A Framework for Flexible Knowledge Management Processes in eNegotiations

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Mohan Narasipuram, CityU, Hong KongBPMDS2005, 13-17 Jun 2005, Porto

A Framework for Flexible Knowledge Management Processes in eNegotiations

Murali Mohan Narasipuram

Associate Professor

Department of Information Systems

City University of Hong Kong

Email : [email protected]

http://www.is.cityu.edu.hk/staff/ismohan/

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What is ‘Negotiation’?

A process in which participants bring their goals to a bargaining table, strategically share information, and search for alternatives that are mutually beneficial. (Robinson and Volkov, 1998)

A special form of communication that centres on perceived incompatibilities and focuses on reaching mutually acceptable agreements. (Putnam and Roloff, 1992)

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Negotiation

In a negotiation, there are two or more participants in a situation of some kind of interdependence, each having some individual goals which may be partially incompatible, and in some form of the negotiation process, alternatives are investigated, of which one is mutually agreed upon as the acceptable outcome of the process. (Hans Weigand et al, 2003)

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Flexibility Perspectives from traditional manufacturing systems

ability to change or react with few penalties in time, effort, cost, or performance (Upton, 1994);

ability to implement changes in the internal operating environment in a timely manner at a reasonable cost in response to changes in market conditions (Watts et al., 1993);

ability, in the short run, to adapt to changing conditions using the existing set and amount of resources while in the long run, to introduce new products, new resources and production methods, and to integrate these into the existing production system (Olhager, 1993);

ability to respond effectively to changing circumstances (Gerwin, 1987; Gupta and Gupta, 1991); and

capacity of a manufacturing system to adapt successfully to changing environmental conditions and process requirements. It refers to the ability of the production system to cope with the instability induced by the environment (Swamidass, 1988).

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What creates ‘Flexibility’?

The underlying paradigm under the manufacturing flexibility is the flexibility in knowledge management, i.e. recognition, acquisition, representation, manipulation and finally use, of the knowledge in the manufacturing system.

Business system processes are by nature more knowledge-driven than manufacturing system processes.

It is the knowledge management flexibility that facilitates the system process flexibility.

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Flexibility

Flexibility is the ability to know that they have made assumptions, identify them and be ready to modify or drop them when they seem to be wrong or ineffective.

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Flexibility in Negotiations

“The movement from initial positions or the discovery of new solutions to the issues that divide disputants.”

“Parties involved in a negotiation generally have some inherent flexibility as part of their negotiation strategy.” (Druckman, 2004)

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Flexibility in eNegotiations

In the context of eNegotiations, the flexibility by the parties is facilitated by the mediation provided by Information and Computer Technologies (ICT).

If the business processes are defined well enough in order to identify the flexibility allowed by each of them, ICT will prove to be an effective eMediator.

ICT helps to identify the scope for flexibility in the respective negotiation spaces of the parties and to enhance it.

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Business processes and ICT involved in negotiations

Business Processes Information and Computer

Technologies (ICT)

Problem domain analysis

– diagnosis and prognosis

Conflict identification and resolution

Arbitration

Settlements

Causal reasoning

Argumentation

Scenario-building

Coercion

…..

Systems modeling tools

Systems analysis tools

What-if analysis

Decision analysis

Optimization models

Goal-seeking algorithms

Game theory- based tools

Deductive reasoning

Inductive reasoning

.….

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Knowledge involved in negotiations

Public Knowledge Sources– Shareable (SEK)

Negotiators’ Knowledge– Internal

• Shareable (NSK)• Local (NLK)

– This internal knowledge needs to be externalized in order to be effectively useful

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Concept Map of Knowledge Management in eNegotiations

SEKShared External

Knowledge

NLKNegotiator's

Local Knowledge(unshared)

NSKNegotiators' sharedinternal knowledge

(specific marketknowledge)

Internalization

(Partial)Externalization

Externalization

KnowledgeDomain for

Negotiations

Rigid_Disagreements

Agreed Knowledge

Flexible Disagreements

Initial Solution Space

NegotiableSolutionSpace

Possible reduction ofrigid_disagreements

Flexible eNegotiation ProcessFlexible Knowledge Integration Process

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Measurement Model for Flexibility

D’souza (2000) model for manufacturing flexibility based on the multidimensional structure of Gerwin (1993):– volume flexibility, the ability to change the volume of output of a

manufacturing process; – materials flexibility, the ability of the manufacturing system to

accommodate uncontrollable variations in the materials and parts being processed;

– mix flexibility, the ability of the system to produce many different products during the same planning period;

– modification flexibility, the ability of the system to incorporate design changes into a specific product;

– changeover flexibility, the ability of the system to adapt to changes in the production process;

– rerouting flexibility, the ability to change the sequence of steps in the production process through which the product must progress;

– flexibility responsiveness, the ability to adjust emphasis on the above flexibility dimensions given changes in the internal or external environment.

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Measurement Model for Flexibility in KM Process

volume flexibility, the ability to support a range of single decision or multi-decision negotiations;

representation flexibility, the ability to represent knowledge from disparate sources;

integration flexibility, the ability to combine different knowledge bases, identify and report the reconcilable and irreconcilable components of the knowledge bases;

mediation flexibility, ability to find solutions and rate them according to their respective levels of optimality using the reconcilable and as well the irreconcilable components of the knowledge bases; and

meta-flexibility, the ability to define and adjust the level of flexibility to be allowed or desired in a specific knowledge management process.

(Broadly the materials, mix, modification, and changeover flexibilities in the D’souza model correspond to the integration flexibility in the proposed model.)

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KM Processes in eNegotiations

• Knowledge Representation Process• Knowledge Integration Process• eNegotiation Process• eMediation Process

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To model Flexibility in KM Process Definition

A contractual normwhenever overdraft exceeds agreed limit

then the bankis permitted to charge a fee.

A corporate normwhenever overdraft exceeds agreed limit

if the excess is unduly largethen the bank manageris obliged to charge a fee.

A corporate exception normwhenever overdraft exceeds agreed limit

if the excess is small and it is a good customerthen the bank manageris forbidden to charge a fee.

(Liu, Narasipuram, et al, 2001)

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To model flexibility in negotiation process- a generalised negotiation model

p1 o2,t2

p3

p2

o7,t7 o6,t6

o5,t5 o4,t4

o3,t3

o1,t1

Based on (Kamel, Narasipuram, et al, 1997)

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A KR method to model negotiations

P is a set of Parties, pi, involved

O is a set of Objects, oi, exchanged

E is a set of elementary exchanges of objects, oi(pi1, pi2)

Example: Consider transaction T <P, O, E> where

P = {p1, p2, p3},

O = {o1, o2, o3, o4, o5, o6, o7}, and

E = {o1(p1,p2), o2(p1,p2), o3(p2,p1), o4(p3,p1), o5(p3,p2), o6(p1,p3), o7(p3,p2)}

Ti = time instant i

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A Framework for Flexible Knowledge Management Processes in eNegotiations