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The purpose of this paper is to theorize the social dynamics of modifiable off-the-shelf software (MOTS) configuration process. The authors do so by formulating theoretical propositions about the configuration process.

The authors have conducted a comprehensive review of the literature on MOTS configuration and the associated challenges to draw on the properties of MOTS. The authors then examined these properties through the lens of social construction of technology to formulate the authors’ theoretical propositions.

The authors formulate theoretical propositions about the configuration process. The authors also develop four scenarios based on the authors’ theoretical propositions for managing the configuration process of MOTS. These scenarios categorize the difficulty level of the configuration by two theoretical groups: malleability and interpretive flexibility.

The findings especially the scenarios can guide practitioners when managing configuration processes.

The authors synthesize the literature on MOTS. The theoretical contributions emphasize the social dynamics in configuring this type of software which is an angle that has not been developed in previous literature.

The purpose of this paper is to guide managers on business process reengineering (BPR) and automation projects in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) public sector context.

This paper relies on a literature review and synthesis in the areas of leadership, BPR, change management, user resistance and power to propose a change management framework.

The paper argues for attention to be paid to the power relationships among various stakeholders. Stakeholder impact analysis is recommended to understand how change will impact stakeholders and shift power balances. It proposes that leadership and communication are essential for implementing change, especially given the particular cultural conditions of the UAE. Moreover, change should be a continuous process supported by communication.

As power and authority are very important elements of the UAE culture, future research should further examine the role of power in implementing organizational change in the UAE context.

This paper proposes a ten-step change management framework that adopts the latest thinking on change management to the UAE context.

Although change management is a well-established field, the body of knowledge that concentrates on the UAE organizational context is scant. This paper translates the latest thinking on change management to the UAE context (characterized by sensitivity to power issues and stakeholder impact) and proposes a practical framework for leading change in the UAE public sector context.

The purpose of this paper is to examine: how financial practices are diffused across countries and who are the carriers of diffusion; and to determine why the nature of adoption varies across countries and specific institutional fields and why certain practices are adopted in some settings but not in others.

In the macro portion of the study the authors document how World Bank loans in Latin America have encouraged the adoption of particular configurations of accounting and accountability practices. In the micro portion of the study, they analyze the cases of Guatemala and Mexico as a way of illustrating the ways in which the configuration of institutional players, capitals and habitus within these two sites have influenced the adoption of Bank recommended financial practices.

First, the analyses illustrate that the World Bank functions as an agent of diffusion via direct contact and through indirect modelling activities. Second, the analyses show that diffusion is not an automatic process – rather the predisposition of national governments, the embodied history of higher education and the distribution of capitals within the field influences whether financial reforms will be attempted. Third the analyses illustrate that, even when the introduction of new accounting and accountability mechanisms are attempted, other important field participants such as students can partially block the introduction of financial reforms.

The current study illustrates that international organizations such as the World Bank facilitate the diffusion of accounting and accountability practices but that local actors influence if, when and how accounting will be introduced and implemented.

Proposes a framework for the analysis and the execution of policies aimed at the adoption of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in developing countries. This framework is derived from institutional theory that offers, we argue, an alternative for those interested in understanding the forces that influence the adoption of ICTs in developing countries. We use the framework as a lens to tease out meanings of the Chilean case and identify possible courses of action that a country in a similar situation may take to expand and boost the expansion of ICTs. By drawing on the framework, we theorize about why some policies achieve their objectives while some others may not. We conclude by suggesting ways in which the framework can be applied by planners and decision makers in the formulation and evaluation of national ICTs policies.

To give an overview of the papers contained in this Special Issue.

Looks at how each of the papers reflects the theme of the Special Issue, “Complexity and IT design and evolution”.

The collection of papers in this Special Issue addresses complexity, drawing on multi‐faceted, multi‐theoretical lines of inquiry.

Frameworks from complexity science, institutional theory, social science, philosophy, and recent thinking in science and technology studies (STS) are used as theoretical lenses to conceptualize and analyze complexity in IS and to offer ways to mitigate it.