Information Systems Research in Scandinavia

The IRIS (Information Systems Research in Scandinavia) Association is a non-profit organization that helps people learn more about information systems. These are the ways we use computers and technology to share and manage information. IRIS works mostly in the Nordic region, which includes countries like Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, and Iceland.

The group started because of a meeting called the IRIS conference, which has happened every year since 1978. The IRIS Association became an official group in 1997. It also helps connect the Nordic countries with a bigger group called the Association for Information Systems.

IRIS takes care of a magazine called the Scandinavian Journal of Information Systems (SJIS). It also plans big meetings like the IRIS Conference and the Scandinavian Conference on Information Systems. Right now, a person named Aleksandre Asatiani is leading the group until 2026.

Governance

The IRIS Association is led by an executive board with four senior members (President, Treasurer, Secretary, and Ordinary member) and two PhD student members. The board members are chosen by association members at the annual meeting held during the IRIS/SCIS conferences. Senior members serve for four years, and PhD student members serve for two years. Each senior member comes from one of the four IRIS countries: Finland, Sweden, Norway, and Denmark. PhD members represent two rotating IRIS countries.

The executive board makes sure the association follows its rules, organizes the IRIS/SCIS conferences, appoints members for the editorial board of the Scandinavian Journal of Information Systems, and handles everyday tasks of the association.

IRIS and SCIS Conferences

In 1978, the IRIS Association began holding yearly conferences, making it the oldest ongoing conference about information systems in the world. The idea started from a group of Finnish computer science professors who wanted a place for Nordic scholars to talk about new ideas in systems analysis and design. The first conference was held in Tampere, and for the first nine years, it was called the Scandinavian Research Seminar on Systemeering. In 1987, it changed its name to IRIS. These conferences are held every year as working seminars for researchers and students from Nordic countries, and they take place in Finland, Sweden, Norway, and Denmark. Topics often include Digital Transformation, Emerging Technology, Business Process Management, and Participatory Design.

In 2010, the IRIS Association started another conference called the Scandinavian Conference on Information Systems (SCIS), which happens together with the IRIS conference. SCIS focuses on carefully reviewed research papers. In 2020 and 2021, both IRIS and SCIS conferences were held online because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The next IRIS/SCIS conference will take place near Borgarnes, Iceland, in August 2026.

Past Conference Locations

Scandinavian Journal of Information Systems (SJIS)

The Scandinavian Journal of Information Systems is an important journal connected to the IRIS Association and the Association for Information Systems. It is published online by the Association for Information Systems. The journal looks at how information systems affect society and focuses on research methods common in the Nordic region, like working with people during research and creating new ideas in technology. Authors and readers come from all over the world.

The idea for this journal started in 1984 at an IRIS conference in Helsinki, and the first issue came out in 1989. The journal’s editorial board has four editors, one from each IRIS country, chosen by the IRIS executive board. Lars Mathiassen was the first Editor-in-Chief.