Stuart Maguire

Green Human Resource Management: A Review and Research Agenda

The paper makes a case for the integration of the largely separate literatures of environmental management (EM) and human resource management (HRM) research. The paper categorizes the existing literature on the basis of Ability–Motivation– Opportunity (AMO) theory, revealing the role that Green human resource management (GHRM) processes play in people-management practice. The contributions of the paper lie in drawing together the extant literature in the area, mapping the terrain of the field, identifying some gaps in the existing literature and suggesting some potentially fruitful future research agendas. The findings of the review suggest that understanding of how GHRM practices influence employee motivation to become involved in environmental activities lags behind that of how organizations develop Green abilities and provide employees with opportunities to be involved in EM organizational efforts. Organizations are not using the full range of GHRM practices, and this may limit their effectiveness in efforts to improve EM.

Identifying the adoption of e‐business and knowledge management within SMEs

This paper presents results on the extent to which e‐business and knowledge management approaches are being used by SMEs in the UK. The questionnaire survey and interview results identify the main issues that should concern SMEs if they want to prevail in the emerging business environment and knowledge economy. The main finding is that SMEs have increasingly applied e‐business for B2B and B2C activities, but SMEs are not generally aware of how knowledge can be created through the use of e‐business applications and daily operations. It is envisaged that the findings from this study will provide the main step forward in developing a reference framework and a management model for SMEs to assess, manage and make use of the existing and new e‐business tools and knowledge reflecting the e‐business and knowledge management era.

ERP implementation in Omantel: a case study

Purpose – Enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems if successfully implemented bring about competitive advantages. On the other hand, project failure could, in an extreme case, cause an organisation to go out of business. Mapped against existing literature on ERP critical success factors, this paper examines environmental factors that impacted on the adoption of ERP by The Oman Telecommunication Company (Omantel).Design/methodology/approach – A case study methodology is used to study perceptions of the ERP system implementation project in Omantel.Findings – This paper highlights the particular problems of large organisations that operate disparate legacy systems.Research limitations/implications – A single case study is conducted. This provides opportunities for further research in a number of varied settings.Originality/value – It is very important that experiences of ERP projects are shared across countries and sectors. This is because many ERP implementations are rolled out by multi‐national corporat...

Identifying risks during information system development: managing the process

Developments in information and communications technology have allowed many organisations to implement systems that directly link to customers and suppliers. In a number of instances this has allowed them to gain a competitive advantage over their business rivals. The changeover to a new information system should appear seamless to the customer. The general public should not be disadvantaged by the implementation of a new system in the public sector. The tight coupling of systems, especially with customers, puts extra responsibility on information system developers to try and ensure a smooth transition from the old to the new system. Failure to do this may result in the customer being unfairly penalised and may result in subsequent loss of business. This paper attempts to show that there are many areas of potential risk within the process of information system development (ISD) and these need to be carefully analysed and managed. It also reveals that certain popular risk management methodologies do not reflect the risk elements identified within the ISD process.

The role of human resource management in information systems development

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the inherent weaknesses in the approaches that most organizations use to develop and implement information systems. It examines the role of human resource management practices in information system development.Design/methodology/approach – The paper reports a case study of IS implementation in a major public sector organization. It draws on data from multiple sources.Findings – The research finds that IS failure is often associated with a lack of attention to “softer” management practices such as culture change, organization development and user involvement. The findings of the case study research suggest that HR has a key but neglected potential role to play in successful IS implementation, particularly in relation to the change management process.Originality/value – There is a research gap in the literature on the role of HR in information systems development.

Exploring the impact of cultural values on project performance: The effects of cultural values, age and gender on the perceived importance of project success/failure factors

Purpose – This study aims to explore the impact of cultural values on the importance individuals assign to project success/failure factors (PSFFs). Design/methodology/approach – Themes emerging from 40 interviews of project practitioners based in Brazil, China, Greece, Nigeria, Thailand, the UAE, the UK and the USA are integrated with literature evidence to design a survey instrument. One thousand three hundred and thirteen practitioner survey responses from the eight countries are analysed using multi-group, structural equation modelling. Findings – Ten project success/failure indicators (PSFIs) are found to reduce to two main PSFFs: project control and extra-organisational goals and project team management/development and intra-organisational goals. It is found that the levels of importance individuals assign to both factors are dependent, not only on age and gender, but also cultural values measured as constructs based on Hofstedes individualism, masculinity, power distance and uncertainty avoidance d...

Twenty-Five Years of National Information Systems in the NHS

This article reviews the major information systems projects in the National Health Service over the past 25 years. Rather than looking backwards, it isolates important lessons and issues that should be considered by management in organizations considering the implementation of information systems.

E-organisation and its future implication for SMEs

E-organisations are expected to be one of the promising organisational forms in this Internet cultural era (ICE). E-organisations are different from traditional organisations; and most traditional organisations are evolving towards becoming e-organisations. These are organisations established and operated, based on the Internet and other related technologies in an environment referred to as Internet culture—whereby organisations will be placing the Internet at the centre of their business and encouraging ubiquitous use of networked technologies. This paper incorporates several perspectives to examine how small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) use the network technologies and information and communication technology (ICT) in their current business environment. Through a literature review and interviews, we analyse the various options for managing the transformation, and its effects, to ascertain the appropriate strategies within a range of SMEs. The results of this study reveal that the SMEs’ journey towards becoming e-organisations can be classified into three stages: 1/2-fusion, fusion and the ultimate e-organisation stage. Based on this work, strategic solutions are proposed for future SMEs intending to adopt Internet and other network technologies.

Market‐led systems development: when customers become users

Purpose – There has been a great deal of interest in ensuring that organisational strategy is successfully implemented in order to meet business objectives. More recently, reports of the failure of information systems and technology (IS&T) projects have become more regular and the reported failures more spectacular. This has added to a growing perception that IS&T implementation approaches currently utilised are struggling to add value to customers and users, leading to calls for a re‐think of how IS&T is introduced into organisations. This paper seeks to develop a customer experience strategy which will give a key group of stakeholders, customers, a major input in the IS&T development process.Design/methodology/approach – The approach taken to examine IS&T implementation at this stage of the development of this theme is empirical. The failed introduction of a new IS&T system in a major service organisation in the UK is used as a case study. Data were gathered from 22 face‐to‐face interviews with key stak...

Reconciling the system requirements process in changing business environments

Updating a companys business, information and information technology strategies regularly may highlight not only changes in the environment, but possible business opportunities. Timely implementation may save lost opportunities. In the last 40 years the information systems discipline has borrowed techniques from other areas. Some have been used to support the information system development process. This article focuses on the system requirements process and its applicability in rapidly changing business environments.