demonstrate the business value of the investment in IT and take advantage of the opportunities offered by technological advancements. Strategic alignment (SA) emerged as a mechanism to bridge the gap between business and IT missions, objectives, and plans in order to ensure value optimisation from investment in IT and enhance organisational performance. However, achieving and sustaining SA remains a challenge requiring even more agility nowadays to keep up with turbulent organisational environments. The shared domain knowledge (SDK) between the IT department and other diverse organisational groups is considered as one of the factors influencing the successful implementation of SA. However, SDK in PSOs has received relatively little empirical attention. This paper presents findings from a study which investigated the influence of SDK on SA within organisations in the Australian public sector. The developed research model examined the relationship of SDK between business and IT domains with SA using a survey of 56 public sector professionals and executives. A key research contribution is the empirical demonstration that increasing levels of SDK between IT and business groups leads to increased SA.

How innovation and R&D happen in the upstream oil & gas industry : insights from a global survey

Few would disagree that the upstream oil & gas industry has become more technology-intensive over the years. But how does innovation happen in the industry? Specifically, what ideas and inputs flow from which parts of the sector׳s value network, and where do these inputs go? And how do firms and organizations from different countries contribute differently to this process? This paper puts forward the results of a survey designed to shed light on these questions. Carried out in collaboration with the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE), the survey was sent to 469 executives and senior managers who played a significant role with regard to R&D and/or technology deployment in their respective business units. A total of 199 responses were received from a broad range of organizations and countries around the world. Several interesting themes and trends emerge from the results, including: (1) service companies tend to file considerably more patents per innovation than other types of organization; (2) over 63% of the deployed innovations reported in the survey originated in service companies; (3) neither universities nor government-led research organizations were considered to be valuable sources of new information and knowledge in the industry׳s R&D initiatives, and; (4) despite the increasing degree of globalization in the marketplace, the USA still plays an extremely dominant role in the industry׳s overall R&D and technology deployment activities. By providing a detailed and objective snapshot of how innovation happens in the upstream oil & gas sector, this paper provides a valuable foundation for future investigations and discussions aimed at improving how R&D and technology deployment are managed within the industry. The methodology did result in a coverage bias within the survey, however, and the limitations arising from this are explored.

Suggestions for the next wave of BPM research : strengthening the theoretical core and exploring the protective belt

In this essay, I present a reflective and generative analysis of Business Process Management research, in which I analyze process management and the surrounding research program from the viewpoint of a theoretical paradigm embracing analytical, empirical, explanatory and design elements. I argue that this view not only reconciles different perceptions of BPM and different research streams, but that it also informs ways in which the BPM research program could develop into a much richer, more inclusive and overall more significant body of work than it has to date. I define three perspectives on a BPM research agenda, give several examples of exciting existing research, and offer key opportunities for further research that can (a) strengthen the core of BPM, (b) generate novel theory from BPM in relevant and topical big issue domains, and (c) explore more rigorously and comprehensively the protective belt of BPM assumptions that much of the present research abides by. The essay ends with some recommendations for continuing the debate about what constitutes BPM and some suggestions for how future research in this area might be carried out.

Critical factors for waste management in office building retrofit projects in Australia

Office building retrofit is a sector being highlighted in Australia because of the mature office building market characterised by a large proportion of ageing properties. The increasing number of office building retrofit projects strengthens the need for waste management. Retrofit projects possess unique characteristics in comparison to traditional demolition and new builds such as partial operation of buildings, constrained site spaces and limited access to as-build information. Waste management activities in retrofit projects can be influenced by issues that are different from traditional construction and demolition projects. However, previous research on building retrofit projects has not provided an understanding of the critical issues affecting waste management. This research identifies the critical factors which influence the management of waste in office building retrofit projects through a literature study and a questionnaire survey to industry practitioners. Statistical analysis on a range of potential waste issues reveals the critical factors, as agreed upon by survey respondents in consideration of their different professional responsibilities and work natures. The factors are grouped into five dimensions, comprising industry culture, organisational support and incentive, existing building information, design, and project delivery process. The discussions of the dimensions indicate that the waste management factors of office building retrofit projects are further intensified compared to those for general demolition and construction because retrofit projects involve existing buildings which are partially operating with constrained work space and limited building information. Recommendations for improving waste management in office building retrofit projects are generalised such as waste planning, auditing and assessment in the planning and designing stage, collaboration and coordination of various stakeholders and different specialists, optimised building surveying and BIM technologies for waste analysis, and new design strategies for waste prevention.