3.11 Pors, J.K. and J. Simonsen (2003): "Coordinating Work with Groupware: The Challenge of Integrating Protocol and Artefact", in M. Korpela, R. Montealegre, and A. Poulymenakou (Eds): Organizational Information Systems in the Context of Globalization [IFIP TC8 & TC9/WG8.2 & WG9.4: Working Conference on Information Systems Perspectives and Challenges in the Context of Globalization, 15.-17. June 2003, Athens, Greek], Kluwer Academic Publishers, pp. 53-68.

Abstract

One important goal of employing groupware is to make possible complex collaboration between geographically distributed groups. This requires a dual transformation of both technology and work practice. The challenge is to re­duce the complexity of the coordination work by successfully inte­grating the protocol stipulating the collaboration and the ar­te­fact, in form of the groupware application, mediating the col­laboration. This paper analyses a generic groupware application that was deployed in a large financial organisation in order to support working groups distributed throughout four countries. Using the CSCW frame­work of coordination mechanisms, we have elicited six general factors influencing the integration of the groupware application in two situations.