Analysis of Virtual Design Collaboration with Team Communication Networks
Year: 2009
Editor: Norell Bergendahl, M.; Grimheden, M.; Leifer, L.; Skogstad, P.; Lindemann, U.
Author: Uflacker, Matthias; Skogstad, Philipp; Zeier, Alexander; Leifer, Larry
Series: ICED
Section: Design Information and Knowledge
Page(s): 275-286
Abstract
We present a design information system for persistent team communication capture and the analysis of trends and relationships in multi-modal, digital team information spaces. Based on traces and streams of IT-mediated collaboration, the platform computationally constructs communication networks, a data structure representing the semantic concepts and relationships of shared information and individual actors in the process. We provide a set of ontologies to serve as a flexible template for the concepts and associations in design communication. Using the data from eleven distributed engineering design projects, we highlight the utility of our tool in the areas of design information retrieval, design management, and design research. For design research, we focus on identifying trends, key differentiators, and common signatures in the communication behavior of high-performance design teams.
Keywords: computer-supported cooperative work, team communication networks, design information capture, design research, design management