The implementation of an information
system in a non-profit organization in a
developing country
Challenges and essential factors to take into consideration in the
preliminary work and implementation process
Author: Sebastian Kastrup Nielsen
Supervisor: Per Svejvig
A
BSTRACT
In non-profit organizations, the use of information systems is not widespread in developing countries. Essential causes are weak financial situations, lack of resources, no experience with information systems, and a difficulty in seeing the potential of information systems for the organization.
This thesis makes a step towards successful information system implementations for non-profit organizations in developing countries. Information systems have proven to be differentiating for organizations as a whole and this differentiation is possible in developing countries as well.
One approach to this topic could be theoretical - but would new theories make a difference? This thesis takes an action research approach for two reasons:
1. There is a research gap in usage of action research within information systems in developing countries.
2. Action research gives a practical framework, where action taking is an important part of it. Action-taking in this thesis involves a project with two outcomes for an organization from the Philippines, which is in need of an information system.
The products are a requirements specification and a suggestion for an implementation process. In the process of making the requirements specification, a standard system has been found to be the best solution for the organization. Important reasons are that the risk is lower, it requires less expertise to operate, and the features needed are often generic. A non-profit organization in a developing country cannot afford to fail to implement an information system, but this can often be the case because of little expertise on the area. So the standard system is a safe startup. The suggestion for an implementation process includes scrum and project management from the Project Management Institute (PMI). The flexible and adaptive mindsets from scrum, with planning processes from the PMI, were found to give the best possible implementation process for the organization. The organization has with its lack of experience from information systems and scarce resources a need for flexibility, but the flexibility also calls for planning processes that can put some structure to the flexibility.
From the process of developing the two products in this thesis, five lessons were learned: 1. Involve users in the entire process.
2. Understand the organizational and national culture.
3. There is a need for flexibility within a thoroughly planned implementation process. 4. Be aware of IT infrastructure and hardware available in the organization.
5. The management needs to be committed to the project.
These learned lessons are generic and can be used, I hope, in other non-profit organizations in a developing country. Action research, the requirements specification, and the suggestion for an implementation process give together with the lessons learned a holistic view on the benefits from implementation of information systems for non-profit organizations in developing countries.
Keywords: Information system, developing country, action research, implementation, non-profit organization, requirements specification.
CHAPTER(1:(INTRODUCTION(...(2! BACKGROUND!FOR!THE!STUDY!...!2! KANLUNGAN!...!2! PROBLEM!STATEMENT!...!3! DELIMITATIONS!...!3! DEFINITIONS!...!4! STRUCTURE!OF!THE!THESIS!...!5! CHAPTER(2:(THEORY(...(5! REQUIREMENTS!SPECIFICATION!...!6! IMPLEMENTATION!PROCESS!...!8! CULTURE!...!9! INFORMATION!SYSTEMS!IN!DEVELOPING!COUNTRIES!...!11! CONCLUSION!...!13! CHAPTER(3:(METHODOLOGY(...(13! INTRODUCTION!TO!METHODOLOGY!...!13! THE!SETTING!...!14! ACTION!RESEARCH!...!15! INTERPRETIVE!RESEARCH!...!17! QUALITATIVE!RESEARCH!...!18! CONCLUSION!...!19! CHAPTER(4:(DATA(COLLECTION(...(19! INTERVIEWS!...!20! DOCUMENTS!...!21! CONCLUSION!...!21! CHAPTER(5:(REQUIREMENTS(SPECIFICATION(...(22! INTRODUCTION!...!22! “AS!IS’!PROCESSES!...!24! SYSTEM!DEFINITION!...!28! PROBLEM!DOMAIN!...!28! APPLICATION!DOMAIN!...!30! FUNCTIONAL,!NONGFUNCTIONAL!REQUIREMENTS,!AND!DESIGN!...!33! UNFINISHED!ELEMENTS!OF!REQUIREMENTS!SPECIFICATION!...!38! CONCLUSION!...!38! CHAPTER(6:(STANDARD(SYSTEM,(PROPOSALS,(AND(CONTRACT(...(39! STANDARD!SYSTEM!VERSUS!DEVELOP!A!SYSTEM!...!39! REQUEST!FOR!PROPOSALS!...!40! CONTRACT!...!42! CONCLUSION!...!43! CHAPTER(7:(SUGGESTION(FOR(AN(IMPLEMENTATION(PROCESS(...(43! PROJECT!APPROACH!...!43! INITIATING!PROCESSES!...!45! PLANNING!PROCESSES!...!45! EXECUTING!PROCESSES!...!46! MONITORING!&!CONTROLLING!PROCESSES!...!46! CLOSING!PROCESSES!...!47! CONCLUSION!...!47! CHAPTER(8:(LESSONS(LEARNED(...(47! CHAPTER(9:(MAIN(CONCLUSION(...(49! BIBLIOGRAPHY(...(51! APPENDIX(...(54!
C
HAPTER
1:
I
NTRODUCTION
B
ACKGROUND FOR THE STUDY
Information systems have for many years been an inevitable part of business. They give the user the best information to do the job better and more effectively (Stair & George, 2011). Previously, it could be a competitive advantage to have an information system (Ives & Gerard, 1984) whereas today it is more often seen as a competitive necessity (Carr, 2004). This is mainly the case for businesses in general in developed countries and for large businesses in developing countries. For small businesses and non-profit organizations in developing countries, the situation is different. To them the term ‘information system’ is barely known.
This thesis will focus on the development of an information system for non-profit organizations in developing countries. For non-profit organizations, information systems can be not only a competi-tive advantage, but also a social advantage. The thesis is based on a case study and will from an action research perspective look at Kanlungan sa ERMA Ministry Inc. (Kanlungan), a non-profit organization based in Manila, Philippines. One of Kanlungan’s goals for 2012 is to implement an information system. This thesis will provide the requirements specification for their information sys-tem and suggest an implementation process. Furthermore, the thesis will use Kanlungan as a case and discuss a more generic perspective on the development of information systems for non-profit organizations in developing countries. This will be elaborated upon in the problem statement. First an introduction to Kanlungan is offered.
K
ANLUNGAN
Kanlungan is a non-profit organization that operates as a child-caring agency. Kanlungan was es-tablished in 1988 in “response to the growing menace of abuse and exploitation of street children in Metro Manila. While “Kanlungan’ means sanctuary or refuge, ER-MA stands for Ermita-Malate, the former red-light district of the capital.’ (Kanlungan sa ERMA).
Kanlungan seeks through its programs and services to meet the various needs which a street child may have. The programs and services range from street education, day centers, residential cen-ters, a training and development center to an after-care program. At different levels, Kanlungan offers street children a chance to get a life which is worth living. For more information on Kanlungan’s programs, reference is made to the brochure in appendix 1.
Kanlungan seeks to find an information system that can support Kanlungan in helping the children. The process is yet to start, so the product of this thesis is the preliminary work that will help them find and implement an information system. An agreement with Kanlungan is made which is seen in appendix 12.
Kanlungan has since its beginning used hard-copy files for all their child cases using many forms to fill out when they enroll a child. It has worked well for many years, but with growth comes chal-lenges. The organization runs programs at different locations. When a staff at location B needs access to a child case from location A, the case folder often has to physically be sent from A to B. That takes time and causes delays. Easier access, sharing, and editing of the child cases are some of the main reasons for implementing an information system. Working areas like sponsors and finance will also be a part of the information system because there is a need for better com-munication to the sponsors and to make the financial processes more efficient. To give Kanlungan the best possible chance for a successful implementation of an information system, several factors need to be included. The following problem statement is a description of these factors.
P
ROBLEM STATEMENT
The problem statement provides insight into the research questions which the thesis will seek to answer:
How to specify, select and implement an information system in a non-profit organization in a de-veloping country?
To elaborate the research questions, the thesis will seek to answer the following questions:
• Considering Kanlungan’s need for an information system, how could the requirements specification look like?
• With the cultural dimensions and learning points from other studies in mind, what will be the best possible implementation process for Kanlungan?
• What are the lessons learned from the development of the requirements specification and implementation process that can be used in relation to information systems in non-profit or-ganizations in other developing countries?
Two research reasons underlie the problem statement. In the research field for information sys-tems in developing countries there is a research gap for action research and use of information systems in developing countries in general (Walsham & Sundeep, 2006). This thesis will try to fulfill these two gaps through a holistic approach when writing/creating/developing the requirements specification and when suggesting an implementation process. Both efforts are done with help from former studies and with cultural dimensions in mind. The methodology used in the thesis is action research, which will be elaborated in chapter 3. I hope the learning points from the thesis can give insight into the development of information systems in non-profit organizations in other developing countries. To make the learning points more generic, it is important to take the cultural dimensions into account (Hofstede, 1980). What gives success in the Philippines does not neces-sarily ensure success in Australia, South Africa, or other countries with different cultural dimen-sions and stages of development. It opens for a possible transfer to other organizations to know the dimensions that are present in a developing country.
The thesis focuses mainly on the process prior to the implementation of an information system, and there will not be any results from the implementation. Since this is one of the delimitations of this thesis, it is my wish that more research will be made on the benefits of information system im-plementations in non-profit organizations in developing countries,
D
ELIMITATIONS
The delimitations are areas that could be relevant for the thesis, but they are not included because of the limited time and the length of the thesis. The use of information systems in developing coun-tries is a wide-scoped subject with many angles of approaches. The important part of this thesis is that it is an action research approach that pursues to help Kanlungan, and other non-profit organi-zations in the same situation, through a requirements specification and through a suggested im-plementation process. What the thesis will not cover is the actual imim-plementation and the evalua-tion of the implementaevalua-tion of the informaevalua-tion system at Kanlungan. This also means that project management elements are not elaborated in detail, but are included at an overall level. To keep the content focused and relevant, the thesis will not cover topics such as data quality, risk man-agement, prototype, interface, or architectural design, and it will only briefly touch on contracts and the tendering process.
D
EFINITIONS
Throughout the thesis, several terms will be used. To ensure consistency, the terms are defined here.
I
NFORMATION SYSTEMThe reference used for the definition of an information system is Buckingham et al (2008): “Infor-mation system is a system which assembles, stores, processes and delivers infor“Infor-mation relevant to an organization (or to society), in such a way that the information is accessible and useful to those who wish to use it, including managers, staff, clients and citizens. An information system is a human activity (social) system which may or may not involve the use of computer systems’
Kanlungan has an information system already. The Excel sheets and Word documents which they are currently using is an information system because they store information that can be used for those who want it. It involves software (Excel or Word) on a computer (stand-alone PC). This the-sis focuses on the implementation of an information system that still uses software on a computer but does it at a more advanced level, supporting the processes at Kanlungan so the data can be-come valuable information. This involves advanced software including a database accessible to all users. When the term ‘information system’ is used, it therefore refers to the new and advanced information system. The definition of an information system is versatile because of the diversity of these types of systems.
C
HILDThe term ‘child’ refers to children, 3-23 years of age, who are in need of special protection and have been referred to or have availed themselves of the various programs and services of Kanlungan. Kanlungan also uses the term client in some of their material. For consistency rea-sons, the term ‘child’ is used throughout the thesis.
NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION
Kanlungan refers to itself as a non-profit organization (NPO), but also as a non-governmental or-ganization (NGO). A NPO refers to an oror-ganization that has the focus on achieving its goals. Sur-plus is not a goal in itself. A NGO works independently of governments. Therefore, a non-profit organization can also be referred to as a non-governmental organization if it is independent of a government, which is the case with Kanlungan (Shah, 2005). In this thesis, I will only refer to Kanlungan as a non-profit organization.
D
EVELOPING COUNTRYThere is no clear definition of a developing country but this thesis takes the Human Development Index (HDI) published by United Nations Development Program in the Human Development Re-port for 2011 (United Nations Development Program, 2011) as a starting point. HDI includes pa-rameters like poverty, education, reading and writing proficiency, health conditions, and many oth-er parametoth-ers which give a complete and complex picture of a country. This is the reason for choosing HDI. In the HDI, the Philippines ranks as number 112 and is therefore categorized as a developing country. This is the foundation for calling the Philippines a developing country and the reason for using it in this thesis. Denmark, where this thesis is produced, is rated as no. 16 in the HDI index.
SPONSOR
Kanlungan has both sponsors and benefactors that contribute to Kanlungan’s funding and pro-grams. To avoid confusion, it is chosen only to use the term ‘sponsor’ in the thesis.
PROGRAM
To make it easier for Kanlungan to use and understand the requirements specification and the thesis in general, it is chosen to use their own terminology, which is the reason for using the term ‘programs’. In an IT context, it could be understood as a type of software, but in this case it is used as a collective name for the various programs that Kanlungan is running; e.g. the Open Day Cen-ter, Farm Development Project, etc. ‘Program’ is therefore used in a broad sense.
SUPPLIER
In the thesis, the term ‘supplier’ will be used multiple times, and it refers to the software supplier that delivers the information system to Kanlungan.
S
TRUCTURE OF THE THESIS
As a point of departure, the problem statement and key terms are now defined.
Secondly, a review of various literature, focusing on developing countries, requirements specifica-tions, implementation processes and culture, will be made. This is to get a profound knowledge of the most relevant studies and theories on these topics. The theories provide tools to analyze the case, and they give knowledge that helps to make qualified choices. Therefore, the theory chapter is necessary in order to get a solid foundation when writing the requirements specification and the suggestions for Kanlungan’s implementation process.
Culture will be an on-going theme to make the thesis relevant for the Filipino context. The ap-proach to developing the requirements specification and the implementation process is described in the methodology chapter where action research sheds light on how this study is accomplished. Thereafter, the actual product of this thesis is examined, i.e. the requirements specification and suggestions for an implementation process. This is followed by a more general discussion in the lessons learned chapter.
C
HAPTER
2:
T
HEORY
In this chapter, I will go through a liter-ature review, which covers four theory parts: IS in developing countries, re-quirements specification and imple-mentation processes. The knowledge about culture is used as an optic that is used to understand the other theo-ries in a cultural context.
The cornerstone of this thesis is the requirements specification and the suggestion for an implementation pro-cess as illustrated in figure 1. It shows the output that Kanlungan needs e.g. the goal with this thesis. What is out-side the dotted lines are the means to reach the goal. The elements outside the dotted lines are theories and background information about infor-mation systems in developing coun-tries, requirements specification and
FIGURE 1.THE ROLE THE THEORY HAS IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS SPECIFICATION AND IMPLEMENTATION PROCESS.
implementation processes. These provide the necessary insight to make the requirements specifi-cation and suggest an implementation process. Still, it is essential to use the theories in relation to the cultural context. Therefore, the theories need to be read and interpreted through a cultural fil-ter, which is illustrated as the blue box in the top. Some parts of the theories do not have to be read in a cultural context, so they can have directly influence on the requirements specification and implementation process.
R
EQUIREMENTS SPECIFICATION
The requirements specification serves as an analysis of needs (Lauesen, 2002). In this case, the purpose of the requirements specification is to analyze Kanlungan and it’s needs in relation to an information system. It describes the content for the system in a language that a supplier under-stands. The purpose of a requirements specification is to ensure coherence between Kanlungan’s expectations and what they get from the supplier.
The approach of making a requirements specification is taken from Mathiassen, Munk-Madsen, Nielsen & Stage (2000) because this approach gives good tools to develop smart and thorough requirements specifications and has an object-oriented approach with a clear structure.
Making a requirements specification is proven to be important, but it is also a difficult task within system development (Lauesen, 2002: 1). It needs to be handled with due care. In the process of making a requirements specification, close collaboration is important. In this case, I am located in Denmark during the writing process. The collaboration is therefore limited and it rests on my previ-ous work at Kanlungan and the trust that we established at that time. In my previprevi-ous job at Kanlungan I was working as a volunteer. From January to May in 2009 I was volunteering at Kanlungan helping in one of Kanlungan’s residential centers and one of the day centers. During Christmas and New Year 2011/2012 I was also on a 3-week visit at Kanlungan. My working areas are described in chapter 3. The requirements specification serves as a solid basis for the coming implementation process but it still needs to be further developed together with Kanlungan, after the thesis has been handed in. The geographic distance also gives challenges when exchanging in-formation, because I cannot always get the information needed at the time when it is needed. This process has forced me to be proactive, far-sighted and to plan ahead of schedule. It has helped me, though, to be very precise about the information requested.
The content of the requirements specification will among other things involve an understanding for the scope through a rich picture, process views, classes, functional requirements, non-functional requirements and use cases. The content gives the best process of developing the requirements specification. The content is elaborated in the following.
SCOPE, RICH PICTURE AND PROCESSES
When starting a project, the scope always needs to be defined. The scope helps to understand what should be excluded and what should be included (Lauesen, 2002: 292). It also serves as a matching of expectations, because it is decided in a dialogue how comprehensive the system should be. This ensures a common direction.
The scope is often a text only, but in this case the text is complemented by a visual scope through a rich picture. A rich picture gives my own subjective understanding of the situation at Kanlungan and helps to know the context and what is included in the project, e.g. the scope. In other words, the rich picture is an informal drawing (Mathiassen, Munk-Madsen, Nielsen, & Stage, 2000: 26) and can be interpreted in various ways. The appurtenant text to the rich picture makes it clear what thoughts I have behind the rich picture. But the full understanding of Kanlungan does not come with a rich picture alone. An understanding of the processes is necessary as well.
When making a process view of Kanlungan, the level of understanding increases compared to the rich picture. The rich picture shows what Kanlungan does, whereas the processes help to under-stand how they do it. To find a system that matches Kanlungan, an understanding of the as-is pro-cesses is essential. The as-is propro-cesses describe the working propro-cesses as they are at Kanlungan now. The method for diagramming the processes is horizontal rows called swim lanes (Harmon, 2007: 236) which can be divided into organizational departments, roles etc. They are characterized by being very user-friendly since they are easy to understand and to convert into action. At first, the plan was to use EPC (Microsoft) as diagramming method. EPC can be confusing, because the connection between the processes can be difficult to cope with. Therefore, since it is important that Kanlungan fully understands the project from A to B, swim lanes are used.
S
YSTEM DEFINITION,
PROBLEM DOMAIN,
AND APPLICATION DOMAINWhen choosing an information system, it is essential to take a step back and ask questions like: What problems will we solve with the system? Is our planning of the system effected by what we
think is the best solution? The system definition gives an insight into the system in its context and is defined as follows: “A concise description of a computerized system expressed in natural lan-guage’ (Mathiassen, Munk-Madsen, Nielsen, & Stage, 2000: 24). It is used in the thesis to have an: “indispensable foundation for continuing analysis and design activities.’ (Mathiassen, Munk-Madsen, Nielsen, & Stage, 2000: 24). The scope, rich picture, and as-is processes therefore guide the writing of the system definition. It gives knowledge of where we are and where we want to go. The system definition also helps to compare information systems, which is important, especially here, where it is chosen to implement a standard system of reasons that are described inchapter 6. When starting a process of wanting to implement an information system, a decision that always needs to be made is whether to choose between a standard system (also called COTS (Lauesen, 2002: 9)) or having a supplier to develop a system from the beginning. It could be a project with in-house development, product development, tender (often used), etc., but the focus is on standard systems. A standard system is an information system that has been developed by a supplier and is sold on a license basis to give access to use the system. The various standard systems can be compared through the system definition (Lauesen, 2002: 8).
It is not sufficient to choose a system based on the system definition. Therefore, the problem do-main and application dodo-main are analyzed. The problem dodo-main shows: “the real world, as future users will see it.’ (Mathiassen, Munk-Madsen, Nielsen, & Stage, 2000: 45). With a tender project for example, where Kanlungan sends out requests upon which suppliers can submit their pro-posals, the content of the problem domain analysis would be classes, behavior and structure, e.g. a full requirements specification. But the content in this requirements specification is limited to classes. The classes are objects like the children Clark and Selma for example are individual ob-jects, but they can also be classified and put into one common category; ‘child’. The reason for the focus on classes is that the best solution for Kanlungan is found to be a standard system. With a standard system, it will not make sense to describe how the structure and behavior should be, be-cause this is already incorporated in a standard system. The classes are relevant, bebe-cause they are key elements when knowing if a system matches Kanlungan. Kanlungan can more easily ad-just the structure and behavior to make it match the information system.
Where the problem domain gives insight into what information will be handled in the system, the application domain focuses on how the system should be used. The application domain is speci-fied through a determination of what type of actors and use cases there are. An actor is a user that interacts with the system – in this case often a staff member from Kanlungan. Use cases are pat-terns for the interaction between actors and the system. When the use cases are determined they can be connected in a use case diagram, where the interaction between the use cases and the actors is seen. The notation in the requirements specification is based on Unified Modeling Lan-guage (Harmon, 2007: 232) since it is one of the most well-known and well-used notation methods in modeling. It is also known in the Philippines.
There will be some overlapping between the use cases and the events from the problem domain, but it still gives different perspectives as to what information the system should contain and how it should handle it.
FUNCTIONAL REQUIREMENTS AND NON-FUNCTIONAL REQUIREMENTS
Functional requirements describe what data should be used for; how it can be transformed into useful information. So the functional requirements specify what the information system should be able to do in an interaction with users. An example of a functional requirement is that an infor-mation system should have a search function. To have efficient functions, it is important with a strong user interface because the functions will be shown through the interface (Lauesen, 2002: 71). The interface is also affected by the non-functional requirements, and they will be identified as well. The non-functional requirements describe how the performance on the functions in the infor-mation system should be. It could for example be the response time. Again, it would be ideal to include the users throughout the process, but instead of this on-going involvement, the users will be involved in a retrospective evaluation.
With the described content of the requirements specification, Kanlungan will have a requirements specification that goes in depth with the understanding of Kanlungan and the future system, and still be a good mix of details and overview; from the insight into what Kanlungan is, to what system they will have, how the model of the system should look like, how the use of it is and, finally, what one should be able to do within the system and how efficiently it should be done.
I
MPLEMENTATION
P
ROCESS
An implementation process is the execution of a strategy or plan for a project. In this case: the steps that Kanlungan will go through when implementing a new information system. This section will look at literature and theories that can help when suggesting an implementation process for Kanlungan. I will look at factors that influence the implementation process, explain a lifecycle mod-el that follows beneficial principles and finally use good practice planning processes. This together gives a project approach.
Implementing an information system is difficult. Newell (2003) writes that only 25-30 % get the re-turn they expected from implementing a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system. A CRM system is an example of an information system, and it has some similar characteristic in rela-tion to what Kanlungan needs, which will be elaborated in chapter 5. When implementing an infor-mation system in a developing country, it gets even harder because there are other factors to be aware of, for example the level of IT knowledge. Therefore, there has to be an implementation pro-cess that step-by-step guides Kanlungan to a sucpro-cessful use of the new information system.
The implementation process can take a lifecycle model as its point of departure. An example of a typical lifecycle model is the waterfall model, which has different phases that are followed sequen-tially, but with the possibility for feedback in the modified waterfall model (Guntamukkala, Wen, & Tarn, 2006). The waterfall model was one of the first lifecycle models, but today we have several models to choose among. Some of them are code-and-fix, spiral, evolutionary prototyping, and scrum (Guntamukkala, Wen, & Tarn, 2006). What is characteristic for the newer lifecycle models is that they split the project into smaller iterations and are more iterative and adjustable. In the water-fall model, the steps are to be followed as they are put in sequence. In the newer models, the phases can vary a lot, if there are any phases at all.
In this thesis, the project approach to be used in the implementation process is a combination be-tween scrum and phases from the Project Management Institute (Project Management Institute, 2008). Scrum focuses on the entire lifecycle of developing software, but here the focus is on the process after the software is developed. Therefore, a combination is needed because scrum is not very strong in the implementation phase.
A scrum project starts with a vision for the system that is to be developed (Schwaber, 2004). The work in scrum is done in sprints. The sprints are iterations of 30 calendar days, which are started with a planning meeting. At the planning meeting, the highest priority in the Product Backlog is chosen. The Product Backlog is a list of functional and non-functional requirements. When the 30-day sprint is started, there is a daily scrum meeting where the following questions are answered:
“What have you done on this project since the last Daily Scrum meeting? What do you plan on doing on this project between now and the next Daily Scrum meeting? What impediments stand in the way of you meeting your commitments to this Sprint and this project?’ (Schwaber, 2004: chap-ter 1). Scrum could be elaborated much more, but for Kanlungan, the important aspect of scrum is the thoughts behind scrum, the iterative and flexible mindset with daily follow-up to get the work done. This gives the possibility for on-going adjustments so the project does not go too far in a wrong direction. Imagine a situation, where a problem occurs with the education of the users. They still do not know how to use it and the plan therefor needs to be adjusted. At the daily meeting the situation is talked through and a strategy is made to increase the knowledge of the system. Kanlungan does not have any experience with the implementation of information systems. A more fixed planning model is therefore needed, so they have something more tangible to relate to. The Project Management Institute has made the PMBOK guide as a result of realizing that project management is difficult. They have gathered processes, skills, tools and techniques that are rec-ognized as good practice (Project Management Institute, 2008). This means that they are applica-ble to most projects. I have decided to include the process groups from the PMBOK guide. The processes are described and elaborated in the suggestion for implementation process (chapter 7) because it gives the best understanding for Kanlungan and the reader to explain the process, where they can be related to other theories.
Therefore, it is chosen to combine the lifecycle model scrum with processes from the PMBOK guide because it gives the project a point of departure for the implementation with tools that can be beneficial to Kanlungan in its context and situation. This I choose to call the project approach. The approach helps to improve the efficiency and effectiveness in the implementation process. There is a guideline for how to do the implementation. What should be done is planned between the suppli-er and Kanlungan.
When choosing an approach to the implementation, the factors that can cause failure should be taken into consideration. This requires an understanding of the organization and the context in which the information system is implemented, where the culture is an important part of the context when suggesting an approach.
C
ULTURE
It is not possible to ignore the cultural aspect when doing research in a country different to the one which you originate from yourself. The following section is a description of how culture is under-stood within this thesis, and which factors will be taken into account when analyzing the need for an information system and suggesting the implementation process. Cultural differences can be found even in countries that apparently look similar. Hofstede (1981) defines culture as follows:
“Culture is the collective programming of the human mind that distinguishes the members of one human group from those of another. Culture in this sense is a system of collectively held values.’
It is difficult to determine all the cultural differ-ences, the collectively held values, between for example Denmark and the Philippines. But several cultural dimensions have been devel-oped for the sake of understanding the cul-tures that we live in. Hofstede developed 5 dimensions in 1980, which for the Philippines can be seen in figure 2, Denmark in figure 3 and Malaysia in figure 4. New dimensions have been examined since 1980, but Hof-stede’s 5 dimensions are still widely acknowl-edged and used. Denmark is chosen because I am from Denmark, and Malaysia because a study used in the thesis is from Malaysia. The study from Malaysia is described later in this chapter. In the following, you will find an ex-position of the Hofstede’s 5 cultural dimen-sions.
P
OWER DISTANCE(PDI)
Power distance refers to the inequalities in society. With a high power distance level, people in the Philippines expect and accept unequal distribution of power. It is a hierarchical society where sub-ordinates expect to be told by the leader what to do (Hofstede, 1980). The situation is the same in Malaysia with the score 104, whereas Denmark has low power distance with a score of 18. In Denmark, there is high employee autonomy and employees expect to be coached.
Even though the national culture gives an indication of how the organizational culture is at Kanlungan, my experience was that there is a higher level of autonomy among the staff at Kanlungan than seen elsewhere in the Philippines. One of the reasons can be that Kanlungan is based on Christian values, where everyone is an equal part of the body (Paul, 2011).
INDIVIDUALISM (IDV)
Individualism refers to the degree of interde-pendence in society and defines whether peo-ple have a self-image that is defined as “we’ or “I’. When the self-image is defined as “we’, it is a collectivistic country, where people take care of each other (Hofstede, 1980). With a score of 32, this is the case for the Philippines and also for Malaysia with a score of 26. In Denmark, with a score of 74, it is expected that you take care of yourself.
MASCULINITY (MAS)
Masculinity indicates the level of how society is driven by competition, achievement and suc-cess. With a low masculinity (femininity) level, the dominant values are instead caring for each other and quality of life (Hofstede, 1980). With a score of 64 the Philippines is a masculine
coun-try, where people “live in order to work’. The score is a bit lower in Malaysia, but still comparable to the Philippines, whereas Denmark with a score of 16 focuses on having a work/life balance.
FIGURE 2.THE SCORE IN THE FIVE CULTURAL DIMENSIONS IN THE PHILIPPINES (HOFSTEDE 1980).
FIGUR 3.THE SCORE IN THE FIVE CULTURAL DIMENSIONS IN
UNCERTAINTY AVOIDANCE (UAI)
Uncertainty avoidance has to do with the level of uncertainty of the future that people can cope with. With a score of 44, people in the Philip-pines are more relaxed towards changes, and schedules are flexible, but they cannot cope with huge changes. The adjustment to changes is easier in Malaysia and Denmark because of the lower uncertainty avoidance in those two countries.
LONG-TERM ORIENTATION (LTO)
Long-term orientation relates to how future-oriented people are. With a score of 19, people in the Philippines are very short-term oriented. The research has not been done in Malaysia, which is why they do not have any score on that dimension. Since the other dimension scores are close to the Philippines, it must be assumed
that a Malaysian score on long-term orientation would have been close to the Philippine score. Denmark is also considered a short-term country, with a score at 46, but closer, though, to the middle. This implies that people from the Philippines find it more difficult to think of the future in a longer perspective, contrary to Denmark where visions are widely used. Therefore, it can be diffi-cult for the staffs from Kanlungan to see the positive sides of an information system, if it does not benefit them in the short run. In the beginning of the implementation of the information system for Kanlungan, there will occur difficulties because of the learning curve. In those situations, it is es-sential to explicitly explain how and why Kanlungan, and thereby the children, can benefit from the information system.
All the cultural dimensions have implications for the implementation of an information system in a non-profit organization in the Philippines, which will be elaborated, mostly in chapter 7.
I
NFORMATION SYSTEMS IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
Several studies have been made on the topic information systems in developing countries
throughout the years, and some of them are relevant for this thesis. This section will deal with one of the studies, which gives insight into important issues when implementing an information system in a developing country.
Mohtasebi (2011) gives in the book Failure Elements of Implementing CRM Systems in Malaysian Enterprises reasons to why CRM fails to work in a developing country like Malaysia. The analysis is very relevant for the Philippines, because the cultural dimensions are comparable between the Philippines and Malaysia. Even though Malaysia ranks higher on the HDI, as number 61, it can still be considered a developing country. It is a more developed country than the Philippines, and the report deals with enterprises and not with non-profit organizations. There can thus be issues that require attention when comparing the two countries and enterprises versus Kanlungan.
Some of the functions that Kanlungan needs are in some way similar to the functions in a CRM system. A CRM system focuses on the clients, which in most cases are customers. It helps an organization to understand the clients, their needs and their demands (Paas & Kuijlen, 2001). But what is most comparable with Kanlungan’s needs is that a CRM system keeps an overview of all clients and can keep track of the development with the client. This is one of the main functions that Kanlungan needs as well. So lessons learned from a CRM implementation can also be used in the
FIGURE 4.THE SCORE IN THE FIVE CULTURAL DIMENSIONS IN
case with Kanlungan. The failure elements in Malaysian enterprises give an awareness of what risks there can be for Kanlungan.
The study is a quantitative study that bears mark by a Master’s thesis. There can be issues that are not touched on, because there have not been any qualitative research. And the standard of the book is not at level with what one would normally see in research in general. Even though there should be taken some precautions with the use of this study, it is still found to be relevant and use-ful in this thesis. A reason is that the failure elements are found in other studies as well.
The research done in Malaysia by Mohtasebi (2011) resulted in a category and elements ranking of failure issues. The categories were found in a literature review from other major studies (Newell, 2003). The failure issues are experienced in several implementations of information systems. Awareness towards these issues makes it easier to avoid them. The categories and elements are ranked as seen in table 1.
Category (ranked) Element (ranked)
1. Strategy Issues 1) Lack of strategy alignment
2) Lack of IT strategy
3) Lack of CRM alignment with business needs
2. Execution Issues 1) Poor planning and ineffective project management
2) Lack of skills + lack of user involvement
3) Budget problem
3. Managerial Issues 1) Lack of top management commitment
2) Lack of organizational change program
3) Company politics and inertia
4. Evaluation Method and 1) Difference between metrics for adapting and evaluation
Requirement Study 2) Bad advice
5. Technical Issues 1) Software and infrastructure problems
TABLE 1.ISSUES FOR FAILURE IN CRM IMPLEMENTATIONS IN MALAYSIAN ENTERPRISES (MOHTASEBI,2011)
Kanlungan needs to be aware of these failure issues. It can be used in this thesis to know what to put extra effort into during the implementation process. The issues regarding the strategy align-ment, IT strategy and top management commitment are difficult to handle from Denmark. But what can be done thoroughly is to make a good planning for the execution process. More generally, make a thorough planning so Kanlungan can avoid risks and be prepared for what it is possible to be prepared for.
Another finding which Mohtasebi (2011: 81) did was in an interview where he was told that small and medium enterprises can have difficulties in finding low-cost and easy-to-install information systems which is exactly what Kanlungan needs. They do not need a very complex information system. This means that it can be difficult for Kanlungan to find an information system that meets their requirements – or is possible to pay for.
The study from Mohtasebi is the main study of information systems in developing countries be-cause it has the most relevant content and conclusions that are useful for Kanlungan. Besides this study, several articles on the same topic will be referred to in chapter 7 to give insights that can benefit Kanlungan in the process of the implementation. This is necessary in order to give a varied picture of information systems in developing countries.
C
ONCLUSION
Knowledge is gained when spending time on a literature review. It can help avoiding to reinvent the wheel because several studies are already made on the topic. It can serve as inspiration. Most of the theory described in this chapter is the foundation for the thesis, because it comprises theories that will be put together as pieces in a puzzle during the following chapters, and the puzzle cannot be finished without one of the pieces. The pieces in this chapter have given tools that can help to make the requirements specification for Kanlungan. It has also given a project approach that will be used as a point of departure for the implementation process. There are lessons learned from other studies in developing countries, which can improve the implementation process. These are essential theories without which the products of this thesis cannot be made. But what makes it relevant and even more useful for Kanlungan are the cultural dimensions, which help to see the other theories in a new perspective so that they make sense, also in a Filipino context. The litera-ture review also helped to identify methods that could serve as inspiration for the methodology in chapter 3.
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HAPTER
3:
M
ETHODOLOGY
I
NTRODUCTION TO METHODOLOGY
The methodology in this thesis is a guideline on how the challenges with the implementation of the information system can be solved. It is a systematic way of approaching the challenge and helps a thesis to be valid and reliable, because the methods lay the foundation for a thesis that can give the best possible result for Kanlungan and the scientific world.
The framework for the methodology in this thesis consists of the different methodologies. The first methodology is action research, which sets the direction to make changes for Kanlungan that the organization and the children in Manila can benefit from. Action research requires one to be a part of the field, which can be done in different ways. I will use interpretive research where I am a part of the research field and interact with Kanlungan. This is because I have lived in Manila myself and been a part of Kanlungan’s work. The action research is the framework and overall methodology,
whereas the interpretive research is the approach to the field. This is seen in figure 5. To realize the research, semi-standardized interviews are needed together with a collection of documents. These are qualitative methods (Flick, 2009). The connection between the methodologies can give the data and approaches that are needed to make the project possible. Why the different method-ologies are chosen, and how they will be carried out, is explained later in this chapter. First, it is good to know the setting of the thesis.
T
HE SETTING
The introduction in the thesis gave a short insight into Kanlungan. I will here give some more facts on how the setting is on the location, where I will implement the project (Alber, 2011). Kanlungan has its main office in Manila, which is the largest city in the Philippines with thousands of street children. Kanlungan is a Christian organization, which is also seen in the mission statement:
“To serve, protect and develop children in need of special protection and their families through a holistic approach and Christian care to improve their quality of life and well-being.’ (Kanlungan) This is the mission that this thesis will support and try to help realize with the information system. My volunteer period gave me an understanding for the mission and Kanlungan’s work in general. During the volunteer period, I helped with basic teaching, conducted activities, had a choir, and assisted in the office whenever needed. It gave me valuable insight into the organization and its working procedures and processes. But most importantly I discovered during my volunteer period what a difference Kanlungan does for children in Manila, and I know that Kanlungan is able to help even more through an optimization of the time they use on paperwork. The following table gives an overview of the staff and children that Kanlungan has registered at the different programs.
TABLE 2.ISSUES FOR FAILURE IN CRM IMPLEMENTATIONS IN MALAYSIAN ENTERPRISES (MOHTASEBI,2011)
Program Number of Children Number of Staff
Street Education Program *300+ (approximate number of children/young people
reached out annually) 2
Open Day Center *350+ (approximate number of children reached out
annually, *40-65 daily) 3
Tunasan Community Center
During weekdays average of 10-15 kids; Except Thursday around 30 children. Total of 286+ reached out annually
2
Residential Care and Training Cen-ter Level 1 17 (as of March 10, 2012) 3
Residential Care and Training Cen-ter Level 2; Girls’ Home 23 4
Residential Care and Training Cen-ter Level 2; Boys’ Home 17 2
Kanlungan Farm House (Learning, Training and Development Center) 7 2
After-Care Program 16 1
As can be seen in table 2, the total number of staff members is 19, but there is also an administra-tion staff of 4 persons. The age of the staff members ranges between 21 and around 60. All, ex-cept the housefathers/housemothers that take care of the household, have an education that for most of the staff is an education as a social worker. Some have an education as an alternative educator or health worker. Social work, alternative education, and health work are the various working areas that the staff members find themselves in.
The time frame of the thesis is from February 1st 2012 to May 1st. There are two target groups for the thesis. The one is Kanlungan, which will use the requirements specification and suggestion for the implementation process. The other target group is the scientific world, which hopefully can use the thesis as a whole, and as an example of a case study conducted in a developing country. It is my hope that some of the results from the thesis can be used on other non-profit organizations in developing countries. Even though it is only a single-case study, it can still be used to contribute to scientific development. The reason is that in many places you can find organizations like Kanlungan that deal with human affairs (Flyvbjerg, 2006). It is central that the thesis is trustworthy, and with the methodology used it is desired to make a procedure that creates trust. So the single case can be used to give indications of how reality is, but not to say that something is certain. With the settings set, the focus can be turned to action research.
A
CTION RESEARCH
Action research is an important part of this thesis. One can make a thesis that focuses on giving new information or making change to society or an organization. The focus here will be on the change that comes with an information system implemented at Kanlungan. To have the best pos-sible work progress for the thesis, action research is chosen as the foundation for the process. The reason is that action research has strong focus on the employment of knowledge and develop-ment, so what is important is not the methods used but how the methods are used. The action re-search in this thesis takes as starting point the definition by Hult and Lenning (1980: 247):
“Action research simultaneously assists in practical problem-solving and expands scientific knowledge, as well as enhances the competencies of the respective actors, being performed col-laboratively in an immediate situation using data feedback in a cyclical process aiming at an in-creased understanding of a given social situation, primarily applicable for the understanding of change processes in social systems and undertaken within a mutually acceptable ethical frame-work.’
The two main functions of action research are problem-solving and simultaneously contribute to science. The purpose of this thesis is to solve problems with knowledge sharing, among other things at Kanlungan, through an information system and help with the implementation process. This can simultaneously be used to gain scientific knowledge about how to specify, select and im-plement an information system in a non-profit organization in a developing country. From the defi-nition of action research, the thesis should also serve as a learning process for both Kanlungan and me, which are two of the participants. The content of the thesis is unfortunately focused on the process before Kanlungan gets deeply involved in the project because of my location in Denmark. It will mostly be later in the search for and implementation of the information system that Kanlungan will be involved in collaborative work, where they will enhance their competencies. Most of the work behind this thesis is in my hands, but it will of course not be fulfilled without the ap-proval from Kanlungan. The fact that the thesis is produced in Denmark, however, makes the col-laborative part difficult. More information on how the collaboration has been in the development of the thesis between Kanlungan and me is described in chapter 4.
Because of a lack of collaboration, it is not everything from the definition from Hult and Lenning that can be applied in this thesis. This is also the case for the immediacy of the action research. It is not possible to complete the implementation process, which in the end is the purpose of the the-sis. It requires two action research cycles to complete the implementation. The first cycle, which is seen in figure 6, has the requirements specification and a suggestion for an implementation pro-cess as products and action taking. The product of the second action research cycle is the actual implementation of the information system, but the second cycle is not a part of this thesis because of limited time and resources. The different phases in the action research cycle will be elaborated further down, but first the explanation and use of the definition of action research is completed.
When doing action research, it is neces-sary to have an understanding of the social situation, which means that this thesis should not be made without taking the context of Kanlungan into considera-tion. One of those context factors is the culture, which was explained in chapter 2 and will be applied in chapter 5 and 7. This will help to make the thesis more applicable to Kanlungan, so that they can implement the change that is needed to help children-in-need. The other im-portant factor is the reality that Kanlungan is located in a developing country.
The last part of the definition is the ethi-cal framework. In this project it is vital that the process will be done with the values of Kanlungan in mind. They deal with vulnerable children, which should be protected under all circumstances. From a scientific perspective, the thesis should also be made with clear references to the related litera-ture. To keep a high level of ethical standard the thesis follows the ethical guidelines made by The Social Research Association (SRA 2003) since the
thesis is related to social issues in the Philippines.
THE PHASES
The action research phases are inspired by Tomal (2010), but he did not make the model of action re-search cyclical. It is done here with the reason that the participants in the process have gained knowledge that might cause a redefinition of the situ-ation and thereby the need for new action planning. To make the action research more applicable to this situation and thesis, the phase’s data collection and
analysis & feedback are left out. I have done this be-cause the thesis does not have the right extent to include all phases. Some elements from all six phas-es are included, but in a small scale so that it makphas-es it more useful and simple to have fewer phases. The four phases are seen in figure 6.
FIGURE 6.FOUR PHASES HAVE BEEN SET IN ACTION RESEARCH FOR THIS THESIS.
FIGURE 7.THE TWO INPUTS DATA AND THEORY GIVE A SOLID FOUNDATION TO GET THE NEEDED OUTPUT
The problem statement (phase 1) is already described earlier. Phase 2 is the action planning. The planning phase includes activities such as data collection through semi-standardized interviews (Flick, 2009) and documents. The theory helps with the data collection to plan the action because it gives the necessary knowledge to plan how the requirements specification and suggestion for im-plementation process should be through tools and approaches. The two inputs are seen figure 7, where the output is the requirements specification. The inputs are the same for the implementation process. The outputs come in phase 3 action taking, which is the important phase because the products are made here. In the evaluation phase, the process of making the requirements specifi-cation and implementation process is evaluated and lessons learned are discussed. It makes the thesis more useful in a wide perspective. To give an overview of the different phases, its content and the passage in the thesis, table 3 is made.
Action research phases
Content and place in thesis
1. Problem statement Problem statement (chapter 1)
2. Action planning Theory (chapter 2)
Data collection (chapter 4)
3. Action taking Requirements specification (chapter 5)
The selection of an information system (chapter 6) Suggestion for implementation process (chapter 7)
4. Evaluation & learning Lessons learned (chapter 8)
TABLE 3.AN OVERVIEW OF THE FOUR PHASES IN ACTION RESEARCH AND THEIR APPURTENANT CONTENT.
It is important to notice that there is a distinction between the action research and the project. The action research gives the methods to fulfill the project, so it plays a part in the execution, but not in the result. And the project focuses on the results – the products, which are the requirements speci-fication and suggestion for implementation process as seen in table 3. For this reason, action re-search is only mentioned in this chapter.
When using action research, one takes different approaches on how to enter the field. In the fol-lowing part, it is argued in favor of interpretive research.
I
NTERPRETIVE RESEARCH
When entering a field to do studies, one can take an interpretive, critical or positivistic approach to the research (Klein & Myers, 1999). In this thesis, it is the interpretive research that is used. Inter-pretive research can be used if it is assumed that the reality is a social construction. During my volunteer period at Kanlungan, we have developed a common reality based on the communication we have had, shared opinions and time spent with the children. Because of the insight, I am an insider that looks at the organization with both subjectivity and objectivity. It makes it easier to
un-derstand the context within which the thesis has been elaborated. This thought can be seen in fig-ure 8, where the approach to interpretive and positivistic research is delineated with the researcher as a part of the context and participating, while the researcher in the positivistic research is only observing and not directly interacting with the research field. For the above-mentioned reasons, this thesis uses an interpretive research with methods that Walsham (1993) describes as follows:
“The methods aims at producing an understanding of the context of the information system, and the process whereby the information system influences and is influenced by the context’
With interpretive research the thesis should aim to understand what, why, and how behind the in-formation system implementation at Kanlungan, e.g. understand the context.
FIGURE 8.WHEN ENTERING THE FIELD DIFFERENT APPROACHES CAN BE TAKEN.BECAUSE OF A COMMON REALITY WITH KANLUNGAN, THE INTERPRETIVE APPROACH IS CHOSEN.
Because of the interpretive research, the thesis will be written in first person narrator since I will use some of my own experiences in the thesis and not only use information from the data collec-tion and theories.
Action research gives the framework, interpretive research gives the approach, and to go in depth with the project, qualitative methods will be used.
Q
UALITATIVE RESEARCH
Qualitative research helps studies where it can be difficult to measure and observe (Flick, 2009). The collaboration with Kanlungan builds on social relations and interviews. Therefore, the data collected will all be qualitative, which is why it is relevant to use qualitative methods in this case study. Flick (2009: 21) describes qualitative research as follows:
“Qualitative research is oriented towards analyzing concrete cases in their temporal and local par-ticularity and starting from people’s expressions and activities in their local contexts.’
It is necessary to get an understanding of Kanlungan in their local context. It can only be gained through the staff’s expressions and activities at Kanlungan. Some understanding is given through the social relation and volunteer period, which is why a subjective viewpoint can be used in this situation (Flick, 2009: 64). But it would not be possible to use the subjective viewpoint without a stock of knowledge on information systems from my side, which is present. To get in-depth data, it is important with interviews which focus on the particular subject for this thesis: The implementa-tion of an informaimplementa-tion system. An interview type that complements the subjective viewpoint well is the semi-standardized interview (Flick, 2009: 156). The semi-standardized interview seeks to
un-cover implicit and explicit assumptions so that my implicit knowledge becomes more explicit. The interview form is also characterized by having a guideline in the form of an interview guide with open questions. The interview guide does not have to be followed rigorous, but can be adjusted during the interview depending on how it develops. It is important, however, that the interviewer has answered all the questions to get the essential knowledge from the interview. It should be mentioned that I conducted the interviews in the beginning of January 2012 before starting the thesis in February 2012. The reason is that I was in the Philippines at that time. The consequence is that the interviews were not prepared with a full structure of the thesis in mind. Even though the interviews could have been conducted more professionally, the outcome of the interviews was sat-isfying.
In appendix 2-5 interview guides for a social worker, alternative educator, health worker and the programs supervisor can be found. Different interview guides have been made for the staff, so that it matched with the different responsibility areas that they have. There was an interview guide for the social worker, alternative educator, health worker, the finance officer, supervisor and executive assistant. The interview guides look similar, but have questions that match the different working fields.
C
ONCLUSION
The action research, interpretive research and qualitative research give together an approach to the project where there are mindsets and tools that make it possible to have a profound action planning and thereby make the foundation for a strong action taking. Action research gives an idea on how methods and tools should be used to develop and employ knowledge. To make it easier to understand the context, interpretive research is used as an approach to enter the field. Qualitative research is used to get in-depth data. The result of the qualitative research is seen in chapter 4 with data collection.
C
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4:
D
ATA COLLECTION
The subjects of the research are the staff from Kanlungan that will interact with the information system. The data collection pursues to give an understanding of what data the staff members have on the children, the financials, the admin. etc. This helps to see what data is necessary in the in-formation system for the staff members to use; it helps to know what data is unnecessary and it helps to get an overview of any overlap of data. Furthermore, the data that need to be collected have focus on the processes that Kanlungan has for both the alternative education, health care, etc. Finally, it is good to know the IT-skills that the staff members possess. The two types of data that will be collected are raw data and benchmarking data (Tomal, 2010). The raw data are to be found in the necessary data, processes and forms because the action plans can be developed based on that data. The user skills are the benchmarking data. This is because the user skills have to be benchmarked to give a profound knowledge on what actions to take to find possible solutions for the information system, and also to know how the education of the staff should be. The data will be collected through interviews and through several documents and worksheets that the staff members use to collect their own data. The interview guides are found in appendix 2-5 and forms are found in appendix 6-10.
Another word for data collection is elicitation, which is used when making a requirements specifica-tion. Elicitation is the process of finding and formulating requirements (Lauesen, 2002). The overall goals with the information system are elicited and the current work presented together with the current challenges that Kanlungan faces. The elicitation process is done with the semi-standardized interview. The overall goal with the system and the current work is diagrammed as work processes in the requirements specification. It is to get a visual impression of the work at Kanlungan and to more easily transform the processes into requirements. The elicitation is not only
done through interviews, though, but also through my own experiences, acquaintance with Kanlungan, and through documents gathered at Kanlungan.
An outline of the content from the interviews is found in the following. The most important infor-mation is shown and used in the rest of the thesis, whenever it is relevant. A documents section, where there is an overview over what documents that have been gathered and what they can be used for, follows the interview section.
I
NTERVIEWS
12 interviews were conducted with the staff from Kanlungan. Each gave valuable insight into Kanlungan, but they also overlapped in some areas. It was found to be most appropriate to have several interviews to be sure to get all necessary data and information, since Kanlungan is located in the Philippines and the thesis is devised in Denmark. This makes it difficult to go back and con-duct more interviews, if needed. An overview of the different interviewees is made in table 4.
Person Position Program A Executive Assistant Administration B Programs Supervisor Administration C Finance Officer Administration
D Case Worker After-Care
E Alternative Educator Open Day Center F Social Worker/Program
Coordinator Open Day Center
G Health Worker Residential Care and Training Center Level 1
H Social Worker/Program Coordinator Residential Care and Training Center Level 1/Income Generating Project I Social Worker/Program
Coordinator Tunasan Community Center J Social Worker/Program
Coordinator Residential Care and Training Center Level 2; Girls’ Home and Boys' Home K Alternative Educator Residential Care and Training Center Level 2; Girls’ Home
TABLE 4.OVERVIEW OF THE INTERVIEWS CONDUCTED.
The social worker from Residential Care and Training Center Level 2 is the program coordinator at both Boys Home and Girls Home. So far, there is not any computer and Internet access at the farm-developing project, which together with under-average IT-skills among the staff minimizes the possibilities for future information system use at the farm.
The content of the interviews is now shown. It can be divided into three parts: type of data, pro-cesses, user skills and hardware.
TYPE OF DATA
At the different programs, the type of data that is collected and used at Kanlungan is often demo-graphic data and a descriptive text of each child and its development both physically and psycho-logically. The programs supervisor goes through these data and case reports that are being made
by the program coordinators quarterly. At the Open Day Center and Tunasan Community Center it is also important to collect attendance rate.
For the executive assistant and the finance officer, the data used is very different. The executive assistant deals with sponsors and the human resource area. The data from the sponsors are only demographic data, though, because the finance officer takes care of the financial data for the sponsors. The finance officer deals with all financial aspects of Kanlungan including invoice pay-ment, balance sheet etc.
PROCESSES
The main process at Kanlungan is the process of each child. It is the purpose that every child can be reconciled with the family or established in society. So the process goes from the intake of the child, the stay at one or several of Kanlungan’s programs, and then the establishing period away from Kanlungan. In the establishing period, the After-Care program is there to help the children with this transition.
USER SKILLS
All staff members at Kanlungan are educated and have expertise under each responsibility area, but when it comes to IT-skills the staff members have basic skills. They all have experience with Excel-sheets, Word documents and Internet browsing, but when it comes to the use of information systems only one person has some experience.
H
ARDWAREThe hardware at Kanlungan is at most of the programs 3-8 years old, but all programs have Inter-net access except the farm-developing program. Most of the computers are static.
D
OCUMENTS
In the context of a requirements specification, documents are important because they contain in-formation that for example is used in child ca
