Delivering evidence-based management services: rising to the challenge using design science

Evidence-based management (EBMgt) concerns making complex managerial decisions by combining the decision maker’s knowledge and experience with scientific knowledge. A major obstacle to this practice is the lack of support. In this paper, we employ design science to develop an ensemble of conceptual, information and IT artefacts that support EBMgt. The approach is instantiated and validated in a case study using a combination of methods, including proof of concept, laboratory experiment, satisfaction survey, and focus groups. The proposed approach turns EBMgt into a repeatable practice, supported by reusable tools, and brings some degree of automation to the process. To our knowledge, EBMgt services have not yet been realised in a concrete manner, and not with concrete empirical results. Therefore, this study provides a first-of-a-kind demonstration and assessment of the viability of EBMgt services.