General Track GEN TITLE AUTHORS THINKING ABOUT IDENTITIES OF INFORMATION PROFESSIONALS: EXPLORING THE CONCEPT OF INTERSECTIONALITY Hardy, Catherine Anne, The University of Sydney, Business Information Systems Discipline, Economics and Business Building H69, Sydney New South Wales, Australia catherine.hardy@sydney.edu.au Williams, Susan Patricia, The University of Koblenz-Landau, Koblenz, Institute for IS Research, Germany, williams@unikoblenz.de SESSION CODE GEN-8 General Track Abstract The changing information landscape is recasting the role of information managers as strategic leaders advising on business competitiveness and advocating organizational change. However there is considerable uncertainty as to how these roles are being interpreted and the extent to which this impacts upon professional identity. Recently there has been an emerging awareness in IS research of the need to further explore identity issues in organisations. The aim of this paper is to report on the first stage of a research project that is examining how the identities of information professionals, specifically information managers, are constructed as it has received limited attention in theory and practice. Further, we explore the concept of intersectionality as an analytic approach that simultaneously considers the effects of different social memberships at multiple levels in the identity formation process. Keywords: information management, information professional, identity, intersectionality, General Track 1 I t odu tio The velocity, volume and types of information that organisations need to manage to support and enable business growth and respond effectively to legal, regulatory and compliance requests is a complex and ongoing challenge. Enterprise information management (EIM) initiatives are recognised as iti al i e su i g the o siste , ualit , a essi ilit a d sha ea ilit of i fo atio a oss a d outside the o ga isatio e ui i g sig ifi a t i est e t i te h olog a d tools as ell as the eatio of spe ifi oles a ou d i fo atio a age e t a d go e a e (Lapkin et al. 2011). A recent survey revealed knowledge and information management (KIM)15 as an essential rather than discretionary business function as organisational strategy, innovation policy and investment plans were identified as a key driver in the assignment of KIM responsibilities (Abell et al. 2011). The changing information landscape is recasting the role of information managers as strategic leaders, advising on business competitiveness and advocating organisational change (Lapkin 2011). However, there is considerable uncertainty as to how these roles are being interpreted by information managers, and the extent to which this impacts upon professional identity (Abell et al. 2011; Lapkin 2011). Recently within the information systems (IS) field of research there has been an emerging awareness and a growing body of literature exploring identity issues in organisations as to date it has received limited attention in contrast to general management and organisational studies (Gal and Kjaergaard 2009). Broadly speaking, attention is being directed towards the impact on and transformations of professional identities arising from the adoption, implementation and use of information technology (IT) and the IT profession itself (Brooks et al. 2011). A related but separate debate is also unfolding in the library and information sciences (LIS) field of research, which has a long tradition of developing theories and examining issues relating to information itself from a range of perspectives (Nolin & Åström 2009). Questions about the future identity of the field (Nolin & Åström 2009), roles of information professionals (Mahon 2008), domains of information management (Detlor 2010) and the relationship of information practice with the disciplinary area of information science (Middleton 2007) have arisen against the backdrop of digital environments. These matters have heightened attention around old ambiguities in relation to the contested meanings of data, information, knowledge and their relationship (see for eg Kettinger and Li 2010), uncertainties around capabilities, as well as the status of professional fields, disciplines and their jurisdictional claims across both the IS and LIS fields. In the amalgam of scholarly and practitioner interests is the recognised need to develop understanding of the dynamics underlying the identities of information professionals and in particular information managers in complex and changing socio-technical contexts. However, much of the research attention is being directed at how professional identities are shaped and impacted by IT or the status of IM or IT as a profession and the importance of having a collective identity to enhance professional status. We depart from the collective endeavours of information professionals to examine the professional identities that information managers have constructed for themselves as the e is u e tl li ited u de sta di g of the o te t of these i di idual s ide tities that u de pi o ga isational arrangements, processes and products. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to report on the first stage of a research project that is examining the varying ways that information managers are interpreting their roles in these changing landscapes and the impact on their professional identity. We utilise the concept of intersectionality to analyse and explore the interrelated nature of processes of identity constructions, social structures (eg. organisational arrangements) and symbolic representations (eg. norms and values), linked through social practices. In doing so two objectives are served. Firstly, we build upon theory and practice in terms of the professional identities of information managers, which to date has received limited attention notwithstanding the increasing attention being given to the i fo atio a age e t leade Lapki . “e o dl , e e plo e the o ept of i te se tio alit a d ho it invokes an integrated approach in understanding the complexity of social identities and inequalities (Bilge 2010). As the e is o u i e sal g oupi g fo i fo atio a age s, this pe spe ti e assists i ide tif i g a d u ta gli g the diffe e tial a d ate ial i pa t of thei e e da p a ti es Hol i o . This a al sis a p o ide f uitful contributions for developing organisational information capabilities and particularly identifying and retaining necessary skills. 15 KIM is recognised in this survey as a single discipline unifying and replacing information management (IM) and knowledge management (KM). General Track The paper is structured as follows. Firstly, we examine the theoretical ground upon which this research is based, including what is meant by the term information professional in the context of this study. Secondly, the methodology adopted for this study is discussed followed by an exploration of the formation of identities within an information management context. The paper concludes with the limitations and implications of the study. 2 Theo eti al o side atio s Identity in IS research Walsha defi ed p ofessio al ide tit as the a i hi h g oups a d i di iduals ithi those g oups, see and describe themselves in elatio to thei o k a d the o k of othe s i his i estigatio of the ha gi g ide tities of p ofessio al g oups elati g to the use of IT. The ide tit o ept has e ei ed sig ifi a t theo eti al and empirical attention evident by the diversity and size of the literature, spanning multiple disciplinary domains (Cornelissen et al. 2007). However it has received relatively limited attention in the IS literature (Gal & Kjaergaard 2009). Gal and Kjaergaard (2009) provide a comprehensive review and characterisation of how the identity concept is applied in the IS literature which we do not repeat here, but expand upon in three separate and related ways. The information phenomenon Gal and Kjaergaard (2009) identified different theoretical areas and research opportunities to advance understanding of identity in the IS field across functional, interpretivist and critical orientations. Central to these different views was progressing understanding of the impact on and transformation of professional identities arising from the adoption, implementation and use of IT. We argue that this line of research could be further strengthened by engaging with the library and information sciences (LIS) field of research, where similar questions relating to professional identity have been raised, but the phenomenon of interest is centred on information itself. This is further elaborated upon in section 2.2. The information professional and the middle manager Research attention directed towards the relationship between IT and professional identity has focused on groups such as scientists (Lamb & Davidson 2005), loan managers, insurance brokers, salespeople (Walsham 1998) and health care workers (Bloomfield & McLean 1996). To date limited attention has been given to the identities of information professionals, and in particular information managers. Yet, in the practitioner literature an emerging ole, ide tified i a i g a s su h as the e te p ise i fo atio a age e t EIM leade Lapki o k o ledge a d i fo atio a age KIM A ell et al, , has ee e og ised as esse tial fo o ga isatio s to be able to effectively respond to the challenges of managing risk and maximising value from their information assets Lapki et al. . This a pa tl e e plai ed the o fusio su ou di g the te i fo atio p ofessio al a d it ei g su su ed u de the la els of k o ledge o ke s o IT p ofessio als. We etu to this point in section 2.2. Further, Walsham (1998) focused on middle manager groups, as there was limited understanding of the changing nature of their work, yet responsibilities had expanded to a broader range of duties. More than a decade onwards this remains a limitation in IS research more broadly, evident by Wilcocks and Griffiths (2010) call for further research into the critical role of middle management in the outsourcing context. Similar to Walsham (1998) we argue that focusing on middle level managers may provide significant insights for identity research because of the possible range of duties and accountabilities. The levels of analysis issue The need for a more holistic understanding of identity at multiple levels of analysis has been recognised in both organisational (Cornelissen 2007) and IS (Walsham 1998; Gal & Kjaergaard 2009) domains. Cornelissen et al. (2007), d a i g f o the o k of B o , ide tified the individual elati g to people s pe so al se se of self ithi the organisation), group (relating to the shared identity of teams and sections within an organization), organizational (relating to the identity of the organization as a whole) and cultural (relating to commonalities in identity across organizations and within a society as a whole le els of a al sis. Ho e e , a i g ie s ha e ee e p essed as to General Track whether different forms of identity can be integrated (ibid). We engage with intersectional research, characterised Bilge as a a o/ i o a al ti al dualit to e a i e multiple levels and respond to calls to broaden the s ope of ide tit theo i I“ esea h Gal a d Kjae gaa d s . The information professional and the information manager Mu h o fusio su ou ds the te i fo atio p ofessio al ith li ks to a broad range of fields such as accounting (Elliott & Jacobsen 2002), business archives and records management (Cox 2008), knowledge management (Choo 2000), information management (IM) and information systems IS (Culnan 1986; Middleton 2007), health (McIntosh a d li a ia ship Bla k ; itself ith disti t issio s of i fo atio se i es fo pu li a d p i ate se to o te ts “tu ges . Maso asked the uestio hat is a i fo atio p ofessio al a d p oposed that i fo atio p ofessionals apply their special knowledge about information and information technology with one basic purpose in mind: to get the right information from the right source to the right client at the right time in the form most suitable for the use to which it is to be put and at a cost that is justified its use . Mo e tha t o de ades o si ila uestio s a e still ei g aised e ause of the a ied oles a d a different actors in the field (Mahon 2008). Not surprisingly the disciplinary and professional field(s) of information professionals has for some time been the asis of e ui ith o t asti g ie s o o e ge e a d di e sifi atio Middleto . IM has ee p o oted as a highl fle i le dis ipli e fo add essi g the eeds of the i fo atio p ofessio i id . Ho e e , there are various meanings and interpretations of the term itself, often used interchangeably with the management of IT and drawing upon disciplinary fields of IS and library and information science (Middleton 2007; Detlor 2010). Questions about the future identity of these disciplinary areas have also been the subject of attention in the IS (eg. Somers 2010) and library and information science literature (eg. Nolin & Åström 2009). Rowley (1998, 1999 cf Middleton 2007) posits that information has both behavioural and systems dimensions as it is p a ti e- ased a d disti guishes et ee i fo atio processing as an activity common to all information users, and information management as ei g the p o i e of p ofessio als hi h d a s upo a dis ipli es a gi g from management science to cybernetics. Detlor (2010) examined three major perspectives of information management, the personal, library and organisational; the later as most p o i e t a d asso iated ith te s like information systems management, information technology management, data management, business intelligence, o petiti e i tellige e, o te t a age e t a d e o ds a age e t. Ho e e , hile IT is a k o ledged as pla i g a ke ole i a agi g i fo atio i o ga isatio s, it is the te h i al ediu a d ot the p i a e tit that is ei g a aged u de the i fo atio a age e t u i Detlo . Therefore, we argue, at a theoretical and practical level, that there is a need to: (1) move beyond the collective identity and status of professional fields, disciplines and their jurisdictional claims; and (2) focus attention on how the professional identities of information managers, that underpin organisational arrangements, processes and products, are formed and constructed. The I tersectio ality co cept The te i te se tio alit as oi ed Ki e lé C e sha , f Yu al-Davis 2006) in addressing issues of la k o e s e plo e t i the U“ a d has subsequently gained increasing prominence in feminist studies, race and ethnicity studies, study of later life and queer theory in sexuality studies (Cronin & King 2010). Recently, the value of an intersectionality view has been recognised in business research (Zander et al. 2010). Intersectionality as defi ed )a de et al efe s to the spe ifi o ditio s that e ist he o e i di idual holds t o o o e so ial statuses a d to the si ulta eous a d i te a ti g effe ts of that o i atio . The te elates to oth normative theoretical arguments and an approach to conducting empirical research that emphasises the interaction of atego ies of diffe e e i ludi g ut ot li ited to a e, ge de , lass a d se ual o ie tatio Ha o k ; which Hol i o o eptualised as si ulta eous p o esses of ide tit , i stitutio al a d so ial p a ti e. He e it provides a useful lens in which to examine how difference and identity interplay and intersect in the context of the professional identities of information managers. The perspective has developed in diverse disciplines and research traditions and so not surprisingly has been the subject of confusion and controversies at a theoretical and methodological level, which are well documented General Track elsewhere (see for eg. Bilge 2010; Monro 2010). We broadly follow the constructionist approach, which is concerned with the intersectional identity formation process on multiple levels and narrative constructions rather than the systematic approach where meanings of identities are determined by set categories such as gender, racism etc. representing static and rigid systems of domination (Prins 2006). Secondly, in the context of this paper it is used primarily as an analytical tool based on the four level analysis framework by Anthias (1998). Thirdly, whilst we do not ignore the critical agenda of making visible areas of oppression and inequality (see for eg. Kvasny et al. (2009) work on gendered identities in IT), it is not our primary objective. I A thias s fou le el f a e o k, ide tit a d diffe e e a e a a do ed i fa ou of the ide tifi atio of o tologi al spa es o so ial do ai s, hi h a e o ti ge t a d a ia le i thei spe ifi ities .These o tologi al spaces, in this context the work domain, have experiential, intersubjective, organisational and representational forms summarised in Table 1: Experiential Intersubjective Organisational Representational fo uses o the e pe ie es of pe so s ithi spe ifi lo ata le o te ts, sa … i the o k pla e … of ei g defi ed as diffe e t, ide tif i g as a pa ti ula atego a ises f o the le el of i te su je ti e elatio s: the a tio s a d p a ti es that take pla e in relation to others (including non-pe so a to s su h as …the so ial se u it s ste … fo uses o the institutional and other organisational ways in which the ontological spaces a e pla ed out: fo eg, … edu atio al s ste s, politi al a d legal s ste s…, s ste s of poli i g a d su eilla e. Fo e a ple, ho is se ualit … o populatio atego ies orga ised ithi i stitutio al f a e o ks a d i te s of the allo atio of esou es? What a e the s oli a d ep ese tatio al ea s, the i ages a d te ts, the do u e ts a d i fo atio flo s a ou d the o tologi al spa es? Table 1: Four level framework (Anthias 1998) These oss ut the t o p o le ati s of diffe e tiatio a d positio alit defi ed as follo s: The process of differe tiatio a d ide tificatio : relates to processes whereby persons are attributed or attribute themselves characteristics, and are sorted or sort themselves into places as well as processes whereby the differentiation of places, is constituted: what are the primary organising principles and assumptions that underlie the category? On what specific and local criteria have persons been assigned to a category? What constitute the o te ts of the att i utio a d ide tifi atio s i ol ed i spe ifi lo al o te ts? A thias The process of positio ality: places i the order of thi gs: What are the processes by which the categories emerge as hierarchical? How are places allocated positions? What are the social processes at a range of different levels which are involved in the production, reproduction and transformation of unequal social outcomes? How are these embodied in institutions, structures, laws, power relations and so on? How are places hierarchised and subjected to p o esses of i fe io isatio ? A thias 3 ‘esea h Desig This research is the second stage in a broader research program aimed at assisting organisations in managing their enterprise information in an era of rapidly changing digital information infrastructures. The first stage consisted of a literature review covering academic and practitioner journals, for the purpose of identifying key themes and concepts to assist in designing the research framework and a focus group study to identify key information management issues and challenges. One of the focus group findings revealed a complex range of position titles and diverse knowledge and skill sets required for information professionals. This raised the question of just who is the information professional? The primary aim of this second stage of the research is to explore this question and investigate the work identities of middle level information managers through an empirical study. Finally, the study follows an interpretive research design and is organised into three stages: data collection; data coding and thematic analysis; discussion and interpretation of findings. General Track Data Collection A qualitative research approach was adopted comprising interviews with seven information managers using semistructured interviews. Respondents were identified through a passive snowballing technique. Whilst we did not seek out participants at particular stages of their careers we did target middle level managers because of their practical intelligibility (know how) of work practices and material arrangements, such as rules and structures. Details of the interviewees are set out in Table 2; names have been changed to ensure anonymity. All participants were based in Australia. The in-depth interviews are between 50 to 115 minutes in length and were digitally recorded and transcribed verbatim. Questions were based on the type of work they were involved in, in terms of their roles and activities, their educational and career backgrounds and their location within their organisation. In addition, issues that were identified as important by respondents were expanded upon in the interview. Name Date of first job First job area Current job title (as at 2010) Therese >20 years ago 1972 Filing clerk Information manager Teacher in Special Ed. Cathy Current industry where employed Manufacturing Org Size Educational Qualifications Professional Associations Approx 700 ARMA, RMAA, AIIM, ALIA Corporate Records & EDRM Project Manager Government >13000 Bachelor of Librarianship Master of Management & Knowledge Management Bachelor of Arts (psychology & sociology) Bachelor Legal Studies Masters of Law Certificate in Special Education Bachelor of Theology Graduate Diploma in Archives & Records Mgt Graduate Diploma of Business Mgt Certificate of Business Studies & Records Mgt Certificate in Computer Systems Bachelor degree in urban management Lyla > 20 years ago. Nursing Document mgt manager Professional Services >130,000 globally George 1977 Mail clerk Manager, Electronic Documents & Records Mgt Information Mgt & Admin Services Government 2000 Government 2000 Victoria > 20 years ago. Public housing & policy Brenda 1996 File services & projects Team Leader Information Mgt. Government > 800 permanent staff plus contract staff Cecilia 1971 Data punch card clerk Manager Information Lifecycle Team Government >600 Table 2 Bachelor of Arts (History, English) Graduate Diploma of Archives & Records Mgt Professional Diploma of Human Resources Associate Diploma of Arts Bachelor of Arts (History & English) Certificate in Software Fundamentals Diploma in Information Management (Archives Administration) Australian Institute Management of RMAA and IIMA (corporate membership) Corporate membership RMAA of RMAA & Institute of Public Administration (corporate membership) Records & Information Management Professionals RMAA (corporate membership) Details of interviewees Data coding and thematic analysis The interview data were reduced and analysed using an in-depth analytical coding approach as shown in Figure 1. The coding process was organised into two cycles. The first coding cycle involved the structural and topic coding of the raw interview data following standard procedures (cf. Miles and Huberman, 1994; Saldaña, 2009). General Track First coding cycle Second coding cycle • • • • • Interview transcripts Key themes xxx xxx xxx xxx xxx Theme Table Structural & topic coding Pa ern and Axial coding Code Table Figure 1: Coding and analysis process The core concepts of intersectionality were used to provide a structure to guide the coding process. Two researchers independently encoded each interview transcript. Regular meetings were held to review the emerging codes, agree on labelling terms and consolidate the codes into the final code table. Table 3 shows an extract from the final code table for one participant (Therese). The code table contains a descriptive topic code (shown in bold in the table) and the original text from which the code was derived. This process was completed for all the interviews and the topic codes reviewed and harmonised. The second coding cycle involved a process of pattern and axial coding (Saldaña, 2009). The researchers identified the dominant themes and issues arising from the first cycle analysis and these were first added into the final column of the code table and then synthesised into the theme table. 4 Dis ussio a d I te p etatio of Fi di gs The outcome of the second coding cycle and thematic analysis is five separate but related themes: 1) routes to information management; 2) importance of multiple identifications and multiple levels; 3) the ambiguities of (dis)identifying with information and technology; 4) the precarious nature of belonging; and 5) institutional influence. These themes and their implications are discussed in more detail in the following sections. Routes to information management: origins, mobility and lifelong learning The information managers in this study came to information management from a variety of backgrounds (as set out in Table 2), not unlike those in many other occupations. However, there were some particular patterns identified that were influential on the development of their professional identity. The first group (Therese, Cecilia, George and Brenda) had started their careers in clerical positions relating to data, mail and filing. The second group (Cathy, Lyla and Victoria) varied in terms of nursing, special education and public housing and policy. Whilst Therese, Lyla, and Brenda had aspirations to information management as a career evident by their studies, there was no sense that any of the two groups of information managers had actually set out to work in information management. The managers had most commonly attributed their employment in information management as a combination of convenience and serendipity. For example, Therese reflected: I did a deg ee i li a ia ship … e t o e seas … ee te po a jo a aila le … setti g up a fili g s ste , it as o e like fou ea s… a k a el a eek a d … [the e as] … a o e le i al tha a thi g else… tu ed i to or in Vi to ia s ase I sta ted a ee o ki g i pu li housi g a d … poli … a d o ed i to a a ge of diffe e t oles i ludi g e e uti e suppo t t pe oles … I got i ol ed i a o e te h i al so t of spa e he IT outsou i g as all the age … f o there got involved in policy initiatives to put government information se i es o li e a d it just so t of e ol ed. Common across both groups was the occupational self constructed by mobility, in terms of changing employers and departments. This was primarily viewed as a way for professional development and valuable in developing practical experience in a range of business contexts. However, Brenda, who was younger than all of the other participants, General Track also highlighted the project based nature of her working career and her preference to find a more stable work e i o e t. Fu the oth g oups had a a ge of k o ledge a d ualifi atio s. Ho e e , hile lifelo g lea i g was identified as important, the emphasis was on practical experience and the need to develop a wider skill set particularly in regards to project management; a point we return to in section 4.2. Hence the managers had come to information management with a variety of motivations and through a number of different routes. This was also found to have wielded some influence on how they related to information management as an occupation subsequently. For example, Cathy who came from a education and legal background, stated that: I i this pu el a ide t … ut ith a passio fo the e ide e ase Whilst not proposing an essentialist type view of destiny derived from some common origin, this has highlighted how the identification of information managers covers a wide terrain, which presents complexities in understanding the collective identity into which it can be inscribed and in forging new routes in digital environments. General Track PARTICIPANT THERESE PARTICIPANT THERESE Table 3 PROCESS OF DIFFERENTIATION AND IDENTIFICATION EXPERIENTIAL INTERSUBJECTIVE The value of mobility U dersta di g the detail I a ted to keep o i g… I a ted … the se io people do t get to experience a lot of different bogged down in detail, but I think o ga isatio s … p ofessio all I g e sometimes they have to quite a bit just by being able to move understand that detail in order to f o o e o ga isatio to a othe know what the implications are The consulting role of why you have to do I see to e o sulti g uite a it to something; why you might need [the parent company] – I sat on a a classification scheme, for steering committee recently for an instance, why keeping emails for ea s is t e essa il i agi g s ste that the e se e going to keep you out of ... the i ple e ti g; I ad isi g o courts. ete tio a d disposal... Importance of project management Educating about the value of information management & change management skills I do t al a s feel that people P oje t a age e t - an absolute must. Change management skills - an truly understand the implications of managing information ... a solute ust the e s so u h of it i the detail...the biggest challenge is helping people understand how much benefit they can get from managing information p ope l . PROCESS OF POSITIONALITY AND PLACEMENT EXPERIENTIAL INTERSUBJECTIVE Role & Position “o e se ior gt get the I esta lished o u it ui kl , importance of IM. “o e get it soo afte I a i ed … so eo e asked like the senior manager with the a a kg ou d othe s eed e e e tl … ae ou the i fo atio [ athe tha IT]… to feel the pai . … it s it ha d at the o e Basi all ole is … i fo atio go e a e ut the e s a lot of se io le els … I do t al a s feel that they are complying with hands-o o k as ell, e ause I what they are wanting me to do the only one basi all … I e o se ed this i a fe organisations, where senior managers are telling people to use the s ste … a d [ he ] I talk to [the ] … the sa , [the ] do t ha e a thi g [fo the system]. Example of Structural and Topic Coding for one participant KEY THEMES/ISSUES ORGANISATIONAL Institutional influences The o pa as espo di g to a Government request for information on a major issue. They spent a lot of time and money responding to that and it was in response to a strategic action that the company wanted to take … it was at that point it brought to a head the need to have some proper document and information a age e t. Role and value of professional associations I fi d A‘MA, i so e a s, of u h o e alue tha the ‘MAA … i te s of esou es ... [ ut] … the re American-centric ... The RMAA p o ides o e of a et o k … [I e] …al ost g o up a d g o old ith these people … the ' e ot lose friends but they're people that are al a s the e fo ou … I ha e a fe people that I call up every now and again and … ou e a idea off. REPRESENTATIONAL Silos and switches  O e of the issues i this o ga isatio is people working in silos. They wanted people to be sharing information more  … You a tell hat the e efits a e ut getting there is not a light switch o e t. The SharePoint implementation  “o ole i itiall as to just get the system up and running, so technically parts of it had been established but  e little happe ed … “o asi all role is [well] ... it's governance but specifically the taxonomy and all of those things, just to get some practical things happening. Also, I keep senior managers - part of my role is to educate  them on what they need to be aware of. I'm not sure how much they take that o oa d... ORGANISATIONAL Belonging to professional associations I joined the Records Management Asso iatio . At that ti e … ei g a librarian in the Records Management Association was like being poison. The did t like li a ia s … e ause there was another professional group o i g i to this a ea… the e s o e convergence now from different positio s… REPRESENTATIONAL IM as a strategic partnership with the business. Yeah, I do see that ut the e s all so ts of i fo atio p ofessio als out the e … the e o i g f o all so ts of fields …[a d]… it s a i tu e of the o ga isatio that you e i a d its ultu e, the ultu e of its people – the senior people, the level of knowledge and skill to be able to understand, what kind of person they espo d to, hethe the e i a suit o ot … hat the issues a e a ou d the ti e. Professional associations as a resource and support network. Multiple roles & skill sets: Project manager, internal consultant, advisor & change agent. Traversing the strategic and operational needs Professional development through lifelong learning & mobility Gaining (in)visibility through technology implementation Identifying with the value of information mgt KEY THEMES/ISSUES Positioning organisation: in the  senior level (recognition)  location of IM group (non IT) Institutional culture influences - General Track Importance of dual and multiple identifications: advisor, change agent, project manager at strategic and operational levels All of the pa ti ipa ts e phasised the i age of a ad iso a d ha ge age t spe ifi all i elatio to a ti ulati g the value of information management to senior management and framing efforts with a strategic focus. However, this identity was often contingent on senior management recognition and support and needed to be balanced with ope atio al eeds; as The ese o e ted u de sta di g the detail. Fu the , the p oje t ide tit as a pe asi e theme in our analysis. The projects emerged as a site of identity mainly by default in terms of the implementation of ele t o i do u e t a d e o ds a age e t ED‘M s ste s. Fo so e pa ti ipa ts p oje ts e e a ay of positioning their professional activities to access resources and for enhancing their identity. Whilst for others, it changed other business unit conceptions of their work and hence their identity because of the symbolic constructions that surrounded a te h olog i ple e tatio , he e ou dis ussio o tu s. The Ambiguities of (Dis)identifying with information and technologies Whilst it is widely acknowledged that information is an asset for an organisation and required for compliance purposes, its management is not as straightforward. A common issue identified was that it was not enough to claim the identity of an information manager, it also had to be ascribed by others and in particular senior management. Further, whilst implementing EDRM systems appeared to be identity enhancing for some (eg. Greg, Victoria), for others the technology became a representational form of their identity (eg. Brenda & Cecilia); notwithstanding that all participants acknowledged the importance of understanding the technology. This suggests that information a age s a e pe ie e a ki d of i te se tio al i isi ilit . This te , p oposed Pu die-Vaughns and Eibach (2008), in intersectionality research, refers to people with multiple subordinate-group identities such as ethnic i o it o a ho do ot fit the p otot pes of thei espe ti e ide tit g oups. I the o te t of this stud , i fo atio a age s a ha e i te se ti g ide tities of i fo atio a d te h olog a d he e pe ei ed as o p otot pi al of their constituent groups such as librarians, records managers and IT managers. Whilst this concept awaits further analysis, it also points to issues relating to the positioning of IM in organisations, which follows. The precarious nature of belonging and processes of positioning: professional associations and localities of IM The information managers were placed in varying locations in their organisations. Of the seven participants, three were located in an IT department, three in independent units with two of those within a corporate service type area, and one in multiple locations. For those located in an IT department, it was generally viewed, as not optimal but necessary because of the technological changes. Lyla believed it assisted her IT counterparts in better understanding the IM work whilst Cecilia cast it more in terms of its inevitability because of technological innovations and the history surrounding the difficulty in where to place IM departments. Of the three independent units outside of IT, t o of the o ga isatio s had IT outsou i g a a ge e ts i pla e. Fi all , B e da s u it as lo ated i ultiple a eas e ause of the u i ue a i hi h tea leade s e e di ided i to st u tu ed a d u st u tu ed i fo atio and attached to different applications. However, there had been a number of restructures where they were originally located in an IT department, which had subsequently been restructured under a business services area. This highlights the i fo atio pa ado p o le aised Loga 2010) in terms of the problematic nature of whether to position IM as an IT responsibility and the way in which the identification of IM is increasingly deterritorialized. Belonginess did not only pertain to organisational localities, but also to professional associations. As seen in Table 2, participants were members or had corporate membership of primarily the Records Management Association of Australia (RMAA), amongst a range of others. Only three of the participants expressed particular views about the value of professional associations. Of those, Therese saw value in terms of the support network that she had periodically connected with in conducting her professional activities. However, she reflected upon a time in the early stages of her career when: General Track … ei g a li a ia i the ‘MAA as like ei g poiso . The did 't like li a ia s … It's ot so o as the e's o e o e ge e o f o diffe e t p ofessio s… u h of it She also identified the information resources available from another association as extremely useful, albeit A e i a e t i . The othe t o pa ti ipa ts de i ed so e li ited alue. Both e e of the ie that the di e sit of their professional group and different levels of expertise made many courses too generic, when they required more subject specific and detailed guidance. None of the participants viewed their membership as a representation of their skills and competencies. This has interesting implications in terms of whether individuals will identify with support networks or business communities as they become more embedded in the organisation (Abell et al. 2011). Institutional influence Institutional influence was a key theme identified across most of the participants and particularly for those in the public sector. This was cast more in terms of the records that needed to be kept according to particular laws and the impact on their work activities. In the case of George, the law itself was of particular significance in the context of his p ofessio al ide tit ha i g ee pa t of that o ld si e his a ee sta ted i follo i g a la e a ted i 1975. In the case of Cathy, it sprang from a primary commitment to the public service and the need for a proper e ide e ase e ui ed la a d p ope e o d keepi g of e e ts elating to vulnerable people. For Therese, it was a government request for information and the poor response that acted as a trigger for her IM unit to be formed. This highlights institutional influences as a legitimating identity source to be further explored. 5 Li itatio s a d Co lusio This paper has attempted to build on the growing, but underdeveloped area of identity in IS research. Specifically we examined how information managers are interpreting their role in the changing information landscape and the impact on their professional identity. We documented and assessed the ways professional identity was experienced, practised and performed, organised and represented using the intersectionality concept. The information managers came from diverse education and work backgrounds and this diversity appears to be increasing with new areas incorporating advisory, project and change management roles. 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