Subproject C1: Integration of external stakeholders into the cycle-oriented design of PSS-based business models

The objective of subproject C1 is the cycle-oriented integration of external stakeholders such as customers, suppliers, and external service providers into the development of PSS-based business models. A process model for the creation and adaption of PSS-based business models is developed. To support this process model, an IT-based system is developed to integrate external stakeholders. In order to reach these objectives, subproject C1 conducts case studies with PSS-providers to study how PSS-based business models are currently designed and the problems PSS-providers are confronted with. The process model as well as the IT-based system are iteratively developed and evaluated by expert workshops and experiments.

• Identification of decision criteria for the selection of customer integration methods.
• Evaluation of customer integration methods (e.g., web-based product configurators, idea competitions, online communities) with regard to the identified decision criteria.  
• Design, implementation, and devaluation of a decision support system: Recommendation of suitable customer integration methods by the system based on the input by the decision maker (e.g., available budget, time, skills, personnel, required customer input).  
• Guidelines for the design of customer integration methods: e.g. visualization positively impacts the enjoyment experienced by customers during the co-creation activity, visualization supports realistic product understanding of the virtual product.  
• Design of the Customer Input Ontology: Based on a literature review and expert interviews we identified different types and characteristics of customer input. The Customer Input Ontology models these types and characteristics of customer input as well as their interrelations and evolution over time.  
• Design, implementation and devaluation of the Customer Input Management System: The Customer Input Management System supports the documentation, sharing and (re-)use of customer inputs across departments, companies in innovation networks, and innovation cycles.

• Comprehensive understanding of stakeholder integration into the development and adaption of PSS-based business models: 
  • Key steakholders, stakeholder integration methods, types and characteristics of stakeholder input required for the development and adaption of PSS-based business models         
  • Existing approaches and challenges in the design of PSS-based business models. 
• Process model for developing PSS-based business models. 
• Tool support for the integration of external stakeholder and the design of individual and profitable business models.

• Füller, K.; Ramanath, R.; Böhm, M.; Krcmar, H.: Decision Support for Selecting Customer Integration Methods. In: Internationale Tagung Wirtschaftsinformatik (WI 2015), Osnabrück, Germany, pp. 1360-1374.
• Füller, K.; Liu, H.; Böhm, M.; Krcmar, H.: Knowledge Management in Customer Integration: A Customer Input Ontology. In: International Conference on Engineering Design (ICED 2015), Milano, Italy.
• Füller, K.; Böhm, M.; Krcmar, H.: Designing for Positive User Experience in Product Design: A Qualitative Analysis of Toolkit Design Elements and their Implications on Emotional Reactions and Perceptions. In: Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences (HICSS), Kauai, Hawaii, USA.