Accounting for workability: An examination of practice in information systems.

摘要

A longitudinal case study of an international financial services company was performed between May 2003 and January 2006. The study of Natbank (disguised for the purposes of confidentiality) operated in fifteen semi-autonomous territories, ranging from extensive operations in a given region to minimal operations in others. The case study consisted of site visits to two of the fifteen possible sites and noteworthy contact via phone and email with other sites. The study occurred during a period of organizational change in which the fifteen territories were being consolidated under a unified management strategy, and a standard operating platform was being deployed in order to facilitate the new organizational strategy. Where there had previously been four different information systems deployed across organizations, one system had been chosen to be deployed in the new organization, in part as a strategy of the consolidation.;The broad research question of this dissertation is, What is the effect of practice on efforts to make information systems workable? The concepts explored in answering this question were broken down into three integrated but distinct components. The first component is the case study, "Contradiction, Praxis and the Flexibility of Organizational Routines" (Chapter 2). This paper uses the notion of praxis to examine individual actors' perceptions of contradiction in the enactment of organizational routines as a mechanism that initiates a moment of praxis---sometimes consciously, sometimes not. Individuals act to uphold or constrain the possibility for flexibility and change in the organization. Based on the analysis, the study concludes that factors of embeddedness and relational support are necessary in the maintenance of a routine over time; and that both may contribute to flexibility or rigidity of routines during periods of organizational change. The perception of contradiction and the ability to enroll others (explicitly or implicitly) in alternate/new practices is material in the durable instantiation of work practice. A further contribution is offered in the perspective of analysis, in that the extant literature has focused on the examination of routines that are "large"---organization wide, spanning multiple individuals and relations, and often long temporal periods, by contrast, this study focused on routines of everyday practice.;Chapter 3, "Practice, Adaptation and the Resolution of Technology Use," is a second case study based on the financial institution, Natbank. This paper asks questions such as, how does identity impact information system use? And, how does the material knowledge of technology impact information system use? In contrast to the previous paper, this examination focuses on individuals rather than relational networks engaged in routines. It provides a complementary analysis that examines how individual frames of reference emerge; which in turn impact the possibility of recognizing contradiction and informing possible reflective action. In addressing the primary research questions, the paper concludes that identity plays a metering role in the emergence of information system deployments---whether in line with design, or otherwise. Further, the paper suggests knowledge of the material aspects of technology and information systems is incorporated into the practices and sense of identity of individuals.;The fourth chapter, "Constituting Institutional Practice" is an essay proposing a theoretical lens developed through a synthesis of institutional theory and communities of practice theory. The previous two chapters provide synergistic forms of analysis that focus on different aspects of relations of practice---how it is that mechanisms of change might unfold in moments of reflective action, and how individual frames of reference might evolve such that the possibility of recognizing contradiction and the potential for reflective action emerges. The paper concludes suggesting the theoretical synthesis finds harmony in similar foci of practice. Additionally, both perspectives provide insight into the other perspectives "unlit passage ways." Communities of practice theory offers a robust technique to analyze the individual and the importance of the material aspects of technology, and institutional theory allows for the examination of practices and beliefs over time and across networks.;The broad question in which this dissertation is framed, what is the effect of practice on efforts to make information systems workable? is addressed in several ways. First, organizational change appears to emerge in instances where individuals are able to perceive a contradiction from the way things "should be" and are able to enact alternative practices to correct such contradictions. These enactments must be resilient such that, through explicit or implicit means, individuals are able to enroll the support of other networks or communities in making the practice legitimate. Second, I suggest a method for analyzing individual frames of reference directed at how individuals perceive the possibility of change, and in turn deploy adaptive practices such that perceived needs are met. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)