Jonas Hedman and Mikael Schonström
Abstract
With increasing numbers and complexity of information models, it is becoming more and more important to have supporting modeling frameworks. Previous literature within this field has been descriptive, conceptual, and normative with few empirical studies addressing managerial and cognitive challenges during the development of large-scale models. This article addresses modeling from three perspectives: Enterprise Architecture (EA), Ontology, and Management Theory. The article presents the experiences from a large corporation effort to develop a modeling framework. The focus is on managerial and cognitive issues related to the development and use of the modeling framework. The conclusion is that large-scale modeling activities are complex involving several cognitive issues, such as managing different interpretations of terms due to different languages, modeling frameworks, cultures, and information systems.
Keywords
Enterprise Architecture, Information Modeling, Ontology, Conceptual Modeling
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Jonas Hedman is an Associate Professor at the Department of IT Management, Copenhagen Business School, Denmark. His research covers topics such as greening processes, business model evolution, payment eco-system, and business benefits of IT. He is currently working with Copenhagen Finance IT Region (www.cfir.dk) to create a cashless society.
Mikael Schonström has a PhD from Informatics, Lund University. He worked many years as a software engineer, project manager, and consultant at Ericsson and IBM. His research interest includes modeling, process development, and management of large projects. Currently Mikael holds a project manager position at the Swedish Defense Material Administration.
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