Using narrative inquiry in a study of information systems professionals

The research reported in this paper employed narrative inquiry in an innovative way in a study of the key factors that influence the career paths of information systems (IS) professionals. The interview technique was based upon McCracken's (1988) 'long interview', which allows the research participants to reflect upon the domain of discourse in a relatively unbiased and free-flowing manner. Individual resumes were employed as the main instrument to guide the interview and to document the narratives. The resumes helped ground the discussion in the IS professionals' personal experiences, assisted these professionals to reflect upon and report these experiences in a sequential account of events as they transpired throughout their careers. The use of individual resumes framed within McCraken's 'long interview' brings a certain amount of structure to the narrative inquiry technique, allowing for an in-depth investigation and the gathering of rich biographical personal accounts of the IS professional's interpretations of specific career path impacts.