Tobias Mettler

Situational maturity models as instrumental artifacts for organizational design

In order to identify and explore the strength and weaknesses of particular organizational designs, a wide range of maturity models have been developed by both, practitioners and academics over the past years. However, a systematization and generalization of the procedure on how to design maturity models as well as a synthesis of design science research with the rather behavioural field of organization theory is still lacking. Trying to combine the best of both fields, a first design proposition of a situational maturity model is presented in this paper. The proposed maturity model design is illustrated with the help of an instantiation for the healthcare domain.

Towards a Classification of Maturity Models in Information Systems

Over the past years, a wide range of maturity models have been developed by practitioners as well as academics for the purpose of measuring and prescribing certain aspects of information systems “maturity”. Since, to our knowledge, no classification system for maturity models exists to date, the rising number of maturity models implicates problems with respect to retrievability and reusability. Aiming at enhancing the time consuming and exhausting search and selection process of appropriate assessment models, a classification approach for IS maturity models is presented in this paper. Based on a broad literature review that yields 117 maturity models which are analysed in detail, the following classification characteristics are proposed: (a) a set of general model attributes that describe basic characteristics (such as the topic addressed by the model, the primary source or the targeted audience), (b) maturity model design attributes (relating to the construction and organisation of the model) and (c) maturity model use attributes (such as application method or tool support)

Maturity assessment models: a design science research approach

In order to ascertain and measure dedicated aspects of social and technical systems ‘maturity’, a wide range of maturity assessment models have been developed by both, practitioners and academics over the past years. In spite of its broad proliferation, the concept has not been untroubled by criticism. Unnecessary bureaucracy, poor theoretical foundation, and the impression of a falsified certainty to achieve success are just a few examples for that. As there is still a significant lack of knowledge on how to design theoretically sound and widely accepted maturity assessment models, it is the aim of this paper to discuss the typical phases of maturity model development and application by taking a design science research perspective. Given that both, development and application are intimately connected, different decision parameters are identified that are relevant in respect to rigour and relevance of the maturity assessment model.

Understanding business intelligence in the context of healthcare

In today’s fast changing healthcare sector, decision makers are facing a growing demand for both clinical and administrative information in order to comply with legal and customer-specific requirements. The use of business intelligence (BI) is seen as a possible solution to this actual challenge. As the existing research about BI is primarily focused on the industrial sector, it is the aim of this contribution to translate and adapt the current findings for the healthcare context. For this purpose, different definitions of BI are examined and condensed in a framework. Furthermore, the sector-specific preconditions for the effective use and future role of BI are discussed.

Inductive design of maturity models: applying the Rasch algorithm for design science research

Maturity models are an established means to systematically document and guide the development of organizations using archetypal capability levels. Often, these models lack a sound foundation and/or are derived on the basis of an arbitrary design method. In order to foster the design of relevant and rigorous artifacts, this paper presents a method for maturity model construction that applies the Rasch algorithm and cluster analysis as a sound methodical foundation. The Rasch algorithm is widely used to improve scholarly intelligence and attainment tests. In order to demonstrate the application of the proposed method and to evaluate its usability and applicability, we present a design exemplar in the business intelligence domain.

Supplier relationship management: a case study in the context of health care

Supplier Relationship Management (SRM) plays an important role in the reduction of costs and the optimization of performance in industrial enterprises. Despite enormous investments in innovation, the health care sector has not experienced fundamental change yet. However, increased market dynamics and the implementation of economic principles will force health service providers to optimize cost structures as well as effectiveness and efficiency of business relationships. This paper reviews the current state of the art in the field, translates and amends the current findings for the health care context, and presents a case study illustrating the impact of the implementation of SRM principles in a leading Swiss hospital.

What constitutes the field of health information systems? Fostering a systematic framework and research agenda

The main aim of this article is to present a research agenda and systematic framework of what the field of health information systems is about, namely its central topics and connecting areas. In doing so, we try to provide a cohesive ‘big picture’ for academics and professionals that are interested in conducting research in this broad area. By using a large number of disparate data sources, we identified 3 major research fields and 18 sub-fields. As this discipline is quite new and heterogeneous in terms of themes and the educational backgrounds of its researchers, we see our conceptualisation as a first step in obtaining a collective understanding of this field, as well as being a common starting point for discussing future directions.

Thinking in Terms of Design Decisions When Developing Maturity Models

To measure dedicated aspects of “maturity†, a range of maturity models have been developed in the field of information systems by practitioners and academics over the past years. Despite its broad proliferation, the concept has not escaped criticism. Unnecessary bureaucracy, poor theoretical foundation, and the impression of a falsified certainty to achieve success are a few examples. As there is a significant lack of knowledge on how to design theoretically sound and widely accepted maturity models, in this paper, the author opens the discussion on design decisions when developing these models. Based on analogy and informed arguments, the author synthesizes a generic but adjuvant framework that consists of five common design steps and eighteen decision parameters that help practitioners as well as researchers in the development of maturity models.

A Taxonomy for Multi-Perspective Ex Ante Evaluation of the Value of Complementary Health Information Systems - Applying the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology

Healthcare providing organizations realize astonishing advancements in treatment procedures and medical technology that strongly impact health outcome. Despite recognition of potential contributions of health information systems (HIS) its adoption is comparably low. Existing design research artifacts for IS evaluation conceptualized for domains other than healthcare produce inadequate results due to an inappropriate set or balancing of value indicators. Their application hence results in unclear value of HIS, hindering investments. Given the socio-technical character of HIS, behaviorist research on acceptance can be considered a good theoretical foundation for designing methods for ex ante evaluations of IS in healthcare. Based on the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology, six key variables are applied for a concept-driven literature research of criteria determining value of HIS. The resulting taxonomy contributes to the knowledge base a more detailed understanding of domain-specific HIS value indicators, which is tested for validity through a factor analysis.

An analysis of the factors influencing networkability in the health-care sector

In most industries of economy, the production structures evolved into activities characterized by a high division of labour between the business partners combined with specialization, the standardization of service components and extensive networking. In the health-care sector, the first signs of a similar development are beginning to crystallize. As a consequence, networkability, the ability to link up with other players on the basis of commonly agreed standards for the joint provisioning of patient-centred and cost-efficient health services will emerge to a key concept for future health service delivery. As not only technical but mainly organizational and behavioural issues are actually determining networkability of health-care organizations, a holistic model for analysis is needed. In this paper, the main variables leading to an increase in this networkability are identified and compiled into a comprehensible procedure model for health-care practitioners.