Institutional Repository of Academic Research University of Macedonia
Not a member yet
2215 research outputs found
Sort by
Developing a Risk Analysis Strategy Framework for Impact Assessment in Information Security Management Systems: A Case Study in IT Consulting Industry
No full textOrganizations must be committed to ensuring the confidentiality, availability, and integrity of the information in their possession to manage legal and regulatory obligations and to maintain trusted business relationships. Information security management systems (ISMSs) support companies to better deal with information security risks and cyber-attacks. Although there are many different approaches to successfully implementing an ISMS in a company, the most important and time-consuming part of establishing an ISMS is a risk assessment. The purpose of this paper was to develop a risk assessment framework that a company followed in the information technology sector to conduct the risk assessment process to comply with International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 27001. The findings analyze the conditions that force organizations to invest in protecting information and the benefits they can derive from this process. In particular, the paper delves into a multinational IT consulting services company that undertakes and implements large business support installation and customization projects. It explains the risk assessment process and the management of the necessary configurations so that its functions are acceptable and in line with information security standards. Finally, it presents the difficulties and challenges encountered.143126
Developing a Smart City Logistics Assessment Framework (SCLAF): A Conceptual Tool for Identifying the Level of Smartness of a City Logistics System
No full textOne of the main building blocks for sustainable cities is the development and efficient operation of a viable and sustainable city logistics system. City logistics exhibit several practical complications due to the conflicting interests of multiple actors involved, as well as the vague role or reluctant involvement of the public sector. Despite the plethora of innovative city logistics initiatives developed in European cities and European policy priorities towards the promotion of smart cities, little is known about the level of smartness of city logistics systems in Europe. In response to that, this paper proposes a conceptual multi-criteria and multi-assessment framework as a guidance tool for city planners, aiming to support the in-depth understanding of the main components of a smart city logistics ecosystem and facilitate the self-assessment of a city’s level of smartness. The proposed framework represents a four-level hierarchical assessment pyramid involving four main impact areas: (i) smart governance, (ii) smart economy, (iii) smart actors, and (iv) smart environment. A more in-depth analysis of each impact area is separately conducted by deconstructing the impact areas in specific criteria, sub-criteria, and KPIs. This paper presents in detail the methodology followed and the main components of this tool.1410603
FANETs in Agriculture - A routing protocol survey
No full textBreakthrough advances on communication technology, electronics and sensors have led to integrated commercialized products ready to be deployed in several domains. Agriculture is and has always been a domain that adopts state of the art technologies in time, in order to optimize productivity, cost, convenience, and environmental protection. The deployment of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) in agriculture constitutes a recent example. A timely topic in UAV deployment is the transition from a single UAV system to a multi-UAV system. Collaboration and coordination of multiple UAVs can build a system that far exceeds the capabilities of a single UAV. However, one of the most important design problems multi-UAV systems face is choosing the right routing protocol which is prerequisite for the cooperation and collaboration among UAVs. In this study, an extensive review of Flying Ad-hoc network (FANET) routing protocols is performed, where their different strategies and routing techniques are thoroughly described. A classification of UAV deployment in agriculture is conducted resulting in six (6) different applications: Crop Scouting, Crop Surveying and Mapping, Crop Insurance, Cultivation Planning and Management, Application of Chemicals,and Geofencing. Finally, a theoretical analysis is performed that suggests which routing protocol can serve better each agriculture application, depending on the mobility models and the agricultural-specific application requirements.1810018
Fast data reduction by space partitioning via convex hull and MBR computation
No full textLarge volumes of training data introduce high computational cost in instance-based classification. Data reduction algorithms select or generate a small (condensing) set of representative training prototypes from the available training data. The Reduction by Space Partitioning algorithm is one of the most well-known prototype generation algorithms that repetitively divides the original training data into subsets. This partitioning process needs to identify the diameter of each subset, i.e., its two farthest instances. This is a costly process since it requires the calculation of all distances between the instances in each subset. The paper introduces two new very fast variations that, instead of computing the actual diameter of a subset, choose a pair of distant-enough instances. The first variation uses instances belonging to an exact 3d convex hull of the subset, while the second one uses instances belonging to the minimum bounding rectangle of the subset. Our experimental study shows that the new variations vastly outperform the original algorithm without a penalty in classification accuracy and reduction rate.12610855
Integrating BPMN with DMN to model complex Public Services: The case of Getting a Transportation Card for Disabled in Greece
No full textThe provision of high-quality Public Services (PSs) constitutes a core activity of the public sector. Consequently, PS modeling has received considerable attention. The Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN) is a standard often employed in PS modeling. BPMN diagrams are clear and understandable in the case of simple PSs. However, this is not true when modeling complex PSs i.e., those including a large number of versions. Different versions exist in a complex PS since, for example, different groups of citizens may have to submit different supporting documents with their application based on their financial or civil status. In those cases, the relevant BPMN diagrams often have numerous gateways thus becoming very complex, which hinders their applicability and usefulness. In the last few years, the Decision Model and Notation (DMN) has been introduced and its integration with BPMN is used for modeling complicated business processes in the private sector. However, its effectiveness has not been investigated in the case of complex PSs. The aim of this research is to investigate the benefits and challenges of modeling complex PSs using BPMN and DMN. For this purpose, the Greek PS "Getting a Transportation Card for Disabled" is analyzed and BPMN is used to model the PS in two different ways, one with and one without the use of DMN. The results suggest that DMN models provide useful insights into the different PS versions while BPMN diagrams become simpler and more understandable. On the other hand, the public sector needs to accommodate yet another modeling notation which increases the required human capital needed for PS modeling.12413015th International Conference on Theory and Practice of Electronic Governanc
Leisure and innovation in horizontal R&D-based growth
No full textIn this paper we try to investigate, under weak spillover effects in the R&D sector, whether leisure time can act as an externality that promotes innovation. More specifically, we set up and test a horizontal R&D-based growth model with endogenous labor supply where leisure time may enhance inventors’ productivity and therefore have (under specific conditions) positive long run effects on the accumulation of new disembodied knowledge. Our main result in the theoretical model which is confirmed empirically is that leisure time can be beneficial for innovation in situations where there are weak spillovers arising from past ideas in the invention of new ones.10710573
Measuring Distance Learning System Adoption in a Greek University during the Pandemic Using the UTAUT Model, Trust in Government, Perceived University Efficiency and Coronavirus Fear
No full textThe COVID-19 pandemic has led most universities around the world using e-learning services as an alternative to their curricula. These distance learning tools can help universities expand and enhance their curricula with flexible learning techniques. In order to measure distance learning systems adoption in the University of Macedonia, a Greek university in the city of Thessaloniki, an extended version of the UTAUT model is introduced by using the constructs of Trust in Government regarding the management of the pandemic, Perceived University Efficiency on issues regarding distance learning provision and Corona Fear. To analyze the proposed model, an online survey of 471 university students was conducted. Data were analyzed using Partial Least Squares. The findings revealed that students’ attitudes toward University Efficiency affect key variables of the proposed model, such as Performance Expectancy, Effort Expectancy, Social Influence, Facilitation Conditions and Use Behavior. Additionally, Trust in Government affects Perceived University Efficiency, and Use Behavior and Corona Fear affects University Efficiency and Trust in the Government in the management of pandemic issues. In contradiction with other research, Corona Fear has no moderating effects. University efficiency, Trust in Government and Corona Fear, because of the effects that they have on key variables, may have important managerial implications when considering the adoption of distance learning systems during the pandemic and in general.12962
Revisiting the linkage between internal audit function characteristics and internal control quality
No full textThis paper revisits the linkage between internal audit function (IAF) characteristics and internal control quality (ICQ). Using the responses of 48 chief auditing executives from Greek listed companies, we consider a random polynomial-kernel metabolized regression model, which implements in MATLAB, an extended version of the approach presented in a 2018 study by Oussii and Taktak. Our results demonstrate that the proposed random polynomial model is valid, reliable and appropriate for assessing ICQ, presenting estimation performance over three times better than that of the linear regression case. Our findings suggest that the proposed model can serve as a starting point for companies and practitioners to improve ICQ levels through the assessment of certain independent variables. On that basis, our study offers insights to regulatory bodies, auditors and scholars in perceiving the contribution of the IAF’s constituents to ICQ. Finally, our approach is expected to inspire conclusive follow-on research on the assessment of ICQ in other countries with similar settings.17113
The influence of entertainment, utility and pass time on consumer brand engagement for news media brands: a mediation model
No full textGiven that the current media condition provides numerous channels that create interaction between news media brands and consumers, the concept of consumer brand engagement (CBE), referred as being the interactive relationships between consumers and brands is more crucial than ever in the media sector. The purpose of this study is to examine the direct and indirect effects of three motives, utility, entertainment, and pass time, on consumer brand engagement for online news media brands. A causal model that illustrates both the direct and indirect effects of the three motives on CBE reveals the critical role of entertainment as a mediator. Utility and entertainment positively impact CBE, whereas pass time is negatively associated with CBE for online news media brands. Entertainment positively mediates the relationship between utility and CBE as well as influencing the negative relationship between pass time and CBE.19112
The Landscape of MOOC Platforms Worldwide
No full textPrevious studies have mainly investigated major massive open online course (MOOC) platforms such as Coursera, edX, and Udemy. This study used 21 metrics to explore 35 MOOC platforms from across the world. Five Web analytics tools were used to analyze these MOOC platforms using data from MOOC platform directories and exploration of platform sites. The findings revealed that many universities, companies, and organizations have cooperated with the platforms and provided MOOCs through them. Major global platforms have offered thousands of MOOCs while regional platforms were more likely to have offered dozens. Some large platforms had millions of registered users while others registered just thousands. The major global platforms were established in the US to offer MOOCs mainly in English, though they offered MOOCs in other languages as well. The regional platforms offered MOOCs mainly in local languages, and to some extent in English and other languages. Some platforms engaged users for long periods while others failed to keep users after they viewed the first page of the platform. On average, a visitor stayed on a platform for 8 minutes visited 7.2 pages per visit. Major global platforms attracted users from all over the world, while regional platforms mainly attracted users from countries where the regional platform language was spoken. Some platforms had very few accessibility and contrast errors while other platforms performed poorly. Most platforms were mobile-friendly. However, administrators of almost all MOOC platforms should take actions to increase the speed of their platform. Other recommendation include undertaking marketing campaigns to increase the number of partners, the number of MOOCs offered, and the platforms’ visibility.23310413