Design observations for interagency collaboration Jane Fedorowicz a, ⁎, Steve Sawyer b , Christine B. Williams a , M. Lynne Markus a , Martin Dias c , Michael Tyworth d , Sonia Gantman e , Dax Jacobson f , Arthur P. Tomasino a , Robert Schrier g a Bentley University, 175 Forest Street, Waltham, MA 02452, USA b Syracuse University, 344 Hinds Hall, Syracuse, NY 13244, USA c Northeastern University, 360 Huntington Ave, Boston, MA 02115, USA d Pennsylvania State University, Smeal College of Business, University Park, PA 16802, USA e Providence College, 1 Cunningham Square, Providence, RI 02918, USA f California State University, One University Drive, Camarillo, CA 93012, USA g Polaris Library Systems, 103 Commerce Boulevard, Suite A, Liverpool, NY 13088, USA abstract article info Available online 18 February 2014 Keywords: Inter-organizational information sharing systems Design Digital government Public safety networks We present 14 design observations for public safety networks (PSNs) and describe how they may apply more broadly to a wider range of inter-organizational systems within the public sector. A PSN is an interagency collab- oration focused on developing and using information systems in support of information sharing and functional interoperability among public safety organizations engaged in law enforcement, criminal justice, and emergency response. We base our design observations upon an analysis of an extensive survey of 80 PSNs plus 6 in-depth case studies. The design observations identify commonalities that can guide agencies participating in interagency collaborations in addressing the interlocking issues they face. Our goal in presenting this set of design observa- tions is to: (1) encourage improved PSN systems design and (2) draw attention to the importance of jointly ad- dressing governance and technological considerations when designing PSNs. © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction Through this paper, we advance a set of 14 design observations about public safety networks (PSNs). PSNs are interagency collabora- tions focused on the development and use of information and commu- nication technologies (ICT) to support the information sharing and functional interoperability needs of public safety organizations engaged in law enforcement, criminal justice, and emergency response (Sawyer, Fedorowicz, Tyworth, Markus, & Williams, 2007). As such, a PSN is a specific form of an inter-organizational system (IOS) created to support information sharing among distinct organizations through a collective technology infrastructure. However, public safety networks also repre- sent a collaborative phenomenon exhibiting characteristics in common with a wide range of government agency information-sharing initia- tives. Looked at through this lens, these PSN design observations also should provide guidance to a broader set of interagency collaboration domains (Fedorowicz & Dias, 2010; Markus, Majchrzak, & Gasser, 2002). As government agencies strive to increase their ability to share infor- mation and communicate across organizational boundaries, they must address many new technological and organizational challenges. Al- though interagency collaborations have unique needs, features and goals, agency decisions made before and during the implementation process also share many commonalities. In response to this, we have de- rived a set of design observations from these commonalities to guide those agencies participating in interagency collaborations through the range of interlocking issues they face. We pursue two goals in presenting this set of PSN design observa- tions. First, we seek to promote these design observations as guidance for IOS developers. We achieve this goal by synthesizing our empirical findings into a set of design observations, which constitute an inventory of the many alternative configurations that currently exist. Second, we seek to increase the attention paid to the co-design of organizational governance structures and operations structures that PSNs, and all IOS, require. The design observations accomplish this goal by showcas- ing the interdependence among governance structures and PSN tech- nology development (Denyers, Tranfield, & van Aken, 2008). We focus on design observations because they provide a means to summarize and synthesize the empirical data gathered from our study of PSNs. Beyond this descriptive contribution, design observations be- come the basis for developing design principles (Germonprez, Hovorka, & Gal, 2011; Hevner, March, Park, & Ram, 2004). While design observations provide guidance, design principles provide a fundamental idea which directs designers (Markus et al., 2002). Fig. 1 depicts this process. The dotted lines surround the portion of the process developed in this paper. Government Information Quarterly 31 (2014) 302–316 ⁎ Corresponding author. E-mail addresses: jfedorowicz@bentley.edu (J. Fedorowicz), ssawyer@syr.edu (S. Sawyer), cwilliams@bentley.edu (C.B. Williams), mlmarkus@bentley.edu (M.L. Markus), m.dias@neu.edu (M. Dias), mjt241@smeal.psu.edu (M. Tyworth), sgantman@providence.edu (S. Gantman), dax.jacobson@csuci.edu (D. Jacobson), tomasin_arth@bentley.edu (A.P. Tomasino), Bob.Schrier@polarislibrary.com (R. Schrier). 0740-624X/$ – see front matter © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.giq.2013.11.006 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Government Information Quarterly journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/govinf