ITM 301
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Module 3 - Home
Computer Technology and the Networked Organization
Modular Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this module, the student will be able to satisfy the following outcomes:
•Case ◦Define the role played by information in different kinds of decisions.
◦Define the steps in creating a system and how they are connected to other organizational processes.
•SLP ◦Describe how Web 2.0 technologies can help information sharing within organizations.
•Discussion ◦Explain the process of technology implementation and the tradeoffs between social and technical goals.
Module Overview
IT applications are the basic tools we all use on our computers. At the cutting edge of applications are the cooperative work tools collectively termed "groupware." There are many specific varieties of things called groupware, but they all have in common the idea of shared information work and a single tool that serves many people. Groupware can be divided approximately into three categories: communication tools, conferencing tools, and collaborative management or coordination tools. Communication tools facilitate the sharing of data, files, messages or documents between the users. They include electronic mail, fax, voice mail, electronic/web publishing, and the like. Conferencing tools also enable information sharing, but more interactively. They include data conferencing, voice conferencing, video conferencing, Internet forums, chat rooms and electronic meeting systems, etc. Collaboration tools are more complex, including electronic calendars or time management software, project management systems, workflow systems, knowledge management systems, extranet systems, and social software systems. There are also a variety of even more sophisticated systems involving virtual reality, virtual groups, shared workspaces, and a variety of other space-age techniques.
The reason why groupware is particularly interesting to study is that it has been far less effective in improving organizational performance than it ought to have been, given its technical advantages. In fact, the process of implementing groupware has been one of the most frustrating parts of the IT game for many years. The problem in many cases is that groupware systems are relatively complex, made up of numerous elements that can be assembled in different ways by different people at different times. Unfortunately, only some of these ways produce significant improvements, but it's not always clear in advance what they are, and because systems tend to be implemented in small steps, it's often hard to arrive at optimal configurations for these technologies. In practice, information systems are defined less by their technology than by how they are used. Two systems that begin with identical hardware and software but are installed and implemented in different settings can in a relatively short time look extremely different. This is not necessarily a bad thing, although it frustrates system designers and hardware/software sales people and may, in fact, result in less than fully optimal use of the technology.
The reasons for this evolution lie, as we've suggested earlier, in organizational politics and economics. No technical issue is just a technical issue; you must consider the effects on the distribution of resources and rewards in the organization with as much care and energy as you devote to the specifics of the tools. You can, of course, neglect or reject this point and push ahead with technical solutions to information system problems without regard to the social arrangements and who's being helped or hurt, and how -- but the evidence is pretty clear that if you do so, the social arrangements will return to bite you from behind when you least expect. Human beings are enormously resilient and flexible, which is one reason we are able to make changes when we need to. It is also a reason why we are able to resist changes for which we see no reason.
