Business meeting minutes, Aalborg, Denmark, 12 June, 2000

Aalborg, Denmark
12 June 2000

The meeting was called to order at 1:55 p.m.

1. Introduction

David Avison (FR) began the meeting with a brief description of IFIP, TC 8, and Working Group 8.2.

2. Past Workshops and Working Conferences

Tor Larson (NO) requested a clarification of "workshop" versus "working conference." David Avison (FR) explained the differences between the two types of meetings. The purpose of a workshop is to provide a venue for newer researchers, or researchers new to WG 8.2, to present work-in-progress and receive feedback in a less formal environment. Working conferences are the regular conferences sponsored by WG 8.2 alone or in conjunction with other groups.

Julie Kendall (US), organizer of the IFIP WG 8.2 Workshop "IS Research at the Beginning of the New Millennium: Searching for Artifacts, Metaphors, and Methodologies," reported that there were 9 papers presented and 43 attendees at this successful Workshop.

Richard Baskerville (US) reported that he had audited the books of the 1998 Helsinki WG 8.2 Working Conference with the Organizing Chair. All bills have been paid, and a surplus of $1000 was left for IFIP. There are 37 copies of the Proceedings remaining.

3. Forthcoming Workshops and Working Conferences

An IFIP WG 8.2 Workshop will take place in Brisbane, Australia, on December 9, 2000, following the Australasian Conference on Information Systems and preceding ICIS. The workshop will be held at the Women's College, with lunch on site. In addition to short presentations, abstracts and posters will also be solicited. Cathy Urquhart (AU) and Steve Sawyer (US) are the organizers of this Workshop.

The next Working Conference will be held in Boise, Idaho, USA, July 27-29, 2000. The theme of this Working Conference is "Realigning Research and Practice in Information Systems Development: The Social and Organizational Perspective." Contact Program Chairs Nancy Russo (US) or Brian Fitzgerald (IE) for more information. Submissions are due November 1, 2000. For details see the web site at http://afis.ucc.ie/ifip2001.

Edgar Whitley (UK) discussed plans for the Working Conference to be held in Barcelona in December, 2002, in conjunction with ICIS. Eleanor Wynn (US) and Michael Myers (NZ) are also involved in organizing this Working Conference, themed "Organizational Discourse about IT."

The possibility of a working conference in 2003 was discussed. Due the to difficulty of finding local organizers in Israel for a December conference, and the concern that a summer conference would be too soon after the Barcelona conference, it appears unlikely that a Working Conference will be held in 2003.

Trevor Wood-Harper (UK) proposed a "Manchester 2" conference to be held in 2004, 20 years after the original Manchester WG 8.2 conference.

David Avison (FR) mentioned that a joint conference with IFIP WG 9.4 (Social Implications of Computing in Developing Countries) had been suggested. Mikko Korpela (FI) provided some background on WG 9.4.

Several questions were raised about the number and scheduling of meetings (Workshops, Working Conferences, and Business Meetings) by Bonnie Kaplan (US) and others. Ken Kendall (US) responded that the Working Group historically has attempted to alternate meeting venues between the US and Europe. Duane Truex (US) mentioned that attendance at meetings associated with ICIS is typically larger.

4. New Members

Names were solicited for individuals who were qualified and interested in becoming members of WG 8.2.

* Ola Henfridsson (SE)
* Debra Howcroft (UK)
* Mikko Korpela (FI)
* Brian O'Donovan (UK)

All were approved for membership, subject to a check on attendance by the Secretary.

5. New Business

1. Kevin Crowston (US) asked attendees to check the WG 8.2 web site to verify that their member records are correct. The URL for the site is www.ifipwg82.org.
2. David Avison (FR) and Julie Kendall (US) showed off the "new face" of the Oasis newsletter. The new issue is on the web and has been mailed to members and friends. News for Oasis should be sent to Julie.
3. Duane Truex (US) reminded attendees of the upcoming deadline for the Data Base special issue on ERP. Guest editors for this issue are Duane Truex (US) and Debra Howcroft (UK).
4. Richard Baskerville (US) announced that the electronic versions of papers from the Aalborg conference will be available for ten days after the conference.
5. David Avison (FR) reminded the group that Oasis and the Working Group listserv and web page can serve as forums for further discussion of issues raised at the business meeting.
6. Gordon Davis (US) provided some useful information regarding the next Working Conference to be held in Boise, Idaho. Gordon, who was born in Idaho, drew a map of the US to pinpoint the location of Boise and then identified nearby attractions such as Yellowstone, the Grand Canyon, and Las Vegas.

6. Close

David Avison (FR) thanked everyone for their participation, and the meeting was adjourned at 3 p.m.

— Nancy Russo, Acting Secretary