Designing a knowledge resource to address bounded rationality and satisficing for ICT decisions in small organizations

Abstract

Many Small Organizations in South Africa do not effectively adopt ICT in their operations due to lack of knowledge and information. This Design Science study sets out to understand the situation and possibly proffer a solution. In particular, this study attempted to establish the relevance of information for ICT decision tasks. The sources of information for Small Organizations, as related to ICT decisions, were elicited through semi-structured interviews. This study also attempted through the same research method to ascertain if a reliable information source will be useful and ultimately improve the Bounded Rationality situation. The survey showed the Internet as the top information source, followed by social capital for Small Organization's ICT decisions. The study, guided by Hasso-Plattner-Institute School of Design Thinking (HPI-D) methodology, was used to create an appropriate, consolidated and enhanced Internet information source. A final survey was later used to test and evaluate the designed artifact. The preliminary results indicate expected high usability and effectiveness of the proposed solution.