Exploring How ICTs and Administration Are Entwined: The Promise of Information Ecosystems

Abstract

This essay discusses the interrelationship among administrative practices, use of information and computing technologies (ICTs) in public and private organizations, and the role of information. This provides a historical overview of trends in all three areas, arguing that they were entwined, largely in the post–World War II era. The essay suggests how information exists in organizations, posing historical research questions undertaken by historians and makes recommendations on themes and methods for future studies. It argues that the use of information is the fundamental subject most in need of research as it was the basis for administrative activities and for the use of ICTs.