Agile Management and Design Thinking (SoSe 2018)

Content

Agile methods have revolutionized the work of many IT departments. However, they are no longer limited to the IT area of a company, but are gaining a foothold in marketing, sales, personnel management or even in top management. Agile work has become a new buzzword in the management of many companies. Many departments try to orient their work according to agile principles. However, in some companies this change cannot always be successfully shaped, so that agile working is now also discussed with restraint or only as a new fashion topic.

The aim of this seminar is to contribute to this discussion and to take up agility as a current development in the field of IT (project) management, to discuss its applicability for companies in general and to work out characteristics of agile management. The focus is on learning and understanding…

  • … how agility works and what properties agility has.
  • … when agile methods are suitable for other areas of the company and projects.
  • … when hierarchical models are better suited as management models than agile methods.
  • … which aspects hinder agile methods and approaches in companies.
  • … how change can be shaped successfully so that agile methods can be used successfully.
  • … what role virtual communication has for agile methods.
  • … the importance of “Design Thinking” for agile processes.
  • … whether agile methods and design thinking are generally suitable as change management methods.

Learning objectives

The aim is for students to conduct independent studies on scientific questions of digital transformation and in particular on agile management and design thinking. This seminar is intended to prepare students for a master thesis, which is intended to answer a concrete research question in the field of digital transformation and in particular agile management or design thinking by applying a scientific method of business informatics.

Transfer of knowledge

The seminar will address the following topics in the context of knowledge transfer:

  • Agility and Design Thinking (basics and introduction)
  • How to write?
    • Characteristics of good scientific work
    • Theories of Business Informatics
    • Research methods in business informatics
    • Structure and structure of scientific work
  • How to present?
    • Characteristics of good (scientific) lectures and presentations
    • Tips and hints for your own seminar presentation

Application of knowledge

Students can use research methods of business informatics as well as methods of effective presentation within the framework of the seminar to produce their own scientific work (seminar paper).

Implementation of knowledge

Within the framework of the seminar, students are to apply their knowledge in the context of a research-methodical examination of a question from the field of digital transformation in business and society in order to structure their own work and thoughts in the context of a paper and a presentation.

Cooperation with IBM

The seminar is organized in cooperation with IBM. IBM will offer a workshop on “Design Thinking” on 22.6.2018 for the seminar participants, which is part of the obligatory program of the seminar. The seminar participants should work on their own questions as well as reflect with the representatives of IBM on the content of their own work within the framework of the workshop. This reflection should be included in the written work.

“The seminar is being held in cooperation with IBM Services, the management consultancy of IBM. The aim of the method is to create solutions within a limited time window with multidisciplinary teams that want to be measured primarily by how they positively influence the user experience. The method can be used to design new applications, processes, strategies or to differentiate brands. IBM Design Thinking brings together a range of design techniques, including personas, empathy representations, actual and target scenarios, wireframe sketches and playbacks. In a personal and practical consulting environment, students will understand and learn to apply a number of these design techniques in practice”.

Organization

The number of participants is limited to 20.

The seminar is offered as a block seminar. The following timetable is envisaged:

  • Registration and allocation of seats until 09.04.2018 (23.55)
  • Seminar introduction and assignment of topics: 13.04.2018, 16:45 – 18:15, FG 0.016
  • Presentation training: 7.6.2018 15:00 – 16:30, FG 0.016
  • Workshop with IBM: 22.6.2018 10:00 – 18:00, Room n.V.
  • Presentations of the seminar papers: 23.6.2018 10:00 – 18:00
  • Submission of seminar papers: tba.

Attendance is compulsory for seminar participants at these dates.

The seminar service includes a written paper and a presentation.

Registration for the seminar is via StudOn.