The current landscape of the information systems research literature concerned with developing countries is surveyed by examining a range of research articles published from 2000 onward. These are discussed in terms of the key challenges addressed, including the role of technology, and the methodological and theoretical approaches used. Prospects for future research are discussed, based on a conceptual view as to how to study information and communication technologies (ICTs) in developing countries, to classify existing work, identify gaps, and suggest future opportunities. The authors contribute to the important debate on how ICTs in general, and information systems research in particular, can make a positive difference in the developing countries. C ○ 2005Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

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Abstract: This paper considers some of the everyday practicalities of delivering an electronic health record project within an NHS Hospital Trust. Using ethnographic, observational, data we document how and in what ways the orderly character of project work is achieved against a background of battles and negotiations to deliver the project within and despite various organisational contingencies and constraints.

Copyright © with the author(s). The content of this material is to be considered preliminary and are not to be quoted without the author(s)'s permission. Information Systems group

Abstract This paper engages in a study of the conditions for convergence between information infrastructures. Inspired by the visions of convergence as one of the essential building blocks to achieve the goals of the Information Society and eEurope as well as the observation that no model has been proposed to address how and why convergence develops, we aim at providing a theoretical framework for studying such phenomena. To analyze the interrelatedness of the parallel evolution of information infrastructures, we introduce a concept of co-evolution and apply it to a study of the ongoing development of the two wireless communication platforms Universal Mobile Telephone System (UMTS) and Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) in Norway. We emphasize the importance of an adequate understanding of the infrastructures involved, including the installed bases and their intra- and inter-linkages, to anticipate possible trajectories of co-evolution. Focusing on the network dimension of the communication platforms, we show how the various technologies, politics, interests and user preferences linked to the installed bases of each of the platforms may strongly influence the direction and speed of their co-evolution. Keywords Co-evolution, convergence, information infrastructure, installed base, UMTS, WLAN

features and practicalities of NHS project work

The adoption and effective use of information and communication technologies (ICT) has the potential to yield significant benefits in the least developed countries (LDCs), which are recognized as the most vulnerable in the international community. The aim of this study was to investigate strategies to advance the use of ICT in the public sector in LDCs, with the aim of improving services and outcomes for government and citizens. A multi-level framework for analysis was developed, consistent with a structuration-type theoretical approach. A meta-analysis of data gathered in a UN study of egovernment readiness was performed, focussing on the developing countries that have greatly improved their relative positions recently. In general, the findings support the multi-level approach. At the national level, a low level of economic development, poor infrastructure and political unrest are inhibitors of public sector ICT progress. At a base level, access by individuals and organizations to ICT tools and IT-related education is necessary for e-government to be feasible. Some strategies were observed to be linked to progress with e-government across a number of developing countries: leadership and willingness to initiate change within the government sector, an incremental, step-by-step approach to development, and some sensitivity to local and cultural needs.

assessment in the converging space

What does it take for an open source, Not-for-Profit, software developed in one context to be internationalized and localized so as to be used in another context different from its origin. This question is addressed in the frame of a Health Information System application developed in and for South Africa and subsequently transferred to use in Mozambique. Through an action research effort, five sets of key challenges to cross-country translation process have been identified: (i) language rules and lack of Portuguese equivalent terms from English, (ii) length of strings, (iii) different naming conventions, (iv) different organizational structures, and (v) inadequate knowledge. The understanding of these challenges helps us to identify the different features of translation associated with “general purpose ” and “special purpose ” applications. The analysis helps to address the question of how a “pragmatic balance ” can be obtained between the needs for creating internationalized products on one hand, and that for providing flexibility for local adaptation on the other hand.

In recent years, organizations have been standardizing their business processes. This is often harder than expected or yields ineffective results. It is useful to obtain more insight into how differences between similar processes depend on contextual circumstances, and how the effort needed for adequate change depends on the context specificity of process knowledge. This exploratory research examines seven change projects in a large organization. Our research goal is to offer insight into the way business processes are rooted in the contextual knowledge patterns of the individuals that execute them. A preliminary framework has emerged of the features that make work practices contextual, the effects of context specificity on standardization efforts and the effects of standardization on process knowledge.