H. James Nelson

A conceptual modeling quality framework

The goal of any modeling activity is a complete and accurate understanding of the real-world domain, within the bounds of the problem at hand and keeping in mind the goals of the stakeholders involved. High-quality representations are critical to that understanding. This paper proposes a comprehensive Conceptual Modeling Quality Framework, bringing together two well-known quality frameworks: the framework of Lindland, Sindre, and Sølvberg (LSS) and that of Wand and Weber based on Bunge’s ontology (BWW). This framework builds upon the strengths of the LSS and BWW frameworks, bringing together and organizing the various quality cornerstones and then defining the many quality dimensions that connect one to another. It presents a unified view of conceptual modeling quality that can benefit both researchers and practitioners.

Research Review: A Systematic Literature Review on the Quality of UML Models

The quality of conceptual models directly affects the quality of the understanding of the application domain and the quality of the final software products that are ultimately based on them. This paper describes a systematic literature review SLR of peer-reviewed conference and journal articles published from 1997 through 2009 on the quality of conceptual models written in UML, undertaken to understand the state-of-the-art, and then identify any gaps in current research. Six digital libraries were searched, and 266 papers dealing specifically with the quality of UML models were identified and classified into five dimensions: type of model quality, type of evidence, type of research result, type of diagram, and research goal. The results indicate that most research focuses on semantic quality, with relatively little on semantic completeness; as such, this research examines new modeling methods vs. quality frameworks and metrics, as well as quality assurance vs. understanding quality issues. The results also indicate that more empirical research is needed to develop a theoretical understanding of conceptual model quality. The classification scheme developed in this paper can serve as a guide for both researchers and practitioners.

Ensuring the quality of conceptual representations

High quality data and process representations are critical to the success of system development efforts. Despite this importance, quantitative methods for evaluating the quality of a representation are virtually nonexistent. This is a major shortcoming. However, there is another approach. Instead of evaluating the quality of the final representation, the representation process itself can be evaluated. This paper views the modeling process as a communication channel. In a good communication channel, sufficient error prevention, error detection, and error correction mechanisms exist to ensure that the output message matches the input message. A good modeling process will also have mechanisms for preventing, detecting, and correcting errors at each step from observation to elicitation to analysis to final representation. This paper describes a theoretically-based set of best practices for ensuring that each step of the process is performed correctly, followed by a proof of concept experiment demonstrating the utility of the method for producing a representation that closely reflects the real world.

A comparative study of IT/IS job skills and job definitions

Do large firms have a pattern of utilizing certain types of IT/IS skills more than others? Do individuals need to have one set of IT/IS skills for Fortune 500 companies and another set of skills for small-sized firms? Understanding the set of skills required for IT/IS jobs is of importance to professionals as it governs their employability as well as their decisions to seek professional certifications. Meanwhile, the trend of job outsourcing means that certain types of jobs are kept in-house in firms while other types are contracted out. It thus becomes paramount for professionals to know the skill set that is required to preserve their employability in the job market. This ongoing study evaluates the skills required for IT/IS jobs by analyzing a broad set of online job descriptions. An initial set of data has been gathered through an automated retrieval of jobs descriptions from online sites. This data set will be analyzed using Latent Semantic Clustering which will result in a quantitative classification system of IT/IS jobs. The comparison of job skill requirements between small and large-sized firms is another expected result of this study. The contribution of this study is expected to be the determination of patterns of skills required for IT/IS jobs, a non-judgmental and quantitatively based definition of IT/IS jobs, and the investigation of differences in hiring patterns between firms of varying sizes.

Building the IT Workforce of the Future: The Demand for More Complex, Abstract, and Strategic Knowledge

The software development process has undergone a considerable amount of change from the early days of spaghetti code to the present state of the art of development using strategic patterns. This has caused not only changes in the toolkits that developers use, but also a change in their mindset-the way that they approach and think about software development. This study uses revealed causal mapping techniques to examine the change in mindset that occurs across the procedural to OO development transition, and lays the foundation for future studies of the OO/ pattern cognitive transition. The results indicate that there is not only increasing complexity in the cognitive maps of the OO developers, but also that there is a need for the developer to shift from routine, assembly line coding to more abstract thought processes.

To Be or Not To Be: A Multidimensional Spirituality in the Workplace:

The present study focuses on furthering the theoretical foundations of the field of spirituality and religiosity in the workplace (SRW) by providing a parsimonious definition, and multi-dimensional model for the construct of spirituality grounded in a pluralistic and historically authentic framework using the Sophia Perennis or Perennial Philosophy (Lings, 2005, A return to the spirit.... Fons Vitae, Louisville). In this process, the study addresses the dilemma of religiosity versus spirituality faced by researchers in this area (Benefiel, Fry, & Geigle, 2014, Psychology of Religion and Spirituality, 6(3), 175). It also addresses concerns regarding the potential conflicts related to spirituality and religiosity that could arise in a secular workplace, which emphasizes inclusiveness and equality. A three factor model of spirituality is developed using the grounded theory approach (Corbin & Strauss, 1990, Qualitative Sociology, 13(1), 3–21) and is corroborated by factor analysis of multiple samples (n = 159 and n = 181), and participants representing three major world faith traditions (both Eastern and Western).

Introduction to IT and Entrepreneurship Minitrack

Minitrack Introduction

Visible IT in Credit Unions: Strategic Advantage and Disadvantage in Two Web Eras

Research indicates that rapidly evolving technology and markets do not provide a first mover strategic advantage but favor the second mover. This paper introduces a third variable: hype. In a time of rapid technology and market evolution, hype overrides the expected results and gives the first mover a strategic advantage. This study examines a homogeneous set of medium-sized information-dependent and information-intensive organizations as they implement visible information technology in two eras: during a time of intense hype and during a more normal time where technology has become commonplace. One hundred matched triples of credit unions were examined as they chose to remain offline, implement an informational website, or implement a transactional website during the highly hyped Internet expansion time of 1998 through 2002. One hundred matched pairs of credit unions were then examined during the more normal time from 2003 through 2007. Results indicate that credit unions that embraced the hyped technology gained significant strategic advantage. Second-moving credit unions that waited for the more mature technology survived, whereas the credit unions that did not adopt the technology were at a significant strategic disadvantage.