Design and Implementation of Trust Enabling Functions

Abstract

Through a case study based on a knowledge-sharing community of Danish plant growers, this chapter examines how an IT system can be designed to support strategic knowledge-sharing between firms participating in an industry-based virtual community. A suitable environment for trust is seen as an important part of making the community function effectively. Therefore, the system aims to support community members in making trust decisions related to knowledge-sharing. In the presented system decisions are based on digital evidence in the form of system-managed credentials. The chapter presents a model for trust, reputation, and performance management which supports the needs of the specific type of knowledge-sharing community. Further, the model is linked to an underlying public key infrastructure framework which supports the secure exchange of information and credentials between community members.

Key Terms in this Chapter

Inter-personal trust: Existing or occurring reliance on the integrity and ability between community members

Reputation: The general estimation in which a person is held by the community members

System trust: Reliance on the integrity, ability, or character of a system

Non-financial metrics: Versification of measurements not involving financial matters

Credentials: Information used to verify the identity of a user of an information system

Community of Practice (CoP): Groups of people that emerge of their own accord with the purpose of sharing knowledge and learning from each other

Service Oriented Architecture (SOA): A perspective of software architecture that defines the use of Web services to support the requirements of software users