Search

Integrating information and communication technologies in teaching and learning is recognized as a relevant and promising practice. However, integration can be complex, tedious, and draining. We propose an innovative approach for enhancing teaching and learning in a simple, pleasant, and effective way: repurposing a virtual world platform to develop a simulation-based training. Minecraft Education, a virtual world platform, was used to develop a simulation-based training on agile project management. So far, 153 university students have applied the Scrum framework to execute a simulated project in Minecraft Education. Results show that students’ perceived learning is very positive and that their learning experience was stimulating and challenging. Recommendations are formulated to guide practitioners and teachers adopting and adapting a “readymade” virtual world platform for teaching and learning.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to develop a clear and generalizable conceptualization of project team momentum, as well as a detailed and engaging research agenda on this concept.Design/methodology/approachA literature review was conducted to achieve the study’s objectives. The review acknowledges the meanings that researchers in the field of sports have ascribed to the concept of momentum.FindingsThe paper develops a multidimensional (cognitive, affective and behavioral) conceptualization of project team momentum, as well as a conceptual framework that clearly distinguishes this construct from its antecedents and consequences.Research limitations/implicationsThe paper encourages researchers to adopt the proposed conceptualization of project team momentum and to investigate the questions proposed in the research agenda.Originality/valueThe paper develops a strong conceptual basis for a concept that is highly relevant to, but currently not well-understood in, the project management domain. The proposed conceptualization is likely to contribute to the development of a sound theory of project team dynamics and project success.

Robust information technology infrastructures (ITI) are essential for organizations since they are the heart of almost every organization and are considered as key assets that play strategic roles and affect organizational performance. To cope with the effects of technological evolution, IT managers must have an articulated vision of their ITI as well as the ability to acquire, deploy, combine and reconfigure their ITI, i.e. dynamic IT capabilities. However, the underlying organizational actions of dynamic IT capabilities are difficult to identify and to circumscribe. Drawing on a Delphi study involving 29 IT management experts, this study has identified key organizational actions deployed to overcome the challenges related to the constant and rapid technological evolution to be agile. Overall, the experts emphasized the importance of collaboration, open culture, competencies, roadmap, standardization and monitoring of ITI to overcome the challenges and exploit the opportunities related to the constant and rapid technological evolution while fostering organizational agility.

Public sector organizations (PSOs) are facing important structural, financial, environmental, and technological pressures. To adapt and respond to this complex and changing environment, PSOs need to deploy new innovative and collaborative approaches to capture and capitalize on specialized knowledge coming from a wider number of contributors. Open innovation (OI) is one such promising approach. Drawing on a dynamic capabilities perspective and based on an analysis of 100 case study reports of OI initiatives, we identified 16 key organizational actions deployed by PSOs to implement OI initiatives. Data analysis showed that PSOs’ dynamic capabilities of sensing, seizing and transforming are enacted and collectively used to engage in OI initiatives through these 16 organizational actions. In virtually all of these organizational actions, information technology (IT) plays a key role either as a central support tool or as an outcome.

Managing information technology infrastructures (ITI) in an effective manner represents a major challenge for any organization and even more for public sector organizations (PSOs) that often lack IT resources and are constrained by tight budgets. Despite the importance of these challenges for practitioners, there is a limited number of studies in this field. Applying the organizational ambidexterity (AO) lens to analyze IT managers’ practices of ITI in public sector, with a specific emphasis on sourcing practices, the present study seeks to fill this gap. We present the outcomes of a Delphi study that involved 40 ITI experts from three sectors: public, private, and academic. Public sector practices of exploration-for-exploitation sourcing are discussed in this paper.

While meetings are a frequently used management tool, they also tend to be costly and less effective than desired. Multicommunication in meetings (Meeting MC)—being simultaneously engaged both in an organizational meeting and in one or more technology-mediated secondary conversations—has become increasingly prevalent and can affect meeting outcomes. Based on Goffman’s dramaturgical lens, media synchronicity, and compartmentalization, the present study examines how the outcomes of engaging in Meeting MC are affected by three key factors: Locus (the location of the people with whom one engages in a second conversation), Meeting Medium (the technology used to conduct a meeting), and Topic Relatedness (whether the topics being discussed in a meeting are related to the second conversation). Analyses of survey data suggest that how these three factors and their interactions affect meetings when Meeting MC occurs vary depending on whether a meeting is face-to-face (FTF) or technology-mediated.

In the face of rapid and constant technological evolution, the management of IT infrastructures in an effective and sustainable manner represents a major challenge for any organization and even more for public sector organizations (PSOs) who often lack IT resources and expertise. PSOs are social and economic actors who must spend taxpayers' money in a responsible and efficient manner. Despite the importance of these challenges for practitioners and academics alike, there is a limited number of studies in this field. The present study seeks to fill this gap through a systematic review of the literature followed by a Delphi study. Outcomes of this literature review are presented along with preliminary results of a Delphi study realized with 40 IT infrastructure experts.

La gestion de l’infrastructure technologique represente tout un casse-tete pour les organisations qui veulent accroitre leur efficacite operationnelle. Apercu des defis inherents a l’evolution technologique et des strategies a deployer pour mieux orchestrer les changements.