Information systems contracts and relationships: A Spanish perspective

Despite the proliferation of academic research on information systems outsourcing, not many studies analyze the characteristics of outsourcing contracts. This research aims to provide an in-depth description of information systems outsourcing. An additional objective is to examine how these characteristics evolve over time. Finally, this study reports on the usefulness of measuring such characteristics over time to assess the maturity level of the information systems outsourcing. This study gathers the data from the responses of the information systems managers of the largest Spanish firms to a questionnaire. This longitudinal study covers 12 years of research and compares authors' previous research results with the results of this study.

Implementation Feasibility of a Digital Nervous System for the Construction Industry: For Efficient and Effective Information Management across the Project Lifecycle

The construction industry has long been considered as highly fragmented and non-collaborative industry. This fragmentation sprouted from complex and unstructured traditional coordination processes and information exchanges amongst all parties involved in a construction project. This nature coupled with risk and uncertainty has pushed clients and their supply chain to search for new ways of improving their business process to deliver better quality and high performing product. This research will closely investigate the need to implement a Digital Nervous System (DNS), analogous to a biological nervous system, on the flow and management of digital information across the project lifecycle. This will be through direct examination of the key processes and information produced in a construction project and how a DNS can provide a well-integrated flow of digital information throughout the project lifecycle. This research will also investigate how a DNS can create a tight digital feedback loop that enables the organisation to sense, react and adapt to changing project conditions. A Digital Nervous System is a digital infrastructure that provides a well-integrated flow of digital information to the right part of the organisation at the right time. It provides the organisation with the relevant and up-to-date information it needs, for critical project issues, to aid in near real-time decision-making. Previous literature review and survey questionnaires were used in this research to collect and analyse data about information management problems of the industry – e.g. disruption and discontinuity of digital information flow due to interoperability issues, disintegration/fragmentation of the adopted digital solutions and paper-based transactions. Results analysis revealed efficient and effective information management requires the creation and implementation of a DNS.

Empowering global software development with business intelligence

Context: Global Software Development (GSD) allows companies to take advantage of talent spread across the world. Most research has been focused on the development aspect. However, little if any attention has been paid to the management of GSD projects. Studies report a lack of adequate support for management’s decisions made during software development, further accentuated in GSD since information is scattered throughout multiple factories, stored in different formats and standards. Objective: This paper aims to improve GSD management by proposing a systematic method for adapting Business Intelligence techniques to software development environments. This would enhance the visibility of the development process and enable software managers to make informed decisions regarding how to proceed with GSD projects. Method: A combination of formal goal-modeling frameworks and data modeling techniques is used to elicitate the most relevant aspects to be measured by managers in GSD. The process is described in detail and applied to a real case study throughout the paper. A discussion regarding the generalisability of the method is presented afterwards. Results: The application of the approach generates an adapted BI framework tailored to software development according to the requirements posed by GSD managers. The resulting framework is capable of presenting previously inaccessible data through common and specific views and enabling data navigation according to the organization of software factories and projects in GSD. Conclusions: We can conclude that the proposed systematic approach allows us to successfully adapt Business Intelligence techniques to enhance GSD management beyond the information provided by traditional tools. The resulting framework is able to integrate and present the information in a single place, thereby enabling easy comparisons across multiple projects and factories and providing support for informed decisions in GSD management.

Offshoring of Information-intensive Services: Structural Breaks in Industry Life Cycles. ACES Working Papers, August 2010

The emergence of widespread offshoring of information-intensive services is arguably one of the more impactful phenomena to transform business in the last ten years. A growing body of research has examined the firm-level drivers andlocation factors (i.e., the why's and where's) of services offshoring. However, little empirical research has examined the maturation sequencing (or when's) of services offshoring. Adopting industry life cycle theory as a framework, the key research questions examined in the paper are: when do different categories of offshoring services provision change from being emergent sectors to more mature ones, and how does the timing of this sequence relate to the type of service offshored. Using a database of 1420 offshore services FDI projects, we find that the value-add as well as the information sensitivity of the service category are related to when the service categories progress through the industry life cycle. Implications for future waves of service offshoring are discussed.

Scio Township and Lima Township (Mich.) residences and business, ca. 1874

Res. of E.H. Keyes, Sec. 34, Lima Tp. Mich.; Res. of Mrs. N.O. Goodale, Delhi Village, Mich.; Res. and Fouring Mills of Henry Osborn, Sec. 12, Scio Tp. Mich.; Res. of Jacob Jedele, Sec.29, Scio Tp. Mich.; Res. of James Osborn, Sec. 12, Scio Tp. Mich.; Res. of B.W. Waite, Sec. 16, Scio Tp. Mich. Publication information: Chicago, Ill. : Everts & Stewart, 1874.

Sharon Tp., Ypsilanti, York and Ann Arbor (Mich.) residences and business, ca. 1874

Left to right: Res. of W.D. Morton, Sec. 16, York Tp. Mich.; Res. of John H. Schlicht, Sec. 36, Sharon Tp. Mich.; Res. of Geo. D. Wiard, Sec. 12, Ypsilanti Tp. Mich.; Res. of Emerson Annabil, Sec. 18, Sharon Tp., Mich.; Res. of John J. Robison, Sec. 22, Sharon Tp. Mich.; A.D. Seyler, Dealer in boots & shoes of every description, no. 6 N. Main St., Ann Arbor, Michigan. Publication information: Chicago, Ill. : Everts & Stewart, 1874.

Saline Township (Mich.) residences and business, ca. 1874

Left to right: Res. of Orange Risdon, Sec. 1, Saline Tp. Mich.; Res. of Andrew Bush, Sec. 3, Saline Tp. Mich.; Res. of Dudley Miller, Sec. 24, Saline Tp. Mich.; Saline Exchange, A. Harmon Prop, Saline, Mich.; Res. of Abram Davenport, Sec. 36, Saline Tp. Mich.; Res. of Milton Reynolds, Sec. 22, Saline Tp. Mich.; Res. of George Neissle, Sec. 12, Saline Tp. Mich.; Res. of Robert Hammond, Sec. 25, Saline Tp. Mich.; Res. of M. Himerdinger, Sec. 8, Saline Tp. Mich. Publication information: Chicago, Ill. : Everts & Stewart, 1874.

York Township (Mich.) residences and business, ca. 1874

Left to right: Res. of Geo. F. Richards, Sec. 16, York Tp. Mich.; Res. of Selden Orr, Sec. 16, York Tp. Mich.; Res. of John Coe, Sec. 3, York Tp. Mich.; Res. of E. Pearson, Sec. 11, York Tp. Mich.; Res. of Geo. Coe, Sec. 8, York Tp. Mich.; Milan House, Lyman Burnham, Proprietor, Milan, York Tp. Mich. Publication information: Chicago, Ill. : Everts & Stewart, 1874.

Saline & York Township (Mich.) residences and business, ca. 1874

Left to right: Res. of Henry A. Hammond, Sec. 26, Saline Tp. Mich.; Res. of Lewis Andrews, architect & builder, Saline, Mich.; Res. of E.C. Robinson, Saline Tp. Mich.; Res. of J.U. Fuller, Sec. 26 York Tp. Mich.; Res. of Daniel Aylsworth, Sec. 26, York Tp. Mich.; Res. of Wm. Dexter, Sec 26, York Tp. Mich.; Res. of Thos. H. Fuller, Sec. 24, York Tp. Mich. Publication information: Chicago, Ill. : Everts & Stewart, 1874.

Augusta Township (Mich.) residences and business, ca. 1874

Left to right: Res. of Addison Osborn, Sec. 32, Augusta Tp. Mich.; Res. of Hiram McCarty, Sec. 9, Augusta Tp. Mich.; Res. & saw mill of Geo. Moffit, Sec. 28, Augusta Tp. Mich.; Res. of Mrs. W.M. McGraw, Stony Creek P.O., Augusta Tp. Mich.; Res. of J.B. Olcott, Sec. 7, Augusta Tp. Mich.; Res. of Peter Dansingburg, Sec. 18, Augusta Tp. Mich. Publication information: Chicago, Ill. : Everts & Stewart, 1874.

Lyndon, Saline and Ann Arbor (Mich.) residences and business, ca. 1874

Left to right: Woodside Res. of N.B. Cole, Ann Arbor, Mich. for sale; Res. of John K. Yocum, Sec. 30, Lyndon Tp. Mich; Corner Main & Liberty Sts., Ann Arbor, Mich.; C. Parsons, dealer in dry goods, boots & shoes, hats, caps &c., Saline Mich. Publication information: Chicago, Ill. : Everts & Stewart, 1874.

Scio Township and Ann Arbor Township (Mich.) residences and business, ca. 1874

Left to right: Res. of J.T. Sullivan Esq., Sec. 27, Scio Tp., Mich.; Res. of Wm. C. Foster, Sec. 26, Scio Tp. Mich.; Res. of L.C. Risdon, Dealer in Hardware, No. 81 South Main St., Ann Arbor, Mich.; Res. of Dr. D.B. Kellogg, Ann Arbor, Mich.; Ann Arbor, Mich.; Res. of David Mowerson, Sec. 14, Ann Arbor Tp. Mich. Publication information: Chicago, Ill. : Everts & Stewart, 1874

Scene in front of Bus. Ad. Bldg. [Business Administration Building]

Lee Black & Kenneth Black, architects.

Business Administration from Lorch Hall

Lee Black & Kenneth Black, architects.