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Design science research (DSR) aims to generate knowledge about innovative solutions to real-world problems. Consequently, DSR needs to deal with the complexity related to problem and solution spaces involving sociotechnical phenomena that people perceive differently and are subject to constant change. This complexity poses challenges to sequential, process-based approaches—specifically, the existing DSR methodology. We designed a DSR methodology that extends existing approaches by adding a complementary organizing logic to address complexity. Based on the theory of hierarchical, multilevel systems, we suggest organizing DSR based on the concept of "echelons"—meaning decomposing DSR projects into smaller logically coherent self-contained parts—and suggest a set of five design echelons that imply a hierarchical organizing logic for DSR projects. The echeloned DSR (eDSR) methodology was developed in five iterations, involving seven design and evaluation episodes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Changing customer requirements and turbulent markets require suitably adapted capabilities to proactively cope with rapid changes. Agile manufacturing emerged in the late 1990s as a competitive concept to respond to these business challenges. While several seminal research works address agility in terms of concept definition, drivers and strategic capabilities, there is a lack of implementation frameworks of agile manufacturing. The current paper is concerned with the question of how to improve the agility of manufacturing companies. To address this question, a framework is iteratively developed with the aim of supporting decision makers in planning and implementing agility improvement projects. To this end, Design Science Research (DSR) methodology is used in conjunction with CIMO-logic (Context, Intervention, Mechanism, Outcome). The iterative development of the framework relies heavily on insights from case studies and from practitioners in the broad manufacturing sector. The paper provides evidence of the validity of the framework as well as outlining further research perspectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Today's Information Systems (IS) design research projects pursue digital innovation to conquer complex societal challenges. Many of these projects reach out beyond disciplinary and organisational boundaries, as evident in interdisciplinary consortia and academia‐industry collaboration. The design activities in each project differ based on contextual requirements and the team's underlying design logic. As diversity increases, shared understanding is essential for project success. Established design research methodologies need complementary tools to support design researchers in configuring their design activities and representing them faithfully, dimensions that contribute to a shared understanding. This article presents Baustein as an instance of such design tools. Baustein is tailorable to the contextual requirements of each design research project, comprising an ensemble of card‐deck, ready‐made configurations, and a manual. To ensure theoretical and practical relevance, the design of Baustein is based on primary empirical data (workshop and interviews with 16 IS design researchers) and a literature analysis of 99 published IS design research projects. We demonstrate its proof‐of‐value through three main evaluation episodes, altogether involving over 110 IS design researchers. With Baustein, design research teams can balance the trade‐off between creative messiness and standardised configurations of design activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neuro-developmental disorder that results in narrow interest and impairments in communication and social relationships. Usually, unknown contexts generate anxiety and frustration in persons with ASD, and great impediment in accessing services, including health ones. This seriously compromises prevention and treatment interventions in different medical areas. Technology offers many opportunities for persons with ASD and can be used to act as a mediator, helping to manage communication and interpersonal relationships and to familiarize with the environment, especially in new contexts. Specifically, we used digital tools to reduce stress and anxiety while teaching adequate dental care to children with ASD (MyDentist project). To generalize the R&D approach, we followed in the context of the MyDentist project for its adoption for research and development of inclusive software in e-health. We analyze our design and development process using the three-cycle model proposed by Hevner: the relevance cycle, which connects design with the environment; the rigor cycle, which connects design with the grounding theory; and the design cycle, which builds and evaluates artifacts. We present the results obtained in the project and the lessons learned. Lessons are formalized as guidelines that are further validated by a focus group including experts and stakeholders. A set of guidelines which can drive software development and research in similar contexts. Our research will benefit e-health researchers to perform rigorous and relevant Design Science Research. It will also inform software developers of e-health solutions and healthcare professionals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the digital paradigm stimulates changes in various areas, seaports, which are fundamental to logistics and the global supply chain, are also undergoing a digital revolution, evolving into smart ports. Smart gates are essential components in this transformation, playing a vital role in increasing port efficiency. In the context of smart gates, the aim of this study is to understand how process management can serve as a catalyst for digital transformation, promoting efficiency in traffic flow and logistics. To achieve this objective, the design science research (DSR) methodology was followed, which allowed for the integration of information from several sources of requirement, encompassing both theoretical and practical aspects. The practical component took place at one of Portugal's largest container terminals, which allowed for the integration of information from various sources. As a result, this study presents the conceptual definition of a smart gate in terms of processes, main technologies, and key performance indicators that will support the monitoring and improvement of future operations. The results provide theoretical and practical contributions: on a practical level, they present a real application of the transformation towards a smart gate, serving as a model for other ports in their digitalization; on a theoretical level, they enrich the literature with a methodology for digitalizing maritime road gates, showing how the use of process management approaches, such as the BPMN, can increase operational efficiency in container terminals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Design Science (DS) is a relatively new paradigm for addressing complex real-world problems through the design and evaluation of artifacts. Its constituent methodologies are currently being discussed and established in numerous related research fields, such as information systems and management (Hevner et al., 2004). However, a DS methodology that describes the "how to" is largely lacking, not only in the field of OM but in general. The Theory of Constraints (TOC) and its underlying thinking processes (TP) have produced several novel artifacts for addressing ill-structured real-world operations problems (Dettmer, 1997; Goldratt, 1994), but they have not been analyzed from a DS research standpoint. The purpose of this research is to demonstrate how TOC's thinking process methodology can be used for conducting exploratory DS research in Operations and Supply Chain Management (OSCM). Design/methodology/approach: A case study of spare parts replenishment illustrates the use of TOC's thinking processes in DS to structure an initially unstructured problem context and to facilitate the design of a novel solution. Findings: TOC's thinking processes are an effective methodology for problem-solving DS research, enabling the development of novel solutions in initially unstructured and wicked problem situations. Combined with structured CIMO design logic TOC's thinking process offers a systematic method for exploring wicked problems, designing novel solutions, and demonstrating theoretical contributions. Research limitations/implications: The implication for research is that TOC's thinking process methodology can provide important elements of the lacking "how to" methodology for DS research, not only for the field of OM but in general for the field of management. Practical implications: The practical outcome of the research is a novel design for dynamic buffer-based replenishment that extends beyond organizational boundaries. Originality/value: This work shows how the thinking processes can be used in DS research to develop rigorous design propositions for ill-structured problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In today's dynamic business environment, organizations constantly change their business models to respond to emerging digital technologies and shifting customer expectations. It is a fundamental challenge to translate these changes into the organization's operating model. When organizations redesign their business models, significant adjustments to the operating model and its underlying business processes are necessary to ensure the effective delivery of the value proposition to customers. Existing research falls short in detailing how changes to the business model at the tactical level impact the operating model at the operational level. To address this gap, this paper introduces the Compass Method. This method provides guidance for decision-makers at the tactical and operational levels in identifying necessary changes to their operating model using a set of operating model design cards. The method has been developed following the design science research methodology and is grounded in extant knowledge from both business model research and process management research. Three rounds of design and evaluation of the method were completed in multiple settings. The study contributes to the understanding of the relationship between business models, operating models, and business processes, paving the way for the development of complementary methods and tools to further investigate this relationship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the continuing expansion of the Internet of Things (IoT) and its possible development as a source of audit evidence for both internal and external audits. In other words, the auditor checks whether a measure (metric) related to classifying and prioritizing requests and/or incidents is available in the enterprise's current incident reporting system. This approach uses Design Science Research and is based on the use of auditing standards and frameworks to drive the design of audit plans using metrics available on or derived from the enterprise IoT. This study extends the research on enterprise IoT and its potential application to the enterprise audit process. It provides a framework that illustrates how both internal and external auditors can reasonably assure the provenance and validity of enterprise IoT data while also evaluating the security and controls surrounding its production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The benefits of teacher-facing dashboards are incontestable, yet their evidence is finite in terms of long-term use, meaningful usability, and maturity level. Thus, this paper uses design science research and critical theory to design and develop TEADASH to support teachers in making decisions on teaching and learning. Three cycles of design science research and multiple small loops were implemented to develop the dashboard. The tool was then deployed and evaluated in real time with the authentic courses. Five courses from two Swedish universities were included in this study. The co-design with teachers is crucial to the applicability of this dashboard, while letting teachers use the tool during their courses is more important to help them to recognize the features they actually use and the tool's usefulness for their teaching practices. TEADASH can address the prior matters, align with the learning design, and meet teachers' needs. The technical and co-design aspects, as well as the advantages and challenges of applying TEADASH in practice, are also discussed here. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Sustainability in food supply chains is desired for production, logistics, and waste management. However, food supply chains (SCs) have complex systems that differ from other SCs. Managing such complexities is challenging for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) due to their heightened constraints, such as limited resources and inadequate awareness. Despite the challenges, there is fragmented research, understanding, and approaches to assist SMEs. SC designs need to be adapted so that SMEs can navigate the challenges and avert high wastage. The main objective of this research was to identify the practices influencing sustainable SC designs in a developing country and create a simulation model to illustrate the potential benefits and challenges of promoting sustainability in the banana SC in Malawi. Methods: Mixed-methods research was utilised, employing a literature review, participant interviews, observations, and survey data collected from 353 participants from three districts in Malawi to gain insight into the banana SC problem, establish objectives, and develop a simulation model complemented by design science research. Results: The research identified awareness, collaboration, efficiency, governance, knowledge sharing, and resilience as sustainability practices in the case study banana SC, thus forming a sustainability model. Simulation results showed improvements in key performance indicators like shelf-life, lead-time, quality, throughput, and waste through SC operation reorganisation. Conclusions: Sustainable models must be tailored to the specific challenges inherent in developing food supply chains in developing nations. The development of the models has significant managerial implications, notably enhancing strategic planning, operational efficiency, risk management, alignment of sustainability goals, performance monitoring, stakeholder engagement, and resource optimisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several efforts have been undertaken to define generic guidelines that address specific gaps in the ‘build’ activity of Design Science Research (DSR) artifacts, i.e., constructs, models, methods and frameworks, and instantiations. Unfortunately, explicit guidance is still lacking on how to coherently operationalize such guidelines when building a DSR artifact, particularly a framework. In addition, there is no an elaborate procedure or logical thinking pattern that can be followed when building a DSR artifact, particularly a framework for solving an unstructured problem. Consequently, structural compositions of some artifacts insufficiently subscribe to several general design guidelines, which often hinders the artifacts from fulfilling their intended purposes. To address this gap, Soft Systems Methodology can be leveraged during the design cycle of a DSR initiative, to elaborate the ‘build’ activity and simultaneously support the coherent operationalization of existing general design guidelines. This is demonstrated herein by presenting a Technique of Building Frameworks for guiding Interventions against unstructured problems (TBUFI). From 2011 to 2023, TBUFI has undergone 11 evaluation iterations, which involved: (a) using it to support the building of frameworks for guiding digital interventions in ten research studies; and (b) engaging information systems specialists in a group walkthrough meeting to deliberate its structural composition. Evaluation iterations since 2011 (including feedback from information systems specialists) confirm TBUFI’s ability to successfully guide the design of frameworks that can direct interventions against complex and unstructured problems, by making their ‘build’ activity more elaborate, coherent, and aligned with existing general design guidelines. Thus, TBUFI can be perceived as a supplement for the ‘build’ activity in DSR.

This study developed and evaluated a mobile application for infrastructure rental at the Quality Assurance Agency for Education (BPMP) in West Papua using the Design Science Research (DSR) approach in the field of Information Systems (IS). This application, the first designed specifically for the needs of BPMP West Papua and integrated with the existing system, was assessed based on usability and user acceptance through interviews, black box testing, and effectiveness testing using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) with the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) approach. The black box testing results indicated successful application development. Evaluation with 64 respondents through hypothesis testing showed that social influence and technological anxiety significantly affect attitudes toward accepting the use of the application. This highlights the importance of considering these factors for the successful implementation of the mobile application at BPMP West Papua, potentially enhancing the efficiency of infrastructure rental.

New political objectives, emerging regulatory regimes for the digital sphere, and higher penalties for violations have intensified the pressure to develop lawful IT artefacts. As the adaptation of existing IT artefacts to new regulations can be expensive and arduous, a more attractive approach would be to design IT artefacts lawfully from the beginning. A major challenge is that the law is generally technology-neutral, and lawful design requires legal expertise throughout the development, which is costly and time consuming due to communication challenges between legal experts and developers. One possible approach to proactively consider IT regulations in the systems development is design patterns that convey legal design knowledge and support developers in determining the appropriate design options. Consequently, we develop a framework for lawful design patterns and demonstrate their feasibility and advantages using the example of developing AI-based assistants and the regulation of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Using the design pattern framework, we develop design patterns for lawful AI-based assistants and evaluate them using (a) an experimental approach to show the usefulness of the patterns for developers and (b) rely on a legal simulation study to holistically evaluate how design patterns contribute to lawful IT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sustainable operational excellence (OPEX) initiatives result in a competitive advantage by optimising the use of resources, contributing to profitability, and leading to expanded growth of organisations. OPEX being a practice-led initiative has no standard framework leading to sustainable OPEX efforts in organisations. In this study, we employ the Design Science Research (DSR) approach to develop a framework to assess the sustainability of OPEX initiatives in an organisation. The proposed framework evaluates OPEX initiatives based on operational, economic, environmental, and social sustainability criteria. Besides, the enablers for the sustainability of OPEX initiatives are identified. The enablers, as well as multidimensional assessment criteria of OPEX initiatives, help the organisation develop a methodological approach for implementing sustainable OPEX solutions. The current success rate for OPEX initiatives in organisations has been dismally poor, and the proposed framework will help improve the success of OPEX efforts. Practitioners can use the proposed framework first to assess their organisational readiness in terms of enablers before implementing OPEX initiatives and evaluate qualitatively and quantitatively to obtain a multidimensional perspective for sustainable solutions. The frameworks proposed in prior studies are predominantly conceptual. This study used the DSR methodology to demonstrate the validity of the proposed framework. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Circularity is becoming increasingly important for Distribution System Operators (DSOs) as their infrastructure ages and needs replacement, alongside compliance with stringent environmental regulations like the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD). However, implementing circular economy (CE) practices is challenging due to the fragmented nature of the current CE landscape and its limited interaction with practical application. A longitudinal case study at the Dutch DSO, Liander, focusing on the circularity of distribution transformers, was conducted to generate prescriptive knowledge on operationalizing circularity. This resulted in the formulation of six design propositions for circular action that suggest to (1) initiate small-scale circularity experiments; (2) involve technical and strategic experts; (3) synergize circularity with more urgent, primary goals; (4) translate circular initiatives bottom-up and top-down; (5) collaborate with other DSOs; and (6) create multidisciplinary teams. The propositions suggest to situationally select interventions and build upon the outcomes of previous interventions in order to incrementally contribute to circular change. Other DSOs could use these propositions to optimize their strategy toward circular action. Additionally, the findings contribute to advancing scientific knowledge to implementable actions in order to initiate and sustain circular change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Serious games (SGs) represent promising digital learning tools. However, SG design frameworks frequently lack a comprehensive integration of pedagogical considerations, which might explain the observed variance in SG effectiveness. To address this research gap, we use a design science research approach to develop a mid-range design theory that translates pedagogy into SG design. We exemplify and empirically evaluate the application of our design theory with an SG designed for intercultural competency development with good results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the defense and security domain, scenarios are often descriptions of stakeholder needs, future events, and the environment. They are used for the elicitation of requirements in development of capabilities, organizations, and technical systems. In the conceptual design of aerospace applications, models of scenarios can also represent and communicate a problem-space, enabling trade-space exploration and system effectiveness robustness analysis, which provide valuable input to decision-makers. This study utilizes design science to develop a scenario framework for solution-agnostic representations of a problem-space for use in aerospace conceptual design- and trade-space exploration. A scenario ontology is developed, describing the constituent concepts of scenarios and their relationships, followed by a method for creating scenarios and evaluating their validity. Within the EU project COLOSSUS, it is demonstrated that the scenario framework has utility both for market-pull and technology-push conceptual design. Establishing an ontology for scenarios and a method for creating them as well as evaluating their validity is another step in improving the aerospace conceptual design phase. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides an empirical and conceptual account on seeing machine learning models as part of a sociotechnical system to identify relevant vulnerabilities emerging in the context of use. As ML is increasingly adopted in socially sensitive and safety-critical domains, many ML applications end up not delivering on their promises, and contributing to new forms of algorithmic harm. There is still a lack of empirical insights as well as conceptual tools and frameworks to properly understand and design for the impact of ML models in their sociotechnical context. In this paper, we follow a design science research approach to work towards such insights and tools. We center our study in the financial industry, where we first empirically map recently emerging MLOps practices to govern ML applications, and corroborate our insights with recent literature. We then perform an integrative literature research to identify a long list of vulnerabilities that emerge in the sociotechnical context of ML applications, and we theorize these along eight dimensions. We then perform semi-structured interviews in two real-world use cases and across a broad set of relevant actors and organizations, to validate the conceptual dimensions and identify challenges to address sociotechnical vulnerabilities in the design and governance of ML-based systems. The paper proposes a set of guidelines to proactively and integrally address both the dimensions of sociotechnical vulnerability, as well as the challenges identified in the empirical use case research, in the organization of MLOps practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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A blockchain is a distributed database that contains the records of transactions that are shared among all members of a community. Most members must confirm each and every transaction in order for a fraudulent transaction to fail to occur. As a rule, once a record is created and accepted by the blockchain, it cannot be altered or deleted by anyone. This study focuses on improving the investigation task in the database forensics field by utilizing blockchain technology. To this end, a novel conceptual framework is proposed for the forensic analysis of data from database systems engaging blockchain technology. This is the first time that blockchain technology is followed in database forensics for the purpose of tracing digital evidence. The design science research method was adopted to accomplish the objectives of the present study. The findings displayed that with the developed forensics framework, the data regarding database incidents could be gathered and analyzed in a more efficient manner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While blood is crucial for many surgeries and patient treatments worldwide, it cannot be produced artificially. Fulfilling the demand for blood products on average days is already a major challenge in countries like South Africa and Ghana. In these countries, less than 1 % of the population donates blood and most of the donations come from first-time donors who do not return. Sufficient new, first-time and even lapsed donors must be motivated to donate regularly. This study argues that blood donation behavior change support systems (BDBCSS) can be beneficially applied to support blood donor management in African countries. In this study, the design science research (DSR) approach is applied in order to derive generic design principles for BDBCSS and instantiate the design knowledge in prototypes for a blood donation app and a chatbot. The design principles were evaluated in a field study in South Africa. The results demonstrate the positive effects of BDBCSS on users' intentional and developmental blood donation behavior. This study contributes to research and practice by proposing a new conceptualization of blood donation information systems support and a nascent design theory for BDBCSS that builds on behavioral theories as well as related work on blood donation information systems. Thus, the study provides valuable implications for designing preventive health BCSS by stating three design principles for a concrete application context in healthcare. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Action Design Research (ADR) is a well-known research method within Design Science Research (DSR). An essential characteristic of the ADR method is the need for researcher-practitioner collaboration (RPC). While there is abundant research on RPC regarding information systems projects in general concerning explanatory and normative knowledge, there is very limited prescriptive knowledge on how to execute RPC in ADR projects. Successful collaboration in ADR projects is imperative since the development of socio-technical IT artefacts requires frequent interaction in organisational contexts. However, RPC can be hard to manage due to competing interests. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to present prescriptive knowledge for how to manage RPC. We have analysed a collaborative ADR project consisting of several researchers and practitioners. Based on a grounded theory approach, we have developed theoretical models based on challenges identified in an ADR project. The models provide prescriptive knowledge regarding: shape the IT artefact based on organisational intervention, exploit the mutual dependency between developing design principles and IT artefacts, and contextualise and generalise learning. Each model involves logical relationships between: conditions for the challenges, actions taken to address the challenges and consequences of the actions taken. The guidelines were deducted from the models and consist of recommendations that could be considered in future ADR projects.

Modern artificial intelligence (AI) is heavily reliant on deep learning (DL), an emerging class of algorithms that can automatically detect non-trivial patterns from petabytes of rapidly evolving "Big Data." Although the information systems (IS) discipline has embraced DL, questions remain about DL's interface with a domain and theory and DL contribution types. In this paper, we present a DL information systems research (DL-ISR) schematic that reviews DL while considering the role of the application environment and knowledge base, summarizes extant DL research in IS, a knowledge contribution framework (KCF) to position DL contributions, and ten guidelines to help IS scholars design, execute, and present DL for computational, behavioral, or economic IS research. We illustrate a research contribution to DL for cybersecurity. This article's contribution to theory resides in the conceptual DL-ISR schematic and KCF, while its contributions to practice are based on its practical guidelines for executing DL-based projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teams working on creative projects, such as design thinking, mostly face complex problems as well as challenging situations characterized by uniqueness and value conflicts. To cope with these characteristics, teams usually start doing something by drawing on their current store of experiences and professional knowledge, and then (re-)assess the outcomes produced, and adjust future actions based on insights obtained during the process. In reflecting on actions, tacit knowledge is revealed that enables designers to handle challenging situations. Although there is great potential to support design thinking by adding a reflection lens, we lack guidance on how, when, and on what to perform reflection. Based on scientific and theoretical literature, semi-structured interviews, a case study and a software prototype, prescriptive design knowledge on how to integrate reflection into design thinking is deduced, which enriches the scarce body of knowledge at the intersection of reflection and (digital) design thinking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years the use of Design Science Research (DSR), a research methodology that has proved fruitful in various domains, has expanded. This contribution shows how the fundamentals of DSR translate into the field of applied psychology and how they might offer formal grounding to novel psychological approaches. The validatory value of DSR is illustrated by applying its methodology to the case of solution-focused psychology. This leads to an articulation of the solution-focused approach that allows to be tested along the lines set out by DSR. Finally, recommendations are given for the use of DSR in applied psychology.

Workshop digitalisation (WD) provides a rich supply of real-time production data to achieve efficient manufacturing operations management (MOM). However, if data quality (DQ) cannot be ensured, manufacturing enterprises will not benefit from WD despite the resources invested. This study proposes a new method to evaluate the effect of WD from a data quality (DQ) perspective and identifies the root causes of WD failures at the operational level by information stream analysis based on an extended value stream mapping 4.0 (VSM4.0). The method is developed through a Design Science Research (DSR) approach and tested in an automobile parts manufacturer in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]