The organising vision (OV) is a term developed by E. Burton Swanson and

Neil Ramiller Neil Clifford Ramiller (born 1952) is an American academic, and Professor of Management at the Portland State University School of Business Administration, known for his work with Swanson, E. Burton on the management of information-technology in ...

that defines how a vision is formed, a vision of how to organize structures and processes in regards to an

information systems An information system (IS) is a formal, sociotechnical, organizational system designed to collect, process, information storage, store, and information distribution, distribute information. From a sociotechnical perspective, information systems a ...

innovation. Images and ideas about an innovation from a wider community are brought together. The vision can often be characterised by

buzzwords A buzzword is a word or phrase, new or already existing, that becomes popular for a period of time. Buzzwords often derive from technical terms yet often have much of the original technical meaning removed through fashionable use, being simply used ...

. While these are often seen as hype, they can be useful in giving a title to an organizing vision. The vision serves three key functions: # Interpretation: explaining why the innovation exists and is relevant #

Legitimisation Legitimation or legitimisation is the act of providing legitimacy. Legitimation in the social sciences refers to the process whereby an act, process, or ideology becomes legitimate by its attachment to norms and values within a given society. ...

: giving reasons and supporting stories about why an organization should go for it #

Mobilisation Mobilization is the act of assembling and readying military troops and supplies for war. The word ''mobilization'' was first used in a military context in the 1850s to describe the preparation of the Prussian Army. Mobilization theories and ...

: mobilizing the community and the

world to get involved - not just organisations, but journals, vendors, consultants, etc.

Features of The Organizing Vision

* Emerges from

discourse Discourse is a generalization of the notion of a conversation to any form of communication. Discourse is a major topic in social theory, with work spanning fields such as sociology, anthropology, continental philosophy, and discourse analysis. ...

. This often starts off quietly, but becomes louder and richer as more actors become involved in the community. * Is constructed by a heterogeneous social community who are united by the

innovation Innovation is the practical implementation of ideas that result in the introduction of new goods or services or improvement in offering goods or services. ISO TC 279 in the standard ISO 56000:2020 defines innovation as "a new or changed entity ...

but have different roles and interests. The ideas of

structuration The theory of structuration is a social theory of the creation and reproduction of social systems that is based on the analysis of both ''structure'' and '' agents'' (see structure and agency), without giving primacy to either. Furthermore, in str ...

can be seen here in that while the organizing vision is shaped by the community, it also shapes the community. For example, organizations may ally who were united by being part of the community. * OV has a relatively cohesive

because people within the information systems community share similar

linguistic Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. It is called a scientific study because it entails a comprehensive, systematic, objective, and precise analysis of all aspects of language, particularly its nature and structure. Linguis ...

and

ideological An ideology is a set of beliefs or philosophies attributed to a person or group of persons, especially those held for reasons that are not purely epistemic, in which "practical elements are as prominent as theoretical ones." Formerly applied prim ...

backgrounds. * It has relate to the real economic world for it to be of any relevance. The problem of relating it to this world is called the business problematic. * Is both constrained and enabled by technology. * OV helps shape adoption and

diffusion Diffusion is the net movement of anything (for example, atoms, ions, molecules, energy) generally from a region of higher concentration to a region of lower concentration. Diffusion is driven by a gradient in Gibbs free energy or chemical p ...

, and is in turn shaped as the innovation is adopted and diffused. * It changes over time. It can lose or gain focus or overlap with other OVs. For an OV to attract interest, it must be distinctive, intelligible, informative, plausible and have some perceived practical value. Ultimately, it is forgotten as the innovation either fails or become unremarkable.

References

* Swanson and Ramiller (1997), ''The Organising Vision in Information Systems Innovation'', Organisation Science, Vol 8 No 5 Information systems