Digital twin stakeholder communication

Kober, Christian; Medina, Francisco Gomez; Benfer, Martin; Wulfsberg, Jens P.; Martínez, Verónica García; Lanza, Gisela

doi:10.1016/j.compind.2024.104135

Digital twin stakeholder communication

Characteristics, challenges, and best practices

Publication date

2024-07-29

Document type

Forschungsartikel

Author

Kober, Christian

Medina, Francisco Gomez

Benfer, Martin

Wulfsberg, Jens P.

Martínez, Verónica García

Lanza, Gisela

Organisational unit

Fertigungstechnik

DOI

10.1016/j.compind.2024.104135

URI

https://openhsu.ub.hsu-hh.de/handle/10.24405/22861

Publisher

Elsevier

Series or journal

Computers in Industry

ISSN

0166-3615

Periodical volume

161

Article ID

104135

Peer-reviewed

✅

Part of the university bibliography

✅

Language

English

Abstract

Digital Twins (DT) encompass virtual models interconnected with a physical system through data links. Although DTs hold significant potential for positive organisational impact, their successful adoption in industrial practice remains limited. Whereas existing research predominantly focuses on technical challenges, more recent studies underscore the importance of addressing organisational and human factors to overcome implementation barriers. One central aspect in this context is stakeholder communication, especially given the ambiguous nature of the term DT in academic and industrial discussions. To expand the limited understanding of the factors causing challenging DT stakeholder communications, this article presents findings from an extensive exploratory study. It involves 27 in-depth interviews and two focus groups with highly experienced DT professionals. By employing grounded theory and the Gioia methodology, a grounded model for DT stakeholder communication challenges is derived. This model reveals the complex communication dynamics within DT projects, emphasising the emergence of novel stakeholder communication patterns that heavily rely on multidisciplinary collaboration. In total, 28 communication challenges were identified, grouped into eight theoretical themes and categorised into two aggregate dimensions: human- and organisation-centric challenges. Additionally, the study identified 15 practices, e.g., defining clear objectives, and starting small and building gradually, that organisations are following to mitigate these challenges. As a result, this article provides the theoretical groundwork for a comprehensive understanding of DT stakeholder communication and its associated challenges by revealing distinctive features and offering practical guidance to overcome critical challenges in DT projects.

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Published version

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