Demonstrating CWA Strategies Analysis: A Case Study of Municipal Winter Maintenance

Abstract

Widespread acceptance of Cognitive Work Analysis (CWA) as a framework for design of complex sociotechnical systems is dependent on how well the theoretical foundations can be applied to real-world systems. Although literature on CWA has many application examples, the first phase, Work Domain Analysis, is over-represented. Later phases such as Strategies Analysis, the third phase of CWA, can provide comparable insight to designers. Understanding how activities can be performed can be instrumental in designing work support tools that are robust to changing priorities and conditions. In this paper, a Strategies Analysis is applied to the City of Toronto Municipal Winter Maintenance Program to illustrate how an analysis can be conducted. Both a traditional Strategies Analysis in decision-making terms and a novel Strategies Analysis in work domain terms are presented.