Lecture 20 socio-organizational issues and stakeholder requirements –Part 3

Today’s Topics Today we will cover  Effective Technical and Human Implementation of Computer-based Systems ETHICS  Ethnographic methods and  Contextual Inquiry

ETHICS Effective Technical and Human Implementation of Computer-based Systems Developed by Enid Mumford, Manchester Business School, 1979, 1983, 1985 “ a structured design approach that covers organizational, administrative and quality-of-working-life factors and “a participative problem solving methodology” Mumford (1985)

ETHICS Developed through action research The socio-technical design view: -Technically efficient -Social characteristics leading to high job satisfaction and improved quality of working life i.e.; Effective computer systems require the technology to fit closely with the social and organizational factors

ETHICS Means of achieving this is the participation of users at all levels in the design of computer systems ETHICS embodies an ethical position and it has an explicitly stated philosophy

ETHICS Technology PeopleTasks Organisation j ob satisfaction organisation of work objectives and mission opportunities and constraints good systems design: -new technology provides the opportunity for change and improvement -distinguish between easy and difficult to implement changes -job redesign needs to be part of the design task

ETHICS: socio-technical design the socio-technical design approach acknowledges that: different individuals and groups have specific needs, interests and values these must be met for the successful implementation of change job satisfaction: a good “fit” between the employee's job needs, expectations and aspirations and the job requirements as defined by the organization

ETHICS Provides a framework of factors for the description and measurement of job satisfaction: individual’s personality, background, education: the knowledge fit the psychological fit competence, control and efficiency: the efficiency fit the task structure fit employee values: the ethical fit

Job satisfaction a “good” knowledge fit: the employee believes their personal skills and knowledge are being well used and developed a “good” psychological fit: the employee believes their personal interests are being catered for (responsibility, recognition, sense of achievement, status, advancement)

Job satisfaction a “good” efficiency fit: the employee believes their financial rewards are fair, supervisory systems are acceptable, adequate support services

Job satisfaction a “good” task structure fit: the employee believes their set of tasks and duties meets their task differentiation needs a “good” ethical fit: the employee believes the philosophy and values of their employer do not disregard their personal values

Job satisfaction if there is a “bad” fit on any variable(s): psychological, efficiency, and ethical fit can be improved through changed personnel policies and organizational design knowledge and task/structure fit can be improved through work redesign

Participation: structure, content and process Structure of participation The mechanisms enabling participation to take place e.g. Representatives, voting, pressure groups, spontaneous, direct or indirect (through intermediaries) Content of participation The nature of the issues about which decisions are taken e.g. Management’s jurisdiction, executive decisions ETHICS and participation

Process of participation The acquisition of knowledge for informed decision making e.g. Learning/training, working relationships, goal setting, solutions etc.

structure of participation three levels are identified by Mumford: consultative all users are consulted about/contribute ideas to the design process but the design task is carried out by systems analysts representative design groups formed from elected or selected representatives take design decisions ETHICS and participation

consensus design group members constantly discuss ideas and solutions with all users

Recommended structure of participation for ETHICS: a two tier structure of a Steering Committee and a Design Group for each department involved, and a facilitator Steering Committee (sets design group guidelines): senior managers from departments, management services and personnel, union representatives ETHICS and participation

Design Group: 8-10 members, all interests represented e.g. all functions, sections, ages, grades (constituents), and systems analysts (their role is teacher, adviser and learner)

ETHICS and participation Facilitator: an external or internal consultant who is “neutral” and has training in ETHICS and human relations skills

set social objectivesset technical objectives specify social alternativesspecify technical alternatives match as socio-technical alternatives rank according to ability to meet social and technical objectives consider costs / resources / constraints select best socio-technical solution Socio-technical systems design

Step 1:Why change? Step 2:System boundaries Step 3:Description of existing system Step 4:Definition of key objectives Step 5:Definition of key tasks Step 6:Definition of key information needs Step 7:Diagnosis of efficiency needs Step 8:Diagnosis of job satisfaction needs ETHICS 15 Steps

Step 9:Future analysis Step 10:Specifying and weighting efficiency and job satisfaction needs and objectives Step 11:The organizational design of the new system Step 12:Technical options Step 13:Preparation of a detailed work design Step 14:Implementation Step 15:Evaluation Fifteen step version described in Mumford (1983) & the prescribed text

ETHICS - 15 step version Step 1:why change? Discuss existing problems, future demands, opportunities provided by improved organization and new technology Step 2:system boundaries Business activities, existing technology, departments/sections, organizational environment Step 3:description of existing system A complete view of how the existing system works: Horizontal input/output analysis (inputs / activities / outputs) Vertical analysis of activities at five levels

vertical analysis of activities at five levels from lowest to highest: i.operating activities: what are the most important day-to-day tasks? ii.problem prevention/solution activities: what are the key problems that must be prevented or quickly solved? iii.co-ordination activities: ETHICS - 15 step version

what activities must be coordinated within the system or with other systems? iv.development activities: what activities, products, services need to be developed and improved? v.control activities: how is the system controlled now/ (targets, progress monitored etc.)

Step 4:Definition of key objectives ignore existing system and focus on the design areas: -what is their primary role and purpose? -what should then be their responsibilities and functions? produce a list of key objectives -how far do their present activities match what they should be doing? Step 5:Definition of key tasks what are the key tasks that must be carried out to achieve the key objectives? ETHICS - 15 step version

Step 6:Definition of key information needs what are the key information requirements associated with the key tasks? Step 7:Diagnosis of efficiency needs efficiency needs can be identified by looking for variances: “a tendency for a system or part of a system to deviate from some expected or desired standard or norm” ETHICS - 15 step version

Key variances (systemic): Deep seated problems that cannot be eliminated as they arise from the nature of the key objectives and key tasks, They often occur at system boundaries, e.g. Sales and production departments have conflicting objectives in terms of quantity stock on hand Operating variances: Not as deeply embedded, designed into the system through the way procedures, machines and activities have been organized, can be eliminated All staff identify and document variances they encounter (informal discussions and opportunity for all constituents to participate) Efficiency needs and variances

ETHICS gives efficiency and job satisfaction equal weight Job satisfaction needs to be defined and measured ETHICS standard questionnaire is the basis for job satisfaction diagnosis The facilitator administers and analyses the questionnaire All potential users complete the questionnaire and are given a copy of the results for discussion with their Design Group Step 8: Diagnosis of job satisfaction needs

Small group discussions to explore reasons for results (each member of the Design Group meets with their constituents) The Design Group completes an Analysis of Social Needs form to document satisfactory and unsatisfactory aspects of jobs and identify preliminary suggestions for improvement Design Group must not “rush” into design though

Step 9: Future analysis a new system must have enough built-in flexibility to cope with future change identify and analyze future changes likely to affect the system within the next five years kinds of changes: technological, legal, economic (e.g. product and labor markets), employee or customer attitudes, company organization (e.g. merging of departments) potential impacts on the system of these changes e.g. Design Groups may need to consult both external and internal experts

Step 10: Specifying and weighting efficiency and job satisfaction needs and objectives The key step in ETHICS: Objectives are derived from careful diagnosis by the design group of efficiency, job satisfaction and future needs identified by the group These objectives are the basis of the new system design Interests of design group members, their constituents, the design group as a whole and other groups within the organization need to be reconciled

Step 10: Specifying and weighting efficiency and job satisfaction needs and objectives External groups (e.g. Customers, suppliers) need to be considered Each design group member ranks the objectives Meet with steering committee, constituents etc.: Discussion and evaluation - facilitator has a key role

Step 11: Organizational Design of the New system (This step should occur with step 12: technical options) Identify organizational options: ways of organizing departments to achieve job satisfaction and efficiency objectives 3 to 6 options should be identified The key objectives and key tasks of steps 4 and 5 guide this process: -Use vertical analysis to identify activities for the key tasks as well as key skills and roles and relationships necessary -Organizational options are different ways of arranging the five types of activities, the skills and roles taking into account technologies as part of step 12

Each organizational option specifies: Organization of design area as work groups, sections, and responsibilities Detailed description of sub-groups and responsibilities and tasks Description of how these are distributed amongst individuals and teams Each option is evaluated against the objectives identified in step 10 Step 11: organizational design of the new system

Job design different ways in which work can be organized job enlargement:  one person does a number of tasks job enrichment:  one person does a number of tasks and uses different skills task variety, job rotation, developmental aspects of tasks

Job Design Mumford suggests multi-skilled, self-managing work groups as the ideal: all members carry out multiple tasks, diverse skills, groups organize and control themselves, including setting performance and quality objectives, Scope for multi-skilled work must exist, responsible, well-trained employees are necessary, there are implications for salary levels and grading schemes

Step 12: Technical options hardware, software and the human/computer interface technical options are evaluated against the efficiency, job satisfaction and future change objectives of Step 10 can create experimental examples (e.g. prototypes) of different options a shortlist of technical options and organizational options

Step 12: Technical options Check compatibility of each with the others The combined option that best meets the objectives is selected after discussions between the steering committee, the design group(s) and their constituents The final choice reflects the careful diagnosis, objective setting, and evaluation of options by the design group, the broad company view via the steering committee, and the views of the users

Step 13: Preparation of a detailed work design Detailed design of information flows, tasks, work groups, and procedures: check for good job design principles: i.Clear work group/unit boundaries (identity) ii.Each group’s set of tasks is a good mix of simple, intermediate and complex activities iii.The work group can solve the majority of its problems itself iv.The group is responsible for its work organization and co-ordination

Step 13: Preparation of a detailed work design v.The work group is responsible for developing improved methods and practices for its area of activities vi.The work group can set many of its targets and monitor its performance vii.The work group can easily identify targets it has to achieve

ETHICS: steps 14 Step 14:Implementation the Design group has the role of implementation group: selection of implementation strategy, e.g. total change or phased change planning for the change process: activities, problems, training discussions with Steering Committee and constituents

ETHICS: steps 15 Step 15:evaluation This occurs when the system has been fully operational for a time Evaluate its ability to meet the objectives: use variance analysis and job satisfaction analysis tools

ETHICS: good systems design Mumford (1985): “The aim of good systems design is to introduce a mix of technical and organizational change that will assist the department, and the individuals working there, to achieve group and personal missions” Provide the information to carry out key tasks and assist better control of key variances Key tasks and key variances are stable

ETHICS: good systems design improvement in efficiency, effectiveness and job satisfaction requires elimination or reinforcement of factors that are more easily changed the involvement of users in the design process is the most effective way of achieving a clear and comprehensive knowledge of the needs and behavior of the user department

Characteristics of ETHICS Flexible Socio-technical design is an iterative process Consensus problem solving approach Importance of subjective, qualitative knowledge Is it practical?

Use of ETHICS Impractical: -Unskilled users can’t do the design -Management won’t accept it Mumford has used a version for requirements definition (QUICKETHICS) ETHICS is flexible and has evolved over time as experience in its use in different situations has developed (action research) Mumford has published many case studies of its successful use in practice

ETHNOGRAPHIC METHODS

Ethnography “Ethnography is in itself not so much a method as a category of human-computer interaction research” adapted from sociology and anthropology a method of observing human interactions in social settings and activities people in their cultural context Anthropology is the study of humankind in all its aspects, especially human culture or human development. It differs from sociology in taking a more historical and comparative approach.

Ethnographic observation: very different from controlled observations in the laboratory! The observer looks at what people do in real life, recording data in great detail, and then tells a story rather than quantifying the data.

Ethnographic observation vs. experiments Ethnographic studies:Experiments:

Ethnographic observation vs. experiments Ethnographic studies: study behavior taking place naturally Experiments: study behavior during a controlled task

Ethnographic observation vs. experiments Ethnographic studies: study behavior taking place naturally fewer observations Experiments: study behavior during a controlled task many observations

Ethnographic observation vs. experiments Ethnographic studies: study behavior taking place naturally fewer observations very rich observations Experiments: study behavior during a controlled task many observations limited observations

Ethnographic observation vs. experiments Ethnographic studies: study behavior taking place naturally fewer observations very rich observations no hypotheses Experiments: study behavior during a controlled task many observations limited observations hypothesis-testing

Ethnographic observation vs. experiments Ethnographic studies: study behavior taking place naturally fewer observations very rich observations no hypotheses results may differ; speculative contain confounds Experiments: study behavior during a controlled task many observations limited observations hypothesis-testing reliable results; scientific, replicable eliminates confounds

Contextual Inquiry Approach developed by Holtzblatt  In ethnographic tradition but acknowledges and challenges investigator focus  Model of investigator being apprenticed to user to learn about work  Investigation takes place in workplace - detailed interviews, observation, analysis of communications, physical workplace, artefacts  Number of models created: Sequence, physical, flow, cultural, artefact Models consolidated across users  Output indicates task sequences, artefacts and communication channels needed and physical and cultural constraints

Summary of Today’s Lecture In order to meet socio-organizational issues and stakeholder requirements different set of methodologies exists. These methodologies focus on technical as well as social aspects of technology acceptance and rejection. We have covered today, ETHICS and Ethnographic methods.