This book is concerned with the ways in which organizations design, build and use information technology systems. In particular it looks at the interaction between these IT-centred activities and the broader management processes within organizations. The authors adopt a critical social science perspective on these issues, and are primarily concerned with advancing theoretical debates on how best to understand the related processes of technological and organizational change. To this end, the book examines and deploys recent work on power/knowledge, actor-network theory and critical organization theory. The result is an account of the nature and significance of information systems in organizations which is an alternative perspective to pragmatic and recipe-based approaches to this topic which dominate much contemporary management literature on IT.

The advent of the Information Society is marked by the explosive penetration of information technologies in all aspects of life and by a related fundamental transformation in every form of the organization. Researchers, business people and policy makers have recognized the importance of addressing technological, economic and social impacts in conjunction. For example, the rise and fall of the dot-com hype depended a lot on the strength of the business model, on the technological capabilities available to firms and on the readiness of the society and economy at large sustain a new breed of business activity. However, it is notoriously difficult to examine the cross-impacts of social, economic and technological aspects of the Information Society. This kind of work requires multidisciplinary work and collaboration on a wide range of skills. Social and Economic Transformation in the Digital Era addresses this challenge by assembling the latest thinking of leading researchers and policy makers. The book covers all key subject areas of the Information Society an presents innovative business models, case studies, normative theories and social explanations

"This book discusses methods of using information technologies to support organizational and business objectives in both national and international contexts, describing the latest research on both the technical and non-technical aspects of contemporary information societies, including e-commerce, e-learning, e-government, and e-health"--Provided by publisher.

'Although critical research represents a small portion of all IS research, it has always posed insightful challenges to more conventional approaches. This volume assembles a wide array of contributions by leading researchers in the field. The editors clarify the broad range of critical research beyond the seminal contributions that appeared early in IS research, making this an essential guide to contemporary approaches as well as a summation of prior contributions.' – Daniel Robey, Georgia State University, US 'This indispensable book provides an excellent overview of the variety of perspectives that characterize critical research in the information systems field.' – Michael D. Myers, University of Auckland, New Zealand This important Handbook provides a unique overview of information systems (IS) research by focusing on the increasing interest in critical-related issues. Representing a significant step forward in the development of critical perspectives on the IS field, the Handbook draws together original contributions from leading authors who offer alternatives to the current mainstream approaches to IS research. In order to accommodate the various strands of critical understanding, a broad range of views and theoretical standpoints are encompassed, thereby combining theory with practical applications, and offering a valuable source of reference for this emerging area of research. Recent years have witnessed a more explicit focus on critical research and, continuing in that vein, the editors adopt an inclusive approach which considers alternative insights that can arise from critical IS research. Topics explored include, amongst others: • management trends and IS • flexibility, freedom and women's emancipation • 'consuming passions' in the global knowledge economy • critical discourse analysis for the study of information systems • evaluation of e-governance projects in India • rationalities and emotions in IS innovation • capital, information technology and enterprise development • mediated work in global business organizations. Reflecting on key themes and emergent issues in critical information systems research, this Handbook will be invaluable reading for both academics and practitioners with an interest in a critical understanding of information systems from a variety of perspectives.

"This book makes an effort to explore the interaction of information technology and strategic management and aims to encourage joint research efforts among IT and strategy scholars for common solutions"--Provided by publisher.

Collaboration of organizations reshapes traditional managerial practices and creates new inter-organizational contexts for strategy, coordination and control, information and knowledge management. Heralded as organizational forms of the future, networks are at the same time fragile and precarious organizational arrangements, which regularly fail. In order to investigate the new realities created by technology-enabled forms of network organizations and to address the emerging managerial challenges, this book introduces an integrative view on inter-firm network management. Centred on a network life cycle perspective, strategic, economic and relational facets of business networking are explored. The network management framework is illustrated onto a broad range of European inter-firm network examples in various industries rendering insights for new management practices.

This Handbook provides critical, interdisciplinary contributions from leading international academics on the theory and methodology, practical applications, and broader context of Management Information Systems, as well as offering potential avenues for future research

This volume presents papers from the 10th Working Conference of the IFIP WG 8.6 on the adoption and diffusion of information systems and technologies. It explores the dynamics of how some technological innovation efforts succeed while others fail. The book looks to expand the research agenda, paying special attention to the areas of theoretical perspectives, methodologies, and organizational sectors.

An authoritative collection of leading critical and contemporary writings published in the field of technology and organizations. The set spans a 50-year time period taking the reader from the first and most influential papers from the early 1950s through to some recent publications which address contemporary and emerging debates in the field at the dawn of the 21st century. Each of the 4 volumes has a particular focus upon this area of research and scholarship: the early debates; theories, paradigms and concepts; critical empirical studies; and emerging themes and future debates. The editors provide an introduction to, and overview of, the themes, debates, perspectives, theories and paradigms which characterize this area of organization studies, and set out a "route map" to help guide the reader through the four volumes.

"This book provides a comprehensive understanding and coverage of the various theories, models and related research approaches used within IS research"--Provided by publisher.