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Claudio Ciborra

Empirical Research

The research work I have carried out over the last 25 years has always been characterised by four main aspects. It is:

  • empirically based: it has always involved the study of existing work organizations and business realities
  • tightly linked with theory: qualitative theories and hypotheses formulation have accompanied most of the filed work
  • team-based: research has been always involved co-workers
  • international: most of the projects have had strong international collaboration links. The last projects have been carried out exclusively on an International basis.
1997 - 1999 The dynamics of global infrastructures in large multinationals.- Project Director and Lead Researcher - IBM Foundation, Universities of Oslo, Gothenburg and Bologna.

1996 - 1998 Strategic alliances for high - tech firms in developing countries - Sponsor: UNIDO- Vienna.

1994 - 1996 Corporate memory Project Director and Lead Researcher- IBM Consulting Group - Project Co-ordinator (research report in English).

1994 - 1996 Organizational learning and automation at Fiat - European Community Delta Project (action research) - Reports and articles in English.

1995 - The learning organization in R & D - National Research Council, Italy
Telework - European Community (research reports in Italian).

1994 - 1996 The impacts of groupware in large organizations - IBM Foundation Italy - Project Co-ordinator and Main researcher - (in depth case studies) Books in Italian and English.

1994 The virtual everyday life - exhibition design - the Triennale d'Arte of Milan - Exhibition Project (in Italian). Project Co-ordinator.

1993 IT and design of a technology park - Pirelli Industries. Various publications in Italian.

1992 - 1994 Groupware and collaborative design in the car industry - sponsor European Community (TIBAS Project)- Various research reports.

1988 - 1990 Groupware and flight crew - Department for Trade and Industry - UK and British Airways. (applied research; needs analysis; technology design) Articles at CSCW Conferences. Book Teams, Markets and Systems.

1984 - 1988 Strategic alliances in the information technology industry - (in depth, longitudinal case study) - sponsors: Olivetti Foundation; Olivetti; Rouyamont Center. Publications: a book (in Italian); various articles in Italian and English.

1980-1982 Work, language and IT - sponsor The Italian Ministry of Labour (research manuscript - in Italian).

1980-1981 Technology agreements and participatory design: Sponsors: NATO; Fondazione Olivetti (case studies of various Norwegian companies) - A booklet for the Olivetti Foundation and various articles in English.

1978 - 1980 Case study research on The design of automated systems and quality of working life - sponsors: Ministry of Labour Italy. Further work carried out for the European Foundation on the Quality of Working Life, and International Labour Office - Geneva. Publications in Italian (book); an IFIP Conference (Systems design by, for and with the Users); and a book published by the ILO (Business and Work).

1974-1977 Questionnaire-based research on The impacts of computers on organization structures and decision making processes - sponsor: Politecnico di Milano and Univac. Extensive application of Quantitative Methods for data analysis (Analyse des Correspondances). -Results published in Italian (book); at IFIP International Conference - and on Information and Management Journal.

page last updated 7 March, 2001