Knowledge modeling for innovative companies: case of business incubator

The paper presents a study which is aimed at building a knowledge model for a case company – business incubator “Ingria” (St. Petersburg, Russia). The business incubator is one of its kind organization in St. Petersburg, and one of the few in Russia, providing services for innovative entrepreneurial companies at an international level. Business incubation impact is deeply researched from the point of view of knowledge engineering. The paper also provides a broad analysis of various knowledge engineering tools used for visualization of knowledge, as well as knowledge modeling techniques.

On the innovation capacity of technologyrelated knowledge-intensive business services. A case study of the technology and engineering consulting (TEC) sector in Singapore

Even though the research on innovation in services has expanded remarkably especially during the past two decades, there is still a need to increase understanding on the special characteristics of service innovation. In addition to studying innovation in service companies and industries, research has also recently focused more on services in innovation, as especially the significance of so-called knowledge intensive business services (KIBS) for the competitive edge of their clients, othercompanies, regions and even nations has been proved in several previous studies. This study focuses on studying technology-based KIBS firms, and technology andengineering consulting (TEC) sector in particular. These firms have multiple roles in innovation systems, and thus, there is also a need for in-depth studies that increase knowledge about the types and dimensions of service innovations as well as underlying mechanisms and procedures which make the innovations successful. The main aim of this study is to generate new knowledge in the fragmented research field of service innovation management by recognizing the different typesof innovations in TEC services and some of the enablers of and barriers to innovation capacity in the field, especially from the knowledge management perspective. The study also aims to shed light on some of the existing routines and new constructions needed for enhancing service innovation and knowledge processing activities in KIBS companies of the TEC sector. The main samples of data in this research include literature reviews and public data sources, and a qualitative research approach with exploratory case studies conducted with the help of the interviews at technology consulting companies in Singapore in 2006. These complement the qualitative interview data gathered previously in Finland during a larger research project in the years 2004-2005. The data is also supplemented by a survey conducted in Singapore. The respondents for the survey by Tan (2007) were technology consulting companies who operate in the Singapore region. The purpose ofthe quantitative part of the study was to validate and further examine specificaspects such as the influence of knowledge management activities on innovativeness and different types of service innovations, in which the technology consultancies are involved. Singapore is known as a South-east Asian knowledge hub and is thus a significant research area where several multinational knowledge-intensive service firms operate. Typically, the service innovations identified in the studied TEC firms were formed by several dimensions of innovations. In addition to technological aspects, innovations were, for instance, related to new client interfaces and service delivery processes. The main enablers of and barriers to innovation seem to be partly similar in Singaporean firms as compared to the earlier study of Finnish TEC firms. Empirical studies also brought forth the significance of various sources of knowledge and knowledge processing activities as themain driving forces of service innovation in technology-related KIBS firms. A framework was also developed to study the effect of knowledge processing capabilities as well as some moderators on the innovativeness of TEC firms. Especially efficient knowledge acquisition and environmental dynamism seem to influence the innovativeness of TEC firms positively. The results of the study also contributeto the present service innovation literature by focusing more on 'innovation within KIBs' rather than 'innovation through KIBS', which has been the typical viewpoint stressed in the previous literature. Additionally, the study provides several possibilities for further research.

Modelling the Knowledge Interface between Sales and Production Functions of a Company. Case: New Service Development Process.

Yrityksen sisäisten rajapintojen tunteminen mahdollistaa tiedonvaihdon hallinnan läpi organisaation. Idean muokkaaminen kannattavaksi innovaatioksi edellyttää organisaation eri osien läpi kulkevaa saumatonta prosessiketjua sekä tietovirtaa. Tutkielman tavoitteena oli mallintaa organisaation kahden toiminnallisesti erilaisen osan välinen tiedon vaihto. Tiedon vaihto kuvattiin rajapintana, tietoliittymänä. Kolmiulotteinen organisaatiomalli muodosti tutkimuksen pääteorian. Se kytkettiin yrityksen tuotanto- ja myyntiosiin, kuten myös BestServ-projektin kehittämään uuteen palvelujen kehittämisen prosessiin. Uutta palvelujen kehittämisen prosessia laajennettiin ISO/IEC 15288 standardin kuvaamalla prosessimallilla. Yritysarkkitehtuurikehikoita käytettiin mallintamisen perustana. Tietoliittymä nimenä kuvastaa näkemystä siitä, että tieto [tietämys] on olemukseltaan yksilöiden tai ryhmien välistä. Mallinnusmenetelmät eivät kuitenkaan vielä mahdollista tietoon [tietämykseen] liittyvien kaikkien ominaisuuksien mallintamista. Tietoliittymän malli koostuu kolmesta osasta, joista kaksi esitetään graafisessa muodossa ja yksi taulukkona. Mallia voidaan käyttää itsenäisesti tai osana yritysarkkitehtuuria. Teollisessa palveluliiketoiminnassa sekä tietoliittymän mallinnusmenetelmä että sillä luotu malli voivat auttaa konepajateollisuuden yritystä ymmärtämään yrityksen kehittämistarpeet ja -kohteet, kun se haluaa palvelujen tuottamisella suuremman roolin asiakasyrityksen liiketoiminnassa. Tietoliittymän mallia voidaan käyttää apuna organisaation tietovarannon ja tietämyksen mallintamisessa sekä hallinnassa ja näin pyrkiä yhdistämään ne yrityksen strategiaa palvelevaksi kokonaisuudeksi. Tietoliittymän mallinnus tarjoaa tietojohtamisen kauppatieteelliselle tutkimukselle menetelmällisyyden tutkia innovaatioiden hallintaa sekä organisaation uudistumiskykyä. Kumpikin tutkimusalue tarvitsevat tarkempaa tietoa ja mahdollisuuksia hallita tietovirtoja, tiedon vaihtoa sekä organisaation tietovarannon käyttöä.

Finding the Fit Between Engineering Design and Cost Information

This paper analyzes the possibilities of integrating cost information and engineering design. Special emphasis is put on finding the potential of using the activity-based costing (ABC) method. Today, the problem of cost estimation in engineering design is that there are two separate extremes of knowledge. On the one extreme, the engineers model the technical parametres behindcosts in great detail but do not get appropriate cost information to their elegant models. On the other extreme, the accounting professionals are stuck with traditional cost accounting methods driven by the procedures and cycles of financial accounting. Therefore, in many cases, the cost information needs of various decision making groups, for example design engineers, are not served satisfactorily. This paper studies if the activity-based costing (ABC) method could offer a compromise between the two extremes. Recognizing activities and activity chains as well as activity and cost drivers could be specially beneficial for design engineers. Also, recognizing the accurate and reliable product costs of existing products helps when doing variant design. However, ABC is not at its best if the cost system becomes too complicated. This is why a comprehensive ABC-cost information system with detailed cost information for the use of design engineers should be examined critically. ABC is at its best when considering such issues as which activities drive costs, the cost of product complexity, allocating indirect costs on the products, the relationships between processes and costs, and the cost of excess capacity.

Aspects on Process Engineering in the Finnish Pulp and Paper Industry : Thesis for the Degree of Licentiate in Science of Technology

Process development will be largely driven by the main equipment suppliers. The reason for this development is their ambition to supply complete plants or process systems instead of single pieces of equipment. The pulp and paper companies' interest lies in product development, as their main goal is to create winning brands and effective brand management. Design engineering companies will find their niche in detail engineering based on approved process solutions. Their development work will focus on increasing the efficiency of engineering work. Process design is a content-producing profession, which requires certain special characteristics: creativity, carefulness, the ability to work as a member of a design team according to time schedules and fluency in oral as well as written presentation. In the future, process engineers will increasingly need knowledge of chemistry as well as information and automation technology. Process engineering tools are developing rapidly. At the moment, these tools are good enough for static sizing and balancing, but dynamic simulation tools are not yet good enough for the complicated chemical reactions of pulp and paper chemistry. Dynamic simulation and virtual mill models are used as tools for training the operators. Computational fluid dynamics will certainlygain ground in process design.

Cost information in engineering design -Potentials and limitations of activity-based costing

The purpose of this thesis is to analyse activity-based costing (ABC) and possible modified versions ofit in engineering design context. The design engineers need cost information attheir decision-making level and the cost information should also have a strong future orientation. These demands are high because traditional management accounting has concentrated on the direct actual costs of the products. However, cost accounting has progressed as ABC was introduced late 1980s and adopted widely bycompanies in the 1990s. The ABC has been a success, but it has gained also criticism. In some cases the ambitious ABC systems have become too complex to build,use and update. This study can be called an action-oriented case study with some normative features. In this thesis theoretical concepts are assessed and allowed to unfold gradually through interaction with data from three cases. The theoretical starting points are ABC and theory of engineering design process (chapter2). Concepts and research results from these theoretical approaches are summarized in two hypotheses (chapter 2.3). The hypotheses are analysed with two cases (chapter 3). After the two case analyses, the ABC part is extended to cover alsoother modern cost accounting methods, e.g. process costing and feature costing (chapter 4.1). The ideas from this second theoretical part are operationalized with the third case (chapter 4.2). The knowledge from the theory and three cases is summarized in the created framework (chapter 4.3). With the created frameworkit is possible to analyse ABC and its modifications in the engineering design context. The framework collects the factors that guide the choice of the costing method to be used in engineering design. It also illuminates the contents of various ABC-related costing methods. However, the framework needs to be further tested. On the basis of the three cases it can be said that ABC should be used cautiously when formulating cost information for engineering design. It is suitable when the manufacturing can be considered simple, or when the design engineers are not cost conscious, and in the beginning of the design process when doing adaptive or variant design. If the design engineers need cost information for the embodiment or detailed design, or if manufacturing can be considered complex, or when design engineers are cost conscious, the ABC has to be always evaluated critically.

Measuring organizational capabilities in the engineering and consulting industry

Tämän työn tarkoituksena oli tutkia kuinka organisaation kyvykkyyksiä voidaan mitata engineering- ja konsultointialalla käyttämällä ns. kyvykkyysauditointimenetelmää. Päämotiivit aineettoman omaisuuden mittaamiseksi tunnistettiin kirjallisuuskatsauksen pohjalta. Erilaisten menetelmien etuja ja haittoja tutkittiin, jotta kyvykkyysauditoinnin suorittamiseen liittyvät haasteet ja vaatimukset tulisivat tunnistetuiksi. Kyvykkyysauditoinnin rakentaminen vaati teollisuudenalan erityispiirteiden tunnistamista. Niiksi havaittiin tietointensiivisyys ja projektikeskeisyys. Auditoinnin implementaatioprosessi koostui neljästä osasta, joista kolmen ensimmäisen suorittamiseen case-yritys antoi merkittävän panoksensa. Kriittisten menestystekijöiden selvittämisen jälkeen voitiin niihin vaikuttavat organisaation kyvykkyydet tunnistaa ja arviointi suorittaa. Arvioinnit kerättiin sisäisiltä ja ulkoisilta arvioijilta, ja ne muodostivat pohjan analyysille, joka selvitti yrityksen kehittämistarpeita. Kyvykkyysauditoinnin hyödyiksi laskettiin kasvanut tietämys yrityksen vahvuuksista ja heikkouksista sekä mahdollisuus tarkkailla säännöllisesti sen kokonaissuorituskykyä ja parantaa sitä.

Operational Knowledge in Process Design

Työn tarkoituksena on selvittää, miten käyttötietämystä hyödynnetään prosessisuunnittelussa. Tavoitteena on löytää keinoja parantaa käyttötietämyksen hallintaa suunnitteluprosessin aikana ja selvittää, vaikuttaako tämä prosessisuunnittelun laatuun.Prosessisuunnittelun laatua arvioidaan seitsemällä kriteerillä, jotka ovat investointikustannukset, käyttökustannukset, turvallisuus, ympäristövaikutukset, käytettävyys, innovatiivisuus ja aikataulu. Suunnitteluprosessi jaetaan kolmeen vaiheeseen: esisuunnitteluun, perussuunnitteluun ja detaljisuunnitteluun. Prosessisuunnittelua, investointiprojektia, prosessisuunnittelun laatukriteerejä, suunnitteluprosessin eri vaiheita ja käyttötietämyksen luokittelua tarkastellaan yleisesti. Työssä selvitettiin käyttötietämyksen hyödyntämistä Kemiralla. Aluksi muotoiltiin yleisiä väittämiä käyttötietämyksen hyödyntämisestä Kemiran ulkopuolisten eri alojen asiantuntijoiden haastattelujen perusteella. Tämän jälkeen Kemiran prosessisuunnittelijat arvioivat väittämiä. Arvioiden perusteella tehtiin johtopäätöksiä yleisesti käyttötietämyksen hyödyntämisestä prosessisuunnittelussa. Seuraavaksi haastateltiin kahdessa erityyppisessä case-projektissa mukana olleita henkilöitä ja muotoiltiin yleiset väittämät näihin projekteihin sopiviksi. Projekteissa mukana olleet henkilöt arvioivat väittämiä, ja näiden arvioiden perusteella projekteja vertailtiin keskenään. Lopussa esitetään johtopäätökset kaikkien väittämien arvioiden perusteella. Johtopäätöksenä voidaan todeta, että käyttötietämystä voidaan hyödyntää kaikissa suunnittelun vaiheissa, mutta paras hyöty saadaan perus- ja detaljisuunnittelussa. Käyttötietämyksellä voidaan vaikuttaa joihinkin prosessisuunnittelun laatukriteereihin, kuten esimerkiksi käytettävyyteen ja turvallisuuteen enemmän kuin muihin. Kemiralle suositellaan nykyisten tiedonhallintamenetelmien kehittämistä, jotta käyttötietämyksen saatavuus ja sen siirtäminen paranisi. Pr

Socially Competent Leadership - predictors, impacts and skilling in engineering

Earlier management studies have found a relationship between managerial qualities and subordinate impacts, but the effect of managers‘ social competence on leader perceptions has not been solidly established. To fill the related research gap, the present work embarks on a quantitative empirical effort to identify predictors of successful leadership. In particular, this study investigates relationships between perceived leader behavior and three selfreport instruments used to measure managerial capability: 1) the WOPI Work Personality Inventory, 2) Raven‘s general intelligence scale, and 3) the Emotive Communication Scale (ECS). This work complements previous research by resorting to both self-reports and other-reports: the results acquired from the managerial sample are compared to subordinate perceptions as measured through the ECS other-report and the WOPI360 multi-source appraisal. The quantitative research is comprised of a sample of 8o superiors and 354 subordinates operating in eight Finnish organizations. The strongest predictive value emerged from the ECS self- and other-reports and certain personality dimensions. In contrast, supervisors‘ logical intelligence did not correlate with leadership perceived as socially competent by subordinates. 16 of the superiors rated as most socially competent by their subordinates were selected for case analysis. Their qualitative narratives evidence the role of life history and post-traumatic growth in developing managerial skills. The results contribute to leadership theory in four ways. First, the ECS self-report devised for this research offers a reliable scale for predicting socially competent leader ability. Second, the work identifies dimensions of personality and emotive skills that can be considered predictors of managerial ability and benefited from in leader recruitment and career planning. Third, the Emotive Communication Model delineated on the basis of the empirical data allows for a systematic design and planning of communication and leadership education. Fourth, this workfurthers understanding of personal growth strategies and the role of life history in leader development and training. Finally, this research advances educational leadership by conceptualizing and operationalizing effective managerial communications. The Emotive Communication Model devised directs the pedagogic attention in engineering to assertion, emotional availability and inspiration skills. The proposed methodology addresses classroom management strategies drawing from problem-based learning, student empowerment, collaborative learning, and so-called socially competent teachership founded on teacher immediacy and perceived caring, all constituting strategies moving away from student compliance and teacher modelling. The ultimate educational objective embraces the development of individual engineers and organizational leaders that not only possess traditional analytical and technical expertise and substantive knowledge but are intelligent also creatively, practically, and socially.

Organisational learning and knowledge acquisition. A case study of internationalising manufacturers of wood-based prefabricated buildings

The study investigates organisational learning and knowledge acquisition of wood-based prefabricated building manufacturers. This certain group of case companies was chosen, because their management and their employees generally have a strong manufacturing and engineering background, while the housing sector is characterised by national norms, regulations, as well as local building styles. Considering this setting, it was investigated, how the case companies develop organisational learning capabilities, acquire and transfer knowledge for their internationalisation. The theoretical framework of this study constitutes the knowledge-based conceptualisation of internationalisation, which combines the traditional internationalisation process, as well as the international new venture perspective based on their commonalities in the knowledge-based view of the firm. Different theories of internationalisation, including the network-perspective, were outlined and a framework on organisational learning and knowledge acquisition was established. The empirical research followed a qualitative approach, deploying a multiple-case study with five case companies from Austria, Finland and Germany. In the study, the development of the wood-based prefabricated building industry and of the case companies are described, and the motives, facilitators and challenges for foreign expansion, as well as the companies’ internationalisation approaches are compared. Different methods of how companies facilitate the knowledge-exchange or learn about new markets are also outlined. Experience, market knowledge and personal contacts are considered essential for the internationalisation process. The major finding of the study is that it is not necessary to acquire the market knowledge internally in a slow process as proposed by the Uppsala model. In four cases companies engaged knowledge in symbiotic relations with local business partners. Thereby, the building manufacturers contribute their design and production capabilities, and in return, their local partners provide them with knowledge about the market and local regulations; while they manage the sales and construction operations. Thus, the study provides strong evidence for the propositions of network perspective. One case company developed the knowledge internally in a gradual process: it entered the market sequentially with several business lines, showing an increasing level of complexity. In both of the observed strategies, single-loop and double-loop learning processes occurred.

Improving the competitiveness of electrolytic Zinc process by chemical reaction engineering approach

This doctoral thesis describes the development work performed on the leachand purification sections in the electrolytic zinc plant in Kokkola to increase the efficiency in these two stages, and thus the competitiveness of the plant. Since metallic zinc is a typical bulk product, the improvement of the competitiveness of a plant was mostly an issue of decreasing unit costs. The problems in the leaching were low recovery of valuable metals from raw materials, and that the available technology offered complicated and expensive processes to overcome this problem. In the purification, the main problem was consumption of zinc powder - up to four to six times the stoichiometric demand. This reduced the capacity of the plant as this zinc is re-circulated through the electrolysis, which is the absolute bottleneck in a zinc plant. Low selectivity gave low-grade and low-value precipitates for further processing to metallic copper, cadmium, cobalt and nickel. Knowledge of the underlying chemistry was poor and process interruptions causing losses of zinc production were frequent. Studies on leaching comprised the kinetics of ferrite leaching and jarosite precipitation, as well as the stability of jarosite in acidic plant solutions. A breakthrough came with the finding that jarosite could precipitate under conditions where ferrite would leach satisfactorily. Based on this discovery, a one-step process for the treatment of ferrite was developed. In the plant, the new process almost doubled the recovery of zinc from ferrite in the same equipment as the two-step jarosite process was operated in at that time. In a later expansion of the plant, investment savings were substantial compared to other technologies available. In the solution purification, the key finding was that Co, Ni, and Cu formed specific arsenides in the “hot arsenic zinc dust” step. This was utilized for the development of a three-step purification stage based on fluidized bed technology in all three steps, i.e. removal of Cu, Co and Cd. Both precipitation rates and selectivity increased, which strongly decreased the zinc powder consumption through a substantially suppressed hydrogen gas evolution. Better selectivity improved the value of the precipitates: cadmium, which caused environmental problems in the copper smelter, was reduced from 1-3% reported normally down to 0.05 %, and a cobalt cake with 15 % Co was easily produced in laboratory experiments in the cobalt removal. The zinc powder consumption in the plant for a solution containing Cu, Co, Ni and Cd (1000, 25, 30 and 350 mg/l, respectively), was around 1.8 g/l; i.e. only 1.4 times the stoichiometric demand – or, about 60% saving in powder consumption. Two processes for direct leaching of the concentrate under atmospheric conditions were developed, one of which was implemented in the Kokkola zinc plant. Compared to the existing pressure leach technology, savings were obtained mostly in investment. The scientific basis for the most important processes and process improvements is given in the doctoral thesis. This includes mathematical modeling and thermodynamic evaluation of experimental results and hypotheses developed. Five of the processes developed in this research and development program were implemented in the plant and are still operated. Even though these processes were developed with the focus on the plant in Kokkola, they can also be implemented at low cost in most of the zinc plants globally, and have thus a great significance in the development of the electrolytic zinc process in general.

Reframing the relationship between service design and operations: a service engineering approach

The significance of services as business and human activities has increased dramatically throughout the world in the last three decades. Becoming a more and more competitive and efficient service provider while still being able to provide unique value opportunities for customers requires new knowledge and ideas. Part of this knowledge is created and utilized in daily activities in every service organization, but not all of it, and therefore an emerging phenomenon in the service context is information awareness. Terms like big data and Internet of things are not only modern buzz-words but they are also describing urgent requirements for a new type of competences and solutions. When the amount of information increases and the systems processing information become more efficient and intelligent, it is the human understanding and objectives that may get separated from the automated processes and technological innovations. This is an important challenge and the core driver for this dissertation: What kind of information is created, possessed and utilized in the service context, and even more importantly, what information exists but is not acknowledged or used? In this dissertation the focus is on the relationship between service design and service operations. Reframing this relationship refers to viewing the service system from the architectural perspective. The selected perspective allows analysing the relationship between design activities and operational activities as an information system while maintaining the tight connection to existing service research contributions and approaches. This type of an innovative approach is supported by research methodology that relies on design science theory. The methodological process supports the construction of a new design artifact based on existing theoretical knowledge, creation of new innovations and testing the design artifact components in real service contexts. The relationship between design and operations is analysed in the health care and social care service systems. The existing contributions in service research tend to abstract services and service systems as value creation, working or interactive systems. This dissertation adds an important information processing system perspective to the research. The main contribution focuses on the following argument: Only part of the service information system is automated and computerized, whereas a significant part of information processing is embedded in human activities, communication and ad-hoc reactions. The results indicate that the relationship between service design and service operations is more complex and dynamic than the existing scientific and managerial models tend to view it. Both activities create, utilize, mix and share information, making service information management a necessary but relatively unknown managerial task. On the architectural level, service system -specific elements seem to disappear, but access to more general information elements and processes can be found. While this dissertation focuses on conceptual-level design artifact construction, the results provide also very practical implications for service providers. Personal, visual and hidden activities of service, and more importantly all changes that take place in any service system have also an information dimension. Making this information dimension visual and prioritizing the processed information based on service dimensions is likely to provide new opportunities to increase activities and provide a new type of service potential for customers.

Enhancing business-to-business relationship through value co-creation in traditional business sector: A case of building services engineering

This study discusses the significance of having service as a business logic, and more specifically, how value co-creation can be seen as an enhancing phenomenon to business-to-business relationships in traditional business sector. The purpose of this study is to investigate how value cocreation can enhance a business-to-business relationship in the heating, ventilation and airconditioning (HVAC) industry of building services engineering, through three sub-objectives: to identify what is value in the industry, how value is co-created in the industry, and what is value in a business-to-business relationship in the industry. The theoretical part this study consists of academic knowledge and literature related to the concepts of value, value co-creation and business-to-business relationships. In order to research value co-creation and business-to-business relationships in HVAC industry of building services engineering both, metaphorical and conceptual thinking of service dominant (S-D) logic and more managerial approach of service logic (SL), contributed to the theoretical part of the study. The empirical research conducted for this study is based on seven semi-structured interviews, which constituted the holistic, qualitative single case study method chosen for the research. The data was collected in September 2014 from CEOs, managers and owners representing six building services engineering firms. The interviews were analysed with the help of transcriptions, role-ordered matrices and thematic networks. The findings of this study indicate that value in HVAC industry consists of client expertise and supplier expertise. The result of applying client expertise and supplier expertise to the business-to- business relationship is characterized as value-in-reputation, when continuity, interaction, learning and rapport of the business relationship are ensured. As a result, value co-creation in the industry consists of mutual and separate elements, which the client and the supplier apply in the process, in addition to proactive interaction. The findings of this study, together with the final framework, enhance the understanding of the connection existing between value co-creation and business-to-business relationship. The findings suggest that value in the HVAC industry is characterized by both value-in-use and value-inreputation. Value-in-reputation enhances the formation of value-in-use, and consequently, value cocreation enhances the business-to-business relationship. This study thus contributes to the existing knowledge on the concepts of value and value co-creation in business-to-business relationships.