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The purpose of this study is to characterize construction management research at the interface of explanatory science and design science.

The dual nature of construction management research is analyzed by relating this field of research to natural science, design science and its interface. Research at the interface of explanatory science and design science is characterized by identifying studies published on this interface in high quality construction management journals.

Research at this interface should focus on technological rules developed through testing in practical contexts as in design science as well as grounding in the explanatory sciences. The nature of testing technological rules is highly similar to the replication logic recommended for comparative case studies.

Developing and testing technological rules combines the design science and the explanatory science mode of knowledge production in construction management research, while it also respects some of the methodological differences between the two modes.

Developing and testing technological rules is the common ground on which research in construction management practice and research can meet and reduce the relevance gap between science and the world of practice.

This paper aims to propose a framework for the evaluation of artefacts in Design Science and test it using an exemplar case of a knowledge management system (KMS) developed for an Australian refrigeration manufacturing company.

The research uses Design Science research methodology in a specific case study context. The artefact studied was developed using an ontology based on an engineering design conceptualisation and created using an ontology generator, Protégé. Research data for the evaluation of the framework were collected using a combination of document analysis, interviews, shadowing and observations.

The evaluation framework developed for the research and applied to the KMS specifically built for the company was shown to be useful in determining the efficacy and effectiveness of the research outcomes in terms of usefulness to the company engineers in the technical analysis of their work, and for the CEO and COO as part of their strategic planning for the company. The evaluation framework helped the researcher and the engineers as collaborators to demonstrate the extent of improvement in the design and build processes in the company.

Prior research in both Information System and Design Science has not provided a specific, generalizable, evaluation framework for system developers to use as a guide during the systems development process. This research proposes an evaluation framework which covers all broad aspects of evaluation and efficacy, accepting that evaluation frameworks must be flexible in enabling changes to accommodate variations in the types and purposes of artefacts developed.

The knowledge of artefact design in design science research can have an important application in the improvement of decision support systems (DSS) development research. Recent DSS literature has identified a significant need to develop user-centric DSS method for greater relevance with respect to context of use. The purpose of this paper is to develop a collective DSS design artefact as method in a practical industry context.

Under the influence of goal-directed interaction design principles the study outlines the innovative DSS artefact based on design science methodology to deliver a cutting-edge decision support solution, which provides user-centric provisions through the use of design environment and ontology techniques.

The DSS artefact as collective information technology applications through the application of design science knowledge can effectively be designed to meet decision makers’ contextual needs in an agricultural industry context.

The study has limitations in that it was developed in a case study context and remains to be fully tested in a real business context. It is also assumed that the domain decisions can be parameterised and represented using a constraint programming language.

The paper concludes that the DSS artefact design and this development successfully overcomes some of the limitations of traditional DSS such as low-user uptake, system obsolescence, low returns on investment and a requirement for continual re-engineering effort.

The design artefact has the potential of increasing user uptake in an industry that has had relevancy problems with past DSS implementation and has experienced associated poor uptake.

The design science paradigm provides structural guidance throughout the defined process, helping ensure fidelity both to best industry knowledge and to changing user contexts.

This study aims to propose a novel maturity model development framework based on design science theory utilizing qualitative and quantitative methods for empirical evidence and develops a descriptive digital transformation maturity model by using the proposed framework.

Design science theory is deeply explored and extended to propose a novel maturity model development approach, including robust and rigorous validation processes. Thus, three consecutive discussion sessions and evaluations with experts are carried out iteratively to evolve and saturate the efficiency and utility of the maturity model, and consensus among experts at each session is validated by the intra-class correlation (ICC) coefficient. Furthermore, the Wilcoxon signed rank test is utilized to test whether there is a difference between consecutive sessions. Finally, prototype testing as a pilot study and two case studies in the manufacturing industry are carried out to validate the applicability of the developed maturity model.

A 3-phase maturity model development framework that includes the activities and outcomes in each phase emerge based on the design science theory. The comparative literature analysis and discussion sessions resulted in six dimensions, ten sub-dimensions, 39-capability items that circumscribe the digital transformation concept and five maturity levels that demonstrate conceptual consistency and a measurement tool for self-assessment. In addition, prototype testing and case studies show that the developed maturity model can measure the company's maturity level. Finally, it is proven that the digital transformation maturity model is developed by following the proposed maturity model development framework.

The maturity model draws a framework for practitioners that facilitate an initial roadmap and enhance the adoption rate, and it motivates the practitioners for frequent and efficient assessments, thus helping the continuous improvement of the digital transformation journey.

The originality of this paper lies in proposing a novel maturity model development framework based on design science and presents the activities and validation methods for this purpose. Furthermore, a comprehensive and rigorously validated digital transformation maturity model is developed based on the proposed framework.

This study aims to analyze and synthesize the design features of existing digital transformation maturity models with a developed classification scheme and propose a generic maturity model development wireframe based on design science research.

A systematic literature review is conducted on digital transformation maturity models in peer-reviewed journals, including the Emerald Insight, Science Direct, Scopus, Taylor & Francis and Web of Science databases, which resulted in 21 studies. A concept-centric tabular approach is used to analyze the studies, and intersectional demonstrations are used to synthesize the findings regarding the design features.

The classification scheme derived from the tabular concept-centric approach and iteratively evolved results in three main and 25 subcategories related to the design features. Analysis and synthesis of the studies reveal the granularity of the existing digital transformation maturity models concerning the design features. Furthermore, considering the design features in the classification scheme, a generic maturity model development wireframe is proposed to guide the researchers.

The generic maturity model development wireframe and the classification scheme that represents the design features of existing maturity models guide the researchers for the maturity model development roadmap.

The existing literature review studies do not focus on the design feature of digital transformation maturity models within a systematic literature review perspective. A unique classification scheme derived from the tabular concept-centric approach aims to analyze the granularity level of the existing models. Furthermore, the generic maturity model development wireframe includes the guidelines and recommendations of design science studies and presents a roadmap for maturity model researchers.

This paper aims to investigate the evolution of enterprise risk management (ERM) out of fragmented disciplinary perspectives to provide a foundation for promoting interdisciplinary research and proposes a design science approach for more effective ERM implementation in organizations.

This conceptual paper synthesizes ERM research and practice from multiple disciplines.

Corporate risk management concepts were born in academic finance and developed further in the finance subset known as risk management and insurance. With the advent of ERM, efforts must broaden beyond applying statistical models to quantifiable risks. Other disciplines have expanded ERM research by embracing techniques to investigate risk management practices to produce knowledge that integrates practice and theory. ERM is promoted as integrated risk management, yet silos still remain in both practice and research.

This study provides a foundation and a proposal for moving ERM past academic and organizational silos, which is necessary to achieve the ERM philosophy and increase organizational resilience. Understanding the evolution and fragmented nature of ERM research and practice provides a foundation for interdisciplinary cooperation necessary to achieve the holistic ERM philosophy. A next frontier is effective ERM implementation. This paper argues for an organizational design science approach for mitigating the resistance to change that confounds effective implementation of ERM in organizations facing an increasingly uncertain environment and outlines future research for applying the approach to implementing the ISO 31000 risk management process.

This study aims to make sense of global warming. Using the concept of design science (as distinct from explanatory science) and by drawing on recent debates in management and organization studies, the study considers whether the principal mission of human resource development (HRD) research should be to design and develop actionable knowledge that practitioners in organizations can use to solve their pressing field problems. By way of illustration, it poses the question of whether HRD research, in terms of design science principles, can offer solutions to one of the most pressing problems confronting humanity, i.e. global warming.

The study does this from the perspective of dual process theories of human cognition in discussing the arguments presented by various researchers that experiential/intuitive modes of sensemaking are more likely to mobilize effective pro-environmental behaviours than are the traditional rational/analytical modes of sensemaking employed in many HRD and educational interventions and programmes.

An inference that may be drawn is that HRD research may be better positioned not as an academic discipline nor as subordinate or superordinate to human resource management, but rather as an emergent solution-oriented “design science”.

The study uses design science perspective for HRD.

In contrast to the behavioural paradigm of IS research, design science seeks to develop a body of practically‐oriented knowledge which will directly aid the design, implementation, and use of information technologies and systems. Design science, however, remains a minority practice. The purpose of this paper is to argue the case for its more widespread adoption, especially so in research on innovation.

To this end, the authors report an example of design science in action. Two experiments are reported, both concerning the design of the user interface for domestic heating systems. Of note is the use of a medium‐fidelity laboratory simulation (“microworld”) in this work.

Two specific substantive findings results. First that ecologically designed feedback, embodying a strong mapping between task goals and system status, produces superior task performance. Second, that predictive decision aids provide clear benefits over other forms of user support, such as advisory systems.

Whilst arguing the general case for design science, the study shows that there are formidable barriers to its wider promulgation. These include the challenges of constructing realistic meta‐artefacts, compounded by the complex, modal and uncertain nature of design theory itself. The practical value of the microworld paradigm is also confirmed.

Although research in this field has largely addressed the workplace, here the paper addresses the domestic realm. Further novelty derives from the use of the microworld approach. The argument that design science should draw more on the proven methods of “good design” (e.g. prototyping, user participation) in terms of its own praxis is also noteworthy.

The aim of this paper is to benchmark the quality of web sites of major public accounting (PA) firms by seeking the opinions of potential clients and analysing the data to establish best quality practice for PA web sites.

The study was conducted in a controlled laboratory setting in which potential clients of PA firms used a modified version of the WebQual™ questionnaire to evaluate the web sites of six leading PA firms. Design science provided the guiding paradigm but its weaknesses were ameliorated by drawing on constructivism and pragmatism to provide context and practicality for the research.

The study established web site quality profiles of six leading PA firms. The interpretation of findings is influenced by axiology and rhetoric and are both unbiased (determined by statistical means) and biased (influenced by the researchers' values). Data analysis clearly showed that the usability construct reflected the highest quality at all levels while riskiness was the construct with the lowest quality level.

The use of multiple paradigms (design science, constructivism, and pragmatism) produced the desired insights to determining web site quality issues for the PA sector for the key reason that they complemented each other rather than being in conflict. However, the usefulness of the approach is dependent on follow‐up research to confirm the findings with the PA firms concerned and to monitor any action taken by them in response to the study's findings.

By benchmarking a number of PA web sites, practices within the sector will be able to learn from the findings and be able to improve the quality of their web sites thereby retaining the competitive edge to meet their clients' needs.

The paper reflects on the value of the multi paradigm approach to web site quality research design and conduct and discussion of findings. It was concluded that design science provided the necessary research rigour while the other two paradigms enabled the researchers to bring their worldviews on ontology, epistemology, axiology and rhetoric to the research.

The study aims to explore and develop a smart route planning system for the cross-docking delivery operations of a large supermarket chain using an action research (AR) approach and assessing through a design science research (DSR) lens.

This study took a problem-solving AR (PAR) approach toward the delivery operational issue of the case firm. The research process has accorded with the solution incubation and the refinement phases defined by a DSR framework. An intervention-based research framework for DSR is developed to assess the validity of this study as a DSR research and derive mid-range theories.

Dramatic operational and financial improvements were achieved for the case firm. Significant and unintended environmental and social benefits were also found. A design proposition (DP) and several mid-range theories are proposed as an extension of AR research to DSR research.

A problem-solving DSR research can be better assessed by the intervention-based DSR framework developed in this study. DSR studies should be encouraged for both practical and theoretical advancement purposes.

A challenging business problem-solving study can be tackled effectively through an industry/academic collaboration taking a PAR approach to deliver substantial values and organization transformational results.

Drivers and store associates are safer with smart delivery operations in the case firm.

There are still limited PAR design science case studies in the supply chain/logistics research literature. The research experience and findings gained from this study provide more insights toward how this type of research can be conducted and assessed.