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G. Fitzpatrick:
"The challenge of designing the `right´ technology: examples from healthcare";
Talk: CS Colloquium 2016 - Faculty of computer science, University of Vienna (invited); 2016-06-15.

In 1981, Barry Boehm wrote about `building the product right´ (verification) and `building the right product´ (validation against requirements). Software and technology has significantly moved on since then. Indeed, even in 2000, Boehm and Sullivan argued that "the impacts of software-enabled change ... reach much further ... Software systems are catalyzing great change, but complex human-machine systems with software as just a component must function for value to be created. Focusing on value creation demands a holistic perspective..." If this was true in 2000 it is even more so now in this new age of 'computers everywhere', where there may no longer be a single `right´ product but possibilities whose value depends on contexts and use. Their `holistic´ perspective pointed particularly to economics. I want to also argue for the role of Human Computer Interaction in this holistic approach, and the importance of understanding `complex human machine systems´ to help ensure that the effort of `building it right´ is well directed and that value can be created. I'll illustrate this drawing on various healthcare examples including electronic records, smart homes, and m-health.