| Talk or Action? |
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I was interested to see that a CIO Forum meeting (20 Feb 2009 at UCT) dwelt on the issue of "talk or action" - it is better to act than to talk, it was argued. Let's think about that. [This blog was originally posted on the CIO Forum] The CIO forum is, potentially, a meeting of business people who use IT, business people who supply IT, and academics who purport to research and teach about the development and use of IT in organisations. The notes on the meeting (thanks, Bridgetti!) go on to argue that the forum is actually about people, but I think that it has to be - principally - about talking, certainly at this early stage. There was a technical meeting of international standards experts some years ago, which produced a document that started with the assertion that if there was to be any progress, it was necessary to have a "universe of discourse". OK, that might have been an academic talking (did you ever hear of a "universe of discourse"?), but we can see what was meant here: if parties are to understand each other and come to agreement about anything, then we have to have a shared vocabulary, protocols of some kind for communication, and a shared scheme of understanding about what interests us (different perspectives, but shared meaning). There are risks in trying to teach anything that does not have appropriate use of words, and concepts, and meanings. And, in the world of business, there is a great danger in the introduction of words and concepts that are actually ill-defined and not universally (or widely) understood - these are the seeds of confusion. Hence, we do need that "universe of discourse" if we are to understand how to get the benefits of the CIO Forum. We have to let it grow through conversation, and talking is extremely important. Ultimately, it is my belief that action will emerge from conversation. The last meeting topic was about reducing the cost of IT, and there were a number of ideas put forth, some of which might be based on actual experience, some on speculation, and some on what others have argued. If we (as individuals in our own contexts) are to understand whether these ideas apply to us, then we have to look into them, and that needs special skills and methods of working. That in turn raises the prospect of academic research, guided by a close involvement with businesses (of both kinds), and working with businesses using an negotiated set of words and concepts so as to ensure that all involved are not only reading off the same page, but employing the same meanings. Is this whimsical or misguided thinking? I would argue strongly that it is not. Philosophers have argued that as people we are no more than the sum of all our conversations (think about that for a minute!), and if that is the case then the conversations at the CIO Forum should be seen as important and should help us to shape the contexts that we work in. If a conversation at the CIO Forum assists a busy manager to make a more effective argument at a meeting, or if it assists an academic to make a better point in a lecture to students, then it is worthwhile. If it leads to co-operative research projects that create new knowledge, and new understanding then so much the better. But I think that will only come in time. Talking is where we are at right now. Action sooner rather than later? Let's work towards that aim. |
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