麻豆AV

Desautels Faculty of Management professor Alain Pinsonneault has won the Best Publication of 2006 Award as co-author (with HEC Montr茅al professors Ryad Titah and Marlei Pozzebon) of "Combining Social Shaping of Technology and Communicative Action Theory for Understanding Rhetorical Closure in IT."

The prestigious award is presented annually to the five best papers published in the field of information systems, as selected by a consortium of senior IS scholars. The award was presented at the 2007 International Conference on Information Systems, held in Montreal from December 9-12, that attracted 1,331 attendees from 45 countries. The conference was co-chaired by professors Pinsonneault and Brent Gallupe (Queen's University).

The paper examines the disconnect between IT service providers and their clients when discussing the need for configurable information technology (IT). The research suggest that the disconnect, "rhetorical closure," manifests itself as a tendency for companies to embark on new IT "fashions," even when evidence questions the efficacy of these "fads." Pinsonneault, Pozzebon and Titah show that the rhetoric of closure is developed and sustained by a network of IT market players, often proving to be more cost-effective for vendors and consulting firms than it is for buyers and client firms. Using communications action theory and critical discourse analysis, the research identifies opportunities for market participants to break down rhetorical discourse. The resulting awareness of occasions of negotiation can increase an organization's proactivity regarding the management of technology.

The paper can be viewed until January 9, 2008, by clicking "More information" and applying the username ICIS and password Emerald.