Once upon a time: Crafting allegories to analyze and share the cultural complexity of strategic alignment

Abstract

Allegories are fictional tales that convey meaning not explicitly set out in their narratives. In writing them, researchers move beyond the “realistic” tale to frame coherent organizational metaphors and symbols and to offer a multi-layered truth that lies “between the lines” in the often subconscious spaces of organizational life. As such, this genre offers an evocative, yet concise alternative to traditional approaches for information systems research. Drawing on a 2-year cultural study of strategic alignment of IT in two insurance organizations as illustrative context, the allegory is introduced and demonstrated in five steps to guide researchers in creating their own allegories. This illustration uses allegory to recast diverse cultural and historical data into short stories that involve magic dragons and wizards, thereby demonstrating the usefulness of the genre for comparative, multi-case designs to translate organizational features to achieve a common representation. In conclusion, the paper offers reflections on how the genre of allegory may contribute to future information systems research, to alternative styles of presentation, and to reflexive practices.

Keywords:

• allegory
• IT Culture
• IT alignment
• magic
• metaphor and symbols
• writing qualitative research

Issue Guest Editors: Michel Avital, Lars Mathiassen and Ulrike Schultze

Issue Guest Editors: Michel Avital, Lars Mathiassen and Ulrike Schultze

Acknowledgements

My sincere gratitude to the participants in the original study who so generously shared their time and stories. I am also indebted to the many suggestions of the three anonymous reviewers, Associate Editor, and Guest Editors of this special issue. I could not have been blessed with a better team of advisors. Lastly, a special thank you to my “elders” who encouraged me in my adventures: Patricia Bradshaw, Richard Irving, Rekha Karambayya, Gareth Morgan, Victor Murray, Christine Oliver, and Daniel Robey.

Notes

1 Archimage means a great magician, wizard, or enchanter (Miriam Webster Online http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/archimage. Accessed Feb. 10, 2014.

2 Sasha, a professional artist, later redrew the graphics shown here. These are the images shared with participants during the validation and reinterpretation stages.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Michelle Lynn Kaarst-Brown

About the Authors

Michelle Kaarst-Brown is an Associate Professor at the School of Information Studies, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York. She received her MBA and PhD from the Schulich School of Business, York University, Canada. Dr. Kaarst-Brown’s prior work experience in organizational development, risk, and strategy became the foundation for her research interests in how perceptions of risk and opportunity shape strategic action. An overarching theme in her research has been to look beyond traditional views to understand how to gain traction for organizational change associated with better risk and opportunity management. After entering academia, her research into “IT Culture” and perceptions of IT risk and opportunity have resulted in diverse projects with other scholars, doctoral students, and practitioners. She has presented her work at international conferences and published in a number of top academic and practitioner-focused journals including MIS Quarterly, MIS Quarterly Executive, Information Technology and People, Project Management Journal, Journal of Strategic Information Systems, and Journal of Organizational Change Management. She teaches in the areas of risk, strategy and consulting, as well as qualitative methods. Dr. Kaarst-Brown’s research has been adopted by practitioners and in higher education. Publications on her theory of “IT Cultures” have been reprinted in several IT textbooks and are required reading in international undergraduate, masters, and doctoral programs. She is currently a Senior Editor for MIS Quarterly Executive and served as AE for MIS Quarterly and the Journal of Enterprise Architecture.