Information in Organizations
Sundeep Sahay
Recap: Course Themes
• Systems development approaches
(waterfall, prototyping, user participation)
• Complexity in organizations and use
(structuration theory, ANT, TCE, large
scale and horizontal systems)
• Dealing with complexity (virtual teams,
GSO, third world contexts, participation)
Reference
• Martha S Feldman and James G. March
“Information in Organizations as Signal and
Symbol” Administrative Science Quarterly,
1981, 26, 171-185
Role of Information
• Central to organizations – “consumers,
managers and purveyors of information”
• Organization practices fundamentally
concerns rules for gathering, storing,
communicating and using information.
Two broad perspectives
• Information engineers – ”design of optimal
systems”
• Information behaviour – ”understand
encounters of humans and organizations
with information”
Assumptions of Information
Engineers
• Information is:
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Identifiable
Measureable
Quantifiable
Predictable
Thus, optimal systems can be designed
Assumptions of Information
Behavior
• ”Efficient” uses of information are distorted
by:
– Characteristics of human behavior
– Characteristics of organizational practices
– Characteristics of the context
A Rational Model
• The “Economic Man”: “the manager makes
portfolio decisions consistent with account
objectives for individual securities, the beta or
volatility of the security returns, & expected
returns. The main information task is located in
the analyst function, responsible both for the
estimates of the relevant individual individual
security data, and estimates of overall market
performance.”
Characteristics of Rational Model
• Decision making is regarded as a process of
information gathering and processing
• Rational behavior is seen as a consequence
of choosing among alternatives according to
an evaluation of outcomes
• Simon’s notion of bounded rationality practical decision making approximates this
ideal
Rational Navigation
• The European Navigator:
– The European Navigator begins with a plan - a
course which he has charted according to a
certain universal principles, and he carries out
his voyage by relating his every move to that
action. His effort throughout his voyage is
directed to remaining “on-course.” If
unexpected events occur, he must first alter his
plan, then respond accordingly.
Situated Navigation
• The Trukese Navigator:
– The Trukese navigator begins with an objective rather
than a plan. He sets off towards an objective and
responds to conditions as they respond in ad-hoc
fashion. He utilizes information provided by the wind,
the waves, the tide, the current, the fauna, the stars, the
clouds, the sound of the water, and he steers
accordingly. His effort is directed to doing whatever is
necessary to reach the objective. If asked, he can point
to his objective at any point, but he cannot describe his
course.
Implications
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Cultures favor different ways of acting
Europeans - abstract, analytical thinking
Trukese - wisdom, memory & experience
Plans are always situated in particular,
concrete circumstances
• How do we act like- Europeans or Trukese?
• Relation to the cognitive science model?
What is Important?
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Meanings
Tacit understanding
Experiences
Situations - work practices
Process of change
Unintended effects
Within this context
• Systems development starts to draw upon:
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anthropology
social theory
sociology of knowledge
philosophy
Characteristics of Organizations
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How organizations make choices
History within the organization
Social relations between actors
Infrastructure
Experience with technologies
How are organizational settings
different?
• Manner in which they decide on things
• Manner in which people are activated (or
not) to participate
• How are things done when the situation is
ambiguous
• How is membership of actors obtained and
sustained
Some Organizational models of
choice
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Rational model
Garbage can model
Power model
Social influence model
Rational Model
• The dominant tradition
– Characterize situation in terms of identifiable
objects with well defined properties
– Find general rules that apply to situation in
terms of objects and properties
– Apply rules logically to the situation
– Draw inferences on what should be done
Garbage Can Model
• Organizations as organized anarchies
• Problems and solutions dumped as
generated
• What determines the mix of “garbage”
• What is produced and speed of removal
• Problems and solutions as social products
• Processes not understood by members
Power Model
• Power – ability to produce desired
outcomes
• Role of gatekeepers
• Information control as a power resource
• Information, dependencies and power
relations
Social Influence Model
• Resource allocation situations
• Rational approaches emphasize
universalistic criteria
• Under uncertainty, particularistic
approaches are adopted
• Role of social influence
• Embedded in existing social relationships
Characteristics of Situation
• Fully structured
• Fully unstructured
• Semi-structured
Characteristics of Individuals
• Biases
• Traditions
• Systematic errors
– Problem of anchoring
– Problem of representation
– Problem of ”risk-utility” tradeoff
Useful Metaphors to Use
• Information as symbol: Information not
only a basis for action, but as a symbol of
competence and reaffirmation of social
virtue
• Information as signal: Signal of legitimation