João Barata, Paulo Rupino Da Cunha and Janusz Stal
The purpose of this paper is to identify avenues for future research in mobile supply chain management (mSCM) in the advent of Industry 4.0.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to identify avenues for future research in mobile supply chain management (mSCM) in the advent of Industry 4.0.
Design/methodology/approach
A systematic literature review was used to identify, classify, and analyze current knowledge, identify trends, and propose recommendations for future research.
Findings
Other research fields, such as operations, production, industrial engineering, and computer science, seem to have a head start in research into Industry 4.0. Several avenues are suggested for investigation under an information systems lens.
Research limitations/implications
Despite the care taken in the systematic literature review, the language (English), the selected keywords, and selected databases represent a natural limitation.
Practical implications
With Industry 4.0 at the top of the agenda of managers and countries, it is important to identify relevant research avenues.
Originality/value
A gap between the extant literature on mSCM and new concerns raised by Industry 4.0 is presented, and some research opportunities to close those gaps are proposed.
Details
Keywords
Marinos Themistocleous, Paulo Rupino da Cunha, Evangelos Tabakis and Maria Papadaki
Central banks from more than 100 countries, representing 95% of the global financial output, are studying Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs). CBDCs can potentially enable…
Abstract
Purpose
Central banks from more than 100 countries, representing 95% of the global financial output, are studying Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs). CBDCs can potentially enable safe, efficient and inexpensive cross-border and cross-currency payments in today's interconnected financial system. However, a critical factor influencing their expansion is cross-border interoperability. Therefore, there is a high demand from central banks, researchers, computer scientists, policy- and decision-makers to explore this topic further. Its better understanding will improve information management, enhance the decision-making process, and result in the redesign of central banks' processes and products (digital currencies).
Design/methodology/approach
The authors investigate this novel and timely topic by conducting a Multivocal Systematic Literature Review (MSLR) on CBDCs cross-border interoperability. Additionally, the authors collect and analyze empirical data from various online resources such as CBDC trackers.
Findings
The authors conclude that although the academic literature on CBDC cross-border interoperability is very limited, valuable documents published by central banks and other entities discuss this issue and provide valuable insights. The authors paid particular attention to the reports published by the Bank of International Settlement (BIS) as it proposes three different models for CBDC cross-border interoperability. The study research reveals that most CBDC cross-border interoperability projects run by several central banks and other organizations explore these three BIS models. For this research, the authors performed an in-depth study of CBDC cross-border interoperability cases to investigate all three BIS models. The findings illustrate that although technical interoperability is feasible, plenty of work needs to be done in terms of standards and interfaces. In addition, other non-technical interoperability areas need to be explored and addressed, as there are concerns related to legal issues, regulations, jurisdictional boundaries, policy challenges and governance.
Research limitations/implications
Research on CBDCs is progressing quickly, so, despite the authors’ use of an MSLR to identify the state-of-the-art, interested parties should be aware that new information is prone to appear imminently. Hence, this study work should be understood as a basis to build upon. Also, although the authors have included major academic databases in this study search, there is the possibility that a few papers may have been published in outlets that the authors have not covered. Finally, since the search in the grey literature returned thousands of hits, the authors had to define a stopping criterion for the documents to analyze.
Practical implications
The authors provide insights on the current state of CBDC cross-border interoperability, which is valuable to policy- and decision-makers currently assessing the situation and deciding on avenues to pursue.
Originality/value
The authors provide an integrated and critical view of the developments of CBDC cross-border interoperability, considering not only available academic literature but also fundamental documents from key institutions such as central banks and related organizations.
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Ana Sofia Antunes, Paulo Rupino da Cunha and João Barata
The purpose of this paper is to present a lightweight approach to help diagnose and eliminate issues in existing business processes, which cause participants to resist following…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to present a lightweight approach to help diagnose and eliminate issues in existing business processes, which cause participants to resist following them as modelled. The analysis is made accessible by the use of drillable graphical dashboards.
Design/methodology/approach
Two action research cycles in two distinct industries were used to test and refine the approach, while also solving the specific organizational issues.
Findings
The approach was considered simple to use and proved capable of identifying pain points causing friction in the smooth operation of business processes. Various longer-term positive effects were reported by one of the organizations that is ISO 9001-certified.
Research limitations/implications
This type of research benefits from experiments in new cases with different contexts that can challenge it. In particular, it would be interesting to evaluate the approach in an organization with a more ad hoc view of processes, as opposed to the more standards-based cases of this paper.
Practical implications
Using the proposed approach to tune the processes, so that participants are more willing to follow them, removes some inconsistency of operations and potential non-conformities in audits.
Social implications
The proposed approach is aimed at the “social sustainability” of the business processes, as it seeks to eliminate people grievances with those processes and make them sustainable in the long term.
Originality/value
Although there is a lot written about process improvement, the literature is scarce in lightweight, pragmatic approaches to identify and resolve the social aspects that cause participants to deviate from the processes, or see them as a burden instead of valuable help for their everyday tasks.
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Konstantinos Koumaditis, Marinos Themistocleous and Paulo Rupino Da Cunha
Service oriented architecture (SOA) is increasingly adopted by many sectors, including healthcare. Due to the nature of healthcare systems, there is a need to increase SOA…
Abstract
Purpose
Service oriented architecture (SOA) is increasingly adopted by many sectors, including healthcare. Due to the nature of healthcare systems, there is a need to increase SOA adoption success rates as the non‐integrated nature of healthcare systems is responsible for medical errors that cause the loss of tens of thousands of patients per year. Although numerous factors affect SOA success, these have not been explored and analysed yet, especially in the area of healthcare. This highlights a literature void and thus the purpose of this paper is to identify critical success factors (CSFs) influencing SOA implementation in healthcare.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors critically review the literature and identify individual factors that may form CSFs for SOA implementation in healthcare. In doing so, they synthesise and propose a conceptual model of SOA CSFs in healthcare. The conceptual model is tested in the practical arena using a qualitative research methodology that is based on a case study strategy.
Findings
The empirical findings verify the proposed model and reveal that an additional SOA CSF in healthcare does exist. It is also revealed that the proposed model helped the case organization to successfully implement an SOA solution.
Research limitations/implications
The implications that derive from this article are important for both theory and practice. At a practical level, the paper delivers a model that can be used as a decision‐making tool by professionals when they implement SOA solutions in healthcare. At a theoretical level, the proposed model extends the body of knowledge on this area and opens new avenues for research. From another point of view, it is suggested that further research is required on this area as the proposed conceptual model was tested only through a single case study. Thus, multiple case studies or other types of research strategies should be used to better test the proposed model.
Originality/value
This work is original and focuses on CSFs related to SOA implementations in healthcare organizations. The work can be considered as novel as it identifies and classifies SOA CSFs for solutions that have been developed in the area of healthcare.
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Dr Thomas Kohlborn, Dr Oliver Mueller, Professor Jens Poeppelbuss and Dr Maximilian Roeglinger
João Barata, Paulo Rupino Cunha and Sharon Coyle
The purpose of this paper is to present an approach to incorporating mobility into continuous manufacturing following the advent of Industry 4.0 (I4.0).
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to present an approach to incorporating mobility into continuous manufacturing following the advent of Industry 4.0 (I4.0).
Design/methodology/approach
The investigation is based on a year-long canonical action research into a paper-manufacturing company implementing core I4.0 technologies.
Findings
The findings show how to: classify manufacturing mobility strategy based on the dimensions of team, task and control; design business processes enabled by mobile cyber–physical resources; involve different stakeholders in modeling mobility; and create a comprehensive guide to assist in implementing the mobile digitalization required by I4.0.
Research limitations/implications
Despite the complexity, richness and depth of the insights obtained in this research for mobility management in process industries, this inquiry was conducted in a single organization.
Practical implications
As the fourth industrial revolution encourages decentralization and increased interaction between humans and machines, this paper presents a model to capture the mobility potential in manufacturing. The tools proposed in this research can be used to steer investments in industry transformations that fuse the physical and digital worlds, overcoming mobility constraints.
Originality/value
Theoretically, this paper expands the concept of manufacturing mobility in I4.0. In practice, it proposes a participative roadmap to assist technology management in increasingly decentralized environments, identifying the intertwined network of cyber–physical actors, processes and services.
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Nils Siegfried, Tobias Rosenthal and Alexander Benlian
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the suitability of Blockchain technology for applications in the Industrial Internet of Things (IIOT). It provides a taxonomy of system…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the suitability of Blockchain technology for applications in the Industrial Internet of Things (IIOT). It provides a taxonomy of system requirements for such applications and maps these requirements against the Blockchain’s technological idiosyncrasies.
Design/methodology/approach
A requirement taxonomy is built in an iterative process based on a descriptive literature review. In total, 223 studies have been screened leading to a relevant sample of 48 publications that were analyzed in detail regarding posed system requirements. Subsequently, Blockchain’s capabilities are discussed for each requirement dimension.
Findings
The paper presents a taxonomy of six requirement dimensions. In the mapping process, areas of greater fit (e.g., reliability, nonrepudiation and adaptability) were identified. However, there are also several constraints (e.g., scalability, confidentiality and performance) that limit the use of Blockchain.
Research limitations/implications
Due to the limited amount of studies and the vibrant development of Blockchain technology, the results may benefit from practical evidence. Researchers are encouraged to validate the results in qualitative practitioner interviews. Focusing on literature-backed public Blockchain, idiosyncrasies of private implementations and specific distributed ledger technologies may be discussed in future studies.
Practical implications
The paper includes use cases for Blockchain in manufacturing and IIOT applications. Potential caveats for practitioners are presented.
Originality/value
This paper addresses the need to understand to which degree Blockchain is a suitable technology in manufacturing, especially in context of the IIOT. It contributes a requirement taxonomy which serves as the foundation for a systematic fit assessment.