Information systems strategy: past, present, future?

The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the current discourse in the Strategic Information Systems (SIS) domain about the future and identity of SIS. We draw on Nelson’s theorisation of the co-evolution of Physical and Social Technologies to redefine the SIS domain as a Complex Adaptive System (CAS) for the co-evolution of ICT and organisational capabilities and business models to create social and economic value. We conduct a meta-analysis of the domain based on a longitudinal review of SIS research over 33 years, and contrary to contemporaneous SIS literature which suggests that a paradigm shift may be necessary to address the increased turbulence, uncertainty and dynamism in the emerging competitive landscape, we find that the SIS research domain has the requisite adaptive capacity to evolve gracefully to address the challenges of the emerging networked competitive landscape. Drawing on complexity science and network theory we identify four priorities for the development of the domain for the future: conceptualisation of the SIS Domain as a CAS for the co-evolution of Physical and Social Technologies; the adoption of the network paradigm; access to a science of networks; and adoption of Complexity Science as an articulation device within SIS and across disciplines.