Rivalry between the collective use of IT tools and working methods of design teams Comparison of research outcomes

Nowadays a high variety of IT tools is available for communication purposes in design processes on individual and group level. Despite this, the exchange and sharing of design documents collectively in design and engineering teams might be limited mainly, due to habits, preferences, working methods and rivalry between the collective use of IT tools in such product development. Changes in habits and preferences for collective use of IT tools might be realized by training and management power. However, adoption of collectively to be used tools, like project websites, is depending heavenly on the attractiveness for users in daily work. Based on empirical research outcomes it is indicated that rivalry between collective used tools and differences in working methods of users might be main barriers for attractiveness of these tools in daily work. Applying a framework for analyzing and categorizing of the frequency of use of IT tools for team communication, the authors explain the appearance of rivalry between tools, limiting the effectiveness in daily work and not affecting team communication and performance. By comparison of working methods in different sectors authors explain the necessity of changes in working methods in design and engineering in the building & construction industry on organizational and inter-organizational level for successful adoption of collectively to be used IT tools in team communication.