How Societies Embrace Information Technology - by James W Cortada Paperback

Book Synopsis

This book discusses how computers are shaping contemporary society, with a tight focus on the role of corporations and governments. It is aimed at government policymakers interested in economic development and at private-sector managers who routinely make decisions to acquire and use information technology, now a worldwide expenditure of over $2 trillion annually. The book will also interest a wide range of academics concerned with the sociology, history, economics, and the effects of IT on contemporary society, ands to the general trade market.

From the Back Cover

A truly global look at IT deployment and use

No technology in our history has spread as fast as computers and their digital technologies. In How Societies Embrace Information Technology, leading IT authority James Cortada examines how this phenomenon is shaping contemporary society, focusing on the role of corporations and governments. By revealing what history teaches about the adoption of information technologies, Cortada prepares business and government leaders to spot new trends and successfully develop strategies for implementing and managing emerging technologies. Coverage includes:

• Summaries of the new best practices based on sixty years of historical experience, all research-based

• How technology spread so quickly and completely across the globe

• A look at the decision-making process of managers in the private and public sectors

• How governments leverage IT to improve their national economies

• An examination of the "Information Age" and whether it actually exists

• The most current developments in IT

This authoritative reference is ideal for government policymakers and for private-sector managers who routinely make decisions to acquire and use information technology. It is also aimed at academics concerned with the sociology, history, economics, and the effects of IT on contemporary society, as well as business schools and engineering and IT professionals serving in management roles or interested in the managerial/user history of IT.

The author's royalties on sales of this book will be donated to the IEEE Computer Society's Educational Activities Board.

Review Quotes

"The book also presents ideas for educators. For instance, to encourage IT people to be naturally proactive, courses should leverage the creation and production of IT projects with solving society's problems. With some effort, this can be done in computers and society courses, at both the general and professional education level. At the professional level, IT workers with such experience and training will more likely choose to work on problem areas. At the general level, people with such experience will act politically, to vocalize the expectation that the IT industry will create products that help society." (Computing Reviews, September 2010)

About the Author

James W. Cortada has thirty-five years of experience with IBM in various sales, consulting, and managerial positions related to information technology and its use. In particular, he helped design and deploy processes related to employee skills development, including IBM's worldwide consultant skills certification process, sales processes, and specialized training seminars. An author of more than fifty books on the management and history of information technology, Cortada's work has been translated into Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, and Korean.