DESIGN IN AN ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT : AN EXPERIMENT 1

knowledge Relevant structures on users’ present work (2) Visions and design proposals (5) Overview of technological options (4) Concrete experience Concrete experience with users’ present work (1) Concrete experience with the new system (6) Concrete experience with technological options (3) 7 Bødker and Kensing: DESIGN IN AN ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT: AN EXPERIMENT Published by AIS Electronic Library (AISeL), 1994 K. Bødker & F. Kensing 54 stract knowledge. These levels too, should be dealt with in an iterative way. Combining the two distinctions Kensing & Munk-Madsen identify six areas of knowledge which must be developed and integrated in order for the design process to be successful. Thus the model helped us guide the project: applying various tools and techniques we set up activities, as shown in the below scenes, to ensure that knowledge within these six areas were addressed. The presentation below of tools and techniques applied in the project refers to these areas of knowledge. In the description we will focus on the techniques applied to reach given ‘ends’, in terms of certain types of insight, i.e. the knowledge areas. With each technique a set of tools are associated. In the description we primarily focus on the description tools used, i.e. what are the basic characteristics of the various description tools used to develop and maintain insight. This section is basically a reflection after the fact of what had happened in the project. There are three types of empirical data for this reflection: (1) first of all we have the design artifacts, i.e. the various descriptions and design proposals developed during the project; (2) we also have audio-taped some of the meetings in the project group; and (3) we have documented our reflections on the progress of the project by diary notes along the way. 5.1 Scene 1—Understanding Users’ Present Work We3 started the project by following the daily production of programmes. The domain was completely new to us so we spent several weeks part time (equivalent to three person weeks) getting acquainted with the workplace. Carrying a tape recorder we hung around, conducted unstructured interviews and observations of editorial meetings, journalists on research and working in the field interviewing, journalists working in their offices and in the studio preparing taped features and during broadcasting of the programme. Finally we arranged workshops around large formatted collages representing our emerging understanding of their work practice. Observations, Interviews and Workshops The description of the workplace, given in section 4 above, focuses on structural aspects—an example of area 2 knowledge. The description given below focuses on how the journalists, the secretary and the technician in various ways enacted the identified roles, used the tools in various ways, etc. in their daily work. In order to come up with these description we had to get concrete experience with users’ work practice—area 1 knowledge. This was done to qualify ourselves to participate in discussions of current work practices as well as to evaluate the relevance of the elicited structural aspects in relation to design. We observed the various activities in which the journalists and the secretary took part, e.g. the editorial meetings, accidental discussions in the secretary’s office, the work of five journalists in their offices, in the field, and in the studio. Special attention was given to the roles of the producer and the editor, who also played the role of the studio host. The observations were simultaneously documented by written notes as well as by audio recordings. We added to the recordings, by voice over, where we 8 Scandinavian Journal of Information Systems, Vol. 6 [1994], Iss. 1, Art. 2 http://aisel.aisnet. org/sjis/vol6/iss1/2 K. Bødker & F. Kensing 55 were and who were speaking or present at the time. The notes focused on the purpose of the activities, the roles played and the co-operation and the division of labour, the tools used to support the activities and the written documents that were used and produced. By focusing on these issues we built a representation of the communicative structure they engaged in. This we saw as a basis for the organization of the activities4. The observations allowed us to see how they enacted these structural properties during work. In this way the relations between area 1 and 2 types of knowledge came into play. During the observations the journalists often noted ideas for computer support in relation to the task they were engaged in. At coffee or lunch breaks these occasionally voiced ideas often led to more detached interviews or talks about the ideas mentioned and the reasons behind them. A large proportion of the tapes were transcribed and read several times. Together with the written notes and our emerging ‘inner picture’ of the editorial section, they formed the basis for our descriptions of their present work. At this point the descriptions took the form of a list of roles (see figure 2) and several large formatted collages consisting of freehand drawings combined with clips of pictures from journals (see figure 3). These clips illustrated tools or situations that related to their work. Figure 3 is an excerpt of the collages. The excerpt shows an example of a representation of the communicative structure between the editor and the producer (in Danish ‘afvikler’ and ‘producer’) where the various topics (in Danish ‘emner’) in the communication between the editor and the producer are depicted by keywords. The incoming arrows to the editor /producer show the media of communication (hand-written, typed or taped) between the editor/producer and the other journalists. These descriptions were presented at a workshop in the project group. The discussion focused on to which degree we—as designers and outsiders—had understood the essence of their work. The list of roles and the collages were subsequently corrected and added to. The focus was directed towards what they (dis-)liked in their jobs and the way in which they enacted the various roles and situations depicted in the collages, as well as towards inexpediencies and breakdowns. Whenever design ideas came up as to computer support or new FIGURE 2. Role list for journalist (translated by the authors) • Researcher (in general) • Planner • Feature producer – researcher – interviewer – author – reciter or discussion partner – office worker (reporting) • Producer or editor 9 Bødker and Kensing: DESIGN IN AN ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT: AN EXPERIMENT Published by AIS Electronic Library (AISeL), 1994 K. Bødker & F. Kensing 56 ways of organising the work, these were briefly discussed. The workshop session was audio taped (however only listened to, never transcribed) and notes were taken. Design goals and ideas Though the focus was on understanding their present work, some ideas for computer support came up during these types of activities. They were especially concerned with • how to improve the quality of the daily programme, • how to improve the editorial process, • how to make the editorial process transparent, • ndividual tools for the journalists and the secretary respectively. The main idea was to share data in cooperative aspects of the work, i.e. providing support for planning ahead (a kind of a calendar of ideas and planned features that often were related to specific events ahead in time). For the individual work the ideas were an ‘electronic archive’, access to a central library system as well as to external databases (news agencies). 5.2 Scene 2—Developing Design Proposals The knowledge developed so far, i.e. identified needs, inexpediencies and breakdowns (area 1 and 2 knowledge) combined with an introduction to ‘technological options’ (area 3 and 4) constituted input to the design of computer support. In developing the design proposals four techniques were used: design workshop, mapping, horizontal prototyping and vertical prototyping. In general, the products of the design activities in scene 2 were oriented towards describing or illustrating visions of computer support, in order to facilitate a discussion of the applicability or strengths and weaknesses of the design ideas. The basic idea of the activities was to enter into knowledge areas 5 and 6. In order to develop design proposals we draw upon the ‘relevant structures’ of the present work practice, i.e. knowledge area 2, as well as ‘concrete experience with users’ present work’, area 1. When describing the techniques we will highlight how this relationship between ‘relevant structures of the present work practice’ and ‘visions and design proposals’ were handled. Design Workshop In preparation for a design workshop we outlined the proposals for new tools for the individual, as well as the cooperative aspects of the work. The basic idea of the design workshop was to establish a shared framework where all design proposals—identified in scene 1 activities— were collected and related to each other. For each role identified in the role list, we described which tools were used today, and we added the proposals for new tools. This was documented by informal freehand drawings on large sheets of paper. The proposals were presented and discussed at a design workshop. In the presentation and discussion we focused on how the use of existing and new tools was related to the various documents used and produced in editing and preparing the programme. As a follow up all new tools, i.e. ideas for computer support, were put together in a coherent presentation to illustrate the functional relations or sharing of data among the various parts of the design, see figure 4. 10 Scandinavian Journal of Information Systems, Vol. 6 [1994], Iss. 1, Art. 2 http://aisel.aisnet. org/sjis/vol6/iss1/2 K. Bødker & F. Kensing 57 FIGURE 3. Excerpt from the collages (text is in Danish) 11 Bødker and Kensing: DESIGN IN AN ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT: AN EXPERIMENT Published by AIS Electroni