Information Technology and the Emergence of a Worker-Centered Organization    

Barbara Mirel's narrative highlights the interplay of profit, power, and personalities in a software engineering project. My response's purpose is to widen the perspective on the story. More specifically, I contend that information technology (IT) enables positive change in today's workplace. Rather than being techno-centric, the re-visions currently being brought about by IT will place the knowledge worker of the 21st century at the center of design and engineering considerations. I support my claim by identifying four trends in organizational management that will afford human factors and usability engineering a better seat at the table in the not too distant future. They are (1) requirements for next-generation IT applications, (2) improved understanding of culture and context in the workplace, (3) recognition of knowledge management and human capital, and (4) fostering strategic leadership beyond resource management.

Carlson, Patricia A. Journal of Computer Documentation (2000). Careers>Workplace>Technology

Usability as Therapy

Underneath the carnival excitement of the information revolution I hear a quiet but persistent murmur warning of an emerging technology crisis. Not everything is right in the information economy.

Kreitzberg, Charles B. Usability Professionals Association (1999). Careers>Usability>Workplace>Technology