UX-related issues is one type of issue that customer support is facing. This thesis project investigates the possibility to look at support cases as a source of insight to how users interact with an information system application at an ERP company. It is also investigated if it is possible to use this gathered information when further developing the product. Support case data are gone through in order to map what type of problems the users are encountering and a category structure is developed based on this information. The categorization framework is evaluated by letting employees test the structure by categorizing incidents in to different categories. Further data collection are gathered by a questionnaire and follow-up interviews with the classification participants. To evaluate the value in the support case information, employees with product responsibility are also interviewed to get insight from their perspective. The result from the evaluation of the category structure indicated that it wasn’t easy to make a categorization of incidents. The incidents were placed in different categories and in order to apply a category structure it would need further evaluation before applying in large scale. The information in support cases are concluded to be valuable. The collection of information related to where users are encountering problem and also how many are experiencing the same issue could serve as a basis when prioritizing the product backlog. A mapping of issues could justify resources spent on usability by showing business value based on the presumed impact.

Affärssystemsprojekt är en väsentlig företeelse i organisationer. Allt ifrån små till större nationella och internationella företag har ett affärssystem som stöd för sina affärsprocesser. Införande och byte av affärssystem betraktas inom affärsvärlden som en av de mest krävande och riskfyllda förändringarna ett företag kan genomföra. Att studera affärssystemsprojekt är av intresse ur ett organisationsperspektiv eftersom resultatet får långvariga konsekvenser för organisationen. Interorganisatoriska affärssystemsprojekt består dessutom av parter från två organisationer, vilka har skilda typer av kompetenser och roller. I ett affärssystemsprojekt är begrepp som projektmål, tidsdimension, och interorganisatoriska team av vikt att diskutera. Kommunikation, funktionen som översättare mellan parterna och ledarnas delaktighet för att integrera informationsstrategier och affärsstrategier är, enligt tidigare forskning inom både informationssystems och projektforskning, av vikt att diskutera. Det finns olika synsätt på förändring och sambanden som råder vid genomförandet av affärssystemprojekt. Det ena är att projektdeltagarna bör vara slutna för förändring och det andra är att de bör vara öppna för förändring av projektmål, tid och team beroende på den kunskap som utvecklas. Studier som fokuserar på konsekvenser för organisationer av det ena eller andra synsättet är däremot begränsade. Studiens övergripande problem är att studera vilka konsekvenser det kan få för leverantörs respektive beställarorganisationerna om parterna är slutna respektive öppna för förändring. Avhandlingen avser att bidra till både näringsliv och affärssystemsforskningen genom att beskriva konsekvenser för leverantörs och beställarorganisationer av om parterna är slutna eller öppna för förändringar inom affärssystemsprojekt. Multipla och longitudinella fallstudier har genomförts för att uppmärksamma organisatoriska konsekvenser över tid. Studien har genomförts indelad i tre faser (1) en retrospektiv fas, (2) en observationsfas och (3) en longitudinell fas. Datainsamlingsmetoder som använts är intervjuer, observationer och dokumentgranskning för att beskriva konsekvenser för både leverantörs och beställarorganisationer som genomför affärssystemsprojekt. Resultaten visar att en öppenhet och en slutenhet för förändringar av projektmål, tid och team fick konsekvenser för de båda organisationerna. När båda parter var slutna för förändring blev det svårt att använda kunskap inom projekten. Leverantören identifierade strategiska lärandeprojekt innan de beslutade sig för att vara öppna för förändring. När beställarna var öppna för förändring och leverantören sluten för förändring genomförde beställarna lärande och förändringsprojekt utanför projekten och de gemensamma projekten sekventiellt. När båda parter var öppna för förändringar blev konsekvenserna varken system eller organisationsutveckling, vilket hade kunnat förväntas. Istället ledde det till kommunikationsbarriärer. I denna sammanläggningsavhandling sammanställs och beskrivs resultaten från studien av affärsystemsprojekt via fyra publicerade artiklar. / ERP-Projects are important activities within organizations. Most organizations use ERP-systems from small to large national and international companies. Actually, Business considers ERP projects as one of the most demanding and risky changes an organization can perform. An Investigation into ERP-projects is of interest from an organizational point of view because the result affects the organization in a long-term perspective. In addition, Interorganizational ERP-projects consists of team members from two different areas of business, who have different competencies and roles. Communication in-between the parties, the functionality for intermediary’s and the managers’ participation are important within information systems and project research. However, In ERP-projects are concepts such as project goal, timeframes and Interorganizational teams important to discuss. There are divergent approaches on change and associations that prevail in realization of the ERP-projects. One approach is that the project participants ought to be closed and the other is that they ought to be open for changes in project goals, time and team depending on the knowledge that is developed. The investigations comprehensive problem is to study organizational consequences within the supplier and the customers´ organizations if they are open or closed for change.   The aim of the dissertation is to contribute to both business and ERP research through a description of consequences for supplier and customer organizations if the parties are closed or open for change within ERP-projects.  Multiple and longitudinal case studies have been used to discover organizational consequences from a long-term perspective. The investigation is conducted in three phases (1) a retrospective phase (2) an observational phase and (3) a longitudinal phase. Data collection methods used is interviews, observations and document investigations to be able to describe consequences for both supplier and customers’ organizations that are performing ERP-projects. In the results, an openness and closeness to change of project goals, time frames and team resources within the projects were associated with consequences for both of the organizations. When both parties were closed to change it was difficult to utilize knowledge developed within the projects. The supplier identified strategical learning projects before they decided to be open for change. When the customers were open for change and the supplier closed for change the customers performed learning and change outside the common projects and the Interorganizational project sequential. When both parties were open for change the expected system and organizational development did not appear. Instead, when both parties had an openness for change there were plenty of communication barriers.  In this dissertation, the results from the investigation of ERP projects is compiled and described through four published articles.

Året är 2016 och molnet som fenomen är fortfarande relativt nytt i jämförelse med sina föregångare men har nu några år på nacken. Den fundamentala idén bakom molnet är att datorresurser som servrar, datalagring och program istället för att finnas lokalt hos ett företag finns och förvaltas informationen hos och av en leverantör där informationen som lagras är tillgänglig för användaren via internet. Molnbaserade affärssystem har likt tidigare typer av system och andra former av ny teknik både för- och nackdelar gentemot den konkurrerande tekniken, många av dessa tas upp i tidigare forskning och litteratur. Denna studie syftar till att med hjälp av en deduktiv ansats och en kvalitativ inriktning undersöka hur identifierade för- och nackdelar i tidigare forskning stämmer överens med vilka för och nackdelar som företag i Stockholm identifierat med deras system samt vilka de huvudsakliga anledningarna var bakom beslutet att lägga hela eller delar av affärssystemet i molnet. Fem (5) stycken företag intervjuades och resultatet visade i konsensus med den tidigare forskningen att majoriteten av respondenterna ansåg att fördelarna är betydligt fler än nackdelarna. Fördelar som reducerade kostnader i och med minskat behov av IT-kompetens och drift samt hög mobilitet var de tydligaste och mest förekommande fördelarna bland svaren hos respondenterna. Den största nackdelen från tidigare forskning är säkerhetsrisken vilket fortfarande är ett orosmoment hos företagen men det finns tendenser till att företag börjat inse att säkerheten hos molnbaserade affärssystem är i paritet med eller ger i vissa fall till och med högre säkerhet i jämförelse med ett lokalt system. Resultatet visar även tendenser till inslag av både rationalitet och irrationalitet i beslutsfattandet vid valet av affärssystem.

Younger adults’ perception of and attention to facial stimuli are enhanced by positive and negative emotional expressions, with negativity leading to a greater benefit than positivity. Conversely, older adults demonstrate a positivity bias, devoting more attention to positive stimuli and less to negative. It is unclear if age differences in these attentional preferences emerge due to differences in how their perceptual systems respond to positive and negative stimuli. Emotional facial expressions elicit enhanced P1 and N170 components of visually-evoked event-related potentials (ERP) over posterior scalp regions associated with vision. The current study examined the extent to which angry and happy facial expressions evoked differential patterns of P1 and N170 enhancements in younger (n = 21, ages 18-30) and older (n = 20, ages 60-76) adults. Participants were presented with happy, angry, and neutral faces under four instructional conditions: passively view, passively view but consider emotion, categorize emotion, and categorize gender. ERPs were recorded from the posterior scalp electrodes of a 128- channel high density electrode array and were time-locked to the onset of facial stimuli. The recordings were segmented and averaged based on the instructional condition and emotional expression of the stimulus. Analyses of the average P1 and N170 latencies revealed no age differences. Overall, participants displayed larger amplitude P1 and N170 to all stimuli when asked to categorize gender or emotionality. Contrary to expectations, both younger and older adults displayed larger N170 amplitudes for angry and happy expressions relative to neutral ones. Although older adults display a positivity bias in allocating attention to emotional stimuli, in the current study, younger and older adults both displayed an enhanced N170 for emotional faces relative to neutral faces, suggesting that the perceptual systems of younger and older adults are similarly engaged in processing positive and negative facial expressions at early time points.

企業在面對詭譎多變的時代及處於日趨競爭的環境中，提升企業的競爭優勢，是今日企業經營者所須面對的課題。企業資源規劃系統（ERP）就是一套可以讓企業本身資源最佳化的資訊管理系統。 目前對於ERP系統相關的研究不少，但是針對機械製造業如何成功的導入ERP系統，以及究竟有那些關鍵成功因素會影響其導入的研究卻不多。因此，本研究以機械製造業為實證研究對象，進行企業導入ERP系統關鍵成功因素之研究。 本研究假設是因為在一般文獻中，大都採用較為籠統的項目名稱，來指出ERP 系統的關鍵成功因素，但對於執行過程的應注意事項，大都付之闕如。所以要如何才能掌握已知的關鍵成功因素，避免導入失敗，且若能透過其他企業之ERP 系統導入經驗，來避免重蹈覆轍，將更有助於企業導入ERP 系統的成功。 / This study is to discuss critical success factors of implementation of an Enterprise Resource Planning（ERP）system. An enterprise has to face the issues that how to gain its competitive advantage today when it intends to survive at this changing age and more competitive environment. An Enterprise Resource Planning system is an Information Management system that provides optimization of resources of an enterprise. There were many studies related to an ERP system but few studies discussed on implementation of an ERP system of the machinery industry and its critical success factors. And therefore this study is to use a machinery company as a case to analyze critical success factors of implementation of an ERP system for an enterprise. This thesis develops a hypothesis that even the literatures used perplexed contents and found the key success factors; they would just ignore these factors during implementing the ERP systems. So, we must handle those key success factors avoid failing and try to learn from the companies successfully implementing ERP systems.

<p>The introduction of high density EEG (hd-EEG) nets for easy application on subjects of all ages has improved the possibilities to investigate the development of the infant neurophysiology. This dissertation consists of three studies (I – III) that investigate the visual motion system and mirror neuron system of the infant, and methodological sections that outline the bioelectrical background and the characteristics of the methods used. </p><p>Study I covers the maturation of cortical areas involved in motion perception in adults and infants using an ERP paradigm. Over three age groups (2, 3 and 5 month olds) the cortical activation increased dramatically. All infant groups showed significant activation when moving displays was contrasted to static displays on a video screen. The study shows that 5-month-old infants and older can be expected to process motion in a similar fashion as adults.</p><p>Study II covers the infant mirror neuron system (MNS). In adults the mu rhythm perturbations is considered a reliable measure of activation of the MNS. This study presented both a mu rhythm analysis and a ERP analysis to detect MNS activity in 6-month-olds and in adults. This study concludes that the infant MNS can be measured using ERPs and that the development of mu rhythm perturbations requires further study.</p><p>Study III focused on exploring the mu rhythm suppressions. 8-month-olds observed a live actor that performed goal directed reaches and non-goal directed hand movements. The results show robust mu rhythm perturbations time-locked to the grasping moment. The study concluded that the MNS activity is possible to evaluate by analysis of mu rhythm perturbations and that the MNS show mature characteristics at the age of 8 months.</p><p>In summary, Study 2 and 3 present new methods to investigate the infant mirror neuron system and shows that the infant MNS is active at 6 months of age. At 8 months of age the infant MNS show mature EEG responses to simple actions such as reaching. How the MNS development relates to the infants’ motor development, and how the MNS interacts with the development of social skills requires further studies that could benefit from the methods presented here.</p>

<p>Wind power industry has become the world’s fastest growing renewable energy source. A firm’s information requirements can only be understood by examining their Information System (IS) through Organizational, People, Technical and Strategic perspective.  Current study focuses on the value of Information System implementation for Swedish Wind Power Industry (SWPI) that has reached to more than one billion dollars in recent decade. A well-known integrated IS i.e. Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) used by Swedish Wind Power Industry (SWPI) for decision making activities is not without its challenges, that consumes a significant portion of their capital and resources for implementation. Exploratory and explanatory research conducted for triangulation, through quantitative and qualitative methods, with empirical data of survey, multiple case studies, interviews and extensive literature review, to highlight the problems and solutions for implementing ERP in SWPI. Several, IS are highlighted with their functionalities and critical success and failure factors. A Model of Knowledge Sharing in ERP Implementation between system users, top management and project team is proposed for critical factors of ERP implementation.</p> / <p>Vindkraftsindustrin har blivit världens snabbast växande förnybar energikälla. Ett företags krav på information kan endast förstås genom att granska deras informationssystem (IS) med hjälp av Organizational, Människor, tekniska och strategiska perspektiv. Aktuell studie fokuserar på värdet av informationssystem genomförande för svenska vindkraftsindustrin (SWPI) som har nått mer än en miljard dollar under de senaste tio åren. En välkänd integrerad dvs Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) som används av svenska vindkraftsindustrin (SWPI) för beslutsfattande verksamhet som inte är utan dess utmaningar, som förbrukar en betydande del av sitt kapital och resurser för genomförandet. Undersökande och förklarande forskning som bedrivs för triangulering, genom kvantitativa och kvalitativa metoder, med empiriska data av undersökning, flera fallstudier, intervjuer och omfattande litteraturstudie för att belysa problem och lösningar för att genomföra ERP i SWPI. Flera är markeras med sina funktioner och kritiska framgångsfaktorer och faktorer misslyckande. En modell för utbyte av kunskap i ERP genomförande mellan systemanvändare, i högsta ledningen och projektgruppen föreslås för kritiska faktorer av affärssystem genomförandet.</p>

The brain's neural responses to words of different frequencies provide information on lexical organization and the cognitive processes involved in word identification and retrieval of meaning. Monolingual research has shown that exposure to high frequency words yields less cognitive difficulty than low frequency words as demonstrated by smaller N400 waves within even-related potential (ERP) methodology. The purpose of the present study was to compare frequency effects in adult native (L1) and non-native (L2) speakers of English during a sentence reading task embedded with high and low frequency word-pairs. Both L1 and L2 groups produced N400 waves of larger amplitudes for high frequency words compared to low frequency words that peaked around the 400 ms time mark. Group comparison found no significant difference in N400 wave amplitude and peak latency between both groups. The results are discussed with respect to theories of L2 word learning and lexical organization.

No description available.

To compete in the global market, organisations have to ensure that their production is synchronised with their other business activities. To achieve this, companies deploy a variety of solutions known as Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES). These systems provide the bridge between control and business systems and are used by a variety of people across many business functions. Typical users range from production and maintenance personnel to engineers, finance and management. Sectors within the manufacturing industry have their own definitions of MES and these are based on their functional requirements and by the offerings of vendors in that sector. Thus, people differ in their understanding and definition of MES. To ensure common understanding of what functionalities or modules constitute MES, the Manufacturing Execution Systems Association (MESA) has defined MES to cover the following eleven areas: Resource Allocation and Status Operations/Detail Scheduling Dispatching Production Units Document Control Data Collection/Acquisition Labour Management Quality Management Process Management Maintenance Management Product Tracking and Genealogy Performance Analysis On examining the Manufacturing Execution Systems literature, it was realised that functionalities and definitions exist but a standard approach and implementation methodology is lacking. Thus, a framework was developed based on a literature study as well as from experience within the MES environment. To ensure that the framework meets the needs of organisations, two questionnaires were developed and sent to people from various functions within large South African companies (and across divisions). The results of the empirical study showed that for large organisations, i.e. organisations with over 200 employees and an annual turnover in excess of R 40 million, some form of manufacturing execution systems were used in all the companies surveyed. The most common functionality deployed was Data Collection1Acquisition and the payback on these systems was greater than two years. The respondents highlighted that MES governance and an overall company wide strategy for MES implementation was non-existent or not enforced across the group of companies. The respondents also indicated that the implementation was time consuming and that the projects usually exceeded the allocated budget and/or were late. The respondents were not unanimous on who was accountable for MES within the organisation and a quarter felt that this was unclear within the organisation. When asked about the process that was followed in the selection of a vendor and solution, the majority felt that the process was not well defined. However, respondents noted that change management is used on all major projects and the outcome is generally successful. All the companies outsource either some or all of their IT services and the relationship with the vendor seems successful, as the rating received for MES support was very good. The benefits of implementing Manufacturing Execution Systems are also being realised by those companies that responded to the questionnaires. The overall impression is that over 75% of the respondents feel positive about the benefits and state that the benefits are realised. The only major shortcoming is that information is not being shared across business units and sites as half of the respondents felt that this was not happening in their companies. The proposed MES Engagement and Implementation Framework that was tested with the empirical study was subsequently updated. The framework suggests that all MES implementations should begin with a review of the business and ICT strategy as these would assist when defining the business requirements and the criteria for the selection of the technology, vendor, and solution The business requirements should be ascertained and a realistic business case should be developed. The project team should re-confirm the requirements once a vendor is selected, and, with the necessary change management, implement a portion of the solution as a pilot project. Once successful, then only should the entire solution be rolled out. Another parallel process should consider the outsourcing for the support phase. The entire process of implementing MES is cyclical as new requirements, additional functionality, and benefits tracking results in new projects. In conclusion adopting this framework would result in better implementation and ensure that the benefits are realised for all MES projects and that the solution is adequately supported after implementation. A model for the implementation has also been proposed and it should be developed and tested further to guide MES implementation. / Thesis (M.B.A.)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2006.