First Scandinavian Conference on IS & The 33rd IRIS Seminar

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Thank you for attending the conference and for your involvement and commitment,

Gitte Tjørnehøj, Hanne Westh Nicolajsen, John Persson, Karl Kautz, Lise Heeager, Peter Axel Nielsen
SCIS+IRIS organisers

The SCIS+IRIS features the following distinguished scholars as keynote speakers.

Brian Fitzgerald, professor, Limerick University

Title: Lost in Translation: The Academe-Industry Gap

Abstract: The communication difficulties inherent in academic industry collaboration are well known. The situation is exacerbated as the need for industry engagement with research is becoming even more pressing as governments and funding agencies seek to demonstrate a tangible and visible return on their research investment – the quest for the so called ‘research with consequences’. The stereotypes customarily presented do not capture the nuances and complexities of the industry academic relationship. Drawing on personal experience of trying to bride this gap, the issue is characterised and some strategies for mitigating proposed.

Suprateek Sarker, professor, Copenhagen Business School

Title: Co-Creating Value By Engaging with Practice: Some Models and Implications for IS Academics

Abstract: The need to engage with practice has long been recognized in the IS academic community. Yet many would argue that when confronted with the issue of having inadequate collaborative linkages with practice, we tend to revert back to our familiar rigor-relevance arguments, rather than focus on a way forward. Perhaps, this explains why we have not seen much progress in conceptualizing ways in which IS academic-practitioner engagement may be enabled. In the presentation, using real examples, I will attempt to outline three different modes through which IS academics may co-create value with their partners in the industry. I will also highlight the some of the challenges and potential pitfalls associated with the different modes of engagement.

Jan Pries-Heje, professor, Roskilde University

Title: Engaged Research in Process Improvement

Abstract: This keynote initiates from an example of engaged research; a Danish software house that made it from maturity level 1 to 5 in eight years. The organizational change implied at each step is discussed and a design theory of process improvement and change derived.

The 33rd Information Systems Research Seminar in Scandinavia on “Engaged Scandinavian IS Research”
- In conjunction with the First Scandinavian Conference on Information Systems

As the eldest IS seminar in the world dating back to 1978 IRIS provides a well-established community where you can build and sustain your Nordic IS network. The seminar offers an informal atmosphere with a number of different activities such as workshops and keynote speeches. IRIS also offers thorough feedback on your work and deep insight into other researchers work through working groups where papers are presented and discussed. In addition paper authors also act as reviewers in the review process.

We welcome papers within the theme “Engaged Scandinavian IS Research” as well as papers on other subjects within IS from both junior researchers and senior researchers.

In order to attract more seniors the first Scandinavian Conference on Information Systems is launched in conjunction with IRIS. The two conferences are seen as a full package to stimulate the Nordic IS research community. We thus encourage senior researchers and junior researchers to take part in the full programme of the conferences.

Paper submission: Papers are not to exceed 6000 words. Check the page for instructions on format and online submission.

Important dates:

• 1^st April, 2010: Paper submission for IRIS
• 1^st May, 2010: Reviewers’ deadline for IRIS
• 15^th May, 2010: Notification of acceptance for IRIS
• ^20th June, 2010: Final “camera-ready” paper submission
• ^30th June, 2010: Final day to register for SCIS/IRIS
• 20^th-24^th August 2010: SCIS/IRIS, Rebild, North Jutland, Denmark
  • 20^th-22^ndAugust 2010: SCIS, Rebild, North Jutland, Denmark
  • 22^nd-24^th August 2010: IRIS, Rebild, North Jutland, Denmark

Organizing comittee:

• Karlheinz Kautz, Copenhagen Business School, Denmark
• Peter Axel Nielsen, Aalborg University, Denmark
• Hanne Westh Nicolajsen, Aalborg University Copenhagen, Denmark
• John S. Persson, Aalborg University, Denmark
• Lise Heeager, Aalborg University, Denmark
• Gitte Tjørnehøj, Aarhus Business School, Denmark

The conference is taking place at Comwell Rebild Bakker a fully modern 4-star hotel and conference centre. The hotel is located in the middle of Denmark’s most scenic national park 30 km south of Aalborg.

Ferry connections from Norway and Sweden to either Hirtshals or Frederikshavn approximately 90 km from the conference centre.

Shuttle bus service between the hotel and Aalborg Airport.

Call for papers

First Scandinavian Conference on Information Systems
- in conjunction with IRIS33

http://www.scandinavian-iris.org/2010

Time has come for the IRIS research community to launch its own – full-fledged – conference. This first Scandinavian Conference on Information Systems will be held in 20^th – 22^ndAugust 2010 in Northern Jutland, Denmark, in conjunction with the traditional IRIS seminar. The conference will have a format which is known from other conferences such as the IFIP working conference series. The submitted papers and panels will be selected through a rigorous and double blind review process performed by a program committee consisting of senior Scandinavian and international researchers in our field. The selected manuscripts will be presented in formal papers sessions and be discussed by appointed discussants.

The conference will be followed directly by IRIS in its traditional format with working groups and workshop on 22^nd and 24^th August, 2010.

The theme of the conference is “Engaged Scandinavian IS research”.

Scandinavian IS research has for several decades been concerned with its relevance to practitioners of the field, to users, to industry, and to society at large. This concern for the usefulness outside the realms of research has shaped Scandinavian IS researchers awareness, attention, research conduct, and most importantly who we interact with on which issues, why we do this, and for whom we do it.

In his book Engaged Scholarship which was published in 2007 Van de Ven offered an enlightening view on organizational and social research that is highly relevant for Scandinavian IS research. He suggests an interactional view in which professional and research practices contribute to each other through different types of activity. Embracing qualitative as well as quantitative methods and promoting process studies as well as variance studies, engaged scholarship offers opportunities to transcend the traditional dichotomies of rigor versus relevance, and positivist versus interpretive. Van de Ven defines engaged scholarship as “a participative form of research for obtaining the different perspectives of key stakeholders (researchers, users, clients, sponsors, and practitioners) in studying complex problems”. Much of the Scandinavian IS research has already followed this line as can be seen in an retrospective analysis which was presented in the Scandinavian Journal of Information Systems, Vol. 20, No. 2. The conference will address and further promote a view on Scandinavian IS research with a particular focus on how ‘engaged’ unfolds in different studies.

The conference will favour research papers and panels addressing the research theme, but will not be limited exclusively to this subject. Within the theme priority will be given to research contributing with prototypical and exemplary engaged Scandinavian IS research with a good explanation of the research approach rather than expositions and theoretical studies of research methods. Examples of topics covered by the conference are:

• Case studies with different stakeholders’ perspectives
• Examples of action research with a particular focus on how practitioners and researchers have engaged in action
• Examples of design science research with a particular view on stakeholders’ evaluation of the artefact

We are soliciting full research papers for the Scandinavian Conference of IS and they should be submitted through the conference web site before 24^th November, 2009. Research-in-progress should in stead be submitted to the traditional IRIS before its deadline on 1^st April, 2010.

Web site: http://www.scandinavian-iris.org/2010

Paper submission: check the web site for instructions on size, format and online submission.

Important dates:

• 24^th November, 2009: Paper submission for SCIS
• 15^th January, 2010: Panel submission for SCIS
• 1^st March, 2010: Notification of acceptance for SCIS
• 1^st April, 2010: Paper submission for IRIS
• 20^th-22^ndAugust 2010: Conference, North Jutland, Denmark
• 22^nd-24^th August 2010: IRIS, North Jutland, Denmark

Program chairs:

• Karlheinz Kautz, Denmark
• Peter Axel Nielsen, Denmark

Program committee:

• Kim Normann Andersen, Denmark
• Karin Axelsson, Sweden
• Jørgen Bansler, Denmark
• Tone Bratteteig, Norway
• Keld Bødker, Denmark
• Susanne Bødker, Denmark
• Jan Damsgaard, Denmark
• Ole Hanseth, Norway
• Liisa von Hellens, Australia
• Ola Henfridsson, Sweden
• Jonny Holmström, Sweden
• Pertti Järvinen, Finland
• Rikard Lindgren, Sweden
• Kalle Lyytinen, USA
• Lars Mathiassen, USA
• Eric Monteiro, Norway
• Bjørn Erik Munkvold, Norway
• Markku Nurminen, Finland
• Helena Holmström Olsson, Sweden
• Samuli Pekkola, Finland
• Matti Rossi, Finland
• Maung K. Sein, Norway
• Jesper Simonsen, Denmark
• Erik Stolterman, USA
• Reima Suomi, Finland
• Carsten Sørensen, UK
• Virpi Tuunainen, Finland
• Margunn Aaenestad, Norway
• Pär Ågerfalk, Sweden