Solution Prototype: A Composed Artifact as Innovation Carrier

This paper outlines an artifact building and evaluation proposal. Design Science Research (DSR) studies usually consider encapsulated artifact that have relationships with other artifacts. The solution prototype as a composed artifact demands for a more comprehensive consideration in its systematic environment. The solution prototype that is composed from blending product and service prototype has particular impacts on the dualism of DSR’s “Build” and “Evaluate”. Since the mix between product and service prototyping can be varied, there is a demand for a more agile and iterative framework. Van de Ven’s research framework seems to fit this purpose. Van de Ven allows for an iterative research approach to problem solving with flexible starting point. The research activity is the result between the iteration of two dimensions. This framework focuses on the natural evaluation, particularly on ex-ante validation. A correlation between Hevner’s and Van de Vens framework is analyzed, and finally the proposal is presented.