_Information & Organization_ invites submissions for a special issue celebrating the career and intellectual legacy of the journal’s founding editor, Professor Richard Boland Jr., on the occasion of his retirement.
Throughout his distinguished career, Professor Boland is known for his innovative and unconventional approach to understanding the role of technology in organizations and society. He challenged traditional paradigms on technology and management, and urged scholars to embrace a more expansive, humanistic, and design-oriented perspective on information systems. Among other things, he is best known for his groundbreaking work on the role of design as a fundamental way of thinking about the future, contrasting design with traditional decision-making paradigms.
This special issue seeks to honor Professor Boland’s legacy by inspiring submissions that not only build upon his seminal contributions but also push the boundaries of our understanding of technology’s role in shaping the future. Among others, we welcome especially forward-looking contributions that address the profound impact of emerging technologies, such as large language models, blockchain, and augmented reality, across various sectors, including healthcare, finance, manufacturing, sustainability, and education.
In the spirit of Professor Boland’s commitment to active scholarship, we encourage submissions that position IS research as a world-shaping force, rather than merely a reflective lens on recent history. We seek contributions that embody Professor Boland’s spirit of critical inquiry, imaginative exploration, and commitment to human-centeredness. We encourage submissions that challenge dominant techno-centric narratives, propose alternative visions for the future of technology and organization, and engage with the ethical, philosophical, and societal implications of emerging technologies. We invite conceptual and empirical submissions that explore topics including, but not limited to:
Envisioning alternative futures for technology and organization through speculative design and critical storytelling
Exploring the role of technology in fostering human creativity, collaboration, and experiential learning in organizations
Designing technologies that prioritize human autonomy, dignity, and well-being in the face of increasing automation and algorithmic decision-making
Investigating the potential of participatory and co-design methodologies to democratize technology development and promote inclusive innovation
Reimagining the relationship between technology, work, and leisure in the post-pandemic era
Examining the implications of emerging technologies for organizational power dynamics, surveillance, and resistance
Envisioning new forms of technological citizenship and digital activism in the age of platformization and datafication
Exploring the role of technology in enabling sustainable, equitable, and resilient organizations and communities
Proposing new methodological approaches and theoretical frameworks for studying the future of technology and organization, drawing inspiration from fields such as design, art, literature, and philosophy
We welcome original research papers, theory development, conceptual papers, empirical studies, essays, and other innovative formats. In the spirit of Professor Boland’s openness to new ideas and his generosity towards junior scholars, we particularly encourage submissions from early-career researchers and doctoral students.