About The Session:
A Metaverse-Based Proof of Concept for Innovation in Distributed Teams
Distributed teams often struggle to recreate the creative energy of co-located innovation sessions.
We describe a proof of concept that explored how a metaverse environment can support more dynamic distributed innovation. During a three-day immersive workshop, avatar-based interaction, informal movement and gamified facilitation enhanced engagement and ideation. Though the immersive environment enabled cross-location collaboration and unconventional idea sharing, challenges included onboarding difficulties, participant skepticism and platform limitations. The lessons learned give rise to recommendations for organizations considering immersive technologies to foster innovation across distributed teams.
Rosemary Francisco
Unisinos University (Brazil)
Sharon Geeling
University of Cape Town (South Africa)
How Data Analytics Professionals Can Prepare for AI-Led Disruption
AIâs proliferation in data analytics will fundamentally disrupt the role of the data analyst as we know it today. In this article, we establish the current state of hiring and working in data analytics, based on our survey of hiring managers. Then, we speculate on anticipated changes to this current state as the world becomes increasingly AI-driven, and we validate these speculations with semi-structured interviews of individuals in the data analytics field. Based on these speculations, we provide recommendations for data analytics professionals to prepare for and thrive in an age of AI-led disruption.
Cassandra A. Collier
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (U.S.)
Anne L. Powell
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
About The Speakers:
Cassandra Collier
Cassie Collier is an assistant professor in the Department of Computer Management and
Information Systems at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. She obtained her Ph.D. in
business administration with a specialization in management information systems from the
University of Houston. She draws on previous corporate IT experience in oil and gas to inform
her teaching of various data analytics topics, including big data, data visualization, and artificial
intelligence. She studies decision-making in online settings and how the design of information
systems influence the decisions that users make. Her research also spans into preparation of data
analytics graduates, both from a pedagogical perspective and a career readiness perspective.
Rosemary Francisco
Rosemary Francisco is a Professor and Researcher at UNISINOS (Brazil), specializing
in AI in business, digital transformation, and the future of work. She bridges academia
and practice through applied research projects with industry partners, focusing on how
emerging technologies reshape work, skills, and organizational design. She also leads
initiatives in digital education and innovation in higher education.
About The Moderator:
Fred Niederman
Fred Niederman (fred.niederman@slu.edu) is the Shaughnessy Endowed Professor at Saint Louis
University. His research on IS personnel, IS project management, philosophy of science applied to IS,
qualitative IS research methods, effects on IS of mergers and acquisitions, global IS, and group
collaboration and teams has been published in top journals, including MIS Quarterly, Journal of the
Association for Information Systems and Journal of Strategic Information Systems. He is an editorial board
member of several top journals and has edited or co-edited numerous special issues on a wide variety of
topics, including âBreakthrough Ideasâ for Communications of the Association for Information Systems.
