Advanced Topics in Global Information Management is the third in a series of books on advance topics in global information management (GIM). GIM research continues to progress, with some scholars pushing the boundaries of thinking and others challenging the status quo. *Note: This book is part of a new series entitled "Advanced Topics in Global Information Management." This book is Volume Three within this series (Vol. III, 2004).
This book represents the second phase of a multi-method, multi-study of the 'Information Systems Academic Discipline in Australia'. Drawing on Whitley's Theory of Scientific Change, the study analysed the degree of 'professionalisation' of the Information Systems Discipline, the overarching research question being 'To what extent is Information Systems a distinct and mature discipline in Australia?' The book chapters are structured around three main sections: a) the context of the study; b) the state case studies; and c) Australia-wide evidence and analysis. The book is crafted to be accessible to IS and non-IS types both within and outside of Australia. It represents a 'check point'; a snapshot at a point in time. As the first in a hoped for series of such snap-shots, it includes a brief history of IS in Australia, bringing us up to the time of this report. The editorial team comprises Guy Gable, architect and leader; Bob Smyth, project manager; Shirley Gregor, sponsor, host and co-theoretician; Roger Clarke, discipline memory; and Gail Ridley, theoretician. In phase two, the editors undertook to examine each component study, with a view to arriving at an Australia-wide perspective.
This text serves as a complete introduction to the subject of knowledge management (KM), incorporating technical and social aspects, as well as concepts, practical examples, traditional KM approaches, and emerging topics.
Although difficult, change in academic structures is necessary today, especially in fast-changing fields today such as biology, computing, management, the social sciences, and others. This includes changes within existing organizations as well as creation of new structures and reorganizations or eliminations of older ones. This narrative attempts first to document the historical rise of an organization, Georgia Tech’s College of Computing, that has touched and successfully changed the lives of thousands of people. Second, it aims to identify and explicate some of what has led to this widely acknowledged success. The book provides a chronological narrative that highlights major changes taken under each successive leader. These changes have built on one another, knowingly or otherwise, to create a growing organization that rivals in size and prominence longer established parts of the university. The case study, while of an academic organization focused on computing, provides general lessons applicable almost anywhere. Topics and features: Discusses the nature and uses of visions, both general and specific Shows how visions can be used to drive specific actions and resource allocations Illustrates the choice and use of enduring organizational principles Outlines a simple strategic-planning method and its application Indicates results of this overall approach This book will be of interest to anyone interested in organizational change, especially in academia, and to those interested in Georgia Tech. It will also appeal to policymakers in education, government, and industry; as well as anyone interested in the historical growth of the computing milieu broadly. Peter A. Freeman was Founding Dean and Professor in the College of Computing at Georgia Tech from 1990 to 2002. Today he is an Emeritus Dean and Professor.