Associate Professor Carmen Leong

Associate Professor Carmen Leong

Associate Professor

PhD, National University of Singapore

Master in Computing (IT Project Management), National University of Singapore

B. Science (Computer) University of Technology Malaysia

Business School
School of Information Systems and Technology Management

Carmen Leong is an Associate Professor at the UNSW School of Information Systems and Technology Management and the Associate Dean of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion at the UNSW Business School Sydney. She received her PhD degree from The National University of Singapore. She is enthusiastic about discovering how technologies can bring changes to life, of organisation and of individuals. She has conducted more than 45 case studies in Indonesia, China, Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, Thailand, South Korea, and Germany, to understand the use of digital technologies 1) in organizing for social purposes such as entrepreneurship, rural poverty, disaster response, mass mobilisation and 2) in the process of transforming an organisation and pre-existing management practices. Prior to entering academia, she worked in the private and public sectors in Singapore and Malaysia.​ Carmen has published in MIS Quarterly, Information Systems Research, Journal of the Association for Information Systems, and European Journal of Information Systems.

 

She is serving on the editorial review board of Information Systems Research and Journal of the Association for Information Systems (from 2025) and is the Associate Editor at the European Journal of Information Systems. She was also the recipient of the 2021 AIS Impact Award and the 2023 UNSW Business School's Research Impact Award. Her work has won the runner-up for the AIS Special Interest Group (SIG) of Grounded Theory Methodology (GTM)'s Best Paper Award. She has served on the AIS SIG of Social Inclusion and is currently serving on the AIS Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) standing committee. 

Phone
+61 2 9385 9466
  • Book Chapters | 2023
    Khoo YH; Leong C, 2023, 'Policy Advocacy Strategies of Malaysia’s Electoral Reform Movement', in Lobbying the Autocrat: The Dynamics of Policy Advocacy in Nondemocracies, pp. 202 - 222
    Book Chapters | 2015
    Leong C, 2015, 'Damai', in Pan S-L (ed.), Managing Organizational Complexities with Digital Enablement in China, edn. Innovation and Knowledge Management, World Scientific Publishing Company, pp. 107 - 123
    Book Chapters | 2013
    Leong C; Pan SL, 2013, 'IT in Supply Chain Management: Batamindo Shipping & Warehouse Pte Ltd', in Pan G (ed.), Dynamics of Governing IT Innovation in Singapore, World Scientific Publishing Company, pp. 243 - 261, http://dx.doi.org/10.1142/9789814417839_0012
    Book Chapters | 2013
    Ramchand A; Leong C, 2013, 'Healthway Medical Group's Clinical Management System', in Pan G (ed.), Dynamics of Governing IT Innovation in Singapore, World Scientific Publishing Company, pp. 263 - 278
  • Journal articles | 2024
    Jiwasiddi A; Schlagwein D; Cahalane M; Cecez-Kecmanovic D; Leong C; Ractham P, 2024, 'Digital nomadism as a new part of the visitor economy: The case of the “digital nomad capital” Chiang Mai, Thailand', Information Systems Journal, 34, pp. 1493 - 1535, http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/isj.12496
    Journal articles | 2024
    Leong C; Hsu C; Goonawardene N; Tan H-P, 2024, 'Supporting Community First Responders in Aging in Place: An Action Design for a Community-Based Smart Activity Monitoring System', MIS Quarterly, http://dx.doi.org/10.25300/MISQ/2024/18446
    Journal articles | 2024
    Tan B; Xiao X; Chau M; Tan FTC; Leong C, 2024, 'The dynamics, organisation and evolution of digital platforms and ecosystems', Information Systems Journal, http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/isj.12548
    Journal articles | 2023
    He Y; Tan F; Leong C; Huang J; Junio DRO, 2023, 'Realizing innovation and sustainability: A case study of Macau SAR’s smart city development capabilities', Journal of Urban Affairs, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/07352166.2023.2211274
    Journal articles | 2023
    Leong C; Lin S; Tan F; Yu J, 2023, 'Coordination in a Digital Platform Organization', Information Systems Research, 0: Ahead of Print, http://dx.doi.org/10.1287/isre.2023.1226
    Journal articles | 2022
    Leong C; Tan FTC; Tan B; Faisal F, 2022, 'The emancipatory potential of digital entrepreneurship: A study of financial technology-driven inclusive growth', Information and Management, 59, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.im.2020.103384
    Journal articles | 2021
    Muthukannan P; Tan B; Chiang FT; Leong C; Tan F, 2021, 'Novel mechanisms of scalability of financial services in an emerging market context: Insights from Indonesian Fintech Ecosystem', International Journal of Information Management, 61, pp. 102403, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2021.102403
    Journal articles | 2021
    Xiao X; Tan B; Leong C; Tan FTC, 2021, 'Powered by “Qinghuai”: The melding of traditional values and digital entrepreneurship in contemporary China', Information Systems Journal, 31, pp. 769 - 802, http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/isj.12301
    Journal articles | 2020
    Leong C; Faik I; Tan FTC; Tan B; Khoo YH, 2020, 'Digital organizing of a global social movement: From connective to collective action', Information and Organization, 30, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.infoandorg.2020.100324
    Journal articles | 2019
    Leong C; Pan SL; Bahri S; Fauzi A, 2019, 'Social media empowerment in social movements: power activation and power accrual in digital activism', European Journal of Information Systems, 28, pp. 173 - 204, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/0960085X.2018.1512944
    Journal articles | 2019
    Leong C; Pan SL; Leidner DE; Huang JS, 2019, 'Platform leadership: Managing boundaries for the network growth of digital platforms', Journal of the Association for Information Systems, 20, pp. 1531 - 1565, http://dx.doi.org/10.17705/1jais.00577
    Journal articles | 2018
    Tye M; Leong C; Tan FTC; Tan B; Khoo YH, 2018, 'Social media for empowerment in social movements: The case of Malaysia’s grassroots activism', Communications of the Association for Information Systems, 42, pp. 408 - 430, http://dx.doi.org/10.17705/1CAIS.04215
    Journal articles | 2017
    Leong C; Pan SL; Zheng X; Hackney R, 2017, 'Managing User Diversity in ES Pre-Implementation Through Discursive Framing: A Spatiotemporal Analysis', IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, 64, pp. 415 - 427, http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/TEM.2017.2694430
    Journal articles | 2017
    Leong C; Tan B; Xiao X; Tan FTC; Sun Y, 2017, 'Nurturing a FinTech ecosystem: The case of a youth microloan startup in China', International Journal of Information Management, 37, pp. 92 - 97, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2016.11.006
    Journal articles | 2016
    Leong C; Pan SL; Newell S; Cui L, 2016, 'The emergence of self-organizing e-commerce ecosystems in remote villages of China: A tale of digital empowerment for rural development', MIS Quarterly: Management Information Systems, 40, pp. 475 - 484, http://misq.org/misq/downloads/?___store=library
    Journal articles | 2015
    Leong C; Pan SL; Ractham P; Kaewkitipong L, 2015, 'ICT-Enabled Community Empowerment in Crisis Response: Social Media in Thailand Flooding 2011', Journal of the Association for Information Systems, 16, pp. 174 - 212, http://aisel.aisnet.org/jais/vol16/iss3/1
  • Conference Papers | 2024
    Ibello GD; Leong C; Tan B; Guo Z, 2024, 'Fortune Favors the Scrappy: Enacting Serendipitous Digital Innovations', Bankok, presented at 2024 International Conferences on Information Systems, Bankok, 15 December 2024 - 18 December 2024
    Conference Papers | 2024
    Qureshi I; Leong C; Bailey A, 2024, 'From Digital Divide to Digital Equity and Inclusion - ICT Access, Adoption, and Use among Vulnerable Populations', in Proceedings of the Annual Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences, pp. 6987 - 6988
    Conference Papers | 2024
    Tran A; Guo Z; Leong C; Ibello GD, 2024, 'Moderating Technostress for Enhanced Student Learning Experiences: A Stress-is-Enhancing Mindset Approach', in 2024 International Conferences on Information Systems, Bankok, presented at ICIS 2024, Bankok, 15 December 2024 - 18 December 2024
    Conference Papers | 2023
    Zhou YV; Leong C; Guo Z, 2023, 'What is fair enough? Reconciling complementors’ needs for fairness management on digital platforms', in ICIS 2023 Proceedings, India, presented at International Conference on Information Systems, India, 10 December 2023 - 13 December 2023, https://aisel.aisnet.org/icis2023/sharing_econ/sharing_econ/11/
    Conference Papers | 2022
    Jiwasiddi A; Schlagwein D; Leong C, 2022, 'Assessing the Impacts of Digital Nomadism on Local Communities: The Case of Chiang Mai, Thailand', Taipei-Sydney, pp. 1322 - 1322, presented at Pacific Asia Conference on Information Systems (PACIS 2022), Taipei-Sydney, 05 July 2022 - 09 July 2022, https://aisel.aisnet.org/pacis2022/11/
    Conference Papers | 2021
    Hou J; Guo Z; Leong C, 2021, 'Blending Technologies in the Community of Inquiry Framework: A Discovery of student Online Learning Pathways', Austin, Texas, presented at International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS2021), Austin, Texas, 12 December 2021, https://aisel.aisnet.org/icis2021/diglearn_curricula/diglearn_curricula/12/
    Conference Papers | 2021
    Zhou Y; Leong C; Guo Z; Yu J, 2021, 'Coordination of Actor Interactions on Digital Platforms: A Case Study of Taobao’s Content Exchange Platform', in Pacific Asia Conference on Information Systems (PACIS) 2021, Dubai, presented at Pacific Asia Conference on Information Systems, Dubai, 12 July 2021 - 14 July 2021, https://aisel.aisnet.org/pacis2021/237/
    Conference Papers | 2020
    Guo Z; Leong C; Zhou Y; Lee B; Monson DM, 2020, 'Turning Lemons into Lemonade: Designing Remote Teaching to Foster a Sense of Online Learning Community through Action Design', in Proceedings of the 2020 International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS2020), India, presented at 2020 International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS2020), India, 13 December 2020 - 16 December 2020, https://aisel.aisnet.org/icis2020/digital_learning_env/digital_learning_env/5/
    Conference Papers | 2020
    He Y; Tan F; Leong C; Huang J; Junio DRO, 2020, 'The role of intermediaries in smart city development - a tale in national innovation of one country two systems', in 26th Americas Conference on Information Systems, AMCIS 2020, Virtual Conference, presented at 26th Americas Conference on Information Systems, AMCIS 2020, Virtual Conference, 10 August 2020 - 14 August 2020, https://aisel.aisnet.org/amcis2020/global_dev/global_dev/3/
    Conference Papers | 2020
    Hopkins E; Tan FTC; Chan CML; Leong C; Wright A, 2020, 'Digital platform-enabled community development: A case study of a private-public partnership sustainability initiative', in Proceedings of the Annual Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences, HICSS Conference Office, pp. 2313 - 2322, presented at Proceedings of the 53rd Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences, http://dx.doi.org/10.24251/hicss.2020.282
    Conference Papers | 2020
    Leong C; Felix T; Manju A, 2020, 'IS for Good – 10 years to SDG: Where we have been and where we need to go?', India, presented at International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS), India, 13 December 2020 - 16 December 2020, https://aisel.aisnet.org/icis2020/societal_impact/societal_impact/15/
    Conference Papers | 2019
    Tan FTC; Zhang N; Zhu Z; Leong C, 2019, 'Toward smart city services in Beijing: A case study of platform-enabled public-private collaboration', in Ben Dhaou S; Carter L; Gregory M (eds.), Proceedings of the 12th International Conference on Theory and Practice of Electronic Governance (ICEGOV2019), Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), Melbourne, VIC Australia, pp. 513 - 515, presented at The 12th International Conference on Theory and Practice of Electronic Governance (ICEGOV2019), Melbourne, VIC Australia, 03 April 2019 - 05 April 2019, http://dx.doi.org/10.1145/3326365.3326445
    Conference Papers | 2018
    Au CH; Tan B; Leong C; Chun Mian G, 2018, 'Disrupting the Disruptor: The Role of IS in Facilitating Second-Mover Advantage', in Proceedings of the 39th International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS 2018), Association for Information Systems (AIS), San Francisco, California,, presented at The 39th International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS 2018), San Francisco, California,, 13 December 2018 - 16 December 2018, https://aisel.aisnet.org/icis2018/crowd/Presentations/3/
    Conference Papers | 2018
    Goonawardene N; Leong C; Tan H-P, 2018, 'An Action Design Research of a Sensor-Based Elderly Monitoring System for Aging-in-Place', in Proceedings of the 39th International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS2018), Association for Information Systems (AIS), San Francisco, CA, USA, presented at The 39th International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS2018), San Francisco, CA, USA, 13 December 2018 - 16 December 2018, https://aisel.aisnet.org/icis2018/bridging/Presentations/9/
    Conference Papers | 2018
    Hua W; Leong C; Yu J, 2018, 'Exploring User-Generated Digital Content Ecosystem: A Study of China’s Digital Celebrity Industry', in ICIS 2017: Transforming Society with Digital Innovation
    Conference Papers | 2018
    Hua W; Leong C; Yu J, 2018, 'Exploring User-Generated Digital Content Ecosystem: A Study of China’s Digital Celebrity Industry', in ICIS 2017: Transforming Society with Digital Innovation
    Conference Papers | 2018
    Kim H; Tan F; Leong C; Kim DD; Ondrus J; Tan B, 2018, 'Value Co-creation in Digital Content Ecosystems: A Study of Hallyu', in Proceedings of the 39th International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS 2018), Association for Information Systems (AIS), San Francisco, California, presented at The 39th International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS 2018), San Francisco, California, 13 December 2018 - 16 December 2018, https://aisel.aisnet.org/icis2018/governance/Presentations/13/
    Conference Papers | 2018
    Lin S; Kim H; Tan F; Leong C, 2018, 'Navigating Value Co-Creation in Entertainment: A Netnography Study on the Wang Hong Ecosystem', in Proceedings of the 22nd Pacific Asia Conference on Information Systems (PACIS 2018), Association for Information Systems (AIS), Yokohama, Japan, presented at The 22nd Pacific Asia Conference on Information Systems (PACIS 2018), Yokohama, Japan, 26 August 2018 - 30 August 2018, https://aisel.aisnet.org/pacis2018/234
    Conference Papers | 2018
    Muthukannan P; Tan FTC; Tan B; Leong C, 2018, 'The Concentric Development of the Financial Technology (Fintech) Ecosystem in Indonesia', in ICIS 2017: Transforming Society with Digital Innovation
    Conference Papers | 2018
    Muthukannan P; Tan FTC; Tan B; Leong C, 2018, 'The Concentric Development of the Financial Technology (Fintech) Ecosystem in Indonesia', in ICIS 2017: Transforming Society with Digital Innovation
    Conference Papers | 2018
    Ng E; Muthukannan P; Tan B; Leong C, 2018, 'Fintech Platform Development: A Revelatory Case Study of a Chinese Microloan Startup', in ICIS 2017: Transforming Society with Digital Innovation
    Conference Papers | 2018
    Ng E; Muthukannan P; Tan B; Leong C, 2018, 'Fintech Platform Development: A Revelatory Case Study of a Chinese Microloan Startup', in ICIS 2017: Transforming Society with Digital Innovation
    Conference Papers | 2017
    Hua W; Leong C; Yu J, 2017, 'Exploring User-Created Digital Content Ecosystem: A Study of China’s Digital Celebrity Industry', in Proceedings of the 38th International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS 2017), Association for Information Systems, Seoul, South Korea, presented at The 38th International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS 2017), Seoul, South Korea, 10 December 2017 - 13 December 2017, http://aisel.aisnet.org/icis2017/DigitalPlatforms/Presentations/18/
    Conference Papers | 2017
    Muthukannan P; Tan B; Tan FTC; Leong C, 2017, 'The Concentric Development of the Financial Technology (Fintech) Ecosystem in Indonesia', in Proceedings of the 38th International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS 2017), Association for Information Systems, Seuol, South Koera, presented at The 38th International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS 2017), Seuol, South Koera, 10 December 2017 - 13 December 2017, http://aisel.aisnet.org/icis2017/TransformingSociety/Presentations/5/
    Conference Papers | 2017
    Ng E; Muthukannan P; Tan B; Leong C, 2017, 'Fintech Platform Development: A Revelatory Case Study of a Chinese Microloan Startup', in Proceedings of the 38th International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS 2017), Association for Information Systems, Seoul, South Koera, presented at The 38th International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS 2017), Seoul, South Koera, 10 December 2017 - 13 December 2017, http://aisel.aisnet.org/icis2017/DigitalPlatforms/Presentations/15/
    Conference Papers | 2016
    Leong CL; Pan S; Zhu K; Cui L, 2016, 'Digitally Enabled Grassroots Enterpreneurship for Rural Development', in Proceedings of the 20th Pacific Asia Conference on Information Systems (PACIS 2016), Chiayi, Taiwan, presented at The 20th Pacific Asia Conference on Information Systems (PACIS 2016), Chiayi, Taiwan, 27 June 2016 - 01 July 2016
    Conference Papers | 2016
    Leong CL; Pan SL, 2016, 'Digital Entrepreneurship of Born Digital and Grown Digital Firms: Comparing the Effectuation Process of Yihaodian and Suning', in Proceedings of the 37th International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS 2016), Dublin, presented at The 37th International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS 2016), Dublin, 11 November 2016 - 14 December 2016, http://aisel.aisnet.org/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1115&context=icis2016
    Conference Papers | 2015
    Leong C; Pan SL; Bahri S; Khan AFA, 2015, 'Digital Enablement: Social Media in Empowering the Grassroot Environmental Movement of Malaysia', in Digital mobilization ; ICT-empowered grassroot movement ; environmental movement ; digital enablement ; case study (eds.), Proceedings of the 36th International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS 2015), Association for Information Systems, Fort Worth, Texas, USA, presented at The 36th International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS 2015), Fort Worth, Texas, USA, 13 December 2015 - 16 December 2015, http://aisel.aisnet.org/icis2015/proceedings/SocialMedia/8/
    Conference Papers | 2015
    Leong C; Pan SL; Bahri S; Khan AFA, 2015, 'Digital enablement: Social media in empowering the grassroot environmental movement of Malaysia', in 2015 International Conference on Information Systems: Exploring the Information Frontier, ICIS 2015
    Conference Papers | 2015
    Leong C; Pan SL; Bahri S; Khan AFA, 2015, 'Digital enablement: Social media in empowering the grassroot environmental movement of Malaysia', in 2015 International Conference on Information Systems: Exploring the Information Frontier, ICIS 2015
    Conference Papers | 2014
    Chong T; Leong C; Pan SL; Bahri S; Khan AFA, 2014, 'Use of Social Media in Disaster Relief during the Kuantan (Malaysia) Flood', in Proceedings of the 35th International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS 2014), Association for Information Systems, Auckland, New Zealand, presented at The 35th International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS 2014), Auckland, New Zealand, 14 December 2014 - 17 December 2014
    Conference Papers | 2014
    Chong T; Leong C; Pan SL; Bahri S; Khan AFA, 2014, 'Use of social media in disaster relief during the Kuantan (Malaysia) flood', in 35th International Conference on Information Systems "Building a Better World Through Information Systems", ICIS 2014
    Conference Papers | 2013
    Leong C; Pan SL; Huang J, 2013, 'Towards a Two-sided Online platform: The Case of China's Largest Online Ticketing Firm', in Proceedings of the 21st European Conference on Information Systems (ECIS 2013), Utrecht, The Netherlands, presented at The 21st European Conference on Information Systems (ECIS 2013), Utrecht, The Netherlands, 05 June 2013 - 08 June 2013
    Conference Papers | 2011
    Tan B; Leong C; Hackney R, 2011, 'Achieving and Enhancing E-government Integration: Lessons from the Land Data Hub Project of the Singapore Land Authority', in Proceedings of the 32rd International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS 2011), Association for Information Systems, Shanghai, China, presented at The 32 International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS 2011), Shanghai, China, 04 December 2011 - 07 December 2011, http://aisel.aisnet.org/icis2011/proceedings/IScurriculum/5

Grants

Campbelltown City Council, Customer Experience Digital Uplift Project, 2023/24, $30,000 (Cat 2 funding)

Hongxin Pte Ltd/ International Contract, Digitalisation and platformisation capabilities of the company 2021, $10,000 (Cat 3 funding)

NSWs Department of Planning, Industry and Environment (DPIE) / State Government Contract, Bridging the Chasm: A Study in Building Sustainability Momentum 2020, $29,694 (Cat 2 funding)

UNSW Dean's Research Fellowship 2020-2022, $60,000

Australia-ASEAN Council Grants 2019-20, Fostering Women's Economic Empowerment through Digital Entrepreneurship, $30,000

UNSW Business School Research Grant 2019, Digital Technology for Social Good: Developing the Design Principles of Sensor-based Elderly Monitoring System for Aging-in-Place, $20,586

UNSW Business School Special Research Grant 2018, Investigating the Financial Technology for Digitally enabled Inclusion, $10,000

UNSW-Indonesia Seed funding: Investigating Digital Empowerment and Financial Inclusion in Developing Communities in Indonesia 2016/17, $10,000

UNSW Business School Special Research Grant 2016, Digitally enabled Social Change, $7,500

 

Awards and Honors

UNSW Business School's Staff Excellence Award: Research Impact Award 2023

Top 200 Scholars 2019-2021 AIS Research Ranking

Association for Information Systems (AIS) Impact Award 2021

European Journal of Information Systems (EJIS) Outstanding contribution in Reviewing 2021

Best Research Paper 2020 at Information and Organization

Best Paper Runner-Up Award Research-in-Progress: "Coordination of Actor Interactions on Digital Platforms: A case study of Taobao's content exchange platform" by Yawen Zhou, Carmen Leong, Zixiu Guo and Jie Yu

UNSW Business School's Staff Excellence Award: Values in Action (Innovation) Award 2020

Reviewer of the Year 2019, The DATA BASW for Advances in Information Systems 2019

Best Reviewer Award, Asia Academy of Management Conference 2019

Top 200 Scholars 2015-2017 AIS Research Ranking

Research Achievement Award, National University of Singapore 2012

NUS President's Graduate Fellowship, National University of Singapore 2013-2015

 

With the Business School support, I founded the Digital Frontier Research Lab in 2024 with the purpose to facilitate partnership between researchers, organisations, government agencies and communities to generate societal impacts and address challenges posed by new and emerging technologies. My research revolves around the role of technology in economic sustainability, social sustainability and environmental sustainability. My research projects include those of:

  • Digital empowerment and inclusive development
  • AI and creative work
  • Creative economy and technology in emerging economies
  • Technological design for communities disadvantaged by the systems
  • Platform and digital ecosystem
  • Emerging digital phenomena e.g., FinTech, Korean Wave

 

Projects:

Digital uplift project with Campbelltown City Council for the digitally excluded communities

In this project, which stems from my relocation to southwestern Sydney two years ago, I have taken notice of the significant digital exclusion present in the Sydney Outer West and South-West regions, as highlighted by the Australian Digital Inclusion (ADII) Index (2020). To address this issue, I contacted Campbelltown Council and initiated discussions that resulted in a contracted project that commenced in June 2023. Our primary focus is to gain a comprehensive understanding of the extent and nuances of digital exclusion within the LGA, and subsequently enhance the design of the council's online services to ensure inclusivity for all residents. Collaborating with a dedicated team of colleagues and PhD students from our school and international university, we eagerly anticipate the opportunity to contribute to this work, ultimately bolstering the reputation of our translational hub, the UNOVA. This is my modest means of giving back to the community with my expertise. This project has attracted funding of $30,000 from the council and $16,000 from UNSW UNOVA hub and UNSW Centre of Social Impact. 

 

Social media empowered civic engagement and social justice

Inspired by the political polarisation in Malaysia, my home country, I have been engaged in research and conversation on social media-empowered civic engagement and social justice. Since 2016, I led a team of international researchers in studying the role of technologies such as social media in facilitating Malaysia's Bersih movement for clean and fair elections. Malaysian politics is widely regarded as contentious. For years, democracy suffered from entrenched advantages enjoyed by the ruling party and the gerrymandered constituencies. My interactions with the grassroots leaders of two nongovernmental, nonpartisan grassroots groups – Global Bersih and Bersih 2.0, which won the 2016 Gwangju Prize for Human Rights for its activism – produced knowledge that was disseminated in different forms to foster rights consciousness in society. I have shown how social media can be effectively used to organise collective actions in a bottom-up manner, in contrast to movements organised by social movement organisations such as NGOs.

My study has advanced knowledge in my field of information systems through three journal publications - two in ABDC A* and one in ABDC A. One of them received Best Research Paper at Information and Organization (ABDC A*) 2021, with its impacts being recognised by the editor who said "This is an excellent research paper. It addresses a very important phenomenon concerning the dramatic rise of social media-driven social movements which have proliferated following recent crises to protest rising economic inequality." The paper also won the runner-up for the AIS Special Interest Group (SIG) of Grounded Theory Methodology’s Best Paper Award. In addition to a UNSW BusinessThink article, I also published an article in The Conversation ("Malaysia's Bersih movement shows social media can mobilise the masses"), which has recorded more than 23,000 reads. The article in the Conversation was endorsed and shared by Global Bersih with their 24,000 Facebook followers, creating awareness and visibility for the issue facing humanity and rights beyond an audience of the academic and UNSW. More recently, I co-wrote a chapter for a book titled "Lobbying the Autocrat: The Dynamics of Policy Advocacy in Non-Democracies", detailing how societies can actively shape and influence authoritarian states to achieve favourable policy outcomes using technologies. The book is published in 2023.

 

 

Memberships and Engagement

  • Speaker, "Holding Ground: Where should women take up space?" 2022 UNSW ASEAN Conference
  • Panel speaker, "Boundaries of IS Research" at 2021 Australasian Conference on Information Systems
  • Speaker, "Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals through Information Systems in Africa" at 2021 Annual Seminar of the Southern African Chapter of the Association for Information Systems 
  • Co-organizer of the 12th Women in Asia Conference 2019 themed "Rising populism and gender inclusivity"
  • Panel speaker, "Leading Digital Transformation" 2019 at the launch of UNSW AGSM's short courses
  • Organizing committee and member of AIS Special Interest Group Social Inclusion 2017, 2018
  • Plenary speaker, "Making a world of difference with FinTech", Singapore FinTech Festival 2017 
  • Plenary speaker, :Digital Technology for Inclusive Development", 2nd International Conference on Indonesian Economy and Development, Jakarta 2017

 

In the Media

 

 

My Research Supervision

  • Vivian Zhou, Managing interdependencies in digital platforms
  • Angtyasti Jiwasiddi, Digital nomadism
  • Wilson Hua, Digital Entrepreneurship
  • Giuseppe Daniele Ibello
  • Doan Phuong Thao Hoang