JoAnne Yates examines communication and information as they shape and are shaped by technologies and policies over time. Her research encompasses both historical and contemporary organizations, with a focus on changing communication and information technologies and the related work practices. Her current historical work focuses on the life insurance industry's adoption and use of information technology in the twentieth century. She is also part of a team of five Sloan faculty with a multi-year NSF grant to study the social and economic implications of Internet technologies. In this work, she collaborates with Wanda Orlikowski and other researchers on in-depth studies of how specific groups and organizations use communication and information technologies, and how that use shapes their work, communication, and temporal practices.