Although we believe that reflection is fundamental to self-organisation, there is still much work to be done in validating this principle both in theory and in practice. Furthermore, in the information systems field, self-organisation is not clearly accepted as a problem-solving approach. We believe this approach to be feasible in the real work setting if an appropriate organisational culture is in place. It can readily be seen that reflection already occurs successfully in some organisations when addressing problems. Hence, self-organisation could easily be the next step. There will be, of course, far-ranging implications for organisations seeking to adopt this approach in terms of internal structures, information systems already in place and indeed the motivation to do so.

Acknowledgement: The authors would like to acknowledge Dr Mike Metcalfe’s contribution of ideas on this topic.