Digital Transformation for Crisis Volunteerism : A study in the aftermath of the Swedish Forest Fires Crisis in 2018

Abstract: In the summer of 2018, Sweden was taken by surprise and engulfed by forest fires on an unprecedented scale. Various forms of crisis volunteerism (CV) proved essential in the large scale response that ensued. Previous information systems (IS) research gives insights, both theoretically and practically, on the potential of IS and digitalisation to enhance and support crisis response. However, the forest fires demonstrated that CV practices and practitioners in Sweden have practically no such support. CV is, in other words, an essential part of the crisis response system, but unsupported by dedicated digitalisation. The aim of this thesis is therefore to understand what is required to enable a digital transformation (DT) that will significantly improve CV practice and the overall crisis response system.Sweden is not unique in this respect. From an international perspective, IS research devotes much attention to the area of crisis response. However, this is most commonly done using the perspective and needs of crisis management stakeholders as a departing point. Also, despite research on and the availability of IS solutions, the degree of practical implementation would appear to be low. This thesis is therefore also based on the perceived knowledge gap that the lack of IS and digitalisation supporting CV is, in part, a result of the lack of research focus on volunteer stakeholders and the CV practice itself. Another gap noted is the lack of knowledge regarding the real-world practice of CV which contributes to undermining the development and use of IS solutions for CV.This thesis, therefore, provides a much needed holistic understanding of real-world CV. This understanding moves the perspective of volunteer stakeholders to the forefront without losing the perspective of crisis management. This has been done via an empirical study in the aftermath of the Swedish forest fires crisis as well as via studies of international IS literature on crisis response and CV. This has resulted in a unique holistic and comprehensive model that relates to the complexity, dynamics and emergence involved in CV practice. Via this model it is possible to relate specific parts or aspects of CV practice, to the whole practice area and continue modelling attributes in greater detail, as required, depending on DT or IS design needs.Underlying the focus in this thesis lies a mild critique of previous IS research with more reductionist approaches, whereby the relevance of broader contextual understandings has been downplayed. The thesis aligns with perspectives on digitalisation and IS design, proposing the relevance of developing broader holistic understandings of research topics. That is, understandings that have greater potential to reveal how phenomena come into being and are adapted in environmental contexts.DT is understood in terms of a process whereby broader understandings of phenomena are used to identify needs (triggers), strategies and capabilities that will inform IS design initiatives. An analytical framework depicting this process and its main components and relationships has been designed in this thesis to contribute to an understanding of what is required to digitally transform CV practice.In summary, the thesis provides a new holistic approach and understanding for the CV practice area and how it may be digitally transformed. The thesis also contributes to a new perspective on DT, applied to a complex and non-organisation based setting. This knowledge is of relevance to both practitioners and IS researchers in crisis response and CV. The CV practice meta-model and the analytical framework for digital transformation can be used to enable and inform future digital transformation strategies and policy in Sweden and internationally. They can also contribute to guiding the initiation of practical IS design initiatives, with greater potential to enhance and improve both CV and overall crisis response.The research was performed within the information systems (IS) discipline.