Chapter 7 Collaboration Information Systems
Permission-Limited activity
(and other version control products), each team member is given an account with a set of permissions -then shared documents are placed into shared directories, sometimes called libraries
The most important characteristics for an effective collaborator
-5/12 involve disagreement, and some are the top ones 1. enthusiastic on subject of collaboration 2. open-minded curious 3. speaks mind on unpopular viewpoint 4. get back to people in a timely way 5. willing to enter difficult conversation
Importance of Communication
-arguably most important feature of a collaboration IS -important to manage content -project tasks
How to manage projects
-projects formed to create or produce something 1. starting phase -set team authority, project scope, budget -team member personal data, startup documents 2. planning phase -determine tasks, assign tasks, determine schedule -project plan, budget, etc. 3. doing phase -perform project tasks -work in process 4. finalizing phase -determine completion -archived documents
Content sharing resources
1. Content Type -sharing office documents- Word, Excel, and PowerPoint 2. Desktop Application -gold standard of desktop applications is Microsoft Office, cheaper alternative LibreOffice or Apache OpenOffice -applications for processing particular types of documents (Adobe Acrobat) 3. Web application -process content using we applications inside their browsers (Chrome- Google Docs, Excel) *browser applications require that documents be stored on a cloud server 4. Cloud Drive - documents other than Office documents can be stored (but not be processed via the browser) on any cloud server (Dropbox, Google Drive)
How to give constructive criticism
1. be specific 2. offer suggestions 3. avoid personal comments 4. set positive goals
What are 4 primary purposes of collaboration?
1. become informed -first fundamental collab purpose -everyone is perceiving information the same way -share data, communicate, document 2. make decisions -operational -managerial -strategic 3. solve problems 4. manage projects
Major functions of Collaboration systems
1. communication 2. content sharing
what are the requirements for a collaboration IS?
1. hardware -every member need device, share data on a server 2. software -collab programs like email or text messaging 3. data -Project Data: data that is part of the collaborations work product -project metadata: data used to manage the project (schedules, budgets) -both subject to iteration and feedback 4. Procedures -specify standards, policies, and techniques for teams work 5. People -feedback, know when to use collaboration applications
Three Collaboration Tool Sets
1. minimal 2. good 3. comprehensive
Alternatives for Sharing Content
1. no control 2. version management 3. version control
3 levels of making decisions
1. operational decisions: operational day-to-day activities "What invoices should we pay today?" 2. managerial: about the allocation and utilization of resources "How many engineers should we assign to project B?" 3. strategic: support broad-scope, organizational issues "Should we acquire company A?" -must always collaborate -the decisions process is either structured or unstructured
How to accept constructive criticism
1. question your emotions 2. do not dominate 3. demonstrate commitment to the group
Types of Decision Processes
1. structured decisions: understood and accepted method for taking a decision -rarely requires collab 2. unstructured decisions: no agreed-on decision-making method -often collaborative -operational level- tend to be structured -managerial- tend to be both structured and unstructured -strategic- tend to be unstructured
3 criteria for successful collaboration
1. successful outcome -accomplish goal (make a decision, solve a problem, create a work problem) 2. growth in team capability (better work practices, linkages established, new perspective, learned from each other) 3. meaningful and satisfying experience -work perceived as important, recognition for work well done, camaraderie: people are energized when they fell part of a group and contributed to something worthwhile J. Richard Hackman "Leading Teams" - criteria for judging team success
Google Drive
A free service that provides a virtual drive in the Cloud into which you can create folders and store files -version management tool
the good collaboration tool set
A more sophisticated set of collaboration tools -ability to conduct multiparty audio and video virtual meetings - support for concurrent access to documents, spreadsheets, and presentation files. Ex: Skype or GoogleDrive -no support for surveys, wikis, and blogs, shared picture or videos, you will need to search the Internet to find suitable tools -free
document checkout
Document directories can be set up so that users are required to check out documents before they can modify them -like a book from a library, except you make changes, then return it
the minimal collaboration tool set
Has the minimum possible set of tools. You should be able to collaborate with your team, though you will get little support from the software. Ex: email or file server -text only -cannot view document or whiteboards during meeting
requirements for different collaboration purposes
Team Purpose Requirements Become Informed*- Share Data Support group communication Manage project tasks Store history Make Decisions- Share decision criteria, alternative descriptions, evaluation tools, evaluation results, and implementation plan Support group communication Manage project tasks Publish decision, as needed Store analysis and results Solve Problems- Share problem defintions, solution alternatives, costs and benefits, alternative evaluations, and solution implementation plan Support group communication Manage project tasks Publish problem and solution, as needed Store problem definition, alternatives, analysis, and plan Manage Projects- Support starting, planning, doing, and finalizing project phases Support group communication Manage project tasks
power curve
a graph that shows the relationship of the power (the utility that one gains from a software product) as a function of the time using that product -minimal has the smallest curves: easy to use but won't add much value as project become more complicated -good has minimal curves -comprehensive has a more positive value: starts out flat because of the learning curve, but curve goes up because of the added value it adds to projects
Groupthink
a phenomenon where the desire for group cohesion leads to poor decision making
file server
a server that stores and manages files for network users -another way of shared content with no control -better than email, single storage location con: -possible for team members to interfere with one another's work *without any version management, it will be impossible to know who changed the document when
Webinar
a virtual meeting in which attendees view one of the attendees' computer screens for a more formal and organized presentation
Discussion forums
alternative to email one group member posts an entry, perhaps an idea, a comment, or a question, and other group members respond
collaboration system
an information system that supports collaboration
constructive criticism
both positive and negative advice given to improve an outcome
workflow control
collaboration tool to manage activities in a predefined process - ensure that you do things in a certain order
Shared Content with No Control
email with attachments, shared files on a server email cons: -easy to ignore -will not suffice for collab with many document versions
Screen-sharing applications
enable users to view the same whiteboard, application, or other display
collaboration
group working together to achieve a common goal via process of feedback and iteration -results to product far superior that working alone
videoconferencing
if everyone on your team has a camera on his or her computer
gig economy
in which businesses hire many people as independent contractors for a short period of time -short term employees can work remotely over high-speed internet connections ex: uber drivers
synchronous communication
occurs when all team members meet at the same time, such as with conference calls or face-to-face meetings
asynchronous communication
occurs when team members do not meet at the same time -different shifts -different time zones -video and audio recordings useful
team surveys
one team member creates a list of questions and other team members respond -effective way to obtain team opinions, easy to complete -real-time surveying, allows groups to generate ideas anonymously, provides instantaneous feedback, and generates detailed survey reports -anonymous surveys can increase individual engagement and group buy-in (less worry of being criticize or identified) -easy to know if someone hasn't responded yet
virtual meetings
participants do not meet in the same place and possibly not at the same time -conference calls -multiparty text chat (ZOOM, Skype)
How to solve a problem, define problem
perceived differences between what is and what ought to be -a perception 1. identify problem 2. identify alternative solutions 3. specify evaluation criteria 4. evaluate alternatives 5.select an alternative 6. implement solution
requirements for a collaboration IS
primary functions: communication and content sharing Criterion for team success and requirements: complete work on time, on budget -communicate -iteration -manage tasks growth in team capability -record lessons -document knowledge -support intra-team training meaningful experience -build team spirit -reward -create sense of importance
libraries
shared documents are placed into shared directories
the comprehensive collaboration tool set
the comprehensive set, Microsoft 365 -content management and control -workflow control -online meeting with sharing -integrated with other apps (SharePoint, Skype, Microsoft 365) $10 a month
version control
the process that occurs when the collaboration tool limits, and sometimes even directs, user activity involves one or more of the following capabilities: 1. user activity limited by permissions 2. document checkout 3. version histories 4. workflow control Microsoft SharePoint (for general business, the most popular) -features for managing tasks, sharing non-office documents, keeping calendars, publishing blogs, etc.
version management
track changes to documents and provide features and functions to accommodate concurrent work
used in situations in which synchronous meetings, even virtual ones are impossible to arrange -can be difficult to get full organization and participation because their is a lot of freedom
sharing economy
where consumers can temporarily share their assets or services with other consumers via renting or lending ex: Airbnb, uber
cooperation
working together, doing the same work, to accomplish a job -faster, but result usually isn't any better than quality of someone working alone
