Practising Mobile Professional Work: Tales of Locational, Operational, and Interactional Mobility

Masao Kakihara*, Carsten Sørensen

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articleResearchpeer-review

Abstract

Fueled by strong market forces as well as by increasingly ubiquitous and pervasive mobile technologies, shifts in working practices and the application of mobile technologies have been occurring around the turn of the millennium. One such change concerns the work of professionals. This paper discusses the emergence of the mobile professional, through a field study of more than 60 professional workers in Tokyo during 2002. The paper concludes that one must broaden one's conception of mobility and conceptualize mobile professional work in terms of locational, operational, and interactional mobility. Furthermore, some implications for a new design of mobile professional work and technology use are drawn from the analysis of the field study: ICT as mobility‐booster; maintaining multiple ongoing interactions; the importance of personal networks; and places as material foundations for interaction.
Original languageEnglish
JournalInfo
Volume6
Issue number3
Pages (from-to)180-187
Number of pages8
ISSN1463-6697
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2004
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Communication
  • Japan
  • Mobile communication systems
  • Professional associations
  • Technology led strategy

Cite this