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Chapter 9
Collaboration and IS

Chapter Objectives/Study Questions

Q1. What is collaboration, and why is it important to business?

Q2. What are the objectives of the collaboration process?
Q3. What are the key components of a collaboration IS?
Q4. How can collaboration IS support the communicating activity?
Q5. How can collaboration IS support the iterating activity?
Q6. How can collaboration IS support business processes?
Q7. Which collaboration IS is right for your team?
Q8. 2024?

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List of Key Terms

• Asynchronous communication – information exchange that occurs when all

members of a work team do not meet at the same time, such as those who work
different shifts or in different locations.
• Collaboration – a dynamic process: a group of people working together to achieve
common objectives via communication and iteration.
• Collaborative information system – an information system that supports
collaboration.
• Cooperation – a process where a group of people work together, all doing essentially
the same type of work, to accomplish a job.
• Discussion forums – a form of asynchronous communication in which one group
member posts an entry and other group members respond. A better form of group
communication than email, because it is more difficult for the discussion to go off
track.
• Document library – a named collection of documents in SharePoint.
• Dogfooding – the process of using a product or idea that you develop or promote.
The term arose in the 1980s in the software industry when someone observed that
their company wasn’t using the product they developed (or “they weren’t eating their
own dog food”).
• File server – a computer that stores files.
• Google Drive – a free thin-client application for sharing documents, presentations,
spreadsheets, drawings, and other data.
• Iteration control – the technique that occurs when the collaboration tool limits, and
sometimes even directs, user activity. Iteration control provides one or more of the
following options: user activity limited by permissions, document checkout, version
histories.
• Iteration management – tracks changes to documents and provide features and
functions to accommodate concurrent work.
• Libraries – in version-control collaboration systems, a shared directory that allows
access to various documents by means of permissions.
• Microsoft Lync – a communication tool that provides IM, audio, and video
conferencing, a shared whiteboard for team members to write upon, and other shared
facilities.
• Microsoft SkyDrive – part of the Microsoft Windows Live service that gives users
access to a virtual hard drive accessible from anywhere via the Internet.
• Office Web Apps – versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote that are run
in the browser. They have less functionality than the desktop versions but are free and
easily accessed via the Web.
• Parallel workflow – the condition that exists when two or more workers perform a
task concurrently. A common example is concurrent review of a document.
• Power curve – a graph that shows the relationship of the power (the utility that one
gains from a software product) as a function of the time using that product.
• Project data – data that is part of the collaboration’s work product.
• Project management – the process of applying principles and techniques for

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planning, organizing, and monitoring temporary endeavors.

• Project metadata – data that is used to manage a project such as schedules, tasks,
budgets, and other managerial data.
• Screen-sharing applications – enable virtual meeting members to view the same
whiteboard, application, or other display.
• Sequential workflow – the condition that exists when two or more workers perform
a task one-at-a-time. A common example is the sequential review of a document.
• Synchronous communication – information exchange that occurs when all members
of a work team meet at the same time, such as face-to-face meetings or conference
calls.
• Team surveys – a form of asynchronous communication in which one team member
creates a list of questions and other team members respond. Microsoft SharePoint has
built-in survey capability.
• Videoconferencing – technology that combines a conference call with video
cameras.
• Virtual meetings – a meeting in which participants do not meet in the same place
and possibly not at the same time.
• Webinars – a virtual meeting in which attendees view each other on their computer
screens.
• Workflow – a process or procedure by which content is created, edited, used, and
disposed.

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MIS InClass 9

For this chapter, all work associated with the InClass exercise is so dependent on student
collaboration and work output that the inclusion of example solutions is neither
instructive nor productive.

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Using Your Knowledge

9-1. Reread about 2024 in Q8. Do you agree with the conclusions? Why or why
not? If F2F meetings become rare, what impacts do you see on the travel
industry?
As an opinion-based question, student answers will vary. The correctness of an
answer will be based on the reasoning behind the response. Answers should be well
supported.

9-2. Choose one of the three alternatives described in Q7 for use by your
collaborative team. To do so, answer the following questions (if possible,
answer these questions with your team):
a. List your team’s collaboration requirements. Break them into mandatory
and nice-to-have categories.
b. Create a list of criteria for selecting collaboration tools and creating a
collaboration IS. Start with the items in the first column of Figure 9-20, but
add, modify, or delete items depending on your answer to question 9-2a.
c. Score the three alternatives in Q7 against your requirements and your
criteria. If you wish, change any of the elements of those three alternatives
to create a fourth alternative. Score it as well.
d. Based on your answer to question 9-2c, select a collaboration tool set.
Explain your selection.
e. Given your answer to question 9-2d, how will you construct your
collaboration IS? Specifically, what procedures will you need to develop
and how will your team members obtain training? Will you need to have
any special jobs or roles for your team members? If so, describe them.
Student responses will vary based on the decisions of individual teams. Student
responses should address all parts of the question and be well supported.

9-3. Reflect on your experience working on teams in previous classes as well as on

collaborative teams in other settings, such as a campus committee. To what
extent was your team collaborative? Did it involve communication and
iteration? If so, how? Was critical feedback provided? How did you use
collaborative information systems, if at all? If you did not use collaborative
information systems, describe how you think such systems might have
improved your work methods and results. If you did use collaborative
information systems, explain how you could improve on that use, given the
knowledge you have gained from this chapter.
As an experience-based question, student answers will vary. Student responses
should address all portions of the question and be well supported when necessary.

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9-4. Think back over your past week. When did you use either of the collaboration
activities of communication and iteration outside of an academic setting? What
process was your team engaged in? What were your team’s objectives? Would
any of the IS tools discussed in this chapter have made your process more
effective?
As an experience-based question, student answers will vary. Student responses
should address all portions of the question and be well supported when necessary.

9-5. This exercise requires you to experiment with Google Drive. You will need two
Google accounts to complete this exercise. If you have two different email
addresses, then set up two Google accounts using those addresses. Otherwise,
use your school email address and set up a Google Gmail account. A Gmail
account will automatically give you a Google account.
For this question, parts a through d provide instructions to the student. There are no
suggested answers for these steps.
a. Using Microsoft Word, write a memo to yourself. In the memo, explain the
nature of the communication collaboration driver. Go to
http://drive.google.com and sign in with one of your Google accounts.
Upload your memo using Google Drive. Save your uploaded document and
share your document with the email in your second Google account. Sign
out of your first Google account. (If you have access to two computers
situated close to each other, use both of them for this exercise. You will see
more of the Google Docs functionality by using two computers. If you have
two computers, do not sign out of your Google account. Perform step b and
all actions for the second account on that second computer. If you are using
two computers, ignore the instructions in the following steps to sign out of
the Google accounts.)
b. Open a new window in your browser. Access http://drive.google.com from
that second window and sign in using your second Google account. Open
the document that you shared in step a.
c. Change the memo by adding a brief description of the content-management
driver. Save the document from your second account. If you are using just
one computer, sign out from your second account.
d. Sign in on your first account. Open the most recent version of the memo
and add a description of the role of version histories. Save the document. (If
you are using two computers, notice how Google warns you that another
user is editing the document at the same time. Click Refresh to see what
happens.) If you are using just one computer, sign out from your first
account.
e. Sign in on your second account. Reopen the shared document. From the
File menu, save the document as a Word document. Describe how Google
processed the changes to your document.
Google processed the changes just like they were shown online. Google allows
the document to be saved as a 97-2003 version .doc, which can be saved locally.

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9-6. This exercise requires you to experiment with Microsoft SkyDrive. You will
need two Microsoft accounts to complete this exercise. The easiest way to do it
is to work with a classmate. If that is not possible, set up two Microsoft
accounts using two different Hotmail addresses.
For this question, parts a through d provide instructions to the student. There are no
suggested answers for these steps.
a. Go to www.skydrive.com and sign in with one of your accounts. Create a
memo about collaboration tools using the Word Web App. Save your
memo. Share your document with the email in your second Microsoft
account. Sign out of your first account. (If you have access to two
computers situated close to each other, use both of them for this exercise. If
you have two computers, do not sign out of your Microsoft account.
Perform step b and all actions for the second account on that second
computer. If you are using two computers, ignore the instructions in the
following steps to sign out of the Microsoft accounts.)
b. Open a new window in your browser. Access www.skydrive.com from that
second window and sign in using your second Microsoft account. Open the
document that you shared in step a.
c. Change the memo by adding a brief description of content management.
Do not save the document yet. If you are using just one computer, sign out
from your second account.
d. Sign in on your first account. Attempt to open the memo and note what
occurs. Sign out of your first account and sign back in with your second
account. Save the document. Now, sign out of your second account and sign
back in with the first account. Now attempt to open the memo. (If you are
using two computers, perform these same actions on the two different
computers.)
e. Sign in on your second account. Reopen the shared document. From the
File menu, save the document as a Word document. Describe how
Microsoft SkyDrive processed the changes to your document.
Microsoft SkyDrive processed the changes in near real-time.

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Collaboration Exercise 9

For this section, all work associated with the exercise is so dependent on student
collaboration and work output that the inclusion of example solutions is neither
instructive nor productive.

Activity 1: Set Goals for Improving Collaboration Skills

1. With your team, discuss the collaboration skills presented in Figure 9-2.
Create your own ranking of what you believe to be the most important
collaboration skills. Justify any differences between your team’s conclusion
and the results of the survey in Figure 9-2.
2. As a team, choose the two highest skills in your list in Figure 9-2 that your
team believes it needs to improve. Explain your choice. Use feedback and
iteration as much as possible.
3. For the two skills you choose in item 2, identify specific ways in which you
can improve. State goals both for individuals and for your team.

Activity 2: Building a Collaboration IS

In this exercise, you will first build a collaboration IS and then use that IS to answer
four questions in a collaborative fashion. You might want to read the four questions
(in item 4 below) before you build your IS.
Until you answer question 1, you’ll have to make do with email or face-to-
face meetings. Once you’ve answered that question, use your communication
method to answer question 2. Once you’ve answered question 2, use your
communication and your content sharing method to answer question 3. Then use
the full IS to answer question 4.
1. Choose a communication method:
a. Meet with your team and decide how you want to meet. Use Figure 9-8 as
a guide.
b. From the discussion in item a, list the requirements for your
communication system.
c. Select and implement a communication tool. It could be Skype, Google+
Hangouts, Microsoft Lync, or some other communication tool.
d. Write procedures for the team to use when utilizing your new
communication tool.
2. Build a content sharing method:
a. Meet with your team and decide the types of content that you will be
creating.
b. Decide, as a team, whether you want to process your content using
desktop applications or cloud-based applications. Choose the applications
you want to use.
c. Decide, as a team, the server you will use to share your content. You can
use Google Grid, Microsoft SkyDrive, Microsoft SharePoint, or some
other server.
d. Implement your content sharing server.
e. Write procedures for the team to use when sharing content.

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3. Build a task management method:

a. Meet with your team and decide how you want to manage tasks.
Determine the task data that you want to store on your task list.
b. Decide as a team the tool and server you will use for sharing your tasks.
You can use Google Docs, Microsoft SkyDrive, Microsoft SharePoint, or
some other facility.
c. Implement the tool and server in item b.
d. Write procedures for the team to use when managing tasks.
4. Using your new collaboration information system, answer the following
questions:
a. What is collaboration? Reread Q1 in this chapter, but do not confine
yourselves to that discussion. Consider your own experience working in
collaborative teams, and search the Web to identify other ideas about
collaboration. Dave Pollard, one of the authors of the survey that Figure
9-2 is based on, is a font of ideas on collaboration.
b. What characteristics make for an effective team member? Review the
survey of effective collaboration skills in Figure 9-2 and the guidelines for
giving and receiving critical feedback in Figure 9-3 and discuss them as a
group. Do you agree with them? What skills or feedback techniques
would you add to these lists? What conclusions can you, as a team, take
from this survey? Would you change the rankings in Figure 9-2?
c. What would you do with an ineffective team member? First, define an
ineffective team member. Specify five or so characteristics of an
ineffective team member. If your group has such a member, what action
do you, as a group, believe should be taken?
d. How do you know if you are collaborating well? When working with a
group, how do you know whether you are working well or poorly?
Specify five or so characteristics that indicate collaborative success. How
can you measure those characteristics?
e. Briefly describe the components of your new collaboration IS.
f. Describe what your team likes and doesn’t like about using your new
collaboration system.

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Case Study 9

Eating Our Own Dog Food

9-7. In your own words, define dogfooding. Do you think dogfooding is likely to
predict product success? Why or why not? When would dogfooding not
predict product success?
Dogfooding is a form of putting one’s money where one’s mouth is. If a product is
being marketed, the person or entity doing the marketing should be using the
product themselves if the product has any application within the business.
Dogfooding has the potential to predict product success. If the company uses its
own product, it shows a form of product success. Of course, dogfooding has
limitations when it comes to products that cannot be reasonably used within a
business.

9-8. Is dogfooding a structured or a dynamic process? List possible objectives of

dogfooding processes.
Dogfooding can be a structured process, but more often than not, it is a dynamic
process. One objective of the dogfooding process could be to establish product
performance benchmarks for marketing purposes. Another objective could be to
determine if the instructions for a product are clear by providing them to employees
from another division for feedback.

9-9. Explain how this team uses the shared whiteboard to generate minutes. What
are the advantages of this technique?
At the end of the Lync meeting, each actor adds his or her name above the text that
he or she entered. Then, the whiteboard is saved on the SharePoint site for future
reference. There are a few advantages to this technique. First, it allows each team
member to instantly review and/or modify the meeting minutes. Second, it
decreases the likelihood of a small detail being missed. Third, the technique
provides easy reference to previous minutes.

9-10. Explain how this team uses alerts. Summarize the advantages of using alerts.
The team uses alerts to send email notifications to respective actors when a task is
posted for which the actor has responsibility. Using alerts provides an additional
notification channel for the actors. Without alerts, it would be up to the actors to
determine that a task was posted, or the actors would need to be notified by other
means by the actor who created the task. Another advantage of alerts is that the
actors could be notified of an urgent matter without the need to have access to a
full-client computer due to the propagation of mobile email delivery over numerous
platforms (e.g., BlackBerry, iPhone, Android, etc.).

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9-11. Summarize the advantages to this team of using Lync.

The largest advantage to the team using Lync is the ability to meet concurrently
even though the team is meeting in many different locations. Because of this, the
team can reduce travel time and associated costs, as well as give the actors the
option to work from any location that has an Internet connection.

9-12. Summarize the advantages to this team of using SharePoint.

SharePoint provides an easy way to share many documents with a group while
retaining version control. SharePoint also allows the team to assign tasks to one
another and be alerted when tasks are created for which an actor will be responsible.

9-13. Explain how you think Office 365 contributes to the efficiency of the
development team. How might it contribute to the quality of this text.
Office 365 allows the authors and editors to work in a collarborative manner on the
same document. Instead of waiting for Laura to provide feedback and send to the
others, it can be shared over Lync with the feedback discussed, and if necessary,
changes can be made in real time. This makes the process more efficient. This
should result in a higher quality product, as versioning issues can be reduced.

9-14. Which aspects of Office 365 described here could have value to you when
accomplishing student team projects? Explain why they add value compared
to what you are currently doing.
Student responses will vary based on their previous experiences with team projects.
One way that Office 365 could provide value is the Lync service, which allows
teams to meet at any convenient time, regardless of location. Another feature that
could provide value is the version history provided by SharePoint. Previously, a
team may have struggled with two or more members editing a document at the
same time, creating countless differences between the documents. A final item that
could add value is the alterts feature and task lists. Because some teams may have
issues with accountability, setting alerts for tasks can help notify team members and
allow others to know when something has been assigned.

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