Deadline extended:
SUBMISSION DUE DATE: extended to August 31, 2013
PUBLISHING DATE: July, 2014
OBJECTIVE:
This special issue aims to increase our scientific theoretical and applied
knowledge on the engineering and management of IT-based service systems
from a Systems Approach view.
SPECIAL ISSUE ON Engineering and Management of IT-based Service Systems: A
Systems Approach
International Journal of Information Technologies and the Systems Approach
(IJITSA)
Guest Editors:
Dr. Ovsei Gelman, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, México
Dr. Mahesh S. Raisinghani, Texas Woman’s University, USA
Dr. Miroljub Kljajic, University of Maribor, Slovenia
Dr. Manuel Mora, Autonomous University of Aguascalientes, Mexico
INTRODUCTION:
While services –as a type of business classification (Quinn, 1992)- and
service systems have been engineered, managed and studied from early past
century (Chase and Apte, 2007), their core re-foundations can be tracked
recently (Cook et al. 1999). Furthermore, the economic relevance of
service systems (or service sector in general) in the modern worldwide
economy is totally recognized. As Sheenan (2006) reports “business
organizations focused on delivering help, utility, experience, information
or other intellectual content …account for more than 70% of total value
added in the OECD”. Thus, service systems and service concept – as opposed
to the product concept or the single post-sale business activity – have
experienced fundamental changes, and acquired a high-practical business
and theoretical relevance. In this special issue, we pursue to advance our
scientific knowledge on the processes, methodologies, techniques and tools
for engineering and managing IT-based service systems under a Systems
Approach. The service-oriented paradigm has permeated several disciplines
(Chesbrough and Spohrer, 2006). IT-based service systems can be defined as
“…a value coproduction configuration of people, IT, other internal and
external service systems, and shared information (such as language,
processes, metrics, prices, policies, and laws.”(adapted from Spohrer et
al., 2007). Accordingly, a service can be defined –in general- as “…the
application of resources (including competences, skills, and knowledge) to
make changes that have value for another (system)”(idem, 2007). Service
paradigm has been identified as one of the relevant themes for IT in the
last decade (Demirkan and Goul, 2006; Rai and Sambamurthy, 2006;
Beachboard et al. 2007; Zhao et al. 2008). In particular, in this track we
are interested in advancing the scientific knowledge on how to design
IT-based service systems, as systems which comprise hardware, software,
network infrastructure, data, environment and people components (Gallup et
al., 2009). While models of processes for engineering and managing
IT-based service systems (like ITILv2, ITIL v3, CMMI-SVC, CobIT, ITUP, MOF
4, ISO 20000) have been posed, their specific practices are still unclear
and few used by most IT practitioners. We consider such a topic to be
mandatory to foster a cost-effective and trustworthy engineering and
management of IT-based service systems (Buede, 2000). Additionally, since
IT-based service systems are also systems (Tien, 2008; Alter, 2008; Mora
et al., 2009) their essential and shared attributes for general systems
(Ackoff, 1971; Gelman and Garcia, 1989) should be considered. Based on
aforementioned issues for systems, service systems, and IT-based systems,
we believe that a Systems Approach (Ackoff et al., 1962; Checkland, 2000)
and a Systems Engineering view (Sage, 2000; Buede, 2000) can be helpful
for this aim. A Systems Approach can be defined as an answering and
problem-solving system comprised of: (i) systemic philosophical paradigms
(P’s: an ontological, epistemological and axiological stance on the
world): (ii) systemic theoretical frameworks (F’s: ideas-constructs,
theories, and models); (iii) systemic methodologies (M’s: methods,
techniques, and instruments), and (iv) situational areas identified as
systems (A’s: natural, artificial or social objects, artifacts and
subjects under study). Similarly, a Systems Engineering discipline, can
be briefly defined as “the interdisciplinary approach and means to enable
the realization of successful (cost-efficient and trustworthy) systems”.
References
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Systems Engineering, A. Sage (Ed)). New York: Wiley.
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OBJECTIVE OF THE SPECIAL ISSUE:
This special issue aims to increase our scientific theoretical and applied
knowledge on the engineering and management of IT-based service systems
from a Systems Approach view.
RECOMMENDED TOPICS:
Topics to be discussed in this special issue include (but are not limited
to) the following:
•Systems Foundations of IT-based Service Systems
•Determination of the Role of Service Systems in Super-systems such as
Economical, Environmental, Social and Political that is making it a
Service System
•Definition of Sub-systems that are forming a Service System in order to
assure the fulfillment of its Mission and Objectives
•The specificity of the organization and management of the service
systems, which assure their productivity as well as their development
•Conceptual comparative studies of ITSM standards and models (ISO 20000,
ITIL, CMMI-SVC, ITUP, MOF 4, CobIT)
•Empirical studies on implementations of ITSM standards and models (ISO
20000, ITIL, CMMI-SVC, ITUP, MOF 4, CobIT)
•Applied cases of implemented engineering practices for IT-based Service
Systems
•Applied cases of implemented management practices for IT-based Service
Systems
•Applied cases in real Data Centers
•Applied cases of adaptations of ITSM Processes for specific SMBs
•Application of IT-based Service Systems in Critical domains (health care,
international security, international financial stock markets, green
initiatives, gap e-education)
•Classification of IT-based Service Systems
•Value models for IT-based Service Systems (how can it be valued a priori
(designs) and a posteriori (evaluations of real systems))
•Innovative applications of IT-based Service Systems
SUBMISSION DUE DATE: June 㺞, 2013
PUBLISHING DATE: July, 2014
SUBMISSION PROCEDURE:
Researchers and practitioners are invited to submit papers for this
special theme issue Engineering and Management of IT-based Service
Systems: a Systems Approach on or before June 30, 2013 to Dr. Manuel Mora
(ijitsa@gmail.com). All submissions must be original and may not be under
review by another publication. INTERESTED AUTHORS SHOULD CONSULT THE
JOURNAL’S GUIDELINES FOR MANUSCRIPT SUBMISSIONS at:
http://www.igi-global.com/development/author_info/guidelines%20submission.pdf.
All submitted papers will be reviewed on a double-blind, peer review
basis. Papers must follow APA style for reference citations.
ABOUT International Journal of Information Technologies and the Systems
Approach (IJITSA): The Journal of Information Technologies and Systems
Approach (IJITSA) is an academic and practitioner journal created to
disseminate and discuss high quality research results on Information
Systems and related upper and lower level Systems as well as on its
interactions with Software Engineering, Systems Engineering, Complex
Systems and Philosophy issues, through rigorous Theoretical, Modeling,
Engineering or Behavioral studies in order to explore, describe, explain,
predict, design, control, evaluate, interpret, intervene and/or develop
organizational systems where Information Systems are the main objects of
study and the Systems Approach –any variant- is the main research
methodology and philosophical stance used. This journal is an official
publication of the Information Resources Management Association
(http://www.igi-global.com/ijitsa), and it is semi annually published
(both in print and electronic form).
Published: Quarterly (both in Print and Electronic form)
www.igi-global.com/ijitsa
PUBLISHER:
The International Journal of Information Technologies and the Systems
Approach (IJITSA) is published by IGI Global (formerly Idea Group Inc.),
publisher of the “Information Science Reference”(formerly Idea Group
Reference), “Medical Information Science Reference”, “Business Science
Reference”, and “Engineering Science Reference”imprints. For additional
information regarding the publisher, please visit www.igi-global.com.
All submissions should be directed to the attention of:
Editors-in-Chief:
Emeritus Professor Frank Stowell, University of Portsmouth, UK
Professor Manuel Mora, Autonomous University of Aguascalientes, Mexico
International Journal of Information Technologies and the Systems Approach
(IJITSA)
http://www.igi-global.com/ijitsa
—
Dr. Manuel Mora
Information Systems
Autonomous University of Aguascalientes
Mexico, 20131