The RG SIM formed at the end of the 1990s in response to new challenges in managing information technology and systems looming at the horizon of the 21st century, a period we today call the upcoming “Digital Age”. Many practical management challenges as perceived by industry managers and representatives of IT management consultancies drove the group’s initial research. Since then,  the research group has kept its strong relation to practical problems and industry organizations to ensure the relevance of its research. Accordingly, industry research, i.e. research with specific industry partners as addressees, plays an important role in the group’s research activities. The industry research projects conducted by the RG SIM deal with the concept and contents of IT/IS strategies, IT/IS outsourcing, IT/IS operations management in general, and the paradigm of IT Service Management in particular, as well as with IT/IS cost accounting. 

The groups strong ties to industry have also furthered the group’s academic research by directing our interests to those of great practical relevance. Moreover, they have provided us with access to “testbeds” for carefully evaluating research findings, as well as to field data, so that our research findings also make their way into highest-ranking academic journals on an international scale.