Organizational dependency on Information and Communication Technology (ICT) drives the preparedness challenge to cope with business process disruptions. Business Continuity Management (BCM) encompasses effective planning to enable business functions to resume to an acceptable state of operation within a defined timeframe. This paper presents a systematic literature review that communicates the strategic guidelines to streamline the organizational processes in the BCM program, culminating in the Business Continuity Plan design, according to the organization’s maturity. The systematic literature review methodology follows the Evidence-Based Software Engineering protocol assisted by the Parsifal tool, using the EbscoHost, ScienceDirect, and Scopus databases, ranging from 2000 to February 2021. International Standards and Frameworks guide the BCM program implementation, however, there is a gap in communicating metrics and what needs to be measured in the BCM program. The major paper result is the confirmation of the identified gap, through the analysis of the studies that, according to the BCM components, report strategic guidelines to streamline the BCM program. The analysis quantifies and discusses the contribution of the studies on each BCM component to design a framework supported by metrics, that allows assessing the organization’s preparedness in each BCM component, focusing on Information Systems and ICT strategies.

Business Continuity Management (BCM) encompasses effective planning to respond to business interruptions and relaunch business in the short term. This study follows the Design Science Research methodology and proposes a framework to systematise Business Continuity Management and streamline the Business Continuity Plan (BCP) design and implementation. The framework defines metrics providing strategical guidance and assessment of the Business Continuity Management initiatives. The framework provides a Business Continuity Management Model, an Implementation Guide, a Self-Assessment System, and a Measurement System. The model was developed based on a systematic literature review and guidelines from Business Continuity Management frameworks and standards. In the first iteration, we demonstrated and evaluated the framework through a Focus Group with experts in Business Continuity Management. In the second iteration, it was used and evaluated by professionals with responsibilities in Business Continuity Plan implementation, representing various business sectors. As a result, the framework is useful and complete, effective and enhances governance and is scalable and adaptable to organisations. This study concludes that the framework adds value to Business Continuity Management monitoring, gaps identification, and practitioner’s guidance on what needs to be planned, done, checked and acted to manage continuity.

O objetivo deste artigo é apoiar as empresas no processo de implementação de um programa informático de faturação certificado pela Administração Tributária, no momento da decisão em investir no desenvolvimento interno ou na aquisição de um programa de faturação, tendo em consideração a capacidade de investimento da empresa, a tecnologia necessária e a conformidade com os requisitos fiscais. Foi efetuada a caraterização das empresas portuguesas e da faturação eletrónica em Portugal, bem como o enquadramento regulamentar e fiscal português, que condiciona a emissão de documentos fiscalmente relevantes, por via eletrónica. Através da análise da literatura sobre a temática e do enquadramento legal, foi identificado um conjunto de requisitos essenciais para a conformidade e subjacentes à certificação de um programa de faturação, que permite criar um modelo de decisão comum, aplicável a empresas portuguesas, que decidam implementar um programa de faturação. Considera-se que o instrumento de apoio à decisão desenvolvido permitirá às empresas adquirentes ou produtoras de software, ampliar a compreensão dos requisitos, dos possíveis constrangimentos e dos resultados esperados, no momento de delinear a conformidade com os requisitos, subjacentes à certificação de programas informáticos de faturação, para implementação de faturação eletrónica.

In the current global context, with so many challenges to be faced, it is important to see people’s increased interest in sustainability is­sues as an opportunity for change. Sustainable Software Engineering, as a recent research area, incorporates sustainability principles and dimensions in the software development process. On the other hand, the Design Science Research methodology has become a well-received research paradigm in Information Systems in general and in Software Engineering in particu­lar. The paper presents a Sustainable Software Engineering approach inte­grated into the Design Science Research methodology. The concepts of sus­tainability in software development, namely the principles of the Karlskro­na Manifesto, the principles of Green Software Engineering and the Sustain­able Development Goals are integrated into the approach. Preliminary re­sults from applying the approach indicate that the iterative process of the Design Science Research methodology allows for the integration of multi­disciplinary sustainability artefacts during the software process.

Information and communication technologies (ICT) can provide added value in an organizational context in order to enhance the definition of business support strategies. The purpose of the chapter is to focus on the contribution of ICT to implement a sustainability policy in the organizations, in the context of the sustainable development goals to improve cooperation and promote development. In this context, the principles of the Karlskrona Manifesto are applied to the development of software systems. The methodology focused on the literature review of the domain and on a case study, in order to analyze the impact of ICT as an engine of sustainability in organizations. The main conclusions focus on the analysis of the impact of established practices in organizations to design and develop sustainable software systems. The results point to a greater consciousness of the potential effects of software systems on sustainability, which will improve management practices, reducing the quantity of material to be recycled, and aligning organizational strategies with Green IT.