Groupomatics

Abstract

The chapter discusses the concept of group informatics (groupomatics), one of the topics in the informing view of organization (IVO). One running theme in the chapter is the emphasis on cognitive aspects of work groups. Another theme is communication conceived of beyond the conventional conduit metaphor. The chapter also addresses the theme of uncertainty and ambiguity plaguing the deployment of teamwork and group support systems (GSS). Ample evidence indicates unexpected outcomes of deploying GSS. Group context complexity reduces predictability of GDSS effects. Distributed (virtual) teams and distributed GSS bring up new challenges that the discussion addresses. The chapter also introduces a concept of mobile enterprise strategy.