What Can We Learn from the Implementation of the Automated Baggage-Handling System at the Denver International Airport?

Most analyses about risk in implementing large-scale information technology have tended to focus on discrete outcomes and to draw boundaries which often fail to capture important social relationships. It is argued here that the risk of failure needs to be interpreted operationally, not just as inherent in certain structural features of the environment or of a project, but also as arising from distinct human and organizational practices and patterns of belief and action. The emphasis is on the mutual influence between the large-scale information technology, the context in which it is being embedded, and the process of its implementation. Drawing on the rich data of the implementation of an automated baggage-handling system at the Denver International Airport, this presentation aims to foster discussion about risks associated with theimplementation of large-scale information technology systems

Addresing the Role of Digital Technology in the COVID-19 Recovery

Given the accelerated adoption of technology during coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) and the emergence of new needs in terms of new products and services, new business models, and new ways of organizing, the question of how digital technology will impact the recovery after the pandemic is highly salient for scholars of strategy, management, and information systems (IS). This paper attempts to interpret the progress, direction, and purpose of the current research related to digital transformation—the process of digital technology enabled changes. It highlights the importance of taking stock of what we know about digital transformation and shedding more light on what is unique about the post-pandemic recovery phenomenon. To illustrate the potential lasting effect of digital technology in the COVID-19 recovery, four areas in which the pandemic accelerated digital adoption globally are analyzed in detailed: remote work, virtual healthcare, remote learning, and online grocery shopping. Then, the article illustrates the implications for future research at the crossroads between the COVID-19 recovery and digital transformation across multiple levels of analysis, including individual, organization, and society

ISLA 2020 Keynote: We’ve got work to do! Enabling the COVID-19 recovery digitally

Given the accelerated adoption of technology during coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) and the emergence of new needs in terms of new products and services, new business models, and new ways of organizing, the question of how digital technology will impact the recovery after the pandemic is highly salient for scholars of strategy, management, and information systems (IS). This paper attempts to interpret the progress, direction, and purpose of the current research related to digital transformation—the process of digital technology enabled changes. It highlights the importance of taking stock of what we know about digital transformation and shedding more light on what is unique about the post-pandemic recovery phenomenon. Then, the article illustrates the implications for future research at the crossroads between the COVID-19 recovery and digital transformation across multiple levels of analysis, including individual, organization, and society

A Ghost Workers' Bill of Rights: How to Establish a Fair and Safe Gig Work Platform

Many of us assume that all the free editing and sorting of online content we ordinarily rely on is carried out by AI algorithms — not human persons. Yet in fact, that is often not the case. This is because human workers remain cheaper, quicker, and more reliable than AI for performing myriad tasks where the right answer turns on ineffable contextual criteria too subtle for algorithms to yet decode. The output of this work is then used for machine learning purposes to generate algorithms constructed from large data sets containing thousands of correctly coded observations. The fact that ghost workers are treated as consumers distorts the basic logic of the employment relationship, effectively placing the worker-as-consumer in the worst of both worlds, in which they hold the legal rights of neither group. This puts them in a regulatory limbo position in which they have little or no protection, control, or guarantee of return on investment. This is because the platforms that facilitate ghost work have orchestrated a three-way virtual relationship that absolves all parties of responsibility, while placing nearly all the risks and opportunity costs squarely on the shoulders of the workers. As a result, we believe such a work arrangement as it stands, does not uphold basic standards of Rawlsian justice as fairness

Global IS research: Cultivating universalistic and situated perspectives in the age of ubiquitous computing

This paper examines the tension between universalistic and situated perspectives particularly in terms of the forces driving each perspective as well as other forces constraining them. This concept is discussed in general, and then applied to a set of specific topics across the range of global IS concerns. The paper includes a discussion of the tension between these perspectives in investigating emerging topics in global IS research and concludes providing some guidance in extending research in this area

Knowledge Management System Use as a Key Driver of Professional and Organizational Cognitive Engagement

This study aims to contribute to the literature on knowledge management systems (KMS) through investigating the role of engagement as an important intermediary in the relationship between KMS use and outcomes. Building on prior literature, we propose a theoretical model that conceptualizes KMS use as a valuable resource and distinguish between two types of cognitive engagement: professional cognitive engagement and organizational cognitive engagement. These, in turn, mediate the KMS use-job performance and KMS use-organizational commitment relationships. We tested the model on a sample of 3354 real estate agents using an extensive dataset comprised of primary and secondary data. The findings show that KMS use has an impact on individuals’ professional and organizational cognitive engagement, which then impacts their job performance and organizational commitment. However, our findings indicate that professional cognitive engagement only partially mediates the relationship between KMS use and job performance. We conclude the paper with a discussion of theoretical contributions and practical implications

Understanding Ambidexterity: Managing Contradictory Tensions Between Exploration and Exploitation in the Evolution of Digital Infrastructure

Prior research on the evolution of digital infrastructure has paid considerable attention to effective strategies for resolving contradictory tensions, yet what we still do not understand is the role of higher-level organizational capabilities that help balance the contradictory tensions that emerge during this evolution. In addressing this gap, two related questions guided our investigation: (1) How do organizations experience and resolve contradictory tensions throughout the evolution of digital infrastructure? and (2) What can we learn about the organizational capabilities that drive strategic actions in resolving these contradictory tensions? We approach these questions using an in-depth case study at RE/MAX LLC, a global real estate franchise. Based on our findings, we propose a theoretical model of digital infrastructure ambidexterity. The model recognizes three pairs of capabilities (identifying and germinating, expanding and legitimizing, and augmenting and implanting) and two supporting factors (leadership and structure) that are key to resolving contradictory tensions during this evolution. This study responds to a recent research call for dynamic process perspectives at multiple levels of analysis. We discuss the implications of this model for research and practice and offer observations for future research

A Coevolutionary View of Information Services Development: Lessons from the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

This study investigates the process of information services development based on a case study of the experience of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). In this study, we develop theoretical constructs that can inform researchers and practitioners on (1) what the critical domains and interactions associated with the emerging process of information service development at these organizations were, and (2) how information services at NOAA evolved over time? Adopting a coevolutionary view, we identified distinct yet interdependent domains that affected, and were affected by, the information services development process; these were: (1) services choreography, through which service interactions and collaborations are managed; (2) services orchestration, through which service processes are selected and interact; and (3) services instrumentation, by which services are developed and architected. Using the coevolutionary view, we uncovered three adaptive principles that explain the interplay among domains and interactions over time: adaptive tensions, requisite variety, and modular design. We discuss our findings’ implications for research and practice and offer propositions for future research