Robert D. Galliers

Key issues in information systems management: an international perspective

This study compares and contrasts the findings of recent information systems (IS) management studies in ten nations or regions as well as one U.S. multinational study. It examines the key concerns of IS executives in these areas, focusing on identifying and explaining regional similarities and differences. Internationally, there are substantial differences in key issues. Possible reasons for these differences--cultural, economic development, political/legal environment, and technological status--are discussed. The analysis suggests that national culture and economixc development can explain differences in key issues. The paper concludes with a revised framework for key issues studies that will more readily support comparison across time and nations.

Information systems management and strategy formulation: the ‘stages of growth’ model revisited

Abstract. The original ‘stages of growth’ model, as applied to the field of Information Systems (Gibson & Nolan, 1974), may be viewed as seminal, given the influence it has had on both theory and practice (Nolan, 1984; Sullivan, 1985; Ward, et al., 1990). This is so, despite the models lack of substantiation based on empirical evidence, the overly simplistic assumptions on which it is based, and the limited focus of the original concept (Benbasat, et al., 1984; King & Kraemer, 1984).

Strategic Information Management: Challenges and Strategies in Managing Information Systems

Today there are few organizations that can afford to ignore information technology and few individuals who would prefer to be without it. As managerial tasks become more complex, so the nature of the required information systems changes from structured, routine support to ad hoc, unstructured, complex enquiries at the highest levels of management. As with the first three editions, this fourth edition of Strategic Information Management: Challenges and Strategies in Managing Information Systems presents the many complex and inter-related issues associated with the management of information systems. This book provides a rich source of material reflecting recent thinking on the key issues facing executives in information systems strategic management. It draws from a wide range of contemporary articles written by leading experts from North America, Asia, and Europe. Designed as a course text for MBA, Masters level students, and senior undergraduate students taking courses in information management, it also provides a wealth of information and references for researchers. New to this edition are updated readings addressing current issues and the latest thinking in information management.

Implementing enterprise resource planning and knowledge management systems in tandem: fostering efficiency and innovation complementarity

This paper examines the simultaneous implementation within a single organization of two contemporary managerial information systems—Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Knowledge Management (KM). Exploring their simultaneous deployment within an organization provides an opportunity to examine the resulting interactions and impacts. More specifically, we examine their combined influence on improving organizational efficiency and flexibility, two outcomes which traditional organizational theory suggests are incompatible. Through an interpretative case study, the research confirms that: (1) the two systems can be implemented in tandem to good effect; (2) complementarity between the two systems is possible, although this is not an automatic outcome, it has to be fostered. This complementarity is analyzed in relation to the four mechanisms (namely partitioning, enrichment, metaroutines and switching) proposed by Adler, Goldoftas and Levine (Organization Science 10 (1999) 43), as vital for the simultaneous development of organizational efficiency and flexibility.

A knowledge‐focused perspective on the diffusion and adoption of complex information technologies: the BPR example

This paper presents a knowledge‐focused perspective for the development of a model to explain the diffusion and adoption of complex integrating technologies. Business process re‐engineering (BPR) is used as the example to illustrate the model. However, while BPR is used to illustrate our argument, the model that is developed is relevant to understanding the innovation processes surrounding any complex IT‐based innovation. It is argued that the strength of this diffusion model is that it focuses not on the spread of particular technological artifacts (whether it is BPR or any other IT‐based innovation), but on the spread of the ideas and knowledge underpinning the technology. In particular, the model draws attention to the ways in which technology suppliers commodify knowledge and present ‘packaged’ solutions. This creates problems for potential users who need to unpack this knowledge and integrate it with existing organizational knowledge. The diffusion and adoption of innovations is thus seen as a process of integrating knowledge across disparate communities. Such knowledge integration, however, is difficult. This can help to explain the apparent contradiction between the limited success rate of BPR and its widespread diffusion among western firms.

Viewpoint: choosing appropriate information systems research methodologies

We believe we should draw attention to two disturbing tendencies in information systems (IS) research. The first relates to the primacy of traditional, empirical research more suited to the natural sciences, at the expense of less conventional approaches that nevertheless provide important contributions to our search for improved knowledge. Although the experimental design of such IS research may well be academically acceptable and internally consistent, all too often it leads to inconclusive or inapplicable results. The second relates to the tendency of some of our most respected institutions to advocate a particular mode of IS research irrespective of the particular IS topic being studied. Evidence for both these contentions can he found in the results of a study undertaken by Vogel and Wetherbe [6]. For example, they suggest that as much as 85 percent of published IS research undertaken by leading U.S. institutions is of the traditional kind. In order to gain some insight into what constitutes appropriate research in the field of IS, it is advisable first to consider the nature of information systems themselves and then to look at what we hope to gain from undertaking research in the area. Traditionally, the topic has often been viewed as residing, for the most part at least, within the province of technology. Increasingly,

The Creation Of ‘Best Practice’ Software: Myth, Reality And Ethics

The notion of best practice is a foundational concept for vendors of Enterprise Resource Planning systems who use it to support a claim to provide tried and tested, ‘best of breed’ process models. This study illustrates how a best practice ERP system was actually created. The product resulted from a socio-political process involving negotiations amongst a small group of interests in a particular context. This process is illuminated through the presentation of an intensive case study in which we follow the creation of the ERP product destined to be marketed as a best practice solution for higher education institutions. We focus on the design of an ERP-based grants management system to highlight the role of software in shaping operations and strategy at both a firm and industry level. The design of IT shapes the boundaries of organizational knowledge and decision-making by classifying work practices and translating them into the software. The focus of our investigation is the process by which a small group of powerful actors came to define the ‘best practice’ for an industry. Findings reveal the politics involved in constructing, marketing and disseminating best practice claims. Using theoretical concepts from Science and Technology Studies literature, we illuminate how the design of the ERP product changed the nature of work, and how later such practices were locally refuted and amended, despite the original product continuing to be sold by the software vendor. The ethics of such ‘best practice’ claims are questioned.

Factors influencing Internet shopping value and customer repurchase intention

This research empirically examines the effect of various Internet shopping site qualities on the utilitarian and hedonic values of Internet shopping. The influence of the perceived level of Internet shopping value on customer satisfaction and repurchase intention is also investigated. We perform structural equation analysis with a sample of 293 observations consisting of two different income groups (workforce and student). Our results show that while system and service qualities are critical factors affecting utilitarian shopping value, information and service qualities are the factors most closely associated with hedonic shopping value. These findings suggest that service quality plays a significant role in increasing both utilitarian and hedonic shopping values. Our results also show that the impact of quality factors on Internet shopping values and subsequent repurchase intention differs across the two income groups.

The sociomateriality of information systems: current status, future directions

Our motivation for putting together this special issue on “Sociomateriality of Information Systems and Organizing” was the mounting interest in the relationship between the social and the material, in the context of our increasingly digital society. The attention to this relationship is manifested in the emergence of studies of technology intended to augment and complement, but also and importantly, to question the received views on technology in social life (see Carlile et al. 2013a; Leonardi et al. 2012; Suchman, 2007).

Coping with information technology? How British executives perceive the key information systems management issues in the mid-1990s

Survey research amongst senior information systems (IS) and non-IS executives in UK organizations was conducted in order to identify their views as to the most important and problematic issues they face in managing information systems. The survey mirrored similar research that has been undertaken in the USA and elsewhere, thus enabling international comparisons in the future. The aim of this paper is to provide comparisons of (i) the views expressed by IS executives vis à vis those with a ‘non-IS’ role and (ii) the findings of this study with those of a previous similar British study undertaken in 1987.