The changing
organisation
Contents
Groupware -
an aid to
knowledge management
GroupWise
at Thames Valley
University (TVU)
Problems with
GroupWise at TVU
Organisations are changing the way that they operate to a more team orientated approach. They are becoming more global, with working groups being physically located in different buildings and different countries they are under constant pressure to reduce costs and overheads and to become more efficient. A technology was needed that would bring all these elements together. This technology is called GROUPWARE.
Peter and Trudy Johnson-Lenz coined the phrase Groupware in 1978, when it was defined as a complete system "of intentional group processes plus supporting software" 1.
"Groupware is a collective term for a range of tools that allow people to work together across different dimensions of space, team size and time." 2 "A Groupware system usually includes several (three or thousands) personal computers, mini computers, or terminals connected by a network. The network may be small: a few PCs...in a meeting room; or the network may exist as a massive connection...throughout the world (like the Internet)." 3
"Different Groupware products meet different needs. Some systems provide for synchronous communication (real-time) while others permit asynchronous communication (non-real-time). Both forms of communication may take place in a face-to-face setting or in a distributed setting." 4
Groupware in its broadest term is also known as:-
Lotus Notes, Groupsystems V and GroupWise are just some of the many applications currently available. In general the basic functions provided by groupware are: -
"Software which supports other networked group activities (decision making, joint writing). It is this that sets apart this technology from simplest network tools like EMAIL." 5
The Yankee group established three C's to groupware or workshop computing as it is also known. These are "Communication, Co-ordination and Collaboration" 6. Communication involves information being passed from one person to another. Groups must communicate through department's etc and groupware can assist with this by providing such services as Email, voicemail and videoconferencing. Co ordination incorporates both the right timing and scheduling of work so that the maximum output can be achieved with the minimum of effort. Groupware can assist with this process by providing calendars for better management of time and meeting schedulers.
The final C is collaboration where groups are involved in decision making and working towards a common goal at the end of their work. Groupware can provide open sessions for brainstorming as well as other ways for document sharing. In this way revisions can be made on projects to assist the groups with final decision making.
Groupware also plays an important role in the management of conflict, as group participation can often be conflictual. Groupware can assist to produce a common goal, as it is software meant to help group interaction. Information requirements can change quickly and groupware in its many forms is an effective method to communicate this. The group can collaborate on the effect of change to its goals. They can also co ordinate further action by setting up meetings to discuss the problem in hand.
Groupware
- an aid to knowledge management
When an employee left an organisation it used to be the case that all of his/her knowledge and expertise left with them. Groupware can reduce this loss as group activities with individual comments can be archived and so therefore retrieved at a later date. This knowledge then adds to the 'Corporate Memory'. Within a project, specific problems can be identified and then dealt with. An example of this at work could be within GroupWise where, within the EMAIL system a document is effectively 'date stamped 'on receipt. This sort of system would show busy times and also late submissions from a particular project.
Within a learning resource centre context, groupware can be used in information retrieval work. Groupware and information retrieval systems research practices such as document delivery systems can be of joint benefit. The normal information retrieval methods can be used to reference objects by a different method as groupware reduces meetings and the way that text is treated. The text and documents may be subjected to coding and indexing and then retrieved with keywords. Archived text can extend the 'organisational memory', which can then be looked at and indexed to produce reference models of group behaviour. Research observations may also be used in retrieval research.
Groupware can also aid information retrieval by allowing access to many people simultaneously and with the added capability of changes being made to a document concurrently. This may all be done in a shared workspace. Information already stored on particular groups work may be retrieved from archived text and the reactions and discussions again stored.
It is generally thought that groupware will play an increasingly important role in all types of organisations in the next ten years. Information workers especially will need to become more skilled with their use of groupware products. As boundaries change within organisation information specialists will need to become more versatile to work on many different types of projects and with working groups.
"Groupwise is software that help groups function together more efficiently and productivity. It integrates electronic mail, personal calendaring, group scheduling, and task management." 7
"GroupWise is one of several powerful, commercial electronic Messaging systems in the marketplace today. It offers messaging, scheduling, and document management-sharing tools that allow groups of users to easily collaborate and communicate with each other. GroupWise was designed to work in a Personal Computer network." 8 There is unfamiliarity with these types of packages in higher and further education, as colleges did not install PC networks until recently. By only using text based e-mail systems like computers attached to the Internet may cause difficulties. Lecturers and students have the capability to send e-mail across the world, but would have to take a disk across the campus to share a file with a colleague or to ask the reprographics department to print 20 copies of an assignment that they wanted to give to a class.
Products like GroupWise make sure that this does not happen.
GroupWise
at Thames Valley University (TVU)
Students and staff can access the network and so, therefore, can use the Email facility available within GroupWise. To avoid typographical errors being made when replying to an Email, the user has the option of simply attaching a response to the senders address. Another facility within the network is the ability to send an Email whilst browsing the Internet, so that if you come across Email address you can send one.
Students should be able to reach their tutor far more easily. They also potentially have access to other information sources without leaving TVU. Lecturers by means of a 'virtual workshop' could use an alternative method of teaching.
Producing group work has been made much simpler. A group of students can share a folder containing their work and also make sure that only they have entry to it. They also have the facility of allowing other non-group member access if required.
Staff or students can use the calendar facility to schedule meetings and arrange information-swapping sessions. In this way, it can be said that GroupWise is a knowledge management tool.
As part of the signature file a user has the ability to write to an HTML address within Email so that recipients of an Email can access the address if they wanted to.
Students and staff can manage and control their Email interactions and messages and so they can delete mail etc.
Access is given to the online address book so that a user can view all GroupWise members. This is useful if only a person's name is known and not the Email address.
Within this the user can customise his or her address book to meet the individual's requirements
This Information Resource Management tool enables the student/staff member to create their own personal groups, add Internet addresses and even keep postal address information.
GroupWise has a friendly, point and click interface that is easy for people to learn to use. It is very easy to:
GroupWise 5.1 - Win 95 and Mac version lets you create a "discussion thread-list"
It can run on several platforms.
Since GroupWise is part of the desktop-PC environment it is very easy to switch from working in Word Perfect to surfing the Web to reading your e-mail with just a mouse click or two. Users can even set it up so they are instantly notified when a new message arrives.
GroupWise uses the concept of "shared" folders to create discussion lists for groups of users.
Problems
with GroupWise at TVU
A fundamental problem associated with any new system is that of untrained users and TVU is no exception in this case. Neither the staff or the students have had a proper induction into how the system works. Students have basically been told to initialize their accounts with the help of ICL staff. The system is currently accepting the enrolment number and password of a student for access to the network including the Internet etc, but not their GroupWise account for which they are informed that access has been denied. GroupWise has not been in place for very long and already it is not working properly. This may be due to the back up service provided by ICL staff, but it has already affected the submission of parts of assignments of students. This lack of access has obviously restricted the access to information already sent to an account holder. The management of workflow included the receipt of important messages is not getting through.
The final problem identified with the introduction of this product is the amount of time taken for the project to be completed. Ideally GroupWise should have been available at the start of the academic year in semester one and now well into semester two it is still not fully operational.
A possible solution to the lack of training of staff/students would be to attend a GroupWise essentials course. The completion of this course should lead to a competent understanding of GroupWise and methods of managing information resource and knowledge.
1 What is groupware? @ http://csis3.kennesaw.edu/~cyong/whtsgrpware.html (now a dead link)
2 Davenport, E. and McKim, G. Groupware in LIS education. In Proceedings of the First Nordic-British Conference on Library and Information Science Education Copenhagen, May 1995.
3 Buchanan, C. Groupware The Basics @ "http://csis3.kennesaw.edu/~cbuchana/groupware.html" (now a dead link)
4 Ellis, Clarence, S. J. Gibbs and G. L. Rein. 1991. Groupware: Some Issues and Experiences CACM 34(1)(Jan):38-58 @ http://csis3.kennesaw.edu/~cyong/whtsgrpware.html (now a dead link)
5 Davenport, E. and McKim, G. Groupware in LIS education. In Proceedings of the First Nordic-British Conference on Library and Information Science Education Copenhagen, May 1995.
6 THE Yankee Group Communication, Collaboration, Coordination The "Three C's" of Workgroup Computing Yankee Water March 1995 3,3
7 Office of Information Technology, Services/Help Desk - Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) - GroupWise4 "http://www.bowiestate.edu/oit/HelpDesk/faqs/FAQGW4.htm" (now a dead link)
8 GROUPWISE IMPLEMENTATION FAQ "http://web.hamline.edu/services/is/handouts/gw-faq.htm" (now a dead link)
