Felix Limbach

Topics and Applied Theories in IT Service Management

This article examines the IT Service Management (ITSM) research literature, starting from past up to the present. The applied research method is the literature review, in which a search is conducted across 8 major global, regional, and national conferences as well as 71 international journals. Furthermore, different database searches are performed. In order to classify the results, a morphological box is used. Moreover, a keyword analysis is conducted to obtain an overview about research topics in IT Service Management. The findings suggest that research in the field of ITSM has matured and diversified over the years. Drawing attention to the different research areas of IT Service Management is the specific contribution of this paper to Information Systems (IS) research. In addition, this paper shows, which areas and topics are explored and which are under explored, respectively, have not yet been the focus of research. A research agenda will be proposed to handle the identified areas of future research. Furthermore, this article gives an insight into the applied theories in IT Service Management.

Shared Domain Knowledge in Strategic Green IS Alignment: An Analysis from the Knowledge-Based View

In this paper, we argue that the inclusion of environmental sustainability aspects increases the complexity of Information Systems (IS) alignment. The business value of IS and their potential to render firms more sustainable can only be leveraged if IS are strategically aligned. The literature from relevant academic disciplines is reviewed to lay a theoretical foundation. We define the term Green IS strategy, introduce a strategy typology, and integrate environmental aspects into Green IS alignment. The alignment process is determined by social aspects that are analyzed from the knowledge-based perspective in this research. We find that sharing of knowledge between the domains of business, IS, and sustainability is a premise for Green IS alignment. In this context, the importance of internally transferring tacit knowledge between different organizational actors on corporate, competitive and functional level is emphasized. Finally, we discuss implications for research and practice and make recommendations for further research.

Towards cross-industry information infrastructure provisioning: A resource-based perspective

The availabilty of future-prove information infrastructure is widely associated with economic growth and social prosperity. However, migrating legacy information infrastructures to the future is said to come along with high investment costs. In this paper we assess how cross-industry cooperation between utility and telecommunication companies can contribute to the utilization of synergies in information infrastructure provisioning. For this purpose we employ a joint case study and grounded theory approach that is based on expert interviews with managing experts from telecommunication companies accounting for more than 75 percent of todays German broadband market. Based on coding techniques we identify and value central concepts that contribute to cross-industry infrastructure provisioning. Our results indicate that utility companies can foster cooperation by focusing on resources related to the deployment and maintenance of physical infrastructure. In contrast activities and assets related to network or service operation can be a cooperation inhibitors.

Cooperative Private Next-Generation Access Deployment -- A Relational View

World-wide deregulation activities on incumbent infrastructures educed competitive broadband markets in many countries around the world. However, as the customers data demand exceeds the technological capabilities of legacy infrastructures, large public or private investments in fiber-optic networks are required. In this paper we employ the relational view concept in order to assess how cooperation between private market players can contribute to reaching national broadband deployment goals. We base our findings on a combined grounded theory and case study approach with twenty-three managing experts from major telecommunication companies of the German broadband market. Our results indicate that the relational view concept can contribute to a better understanding of cooperative private Next-Generation Access deployment. Based on the result of our analysis we have been able to derive exemplary fields of action for regulators and carrier management for improving preconditions of cooperative broadband deployment.