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An investigation of a specific system development methodology for business process reengineering
No full textSystem developers in South African organisations need to recognise,
recommend and appreciate the use of System Development Methodologies
(SDMs) (Huisman 2004). In this age of rapidly changing technological
trends which South African organisations have not been spared of, system
developers are constantly trying to find new ways of doing business that
align with the technological advancements. In light of this, transforming the
way business is done or changing business processes is usually the ultimate
solution, thereby invoking Business Process Reengineering (BPR). There is
therefore a strong call to employ specific SDMs for the development of
Information Systems proposed for BPR (Mavetera 2012). This paper looks
at specific SDMs for BPR. As of today, existent SDMs in the computing
world are believed to have been designed for the development of completely
new Information Systems not systems that are being improved or
reengineered. The drive behind investigating specific SDMs for BPR is
basically informed by past research from BPR proponents who are
concerned that BPR has serious effects on the organisational business
processes (Hammer and Champy 2005, Muthu, Whitman and Cheraghi 1999
and Giaglis 2009). They advocate that BPR requires a proper system
development approach to be followed if it is to succeed. This theoretical
investigation further looks at the extent to which SDMs accommodate the
aspect of BPR in terms of BPR characteristics and success factors within
their philosophy
Factors influencing success of construction projects by emerging contractors in South Africa: a case of Mahikeng area
Get PDFEmerging contractors play a critical role in the South African economy in terms of rendering services to government especially in the construction sector. However, literature findings reveal that some of the SMMEs are unable to deliver their projects successfully due to project management issues. The focus of this study was to establish the project management factors influencing the successful delivery of construction projects by emerging contractors in the Mahikeng area of South Africa. A mixed design research method was used to collect, analyse and derive the findings. Findings revealed that projects do not comply with the time, scope, cost and quality requirements. Focus group interview results attributed these problems to lack of project management skills among the emerging contractors. It is recommended that more support initiatives from the South African Department of Public Works, and other key stakeholders in the construction industry be provided to these contractors
The role of SDMs in preserving the organisational strategy during BPR: lessons from SA MHEIs
Get PDFProfessionals in system development have recognised and recommended the use of System
Development Methodologies (SDMs) in South African organisations (Huisman and Iivari 2003,
Huisman 2004). Professionals in BPR have also raised concern over the negative impact that BPR
has on the organisational strategy (Mavetera 2012, Hammer and Champy 2005). There has
therefore been a call for the use of SDMs during BPR to try and lessen the burden BPR bears on
the organisational strategy (Hammer and Champy 2005, Muthu, Whitman and Cheraghi 1999
and Giaglis 2009). This study aimed to bring to light the role of SDMs in preserving the
organisational strategy during BPR. The motivation behind this study is informed by past
research in BPR, organisational strategy and SDMs. To be able to gather more evidence that
support the ideas behind the past research and assist in establishing the purpose of the study in
practice; interviews were done with South African Merged Higher Education Institutions
(MHEIs) and literature on this topic was also used. This study was qualitative in nature and
applied unstructured interviews and literature analysis of which results found that BPR has an
effect on the organisational strategy in several ways and SDMs are either being applied or
recommended in for BPR project
An investigation of a specific system development methodology for business process reengineering
Get PDFSystem developers in South African organisations need to recognise,
recommend and appreciate the use of System Development Methodologies
(SDMs) (Huisman 2004). In this age of rapidly changing technological
trends which South African organisations have not been spared of, system
developers are constantly trying to find new ways of doing business that
align with the technological advancements. In light of this, transforming the
way business is done or changing business processes is usually the ultimate
solution, thereby invoking Business Process Reengineering (BPR). There is
therefore a strong call to employ specific SDMs for the development of
Information Systems proposed for BPR (Mavetera 2012). This paper looks
at specific SDMs for BPR. As of today, existent SDMs in the computing
world are believed to have been designed for the development of completely
new Information Systems not systems that are being improved or
reengineered. The drive behind investigating specific SDMs for BPR is
basically informed by past research from BPR proponents who are
concerned that BPR has serious effects on the organisational business
processes (Hammer and Champy 2005, Muthu, Whitman and Cheraghi 1999
and Giaglis 2009). They advocate that BPR requires a proper system
development approach to be followed if it is to succeed. This theoretical
investigation further looks at the extent to which SDMs accommodate the
aspect of BPR in terms of BPR characteristics and success factors within
their philosophy
An evaluation of the supportiveness of systems development methodologies to strategic goals during business process reengineering
Get PDFThesis (MSc (Computer Science))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2012.Professionals in system development have recognised and recommended the use of System Development Methodologies (SDMs) in South African organisations (Huisman and Iivari 2003). The first decade of South African independence has seen extensive restructuring of the Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) to form Merged Higher Education Institutions (MHEIs). The effects of the mergers on the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) side of the MHEIs saw the restructuring and redirecting of previously individual HEI’s strategic goals and business processes thereby invoking Business Process Reengineering (BPR). Professionals in BPR have also recognised the need for specific SDMs for BPR (Hammer and Champy 2005, Muthu, Whitman and Cheraghi 1999 and Giaglis 2009). This study aimed to evaluate the supportiveness of SDMs to strategic goals during BPR to find out whether they can be used as an effective artefact of change in MHEIs. The drive behind evaluating SDMs’ organisational strategy support is basically informed by past research from BPR proponents that suggest that BPR has serious effects on the organisational strategy and that it is a process that needs a proper approach to be followed if it is to succeed. In Chapter 2, evaluations of SDMs were done to determine the extent to which SDMs accommodate organisational strategy as well the extent to which they match with BPR success factors. The evaluations showed that SDMs can be used for BPR to satisfy requirements to a certain degree, but no specific SDMs were identified for BPR. The assumption has been based on the fact that in all the SDMs evaluated, not all required BPR success factors and characteristics were traceable in a single SDM at once to qualify them to suit BPR purposes. Future research may therefore need to consider developing some SDMs specific to BPR that emphasise on organisational strategy and include the success factors and BPR characteristics discussed. Chapter 2 also revealed that there has been very little research, specifically relating the use of SDMs in BPR. Findings on the relationship between BPR, SDMs and strategy therefore still remain almost non–existent. To be able to establish the supportiveness of SDMs to strategic goals in practice during BPR, four South African MHEIs were identified for investigations. Qualitative analysis was done for the semi–structured interviews and documents which were used as data collection methods. A qualitative analysis tool called ATLAS.ti was used to analyse the transcribed interviews and then the cross case analysis technique was applied to generate similar patterns among the findings. The results gave an impression that SDMs are being either applied or recommended in MHEIs for BPR projects. However, none of the SDMs carried the required emphasis on strategic goals in all the phases and no specific SDMs were identified for BPR that carry full emphasis on strategic goals. Chapter 4 of this study revealed the results of the study and confirmed that universities still basically follow the Information Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC). Some universities have developed their own framework of tools and an organized collection of techniques from different types of SDMs where developers can pick and choose from for different development projects. Most universities IT departments have taken up the use of newer SDMs to try and address the changed and more complicated IT environments and businesses processes brought through the merger. Top managers emphasised their strong support for strategy in SDMs and developers believe in the consideration of organisational strategy although they are not directly involved in strategic issues.Master
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Get PDFThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Characterisation of software development methodologies in the telecommunications industry
Get PDFMCom (Computer Science and Information Systems), North-West University, Mafikeng CampusThe telecommunication industry provides products and services to enable communication. In
South Africa, there are several telecommunication service providers which include Vodacom,
Cell C, MTN and Telkom. These companies provide mobile, wireless and cable
telecommunication services. For telecommunication services to be offered, there is a need for
efficient and effective software solutions even though the development of software in the
industry may be a difficult task to achieve. In a bid to resolve this, information technology
practitioners recommend software development methodologies (SDMs) to augment the software
development process. The demand for telecommunication services has risen over the years,
resulting in massive challenges in the provision of quality software to satiate the user needs in
time.
This research aimed to investigate and interrogate the role of SDMs used m the
telecommunication industry. The main objectives were to identify SDMs used m the
telecommunication industry, and in tandem identify key specifications for SDMs suitable for the
industry. Lastly, the impact of SDMs on software development processes in the
telecommunication industry was investigated. The motive to conduct this study was the lack of
literature on SDMs in the telecommunication industry.
Chapter 2 assessed SDMs in the telecommunication industry, in order to determine the SDMs
role in software development. This assessment showed that SDMs are used to assist software
development in general, however there are SDMs that are specifically developed for software
development in the telecommunication industry.
In order to successfully investigate the SDMs used in telecommunication industry, four leading
telecommunication companies were identified for investigation. Case studies were conducted in
these companies and data was collected through semi structured interviews. Atlas.ti was used to
analyse interview transcripts. Thereafter a cross analysis method was used to identify similar
patterns among the findings.
The results indicated that software development life cycle and agile methodologies are used in
the telecommunication industry even though these SDMs do not fully address the
telecommunication requirements, hence the modifications.Master
Variations on the Author
Get PDF“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Get PDFWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
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