OSME use case: Issue management
In establishing the OSME extended enterprise way of working, we have identified collective issue management as a central activity. When the business context is under rapid change, there is a considerable risk of something being overlooked as plans change which, in turn, calls for us to be able to deal with this issue effectively.
More broadly speaking, issue management can also be seen as an essential part of improving ecosystem-level situational awareness. In the ecosystem, good situational awareness is needed to enforce proper activities within the constantly changing competitive context. Therefore, awareness must be shared and promoted throughout the network. The insights of the ecosystem members must be actively communicated and debated amongst their peers. Awareness is thus a collective property, and the higher level of shared awareness, the greater the probability of superior performance.
When we see the role of issue management as the foundation of collective situational awareness, visualization is key. In the air force, the use of data connections enables aircrafts to send their radar information to each other and to view a common composite radar picture. If only one fighter’s radar has picked up an enemy flight, every pilot – even if spread miles apart – can see ‘red’s’ location. When long-range data is added to the shared-information mix, every ‘blue’ fighter knows where all the incoming enemy aircraft are. With all pilots looking at the same radar picture, very little radio communication is needed. Compared to sharing all information via voice, having a digital picture of what everybody sees is a dramatic improvement in warfighter situational awareness.
In OSME, the important difference compared to the air force is the broad area of issues that are relevant when establishing shared situational awareness in an extended manufacturing ecosystem context. The range of situations that should be categorized and monitored is a fundamental definitional task to establish a well-functioning issue management process. For this purpose, the different OSME partners are now engaged in discussions on how to balance between not becoming too specific and rigid, yet also securing the possibility to provide a meaningful and integrated view of the actual situation.
The discussions will now continue by identifying the greatest possible benefits from improved shared situational awareness so that these features can be built into the OSME MVP platform.
OSME invites new members to expand the ecosystem, creating OSME 2.0. If you are interested in joining OSME, please contact Christian Sundman (christian.sundman(a)wartsila.com) or Niklas Koski (niklas.koski(a)synocus.com).