Collaborative Research: Theory-Grounded Guidelines for Solver-Aware System Architecting (SASA)

Purdue University, West Lafayette IN

Investigators

Abstract

The objective of this project is to advance the scientific understanding of a new paradigm of system architecting in engineering, referred to as Solver-Aware System Architecting (SASA). SASA actively considers the capacity of talent and expertise from outside organizational boundaries (e.g., gig workers, crowd) during the formulation phases of the system design process. This research hypothesizes that the joint consideration of system architecture, diverse external solvers, and contract mechanisms, can significantly improve system design outcomes. The research will result in new theory and best practices for when and how to incorporate novel sources of effort into complex systems design, which has positive implications for workforce management. With an explicit focus on translation to practice, the guidance generated by this work has the potential to make a tangible impact on how system architecting is practiced, and the way organizations engage with outside and non-traditional solvers, which promises greater effectiveness and efficiency in technical business operations. The theoretical innovations will be reduced to practice in the form of actionable guidelines relating SASA principles to design outcomes. Additional deliverables of this project include a set of educational tools to educate students and industry practitioners on SASA. If successful, the research will result in scientific foundations for the paradigm shift from traditional approaches to system architecting, which assume traditional players bounded by organizational boundaries, to more open innovation approaches for complex systems design. The research will establish a firm scientific foundation consisting of (i) socio-technical theory for architecting complex systems; (ii) computational models of open innovation processes for systems design and computational methods for designing contractual mechanisms for SASA; and (iii) empirically-validated design guidelines to support practitioners of SASA. The research will extend the frontier of knowledge in systems engineering research and practice by shedding light on the linkages among innovation processes, designer knowledge, systems architecture and contractual structures. The resulting educational tools will have a direct impact on student learning about system architecting. The tools will be tested at the PIs’ institutions and then made freely available to other members of the Engineering Design and Systems Engineering (EDSE) community. The focus on leveraging non-traditional contributors has implications for broader societal goals around diversity and inclusion, broadening participation in STEM through new avenues for access, and eliminating barriers to traditional professional practice. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.