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Philip Dobson

Philip Dobson

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Centre for Innovative Practice

Dr Philip Dobson

Senior Lecturer

Telephone: (61 8)  6304 2141  
Email: p.dobson@ecu.edu.au   
Campus: Joondalup  
Room: JO2.462  

 

Availability

On study leave until January 2013.

Current teaching

  • MIS5704 - Business Process Management
  • MIS5707 - Enterprise Modelling – Enterprise Architecture/SOA
  • MIS5613 - MIS Project
  • MAN5701 - Project Time Management

Background

Dr Phil Dobson worked at a senior level for a number of large Australian mining companies before returning to academia in the mid 1980’s. He has a particular interest in the underlying philosophies of information systems research and has completed a PhD in the area.

He is an associate editor for the philosophy stream for the International Journal of Information Technologies and Systems Approach (IJITSA) and for a Special Issue on Critical Realism for MIS Quarterly (2012).

Responsibilities

Unit Coordinator:

  • MIS5608 - Supply Chain Management
  • MAN5705 - Project Procurement Management
  • MIS3700 - Business Process Management
  • MAN3521 - e-business Project
Course Coordinator:
  • Project Management
  • Information Systems

Staff qualifications

  • PhD Cowan
  • MInfoSys Curtin (awarded Galliers medal for academically best graduate) 
  • GradDipBus WAustCAE
  • BScHons Adel
  • BSc WAust

Professional memberships

  • Australian Computer Society (ACS)
  • International Institute of Business Analysts (IIBA) 

Research

Current research areas

  • Critical realist approaches to Information Systems (IS) research
  • Social aspects of National Broadband Network adoption
  • Enterprise Architecture
  • Theory of Constraints (TOC)

Research interests

  • Theory of Constraints (TOC) applications in mining
  • Reflexivity and the Morphogenetic Model applied to organizational analysis
  • Currently supervising 4 PhD students in the areas of Social aspects of E-government, Enterprise Architecture and individual adoption, Enterprise Architecture and critical realism, Quality Management and TOC
  • Previous DBA(IS) and PhD supervisions have been in the area of ERP Benefits Realization, IT and NGOs, E-fulfilment 

Recent research grants

  • 2012 - Encouraging Innovative PhD Research. Value $9760, Edith Cowan University, Faculty of Business & Law Strategic Research Grant 2012. Research team: Dobson, P. (CI); Bahn, S.; Larsen, A.; Gengatharen, D. E.; Fulford, R.; Barratt-pugh, L. 
  • 2010 - Understanding and Facilitating Broadband Adoption in the Mid West region of Western Australia. Value $19,589. Edith Cowan University, Faculty of Business & Law Strategic Research Grant, 2010. Research team: Dobson, P.; Jackson, P. & Gengatharen, D. E.
  • 2004 - CRM in the Service Industry. Australian Research Council Linkage grant. Research team: Prof. P. Love, Prof. C. Standing, Dr. P. Dobson, Mr. R. Fulford.

Recent publications

Book chapters

  • Dobson, P. (2012). Critical Realism and IS Research: Some Methodological Implications (pages 63-81) in Mora, M., Gelman, O., Steenkamp, A. L., & Raisinghani, M. (eds). Research Methodologies, Innovations and Philosophies in Software Systems Engineering and Information Systems.  IGI Global.  
  • Dobson, P. (2010), ‘Longitudinal case research: A critical realist perspective’, in W. Olsen (ed) Realist Methodology, Sage Benchmarks in Social Research Methods series, Sage Publications Ltd, UK.
  • Dobson, P. (2010), ‘The philosophy of critical realism: An opportunity for Information Systems research’ in W. Olsen (ed) Realist Methodology, Sage Benchmarks in Social Research Methods series, Sage Publications Ltd, UK.

Refereed journal articles

  • Dobson, P., Jackson, P. & Gengatharen, D. (2013 forthcoming), Explaining broadband adoption in rural Australia: modes of reflexivity and the morphogenetic approach, MIS Quarterly, Special issue on critical realism.
  • Dobson, P., Myles, J., and Jackson, P.(2007). Making the Case for Critical Realism: Examining the Implementation of Automated Performance Management Systems, Information Resources Management Journal, Vol. 20 Iss. 2, p. 140-152.
  • Dobson, P. & Love, P. (2004). Realist and Postmodernist Perspectives On Information Systems Research. Points Of Connection, Australasian Journal of Information Systems, Vol. 12, No. 1., pp 94-102. 
  • Dobson, P. (2003). BPR versus Outsourcing – Critical Perspectives. Journal of Systemic Practice and Action Research, 16, Issue 3, p. 225-233.
  • Dobson, Philip J. (2002). "Critical realism and information systems research: why bother with philosophy?", Information Research, 7(2). [google scholar citations: 80] 
  • Dobson, P. (2001), ‘The philosophy of critical realism: An opportunity for Information Systems research’, Information Systems Frontiers, Vol. 3 No. 2 pp 199-210. [google scholar citations: 91]  
  • Dobson, P. (2001), ‘Longitudinal case research: A critical realist perspective’, Journal of Systemic practice and action research, Vol: 14, Issue 3, p 283-296 [google scholar citations: 33].

Conference papers

  • Dobson, P, Fulford, R, Barratt-Pugh, L, Bahn, S., Gengatharen, D and Larsen, A (2012), ‘Eureka Moments In Research: Exploring Abductive Processes Using Four Case Examples’, ACIS 2012 (forthcoming).
  • Dobson, P and D'Mello, Z. (2012), Addressing the digital divide - IT Management practices in rural NGHSOs, ANZAM 2012 (forthcoming).
  • Dobson, P., Jackson, P., & Gengatharen, D. (2011). Examining Rural Adoption of Broadband – Critical Realist Perspectives. In Proceedings of the Pacific Asia Conference on Information Systems PACIS) 2011, Brisbane, Australia.
  • Jackson, P., Dobson, P., & Gengatharen, D. (2011). Using the morphogenetic model to examine broadband adoption - a critical realist argument. In Proceedings of the 11th EURAM Conference, Tallinn.
  • Dobson, P. (2007). Integrating Philosophy into IS Research, Proceedings of the Conference on Information Management and Internet Research, November 6th and 7th 2007, Joondalup.
  • Dobson, P. (2006). Critical Realism as Underlabourer in Examining Organizational Outsourcing, The International Association for Critical Realism annual conference, 10-12 July 2005, Sydney.
  • Webster, W.R., & Dobson, P. J. (2004). Cognition and Perspective: The Role of Cognitive Profiles and Philosophical Perspectives in Global IT Education, Proceedings of Fifth Annual Global Information Technology Management World Conference. San Diego: GITMA.
  • Dobson (2003). Judging Interpretive, Critical and Realist Approaches in IS Case Research?, 14th Australasian Conference on Information Systems, Perth.
  • Dobson, P. J.(2002). Innovation Diffusion from a Structure/Agency Perspective. In D. Bunker, D.Wilson & S. R. Elliot (bis.). The Adoption and Diffusion of IT in an Environment of Critical Change - IFIP TC 8 International Working Conference on Diffusion. Adoption and Implementation of Information Technology. 1st- 3rd August 2002. (pp. 34-44). Sydney, Australia: Pearson Publishing services on behalf of International Federation of Information Processing (IFIP).