Report on ISBIS / OGIK Conference 2016

Nov 11-12, 2016; Dunaújváros

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The SEFBIS/GIKOF professional forum organizes its traditional, now already 13th International Conference on 11-12th November, 2016 in Dunaúváros. The ISBIS (International Symposium on Business Information Systems)/OGIK (in Hungarian) Conference gives not only floor to senior and junior researchers and practitioners to present their results, to show experiences or new applications but also it is a great opportunity for face-to-face open discussions among professionals and for establishing joint research work and other cooperation.

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„Changing a Generation in ICT”

General aims and form of the annual professional Conference of the Special Interest Group GIKOF (Research and Educational Forum for Business Information Systems) of NJSzT both followed our traditions and opened towards new solutions – on a new venue, Dunaújváros. The Call-for-Papers declared a partly re-newed scope in Spring, 2016: new research results, business ICT applications and achievements of PhD students. Favored topics (for sections) were partly reflecting the engineering-orientation of the hosting University: Networking – Internet, Clouding, IoT, Social Media and Business, Business Continuity & Security (Mission Critical Systems); Robotics and Industry 4.0. The Organizing Committee called participants for a round-table discussion about “The Future Generation: Challenges and Duties to ICT Education”

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The conference title selected had a hidden message from a new, inspiring university environment: “Changing a Generation”. Really, the first generation of Hungarian ICT community (researchers, educators, authors, professionals, practicioners…) is going to close their career, leaving labs and universities for a “new generation”, the “digital nomads”. But, hope, their work and tradition transfer a challenge to those graduating nowadays to open new frontiers like IoT, networking, security issues, Big Data and so on. We understand the digital world is rocketing and the society has to understand, adapt, apply and enjoy – to give fuel to it is our credo in the GIKOF SIG of NJSZT. The Conference and the GIKOF / SEFBIS Journals have been and should serve these objectives. 

Members of the Program Committee have controlled the contributions (with a double-blind review process) and have accepted 30  articles for the Program. 

 

The afternoon and the Saturday program splitted the audience to three sections:

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• “Section #1: Digital Transformation” offered lectures on applications which either support of (even in 100%) substitute manual procedures in higher education administration, in company online marketing, in the FinTech sector, or even in agriculture.

• “Section #2: ICT Higher Education” has ever been a hot topic for our forums. Presentations described demographic problems of Hungarian HE enrollment to ICT fields, showed some new methodologies to classroom work and generally tried to “whistleblow” with calling attention to urgent labor market situation and general human problems of this sector.

• “Section #3: Big Data” was searching for answers of a new challenge as networks, IoT tools, mobile and Internet communication devices collect enormous amount of data. Use, utilization, legal issues, methodologies  were mentioned with some results on text-mining, intrusion detection, stock exchange data management, etc.

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A vivid round-table discussion was facilitated by Dr. Andrea Kő (BCE),  Dr. Zoltán Király and Dr. Honfi-Vid Sebestyén on current challenges to HE ICT education. “Business Informatics” is even today seems new to employers and application data shows again a Budapest-centered attitude. Masters programs have other challenge: many job are opened even for BSc students, and, as a consequence, PhD programmes lack IT professionals. The situation needs joint efforts  - as many participants reported local problems and partial solutions: teaching materials, cases, basic books, digital content, labwork methodology and others were mentioned. Use of our Journals and more discussions are needed to change this situation and the meeting called attention of other center (like Debrecen, Szeged) which – regrettably – do not seem to show interest in our decades-long work with Business Informatics. We all hope the next Conference in Sopron would be a change to open new directions.

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Participants closed the Conference with acknowledgement for the smooth management and hospitality of University of Dunaújváros, Institute of Informatics.

 

 

Péter Dobay

Vice Chair of IPC