Understanding the Emergency of a Large Scale European Initiative in Technology

Abstract

European information technology policy has recently started to focus on projects aimed at building large-scale capabilities. This paper examines a project that has pioneered this approach - the Open Microprocessor Systems Initiative (OMI) sponsored by the Commission of European Communities (CEC). It examines the nature of the essentially consensual process which has enabled the many different players in the OMI to agree to a common programme. A framework is proposed which identifies the complex interaction of technical, economic, behavioural and political factors involved in the process of creating a large-scale capability programme. It argues that the successful emergence of these programmes implies a process of perception- and goal-alignment which gradually and programmatically integrates the stances of different organizations. Key aspects of general validity in assisting to build these programmes are highlighted, along with the main tactics and techniques deployed in the process leading to the successful alignment of perceptions and goals within the OMI.