Prototype systems for accounting, information and control

Abstract

Many “principles” of MIS design fail to accommodate the complexities of organisational learning. Increasingly, practitioners recognise this deficiency and are forced to experiment. A promising design innovation is the “prototype” approach. This not only has technical advantages of reducing the risks and pressures inherent in MIS design, but also provides behavioural benefits, for example as a catalyst to participative design, to organisational experimentation and to learning. Three case studies are described and a prototype procedure suggested. Prototypes are seen as a “process-enabler” and as a device by which action researchers themselves can learn more about MIS design.