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Chapter 14
This chapter discusses creating collaborative partnerships through technology. It covers: 1. Different categories of collaboration technologies including unstructured collaboration, structured collaboration, knowledge management systems, content management systems, workflow management systems, and groupware systems. 2. Key concepts in knowledge management including capturing both explicit and tacit knowledge, and using social networking analysis to map information flows. 3. Content management systems which provide tools to manage creation and publishing of information collaboratively. 4. Workflow management systems which facilitate automation and management of business processes by controlling work movement through each step. 5. Popular groupware technologies like videoconferencing, web conferencing, and instant messaging that support team interaction and dynamics.
Chapter 14
- 1. Chapter 14 Creating Collaborative Partnerships McGraw-Hill/Irwin © 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, All Rights Reserved
- 2. Learning Outcomes 15.1 Identifythe different ways in which companies collaborate using technology 15.2 Compare the different categories of collaboration technologies 15.3 Define the fundamental concepts of a knowledge management system 15-2
- 3. Learning Outcomes 15.4 Providean examples of a content management system along with its business purpose 15.5 Evaluate the advantages of using a workflow management system 15.6 Explain how groupware can benefit a business 15-3
- 4. Teams, Partnerships, andAlliances • Organizations create and use teams, partnerships, and alliances to: – Undertake new initiatives – Address both minor and major problems – Capitalize on significant opportunities • Organizations create teams, partnerships, and alliances both internally with employees and externally with other organizations 15-4
- 5. Teams, Partnerships, andAlliances • Collaboration system – supports the work of teams by facilitating the sharing and flow of information 15-5
- 6. Teams, Partnerships, andAlliances • Organizations form alliances and partnerships with other organizations based on their core competency – Core competency – an organization’s key strength, a business function that it does better than any of its competitors – Core competency strategy – organization chooses to focus specifically on its core competency and forms partnerships with other organizations to handle nonstrategic business processes 15-6
- 7. Teams, Partnerships, andAlliances • Information technology can make a business partnership easier to establish and manage – Information partnership – occurs when two or more organizations cooperate by integrating their IT systems, thereby providing customers with the best of what each can offer • The Internet has dramatically increased the ease and availability for IT-enabled organizational alliances and partnerships 15-7
- 8. Collaboration Systems • Collaborationsolves specific business tasks such as telecommuting, online meetings, deploying applications, and remote project and sales management • Collaboration system – an IT-based set of tools that supports the work of teams by facilitating the sharing and flow of information 15-8
- 9. Collaboration Systems • Twocategories of collaboration 1. Unstructured collaboration (information collaboration) - includes document exchange, shared whiteboards, discussion forums, and e-mail 2. Structured collaboration (process collaboration) - involves shared participation in business processes such as workflow in which knowledge is hardcoded as rules 15-9
- 10. Collaboration Systems • Collaborativebusiness functions 15-10
- 11. Collaboration Systems • Collaborationsystems include: – Knowledge management systems – Content management systems – Workflow management systems – Groupware systems 15-11
- 12. Knowledge Management Systems • Knowledge management (KM) – involves capturing, classifying, evaluating, retrieving, and sharing information assets in a way that provides context for effective decisions and actions • Knowledge management system – supports the capturing and use of an organization’s “know-how” 15-12
- 13. Explicit and TacitKnowledge • Intellectual and knowledge-based assets fall into two categories 1. Explicit knowledge – consists of anything that can be documented, archived, and codified, often with the help of IT 2. Tacit knowledge - knowledge contained in people’s heads 15-13
- 14. Explicit and TacitKnowledge • The following are two best practices for transferring or recreating tacit knowledge – Shadowing – less experienced staff observe more experienced staff to learn how their more experienced counterparts approach their work – Joint problem solving – a novice and expert work together on a project 15-14
- 15. Explicit and TacitKnowledge • Reasons why organizations launch knowledge management programs 15-15
- 16. KM Technologies • Knowledgemanagement systems include: – Knowledge repositories (databases) – Expertise tools – E-learning applications – Discussion and chat technologies – Search and data mining tools 15-16
- 17. KM and SocialNetworking • Finding out how information flows through an organization – Social networking analysis (SNA) – a process of mapping a group’s contacts (whether personal or professional) to identify who knows whom and who works with whom – SNA provides a clear picture of how employees and divisions work together and can help identify key experts 15-17
- 18. Content Management • Contentmanagement system (CMS) – provides tools to manage the creation, storage, editing, and publication of information in a collaborative environment • CMS marketplace includes: – Document management system (DMS) – Digital asset management system (DAM) – Web content management system (WCM) 15-18
- 19. Content Management • Content management system vendor overview 15-19
- 20. WORKING WIKIS • Wikis- Web-based tools that make it easy for users to add, remove, and change online content • Business wikis - collaborative Web pages that allow users to edit documents, share ideas, or monitor the status of a project 15-20
- 21. Workflow Management Systems • Work activities can be performed in series or in parallel that involves people and automated computer systems • Workflow – defines all the steps or business rules, from beginning to end, required for a business process • Workflow management system – facilitates the automation and management of business processes and controls the movement of work through the business process 15-21
- 22. Workflow Management Systems • Messaging-based workflow system – sends work assignments through an e- mail system • Database-based workflow system – stores documents in a central location and automatically asks the team members to access the document when it is their turn to edit the document 15-22
- 23. Groupware Systems • Groupwaretechnologies 15-23
- 24. Groupware Systems • Groupware – software that supports team interaction and dynamics including calendaring, scheduling, and videoconferencing 15-24
- 25. VIDEOCONFERENCING • Videoconference -a set of interactive telecommunication technologies that allow two or more locations to interact via two-way video and audio transmissions simultaneously 15-25
- 26. WEB CONFERENCING • Webconferencing - blends audio, video, and document- sharing technologies to create virtual meeting rooms where people “gather” at a password-protected Web site 15-26
- 27. INSTANT MESSAGING • E-mail is the dominant form of collaboration application, but real-time collaboration tools like instant messaging are creating a new communication dynamic • Instant messaging - type of communications service that enables someone to create a kind of private chat room with another individual to communicate in real-time over the Internet 15-27
- 28. INSTANT MESSAGING • Instantmessaging application 15-28
- 29. CHAPTER FIFTEEN OpeningCase Study Questions 1. Identify which systems eBay could use to collaborate internally 2. Explain which Internet technologies have facilitated the way in which eBay collaborates with both its customers and business partners 3. List the four collaboration systems discussed in this chapter and rank them in order of importance to eBay’s business 4. Describe how eBay could leverage the power of a knowledge management system for its employees and for its customers 15-29
- 30. CHAPTER FIFTEEN CASE DreamWorks Animation Collaboration • DreamWorks and Hewlett-Packard were the first to introduce a collaboration studio for simulating face-to-face business meetings across long distances • By connecting its California teams in Glendale and Redwood City, DreamWorks was able to speed up production of Shrek 2 15-30
- 31. Chapter Fifteen CaseQuestions 1. How can companies use Halo to increase their business efficiency? 2. Explain how a company like PepsiCo can use Halo to gain a competitive advantage in its industry 3. How can knowledge management be increased by using a product such as Halo? 4. Why would a company like DreamWorks, that is not IT focused, be interested in collaboration technology? 15-31
Editor's Notes
- #2 CLASSROOM OPENER GREAT BUSINESS DECISIONS – Swiss Watch Manufacturers Begin Collaborating and Invent the Swatch The Swatch is a classic tale of triumph over adversity. The Swiss watch making industry’s market share declined from 30 percent to 9 percent during the 1970s. The leading Swiss watch manufacturers decided to join and collaborate thinking it would be better to go down together in a blaze of glory than to timidly surrender in isolation to the diminishing watch market. Ernst Thomke, president of the group and Jacques Muller, chief engineer, came up with the idea to design a low-cost version of the Delirium, the world’s slimmest watch. Thomke developed the technical specifications of the original Swatch, as well as the all-important marketing and advertising ideas. The Swatch was based on the simple premise that the watch could become a disposable or replaceable fashion item. This collaborative product was the make-or-break response to cheap watch competition and almost overnight, the dormant Swiss watch industry was revived. The Swatch became a fashion accessory and the Swiss share of the worldwide watch market rose to over 50 percent.
- #3Â 15.1 Identify the different ways in which companies collaborate using technology. Companies must be able to collaborate. Without collaboration companies simply would have a very difficult time operating. Companies collaborate in a number of ways including document exÂchange, shared whiteboards, discussion forums, and e-mail 15.2 Compare the different categories of collaboration technologies. Collaboration technologies fall into one of two categories: Unstructured collaboration (sometimes referred to as information collaboration) includes document exÂchange, shared whiteboards, discussion forums, and e-mail Structured collaboration (or process collaboration) involves shared participation in business processes such as workflow in which knowledge is hardcoded as rules 15.3 Define the fundamental concepts of a knowledge management system. Knowledge management involves capturing, classifying, evaluating, retrieving, and sharing information assets in a way that provides context for effective decisions and actions.
- #4Â 15.4 Provide an examples of a content management system along with its business purpose. A content management system (CMS) provides tools to manage the creation, storage, editing, and publication of information in a collaborative environment. The CMS marketplace is complex, incorporating document management, collaboration and versioning tools, digital asset management, and Web content management. One example is www.vignette.com . 15.5 Evaluate the advantages of using a workflow management system. Many workflow management systems allow the opportunity to measure and analyze the execution of a process. Workflow systems integrate with other organizational systems, such as document management systems and database management systems. 15.6 Explain how groupware can benefit a business. Groupware is software that supports team interaction and dynamics including calendaring, scheduling, and videoconferencing. Organizations can use this technology to communicate, cooperate, coordinate, solve problems, compete, or negotiate.
- #5 It is getting harder and harder for any one individual to perform organizational activities in isolation Ask your students to list types of organizational activities that are performed by individuals Ans: For the most part, almost all organizational activities are performed in teams. For example, a customer service representative usually needs to talk with many coworkers to discover customer issues and problem resolution A marketing executive will need to work with sales representatives to determine what is “hot” in the market, what is selling, and what issues/complaints customers have before launching a new product The majority of work today is performed in groups and teams These teams can be departmental, interdepartmental, cross-functional, internal, and external
- #6 Collaboration systems, such as groupware, enable, support, and facilitate internal and external team collaboration This is a good time to mention the importance of people skills, or soft skills, in additional to business knowledge. Your students should anticipate working with many coworkers from different areas of the business when solving issues or finding opportunities. Building soft skills is just as important as building analytical skills. Successful people rarely work in isolation. Collaboration with an iPod – Team adds iPods to coaching staff http://www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/06/16/ipod.homework.ap/index.html
- #7 It is just as important for an organization to form teams, partnerships, and alliances with other organizations An organization that uses a core competency strategy will focus on its core competency and form partnerships with other organizations to handle nonstrategic business processes The most common example of this is outsourcing payroll or accounting functions Many organizations want to focus on the marketing and selling of a unique product or service. These organizations do not want to incur the expense of maintaining accounting or tax experts on staff, hence they will outsource these functions to a business partner This is a great time to refer back to the opening case Discuss how Levi’s core competency is brand-name differentiation and recognition, while Wal-Mart’s core competency is retail cost leadership The partnership between these two organizations enables cost-leadership selling of a widely recognized brand name
- #8 Provide a few examples of how the Internet has enabled information partnerships? A good example is Amazon.com The company developed a profitable business segment by providing e-business outsourcing services to other retailers who use Amazon’s Web site software Retailers partnering with Amazon.com include Marshall Fields, Office Depot, and Target
- #9Â Collaboration allows people, teams, and organizations to leverage and build upon the ideas and talents of staff, suppliers, customers, and business partners It involves a unique set of business challenges that: Include complex interactions between people who may be in different locations and desire to work across function and discipline areas Require flexibility in work process and the ability to involve others quickly and easily Create and share information rapidly and effortlessly within a team Increasingly, organizations are extending their focus from internal operations like planning and scheduling, enterprise resource planning and sales force automation, toward operations beyond their own four walls with external customers and suppliers This chapter focuses on the need for collaboration, the technology that supports collaboration, and collaboration trends
- #10 Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company shares complex project information across an extended supply chain in real time and successfully bid a $19 billion DoD contract to build 21 supersonic stealth fighters Regardless of location or format – be it unstructured or structured - relevant accurate information must be readily and consistently available to those who need it – anytime, anywhere, and on any device
- #11 The above figure illustrates many of the typical collaborative functions within most organizations For those of you who are big fans of wikipedia, here is an interesting comedic segment from the 'Colbert Report' on wikipedia. This video clip comes from youtube.com and lasts about 4 minutes. You might find this useful to share with your students regarding the need to critically evaluate information. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2TaFYOUca_8&mode=related&search
- #12 Knowledge management system – supports the capturing and use of an organization’s “know-how” Content management system (CMS) – provides tools to manage the creation, storage, editing, and publication of information in a collaborative environment Workflow management system – controls the movement of work through a business process Groupware – software that supports team interaction and dynamics including calendaring, scheduling, and videoconferencing
- #13Â Why is knowledge one of the real competitive advantages? It is difficult to duplicate knowledge It can take years to acquire It is a personal asset What if an organization could capture all of a persons knowledge using technology? You would no longer need that person in the organization
- #14 Identify two types of explicit knowledge and tacit knowledge Explicit knowledge – payroll information, customer address, student grades, faculty courses taught Tacit knowledge – how to perform a process, how to perform an activity, how you feel about something
- #15Â The difference between shadowing and joint problem solving is that shadowing is more passive Joint problem solving allows the expert and the novice to work hand-in-hand on a task Why would shadowing be appropriate? When would joint-problem solving be appropriate?
- #16Â What types of knowledge management programs could your college pursue to help new students adapt to the college? Effective study habits Writing rules Research database Course evaluations
- #17Â KM is not a purely technology-based concept Organizations that implement a centralized database system, electronic message board, Web portal, or any other collaborative tool in the hope that they have established a KMS are wasting both their time and money
- #18Â How could you use SNA at your college? Finding internships Finding group members Finding jobs
- #19 BMW Group Switzerland accelerated personalized, real-time information about products, services, prices, and events to its dealers countrywide BMW uses a process that allows dealers to specify what information is seen by which employee, as well as to deliver marketing materials solely to members of the sales department, and technical specifications and support documents only to mechanics The enhanced personalization eliminates the chance that information is sent to the wrong dealership or to the wrong individual, which provides higher quality customer services Document management system (DMS) – supports the electronic capturing, storage, distribution, archival, and accessing of documents Digital asset management system (DAM) – similar to DMS, generally works with binary rather than text files, such as multimedia files types Web content management system (WCM) – adds an additional layer to document and digital asset management that enables publishing content both to intranets and to public Web sites
- #21Â Wikis are Web-based tools that make it easy for users to add, remove, and change online content Business wikis are collaborative Web pages that allow users to edit documents, share ideas, or monitor the status of a project. Most people are familiar with Wikipedia, one of the largest online collaboration Web sites. Employees also use wikis to collaborate; for example, companies such as Intel, Motorola, IBM, and Sony use them for a host of tasks, from setting internal meeting agendas to posting documents related to new products. Many companies rely on wikis to engage customers in ongoing discussions about products. Wikis for Motorola and T-Mobile handsets serve as continually updated user guides. TV networks including ABC and CBS are creating fan wikis that let viewers interact with each other as they unravel mysteries from such shows as Lost and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
- #22Â NYC was experiencing a record number of claims, ranging from injuries resulting from slips on sidewalks to medical malpractice at hospitals NYC processes over 30,000 claims and incurs $250 million in claims costs annually NYC implemented a workflow management tool to process contracts and claims The system saved NYC $20 million Many workflow management systems allow the opportunity to measure and analyze the execution of the process
- #23Â How could you use a messaging-based workflow system or database-based workflow system to complete a group project? Messaging-based workflow system would send an e-mail to each group member when it was their turn to edit the document. The student would then be responsible for finding the document to edit. Database-based workflow system would ask the student to edit the document, and supply the document to the student. Review the figure for workflow management system features and discuss how each feature could be used to complete a group project
- #24 CLASSROOM EXERCISE Process of Collaboration Collaboration is always operating through certain group processes — processes of communication, coordination, cooperation, but also information sharing. Split students up into four groups, each representing the processes above. Have each group make a list of the collaborative technologies differentiated by the collaboration processes they support. These processes do not work independently of one another but are usually intermingled and determined by each other. True collaboration tools will try to provide help for all those collaboration processes, but their main focus is mostly on one of these areas. Review the IM for potential answers
- #25Â Lotus Notes and Toyota developed an intranet system to promote information sharing within the company and to raise productivity Groupware falls into two categories: Users of the groupware are working together at the same time or different times (time difference) Users are working together in the same place or in different places (physical location difference) Which is easier to overcome? Why?
- #26Â videoconference is a set of interactive telecommunication technologies that allow two or more locations to interact via two-way video and audio transmissions simultaneously. It has also been called visual collaboration and is a type of groupware. Videoconferencing uses telecommunications of audio and video to bring people at different sites together for a meeting. This can be as simple as a conversation between two people in private offices (point-to-point) or involve several sites (multi-point) with more than one person in large rooms at different sites. Besides the audio and visual transmission of people, videoconferencing can be used to share documents, computer-displayed information, and whiteboards Ask your students what are the business advantages of videoconferencing? What industries are at risk because of videoconference? Airlines, hotels, rental cars (all businesses used in business travel which becomes nonexistent with the use of videoconferencing)
- #27 Web conferencing blends audio, video, and document-sharing technologies to create virtual meeting rooms where people “gather” at a password-protected Web site. There, they can chat in conference calls or use real-time text messages. They can mark up a shared document as if it were a blackboard, and even watch live software demos or video clips. Perhaps the biggest surprise about Web conferencing is its simplicity. Users only need to set up an account and download a few small software files. The best part about a Web conference is that attendees do not have to have the same hardware or software. Every participant can see what is on anyone else’s screen, regardless of the application being used Ask your students what are the business advantages of videoconferencing? What industries are at risk because of videoconference? Airlines, hotels, rental cars (all businesses used in business travel which becomes nonexistent with the use of videoconferencing)
- #28Â Program features include: Web links Images Sounds Files Talk Streaming content Instant messaging
- #30 1. Identify which systems eBay could use to collaborate internally Some possible answers could include: Content Management Systems – to organize its auction item database of 3-million-title book, Audio book, CD and DVD catalog, search and notification services, recommendations by genre or category, and content including extensive author interviews. Workflow Management Systems – to help customers coordinate the shipping, and receiving of items Knowledge Management Systems – assists internal teams to collaborate on rules, policies, techniques, workflows, busiÂness processes, and decision making. 2. Explain which Internet technologies have facilitated the way in which eBay collaborates with both its customers and business partners eBay collaborates electronically with all customers and business partners via the Internet. Technologies mainly include e-mail, EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) PayPal, and Web services. The list is beyond that covered in the text, however, some possible alternative answers could include: Customer acquisition and retention (through e-mail and Web advertising) Marketing and customer service (through Web interface) Knowledge of e-business infrastructure (all the collaboration tools mentioned in the text) Building and sustaining virtual market mechanisms 3. List the four collaboration systems discussed in this chapter and rank them in order of importance to eBay’s business Knowledge management systems – involves capturing, classifying, evaluating, retrieving, and sharing information assets in a way that provides context for effective decisions and actions Content management systems – provides tools to manage the creation, storage, editing, and publication of information in a collaborative environment Workflow management systems – facilitate the automation and management of business processes and control the movement of work through the business process Groupware systems – support team interaction and dynamics including calendaring, scheduling, and videoconferencing Student answers to this question will vary. The important part is that your students can justify their ranking. This makes for a good classroom debate if students rank the systems in different order. 4. Describe how eBay could leverage the power of a knowledge management system for its employees and for its customers Customer Service employees can search the knowledge base to see if a situation has been encountered before and the answer already is known. If it is, they either learn it from the organizational knowledge base, or recall it from their own (mental) knowledge base. Customer Service employees can find several “related” but not exact circumstances and derive an answer by recombining pieces of knowledge from the knowledge base, creating new knowledge in the process. Managers could use knowledge management systems to help gain insight and understanding from its own experience. Specific knowledge management activities help focus the organization on acquiring, storing and utilizing knowledge for such things as problem solving, dynamic learning, strategic planning and decision making. It also protects intellectual assets from decay, adds to firm intelligence, and provides increased flexibility.Â
- #32Â 1. How can companies use Halo to increase their business efficiency? Being able to meet with co-workers virtually around the globe will help organizations become more efficient and effective. Traveling to another country takes time, costs money, and is hard on employees with families, pets, and plants. Being able to meet with face-to-face with global business partners, from a local meeting room, is a big advantage for corporate employees. 2. Explain how a company like PepsiCo can use Halo to gain a competitive advantage in its industry PepsiCo could use Halo to collaborate internally and externally. Internally, it could offer its worldwide an inexpensive way to communicate face-to-face. Externally, it could setup a Halo meeting room where partners and customers could talk with PepsiCo employees face-to-face. It could be a good marketing technique to gain access to its customers. 3. How can knowledge management be increased by using a product such as Halo? There are a few ways that a company can use knowledge management with a Halo product. First, it could record all of the meeting and store this information on a data device. It could then categorize all of the meetings, individuals in the meetings, etc. and slice-and-dice the meeting details for access by other individuals. Of course, there are privacy and ethical issues with recording all meetings. Second, it offers employees a way to meet face-to-face with other co-workers and share knowledge. 4. Why would a company like DreamWorks, that is not IT focused, be interested in collaboration technology? All companies need to collaborate to work effectively and efficiently. Businesses cannot operate in a vacuum. The need to collaborate is felt in every industry from products to health care to entertainment. Collaboration is a business need, not just an IT need.