Between Success and Failure: A Forecasting System in Use

This short paper is intended to describe a research project in progress. Success/failure of information systems (IS) is a critical discussion in the literature. The constructivist approach to this problem has emphasised the importance of narratives in determining whether the implementation of an information is said to have succeeded or failed. This research project aims to extend the existing literature of success/failure by considering a case study of a pharmaceutical firm that implemented a forecasting support system (FSS). It examines the contrasting narratives of success and failure that emerge from the organization and from forecasting scientists observing and evaluating forecasting practices at the firm against idealised norms. This paper proposes, although it does not develop, a theoretical perspective on this situation drawn from Habermas’ ideas of lifeworld/system in order to explain how different interpretations of rational behaviour in forecasting can emerge.