4
4S-
5 1990
H!JU!:
ALFRED
P.
WORKING PAPER
SLOAN SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT
BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD?
Computer-Mediated Communication Tools
Mark
Wanda
CCSTR
J.
J.
for Engineers
Jakiela
Orlikowski
#109
SS\Am #3145-90
MASSACHUSETTS
INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
50 MEMORIAL DRIVE
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS 02139
BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD?
Computer-Mediated Communication Tools
Mark
Wanda
CCSTR
J.
J.
Jakiela
Orlikowski
#109
SS\ArD #3145-90
for Engineers
V
BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD ?
Computer-Mediated Communication Tools for Engineers
Mark
J.
Jakiela
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
77 Massachusetts Avenue (3-449g)
Cambridge,
Wanda J.
MA 02139
Orlikowski
Management
Sloan School of
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
50 Memorial Drive (E53-329)
Cambridge,
MA 02139
March 1990
ABSTRACT
This paper describes an exploratory research study that attempted to
determine the nature of computer-mediated information that would be
exchanged by engineers engaged
in
a
process of product design and
manufacture. The results suggest that computer-mediated communication
tools supporting
likely to
have
asynchronous, written modes of information exchange, are
little utility
for engineers
engaged
in
design and manufacture.
Substantial augmentation of these tools will be necessary before their wide-
spread adoption and use by engineers can be expected.
INTRODUCTION
There
is
currently
communication
much
in
interest
the
use of computer-mediated
tools within organizations to increase the efficiency of
coordinating work, to decrease the ambiguity in communication, to
the timely communication of information across time
facilitate
and space, and
to
connect large numbers of participants without incurring greater costs (Bair
1988,
Culnan and Markus 1987, Dennis
Feldman
1988,
1987, Flores et
Markus
1987, Rice
al.
1988, Hiltz
and Case
concerns have been raised about
of being mediated
al.
Eveland and Bikson 1988,
and Turoff 1978, Kraemer and King
1983, Sproull
and Kiesler
how communication
by computers (Daft
Kiesler 1986, Trevino et
et al. 1989,
is
1986).
While some
changed
as a result
et al. 1987, Siegel et al. 1986, Sproull
1987), the underlying
premise of
initiatives
and
such as
computer conferencing, group decision support systems,
electronic mail,
voice mail, and videoconferencing,
amount and improve
is
that these systems will increase the
the quality of
communication among participants
relative to their current use of
communication media such
as face to face
meetings (time consuming and inconvenient for participants not co-located
telephone (frustrating because of telephone
tag),
and
internal
1
),
and external
mail (too slow).
Our purpose
in this research
information that
communication
most
is
tools
By
"co-located"
we mean
likely to
to establish the
We
nature and timing of
be exchanged via computer-mediated
by participants engaged
design and manufacture.
1
was
in the process of
engineering
intended to use the results to propose
people that are physically
in the
same place
at the
same
time.
initial
specifications for
augmenting computer-mediated communication
tools in
support of the engineering design and manufacture process (Suchman 1983).
Our
however, led us
results,
and
research,
to confront the
underlying premises of our
question posed in our
to face the rhetorical
title:
Do computer-
mediated tools necessarily improve communication among engineers, or
might some of the older communication media work as well or better?
To
illustrate,
on
a recent visit to a large engineering firm,
we were
struck by a
senior product manager's observation that the replacement of old
by modern
boards
CAD
had
workstations
communication among the design engineers.
decreased
drawing
and inhibited
In the past, the large
drawing
boards had served to record, display, and communicate the current status of
the entire project to
forums
whoever chose
to
CAD
by.
The boards had been used
examine and discuss design problems and
whole product. Today, designers
their
walk
as
meetings where designers gathered on an ad
for informal face-to-face
hoc basis
to
in this firm
to gain a sense of the
tend to work on their
own
with
workstations, with less interaction and brainstorming around the
evolving design. The sense of a public forum and ongoing communication
media
that
easily in a
had characterized drawing boards
CAD
environment. Peering
seemed more intrusive and
private workspaces and only
Initially,
at
in this firm did not translate
screens over others' shoulders
less satisfying as screens are
show
perceived to be
small subsets of the entire design at a time.
however, the underlying premise guiding our research study
mirrored that of prior research; that the computer-mediated communication
mechanisms which have proved useful
assist the interaction of
in office settings
can also significantly
engineers around the design and manufacture of
complex products. Large-scale engineering
of participants, are typically beset with
problems. The
size, scope,
projects,
which involve hundreds
communication and coordination
and complexity of the projects preclude co-location
time and space of the various participants, yet timely and accurate
in
exchange
information
is
needed
to
interdependencies across the various functions.
needed
modes
to
of
Some formal
ensure that communication occurs, but as
communicating
interaction of engineers
manage
appropriately
we
effort
is
clearly
noted above, existing
As
in organizations are less than ideal.
on such large-scale projects
is
the
a result, the
difficult at best,
and
unsuccessful at worst. The promise of efficient and effective computer-
mediated communication seems well-suited
interaction,
in
this
domain
of
human
and particularly relevant given the increasing complexity and
interdependence of modern engineering work, and the current focus on
concurrenry and simultaneity in engineering design and manufacture.
RESEARCH DESIGN
and would be
In order to determine the sorts of information that could
exchanged via computer-mediated communication
engaging
in
product design and manufacture,
tools
by engineers
we undertook
a series of
exploratory experiments. These experiments were designed to simulate
certain conditions of a large-scale engineering project, such as,
-
a
number
of functionally specialized groups
working on
different aspects
of the product,
time and space, and
-
groups that are not co-located
-
the presence of time pressures within which groups are to complete the
in
design and manufacture process.
was
The
setting of the study
one
of the investigators in the
The enrollment
a
for this course
graduate engineering design course taught by
Department
was
of Mechanical Engineering at
MIT.
The research study was
sixteen students.
executed in two rounds, each lasting a duration of seven days. At the
start of
each round the sixteen students were assigned to three groups with each
group being given responsibility
for
one aspect of
and manufacture process: conceptual design,
The
three groups
were made up of
assigning students to groups,
we
five, five,
a three-stage
detail design,
and
and
members
six
tried to distribute
product design
fabrication.
respectively. In
competence,
skills,
and
motivations evenly across the three groups.
Round
Our
1
was
interest
in the
would exchange during
amount and kinds
of information that participants
the course of a design
and manufacture process.
order to establish a benchmark of the information that
at
hand-over stages of the process, the
first
worked independently on
formally exchanged
round of our study only allowed
the groups to exchange final output information.
three groups
is
In
During
their part of the
this first
round, the
product design and
development process, with no communication allowed among groups. The
only information exchanged across the groups was mediated by one of the
investigators,
stage.
That
is,
and involved each group's hand-off
during the
group proceeded with
first
to the next
development
two days of the study, the conceptual design
their initial
work on
the product design. After
two days
they submitted their conceptual drawings, plans, and specifications to the
investigator
who
passed these along to the detail design group. The detail
design group then spent the next two days using the
drawings
to
detail
the product, and
produce
their
initial
final
conceptual
detail
design
documentation which was handed
investigator then
fabrication
made
in to the investigator after
two days. The
the detail design documentation available to the
group which spent the
days constructing the product on
last three
the basis of the documentation obtained.
No
other information exchange or
communication among the groups was permitted. Metaphorically, the
information exchanged
among
the three groups
was "thrown over
the wall"
without personal interaction.
The design problem
Round
for
1
was
a sophomore-level, term-long project
Department of Mechanical Engineering.
from another design course
in the
The basic task was
and construct
pong
of a
of
balls
on
human
raw
to design
a
machine
a sinusoidal tabletop playing surface
operator.
The machines were
would herd ping-
under the joystick control
be constructed from a limited
and electromechanical elements
materials, fasteners,
solenoids, motors,
to
that
(e.g.,
switches,
Additionally, the machines were required to
etc.).
set
fit
within a fourteen inch cube. The actual context of the ping-pong herding was
a contest,
Round
where machines designed
would compete head-to-head.
2
After the completion of the
in a
for the task
first
round of
engaged
this study, the participants
second round of product design and manufacture. The procedures
resembled those of the
first
round,
in that
groups had separate functional
responsibility for conceptual design, detail design,
participants
Given the
more complex,
who managed
to
as the first
fabrication. In this
the problem
became
problem appeared simple
for the
round, however, a number of features were varied.
significantly
and
First,
complete fabrication twenty-four hours
level of capability of the participants
we
felt
that
it
early.
was not
reasonable to replicate the complexity of the
to
ensure that there would be something
wanted the groups
we
still
attempted
need
to interact
we
with each
1,
balance the composition of the groups.
Third, interactive communication
the
to
is,
groups was varied from Round
in the three
to
problem because we wanted
communicate about. That
overwhelmed enough
membership
other. Second,
although
to feel
to
first
among
the groups
was permitted during
design and manufacture process. To simulate computer-mediated
communication
we allowed
tools,
the
groups
communicate
to
in
asynchronous, written form only. More specifically, they could communicate
any information that was capable of being exchanged by facsimile
transmission, such as, text, drawings, notes, requests for information,
specifications,
jokes,
To simulate asynchronicity,
etc.
information could only be communicated across groups
during the seven days of Round 2 (see Figure
1).
at
this
'Taxable"
appointed times
The information exchange
periods occurred approximately every two hours during normal working
hours and were mediated by one of the investigators
who
served as the drop-
off/pick-up point for information across groups. In addition to this informal
information
exchange,
documentation
periods.
No
(as in
Round
1) to
personal interaction
The problem description
follows: "Design a
opposed
groups
the
for
machine
submitted
among groups was
2 presented to the participants read as
makes varying sized
to 8-track or reel-to-reel)
size constraints
hand-off
permitted.
confetti
from cassette
(as
audio tape." The raw materials and
electromechanical elements were restricted in the same
No
formal
the next group at the end of their formal
Round
that
also
were imposed on the machine.
way
as in
Round
1.
At the end of
this series of
we have two
experiments
sets of
formal product
design and manufacture documentation, and a collection of informal
information exchanges which occurred during
two
sets
documentation
of
in
Round
2.
We
compared
the
terms of differences in the information
exchanged among groups between the two rounds, and analyzed the nature
and amount
of information informally
computer-mediated communication
were interviewed
participants
communicated
tool.
via our simulated
At the end of each round the
focus group discussions about their
in
experiences and encouraged to reflect on the product design and manufacture
processes they have engaged
amount
in,
with particular emphasis on the nature and
of information they did or did not exchange with other groups.
Different perceptions, motivations,
the pxpectations
how
elicited, as well as
and intentions behind some of the information exchanged
during the second round.
insight into
and experiences were
This latter procedure in particular, provided
information was used, whether
other kind or timing of information
it
was
valuable,
may have been more
and what
appropriate.
RESULTS
The
results of the
experiment consist of the interviews and written records
and messages of the design groups.
Round
1:
No
We
examine these
results in this section.
intergroup communication
In their interview, the conceptual designers of
Round
1
described an overall
design activity that began with a brainstorming session which produced
wild ideas. They eventually began to focus on the concepts that they
more manufacturable. While doing
this,
they
made no
felt
many
were
systematic recording
of the pros
and cons of each
was important
show
to
They commented, however,
idea.
the design
were
Even
documentation.
was an extremely
to carry
after
ready to detail or build,
the process
This was evident
they emphasized that documenting
and they would not do
it if
they
out the construction of the design, rather than passing the
documenting things
it
so,
irritating task,
One
design to a succeeding group.
to write
it
the succeeding groups the rationale of their design
decisions and to demonstrate that their idea could be built.
in their design
that they felt
up.
was
we have
we had
participant
solved them.
So
at
I
always hate
"I
the stage that
already solved the problem, and
think in pictures, not words.
I
commented:
we were
now we had
hate words, so documenting
a pain."
Other participants similarly commented on the difficulty of switching roles
from idea generation
When
to annotation.
asked
how
they
would perform
the documentation process differently the suggestions included video
audio taping, and the use of a note-taking observer. They were quick to
that the designers
before releasing
it
should be able
to
and
clarify
review the observer's documentation
to others.
The document produced by these conceptual designers proved
thorough and useful.
It
consisted
of, in
to
be both
order, a description of the design, a
discussion of the contest strategy, an isometric assembly drawing of the
design,
shown here
as figure 2,
construction techniques (to
balls
would load
concerns.
show
in the design,
some performance
that
and
it
could be
a list of other
calculations, suggested
built),
diagrams of
how
the
conceptual ideas and design
The
detail designers of
Round
1
When
in the overall process.
made
they
clear their uncertainty
received the materials from the
first
conceptual group, they met as a group and drew
the design
made
and features of the design
efforts to clarify
ambiguity
up
lists
would
that they
in the
about their role
of questions about
like to
change.
They
conceptual design document, and
decided which features of the design they could change and which they could
They commented
not.
these decisions were naturally based on
that
maintaining the intent of the conceptual designers. They decided, for
example, that they need not use the suggested method of mounting the drive
motors, but they stopped short of designing the rear-wheel drive car they
desired over the front-wheel drive design that
some
cases
where they seemed
be expected from them, hence they
much
this.
to decide that such overdetailed features
design rationale was not given.
When
given, the detail designers found
attached
drawing."
to
drawings and
When
asked, they
text
it
detail design
is
shown
explicit
this
detail designers
to
the reasons for
-
things
as was
that they probably
if
the
-
comments
the strategy
would not have
useful.
group was extremely detailed, with
and an exploded view
10
seemed
One commented:
be very useful.
manufacturing instructions.
as figure 3a,
The design of
were unchangeable, even
found audio or video tape documentation very
many drawings and
The
were very helpful
commented
The documentation produced by
the design.
text describing the design rationale
whys helped us understand
the
higher level of detail than would
" over detailed"
complex spoked wheels was an example of
of the
were also
be overly influenced by "overdetailing" of
to
designers provided specifications at a
"Some
given. There
For some features of the design, the conceptual
the conceptual design group.
was
was
is
A
sketch of the
given in 3b.
The
group described how they produced
fabrication
design.
They
first
reviewed the
for
they
deciding
first
how
apprehension
saw
to
They
approximately one hour.
They then worked
mode
the design,
it
was
clear
immediately responsible for making the design work.
spoked wheels,
for
Along with
of the fact that their duty
this take
was
to
that the overall concept
actual contest
by
would be an
it
its
simplicity.
that they
felt that
to
In
less
felt
they were
They described
example, as "brutal" and decided quickly
simpler disk wheels.
commented
was complete.
until the design
changing the design, perhaps because they
at
to
the fabrication tasks
split
the design idea, they were impressed
fabricate
and met
up
closely together, often in a "make to fit"
When
completed working
detail design report individually
decide on clarifications and modifications.
and worked independently
a
the
implement
charge attitude, was the acceptance
implement someone
was only
"average entry").
else's idea
"satisfactory"
and
(they
that in an
In contrast to the detail design
group's perception of the conceptual design documentation, they found the
detail design
commented
documentation
that the ideal
sketches along with
to
be severely lacking design rationale.
They
documentation would be isometric or perspective
some type
of chart or tree structure
functional relationships between components.
One
showing the
fabricator also suggested
that the goal of each part in the design should be annotated, but
none of them
could describe what was meant by the term "goal."
Round
2:
Controlled intergroup communication
Perhaps the most important event
of
Round
2
was
given to them.
in the conceptual
and
detail design stages
the detail design group's rejection of the conceptual design
The conceptual design group decided on
11
a best
approach and
documented
it
Several other approaches were described in
in their report.
information exchanges that were sent out
at
the allowed times.
The
detail
design group had serious concerns about the functionality of the chosen
concept,
and eventually decided
They sought and were denied the approval of
design group's second choice.
the conceptual design group.
perform a detail design of the conceptual
to
some
After
consideration, they decided
the best interest of the project to continue with their
against the wishes of conceptual design-
This caused
own
it
was
in
preferred concept
some
ill
will that
was
perhaps exacerbated by the apparent inadequacy of the restricted information
exchanges as a communication medium.
During
difficult the
Round
2 problem was.
having enough time to do
experimentation
with
In particular, they complained about not
subsystem
however, ask the fabrication group
stressed that their second
concepts,
especially
do much more.
to
to build
by
detail design
They were angered because they
felt
was probably preconceived and
that there
experimentation work they did.
At
manager would be
would have authority
a
cutting
They did
not,
"close second,"
was very troubling
having
to them.
that the detail design group's chosen idea
was
this point,
good
to
tape
any prototypes. Even though they
most preferred idea was a
their preferred concept rejected
of project
They did some prototype
a satisfactory job.
mechanisms, but would have liked
yet
how much more
their interview, the conceptual designers expressed
idea.
little
respect for the extensive
they suggested that
This person would "do no work,"
make important design
responsibility for seeing the project through to completion.
person would be the communication link
12
some type
to other
decisions
and
In particular, this
design groups.
These conceptual designers also
the allowed
After an initial review, the problem
failed them.
virtually impossible)
out a
felt that
and
at their first
ready for them
at the first
seemed daunting
(if
had an idea
Detail design
communication period and the fabrication group
submitted an idea the next day (fabrication had not picked up the
call for
prior to submitting their design idea; both submitted ideas, therefore,
unsolicited).
practical.
not
communication opportunity they sent
design ideas from the other groups.
call for
communication mode
The conceptual design group did not think
that either idea
help
were
was
Six hours prior to their completion deadline, the conceptual design
group sent a communication
to
both other groups that outlined their two
preferred ideas and described the experimentation that they had done.
Neither group provided feedback on this message, as they did not send a
representative to pick the message
up
was complete. The sketches
two design concepts appear
of these
until the
day
after conceptual design
in figure 4.
Looking back on the experience, the conceptual designers lamented that they
were desperate
to
for ideas, but
have face-to-face meetings
designer commented:
and on paper.
gestures.
It
is
When you
"I
no one responded. They would have preferred
was frustrated by everything having
much more
talk to
group.
to present their ideas to the next
helpful
to
someone you can
explain
sell
to
commented
be written
things verbally and with
the idea
...
You
can't sell on
paper, at least not as effectively." Like the conceptual designers of
they
One
that stopping the design process in order to
documentation or an information message was very disruptive.
suggested a change in the design organization used
in the
Round
1,
compose
They
also
experiment.
Conceptual and detail design duties should be brought together in one group
13
that
preceded by a research and experimentation phase where fundamental
is
aspects of the design problem are investigated.
The report
shown
of these conceptual designers consisted of a final concept sketch,
as figure 5
and several pages of explanation. This explanation included
and
a listing of the concepts conceived, results of experiments performed,
general thoughts on the design problem.
The
detail designers received the conceptual design report at 9:00
Monday morning and
at 11:00, their first
AM
on
a
allowed communication period,
they sent a message to conceptual design suggesting a significant redesign that
employed
their
and
different
methods
of tape feeding
and tape
cutting.
They explained
doubts (mostly involving physical behavior of the tape during feeding
cutting),
and included sketches of
their
new
ideas with
uV
note
"Is this
okay?" The conceptual designers received the communication and responded
at the
next communication period, three hours
concerns of the detail design group, explaining
idea
would be
easier
communication period
seemed
6.
to
construct
to
(2:00
have refined and
PM
later.
how
They addressed the
they
felt their
and adjust once
Monday), however, the
solidified their concept,
which
is
built.
preferred
By
this
detail designers
shown
in figure
There were no further communications between conceptual and detail
designers.
The
detail designers also felt that the
difficult
than the
Round
1
problem.
left little
time for communication.
would be
useful
if
their
was time
It
Round
was so
2
problem was much more
difficult, in fact, that
They commented
to iterate in the
14
that
solving
it
communication
design process, but in
this
They were very
case they could not wait.
conceptual design would not function once built, and
taking a serious step
when
they were given. They
to
make
project
it
felt
that they
were
compelled, however, to change the design in order
manager would have been useful
Interestingly, they
knew
that the
they did not use the conceptual design concept
Like the conceptual designers, they
work.
view
sincere in their
some type
that
resolving
in
used almost the exact words
felt
the
of
conflict.
to describe the duties of the
project manager, saying that the person should "do no work" but should
have overall responsibility and veto power. Additionally,
be the
medium
for
this
person should
communication with other groups. Also, as with the
conceptual designers, they believed that conceptual and detail design
functions could be grouped together, but stressed that
purpose of intimate contact rather than
the
The
two
would be
for the
between
a blurring of the distinction
tasks.
detail design
documentation consisted of some explanatory notes, several
exploded view drawings (one of them
number
it
is
shown
as figure 7)
and
a large
of detailed engineering drawings.
Like the conceptual and detail design groups before them, the fabricators were
impressed by the difficulty of the problem and
their
how
little
time they had to do
work. In their interview, they commented that they received the precise
and complete document of the
machinists,"
making
an assembly.
all
and began by
"acting as
the individual parts and attempting to put together
Fearing a lack of time, they began to fabricate components
immediately, instead of
version
detail designers,
critically
reviewing the design.
was completed, problems became apparent,
15
When
the
particularly the
first
method
of feeding the tape.
Like the fabricators of
appropriate to change the design to
make
it
Round
they
1,
felt
was
it
work without seeking any
approval, and they also emphasized the immediacy and urgency of making
They
the design work.
sent
no communications while working and received
only one clarifying communication from the detail design group.
commented
that
concerns were
their
"not
problems they had
because the time taken
to
One commented: "We
it.
get
them [the
detail
Some commented
sent communications, however,
if
When
and fabrication processes.
one said
there
asked
were time
how
we would have
did not communicate
to iterate
1
was necessary,
invited the detail designers
down
2 fabricators strongly disagreed with
documentation was
it
to
that
is,
look at the
approach of the
designers seemed to suggest that, given an adequately skilled group
of fabricators, a detail design phase might not be necessary.
Round
on the design
they would improve the process,
machine and show them the problem." The "make-to-fit"
Round
up would
would have
that they
that a face to face meeting "over the design"
"...
communicate
designers] caught
have taken too long with paper."
felt
For the types of
to resolve, they felt that the time spent to
would not have been worth
they
and that they
conceptual,"
understood the intended functionality of the design.
They
were not given
"critical"
and
that they
this,
When
asked, the
saying that the detail design
would have done
it
themselves
if
to them.
DISCUSSION
In this section
we
derive
results discussed above,
some conclusions and recommendations from
and indicate
their implications for the
of computer-mediated communication tools for engineers.
that,
It
the
development
must be noted
given the exploratory nature of our study, these findings and the
16
we draw
implications
are necessarily tentative.
the findings are interesting
research
work
however, that
should be pointed out that the
it
synchronous communication
engineering design and manufacture projects
implications.
believe,
in this area clearly lies ahead.
that full
-
do
and somewhat provocative, although much
Before listing the conclusions,
conclusion
We
We
undertook
this
- is
is
first
important in complex
predominant
in terms of its
study in an attempt to determine what
types of communication artifacts, specifically asynchronous primarily text-
based communication
and manufacture
artifacts,
We
cycle.
would be generated during
found, instead, that
asynchronous text-based communication
is
communication of
between co-located
Trevino
et
exchanged
al.
confirmed for a limited
also
and
1987) have suggested that
in face-to-face interaction.
set of
possible that no type of
among
ill-defined information
parties, while Daft
product design
adequate for engineers engaged in
design and manufacture. Tang and Leifer (1989)
that the
it is
a
others have suggested
modes
is
only possible
his associates (Daft et
al.,
ambiguous information
These findings seem
engineering designers.
to
is
1987;
best
have been
Additionally, the results
suggest implications that extend beyond communication media.
Examples include organizational
issues,
such as the appropriate division of
design tasks in the overall design and manufacture process, and the need for
effective leadership
Full
As
and
liaison roles to resolve conflict across groups.
synchronous communication
just
mentioned,
this
was
is
important
the overriding finding of the research study.
Universally, the groups disliked generating documentation and suggested
that face-to-face
communication with the designed
17
artifact
present (regardless
of
its
state of completion)
The small number
participants,
of
which
is
Given the nature of
would be
Round
less
a
more
effective
2 information exchanges
than one per participant
their training, socialization,
-
communication mode.
-
exchanges over 16
11
also supports this finding.
and work experience,
it
is
hardly surprising that engineering designers should be less comfortable with
written media. Being designers, they are
more
likely to
graphic images or physical artifacts than
text,
and more
converse in the
of
and
medium
notwithstanding,
it
is
still
terms
in
likely to think
and devices, than
of symbols, drawings,
concepts
articulate
be oriented around
of
to conceive
language.
written
surprising that a communication
and
This,
medium
that
allowed the exchange of such graphic information as drawings, proved to
have
little utility.
The implication
of this conclusion
mediated communication systems
(e.g., to
seems
to
be that the use of computer-
in engineering design
and manufacture
deal with the geographic separation of participants), will probably not
be successful
if
the
systems only support asynchronous, text-based
communication. Augmentation of computer-mediated communication tools
with multi-media capabilities (voice, video, graphic, and
text)
and greater
synchronicity, or even an actual "telepresence" (Stults, 1988), will likely be
necessary to engage engineering designers' interest,
Conflict resolution
The requests
Round
2
mechanism
for leadership
is
effort,
and sustained
use.
needed
from the conceptual and
were somewhat surprising
detail design
to us. In a time
interdisciplinary cooperation, participation,
when
groups of
collaboration,
and groupwork are concepts often
considered in the structuring of design organizations, the apparent need for
18
strong, accountable leadership
seemed somewhat out
of place.
The
felt
need
for a leader
with vision, authority, and control across the specialized groups,
may be an
artifact of
examination in a
That
field setting.
is,
that
differences. Additionally, the privacy
simulated computer-mediation tool
suppressed
no formal leadership had been
may have confounded
the groups
up across
our particular design experiment, and bears careful
their inability to resolve
set
major
and detachment provided by our
may have promoted
conflict rather than
it.
The expressed desire
for authority
may have
less to
do with an
actual need for
leadership than a reflection of the participants' lack of a conflict resolution
mechanism. One wonders
if
a conflict arising
from the difference between a
preferred and second-best design concept could not have been quickly
resolved
in
a
coordinated,
mechanisms may take
face-to-face
meeting.
Conflict
a variety of forms, such as leadership, liaison roles,
meetings, and computer-based conflict resolution tools
1988).
However, the
resolution
relative merits of these
(e.g., Stefik, et al.,
mechanisms
in the context of
design and manufacture clearly need further examination.
A journalling capability will
Conceptual designers
in
be useful in the design stages
the study consistently expressed a desire for a
journalist or stenographer,
and
detail designers consistently appreciated
annotated design documentation. The need for an automated journalling
capability
is
apparent.
uncertain. Clearly a
However,
mere
the
form that
this capability
should take
transcript of the design discourse
unnecessarily detailed and overwhelming. However, a mere
is
would be
summary
of the
discussions will also not suffice, as the rationale for decisions needs to be
19
and communicated. Thus, on closer examination, some
articulated
interpretion
justifications,
and/or inference of designers' intentions, motivations,
purposes, constraints,
computer-based tools
to
infer
be needed. Developing
will
etc.
designers' intentions for example,
interesting but as yet extremely difficult technical problem.
that
have attempted
intent,
and have
this task
relied
have
fallen far short of
on conscious user input
is
an
Previous systems
determining
human
to create the annotations (e.g.
Freeman, 1976; Brown and Bansal, 1989).
RECOMMENDATIONS
Probably the most important immediate task
experiment,
and
particularly,
is
to verify the results of this
attempt to replicate
to
this
study in
organizational settings with practicing engineering designers instead of
engineering design student;
.
Where
possible,
it
would
also be useful to
examine the actual use of computer-mediated communication
tools
in
engineering design and manufacture, rather than forcing a simulation which
must always be somewhat contrived. In addition, the
may
results indicate that
it
be interesting to compare a variety of communication media within the
engineering design and manufacture process, such as limited-time, face-toface
group meetings vs controlled, asynchronous communication vs
unlimited, asynchronous communication, and so on.
The research conducted here suggests
mediated communication
seems
that
we need more
that the
tools for engineers
insight into what,
designers communicate, and
we need
development of computer-
should proceed cautiously.
how, when and why engineering
to use this
knowledge
assumptions about electronic communication support
20
It
to rethink
our
for engineering teams.
Greater understanding of the context and contingencies of engineering design
and manufacture could lead
In
tools.
need
to
difficulties of
development of more appropriate support
the notions of journalling
particular,
capabilities during design
and the
to the
and
conflict resolution
which emerged here, bear further investigation,
implementing such competent and appropriate systems
be addressed.
Other avenues of potentially valuable research suggested by the study have
less to
do with
actual
communication media than with organizational design.
For example, future research could investigate
new methods
of organizing
engineering groups to allow effective leadership, consensus building, crossfunctional
liaison,
and rapid
iterative
prototyping, and examine the
implications of these different forms of organizing for the communication
across groups.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The authors
gratefully
acknowledge the cooperation and participation of the
students enrolled in the spring term 1990 offering of the course 2.732,
"Advanced Engineering Design." Their
research possible.
Mark
Jakiela
is
sincerity
currently the Flowers Career
Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering.
is
sponsored
in part
and hard work made
by the Center
for
Wanda
Development
Orlikowski's research
Coordination Science
at
School of Management. The support provided by these sources
acknowledged.
21
this
MrT's Sloan
is
gratefully
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23
r«-^vNliN)4
Figure
(2):
Sketch of
Round
1
Conceptual design.
(a)
(b)
Figure
(3):
Sketches from
Round
1
Detail design, (a) Sketch, (b) Exploded view.
OD
n
.
«.-»^-
Figure
(4):
The
final
two design ideas of
the
Round
2 Conceptual designers.
two pairs of rollers
rotating blade with the tape held between
The
is
preferred concept, a
above.
Figure
(5):
Final design sketch of the
Round 2 Conceptual
designers.
'.**».
Figure
(6):
The suggested design concept of the Round 2
Detail design group.
5*<^
Figure
(7):
Exploded view sketch of the
final Detail
design of Round
2.
Date Due
NOV
1 19P0
31
APR 17
may
1 1
SEP 05
MAY
FEB
SEP
1931
1991
1991
3 n 1992
,
3
8
til
199;r
Lib-26-67
MIT
3
LIBRARIES DUPL
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7