Research shows that customer involvement is an important factor affecting project outcomes in agile system development projects but the phenomenon is in practice less studied. The study aims to build an understanding of customer involvement in practice and the factors that influence the phenomenon. The study has been carried out as a case study at a Swedish consulting company active in the IT industry. Through interviews with participants in product teams for five system development projects, data has been collected regarding two themes, work methods and customer involvement. The analysis was based on the theoretical framework used in the study. In the discussion, this was compared to the purpose of the study. Conclusions were drawn in relation to theory, purpose and research questions. The study provides insights into the practical application of customer involvement in relation to its theoretical benefits, and presents factors that may affect its application. The study's conclusions describe what customer involvement can look like in practice based on the projects studied, as well as factors that have been found to affect involvement. Furthermore, problems associated with generalising an approach to the phenomenon are also discussed. The study has found that customer involvement was crucial to the outcome of the studied projects and the study's conclusions can be used to promote customer involvement in future projects. Lessons learnt from the studied projects and their outcomes can contribute to a better understanding of the design of customer involvement initiatives. / Forskning visar att kundinvolvering är en viktig faktor som påverkar projektutfall inom agila systemutvecklingsprojekt men fenomenet är i praktiken mindre beforskat. Studien avser att bilda en förståelse kring kundinvolvering i praktiken och de faktorer som påverkar fenomenet. Studien har utförts som en fallstudie på ett svenskt konsultföretag verksamt inom it-branschen. Genom intervjuer med deltagare i produktteam för fem systemutvecklingsprojekt har data samlats in gällande två teman, arbetssätt och kundinvolvering. Analysen grundades på den teoretiska referensram som använts i studien. I diskussionen ställdes detta mot studiens syfte. Slutsatser drogs i förhållande till teori, syfte och frågeställningar. Studien bidrar med insikter kring praktiskt förankrad kundinvolvering i förhållande till dess teoretiska fördelar, och redovisar faktorer som kan komma att påverka dess tillämpning. Studiens slutsatser beskriver hur kundinvolvering kan se ut i praktiken utifrån de projekt som studerats, samt faktorer som funnits påverka involveringen. Vidare diskuteras även problematik kopplad till att generalisera ett tillvägagångssätt för fenomenet. Studien har funnit att kundinvolvering varit avgörande för utfallet av undersökta projekt och studiens slutsatser kan användas för att främja kundinvolvering i framtida projekt. Lärdomar från studerade projekt och dess utfall kan bidra till bättre förståelse kring utformning av insatser gällande kundinvolvering.

O Gerenciamento Ágil de Projetos é uma abordagem útil para projetos com alto grau de complexidade e incerteza. Duas de suas características são: o envolvimento do consumidor nas tomadas de decisão sobre o projeto do produto; e, o uso de uma visão do produto, artefato que representa e comunica as características prioritárias e fundamentais do produto a ser desenvolvido. Há métodos para apoiar a criação da visão do produto, mas eles apresentam deficiências em operacionalizar o envolvimento do consumidor final. Por outro lado, existe a Engenharia Kansei, uma metodologia que permite capturar as necessidades de um grande número de consumidores e relacioná-las a características do produto. Este trabalho apresenta um estudo aprofundado da metodologia da Engenharia Kansei e analisa como essa pode ser útil para apoiar a descrição da visão do produto, no contexto do Gerenciamento Ágil de Projetos de produtos manufaturados. Em seguida, para verificar essa proposição, apresenta o desenvolvimento de um Sistema de Engenharia Kansei baseado na Teoria de Quantificação Tipo I, Aritmética Fuzzy, e Algoritmos Genéticos, testado para o projeto de uma caneta voltada a alunos de pós-graduação. Para execução do projeto foi utilizado um conjunto de métodos e procedimentos, tais como: revisão bibliográfica sistemática; desenvolvimento matemático; desenvolvimento computacional; e, estudo de caso. Analisa-se o Sistema de Engenharia Kansei proposto, e os resultados no caso aplicado, para averiguar seu potencial. Indica evidencias que o Sistema de Engenharia Kansei é capaz de gerar requisitos sobre configurações de produtos segundo a perspectiva do consumidor potencial, e que essas configurações são úteis para a formulação da visão do produto e na evolução desta visão no decorrer do projeto de produto. / The Agile Project Management is a useful approach for projects with high degree of complexity and uncertainty. Two of its singularities are: costumer involvement in decision making about the product design; and the use of a product vision, an artifact that represents and communicates the fundamental and high-priority features of the product to be developed. There are methods to support the creation of the product vision, but they have shortcomings in operationalizing the costumer involvement. On the other hand, there is the Kansei Engineering, a methodology to capture the needs of a large number of consumers and correlate them to product features. This paper presents a detailed study of the Kansei Engineering methodology and analyzes how this can be useful to support the description of the product vision, in the context of Agile Project Management of manufactured products. Then, to verify this proposition, it presents the development of a Kansei Engineering System based on Quantification Theory Type I, Fuzzy Arithmetic and Genetic Algorithms, tested for the design of a pen aimed at graduate students. To implement the project we used a set of methods and procedures, such as systematic literature review, mathematical development, computational development, and case study. It analyzes the proposed Kansei Engineering System and the results in the case study applied, to ascertain their potential. Evidence indicates that Kansei Engineering System is capable of generating requirements on product configurations from the perspective of the potential consumer, and that these configurations are useful for the description of the product vision and for the progression of this vision during the project of the product.

O Gerenciamento Ágil de Projetos é uma abordagem útil para projetos com alto grau de complexidade e incerteza. Duas de suas características são: o envolvimento do consumidor nas tomadas de decisão sobre o projeto do produto; e, o uso de uma visão do produto, artefato que representa e comunica as características prioritárias e fundamentais do produto a ser desenvolvido. Há métodos para apoiar a criação da visão do produto, mas eles apresentam deficiências em operacionalizar o envolvimento do consumidor final. Por outro lado, existe a Engenharia Kansei, uma metodologia que permite capturar as necessidades de um grande número de consumidores e relacioná-las a características do produto. Este trabalho apresenta um estudo aprofundado da metodologia da Engenharia Kansei e analisa como essa pode ser útil para apoiar a descrição da visão do produto, no contexto do Gerenciamento Ágil de Projetos de produtos manufaturados. Em seguida, para verificar essa proposição, apresenta o desenvolvimento de um Sistema de Engenharia Kansei baseado na Teoria de Quantificação Tipo I, Aritmética Fuzzy, e Algoritmos Genéticos, testado para o projeto de uma caneta voltada a alunos de pós-graduação. Para execução do projeto foi utilizado um conjunto de métodos e procedimentos, tais como: revisão bibliográfica sistemática; desenvolvimento matemático; desenvolvimento computacional; e, estudo de caso. Analisa-se o Sistema de Engenharia Kansei proposto, e os resultados no caso aplicado, para averiguar seu potencial. Indica evidencias que o Sistema de Engenharia Kansei é capaz de gerar requisitos sobre configurações de produtos segundo a perspectiva do consumidor potencial, e que essas configurações são úteis para a formulação da visão do produto e na evolução desta visão no decorrer do projeto de produto. / The Agile Project Management is a useful approach for projects with high degree of complexity and uncertainty. Two of its singularities are: costumer involvement in decision making about the product design; and the use of a product vision, an artifact that represents and communicates the fundamental and high-priority features of the product to be developed. There are methods to support the creation of the product vision, but they have shortcomings in operationalizing the costumer involvement. On the other hand, there is the Kansei Engineering, a methodology to capture the needs of a large number of consumers and correlate them to product features. This paper presents a detailed study of the Kansei Engineering methodology and analyzes how this can be useful to support the description of the product vision, in the context of Agile Project Management of manufactured products. Then, to verify this proposition, it presents the development of a Kansei Engineering System based on Quantification Theory Type I, Fuzzy Arithmetic and Genetic Algorithms, tested for the design of a pen aimed at graduate students. To implement the project we used a set of methods and procedures, such as systematic literature review, mathematical development, computational development, and case study. It analyzes the proposed Kansei Engineering System and the results in the case study applied, to ascertain their potential. Evidence indicates that Kansei Engineering System is capable of generating requirements on product configurations from the perspective of the potential consumer, and that these configurations are useful for the description of the product vision and for the progression of this vision during the project of the product.

Det blir allt enklare att starta ett företag i Sverige, mycket tack vare de många startupplattformar som finns. Samtidigt överlever knappt hälften av alla startup längre än fem år. En viktig aspekt för att inte misslyckas som nystartat företag är att förstå sina kunder och sina användare och lansera produkten till rätt kundsegment, samtidigt som det kan vara kostsamma undersökningar som också förlänger den kritiska tiden innan företaget börjar generera inkomster. För att det ska bli lönsamt krävs det också att företagen förstår hur informationen som insamlas ska användas för att förbättra produkten. Det här arbetet undersöker hur och när startups väljer att involvera sina användare i produktutvecklingsprocessen. För att besvara arbetets frågeställningar har en litteraturstudie utförts, där bakgrunden till problematiseringen kartlagts. Därefter genomfördes en intervjustudie med fyra olika startups där syftet var att förstå hur arbetet med användarinvolveringen utfördes i praktiken. Samtliga företag som intervjuades hade genomgått ett program på, eller finansierats av någon startupplattform. Studien visade att startups ofta inte följer en linjär produktutvecklingsprocess, utan måste anpassa den efter de finansiella och strukturella förutsättningar som företaget har. Därför lämpar sig ofta andra iterativa metoder för företagen, där insatsen för varje förändring blir mindre. Det gäller också för användarinvolvering, där företagen dock strävar efter att involvera användaren så mycket som möjligt då det upplevs som en minskad osäkerhet. En kontinuerlig involvering av användare är dock sällan genomförbart för nystartade företag. Dessutom gör bristen på erfarenhet det svårt för företagen att strukturerat fastställa de viktigaste kraven och behoven från användarna. Sammanfattningsvis pekar studiens resultat på att en utmaning för startups är att applicera en linjär produktutvecklingsprocessen på grund av bristande struktur och startupfas. De strävar efter att förstå sina kunder och användare då konsensus råder om att detta leder till en lyckad lansering då osäkerheten minskar och produkterna förbättras. / Starting a business in Sweden is becoming easier, thanks in large part to the numerous startup platforms available. However, barely half of all startups survive beyond the first five years. A crucial aspect of avoiding failure as a new company is understanding one's customers and users and launching the product to the right customer segments. Yet, conducting costly surveys can also prolong the critical period before the company starts generating income. To make it profitable, companies also need to understand how the collected information should be used to improve the product. This study investigates how and when startups choose to involve their users in the product development process. To address the research questions, a literature review was conducted mapping out the background of the problem. Then an interview study was carried out with four different startups, aiming to understand how user involvement was implemented in practice. All interviewed companies had gone through a program on or were funded by a startup platform. The study revealed that startups often do not follow a conventional product development process but have to adapt it based on the company's financial and structural conditions. Insted, other iterative methods are often suitable for new companies, where the cost for each change is less significant. This also applies to user involvement, although companies strive to involve users as much as possible because it is perceived as reducing uncertainty. However, continuous user involvement is rarely possible for startups with limited budgets and time constraints. Moreover, the lack of experience makes it challenging for companies to systematically determine the most critical requirements and needs from users. In summary, the study's findings indicate that a challenge for startups is to apply a linear product development process due to a lack of structure and the startup phase. They strive to understand their customers and users, as there is a consensus that this leads to a successful launch by reducing uncertainty and improving products.

Konkurrensen på marknaden blir allt tuffare och i takt med detta blir kundperspektivet en allt viktigare framgångsfaktor. Syftet med denna rapport är därför att undersöka och fördjupa förståelsen för hur företag inom vitvarubranschen använder sig av användarinvolvering i produktutvecklingsprocessens olika faser. Dessutom ska det skapas en förståelse för vad detta ger för effekter för företaget samt hur de använder och sprider kunskap från involveringen av konsumenter. Forskningsfrågorna besvarades genom en djupgående litteraturstudie för sedan att bygga upp en teoretisk referensram och därigenom få en uppfattning av rådande teorier och metoder som används vid kundinvolvering. Detta jämfördes sedan med en semistrukturerad intervjustudie där kundinvolvering inom vitvarubranschen undersökts. Respondenterna som deltog i intervjustudien var anställda hos Electrolux, ett internationellt företag som arbetar med vitvaruprodukter. Studien visar att det finns olika åsikter kring kundinvolvering vad gäller i vilka faser konsumenten ska involveras i processen och i vilken grad involveringen ska ske. Resultatet visade att de metoder som används för att integrera användare i produktutvecklingen huvudsakligen används i informationssyfte för att skapa en förståelse och kunskap om konsumentens användande av produkten, som sedan kan användas av produktutvecklarna. Att involvera konsumenter i arbetet ansågs främst ha positiva effekter, men att det fanns vissa svårigheter som var viktiga att ta hänsyn till för att nå ett önskat och användbart resultat. Dessutom visar studien att tvärfunktionella samarbeten bidrar till enklare kommunikation och informationshantering eftersom flera olika funktioner är med under hela produktutvecklingsprocessen. / The competition in the market is getting far more resilient, hence, the customer perspective becomes an increasingly important success factor. The purpose of this report is, therefore, to investigate and immerse the understanding of how companies in the home appliance industry implement customer involvement in the different phases of the product development process. In addition, an understanding of how customer involvement will affect the company and how they use and spread the knowledge from these implementations will be created. The research questions were answered through an in-depth literature study to create a theoretical framework and therefore gain an understanding of prevailing theories and methods used in customer involvement. This was subsequently compared with a semi-structured interview study in which customer involvement in the home appliances industry was investigated. The respondents who participated in the interview study worked at Electrolux, an international company in the home appliance industry. The study shows that there are different opinions about customer involvement regarding the phases in which the consumer should be involved in the process and to what extent the integration should take place. The results of this research indicate that the methods used to integrate users in the product development process are mainly for informational purposes, to create an understanding and knowledge of the consumer's use of the product. This knowledge could later on can be used by the product developers. Involving consumers in the process was considered to have positive effects, however there were some difficulties that were important to take into account in order to achieve a desired and useful result. The study also shows that cross-functional teams could contribute to easier communication and information management since many different functions are involved throughout the product development process.

Abstract in English and Afrikaans / The main thrust of the thesis is an empirical analysis of the problems experienced by unbanked seniors to conduct digital banking. Population ageing is a worldwide phenomenon and seniors’ numbers are projected to grow to beyond 1 billion people globally by this year (2020). Currently, seniors and other banking customers are surrounded by various forms of e-banking technologies. E-banking is further envisaged to be the catalyst of the financial inclusion of the unbanked people of all ages. However, the problem is that customers’ adoption of e-banking is a challenge for the banks. Seniors are particularly not willing to use e-banking. Thus, seniors stay digitally unbanked and this makes their inclusion into the financial marketplace a priority. How the banks could use e-banking to bank digitally unbanked seniors and, as a consequence improve financial inclusion, is the problem the study set out to resolve. Therefore, an empirical analysis of the problems experienced by unbanked seniors to conduct digital banking was conducted and, as a result, an empirical framework of how the banks can extend these services to this population segment was developed. An original theoretical framework primarily founded on the TAM and Baroudi’s customers’ technology design involvement theory was proposed. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) with latent constructs was utilised. The measurement model was first estimated and then covariance matrix between variables served as input to estimate the structural coefficients between constructs. The study’s data was collected by means of a structured questionnaire survey, utilising a probability sampling method with a sample of 420 digitally unbanked seniors. A focus group with banking industry experts was also held to consider the findings. The study’s findings empirically verified the study’s model’s strength in determining digitally unbanked seniors’ willingness to use e-banking. Latent constructs under consideration included customer co-creation, awareness and empowerment, design, perceived ease of use, usefulness, cost, attitude, privacy and security, and trust. The findings demonstrate that design, attitude, privacy and security are statistically significant determinants of digitally unbanked seniors’ willingness to use e-banking. Managerial implications and recommendations are provided in the recommendations chapter. / Die hoofbetoog van die tesis is ’n empiriese ontleding van die probleme wat ervaar word deur ongebankte pensionarisse om hulle banksake digitaal te doen. Bevolkingsveroudering is ’n wêreldwye verskynsel en daar is voorspel dat die getal pensionarisse teen vanjaar (2020) 1 miljard mense wêreldwyd sou verbysteek. Tans is daar ’n groot verskeidenheid elektroniese bankdienste beskikbaar wat pensionarisse en ander bankkliënte kan gebruik om hulle banksake te doen. Daar word ook verwag dat elektroniese bankwese die katalisator sal wees van die finansiële insluiting van ongebankte mense van alle ouderdomme. Die probleem is egter dat die aanname van elektroniese bankwese deur kliënte ’n uitdaging vir banke is. Pensionarisse is veral nie gewillig om elektroniese bankdienste te gebruik nie, en hulle bly dus ongebank. Dit veroorsaak dat hulle insluiting in die finansiële mark ’n prioriteit is. Die probleem wat hierdie studie wil oplos is hoe die banke elektroniese bankwese kan gebruik om digitaal ongebankte pensionarisse te kry om bankdienste te gebruik. Dus is ’n empiriese ontleding uitgevoer van die probleme wat ongebankte pensionarisse ervaar om hulle banksake digitaal te doen. Gevolglik is ’n empiriese raamwerk ontwikkel van hoe die banke hulle dienste na hierdie bevolkingsegment kan uitbrei. ’n Oorspronklike, teoretiese raamwerk, wat hoofsaaklik gegrond is op die kliëntetegnologieontwerp-betrokkenheidsteorie van TAM en Baroudi, is voorgestel. Strukturele gelykstellingsmodellering (SEM) met lantente konstruksie is aangewend. Die metingsmodel is eers bereken en die kovariansiematriks tussen veranderlikes het gedien as inset om die strukturele koëffisiënte tussen konstrukte te bereken. Die studie se data is ingesamel deur middel van ’n gestruktureerde vraelysopname, met ’n waarskynlikheidsteekproefneming van 420 digitaal ongebankte pensionarisse. Daar is ook ’n fokusgroep met kundiges in die bankwese gehou om die bevindings te oorweeg. Die studie se bevindings het die studiemodel se vermoë om die gewilligheid te bepaal van digitaal ongebankte pensionarisse om elektroniese bankdienste te gebruik empiries bevestig. Latente konstrukte onder oorweging het medeskepping van kliënte, bewustheid en bemagtiging, ontwerp, waargenome gebruiksgemak, bruikbaarheid, koste, houding, privaatheid en sekuriteit, en vertroue ingesluit. Die bevindings demonstreer dat ontwerp, houding, privaatheid en sekuriteit statisties beduidende determinante is van digitaal ongebankte pensionarisse se gewilligheid om elektroniese bankdienste te gebruik. Bestuursimplikasies en aanbevelings word voorsien in die aanbevelingshoofstuk. / Business Management / D. B. L. (Marketing)

Our world is ever-changing hence the surroundings ought to develop accordingly. This applies particularly to the product development process and therefore, it is of high priority to adapt to the changes. This can be achieved by observing the market and especially the customers. It is believed that customers possess certain knowledge that can be crucial pieces of information when developing products. According to the literature, involving customer will result in the increased diversity of information and as a result, this may enhance the quality as well as the development process. Nevertheless, integrating customers may prove to be a tedious task as well as a costly one especially if the customers are of a complex nature. Due to this, it may be appropriate to apply various methods to map customer’s needs and requirements to further develop them in a systematic manner. The purpose of this study is to gain greater knowledge about customer involvement, mainly focusing on international as well as complex customers. The essence of the study is to obtain information about how an organisation navigates around customers along with what roles and responsibilities there are within the organisations. The study was conducted at Xolaris, a smallmedium size (SME) company within software development, hence the collected data stems from that organisation. Initially, a comparative literature study was executed to obtain a broader spectrum of knowledge. This was complemented by interviews with respondents who held relevant positions within the organisation. The interviews were conducted in a semi-structured manner for the sole purpose of optimizing the information flow. From the data that was collected, several categories were derived that contributed to the study in a suitable manner. The results of the study proved that there are obstacles when involving customers. Yet, there are methods and tools to overcome these obstacles, conversely, they may not always prove to be efficient and one must adapt oneself according to the situation. Furthermore, this study confirmed that it is of great importance to maintain stable customer relationships, hence there cannot be a fixed method to process the customer's requirements. Moreover, the study also proves there ought to be a limit to the degree of customer involvement. / Världen står konstant inför för nya utmaningar samt förändringar och därav bör omgivningen utvecklas i enlighet med detta. Inte minst gäller det för produktutvecklingsprocessen som har eftersträvat att anpassa sig till diverse utvecklingar. Detta kan bland annat uppnås genom att observera marknaden och särskilt kunderna. Kunderna kan besitta kunskap som kan vara avgörande information när man utvecklar produkter. Enligt litteraturstudien kan involvering av kunder resulterat i ökad mångfald av information och på så vis kan det bidra till att produktkvalitet förbättras såväl som utvecklingsprocessen. Integrering av kunder kan emellertid visa sig vara en ledsam handling såväl som en kostsam sådan, särskilt om kunderna är av en komplex karaktär. Därför kan det vara lämpligt att använda olika metoder för att kartlägga kundernas behov samt krav för att vidareutveckla dem på ett systematiskt vis. Syftet med denna studie är att erhålla bredare kunskap om kundinvolvering med fokus på internationella såväl som komplexa kunder. Vidare kommer studien inrikta sig mot att studera hur en organisation navigerar runt kunder samt vilka roller och ansvarsområden som finns inom organisationerna. Studien genomfördes på Xolaris, ett mindre företag (SME) som specialiserar sig i mjukvaruutveckling, därav härstammar all erhållen data från denna organisation. För att besvara på samtliga frågeställningar genomfördes en litteraturstudie för få en djupare förståelse om kundinvolvering . Detta kompletterades med intervjuer från respondenter som besatt relevanta positioner inom organisationen. Intervjuerna genomfördes på ett semistrukturerat viss i syfte att optimera informationsflödet. Data som samlades in kodades samt delades in i lämpliga kategorier. Resultaten av studien visade att det finns hinder när kunderna involveras. Trots det, finns det metoder samt verktyg för att hantera dessa hinder, å andra sidan är de inte effektiva i alla situationer utan man böra anpassa efter förhållandet. Vidare bekräftade denna studie att det är av stor vikt att upprätthålla en god kundrelation. Däremot visade studien på att det bör finnas en sund gräns för graden av kundinvolvering då för mycket involvering inte alltid gynnar projektet.