Henry E. Newkirk

The effectiveness of strategic information systems planning under environmental uncertainty

Researchers have suggested that more extensive strategic information systems planning (SISP) in an uncertain environment produces greater planning success. Managers must decide whether, and if so when, to perform such SISP. Our study tested the effect of SISP phases on planning success in more and less uncertain environments.A questionnaire assessed SISP in terms of strategic awareness, situation analysis, strategy conception, strategy formulation, and strategy implementation planning phases. It inquired about environmental uncertainty as dynamism, heterogeneity, and hostility. Finally, it measured SISP success as a composite of alignment, analysis, cooperation, and capabilities. One hundred and sixty-one IS executives provided data in a postal survey.More extensive strategy formulation uniformly predicted successful planning in more uncertain environments, whereas strategic awareness generally predicted it in less uncertain ones. Strategy conception predicted it in neither more nor less uncertain environments. More extensive planning is thus not uniformly successful in either environment but depends on the nature of the uncertainty.

Strategic information systems planning: too little or too much?

Strategic information systems planning (SISP) is a key concern facing top business and information systems executives. Observers have suggested that both too little and too much SISP can prove ineffective. Hypotheses examine the expected relationship between comprehensiveness and effectiveness in five SISP planning phases. They predict a nonlinear, inverted-U relationship thus suggesting the existence of an optimal level of comprehensiveness. A survey collected data from 161 US information systems executives. After an extensive validation of the constructs, the statistical analysis supported the hypothesis in a Strategy Implementation Planning phase, but not in terms of the other four SISP phases. Managers may benefit from the knowledge that both too much and too little implementation planning may hinder SISP success. Future researchers should investigate why the hypothesis was supported for that phase, but not the others.

Rapid business and IT change: drivers for strategic information systems planning?

Todays organizations increasingly plan new information systems (IS) to better compete. Through such planning, they attempt to align their IS strategy and their business strategy. This study tested the impact of business and information technology (IT) change on strategic information systems planning (SISP) horizon, of horizon on the planning itself, and of the planning on the alignment of IS strategy and business strategy. A questionnaire defined business change, IT change, and alignment as multi-item scaled questions, and planning horizon as a single, nonscaled one. It defined a multi-item scaled SISP measure as both a second-order construct and as single-order constructs for its individual phases. A postal survey collected data from 161 IS executives. Constructs were extensively validated. The analysis used structural equation modeling, and surprisingly found that business change predicted longer SISP horizons, but IT change predicted neither longer nor shorter ones. Planning horizon predicted SISP itself (as a second-order construct and as all of its phases), and such planning (as a second-order construct, and as strategic awareness and strategy conception phases) predicted alignment of IS strategy and business strategy. These findings suggest that practitioners more carefully assess their own degree of caution in setting planning horizons in response to business and IT change. In fact, the findings suggest it may not be necessary for practitioners to shorten planning horizons in a rapidly changing environment.

Environmental assessment in strategic information systems planning

Environmental assessment (ENVA) is expected to increase the chances of achieving strategic information systems planning (SISP) objectives. Such planning characteristics as the initiator of the SISP study, the studys planning horizon, its scope, and information systems department participation in long-range, business planning have been suggested as influences on the ENVA performed in SISP. This study employed a postal survey to investigate those predictors of ENVA and the impact of that assessment on the achievement of SISP objectives. It obtained responses from 105 corporate information systems planners. The study confirmed the effects of ENVA on the achievement of objectives, and those of initiator and IS department participation on assessment. Future researchers may want to investigate the predictors of the initiator and IS department participation as well as why scope and planning horizon did not lead to ENVA. Practitioners may want to encourage top management to initiate SISP studies and to include the IS department in the business planning.

A customer resource life cycle interpretation of the impact of the world wide web on competitiveness: expectations and achievements

Research indicates that many organizations implement their World Wide Web sites so that they can compete more successfully. The Customer Resource Life Cycle (CRLC) is a framework for explaining how organizations use information technology to do so. The current exploratory research investigated how smaller organizations plan to use the Web to improve their CRLC activities and thus enhance their competitiveness. It also investigated how successfully they use the Web in this endeavor. Managers from 472 companies that use Web sites to conduct business responded to an e-mail survey about the expectations and achievements of their Web sites in the context of the CRLC. They expected their Web sites to help customers acquire resources rather than to determine requirements for resources, whereas customers used the sites more for requirements determination than for acquisition. At the same time, the Web helped organizations compete in the manner expected to a great extent.

Incremental and Comprehensive Strategic Information Systems Planning in an Uncertain Environment

Strategic information systems planning (SISP) is a critical challenge for organizations. Some researchers have suggested that more incremental SISP in an uncertain environment produces greater planning success, while others have suggested that more comprehensive SISP does so in that environment. The purpose of this study was to test the effect of incremental versus comprehensive SISP on SISP success in environments of varying uncertainty. A questionnaire defined SISP in terms of characteristics of incremental and comprehensive planning. It measured environmental uncertainty in terms of 1) the changeability and unpredictability components of dynamism, 2) heterogeneity, and 3) the scarcity and competition components of hostility. It assessed planning success as a second-order construct composed of alignment, analysis, cooperation, and capabilities. A postal survey collected data from 161 IS executives. The constructs were extensively validated. In general, greater SISP comprehensiveness predicted greater SISP success. Greater changeability and unpredictability, however, weakened the impact of such SISP on success. On the other hand, as the environment became more competitive, more comprehensive SISP led to greater SISP success. These findings contribute by suggesting that planners should expect comprehensive SISP to be less effective as changeability and unpredictability increase, but more effective as competition increases

AN INTEGRATIVE HEALTH INFORMATION SYSTEMS APPROACH FOR FACILITATING STRATEGIC PLANNING IN HOSPITALS

This article presents a framework for developing strategic information systems (SISs) for hospitals. It proposes a SIS formulation process which incorporates complexity theory, strategic/organizational analysis theory, and conventional MIS development concepts. Within the formulation process, four dimensions of SIS are proposed as well as an implementation plan. A major contribution of this article is the development of a hospital SIS framework which permits an organization to fluidly respond to external, interorganizational, and intraorganizational influences. In addition, this article offers a checklist which managers can utilize in developing an SIS in health care.

The impact of environmental dynamism on strategic information systems technical and personnel resources planning

This study tested the effect of environmental uncertainty on Strategic Information Systems Planning (SISP), and of SISP on SISP success. A questionnaire operationalised SISP as technical and personnel planning; environmental uncertainty as changeability and unpredictability; and success as alignment, analysis, and cooperation. A postal survey collected data from 161 IS executives. A quickly changing environment predicted technical and personnel resources planning. An unpredictable environment predicted personnel resources planning. Both technical and personnel resources planning predicted SISP success. The research highlighted the impact of environmental dynamism on SISP, and of both technical and personnel resources planning on SISP success.