Rahul C. Basole

Complexity of service value networks: conceptualization and empirical investigation

This paper explores how service value is created in a network context and how the structure and dynamics of the value network as well as customer expectations influence the complexity of the services ecosystem. The paper then discusses what transformative role information and communication technology (ICT) plays in coordinating and delivering value and managing this complexity. A conceptual model is developed for understanding and investigating the nature, delivery, and exchange of service value and assessing the complexity of a service value network. Three central arguments are presented. First, value in the services economy is driven and determined by the end consumer and delivered through a complex web of direct and indirect relationships between value network actors. Second, the complexity of service value networks not only depends on the number of actors but also on the conditional probabilities that these actors are involved in delivering the service to the consumer. Third, ICT plays a central role in reducing complexity for consumers by providing greater levels of value network integration, information visibility, and means to manage and anticipate change.

Visualization of interfirm relations in a converging mobile ecosystem

The mobile ecosystem is characterized by a large and complex network of companies interacting with each other, directly and indirectly, to provide a broad array of mobile products and services to end-customers. With the convergence of enabling technologies, the complexity of the mobile ecosystem is increasing multifold as new actors are emerging, new relations are formed, and the traditional distribution of power is shifted. Drawing on theories of network science, complex systems, interfirm relationships, and the creative art and science of visualization, this paper identifies key players and maps the complex structure and dynamics of nearly 7000 global companies and over 18,000 relationships in the converging mobile ecosystem. Our approach enables decision makers to (i) visually explore the complexity of interfirm relations in the mobile ecosystem, (ii) discover the relation between current and emerging segments, (iii) determine the impact of convergence on ecosystem structure, (iv) understand a firms competitive position, and (v) identify interfirm relation patterns that may influence their choice of innovation strategy or business models.

On the Evolution of Mobile Platform Ecosystem Structure and Strategy

Platforms have become a core fundament of many technology industries. Platforms not only enable new products and services but have also been shown to influence strategies, shape business models, and even transform entire industries. Platforms play a particularly important role in the mobile ecosystem. The success of smartphones has led to an intense battle of mobile platforms, each looking for ways to become the system of choice for mobile device manufacturers, mobile network operators, and mobile application developers. Drawing on theories of platform markets, strategic networks, and business ecosystems, this paper uses a visualization approach to study the evolving global interfirm structure and examines strategies used in the mobile platform ecosystem over the past five years. We identify important differences between mobile platform strategies and discuss their implications for both mobile ecosystem participants and the future of the app economy.

Network analysis of supply chain systems: A systematic review and future research

Supply chains are continuously evolving and adapting systems driven by complex socio-technical interfirm interactions. Traditional engineering and operations management modeling approaches have primarily focused on technical issues and are not well suited to effectively capture the many complex structural and behavioral aspects of supply chain systems (SCSs). There is growing recognition by the supply chain community of the significant benefits a network analytic lens can provide to understand, design, and manage SCSs. We systematically review and analyze the relevant literature and, drawing on a multi-disciplinary theoretical foundation, develop an integrative framework. Our framework identifies three distinct, but interdependent themes that characterize the study of SCSs: SCS network structure (i.e. system architecture), SCS network dynamics (i.e. system behavior), and SCS network strategy (i.e. system policy and control). We elaborate on these themes, review key findings, identify the current limitations and knowledge gaps, and discuss the fundamental benefits derived from adopting an integrated SCSs perspective. We conclude with future research directions for network analysis in SCS design and management, in particular, and complex enterprise systems in general.

Understanding Business Ecosystem Dynamics: A Data-Driven Approach

Business ecosystems consist of a heterogeneous and continuously evolving set of entities that are interconnected through a complex, global network of relationships. However, there is no well-established methodology to study the dynamics of this network. Traditional approaches have primarily utilized a single source of data of relatively established firms; however, these approaches ignore the vast number of relevant activities that often occur at the individual and entrepreneurial levels. We argue that a data-driven visualization approach, using both institutionally and socially curated datasets, can provide important complementary, triangulated explanatory insights into the dynamics of interorganizational networks in general and business ecosystems in particular. We develop novel visualization layouts to help decision makers systemically identify and compare ecosystems. Using traditionally disconnected data sources on deals and alliance relationships (DARs), executive and funding relationships (EFRs), and public opinion and discourse (POD), we empirically illustrate our data-driven method of data triangulation and visualization techniques through three cases in the mobile industry Google’s acquisition of Motorola Mobility, the coopetitive relation between Apple and Samsung, and the strategic partnership between Nokia and Microsoft. The article concludes with implications and future research opportunities.

Understanding Interfirm Relationships in Business Ecosystems with Interactive Visualization

Business ecosystems are characterized by large, complex, and global networks of firms, often from many different market segments, all collaborating, partnering, and competing to create and deliver new products and services. Given the rapidly increasing scale, complexity, and rate of change of business ecosystems, as well as economic and competitive pressures, analysts are faced with the formidable task of quickly understanding the fundamental characteristics of these interfirm networks. Existing tools, however, are predominantly query- or list-centric with limited interactive, exploratory capabilities. Guided by a field study of corporate analysts, we have designed and implemented dotlink360, an interactive visualization system that provides capabilities to gain systemic insight into the compositional, temporal, and connective characteristics of business ecosystems. dotlink360 consists of novel, multiple connected views enabling the analyst to explore, discover, and understand interfirm networks for a focal firm, specific market segments or countries, and the entire business ecosystem. System evaluation by a small group of prototypical users shows supporting evidence of the benefits of our approach. This design study contributes to the relatively unexplored, but promising area of exploratory information visualization in market research and business strategy.

IT innovation adoption by enterprises

Enterprise adoption of information technology (IT) innovations has been a topic of tremendous interest to both practitioners and researchers. The study of technological, managerial, strategic, and economic factors as well as adoption processes and contexts has led the field to become a rich tapestry of many theoretical and conceptual foundations. This paper provides a comprehensive multi-disciplinary classification and analysis of the scholarly development of the enterprise-level IT innovation adoption literature by examining articles over the past three decades (1977-2008). We identify 472 articles and classify them by functional discipline, publication, research methodology, and IT type. The paper applies text analytic methods to this document repository to (1) identify salient adoption determinants and their relationships, (2) discover research trends and patterns across disciplines, and (3) suggest potential areas for future research in IT innovation adoption at the enterprise level. Highlights? We classify and analyze enterprise-level IT innovation adoption research. ? We show that text analytics enables discovery of trans-disciplinary relationships. ? We identify best & worst organizational, technological, & environmental factors. ? We find that emerging IT is a promising domain for future IT innovation research.

The Emergence of the Mobile Enterprise: A Value-Driven Perspective

The mobile enterprise is an emerging organizational form that has resulted in a paradigm shift of how business is done. However, only little theoretical work has been done to explore what actually constitutes a mobile enterprise. This article addresses this definitional issue by exploring the salient value propositions that drive the emergence of the mobile enterprise, identifying categories of workers that can benefit from mobile ICT, reviewing what current solutions support the mobile workforce, identifying the challenges of adopting and implementing these solutions, and providing propositions for future theoretical and empirical research.

Models of Complex Enterprise Networks

This article describes the development of a modeling hierarchy for complex enterprise networks. Drawing on the extant modeling literature, these network models are elaborated in terms of 4 salient problem characteristics: conversions, flows, controls, and social/organizational relationships. The authors relate these 4 characteristics to phenomena, representations, micromodels, macromodels, and modeling tools. The roles of information and incentives in complex enterprises networks are considered. Examples of 2 domains, global manufacturing and healthcare delivery, are woven through these discussions of alternative representations and models. The authors conclude by providing a structured comparison of these 2 domains, discussing theoretical and practical implications, and presenting opportunities for future enterprise transformation research.

Supply Network Structure, Visibility, and Risk Diffusion: A Computational Approach

Understanding and managing supply chain risks is a critical functional competency for todays global enterprises. A lack of this competency can have significant negative outcomes, including costly production and delivery delays, loss of future sales, and a tarnished corporate image. The ability to identify and mitigate risks, however, is complicated as supply chains are becoming increasingly global, complex, and interconnected. Drawing on the complex systems and epidemiology literature, and using a computational modeling and network analysis approach, we examine the impact of global supply network structure on risk diffusion and supply network health and demonstrate the importance of supply network visibility. Our results show a significant association between network structure and both risk diffusion and supply network health. In particular, our results indicate that small-world supply network topologies consistently outperform supply networks with scale-free characteristics. Theoretically, our study contributes to our understanding of risk management and supply networks as complex networked systems using a computational approach. Managerially, our study illustrates how decision makers can benefit from a network analytic approach to develop a more holistic understanding of system-wide risk diffusion and to guide network governance policies for more favorable health level outcomes. The article concludes by highlighting the main findings and discussing possibilities of future research directions.