In Memory of Claudio Ciborra 1951 - 2005

Claudio Ciborra, Professor and Convenor of Information Systems at LSE, died in Milan, his home town, on Sunday 13 February 2005, aged 53; finally losing his battle against cancer.

Claudio was convenor of our department from 2000 until he went on sick leave in 2004. We will miss him greatly.

Claudio had inspired many of us (and not just in Information Systems) with his innovative thinking about information technology and organisations long before he came to our department. We watched him at conferences defending surprisingly new and refreshing ideas, confronting the established gurus from the business schools - and always dressed in impeccable Italian style for such performances.

In 1998 he was invited to join the department as a visiting professor, then in 2000 he was appointed to a full chair. When offering him the post, the selection committee asked if he was willing to take on the role of head of department. His answer, so typical of Claudio, was 'I want to be on the sun deck, not in the engine room'. He took on the convenor's role and from the beginning he steered firmly from that deck, though he never lost touch with the engine room. He brought Italian style to our department, and one of his first acts was to employ architects, and completely redesign the ambience of our offices.

Claudio was an intellectually demanding leader. He expected us not only to do well in terms of conventional academic performance, but also, and more importantly, to secure an international reputation for creative thinking and forthright delivery. Always an iconoclast, he broke several conventions. His direct way of letting you know what he thought, and in particular what he didn't like, was challenging but never malicious, although he often angered even his closest friends - although no-one could stay angry for long with such a charming man.

Claudio loved being at LSE, where he totally submerged himself in the School's intellectual and social life. He enjoyed living in London, and made many friends beyond the department and the School, making the most of the capital's multiple facets: the avant-garde East End, the Royal Opera, even the salsa nightclub at the basement of LSE. He was also a true cosmopolitan, visiting friends and juggling professional engagements across Europe and North America, hopping from London to Oslo, to Berlin, to Milan, to Barcelona, to Boston with equal enthusiasm, to give a keynote speech, or organise a new research agenda, hear the Berlin Philharmonic, or to take part in swimming races.

Truly intellectual, daring and uncompromising, yet always playful in his work as well as his personal life, Claudio leaves a huge influence in the shaping of a growing research stream on the social study of information and communication technology.

Index of tributes to Claudio Ciborra

Messages from Claudio's family

Dear Claudio's friends, colleagues and students from around the world,

Your heartfelt words of condolence, tribute and remembrance for him have triggered, day after day, never ending recurrent waves of emotion and sadness to me and my family.

We have felt gathered with you all, hands in hands, in the 'in memory of Claudio' site, like in an unforgettable 'virtual cathedral', where emotions meet with sorrow and memories intensively reverberate on all new friends entering the site for the last farewell.

Thank so much for having given back to him through the Net a new virtual life, he will ever remain alive in the collective memory of all of us.

Our warmest thanks,

Carlo, Claudio's eldest brother
Bruno, Claudio's brother
Grazia, his sister in law
His nieces Valentina and Marta and nephew, Federico

Bruno Ciborra writes:

...almost two months have passed since the death of my brother, Claudio Ciborra.
I would like to thank all the friends and colleagues for their nice thoughts, memories and tales here collected. His entire work (books, lessons, conferences...) is here to stay as privileged witness of his life... Virtus non timet quod facit. (Virtue is not afraid of action)....

I would also like to inform you that I have implemented a prize - 'In Memory of Claudio Ciborra' - for the best dissertation on 'Large corporate infrastructures and information technology' for students of the Politecnico di Milano (Technical University of Milan) where Claudio gained his degree in Electronic Engineering. See Premio di laurea "prof. Claudio Ciborra" a.a. 2002/03 - 2003/04 - Proroga.

Milan, 12 April 2005

• Professor Claudio Ciborra's personal web pages, including a list of Selected Publications
• Digital Technologies and the Duality of Risk (PDF), Claudio Ciborra's most recent publication
• Calls for papers for Ciborra special issues of the Journal of Information Technology (JIT) and the European Journal of Information Systems (EJIS) celebrating Claudio Ciborra's life and work

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