2000/05 Managing by Wire, Revisited

1st May 2001

Authors

David Ing and Ian Simmonds

Abstract

In 1993, Haeckel and Nolan published "Managing by Wire" in Harvard Business Review. This article provoked discussion jointly in the business strategy and information systems communities around strategic management, and the function of information systems in a rapidly changing business environment.

In 1998 through 2000, the researchers worked with Haeckel in discussions about how a managing by wire information infrastructure might be designed. Various proofs-of-concept were constructed to flesh out a greater understanding of managing by wire. These proofs-of-concept were then used as demonstrations for reviews with potential end users, to discuss alternative design details.

The researchers propose that the design of a managing by wire information infrastructure be viewed as a combination of three socio-informatic subsystems. Development of such an information infrastructure will require more detailed understanding of the implementation situation at hand, as well as prioritization and staging of functions based on user readiness.