Toward a virtual politicking model

Reviewer: Ismet Gungor

A “four case” model is presented, based on four scenarios depicting email being used in ways undesirable to the organizational management. Each of the four cases is linked to a different level of risk to top management; however, no metric is proposed for the level of risk. The authors state that four features of email—speed, multiple addressability, processing, and routing—are particularly relevant to its political potency. Forwarding would be a more appropriate term to use in this case than routing, which has a well-defined meaning in communications. It should be noted that multiple addressability, processing, and forwarding could also be achieved in a paper environment. In fact, speed, easy processing, and cost are the features that make email popular. One can send an email message in a very short time, to thousands of addressees, at no cost. I do not think that IS managers and practitioners have the role to play in email usage within an organization that this paper implies. The organizational management establishes policies about the use of email in an organization, and IS managers and practitioners ensure the execution of the policy. Someone with a limited background in the political and social sciences may find it hard to appreciate the relevance and utility of the proposed model. Though the scenarios presented focus on the undesirable use of email from the viewpoint of top management, one could easily generate equivalent scenarios, based on real-life experience, of the constructive and humane use of email.