Information, Organization and Management

Book Preface

This book has a long history. The three authors’ research foci are in related areas and they have worked together on numerous projects in organization research, organization design, information systems and the use and application of information and communication technologies. In addition they exchanged ideas for over 25 years. This occurred in the form of publications, at conferences in joint sessions and on joint panels in Europe and North America, by guest lectures and through visiting professorships at their respective universities. Toward the end of the 1980s the idea to write a book jointly and publish it simultaneously in English and German emerged from this cooperation. After numerous meetings, the authors were fascinated at the time by the idea to utilize new communication media in this project enabling virtual teamwork and, in a sense, practice what they preach.

Transatlantic telecooperation, however, proved itself at times more difficult than anticipated: The complexity of this book project, the rapid development of the new technologies and their deployment resulted in substantial changes of the subject matter addressed and demanded an intensive dialogue among the authors. The subsequent development of the concept and content of the book had to be clarified and discussed. The boundaries and limits of telecommunication and telecooperation, as well as the book project reached a crisis stage.

During a most productive, week-long meeting in April 1994 in the Brewster Inn at Casenovia Lake in New York the project was revitalized and a new conceptualization together with a new work plan materialized.

Throughout these efforts we gained an experience that may also be a subject topic for this book: The authors encountered the boundaries and limits, but also the support potential of information and communication technology, especially the Internet and its e-mail and file transfer services. This technology enabled the formation of a virtual team, as well as the accomplishment of a complex project. All of this was only possible of course on the basis of commonly shared values and
trust which were developed initially through face-to-face interactions. The general recognition that complex projects have to pass through a serious crisis before they find a suitable and goal-directed conclusion can certainly be confirmed in our case.