Projects

Project start: January 2020

End of the project: December 2022

Social media technologies have become an integral part of everyday life and are now central infrastructures. Modern value creation concepts, such as open innovation, are particularly relevant in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and company profiles, such as those on LinkedIn, can bring about significant increases in many areas of the value chain. Nevertheless, the potential is not fully utilised by these companies in particular. There is often a lack of expertise in correctly assessing the opportunities and risks of social media technologies.

In the "Social Media Management for SMEs" project , SMEs in Bavaria were therefore given an insight into the latest research findings on social media and mobile business. The aim was to illustrate the potential uses of social media to the participating companies, to provide opportunities for practical implementation and free access to valuable knowledge.

Participating universities: Universities of Regensburg and Bamberg

Project Components:

Key components of the project were an online knowledge platform with digital learning units that can be accessed individually and flexibly, jointly developed measures for knowledge transfer and several network meetings. The project team used these channels to provide them with in-depth expertise on the following three topics:

• Specialist conceptualisation of social media in value creation: What can a successful social media strategy look like? Where can chatbots be used?
• Social media & mobile business implementation: How can internal company social networks be designed? How can intelligent mobile applications be used to better utilise employee knowledge?
• Social media analysis methods: Which methods and software solutions make it possible to analyse social media content and structures? What analysis tools are available?

The project was funded by the European Social Fund (ESF). The ESF is Europe's most important instrument for promoting employment and social integration in Europe. For over 60 years, it has been improving the employment opportunities of people in Germany and Europe by promoting and enabling better education, training and qualifications. This contributes to the sustainable reduction of disadvantages in the labour market while at the same time guaranteeing essential values such as the equal treatment of men and women or the avoidance of any kind of discrimination. The measures are also aimed in particular at those who are at risk of being excluded from the labour market, such as disadvantaged long-term unemployed people or migrants. The aim is to provide all people with career prospects.

How can customer opinions from social media channels be automatically extracted and analysed to gain deep insights into current needs?

UR:SMART (University of Regensburg Social Media Analysis Research Toolkit) is a tool for extracting, analysing and interpreting social media posts that is specially tailored to the needs of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Bavaria. Using a graphical user interface (GUI), employees can easily analyse customer posts on a company's Facebook page or Twitter channels to gain deep insights into current consumer attitudes and needs. To this end, UR:SMART offers automated sentiment analysis and topic-based classification of posts. UR:SMART was developed in close collaboration with three industry partners.

As part of this project, the chair of Business Informatics 3 supported E.ON Bavaria AG, and in particular its subsidiary E.ON Service Plus GmbH, in the development of a process control centre and the design of target processes in delivery management as part of the desired overall solution.

At that time, the challenge in the area of delivery management was to optimally translate the progress on the experience curve into process improvements and thereby further increase the mass business capability. The aim was therefore to realise the increasingly necessary coordination of the activities of the specialist departments in the best possible way and to leverage efficiency potential (interface optimisation, freedom from overlaps). The focus was on identifying both professional and technical problems (e.g. market communication) and establishing stable and professionally/technically optimised processes. Business development and short-term sales campaigns also posed challenges.

The objective was to contribute to the development of a consistent process control centre, to design target processes and to provide methodological support from a scientific perspective. The process control centre was to form a central information and control unit that uses suitable measuring points and key figures to provide process-related support for the supply management area in its operational and management activities. To this end, performance and efficiency indicators were established for the current and past processing status, instructions for action and control impulses were provided when intervention limits were exceeded and past analyses and future forecasts were generated. The target processes were to be developed on the basis of existing actual processes and the results of their analyses.

The project "Measurement and Management of Business Process Performance in the Energy Sector" is integrated into the research focus "Processes and Process Management" at the chair of Business Informatics 3 at the University of Regensburg. The research focus centred on current methods and instruments for the development and design of processes. The aim was to select suitable methods, taking into account the purpose of the modelling, the model users and the application context, and to use these to model the best possible processes.

Project start: October 2016

Project end: September 2018

Digitalisation has permanently changed many areas of society and the economy and is opening up new opportunities for companies to shape their value chains. In addition to technical aspects, the human factor is becoming increasingly relevant. The latest research findings show that intrinsic motivation in particular (e.g. enjoyment of using IT) has a significant influence on the acceptance and use of digital solutions.

So-called "hedonic information systems" address this aspect, e.g. through voluntary use, focus on colours, sounds or aesthetic layouts, etc. In a business context, these include wikis, microblogging, social networking and mobile applications. In addition, there are numerous hybrid forms in which classic, utilitarian systems are enriched with hedonic design features (e.g. integration of instant messaging into existing ERP systems).
The aim of the project was to strengthen the performance of employees in companies and organisations, as well as their enjoyment of work, through the use of motivation-enhancing, hedonic systems. To this end, the potential applications of such systems in the context of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) were identified. Key aspects of a modern working environment, namely employee satisfaction, the opportunity for self-realisation and the creation of a high level of organisational efficiency, were brought together.

In the course of the rapid business development of E.ON Bavaria AG and the associated organisational, technical and above all procedural restructuring requirements, a fundamental revision of the process landscape as well as an optimisation of existing processes and a performance measurement of these had become necessary. The Chair of Business Informatics 3 supported E.ON Bavaria AG and in particular its subsidiary E.ON Service Plus GmbH in the modelling of business processes in the area of network usage management as part of the desired overall solution.

Trends and developments in the energy industry at the time were the driving force behind fundamental changes at European and, above all, German energy companies. In addition to unbundling requirements (separation of grid operation and sales), the introduction of non-discriminatory business processes for the initiation and handling of grid utilisation in the electricity sector (GPKE = business processes for customer supply with electricity), including new data exchange formats and their counterparts in the gas sector (GeLi Gas = business processes for gas supplier switching), the entry of new nationwide energy suppliers, such as E WIE EINFACH, presented existing energy suppliers with a major need for change. Both the requirements of the Federal Network Agency and the increasing competitive pressure forced electricity, gas and heat suppliers to undergo a comprehensive and fundamental rethink. Previously practised business processes had to be adapted to the new requirements, supported with technical systems and filled with life. Only then was it possible to improve quality and minimise errors and throughput times, including automation.

The objective was to support network utilisation management in setting up an end-to-end business process management system and to provide methodological assistance from a scientific perspective. The BPM was to form a central information and control unit that uses consistent and complete process models to guide and support the grid utilisation management department in its operational activities.

The project "Business Process Management in the Energy Sector - Overcoming New Challenges in Grid Utilisation Management" is integrated into the research focus "Processes and Process Management" at the chair of Business Informatics 3 at the University of Regensburg. The research focus centred on current methods and instruments for the development and design of processes. The aim was to select suitable methods, taking into account the purpose of the modelling, the model users and the application context, and to use these to model the best possible processes.

The "Social Media and Mobile Business" Competence Centre researched the opportunities and risks of new mobile technologies and digital social media using scientific models, methods and processes. In addition to the fundamental nature of the research, the findings were applied and validated in industrial projects with companies - particularly in the eastern and northern Bavarian region. The collaboration between the universities of Regensburg, Passau and Bamberg and the Landshut University of Applied Sciences was funded over a period of five years by the Bavarian State Ministry of Economic Affairs and Media, Energy and Technology as part of the Eastern Bavaria Internet Competence Centre.

Funded by the European Union as part of the Objective 3 programme "Freistaat Bayern - Czech Republic" (INTERREG IV).

Project start: January 2014

Project end: June 2015

The aim of the "BPM without borders" project was to increase the competitiveness of companies in the Bavarian-Czech border region. To this end, BPM initiatives were implemented in specific projects in cooperation with the respective companies and process documentation and reference processes were developed as a basis for process improvement. In addition, the participants were taught key BPM skills, enabling them to carry out successful BPM projects independently.

As part of the project, a transnational "Competence Centre for Business Process Management" (BPM) was set up with representatives from the Universities of Regensburg (Prof. Dr Leist) and Prague (Prof. Vaclav Repa) as well as practice partners from industry. The Competence Centre's offer for the participants included the implementation of an individually agreed BPM initiative, in which concrete solutions were developed on site. In addition, an online knowledge platform was set up with a multimedia online course on BPM and access to a catalogue of best practices and reference processes.

In view of constantly changing customer expectations and growing market transparency, business process improvement (BPI) is becoming increasingly important.

The aim of BPI projects is to continuously improve business processes and the associated products and services in order to ensure long-term customer loyalty.
To this end, the BPI discipline has produced numerous improvement methods and approaches in recent years (e.g. Six Sigma, TQM, etc.). These in turn include method-specific techniques, such as the cause-and-effect diagram, the KANO model or value stream mapping, which operationalise the work steps of the respective method. In view of the large number of existing BPI techniques, however, it is usually difficult to find suitable techniques for a specific BPI project. In addition, there is often a lack of adequate software to support the initiatives.
The "BPI Roadmap" closes this gap. It provides the user with a manageable number of techniques that have proven to be effective in numerous projects. The techniques are organised chronologically and logically as a "roadmap", which facilitates their systematic application. The "BPI Roadmap" covers all phases of an improvement project. Each technique is characterised by being quick to learn and easy to use. This means that even inexperienced employees can use the techniques directly for their own project.
The prototype "RUPERT" (Regensburg University Process Excellence and Reengineering Toolkit) was developed in cooperation with the University of Vienna. This is based on the BPI roadmap mentioned above and implements it in the software. This provides users with a tool that supports them in the targeted development, communication and documentation of results within the scope of BPI projects.

The management of business processes is crucial to the success of a bank. As monetary indicators such as cash flow or cost development only show the success of the actual optimisation measures with a delay, many companies implement monitoring and control mechanisms directly in the value chain, i.e. in their performance processes. Process performance management systems enable the efficiency of processes to be monitored promptly and permanently, process optimisation potential to be identified and difficulties to be counteracted at an early stage. The ability to react can be significantly improved and opportunities can be utilised.

The Chair of Management Information Systems III at the University of Regensburg and the Competence Centre Business Process and Quality Management (BPQM) of the research institute ibi research at the University of Regensburg GmbH have therefore conducted a comprehensive study on Process Performance Management (PPM) at banks. The aim of the study was to record the status quo, identify trends and find indications of potential for improvement and best practices in the use of process performance management.

Contents of the study:

• Past and future projects
• General assessments of process performance management
• Importance of process performance management
• Approaches and methods used/planned
• Coverage of the PPM phases
• Identification, characterisation and use of specific key figures
• Supporting quality management approaches
• Data sources and historisation
• Design of the reporting
• Acceptance of process performance management
• Potential for improvement in the use of process performance management

The project "Modelling of Non-Discriminatory Business Processes for the Initiation and Handling of Network Usage" is integrated into the research focus "Processes and Process Management" at the Chair of Business Informatics 3 at the University of Regensburg. The research focus centred on current methods and instruments for developing and designing processes. The aim was to select suitable methods, taking into account the modelling purpose, the model users and the application context, and to use these to model the best processes.

In the course of the liberalisation of the energy market, the Federal Network Agency prescribed processes and data formats for the supply of electricity to customers in order to ensure free competition on the energy market. The implementation of these regulations required the modification and modelling of the business processes for the initiation and handling of grid usage at E.ON Bavaria in accordance with the overall solution. As part of the research project, the chair supported the modification and modelling of the business processes.

Supported by the European Social Fund (ESF)

Quality management (QM) comprises measures to improve processes and services in order to continuously increase the value of the company and maintain a high level of customer satisfaction. The core tasks are quality assurance and improvement with the following objectives: Errors and waste should be reduced, fluctuations in the quality of results should be limited, idle and waiting times when processing customer orders should be reduced and continuous improvement in the workplace should be realised. The variety of different QM methods and the need to adapt them to the requirements of one's own company pose major challenges, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

The Chair of Business Informatics 3 at the University of Regensburg therefore developed a web-based training course for SMEs in the field of QM as part of the "Network-Supported Knowledge Transfer from Universities to Companies" programme(Bavarian Virtual University, vhb (external link, opens in a new window)) - funded by the European Social Fund (ESF) (external link, opens in a new window).

The project was dedicated to the above-mentioned problem and offered a multimedia training programme that was specifically geared towards the needs of SMEs. The objective was to make it easier to get started in the field of QM and to enable SMEs to independently select an existing QM approach or even to develop an individual QM approach and to introduce and continuously apply it in the company.

At the same time, the web-based training created a reference work to enable a targeted search for techniques and solutions when QM issues arise.

The exchange of experiences between the SMEs also created a comprehensive knowledge base that supports employees in the use of specific techniques and methods. This gave them a comprehensive overview of possible application requirements, difficulties and success factors when using specific techniques and methods.

The modelling tool supports the basic modelling of diagrams in Business Process Model Notation (BPMN) for iPads. A wizard for creating a BPMN process model supports the user in generating a basic structure with pools and lanes.

In addition to creating, reading and editing process models, the tool supports the administration of created models. The application emphasises intuitive operation and a clear, simple design.

Another feature enables the creation of a repository for participants (pools, lanes) of a BPMN model. This ensures particularly efficient modelling. The application has an XML export as an interface to other BPMN modelling tools.

Project start: January 2008
Project completion: December 2008

The project "Development of a Quality and Process Management System for a Fleet Management Company" is integrated into the research focus "Process and Quality Management".

In the course of opening up new markets and integrating new partner companies, the management, controlling, documentation, standardisation and optimisation of business processes are becoming increasingly important. For this reason, a comprehensive process and quality management system that coordinates these tasks is indispensable.

This project was carried out with Alphabet Fuhrpark Management GmbH, a BMW Group company that is characterised by innovative total fleet solutions for all brands.

When setting up the quality and process management system, the specific characteristics of the fleet management company had to be identified and their implications for quality and process management taken into account. The special features included, for example, the immateriality of the services offered, the international orientation of the company with decentralised locations and the current integration processes with partner companies. The co-operation project included the following work packages:

• Concept development for the implementation of process and quality management in a fleet management company, taking into account all framework conditions (internationality, corporate conformity, etc.)
• Development of a quality strategy and operationalisation of the strategy for the individual business units
• Support in the application and introduction of quality management methods, techniques and tools (Six Sigma, etc.)
• Definition of key performance indicators for quality reporting
• Development of measurement systems for quality reporting

Project start: July 2007

Project completion: April 2011

Not least due to the Bologna Process, the administrative requirements in the area of study programmes at universities have increased considerably, making a consistent and seamless campus management system necessary.

In order to meet this challenge successfully, it was essential to have precise knowledge and documentation of the existing business processes. This survey was to be carried out in the present project for “Modelling the Administrative Processes of the University of Regensburg”.

The Chair of Business Informatics 3 has therefore been working closely with the Administration and the Computer Center of the University of Regensburg since July 2007 in order to survey the processes of the university's administration and determine the necessary functional scope of suitable IT support.

Project start: April 2006
Project completion: December 2007

With growing competition, quality management is increasingly taking on a central role in companies. While only a few years ago it was considered a discipline of the manufacturing industry, quality management has now become an integral part of the service sector. However, since physical products differ fundamentally from services and service processes have specific characteristics, application-inherent restrictions and questions arise in the operationalisation of quality management in the service sector.

For this reason, BMW Bank GmbH and the Chair of Business Informatics 3 at the University of Regensburg launched the "Corporate Quality" project. The project dealt with the applicability of quality management approaches in the service sector, developed formal solution concepts for specific problems and supported the construction of a standardised quality management methodology tailored to the company. Results, instructions, tips and templates were also made available to all employees of the cooperation partner in a specially developed online portal.

• Project phase 1: Evaluation of the quality management methods, techniques and tools
• Project phase 2: Adaptation of the techniques to the needs of the bank and validation in practical use
• Project phase 3: Derivation and communication of standards for process-orientated quality initiatives
• Project phase 4: Optimisation of customer-critical business processes

Project start: August 2006,

Project completion: September 2006

Grundig Intermedia (external link, opens in a new window) used an ERP system with almost the full range of functions and a large number of modifications for data processing. Approximately 270 users accessed functions of the EPR system. Some functionalities / processes delivered unsatisfactory results in terms of content. The project objective was to make a recommendation as to whether the existing ERP system should be further developed or whether it should be completely or partially replaced by an alternative ERP system. To this end, the processes were analysed and documented in a structured manner.