Corina Raduescu

The Influence of National Culture on the Level and Outcome of IS Development Decisions

Abstract Would the outcome of a Global multinational organizations decision be the same if the same decision were to be made in different countries throughout the world? Within the same organization, we propose that national cultural differences can influence decision making in different countries and cultural clusters. While much work has been done on organizational cultural influences, this study examines the influence that national culture has on organizational decision making in respect to the evolution/redevelopment decision that organizations may face at a point in time. Building on findings from the GLOBE research program, we show by empirical testing of a theoretical model that national cultural dimensions are significantly associated with a) the outcome of the decision to enhance or re-develop a system, and b) the organizational level at which such decisions are made. This research is significant as a means to improve management decision making, particularly with regard to the enhancement versus redevelopment decision. The research suggests that a relatively uniform sub-culture exists across the global IS project level but that national cultural dimensions play a more important role in determining the organizational management level at which decisions are made. Our analysis also suggests that technical factors (Upper case tools and platform) carry more influence in the outcome of the decision at the project level (i.e., development or enhancement). However, human factors (national cultural dimensions) were seen to be more important at the management level (i.e., where the decision was made).

Towards the Development of a Complex Adaptive Project Environment Assessment Tool

Managing complex software and information systems (IS) development projects in a continuously changing business environment is an arduous task. We argue that the success of a complex project depends on the underlying capability of the specific project environment to be adaptive to changes. Organizations have therefore a need to assess the capability of the underlying project environment to identify how well it supports the management of a complex project. In this paper we present the design of an initial “complex adaptive project environment assessment” (CAPEA) tool, which has been developed based on the eight key characteristics of the complex adaptive systems (CAS): Autonomy, Interdependence, EcoSystem Structure, Context Awareness, Non-Linearity, Emergence, Self-Organization, and Adaptation. The evaluation of the CAPEA tool is conducted by assessing two project methods in order to provide an initial indicative proof of concept. The evaluation of the CAPEA tool indicates that it can assist organizations to assess and improve the management of complex software or IS project methods, and reduce costly consequences associated with failed projects.

Handling the Complexity of ISD Projects with Agile Methods: A Conceptual Foundation

Traditional approaches to software and information systems development (ISD) cannot fulfill the challenges presented by the complexity inherent in today’s dynamic and changing environments. In this study we argue that ISD projects are socially complex endeavors and suggest that agile development methods display characteristics that justify them as being appropriate for such project environments. We suggest that one theory that justifies the appropriateness of agile methods in such contexts is the complex adaptive systems (CAS) theory. We first argue that ISD projects can be treated as CAS, and second, we assess the alignment between CAS characteristics and agile methods principles. We therefore propose and discuss a preliminary conceptual foundation for handling the complexity of ISD projects with agile methods. Our future research directions seek to investigate the applicability of specific agile methods and develop a comprehensive framework that will offer a validated theoretical justification of better approaches to manage complex ISD projects in practice.