[AISWorld] AMCIS 2011 - Information System for Sustainability and Global Competitiveness – call for mini-track proposals

[Richard Watson]

Call for Mini-Track Proposals (Deadline: November 1, 2010)
 
AMCIS 2011 Information System for Sustainability and Global Competitiveness
       
Track Chairs
Marie-Claude Boudreau <mcboudre at terry.uga.edu>, The University of Georgia
Alan Fisk <afisk at ford.com>, Ford
Richard Watson <rwatson at uga.edu>, The University of Georgia
 
We invite information systems scholars interested in Information System for Sustainability and Global Competitiveness to propose minitracks for the upcoming AMCIS 2011 (August 4-8, 2011). See AMCIS 2011 site at http://amcis2011.aisnet.org/. To formally submit a minitrack, please use the following site: http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/amcis2011

Information systems have been the greatest force for productivity improvement in the last half century. In the mid 1980s, it became evident that IS could also be a force for competitive advantage (Ives & Learmonth, 1984). Now, IS is also seen as a potential major player in the area of sustainability, which includes the simultaneous consideration of economic growth, environmental protection and social equity, in business planning and decision-making. Whereas the link between sustainability and global competitiveness is still under-researched, many organizations have positioned themselves as market leaders through their efforts towards achieving sustainability. They understand that corporate citizenship fostered by their focus on sustainability may be a significant intangible asset on their balance sheet and greatly enhance their reputation. For example, UPS has leveraged telematics to minimize its environmental impact while improving its financial figures and reputation as a market leader (Watson, Boudreau, Li, & Levis, 2010). Interface has been among the first to include sustainability within its core values, and has since distinguished itself as one of the most competitive organizations among carpet manufacturers (Anderson, 1998). These corporate citizens understand the role that IS can play in supporting their sustainability initiatives, and accordingly, IS researchers need to show leadership in applying the transformative power of IS to create a sustainable society (Watson, Boudreau, & Chen, 2010). Moreover, there is a need to investigate the linkage between sustainability and global competitiveness.

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:

·      IS in support of environmental sustainability

·      IS in support of social sustainability

·      IS to support global competitiveness

·      IS to promote sustainability and competitiveness

·      The emergence of regional and global sustainability IS standards

·      Links among IS, sustainability practices, organizational, and environmental performance

·      The design, implementation, and use of IS to reduce organizations’ environmental impact

·      The design, implementation, and use of IS to improve organizations’ social impact

·      The design, implementation, and use of IS to improve global competitiveness

·      Issues surrounding the assessment and measurement of information systems sustainability

·      Issues surrounding the assessment and measurement of information systems' contribution to global competitiveness

·      Sustainable development in transitional and developing countries

·      The use of IS to change human behaviors towards sustainable business practices

 The track is open to both empirical (quantitative or qualitative) and conceptual studies.  Cross-disciplinary studies and those that make significant contributions to theory building and practice are particularly welcome. We are particularly interested in papers that jointly address sustainability and competitiveness.

References

Anderson, R. C. (1998). Mid-course correction : toward a sustainable enterprise :The Interface model. Atlanta, Ga.: Peregrinzilla Press.

Ives, B., & Learmonth, G. P. (1984). The information systems as a competitive weapon. Communications of the ACM, 27(12), 1193-1201.

Watson, R. T., Boudreau, M.-C., & Chen, A. J. W. (2010). Information Systems and environmentally sustainable development: Energy Informatics and new directions for the IS community. MIS Quarterly, 34(1), 23-38.

Watson, R. T., Boudreau, M.-C., Li, S., & Levis, J. (2010). Telematics at UPS: En route to Energy Informatics. MISQ Executive, 9(1), 1-11.