Dr Alireza Nili

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Chief Investigator

PhD (Victoria University of Wellington)

I investigate digitisation of services from the customer-centric perspective, design and evaluate personalised digital services, and propose and evaluate solutions for increasing trust and confidence in the services. More specifically, I propose and validate frameworks, guiding principles and theories to achieve these goals. I received my PhD in Information Systems from Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand and then my Postdoctoral Research Fellow from QUT before my ongoing Lecturer role at the university. Currently, I am a Senior Lecturer in Service Science. I have taught design thinking, systems analysis and design (business systems analysis…) at undergraduate and postgraduate levels, and research methodology. I have had roles such as track chair and associate editor (referee) at major conferences in the field such as International Conference on Information Systems, European Conference on Information Systems, and Australasian Conference on Information Systems. My research bridges the gap between design information systems (IS) and user behaviour IS through conceptual and empirical research. I believe that my research particularly contributes to business and information systems theories and practice. I have published in several high quality journals in the field such as International Journal of Information Management (A*), Communications of the ACM, Electronic Commerce Research, MIT Sloan Management Review, Public Performance & Management Review, IEEE Software, ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information, as well as several top quality conferences in the field such as European Conference on Information Systems and International Conference on Information Systems.

The methods I usually use include:

  • Empirical methods of theory building and evaluation including: grounded theory for building new theories, extending an existing theory (e.g. the affordance theory) to an emerging context, scenario-based methods and participatory design workshops.
  • The value-sensitive design (VSD) approach, particularly for my research in the area of AI technologies for service delivery (chatbots…)

The major types of emerging technologies that my research focuses on include:

  • Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies and cognitive computing systems (particularly chatbots) for personalised and effective delivery of services to customers/citizens.
  • IOT in the building context / building resilience supply chains, and manufacturing.
  • Social media platforms focused on open-ended data and users’ tasks; and social media platforms for collaborative learning.

My research is domain-independent, but most of my research work has focused on:

  • Public services (social welfare…)
  • Retail sector

Additional information

Experience

Industry engagement/projects:

  • A Chief Investigator of a research project with industry partners such as Amazon, Kmart and Bunnings in 2021-2022: As a part of an ARA project, I wrote a research proposal and led the research activities related to "Designing chatbots that meet the unique needs of consumers". Overall value of the project: QUT awarded and received funds: $200,000.
  • A Chief Investigator of the project “Reducing Consumer Uncertainty in Spatial Data” (a CRC project with PSMA Australia) in 2017 and 2018: my activities included contribution to collecting and analysing qualitative and quantitative data from twenty major consumers and producers of spatial data products in Australia and New Zealand. Overall value: $172,000.
  • Contributing to the “Connected Communities” project (an ARC Linkage project with Bank of Queensland) in 2017 and 2018: I helped with designing a social media platform that connects communities of property seekers with businesses such as banks and conducted an extensive user behaviour study in the context of using the wisdom of crowd in decision making. Overall value of the project: ~ $400,000.
  • A post-doc project with Services Australia (Department of Human Services) in 2017: The project focused on designing a digital service process in the service ecosystem of the enterprise to enhance effectiveness of service delivery. Overall value: ~ $150,000.
  • New projects in the area of supporting customer trust and confidence for using AI technologies (e.g. chatbots) in delivering customer-oriented services. Research methodology includes methods of data collection such as participatory design approach and value-based design. Sector /domain of research: retail.

Awards

Type
Other
Reference year
2021
Details
Finalist of Faculty of Science 2021 Dean's Outstanding Achievement Award for Educator of the Year
Type
Other
Reference year
2021
Details
Teaching Excellence, School of Information Systems, Faculty of Science, QUT
Type
Committee Role/Editor or Chair of an Academic Conference
Reference year
2023
Details
Co-chair of the "Preparing Organisations for the Future of Work" mini track at Americas Conference on Information Systems in 2023
Type
Committee Role/Editor or Chair of an Academic Conference
Reference year
2023
Details
Associate editor of the "Cognition and Human Behavior in Information Systems" track at the European Conference on Information Systems in 2020, 2022, and 2023. ECIS is #2 conference in the field.
Type
Committee Role/Editor or Chair of an Academic Conference
Reference year
2020
Details
A Track Chair at the Australasian Conference on Information Systems in 2018 and 2020
Type
Committee Role/Editor or Chair of an Academic Conference
Reference year
2019
Details
Associate Editor at the International Conference on Information Systems in 2019. The ICIS conference is an A* and #1 conference in the information systems field.

Publications