Problem Statement
Nowadays, we live in a highly interconnected world, where very industry has opted to become digital, facing many competitive challenges. Digitalization has not only allowed companies to reach for customers in all parts of the world, but also be able to become disruptive and hence innovative. The problem with digitalization is that companies are constantly fighting with each other to be more suitable and user-friendly in order to be more competitive, to do so, they need to bring their Business Intelligence Competency Center (BICC) to a higher and more organized smart ecosystem level, especially when everything is integrated to the Internet of Things as they call it.
Figure 1
Miller, G., Bräutigam, B, & Gerlach, S. (2006). Business Intelligence Competency Centers: A Team Approach to Competitive Advantage. Hoboken: Wiley
This study case will be focused on analyzing Smart Ecosystems based on PLE’s and Use Cases to see the effect it has in technologies such as Smart Ecosystems and Integrated Environments.
Figure 1.
Depicts how different systems integrate and are part of Smart Ecosystems
Challenges and Opportunities
The Internet has changed the world exponentially for almost every single industry; every system has become smart and practical. How companies have reached such innovative models has been possible by building Personal Learning Environments (PLE) and the analyzed outcomes of many different use cases. The use case have helped companies to become digitally competitive due to the methodology used in system analysis to identify, clarify, and organize system requirements (The Keystone Advantage, 2006). A use case makes possible to analyze sequences of interactions between systems and users in a particular environment and related to a particular goal. It consists of a group of elements (for example, classes and interfaces) that can be used together in a way that will have an effect larger than the sum of the separate elements combined. The use case should contain all system activities that have significance to the users. A use case can be thought of as a collection of possible scenarios related to a particular goal, indeed, the use case and goal are sometimes considered to be synonymous.
Just like digitalization has opened infinite doors for individuals and companies, it has also acquired very challenging risks to overcome. One very big challenge is to improve is the gathering of information about the competitive environment, including competitor’s plans, activities, and products in order to succeed (Baltzan, 2015), a term also known as Competitive Intelligence.
Another challenge digitalization presents is the fact that there is a river of information on the web and it is very hard to pick the right one, depending on everyone’s Personal Learning Environment. It is why companies need to have a very steady Business Agility to be up with innovation via collaboration in order to anticipate challenges and opportunities before they occur(Heisterberg & Verma, 2014).
Figure 2 . Shows the Business Agility Strategy Framework
Baltzan, P. (2015). Creating Collaborative Partnerships. Business Driven Technology (6th ed.). (pp.215-226). New York: McGraw Hill Education
The challenges mentioned above are the main ones observed; on the other hand, the opportunities definitely outweigh them. Companies have the best opportunity by paying close attention to the Use Case examples. There are so many Use Cases that can be applied to many industries. In this case study, I’d like to take the Healthcare industry as an example for Business Agility, Use Case, and IT/Software development.
The healthcare industry is one of the most important because they deal with very sensitive information. It was not until recently, that the industry went into full electronic records, a nightmare indeed. Like any other industry going completely electronic and Internet based, the industry had its ups and downs. The very beginning was tough because they needed to convert millions of medical record files into electronic copies, a job that took several months, if not years.
How did the healthcare industry managed to go live online and make software and programs work to benefit the patients, and at the same time, comply with ethical and government rules? Well, it was all thanks to Use Cases. It is important to remember that a Use Case is a list of actions or event steps, typically defining the interactions between a role and a system, to achieve a goal. The actor can be a human or other external system (Wikipedia).
Figure 3.
This shows how use cases are used in the healthcare system, but it’s just for particular places. Different healthcare facilities have different PLE’s and therefore different use cases experience.
http://wiki.hl7.org/index.php?title=Security_Use_Cases
As it is shown in the figure, use cases are extremely important and have been a key element for the transition of healthcare into digitalization.
Having many places that use different PLE’s to keep up with their business agility is a great opportunity for the healthcare industry. Right now, healthcare facilities are still learning and analyzing processes and gathering collected data, in order to make their and the patients experience a smooth one. The information obtained is indeed giving other facilities the answers to questions they have trouble with. It is definitely a collaboration that is increasing the opportunities of the healthcare industry and therefore, this technology evolution has produced the ability to monetize innovative ideas. During the same period strategic business management theories, principles, and practices have evolved with the development of “customer value” as a framework for organizing resource allocation decision-making. Heisterberg, Rodney; Verma, Alakh (2014-08-27).
Business Solution
Due to the many Opportunities given by becoming digital, there are many solutions to the healthcare industry to help them succeed. While doing a research, I found this very interesting video recorded back in 2015. In the video, the speaker talks about the importance of the business converting to digital and opening a huge global market for medical suppliers, which definitely not only increases the chances for the economy to grow, but also allows people to be treated and have better access to information and machines that used to be too expensive or just out of reach to them.
Figure 4. Youtube Video “Healthcare goes Digital”.
As it happens in many businesses, there is not a definite solution for the healthcare industry. Just like the internet keeps softwares improving, thanks to all the Personal Learning Environments around the globe, so will the many different input in use cases in order to improve the healthcare systems in the world, at least the ones that have had the access of becoming digital.
Lessons Learned & Business Case
From reading the chapters and doing my own research for this case, I can say that I have become more awared of the importance of digitalization. Even though I applied it to healthcare, the terms and the examples can also be applied to other industries.
Another lesson I have learned with this study case is that collaboration is such a great advantage and opportunity. Not only does collaboration makes transitions easier for everyone, but also creates a chance for everyone to participate. Such participation can be observed in the next figure.
Figure 5.
http://www.cdotsys.com/the-role-of-collaborative-commerce-in-the-sharing-economy/
As it was mentioned above, collaboration can be applied to many industries and therefore, help a company keep up with the rest and be more competitive.
Figure 6.
Why I Care
I do care about the importance of digitalization because from now on, most of our information, work, communication, socialization, but most importantly, using the Internet and the many platforms will create individual self-learning. For a company to succeed, it is crucial that they analyze and pay close attention to their use cases and personal learning environments because by doing so, it will maintain a company at its best competitive stage. It will not only improve the chances and opportunities for success, but it will also improve their Business Intelligence Competency Center (BICC). Also, it allows for individuals to improve in their creativity and come up with better disruptive innovation.
Figure 7. Shows the elements of disruptive innovation and how it becomes so important for PLE’S and BICC’s.
Enterprise Information Management Systems 