The Journal of Strategic Information Systems focuses on the strategic management, business and organizational issues associated with the introduction and utilization of information systems, and considers these issues in a global context. The emphasis is on the incorporation of IT into organizations' strategic thinking, strategy alignment, organizational arrangements and management of change issues. The journal publishes research from around the world which:

• investigate the changing nature of business in the context of emerging IT
• discuss the justification and evaluation of information systems
• discuss the organizational implications of IT
• consider how organizations have been transformed as a result of the astute management and application of IT

A transdisciplinary, critical approach/perspective is welcome.

Topics covered include:
• organizational transformation on the back of IT
• information systems/business strategy alignment
• inter-organizational systems
• global issues and cross-cultural issues
• the impact and significance of emerging IT 

Special Issue on Unpacking the Multifaceted Impact of Generative Artificial Intelligence on Organisations
Submission Date: 2026-07-31

This special issue examines Generative AI's dual impact on organisations, driving innovation, efficiency, and societal value while raising ethical, governance, and workforce challenges.

Guest editors:

Jun Hwa Cheah (Jacky), University of East Anglia, UK 
Brad McKenna, University of East Anglia, UK
Shahper Richter, University of Auckland, New Zealand 
PK Senyo, University of Southampton, UK
Marco Marabelli, Bentley University, USA

Special issue information:

Motivation and Focus

Generative Artificial Intelligence (GAI) is at the forefront of technological innovation, with rapid growth and transformative potential. By 2032, the global GAI market is projected to reach $151.9 billion[1]. This trajectory reflects the growing recognition of GAI's capabilities across multiple domains, fundamentally reshaping innovation paradigms and redefining organisational processes and structures (Schlagwein & Willcocks, 2023). In particular, GAI is increasingly acknowledged as a transformative force in facilitating data-driven decision-making and optimising operational processes within and across organisations (Chuma & de Oliveira, 2023; Korzynski et al., 2023). Foundational GAI systems such as BERT, ChatGPT DALL-E, Deepseek and Gemini illustrate their adaptability and extensive applicability. These systems can execute a wide array of tasks, ranging from creative production and service delivery to organisational decision-making, offering novel opportunities for personalisation, operational efficiency, and interdisciplinary collaboration (Susarla et al., 2023). As GAI continues to evolve, some organisations have commenced developing and disseminating regulatory frameworks to legitimise its deployment in organisational processes. There is growing interest in whether GAI can be repurposed as a strategic technology employed for advancing social justice and addressing grand challenges, from climate resilience to digital access and social welfare. At the same time, there are stakeholders, including organisational actors, that are concerned with the risks posed by GAI, such as data governance, epistemic reliability, trust, error propagation, and bias. This special issue aims to unfold strategic opportunities and challenges of GAI in organizations, networks, government bodies and society at large.

While prior studies have examined AI more conceptually and broadly (e.g., Golgeci et al., 2025; Mikalef et al., 2022; Rana et al., 2022), a significant unexplored area remains, which concerns the multifaceted impacts of GAI on organisational decision-making within the information systems research (Mikalef et al., 2022). Because of the relevant strategic implications (and potentially ethical challenges) associated with implementing GAI in organsations, filling this gap becomes paramount. In particular, with this special issue we aim to stimulate research focusing on the dual nature of GAI, its simultaneous potential for value co-creation and value co-destruction in organisations; GAI presents promising opportunities and significant challenges. In particular, GAI used for automated content creation, internal reporting and predictive analytics, has the potential to improve operational efficiency by identifying workflow bottlenecks, reducing manual workload, and enabling data-driven insights into employee performance and strategic planning (Mikalef et al., 2022; Pan et al., 2024). With these capabilities, it can detect subtle signs of fatigue or burnout, such as slower response times, changes in communication tone, or altered work patterns. Hence it enables early intervention through tailored support or adjustments to the workload. Also, by synthesising vast amounts of information, GAI supports value co-creation and strategic agility in decision-making, promotes innovation and digital inclusion, and allows employees to focus on higher-level tasks such as problem-solving and strategic thinking (Ameen et al., 2024). In fact, GAI can foster creativity and knowledge sharing, support employee well-being by automating repetitive tasks, and improve cross-functional collaboration (Mikalef et al., 2022). GAI can also detect subtle patterns indicative of fatigue or burnout, such as reduced response times, changes in communication tone, or shifts in work rhythms, allowing organisations to intervene early with tailored support or workload adjustments.

However, these organisational benefits are tempered by critical concerns. The increasing reliance on opaque and complex GAI systems introduces risks related to hallucinations, diminished human oversight, and the externalisation of ethical responsibility onto non-accountable technologies (Golgeci et al., 2025; Mikalef et al., 2022). According to a 2023 global survey, 75% of companies have restricted or actively considered restricting technologies such as ChatGPT due to fears of data breaches, intellectual property loss, and declining trust in AI-generated content (Blackberry, August 2023). More fundamentally, GAI threatens the nature of creative labour, raising questions about job security, intellectual integrity, and the automation of cognitively demanding work (Mikalef et al., 2022). GAI implementation may also generate unintended consequences for employee well-being, including role displacement, cognitive dependency, and reduced transparency in decision-making (Ebrahimi et al., 2024; Lysyakov & Viswanathan, 2023; Papagiannidis, Mikalef, & Conboy, 2025; Heyder, Passlack, & Posegga, 2023), which somehow affects the diversity, equality, and inclusion in the working environment (Marabelli & Chan, 2024). Concerning workplace surveillance, GAI can undermine employee autonomy by enabling constant monitoring that erodes trust and psychological safety. Employees may feel reduced to performance metrics, reflecting a shift toward Digital Taylorism, which prioritises algorithmic efficiency over human creativity (Konuk et al., 2023). This dynamic can further intensify privacy concerns due to the opaque nature of many GAI systems, where data is often collected and used without clear consent. This will also heighten the risk of biased or discriminatory outcomes. Thus, all of these concerns highlight the potential for value co-destruction, wherein mismanaged or poorly governed GAI adoption undermines organisational integrity, ethical standards, and stakeholder trust. This resonates with recent developments in people analytics (Yoon, 2024), where GAI-facilitated behavioural monitoring intersects with algorithmic control, potentially transforming managerial decision-making into a form of digital micromanagement.

Given these growing uncertainties and tensions surrounding GAI, there is an urgent need to move beyond celebratory narratives and engage in critical, multidisciplinary inquiry into its dual-edged nature. On one hand, GAI serves as a powerful cognitive enabler, helping organisations to synthesise complex information, generate novel insights, and expand the boundaries of individual and collective knowledge (Heyder et al., 2023; Turel, 2024). On the other hand, increasing reliance on these systems may gradually erode essential cognitive functions, such as critical thinking, independent reasoning, and problem-solving skills (Pan et al., 2024). Furthermore, the large-scale integration of GAI risks reinforcing existing cognitive biases, curating algorithmic filter bubbles, and narrowing exposure to diverse perspectives, thereby constraining informed decision-making (Turel & Kalhan, 2023).

In light of these tensions, this special issue invites scholars and practitioners to adopt a perspective considering both the strategic, transformative potential and disruptive consequences of GAI. We welcome contributions that examine how GAI simultaneously enhances and challenges existing organisational frameworks and processes, ultimately reshaping the landscape of technological governance, human agency, and organisational transformation. Submissions may offer theoretical or empirical insights into the promises, ethical dilemmas, and societal shifts driven by GAI at the organisational level, including its application to grand societal challenges. We will not consider papers focusing on users, individuals, or manuscripts that do not align with the central focus of the special issue. Papers may use qualitative, quantitative, or pluralistic approaches and are encouraged to address questions such as (but not limited to):

    How is the utilisation of GAI reshaping workforce structures, labour division, and professional identity in public and/or private organisations?
    How can organisations effectively balance the efficiency and productivity gains promised by GAI with the risks related to data security, intellectual property theft, and regulatory compliance challenges?
    In what ways can organisations address the ethical implications of GAI, particularly concerning its potential to diminish human oversight and decision-making capabilities, while still harnessing its benefits for enhanced operational efficiency?
    How does GAI contribute to value co-destruction within organisations, in relation to resource misallocation, ethical compromises, and potential damage to organisational integrity or stakeholder trust?
    What strategies can organisations adopt to mitigate the risks of job displacement, deskilling, and workforce inequality while still leveraging GAI for innovation and competitiveness?

    How can organisational capabilities and leadership approaches evolve to ensure a balance between fostering innovation through GAI and managing its long-term impacts on employment, creativity, and organisational culture?

    How do organisational frameworks surrounding GAI affect the reinforcement or reduction of structural inequalities, especially in marginalised communities, and what measures can be taken to ensure inclusive and equitable use of GAI technologies?
    How are corporate governance frameworks evolving in response to GAI’s ethical challenges in decision-making, and how can these frameworks protect against algorithmic biases while fostering innovation?
    What role should organisational policies play in ensuring that GAI is used transparently and responsibly, particularly in high-stakes decisions involving human resources, operations, marketing, and customer relations?
    How is GAI being used for surveillance and control in organizational contexts, and what implications does this have for employee autonomy and governance, both in the workplace and in broader governmental settings?
    What is the potential and what are the limitations of GAI adoption in organisations across emerging economies and the Global South, particularly in relation to infrastructural, educational, and data governance challenges?
    Examining how different organisations (e.g., governments, healthcare providers, charities, or social enterprises) might deploy GAI to address grand challenges such as climate-adaptation, homelessness-prevention services, healthcare, strategically serving marginalised populations, or environmental disasters.
    Assessing the emerging role of corporate sustainability offices in leveraging GAI for supply-chain net-zero scenario planning.

Manuscript submission information:

Important Dates and Timeline

    31st of January 2026: Submission of extended abstracts (~1,000 words including references). Submission of an abstract is not mandatory but is strongly encouraged.
    31st of July 2026: Deadline for full papers submission.
    31st of October 2026: Initial feedback to authors.
    31st of January 2027: Deadline for resubmission of revised papers.
    30 April 2027: Second-round feedback to authors.
    30 June 2027: Final editorial decisions communicated to authors.

The Journal’s submission system opens for submissions to our Special Issue from 2 April 2026. When submitting your manuscript please select the article type “VSI: GenAI” so that the article will be considered for the special issue. Please submit your manuscript by 31 July 2027.

The submission link is: https://www.editorialmanager.com/jsis

All submissions deemed suitable to be sent for peer review will be reviewed by at least two independent reviewers. Once your manuscript is accepted, it will go into production, and will be simultaneously published in the current regular issue and pulled into the online Special Issue. Articles from this Special Issue will appear in different regular issues of the journal, though they will be clearly marked and branded as Special Issue articles.

Please see an example here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/the-journal-of-strategic-information-systems

Please ensure you read the Guide for Authors before writing your manuscript. The Guide for Authors and link to submit your manuscript is available on the Journal’s homepage at Guide for authors - The Journal of Strategic Information Systems - ISSN 0963-8687 | ScienceDirect.com by Elsevier

Inquiries, including questions about appropriate topics, may be sent electronically to the Guest Editors.

Special Issue on India at the Intersection: Reconfiguring Commerce, Capabilities and Culture in Age of Technological Acceleration
Submission Date: 2026-09-30

Guest editors:

Pankaj Setia
Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad, India

Priya Seetharaman
Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, India

Abhishek Kathuria
Deakin University, Australia

Marco Marabelli
Bentley University, USA

Special issue information:

Contemporary Information Systems (IS) are marked by transformations at the intersection of technology, people and organizations (Setia 2024). These are shaped by, and are shaping how firms, communities, and societies evolve. As researchers unravel these dynamics, India presents a compelling context. Rooted in millennia of cultural and commercial history, India is now rapidly being reshaped by the forces of digital innovation. Indian business landscape is a vibrant mosaic where ancient artisanal traditions, kinship-based commerce, informal enterprises, and social ventures coexist with state-owned firms, family conglomerates, and home-grown blue chips. This landscape often collides with large multinationals, platform economies, and globally scaled startups. Together, India’s palimpsestic business environment, pluralistic culture, and demographic vastness form a powerful trifecta that offers a unique context for researchers. Specifically, unlike a monolith landscape, India represents a living, evolving environment of practices, identities, and aspirations.

This special issue invites submissions focused on how rapid technological acceleration in India is strategically reshaping the country’s business environment. We particularly welcome submissions that explores how culture, capabilities, and commerce evolve amid the transformations of a historically layered, institutionally complex economy. Traditionally, India’s artisanal industries and cultural expressions were deeply entwined with its commercial practices (Tharoor, 2016). Centuries of colonial domination disrupted local crafts and knowledge systems; today, the digital wave carries a similar dual potential, risking the displacement of traditional modes of production while also offering new avenues for visibility and market access. India’s contemporary platform economy, with its roots in the historical bazaar and emporium systems (Athique, 2020), exemplifies this paradox.

The expansion of digital technologies into an informal, fragmented economy has introduced elements of structure and visibility long described by Scott’s notion of “legibility” (1998), a concept which relevance persists as states and platforms alike seek to render local practices more standardized and governable in the digital age. Could the drive for scale, efficiency, and algorithmic appeal lead to a flattening of cultural nuance in favor of standardization and mass reproducibility? This scenario becomes real if Information Technology (IT) education and digital skilling emphasize surface-level technical credentials and globalized templates of “digital competence” (Rangaswamy & Narasimhan, 2022) rather than contextually grounded, socially attuned capabilities.

Research on India’s digital transformation offers opportunities to develop new theoretical insights for the global IS community. India’s “digital revolution” began with the IT services boom of the 1990s, expanded through the telecom and mobile internet surge of the 2000s, and has accelerated since the mid-2010s (Seetharaman & Cranefield, 2019) along with more recent initiatives such as Digital India (nationwide digital infrastructure and e-governance), Aadhaar (biometric digital identity) (Addo, 2022), UPI (Unified Payments Interface, i.e. inter-bank peer-to-peer and person-to-merchant real-time payments), and ONDC (Open Network for Digital Commerce - a decentralized, interoperable open e-commerce). The early IT services phase delivered major economic gains, creating an entire industry, generating jobs, boosting exports (Bhatnagar & Madon, 1997). More recently, the focus has shifted to attracting foreign investment and expanding access to information (Parthiban et al., 2024). Yet some scholars have questioned the limited societal spillovers and skewed labor composition (Barnes, 2013) of India’s IT industry. Others note that emerging digital technologies may help move beyond low-end services toward more diversified, socially embedded growth (Das & Sagara, 2017).

The current IT development phase, characterized by digital platforms embedding services related to fintech, e-governance, and mobile ecosystems, has expanded access to resources, formalized parts of the informal sector, and holds promise for reducing poverty and inequality. These developments offer models for the wider global majority, even if significant challenges remain. The complex dynamics of new technological affordances and constraints, ranging from cross-platform interoperability to fraudulence (Kumar et al., 2025) and lack of sufficient regulations that balance conflicting interests (Marabelli & Davison, 2025; De’ et al., 2024), hinder the equitable spread of these digital platforms across socio-economic groups.

IS research, including studies published in JSIS, highlights how digital technologies may afford the creation of economic opportunities for the informal sector, help small and medium enterprises access new markets (Parthiban et al., 2024; Shirish et al., 2025), and transform service delivery in high impact industries such as healthcare (Hiriyur, 2022; Setia, 2023). In India and in the wider global majority countries, digital technology has also been socially transformative such as through, amplifying marginalized voices, lowering barriers to political participation (Kulshreshth, 2023), and supporting creative industries through digital media (Mehta & Cunningham, 2023), though always mediated by prevailing social norms and values (Oreglia & Srinivasan, 2016). This ongoing transformation is however complicated by geopolitical tensions, supply chain disruptions, and economic nationalism which are leading to a rethink of globalization’s promises (Butollo et al., 2024). Although digital technologies, AI (artificial intelligence) in particular, are deeply entangled with environmental sustainability challenges exacerbating global resource inequalities; yet they also enable strategic responses to climate risks through innovations in smart cities, agriculture, and disaster prediction (Marabelli & Davison, 2025). For India too, this shift opens up both risks and opportunities: it may create greater space for indigenous enterprises, self-reliant supply chains, and localized innovation, while also changing the nature of export-led sectors and globally networked business models (Witt et al., 2023). The interplay between fractured globalizing forces and India’s own plural, multi-scale economy raises pressing questions about sovereignty, resilience, and cultural-economic autonomy.

This special issue seeks to examine strategic opportunities, disruptions and challenges arising from the intersection of culture, commerce, capabilities and technology in the Indian context. We welcome research that shows how digital technologies reshape strategic choices, organizing logics, and competitive positioning while remaining embedded in India’s uniqueness. The special issue also aims to foreground location-specific research agendas and contextual theorization (Avgerou, 2019), emphasizing the need for research that is not only rigorous and relevant, but also responsible to its context (Seetharaman et al., 2024).

We welcome theoretical, empirical, and practice-based contributions that explore topics including, but not limited to:

Craft, Culture, Civilization, and Vernacular Economies

    The impact of digital technologies on traditional crafts, artisanal economies, and vernacular industries​
    The influence of cultural values and local practices on the adoption and adaptation of technology in contemporary Indian businesses
    The ways in which modern hybrid enterprises blend tradition with technology
    The role of platforms and algorithms in promoting or marginalizing cultural specificity
    The shaping of digital consumption patterns in India by cultural values and vernacular preferences
    India’s civilizational heritage as a source of new knowledge to the world economy
    Privacy, ownership, and representation in India’s digital cultural economy
    The role of digital enterprises in shaping cultural circulation and diasporic identity formation in global markets
    The contribution of India’s civilizational wisdom to the evolution of global thought and practice

Digital Platforms, Inclusion, and Ecosystems

    Role of e-commerce and logistics platforms in integrating small producers into formal value chains
    Rethinking “success” in the Indian startup ecosystem: Beyond unicorns and IPOs
    The engagement of diverse communities in India with technology and its implications for digital equity
    The evolution of Indian digital platforms and the strategic lessons they offer for other Global Majority contexts
    The design and governance of public digital infrastructure in India, including Aadhaar, UPI, DPI, and ONDC
    Gender, caste, and community and how they shape access to and benefits from digital technologies

Innovation, Entrepreneurship, and Labor

    The rise of startups, unicorns, and new business models in India’s digital economy​• Micro-entrepreneurship on digital platforms
    Frugality as a design and innovation principle in digital India
    Tech-driven ventures addressing developmental challenges—health, education, sanitation, livelihood—while building scalable businesses
    Social enterprises and the bridging of digital divides in rural or marginalized communities
    Barriers and breakthroughs for women-led tech ventures and gig workers in India
    Workforce transformations and the future of employment in India’s digital economy
    Labor conditions in gig work and platform economies: Precarity, control, and bargaining power.
    Jugaad: Informal and grassroots innovators’ contribution to India’s digital and entrepreneurial ecosystems

Policy, Scale, and Governance

    The role of government in shaping India’s digital future​• Policy frameworks governing digital trade, content regulation, and data flows
    Regulatory frameworks that are emerging (or failing) to protect gig and informal digital workers
    Infrastructure, policy, and local culture shaping innovation geographies
    Role of metrics, narratives, and hype in shaping investor and policymaker behavior
    Role of educational institutions, accelerators, and skilling platforms in nurturing tech and innovation ecosystems
    Digital literacy, reskilling, and entrepreneurial mindsets evolving across India’s socio-economic spectrum

Firm-Level Strategy and Organizational Change

    The responses of Indian firms—across sectors and sizes—to digital transformation through reconfigured business models, organizational practices, and value chains​
    Indian tech companies embracing high-value digital innovation and its implications for global markets
    The role of digital technologies in shaping firm capabilities, governance structures, and decision-making in traditional as well as tech-native enterprises
    Digital readiness, resilience, and innovation across micro, small, medium, and large firms operating in the regulatory and constrained infrastructural settings in India
    Indian companies cultivating internal innovation through digital initiatives—labs, accelerators, intrapreneurship
    Organizational practices amongst Indian firms that support (or hinder) digital experimentation and agility
    Tech-enabled supply chains affecting innovation capabilities among MSMEs

By bringing together diverse ideas and a deeper understanding, this special issue aims to reframe India not as a battleground between tradition and modernity but as a dynamic site of ongoing negotiation, reinvention, and possibility.

Manuscript submission information:

We welcome both empirical and conceptual contributions. Please refer to JSIS’ guidelines for authors to prepare the manuscript and select the article type “VSI: India at the Intersection” when submitting your manuscript through the editorial system of the journal. 

Important Dates and Tentative Publication Timeline:

    March 6 - 8, 2026: Developmental workshop for interested authors at InCIS 2026. This is optional.
    May 1, 2026: Deadline to submit a 1000-words extended abstract on the JSIS portal (not required but highly recommended) to check the fit with the special issue.
    July 1, 2026: Submission of full papers opens
    September 30, 2026: Deadline for full papers submission on the JSIS submission portal
    January 31, 2027: Initial feedback to authors
    April 30, 2027: Deadline for resubmission of revised papers
    July - August, 2027: Second and subsequent round of reviews
    September 30, 2027: Final Submissions due
    December 1, 2027: Final editorial decisions communicated to authors

Developmental Workshop for Selected Authors:

A developmental workshop for selected papers will be organized as part of the India Conference on Information Systems (InCIS) 2026, scheduled for 6–8 March 2026 at the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad. The invitation-only workshop will provide detailed feedback and mentorship to authors whose submissions show strong potential for contributing to the Special Issue. Invitations will be extended to authors of InCIS main conference papers that align closely with the expectations of the Special Issue. Participation in the workshop does not guarantee acceptance into the Special Issue; rather, it aims to help authors strengthen their manuscripts and align them with the theme. For submission details, please visit the InCIS website: https://inais.org.in/ andhttps://conference.iima.ac.in/incis2026/call-for-submissions/

Review Board

Amit Prakash, International Institute of Information Technology Bangalore
Anuragini Shirish, Institute Mines-Télécom Business School, France
Ashish Kumar Jha, Trinity Business School
Ashish Gupta, Auburn University
Atta Addo, Surrey Business School, University of Surrey
Bidisha Chaudhuri, University of Amsterdam
Devinder Thapa, University of Agder, Norway
Janaki Srinivasan, University of Oxford
Juliana Sutanto, Monash University
M N Ravishankar, Queen's Business School
M S Sandeep, UNSW Business School
Nirup Menon, George Mason University
Onkar Malgonde, North Carolina State University
Radhika Santhanam, University of Oklahoma
Rahul De, Indian Institute of Management Bangalore
Rajiv Kishore, University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Saji K Mathew, Indian Institute of Technology Madras
Samrat Gupta, Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad
Satish Krishnan, Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode
Silvia Masiero, University of Oslo
Soumyakanti Chakraborty, Indian Institute of Management Calcutta
Sumeet Gupta, Indian Institute of Management Raipur
Sunil Wattal, Temple University
Suranjan Chakraborty, Towson university
Swanand Deodhar, Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad