Industry analysts are in the business of shaping the technological and economic future. They attempt to 'predict' what will become the next big thing; to spot new emerging trends and paradigms; to decide which hi-tech products will win out over others and to figure out which technology vendors can deliver on their promises.In just a few short years, they have developed a surprising degree of authority over technological innovation. Yet we know very little, if anything about them. This book seeks to explain how this was achieved and on what this authority rests. Who are the experts who increasingly command the attention of vendor and user communities? What is the nature of this new form of technical and business knowledge? How Industry Analysts Shape the Digital Future offers the first book length study into this rarely scrutinized form of business expertise. Contributions to this volume show how, from a small group of mainly North American players which arose in the 1970s, Gartner Inc. has emerged as clear leader of a $6 billion industry that involves several hundred firms worldwide. Through interviews and observation of Gartner Inc. and other industry analyst firms, the book explores how these firms create their predictions, market classifications and rankings, as well as with how these outputs are assessed and consumed.The book asks why many social scientists have ignored the proliferation of these new forms of management and technical expertise. In some cases scholars have 'deflated' this kind of business acumen, portraying it as arbitrary knowledge whose methods and content do not deserve enquiry. The valuable exception here has been the path-breaking work on the 'performativity' of economic, financial or accounting knowledge. Drawing upon recent performativity arguments, the book argues the case for a Sociology of Business Knowledge.

How Industry Analysts Shape the Digital Future

Business & Money

Williams, Robin

Pollock, Neil

Industries

Oxford University Press

Putting the University Online: Information, Technology, and Organizational Change

* What kind of university is emerging from the widespread adoption of new information and communication technologies in teaching, research and administration? * What is the nature and scale of the work required to put the university online? * What are the consequences - for academics, students, managers and others - of putting the university online? New information and communication technologies (I.C.T.s), and above all the internet, hold out many promises for higher education institutions in terms of flexibility, efficiency, quality and access. The vision is that of a virtual institution. Putting the University Online seeks to uncover what the pursuit of that vision means for an institution, its staff, students and other stakeholders, and consequences, intended and unintended, for the role and identity of the university. This is the first book length study, based on detailed fine-grained analysis of what 'putting the university online' actually means for those involved and the wider institutions. James Cornford and Neil Pollock draw both on theories from the sociology of technology and on a large and diverse body of empirical research in order to explore how universities are attempting to build and use new I.C.T.s to sit alongside, complement and, in some cases, replace established means of delivering, organizing and managing higher education. Their book will help sensitize policy makers, academics, university managers, and students to the limits to, and implications of, the pursuit of a virtual future for higher education.

Education & Teaching

Cornford, James

Higher & Continuing Education

Open University Press

* What kind of university is emerging from the widespread adoption of new information and communication technologies in teaching, research and administration?* What is the nature and scale of the work required to put the university online?* What are the consequences - for academics, students, managers and others - of putting the university online?New information and communication technologies (ICTs), and above all the internet, hold out many promises for higher education institutions in terms of flexibility, efficiency, quality and access. The vision is that of a virtual institution. Putting the University Online seeks to uncover what the pursuit of that vision means for an institution, its staff, students and other stakeholders, and consequences, intended and unintended, for the role and identity of the university.This is the first book length study, based on detailed fine-grained analysis of what 'putting the university online' actually means for those involved and the wider institutions. James Cornford and Neil Pollock draw both on theories from the sociology of technology and on a large and diverse body of empirical research in order to explore how universities are attempting to build and use new ICTs to sit alongside, complement and, in some cases, replace established means of delivering, organizing and managing higher education. Their book will help sensitize policy makers, academics, university managers, and students to the limits to, and implications of, the pursuit of a virtual future for higher education.

Schools & Teaching

Software and Organisations (Routledge Studies in Technology, Work and Organizations)

This is the first book that addresses the genesis and career of the modern day enterprise system in a comprehensive and robust manner. It does so through setting out a new approach for the study of packaged solutions and presents novel empirical studies based on in-depth ethnographic and longitudinal research conducted within supplier organisations and other relevant sites. The authors shift the debate within the social study of information systems, from one that is primarily focused on ‘implementation studies’, to one that follows software as it evolves, matures and crosses organisational boundaries. Through tracing and comparing the ‘biography’ of a number of software systems the authors develop a new vocabulary for the dynamics that surround standardised software. Original in its approach, this book draws on a number of ethnographic studies in supplier organisations, user settings, user forums, and applies theories from the Sociology of Technology, Technology Studies, Innovation Studies, and beyond. As such it will be of interest across all of these subject areas and to researchers from the wider fields of Information Systems and Business Studies.

Software and Organisations: The Biography of the Enterprise-Wide System or How SAP Conquered the World (Routledge Studies in Technology, Work and Organizations)

Routledge

This is the first book that addresses the genesis and career of the modern day enterprise system in a comprehensive and robust manner. It does so through setting out a new approach for the study of packaged solutions and presents novel empirical studies based on in-depth ethnographic and longitudinal research conducted within supplier organisations and other relevant sites. The authors shift the debate within the social study of information systems, from one that is primarily focused on ‘implementation studies’, to one that follows software as it evolves, matures and crosses organisational boundaries. Through tracing and comparing the ‘biography’ of a number of software systems the authors develop a new vocabulary for the dynamics that surround standardised software.Original in its approach, this book draws on a number of ethnographic studies in supplier organisations, user settings, user forums, and applies theories from the Sociology of Technology, Technology Studies, Innovation Studies, and beyond. As such it will be of interest across all of these subject areas and to researchers from the wider fields of Information Systems and Business Studies.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Pollock, Neil. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Pollock, Neil

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Pollock, Neil. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

How Industry Analysts Shape the Digital Future

Putting the University Online: Information, Technology, and Organizational Change

Putting the University Online: Information, Technology, and Organizational Change

Software and Organisations: The Biography of the Enterprise-Wide System or How SAP Conquered the World (Routledge Studies in Technology, Work and Organizations)

Software and Organisations (Routledge Studies in Technology, Work and Organizations)