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Publications

2026

Adoption of Artificial Intelligence in Organizational Coaching Processes

Authors
Faquir, Y; Santos, A; Mamede, HS;

Publication
AI

Abstract
Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming how organizations develop human potential, offering scalable and data-driven support for coaching and capability building. This study proposes and validates a conceptual framework for integrating AI into organizational coaching processes to enhance competence development and strategic alignment. AI-supported coaching in this research is treated as an emerging organizational technology whose potential organizational value depends less on model capability and more on governance design, decision rights, and auditable evaluation outputs. Following a mixed-methods, multi-phase design, the research combined a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) with the construction of a layered design architecture in which OSCAR serves as the primary coaching-process scaffold, complemented by KSA for competency specification, Situational Leadership for adaptive guidance, and KPIs for monitoring and governance. The framework structures AI-supported coaching across 10 interrelated phases, from contextual anchoring to review and measurement, while preserving iterative re-entry to earlier phases whenever review evidence, contextual change, or insufficient progress makes adjustment necessary. Prototyping demonstrated feasibility and coherence across models, while the focus group provided qualitative expert feedback on the framework’s clarity, governance needs, and perceived usefulness for competence development. At this stage, however, the KPI structures generated by the framework and the descriptive comparison across AI tools should be interpreted as prototype-level outputs rather than as empirically validated performance measures or evidence of added value over baseline approaches. Because the evaluation relied on two fictional prototyping scenarios and a small expert-oriented focus group (n = 6), the findings should be interpreted as evidence of prototype demonstration and qualitative refinement rather than of real-world effectiveness or organizational impact. The study also does not include a control group or comparison with traditional human coaching, so the added value of the AI-supported framework over alternative coaching arrangements remains a question for future empirical testing. Findings suggest that AI can usefully support organizational coaching by personalizing dialogue, structuring reflection, and generating auditable development artefacts, provided ethical safeguards and human oversight remain integral. The research contributes a preliminarily validated, ethics-informed, and governance-aware framework for AI adoption in organizational coaching and offers practical insights for embedding AI-enabled development in learning organizations.

2026

Machine Learning and Knowledge Discovery in Databases. Applied Data Science Track and Demo Track - European Conference, ECML PKDD 2025, Porto, Portugal, September 15-19, 2025, Proceedings, Part X

Authors
Dutra, I; Pechenizkiy, M; Cortez, P; Pashami, S; Pasquali, A; Moniz, N; Jorge, AM; Soares, C; Abreu, PH; Gama, J;

Publication
ECML/PKDD (10)

Abstract

2026

The influence of School principals' management on school efficiency: Evidence from Italian schools

Authors
Mergoni, A; Camanho, A; Soncin, M; Agasisti, T; De Witte, K;

Publication
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF OPERATIONAL RESEARCH

Abstract
This paper investigates the relationship between school principals' managerial practices and two key mensions of school performance: students' cognitive outcomes and school climate. School performance assessed using a classical Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) framework, complemented by both unconditional robust and conditional robust models to evaluate the influence of managerial practices on school efficiency. We introduce a methodological innovation that allows for a nuanced analysis of how contextual variables-specifically, principals' managerial practices-affect performance, both individually and through their interactions. The analysis is based on 2019 INVALSI data from a nationally representative sample of 8th grade students in Italian schools. The findings show that principals' practices, as well as the ways in which these practices interact, play a significant role in shaping school efficiency, particularly by promoting a positive supportive school climate.

2026

Optimizing Mobile IAB Deployment and Scheduling in Obstruction-Prone 6G Seaport Networks

Authors
Correia, PF; Coelho, A; Ricardo, M;

Publication
IEEE ACCESS

Abstract
Integrated Access and Backhaul (IAB) technology in cellular networks operating in the 3.x GHz band combines access and backhaul functionalities within a wireless framework, reducing dependence on fiber-based solutions and enabling cost-efficient, flexible network expansion. Deploying a mobile IAB (MIAB) in obstruction-prone environments, such as seaports, offers on-demand capacity and resilience but poses unique challenges due to severe shadowing from dense physical obstacles. This paper presents a three-dimensional, obstacle-aware model for optimal MIAB placement and scheduler selection in networks comprising user equipments (UEs) and fixed IABs (FIABs). We evaluate user and backhaul association patterns under different scheduling strategies, including Round-Robin (RR) and Weighted Round-Robin (WRR), ensuring that both MIABs and FIABs meet UE application-layer capacity demands without exceeding backhaul limits. A genetic algorithm (GA)-based optimizer is employed to explore deployment configurations under varying FIAB densities, number of UEs, and obstacles. Results show that MIAB assistance yields the greatest benefits in sparse FIAB networks and low-UE scenarios, with capacity gains reaching up to 350%. MIAB delivers the greatest added value in the presence of obstacles. In contrast, dense FIAB deployments exhibit diminishing returns from MIAB integration. Across most of the evaluated conditions, WRR outperforms RR by enabling fairer and more adaptive resource blocks (RBs) allocation. These findings provide practical guidance for targeted MIAB deployment strategies that balance infrastructure investment, environmental constraints, and scheduling policies.

2026

Interactive In-App Guidance for Healthcare Software Onboarding: A Systematic Review and Mixed-Methods Survey (Preprint)

Authors
Lopes, V; S. Mamede, H; Santos, A;

Publication

Abstract
BACKGROUND

Healthcare organizations increasingly rely on complex digital systems, but software onboarding often depends on manuals and classroom-based training that do not fit well with fast-paced clinical workflows. Interactive in-app guidance may better support learning during real work, although healthcare-specific evidence is still limited.

OBJECTIVE

To synthesize evidence on effective onboarding mechanisms for healthcare software and to explore how interactive in-app guidance compares with traditional onboarding in terms of perceived learning support, cognitive burden, and adoption-related outcomes.

METHODS

The study used a sequential design with two components: (1) a systematic literature review following Kitchenham’s procedures; and (2) a mixed-methods survey administered via Qualtrics to healthcare professionals (n = 44), complemented by a small screened subsample of IT professionals with healthcare DAP implementation experience (n = 5). Quantitative data were analysed descriptively, and qualitative responses were examined through thematic analysis to explain and contextualize the observed patterns.

RESULTS

The findings from both the literature review and the survey showed a consistent pattern: workflow-embedded onboarding approaches, including hands-on practice, stepwise contextual guidance, and searchable in-app support, were perceived to reduce learning friction and cognitive effort while improving confidence. Among healthcare respondents, 61% reported greater willingness to use the software after onboarding. Continued use was mainly associated with remembering how to use features, interface usability, workflow efficiency, and perceived impact on patient care. IT respondents highlighted implementation constraints related to integration, analytics, and compliance, but also perceived reductions in support burden.

CONCLUSIONS

Interactive, context-sensitive onboarding appears to be a practical strategy to support healthcare software adoption, especially because it aligns learning with real workflows. The findings support the use of workflow-embedded guidance to improve usability in context and user confidence during onboarding, while also indicating the need for stronger healthcare-specific, outcome-based evaluations of DAP-enabled approaches.

2026

Virtual production education in film curricula: Scope, methods, and pedagogies - A systematic multivocal review

Authors
Silveira, RA; Mamede, HS; Santos, A;

Publication
CONVERGENCE-THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RESEARCH INTO NEW MEDIA TECHNOLOGIES

Abstract
Virtual production (VP) is becoming central to film and television education, with universities offering degree programs, minors, tracks, electives, and short-term credentials. This review of 115 English-language sources, including 55 curricula from 49 higher education institutions (HEI), shows VP as a socially uneven, tool-weighted formation clustered in well-resourced Anglophone systems. Curricula overwhelmingly foreground real-time workflows, engine-driven pipelines, and stage operations over story development, audio design, and game-adjacent or interactive practices. The core tools include the Unreal Engine, motion-capture systems, and LED volumes, framed as prestige infrastructure rather than collective capacity. Programs emphasize employability, production-style blocks, and 'learning by doing real jobs', supporting industry transition but compressing experimentation, critique, and cross-cultural perspectives. Competency stacks map robust technical cores but reveal structural gaps in leadership, narrative, sound, and AI/ML literacy. The findings argue that evaluating VP education requires analyzing how programmes distribute technological and symbolic capital, organize human-machine networks, and produce learning spaces. Future research should model VP curricula as sociotechnical networks, measure AI integration maturity, test transferability, track longitudinal outcomes, map non-English ecosystems, and formalize stage pedagogy frameworks.

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