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During the case study, some limitations and potential improvements on our hypothe- sized framework became apparent, which are reviewed in this section.

4.4.2.1 General remarks

For the processes and roles in our frame of reference, it is particularly important to understand that they are by no means representing reference processes for imple- mentation at a company, but rather to be seen as an analysis tool for making the current information system transparent. Therefore, notable differences, which were discovered in the interaction of processes, their information needs and information availability, as well as their role assignments, were expected.

It should also be noted that significant aspects of developed base and information concepts (section 3.6.2 and section 3.6.3) could not be traced. Partially, it can be assumed that some of these concepts implicitly exist. Due to time restrictions, a holistic understanding of the processes had to be given a higher priority, and

concepts could not be further pursued during the data collection. However, some of the hypothesized concepts might be too detailed to be applicable for the studied organization.

Nevertheless, the frame of reference has shown to be applicable to the firm, and essentially supported the conduction of interviews and analysis. It has further not only highlighted issues at the firm, but also helped to identify possible approaches for solutions.

4.4.2.2 Limitations

In addition to limitations of applicability, two limitations were discovered, which we mainly see in the nature of our models rather than underlying theory.

First of all, the process roles are restricted to the actors, where we can make reasonable assumptions that they participate in planning. Therefore, they do not directly include the staff of the competence teams as planners on their own. In return, planning roles are also not considered as limited resources. Whereas this partially serves as a reduction of complexity, the findings from different perspectives about the solution architects of the firm indicate that it is not entirely possible to separate planners and resources. Since a solution architect in our case study can be a sales person, project manager, or resource allocator, but at the same time be an allocated resource, resources needed to perform the planning in itself could be scarce, as discussed in section 4.3.3. Reflecting this in an information system would however be quite difficult, and possibly be impracticable.

Furthermore, we have declared in section 3.6.4 (Design of processes and dynamics) that planning processes can exist in multiple instances. The amount of these instances has a significant impact on the complexity of the information system. It was apparent in the analysis (section 4.3.5 – Resource Allocation) that these effects exist; however, there could be more appropriate approaches to highlighting these. For example, the information system could also be reflected in a network of these different process instances.

4.4.2.3 Proposals for extension

The following paragraphs present suggestions, how our framework could be improved. Since their thorough analysis would exceed the scope of our study and possibly touch upon other research fields, they are only briefly discussed.

Knowledge base

The need for a knowledge base identified in analysis and discussed further in sec- tion 4.4.1.2 (Information visibility) was not part of our hypothesized processes. We believe that maintaining a knowledge base could be beneficial for an IT consultancy in their planning, and should also be included in our framework. Implementation and use of knowledge systems is however not trivial. Established research on knowl- edge management and their supportive information structures should therefore be considered.

Slack time

As identified in the analysis of the resource allocation process in section 4.3.5, it is essential to calculate for slack time when planning under uncertainty. Some time slots need to be free in case of unexpected events, which could be disruptive to previous planning efforts. A central resource allocation has the aim of minimizing the amount and intensity of reallocation and negotiation. One possibility to support the resource allocation planner is, to monitor how frequently critical resources have been rescheduled to other activities. This information can be used systematically to adjust slack time. However, the reallocation by unexpected events needs to be made explicit in the organization. A different approach would be, to adjust this slack according to the perceived planning risk. This could probably be most accurately set by the planning instance, which has knowledge of the task.

Financial link

One major objective of the general management in the case study is, to introduce customer-value-based pricing. In part, this could be supported with the suggested knowledge base, allowing estimation under which circumstances and efforts a solution could be replicated. We have also considered in our model that sales should make estimations on the revenue of the project, which can then be taken into consideration in the project portfolio planning process (section 4.3.2). Nevertheless, in order to decide on profitability, more data is necessary. As discussed in section 4.3.6, in addition to time considerations, anticipated competence and resource needs during preliminary planning have to reflect financial estimations. These could for example include internal cost estimates for use of certain competences, and therefore allow for comparison to the expected revenue.

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Conclusions

In this final chapter, we review the work in relation to our proposed research questions. Furthermore, we point out limitations in terms of internal validity and generalizability. Finally, we suggest areas for further research.