COLLABORATIVE COMPUTING
TECHNOLOGIES: GROUP
SUPPORT SYSTEMS
Learning Objectives










Understand concepts and fundamentals of groupwork,
communications, and collaboration.
Examine how computer systems enhance communication and
collaboration.
Understand the principles and capabilities of GSS.
Explore the concepts of time/place frameworks.
Learn how GSS interplays with the concepts of process gain
and loss, and task gain and loss.
Understand the fundamentals of electronic meetings.
Examine GSS’ three technologies.
Learn how the Web enables GSS, electronic meetings, and
collaborative computing.
Explain hoe distance learning is enabled by GSS.
Show how GSS enhances creativity.
Collaborative Design at Boeing-Rocketdyne


Problem
 Drive the cost of rocket engine down 95%
 Get the engine to market 10 time faster
 Require radical new design, significant creativity, and unusual
innovation
Solution
 Created expert team from business partner
 Used collaborative technology
 Internal
Notebook : Members could access the software securely
from anywhere. Could create, comment on, reference-link, search,
and short-entries also use electronic whiteboard that allowed
multiple team members near-instance access.
Cont……….
Collaborative Design at Boeing-Rocketdyne

Solution
 Project Vault : A software allowed secured common file
storage and transfer of these files on as-needed basis.
 Software tools and protocol were modified and allowed
which allowed face-to-face meeting, content was posted
online for group sharing.
 Major tools used to support the lengthy virtual meetings by
teleconferencing and videoconferencing.
 Used powerful desktop analysis software to analyse
designs during the meeting, so results could be discussed in
real-time and evaluted through brainstorming.
Collaborative Design at Boeing-Rocketdyne

Result
 Designed
a product made of 6 parts instead of normal
1200
 Cost $0.5 million from $14 million
 Quality level 9 sigma from 2-6 sigma
 Team did all this in 10 months instead of 6 years
 Production cost $47,000 instead of $4.5 million and with
more than a 5 percent reduction in total engineering
hours.
Making decisions in Groups :
Characteristics








Groupwork
 Work done by two or more people together.
Members can be located in different places and work
at different times
Information may be located external to the project
Allows for rapid solutions
May exhibit normal team problems of synergy or
conflict
Often Internet based
Groupware tools support groupwork
Work called computer-supported cooperative work
Group Decision-Making Process

Even in hierarchical organizations, decision making is
usually a shared process. The following activities and
process characterize meetings:
 The
decision situation is important, so it is advisable to
make it in a group in a meeting
 Joint activity
 Outcome of the meeting depends partly on the knowledge,
opinions, judgement and composition of its participants.
 Differences in opinion are settled either by the ranking
person, or through negotiation or arbitration.
 They can be virtual team
 May be beneficial or dissatisfaction
Benefits and limitation of group work

Process gains are the benefit of working in group
It provides learning. Groups are better than individuals at
understanding problems
 People readily take ownership and responsibility
 Group members have their egos embedded in the decision
 Groups are better than individuals at catching errors
 A group has more information
 A group may produce synergy
 Working in group may stimulate the creativity
 A group may have better and more precise communication working
together
 Risk propensity is balanced

Benefits and limitation of group work

Dysfunction may occur Process loss
Social pressure of conformity may result in groupthink
 It’s a time consuming, slow process, costly
 There can be lack of coordination of the meeting and poor meeting
planning
 Inappropriate influence
 Some members may afraid to speak up
 Can be compromised solutions of poor quality
 Too much information
 Incomplete, incorrect and inappropriate

Improving the meeting Process

Researchers have developed methods for
improving the process of group work; that is,
increasing some of the benefits of meeting and
eliminating of reducing some of the losses. Two
representative methods
Delphi method : is a qualitative forecasting methodology that
uses anonymous questionnaires.
 Nominal group thinking : is a simple brainstorming process for
non-electronic meeting.

Qualitative Methods of Forecasting HR Demand or
Supply
Method
Delphi
technique
Delphi
Description
Advantages
• A group
of
experts • Can
involve
key
exchanges several rounds decision makers in
of
estimates
of
HR process.
demand
or
supply,
• Can focus on what is
normally without meeting
expected or desired in
face to face. Feedback
future.
from other experts is used
by each individual to • Not bound to the past.
“fine-tune” his or her
independent estimate.
• A small group of experts • Same as for Delphi
meets face to face. After a technique.
NGTNominal procedure that involves • Group
discussions
open
discussion
and
group
facilitate
private assessments, the can
technique
group reaches a judgment exchange of ideas and
concerning future HR greater acceptance of
results
by
demand or supply.
participants.
Disadvantages
• Highly subjective.
• Judgments may not
efficiently
use
objective data.
• Same as for Delphi
technique.
• Group pressure may
lead to less accurate
assessments
that
could be obtained
through other means.
Supporting group-work with computerized
systems

Almost all dynamic organizations using some computerbased communication and collaboration methods and
tools to support people working in teams or group.
An overview of GSS

Common group activities with computer assistance
 Information
retrieval
 Information sharing
 Information use

Support participants
 Improve
productivity and effectiveness of meetings
 More
efficient decision-making
 Increase effectiveness of decisions

Computers have been used for several decades to
facilitate group-work and group decision making, lately,
collaborative tools have received even greater attention
due to their increased capabilities and ability to save
money.
Groupware




Software providing collaborative support to groups
Different time/place applications
Most use Internet technologies
Most offer one or more capabilities

Electronic brainstorming









Free flow of ideas and comments
Electronic conferencing or videoconferencing
Group scheduling and calendars
Conflict resolution
Model building
Electronic document sharing
Voting services
Electronic meeting services also available
Enterprise-wide systems expensive in cost and human resources
Popular Groupware
Groupware products provides a way for group to
share resources and opinions. Groupware implies
the use of networks to connect people.
 Lotus
Notes/Domino
 Microsoft Netmeeting
 Groove Workspace
 GroupSystems MeetingRoom and OnLine
 WebEx
Time/Place Communication Framework

Effectiveness of
collaborative
group depends
on

Time


synchronous or
asynchronous
transmission of
information
Place

location of
participants
Benefits and Problems

Benefits of groupwork
 Process
gains
 Nominal
group technique
 Delphi method
 Technology
applied as GSS
 Hardware
and software combined to enhance group
 Collaborative computing

Problems in groupwork
 Process
losses
 inefficient
GSS Technology Deployment



Special purpose decision room
 Electronic meeting rooms
 Software operates across LAN
 Allowed for face-to-face meetings
 Trained facilitator coordinates meeting
 Group leader structures meeting with facilitator
Multiple use facility
 General purpose computer lab
 Effective way to lower costs
 Trained facilitator coordinates meeting
 Group leader structures meeting with facilitator
Web-based groupware with clients
 Anytime/anyplace meetings with deadlines established
 Software bought or leased
 No facility costs
 Flexible
Tools for indirect support of Decision
Making
A large number of tools and methodologies are available to
facilitate e-collaboration, communication, and decision
support.
 Synchronous Products: communication and collaboration
are done in real-time.
 IM
 VoIP
 Asynchronous
Products
: communication and
collaboration done by the participants at
different
times.
 E-mail
 Wikilogs
 Online workplace
Cont…
Tools for indirect support of Decision
Making

Virtual Meeting Systems : The advancement of web
systems opens the door for improved , electronically
supported virtual meetings.
VM are supported
by a variety of groupware tools.
 Electronic Teleconferencing
 Video conferencing
 Web conferencing
 Interactive whiteboards
 Screen sharing
 Instant video
GSS Meeting Process









Group leader meets with facilitator to plan meeting
structure.
Participants meet on computers.
Group leader or facilitator poses question.
Participants brainstorm by entering comments into
computer.
Facilitator employs idea organization software to sort
comments into common themes.
Results are displayed.
Facilitator or group leader leads discussion.
Themes are prioritized.
Highest priority topics are either sent through the process
again for further discussion or a vote is taken.
GSS Meeting Process

Standard Process
 Exploratory
idea generation
 Idea organization tool
 Prioritization
 New idea generation
 Selection of final idea

Success based upon effectiveness, reduction in costs,
better decisions, increased productivity
GSS and Distance Education

Classroom collaborative computing advantages
 Brainstorming, chat, discussion boards
 Distribution of information, lectures
 Publishes to course site
 Videoconferenced
 Consistent materials
 Textbooks can be bound or electronic
 E-mails and listservs
 One-on-one interaction
 Allows for global classrooms
 Anytime/anyplace with fixed deadlines
 Flexible time frame
 Doesn’t interfere with work shift
 Low delivery costs with large audiences
GSS and Distance Education, continued


Disadvantages:
 Fewer social interactions
 Communication problems
 Students must be self-starters and highly disciplined
 Classes require major technical and administrative support
 Technical infrastructure must be reliable
 Courses may need to be redesigned for online
 Special training
Corporate training online:
 Allows anytime/anyplace training
 Lowers costs
 Decreases time away from jobs
 Shortens learning process
 Delivered via Intranet, intranets, extranets, audio and video
conferencing
Creativity Support System

Creativity
Fundamental human trait
 Level of achievement
 Can be learned



Organizations recognize value in innovation
Stimulated by electronic brainstorming software


Free flow idea generation
Creative computer programs
Smartbots function as facilitators
 Identify analogies in letter patterns
 Draw art
 Write poems


Computer programs stimulate human productivity