Abstract
The need for IS research to be more impactful and interesting has long been debated with fruitful dis-cussions but disappointing results in narrowing the significant divide between IS Practice and IS Re-search. While a number of solutions have been explored, the concept of the Practitioner Researcher has only recently gained traction in the domain. With the objective of providing pragmatic guidance into bridging the divide, this research explores the concept of a Practitioner Researcher, from both the academic and practitioner side of the divide. In doing so, an exploratory case study was implemented and included a 24 month journey for 18 practitioners and their 2 academic mentors in becoming Prac-titioner Researchers. Key outputs from the study include an explicit description of the bridging actions for both the academics and practitioners as well as the shared understanding that is vital in crossing the practice research divide. In addition, it was found that Design Research provided an excellent platform to build a shared understanding between the academic mentors and practitioners in the study. Moreover, the importance of this shared understanding is detailed, as without it the ability to become a Practitioner Researcher is severely limited.
Recommended Citation
Nagle, Tadhg; Sammon, David; and Doyle, Cathal, "MEETING IN THE MIDDLE: BRIDGING THE PRACTICE RESEARCH DIVIDE FROM BOTH SIDES" (2016). Research Papers. 158.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/ecis2016_rp/158