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Collaborative networks (1st ed.): reference modeling
Camarinha-Matos L., Afsarmanesh H., Springer Publishing Company, Incorporated, 2008. 336 pp. Type: Book (9780387794259)
Date Reviewed: Jan 9 2009

The field of collaborative networks has seen remarkable progress over the last ten to 15 years in terms of research and practical applications. Camarinha-Matos and Afsarmanesh provide a definition:

A collaborative network (CN) is a network consisting of a variety of entities (e.g. organizations and people) that are largely autonomous, geographically distributed, and heterogeneous in terms of their operating environment, culture, social capital and goals, but that collaborate to better achieve common or compatible goals, and whose interactions are supported by a computer network.

There is a need for efforts on establishing a theoretical foundation. One such effort is the European Collaborative Networked Organizations Leadership (ECOLEAD) initiative project. This book was developed mostly based on this project, over approximately the last four years. Its goal is to contribute to the establishment of that theoretical foundation. The book sets forth a set of comprehensive methodologies, designs, tools, reference models, models, semantic indexing schemes, frameworks, taxonomies, and significant examples of practice for the CN field; in this sense, it achieves its purpose. Throughout, the book calls for further experience, more significant examples, and performance evaluations of what it presents. The book could be seminal for researchers and practitioners.

The book is organized in four parts: “Introduction,” “Towards a CN Reference Model,” “Modeling Tools and Approaches,” and “Modeling Examples.” Each of these parts has an overview. Part 1 contains two chapters: “Motivation for a Theoretical Foundation for Collaborative Networks” and “Related Work on Reference Modeling for Collaborative Networks.” Part 2 contains six chapters: “Reference Modeling: Needs and Basic Terminology,” “Collaboration Forms,” “The ARCON Modeling Framework,” “ARCON Reference Models for Collaborative Networks,” “A Comprehensive Semantic Indexing Schema for ARCON,” and “Further Steps on CN Reference Modeling.” A Reference Model for Collaborative Networks (ARCON) is the specific reference model developed by the ECOLEAD project. Part 3 contains two chapters: “A Survey of Modeling Methods and Tools” and “A Survey of Soft Modeling Approaches for Collaborative Networks.” Part 4 contains the following chapters: “A Multi-model Approach to Analyze Inter-organizational Trust in VBEs,” “Networked Partner Selection with Robust Portfolio Modeling,” “Modeling Collaboration Preparedness Assessment,” “A Benefit Analysis Model for Collaborative Networks,” “An Approach in Value Systems Modeling,” “Selection of a Virtual Organization Coordinator,” “Modeling the Value of Expectations in Collaborative Networked Organizations,” and “Prospective Performance Measurement in Virtual Organizations.” A virtual organization breeding environment (VBE) is an alliance of organizations (VBE members) and related support institutions,

adhering to a base long-term cooperation agreement, and adoption of common operating principles and infrastructures, with the main goal of increasing their preparedness towards rapid configuration of temporary alliances for collaboration in potential virtual organizations.

Reading through these titles gives you an overview of the book and what it does via detailed textual development, diagrams, tables, and figures. In addition, there is a short forward by Camarinha-Matos and Afsarmanesh and an annex that lists biographies of the authors and other contributors--all are from Europe, perhaps reflecting the ECOLEAD genesis of the ideas and results. Although there is a one-page subject index that provides some help in finding things, a more comprehensive and detailed index would benefit users.

To give a vision of the specific discussions in the book, the ARCON modeling framework is discussed. Its vision is to develop a generic abstract representation intended as an authoritative basis for understanding collaborative networked organizations and the significant relationships among them. It is also meant to be used as a basis for derivation (specialization) of other specific models for particular cases in various manifestations of CNs. The ARCON model is easy to understand, clear, nontechnical, and purely logical. It captures concepts toward a holistic understanding of collaborative networked organizations (CNOs). ARCON is neutral, in the sense that it is totally independent of the tools and methodologies--discussed in detail in the book--that can further model or implement specific different aspects of CNOs, so that any tool or methodology can be mapped against it. Stakeholders are researchers, engineers, and other societal practitioners, decision makers, and educators. Three perspectives are taken in the model: life cycle, modeling intent, and environment characteristics. The CNO life cycle perspective consists of the following stages: creation (including initiation and recruiting and foundation), operation, evolution, dissolution, and metamorphosis. The environment characteristics perspective includes endogenous elements (those inside the CNO) and exogenous elements (those outside the CNO), with each of these broken into four classifications. The model intent perspective includes the general representation (GR) layer, the specific modeling (SM) layer, and the implementation modeling (IM) layer. These three perspectives give a three-dimensional (3D) abstract model. Parts 1 to 3 of the book provide the reference model, including the tools and techniques to use with it. Part 4 gives practitioners a guide to use the model, with tools and techniques as applied to CNOs.

Reviewer:  J. Fendrich Review #: CR136411 (0912-1137)
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Organizational Design (H.5.3 ... )
 
 
Theory And Models (H.5.3 ... )
 
 
Group And Organization Interfaces (H.5.3 )
 
 
Organizational Impacts (K.4.3 )
 
 
Project And People Management (K.6.1 )
 
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