Gary David

Integrated collaboration across distributed sites: the perils of process and the promise of practice

In an era where a strategic command of global resources is becoming a requisite for success, firms are struggling to successfully unify their onshore and offshore sites. The literature on global virtual teams generally frames the impediments to coordination and collaboration based on divergent nationally based cultural attributes, language barriers, and the limitations of information and communication technologies. Drawing on world-systems theory, this paper argues for a decrease in the importance afforded to national boundaries and individual sites, and a re-orientation to the social dynamics across sites regardless of nationality. By changing the unit of analysis to the organization as a world system and focusing on emergent practices, this paper provides new insights regarding globally distributed collaborative work and identifies how to manage global relations to overcome structural impediments, to develop positive social relations, and achieve collaboration.

Listening to what is said--transcribing what is heard: the impact of speech recognition technology (SRT) on the practice of medical transcription (MT).

Medical records have become central to nearly all aspects of healthcare. However, little research exists on their creation. Using data from an ongoing ethnographic study of healthcare documentation production, this paper examines the process of medical record creation through the use of speech recognition technology (SRT) and subsequent editing by medical transcriptionists (MTs). Informed by ethnomethodology (EM) and conversation analysis (CA), the results demonstrate the professional knowledge involved in the work of medical transcription, which includes a combination of skilled worksite practices and an orientation toward the social order properties of recorded dictation. Furthermore, we examine how the advantages and limitations of SRTs can impact the work of transcription. We conclude with strategic recommendations for using SRTs to support medical records production and recommend against total automation.

The Creation of “Arab American”: Political Activism and Ethnic (Dis)Unity 1

This paper argues that the label Arab American as it is framed by Arab-American organizations and used in research on Arab Americans is in essence a political category (speaking to political activism), and that there are significant consequences to the Arab-American identity and community in terms of its narrow social construction. The definition of Arab American, as exhibited in most research and writing about Arab Americans which was formed in the aftermath of the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, has essentially marginalized and rendered significant portions of the Arab-American community invisible, primarily those who do not exhibit readily observable cultural traits (such as Arabic language proficiency) as well as a lack of political activism around specific causes (such as Palestine and the invasion of Iraq). This marginalization within a marginalized community is what I refer to as double marginalization. This paper argues that this invisibility and diminished authenticity has resulted in a significantly skewed understanding of the Arab-American community. Political activism, while a potential source of creating unity in a diverse ethnic community, can also be source of unity and disunity, as it has been in the Arab-American community.

Studying the Exotic Other in the Classroom: The Portrayal of Arab Americans in Educational Source Materials.

This article examines a sample of educational source materials meant to be used to foster the inclusion of Arab American components in multicultural curriculum. Even though the materials examined can be thought of as good sources (in that they did not provide outright biased misinformation), the authors identify three general areas of concern: (a) conflating, (b) essentializing, and (c) normalizing. Conclusions and recommendations include the need for more focused source material on limited subject areas, focused curriculum development on particular cultural groups, and the use of multicultural materials to promote cultural self-reflection rather than emphasizing the objectification of other groups. Although the focus of this article is on Arab American source materials, our findings can be generalized to source materials on other cultural and ethnic groups.

Analyzing Different Strategies to Enterprise System Adoption: Reengineering-Led vs. Quick-Deployment

The literature on enterprise system (ES) adoption suggests that companies use different strategies for implementation — some opting to radically reengineer business processes up-front, while others employ a quick-deployment strategy on the assumption that organizational change will follow. In this article we explore how these two different strategies play out in practice and also consider the factors that influence which approach is taken. We use exploratory data from interviews with consultants who have been involved in multiple ES implementations in external companies, as well as interviews with project members involved in an internal ES implementation. Analysis of the data suggests that some level of reengineering is an inevitable outcome of ES implementation. However, attempts to reengineer up-front is difficult and can be problematic. Much of this stems from how the ES is actually used versus its envisioned (or planned) use. The implications for post-implementation exploitation opportunities are explored.

Understanding the work of medical transcriptionists in the production of medical records

Efforts to improve healthcare by reducing medical errors often center on the accuracy of medical records. At the same time, the impact of new technologies such as speech recognition technology on the process of producing medical records has not been sufficiently examined. In this article we analyzed interview data from medical transcriptionists (MTs) describing how they do the work of transcription to produce accurate medical records from doctors’ dictation. We found that medical transcriptionists rely on several types of skills that current speech recognition technology lacks. We conclude with a discussion of the implications of these findings for the design and implementation of SRT systems for the production of medical records and for how the work of MTs can help reduce medical errors.

Would Technology Obliterate Medical Transcription?: The Antecedents and Consequences of Technology-driven Obsolescence Perceptions on Turnover Intentions of Medical Transcriptionists

Increasingly, the adoption of speech recognition technology (SRT ) by various hospitals has posed a threat to the medical transcription profession. As turnover intentions among medical transcriptionists are on the rise, understanding the role of technology in shaping turnover intentions requires attention, and yet is a significant gap in the literature. Drawing upon the theories of stress and turnover intentions, and prior work on professional obsolescence, we propose a new construct called technology-driven obsolescence perceptions in the medical transcription domain. We posit that technology-driven obsolescence perceptions positively impact turnover intentions, and antecedents such as work-family conflict, fairness of rewards, work excellence and job commitment have differential impacts on technology-driven obsolescence perceptions. Results indicate that all the hypotheses in the study are supported. Our study makes important contributions to the obsolescence and turnover intentions literature, and has important implications for research and practice alike.

Unveiling Hidden Social Design: New Roles for Sociologists

Abstract This paper will help foster a more favourable attitude to professional involvement in social design projects and highlight new areas of professional opportunity for sociologists. To overcome the psychological barriers to design engagement and to foster motivation for social design, the authors discuss a case of social design decision making by non-sociologists. The methodology is informed by Activity Theory and Design Theory, and the approach adopted is based on analyzing current best practices, departing from conventional and customary practices. The authors discuss the Fun Palace, which was an innovative architectural project in the 1960s Great Britain, conceived with a fundamental social aim of providing life-long education and professional retooling to working class people in a relaxed and entertaining environment. The paper highlights the sociological nature of decision making in the planning phase of the project as well as the need for sociological knowledge and skills. The explication of the social design activities in the Fun Palace project can inspire sociological practitioners with ideas about entering into various industries and, in particular, in the design of social organizations and buildings.

The Value Proposition of Captive Offshore Development Centers: Exploring the Role of IT Capabilities and Antecedent Factors

Increasingly, organizations establish off shore captive centers to exploit the large IT labor pool and to retain proprietary knowledge. However, a key management issue facing these organizations is one of realizing value beyond economic cost advantages from its captive centers. To address this issue, we adaptedVenkaramans value center concept and the global subsidiary evolution model to this context. Using the data gathered on the evolution of captive centers of GLOBALIS, a large US financial services firm, we explored the role of IT capabilities and antecedent factors on captive centers value proposition. Our findings indicate that headquarters assignment of responsibilities and captive centers choice of activities lead to the development of distinct human, technological and relationship capabilities that enable a captive center to generate superior value for its parent IT organization. This study extends prior research in IS outsourcing, and has important implications for researchers and practitioners alike.

Dialectical Practice in Tibetan Philosophical Culture: An Ethnomethodological Inquiry into Formal ReasoningDialectical Practice in Tibetan Philosophical Culture: An Ethnomethodological Inquiry into Formal Reasoning, by LibermanKenneth. Oxford, UK: Rowman and Littlefield, 2004. 338 pp.

Any time an author challenges an entrenched paradigm that has long dominated a field of study, s/he is facing a monumental task. The onus is on the author to demonstrate that the dominant perspective is in some way inadequate or inherently false. Furthermore, the author must provide an alternative perspective that more accurately characterizes the subject. This is the task that Kenneth Liberman takes on in his work Dialectical Practice in Tibetan Philosophical Culture. Noting that logical reason is a social and public activity, Liberman describes the structures of Tibetan debate that give rise to reason and logic. Generally speaking, Orientalist perspectives regarding “Eastern society” (from the “Far East” to the “Middle East”) have constructed a version of these societies that has long been held to be divorced from lived experiences and everyday reality. Liberman describes how Tibetology has substituted people for text, focusing on interpretations of written materials (often translated from the original Tibetan) rather than attempting to describe how these texts are used in the course of debates. Through an in situ description of debates, Liberman establishes the intricate work of the monks with whom he lived and studied. With each intricate example and detailed presentation, Liberman takes a brick out of the edifice of Orientalism in general, and traditional Tibetology in specific, and begins to erect a new understanding of Tibetan Buddhist philosophy and the practices and structures of their debates. It is the direct experience of Liberman that gives so much weight to his presentation, especially when compared to traditional Tibetology (and other Orientalist approaches) which often is carried out apart from the people it is meant to represent. Liberman’s project is an ethnomethodological study, meaning that the researcher is attempting to uncover the intricacies of how members do what it is they do (known as ethnomethods). To accomplish this, Liberman embeds himself in the site of the phenomenon such that he becomes a participant in the lives of those who are under study. This meant learning to speak Tibetan fluently, studying the same texts as the Tibetan monks in the original text (many from the medieval era), engaging in Tibetan Buddhist debates in Tibetan monasteries, being a student of Tibetan Buddhist teachers, and in essence becoming that which he is studying. Rather than being a breach of “objectivity,” this provides the author with the competency, or unique adequacy, necessary to uncover the local ordinary practices of the monks themselves. Only then can the author begin his analysis based on the just-how or just-what of Tibetan Buddhist philosophical debate. Liberman states, “This ‘path of reasoning’ is the social praxis I am attempting to describe ethnomethodologically” (p. 239, original italics). To do so, Liberman provides detailed transcripts of actual debates witnessed by the author. The book also comes with a CD-ROM based on video-taped debates collected by the author during his stays at a monastery. The CD-ROM represents a dynamic addition to ethnomethodological and conversation analytic studies in that it provides what transcripts cannot: a more complete depiction of the interactions being examined. In a mode of inquiry where the details of the interaction are crucial, it has been unfortunate that these details are invariably lost when written and published. Liberman’s work marks an important milestone in an attempt to overcome this shortcoming. As with other milestones, this is sure to set the standard for future ethnomethodological, conversation analytic, and even more general ethnographic work. One of the limitations of the book is the broad audiences to which it can speak. The author provides two possible audiences who would be interested in his work: Tibetologist and ethnomethodologists. I believe the list is