Proceedings of the 12th European Conference on Knowledge ...

Using Naturalistic Decision Making to Understand
Knowledge Barriers in Launching Telecommunication for
Public Safety
Kaj Suneson and Ilona Heldal
Chalmers University <strong>of</strong> Technology, Management and Economics,
Go<strong>the</strong>nburg, Sweden
suneson@chalmers.se
ilona.heldal@chalmers.se
Abstract: Based on an empirical study <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> launch <strong>of</strong> an information and communication technology [ICT]
system for <strong>the</strong> main Public Safety Agencies [PSA] in Sweden, this paper combines concepts from knowledge
management [KM] with naturalistic decision-making [NDM] to gain a greater understanding <strong>of</strong> problems in <strong>the</strong>
implementation and adoption phase <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> new system. The launch has been experienced as being much slower
than was originally envisaged by all <strong>the</strong> organizations involved and <strong>the</strong> system will not cover its own costs in <strong>the</strong>
near future. Implementation and adoption also required extra, unplanned, resources to develop processes for
collaboration and joint work by and between <strong>the</strong> organizations. In <strong>the</strong> public safety and emergency response
sector, <strong>the</strong> need for communication and co-operation between <strong>the</strong> organizations involved is regarded mostly as
self-evident by both <strong>the</strong> organizations involved and external organizations. To make co-operation within and
between <strong>the</strong> different organizations more efficient, a new radio communication system is being introduced in
Sweden. Adoption and use are presented as being <strong>the</strong> prerogative <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> user organizations. In an earlier paper
we identified several problems, i.e. 'knowledge barriers' that prevented or slowed down adoption and thus <strong>the</strong>
launch process (Sunesson and Heldal, 2010). This paper takes a fur<strong>the</strong>r step to gain a deeper understanding <strong>of</strong>
what <strong>the</strong>se knowledge barriers mean by using terms from knowledge management [KM] combined with concepts
and frameworks from NDM. NDM provides a promising framework to understand <strong>the</strong>se situations, since <strong>the</strong>
situation in which <strong>the</strong> system will be used can be related to understanding technologies in complex environments,
i.e. solving ill-defined problems under time pressure and with high stakes combined with uncertain outcomes. By
analysing a set <strong>of</strong> five categories <strong>of</strong> knowledge barriers through concepts from <strong>the</strong> NDM framework, such as
'sensemaking', 'situation awareness', and 'mental models', this paper strives to increase understanding <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>
obstacles that need to be overcome when launching large-scale ICT systems for parties with specific needs and
requirements. The main benefit <strong>of</strong> using knowledge management models is to provide a good overview <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>
launch process, emphasizing relevant problem areas. The advantage <strong>of</strong> examining <strong>the</strong>se problem areas more
deeply by means <strong>of</strong> concepts and frameworks from NDM can be found in <strong>the</strong> possibility <strong>of</strong> acquiring a deeper
understanding and providing suggestions to overcome <strong>the</strong> identified problems for users, launchers and
influencers. This paper makes both practical and <strong>the</strong>oretical contributions. Practical contributions exemplify how
important mutual understanding is to co-operation and in doing so a more coherent mental model on which to
build co-operation. The <strong>the</strong>oretical contribution takes <strong>the</strong> form <strong>of</strong> suggestions to improve our understanding <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>
benefits <strong>of</strong> combining KM models with frameworks and concepts from NDM.
Keywords: Co-operation, public safety, sensemaking, situation awareness, knowledge barriers, system roll-out
1. Introduction
Today, most communication between <strong>the</strong> main Public Safety Agencies [PSA], such as <strong>the</strong> police,
ambulance and fire/rescue departments, is via old analogue technologies with limited functionality.
Common problems are limited coverage and <strong>the</strong> problem <strong>of</strong> replacing, repairing or upgrading devices
and infrastructure. The technology is also simple to intercept by unauthorized users. Different PSAs
use different systems that are not compatible with each o<strong>the</strong>r. Due to <strong>the</strong> organizations' need to
interact in emergency situations <strong>the</strong>y <strong>of</strong>ten require access to and knowledge <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r agencies'
communication systems. The agencies have different regulations and different principals and several
<strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> stakeholders involved have identified <strong>the</strong> need for improved co-operation between agencies.
This paper aims to discuss experiences during <strong>the</strong> roll-out <strong>of</strong> a new broadband communication system
from <strong>the</strong> perspective <strong>of</strong> naturalistic decision-making [NDM] using concepts such as sensemaking,
situation awareness and mental models. The focus is on <strong>the</strong> users' and <strong>the</strong>ir organizations' view <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>
implementation. We argue that by providing a better description <strong>of</strong> obstacles that need to be
overcome to launch this ICT system, <strong>the</strong> experiences gained will contribute to a better general
understanding <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> launch <strong>of</strong> large-scale, multiuser ICT systems. The results also illustrate <strong>the</strong>
usefulness <strong>of</strong> concepts from <strong>the</strong> NDM framework in understanding social and technical premises for
adopting new technologies for co-operation within and between PSAs.
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