Group Decision Support Systems Week 9 PG Procter

Group Decision Support Systems Week 9

P&G “Procter & Gamble Drives Ideation with Group Support Systems” n Company background n Problem description n Proposed solution n Results 2

Collaboration n 3 What is it? “… making joint effort toward achieving an agreed upon goal. ” Meeting is a common form of collaboration Why collaborate?

Why Collaborate? Make Decisions Synergy Build Trust Share Work Build Consensus 4 Review Share the Vision Share Information Solve Problems Socialize

Collaboration is Difficult Waiting to speak Domination Fear of Speaking Misunderstanding Inattention Lack of Focus Inadequate Criteria Premature Decisions Missing Information Distractions 5 Ineffective Collaboration Wrong People Groupthink Poor Grasp of Problem Ignored Alternatives Lack of Consensus Poor Planning Hidden Agendas Conflict Inadequate Resources Poorly Defined Goals

Collaboration is Expensive q q 15 Million formal Sessions / day ? Million Informal Sessions / day q 4 Billion Sessions / year q 30 -80% Manager’s time Fortune 500 Companies 3 M Corporation Study 6

Collaboration is Essential n No one has all the … n n n Experience Knowledge Resources Insight, and Inspiration …to do the job alone n 7 Bottom line: Collaboration is difficult, expensive, and yet essential for today’s organizations

How Do People Collaborate? Low 3 Levels of Collaboration Capability Degree of Collaborative Effort High 8 Sprinters Level 1 Collected Work : Uncoordinated Individual Efforts Relay Level 2 Coordinated Work: Coordinated Individual Efforts Crew Level 3 Concerted Work: Concerted Team Effort

Meetings (a form of collaboration) § § § 9 Joint activity Equal or near equal status Outcome depends on participant’s knowledge, etc. Outcome depends on group composition Outcome depends on decision-making process Disagreement settled by rank or negotiation

The Ideal Meeting § Dozens of people attend § Everyone … talks at once hears everything understands remembers § The impossible dream? 10

Traditional Meetings Only ONE person can speak at a time 11

GSS Meetings By using the computer everyone can SPEAK and be understood simultaneously 12

Communication Support n n 13 Vital Needed for collaboration Modern information technologies provide inexpensive, fast, capable, reliable means of supporting communication Internet / Web

Supporting Communication § Evolution of Communication § § § § § 14 Word of mouth Delivery persons Horseback Snailmail Telegraph Telephone Radio Television Videoconferencing Internet / Web…

A Time/Place Communication Framework 15

Groupware § Lotus Notes / Domino Server Includes Learning Space § § § 16 Netscape Collabra Server Microsoft Net. Meeting Novell Groupwise Group. Systems TCBWorks Web. Ex

Group Support Systems § § § Goal: to support groupwork Increase benefits / decrease losses of collaboration Based on traditional methods § Nominal Group Technique “Individuals work alone to generate ideas which are pooled under guidance of a trained facilitator” § Delphi Method “A structured process for collecting and distilling knowledge from a group of experts by means of questionnaires” § 17 Electronic Meeting System (EMS)

GSS – Important Features Process Gains: § Parallelism § § § Larger groups can participate Anonymity § ( promotes equal participation ) Focus on content not personalities Triggering Synergy Structure Record keeping Process Loses: § Free-riding § Flaming 18 ( simultaneous contributions ) ( ( stimulates thinking ) integrates ideas ) facilitates problem solving ) promotes organizational memory )

Benefits of Anonymity ü Ideas considered on merit not source ü Overcome fear of speaking up ü More ideas leads to more quality ideas ü Defuses tough political discussions 19

GSS Enabling Technologies 20 § Decision room § Multiple use facility § Web-based

The Decision (Electronic Meeting) Room § § § 21 12 to 30 networked personal computers Usually recessed into the desktop Server PC Large-screen projection system Breakout rooms Need a Trained Facilitator for Success

Decision Rooms IBM Corp. 22

More Decision Rooms US Air Force 23

Mobile Decision Rooms Murraysville School District Bus 24

On-Demand Decision Rooms 25

Few Organizations Use Decision Rooms § § § 26 High Cost Need for a Trained Facilitator Requires Specific Software Support for Different Cooperative Tasks Infrequent Use Different Place / Different Time Needs May Need More Than One

Other Technologies § Multiple Use Facility § § § Web-based § § 27 Cheaper Still need a facilitator Cheaper: no extra hardware needed Still need facilitator

Group. Systems, Inc. § § Comprehensive groupware Windows and Web versions Leading software § Tool: Think. Tank § § 28 From Group. Systems. com, Tucson, AZ

Think. Tank: Supported Activities § Supported tools and activities: § § § § 29 Agenda and Other Planning Activities Electronic Brainstorming Group Outliner Topic Commenter Categorizer Vote Others…

GSS Meeting Process Iterate until the solution is reached… 30

Step 1: Prepare an Agenda n n 31 Prepare an agenda …

Step 2: Collect Information n n 32 Brainstorm Risk Think about the risks to company if they launch a new line of products … think about the risks to the company if they launch a new line of sports drinks…

Step 3: Refine Information n n 33 Gather Additional Information Capture important issues for the listed items

Step 4: Prioritize Options n n 34 Prioritize Risk Based on Likelihood and Impact Use of Alternative Analysis Ballot for two Criteria

Step 5: Review Prioritized Options n n 35 View and Discuss Results of Voting …

Step 5: Review Prioritized Options… n 36 Chose Risks for Further Analysis…

Step 5: Review Prioritized Options… n n 37 Collect Additional Input On Risks Collect additional comments on top three risks…

Step 5: Review Prioritized Options… n 38 Review Comments on Risks…

Step 6: Create an Action Plan n 39 Create an Action Plan…

Step 7: Distribute Session Transcripts n 40 Create and Distribute a Final Report…

Last Words about GSS? § Why Successful? § § § Needs… § § 41 Parallelism Anonymity Synergy Structure Record keeping Organizational commitment Executive sponsor Dedicated well-trained facilitator Good planning

Creativity n n n 42 Is it a fundamental human trait or something that can be learned? Definition: Creativity is a characteristic of a person that leads to production of acts, items and/or instances of novelty Creativity is the product of … a genius vs. an idea generation environment Creative people tend to have creative lives CREATIVITY INNOVATION Idea Generation via Electronic Brainstorming

Creativity… n What variables affects creativity 1. 2. 3. n Cognitive variables: intelligence, knowledge, skills, etc. Environmental variables: cultural and socioeconomic factors, working conditions, etc. Personality variables: motivation, confidence, sense of freedom, etc. Creativity is fostered by n n Freedom Permission-to-fail Allow and Enable rather than Structure and Control 43

Creativity… n Software that shows creativity n n n Software that facilitates human creativity n n n Ý 44 Intelligent Agents (Softbots) Creativity is an intelligent behavior Thought. Path: promotes outside-the-box thinking Creative Whack. Pack (Creative Think): whack you out of your habitual thought process Idea. Fisher: provides language specific universality - thesaurus Freedom, Collaboration, Prototyping