Information Systems and Operation Management

While the conventions for evaluating information systems case studies conducted according to the natural science model of social science are now widely accepted, this is not the case for interpretive field studies. A set of principles for the conduct and evaluation of interpretive field research in information systems is proposed, along with their philosophical rationale. The usefulness of the principles is illustrated by evaluating three published interpretive field studies drawn from the IS research literature. The intention of the paper is to further reflection and debate on the important subject of grounding interpretive research methodology.

Welcome to the ISWorld Section on Qualitative Research in Information Systems (IS). This section aims to provide qualitative researchers in IS -and those wanting to know how to do qualitative research -with useful information on the conduct, evaluation and publication of qualitative research.

or is bad research and is now defeated, but that qualitative approaches are now accepted as equal in value to quantitative approaches when used appropriately. Whether or not an approach is appropriate depends on the research topic and the research questions being addressed. A particular strength of qualitative methods is their value in explaining what goes on in organizations.

Ethnographic research is one of the most in-depth research methods possible. Because the researcher is at a research site for a long time -and sees what people are doing as well as what they say they are doing -an ethnographer obtains a deep understanding of the people, the organization, and the broader context within which they work. Ethnographic research is thus well suited to providing information systems researchers with rich insights into the human, social, and organizational aspects of information systems. This article discusses the potential of ethnographic research for IS researchers, and outlines the most important issues that need to be considered in selecting this method.

Action research (AR), which emphasises collaboration between researchers and practitioners, is a qualitative research method that has much potential for the information systems (IS) field. AR studies of IS phenomena are now beginning to be published in the IS research literature. However, the rigour of many AR studies in IS can be improved. When AR has been published, the findings have frequently been emphasised at the expense of the process. In this article, we look at the process in AR projects, and look at some of the key choices and alternatives in controlling AR. We discuss three aspects of control: the procedures for initiating an AR project, those for determining authority within the project, and the degree of formalisation. We analyse seven recent AR projects in IS and from this analysis distil recommendations for determining these control structures.

In recent years there has been much debate about the actual state and possible future of information systems as an academic discipline . While there is, as yet, no consensus as to what should be included or excluded from the field , it is generally accepted that information systems is an essentially pluralistic field, founded on knowledge from many other well-established source disciplines. The insights from these other disciplines have proved of relevance to researchers, teachers and practitioners alike.

Alntraet-The New Z~,~t~nd Education Department atumapted to implement a centralized payroll system in 1989. The difficulties that the department experienced were broadcast on national radio and television and publicised on the front page of The New Zealand Herald. In the end, the centralized payroll system was scrapped by the government.

Research methods are the means by which knowledge is acquired and constructed within a discipline. Research methods need to be both relevant and rigorous in order to be accepted as legitimate within a particular field of knowledge. Information systems (IS) is a field which has multiple stakeholders in its knowledge development, operating in contexts which have to deal with multiplicity, cross-linkage, diversity and continually emerging changes, demanding integration as a key perspective. The diversity needs to be applauded rather than denied, even in the customarily slow-to-change world of research.

Despite the proliferation of information technology, the implementation of information systemsremains problematic. Many systems fail to live up to expectations and some end up as disasters. Research on implementation has been conducted for the past two decades, but no theoretical framework for IS implementation has been widely accepted. This paper proposes dialectical hermeneutics as a theoretical framework for IS implementation research. Dialectical hermeneutics, as an integrative theoretical framework, combines both interpretive and critical elements, and addresses those social and organizational issues which are critical to the successful implementation of information systems. The case study research method was used to examine the implementation of systems in three organizations.

It is often claimed that information technology has the potential to transform entire industries. However, we find that very little IS research has been conducted at the industry level. Moreover, the small amount of research that has been conducted on IT and industries has been based largely on just one perspective of industries. Given the scale and potential impact of the changes that are happening at an industry level, we believe a concerted effort is needed to study this phenomenon.

It is well known that executive information systems (EIS) are high risk systems to implement and maintain. Factor research is the most commonly used framework for studying the causes of EIS failure yet there is no conclusive evidence that the factors suggested in the information systems (IS) research literature ensure system success. This paper reports on a case study of a failed EIS in a large New Zealand organization and compares this case with the success factors found in the research literature. One of the ® ndings is that the broader issues surrounding the failure were more signi® cant than the more narrowly focused factors suggested by the factor research approach. These broader issues include the social, cultural, political and economic context of the system as a whole. Another ® nding was that many of these broader contextual issues were not directly controllable by the EIS project team. This paper will have implications for all those who have to develop or are involved with the development of EIS.

A wave of'digital natives' those who have spent their entire lives surrounded by digital technologies is about to hit organisations in developed countries. But how will companies cope with the habits and assumptions of this new workforce? Will they ban Facebook at work, as Television New Zealand did? Or will managers most of whom are digital immigrants instead try to accommodate them?

There is a growing body of research looking at the adoption and diffusion of IS innovations. This paper assesses three theories of IS innovation and adoption: the stages model, the decision episode framework, and the technological framework model. The three theories are assessed with reference to an in-depth interpretive case study of a funds management company in New Zealand. The most important finding is that no one theory on its own is able to explain what happened in this particular case.

We are pleased to bring you this volume of papers prepared for the EFIP Working Group 8.2 Conference held in Barcelona in December 2002. The subject of organizational discourse about information technology, and its counterpart, the discussion of technology as part of globalization, have been constant themes in Information Systems (IS) and within IFIP Working Group 8.2 for many years.