ICIS 2008 Panel Report: IS Has Outgrown the Need for Reference Discipline Theories, or Has It?

We view the current belief in reference discipline theories and their value in MIS research as exhibiting dominance in our field. This article is based on the panel discussion at the 2008 International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS) held in Paris, France. It examines why this dominance has the potential to harm the future prospects of our intellectual endeavors. In counterpoint, we present the argument that the use of reference disciplines should continue. Aside from the fact that the belief in the value of reference discipline is continued, there are benefits derived from anchoring research initiatives in reference discipline theories which should be acknowledged. Under certain situations such use should be encouraged and broadened. Additionally, we will present arguments for viable alternatives to relying on reference disciplines in theory building. The alternatives are aimed at building and expanding indigenous IS theory

A Temporal Model of Mindful Interactions Around New Service Conception

The organizational ability to innovate is widely acknowledged as crucial to sustained success. For libraries and other service providers, innovation entails the continuous development of new services that propose value to customers. This new service development process can be understood as comprising a front end, in which new service ideas are conceived and developed, and a back end, in which selected ideas are implemented. Our understanding of the former - that is, of new service conception in libraries - is particularly underdeveloped. To build a conceptual foundation for research in this area I used qualitative data collection techniques and constant-comparison analysis within the framework of a comparative, embedded case study. Fourteen new service ideas conceived by three case organizations - two public library systems and one library consortium - served as the units of analysis. The model that emerged from the data - a Temporal Model of Mindful Interactions Around New Service Conception - depicts library administrators as active producers of new service concepts. More specifically, the model posits that the innovative library administrator continuously identifies new customer needs and new external solutions through seven types of mindful interactions. At the same time, she tries to match unmet customer needs with potential external solutions in order to produce a new service concept that is ready for implementation. The model extends the concept of individual mindfulness as developed by Weick and Sutcliffe (2006) and Weick and Putnam (2006). In short, it proposes that an individual can concurrently maintain two modes of mindfulness - cognitive-flow mindfulness and content mindfulness - in order to facilitate knowledge creation in the form of a new service concept. More specifically, one can be mindful during an interaction of its potential for engendering novel content (cognitive-flow mindfulness) while keeping in mind certain organizationally-influenced content (content mindfulness). The individual who can concurrently maintain both modes of mindfulness is better able to make novel associations between new information and the content about which she is mindful (e.g., the library\u27s mission and major goals, unmet customer needs, potential external solutions). While the data behind the model suggest that mindfulness can be maintained by admini-strators in smaller, more resource-challenged libraries, and in libraries with non-consolidated organizational structures, the data also reveal that the new service concepts produced by these administrators were yielded only after an external funding source was obtained. For these libraries, developing and delivering new services without grant monies, or without a mechanism within the service for generating revenue, may not be feasible. This does not mean that the administrators of these libraries should stop trying to innovate, or should stop being mindful of new service possibilities, but rather that (1) they must be mindful, perhaps to a greater degree than their counterparts at better-funded libraries, of an interaction\u27s potential for engendering an external funding source, and (2) they may not be able to devote as much time to identifying new customer needs and potential external solutions. Instead, they may need to devote much of their time to addressing ongoing financial challenges

The Information Systems Academic Discipline in Australia

This book represents the second phase of a multi-method, multi-study of the ‘Information Systems Academic Discipline in Australia’. Drawing on Whitley’s Theory of Scientific Change, the study analysed the degree of ‘professionalisation’ of the Information Systems Discipline, the overarching research question being ‘To what extent is Information Systems a distinct and mature discipline in Australia?’ The book chapters are structured around three main sections: a) the context of the study; b) the state case studies; and c) Australia-wide evidence and analysis. The book is crafted to be accessible to IS and non-IS types both within and outside of Australia. It represents a ‘check point’; a snapshot at a point in time. As the first in a hoped for series of such snap-shots, it includes a brief history of IS in Australia, bringing us up to the time of this report. The editorial team comprises Guy Gable, architect and leader; Bob Smyth, project manager; Shirley Gregor, sponsor, host and co-theoretician; Roger Clarke, discipline memory; and Gail Ridley, theoretician. In phase two, the editors undertook to examine each component study, with a view to arriving at an Australia-wide perspective

The Information Systems Academic Discipline in Australia

This book represents the second phase of a multi-method, multi-study of the ‘Information Systems Academic Discipline in Australia’. Drawing on Whitley’s Theory of Scientific Change, the study analysed the degree of ‘professionalisation’ of the Information Systems Discipline, the overarching research question being ‘To what extent is Information Systems a distinct and mature discipline in Australia?’ The book chapters are structured around three main sections: a) the context of the study; b) the state case studies; and c) Australia-wide evidence and analysis. The book is crafted to be accessible to IS and non-IS types both within and outside of Australia. It represents a ‘check point’; a snapshot at a point in time. As the first in a hoped for series of such snap-shots, it includes a brief history of IS in Australia, bringing us up to the time of this report. The editorial team comprises Guy Gable, architect and leader; Bob Smyth, project manager; Shirley Gregor, sponsor, host and co-theoretician; Roger Clarke, discipline memory; and Gail Ridley, theoretician. In phase two, the editors undertook to examine each component study, with a view to arriving at an Australia-wide perspective

E-government: A stakeholder relational perspective

Master'sMASTER OF SCIENC

La gestion des projets de mise en oeuvre des systèmes ERP en milieu universitaire

La présente étude porte sur la gestion des projets de mise en oeuvre des systèmes ERP en milieu universitaire. Les systèmes ERP, ou progiciels de gestion intégrée, sont des systèmes informatiques qui tendent à unifier dans une certaine mesure la gestion des activités d'une organisation. Initialement conçus pour le milieu industriel, ces systèmes ont conquis d'autres organisations telles que les administrations publiques et les institutions académiques. Un nombre de plus en plus croissant d'universités se tourne vers les systèmes ERP pour remplacer des systèmes informatiques hétéroclites et vieillissants. Mais cette transition vers les systèmes ERP ne se fait pas sans accroc, comme en témoigne le taux d'échec élevé au niveau de la mise en oeuvre de ces systèmes. En effet, l'espace du projet ERP est un environnement d'une extrême complexité qui comprend divers acteurs, diverses technologies et diverses données. Cette complexité représente un défi du point de vue de la gestion du projet de mise en oeuvre. La présente thèse analyse la fonction de gestion des projets ERP en milieu universitaire sous trois angles : (i) les défis et les problèmes liés à la mise en oeuvre ; (ii) les tactiques d'acquisition et de gestion des ressources humaines ; (iii) le parrainage du projet par un administrateur de l'institution. L'étude a pour objectif d'analyser la gestion de projet en milieu universitaire sous les angles mentionnés ci-dessus afin de faire des suggestions dans le sens de l'amélioration de la gestion de projet. La thèse qui s'est appuyée sur treize projets a permis de collecter des données, de les analyser et de pouvoir relever les aspects positifs et les défis de la gestion des projets ERP afin de tirer des leçons, de faire des suggestions pouvant contribuer à améliorer la gestion des projets ERP en milieu universitaire. À travers l'article (i), l'auteur a analysé les défis majeurs -du point de vue du chef de projet- dans le cadre de chaque projet et l'impact de ces défis sur le processus de mise en oeuvre du projet. Cela a permis de dégager des leçons pouvant contribuer à la sélection, à la formation de futurs chefs de projet, à la planification et à la gestion d'autres projets dans le futur. L'article (ii) a donné l'occasion d'analyser les questions liées à l'acquisition et à la gestion des ressources humaines dans le cadre des projets ERP en milieu universitaire. Cette étude a permis de relever les stratégies d'acquisition de ces ressources humaines, les difficultés inhérentes à cette activité et la gestion quotidienne de ces ressources. À travers l'article (iii), l'auteur a analysé le concept et le rôle du parrainage du projet (par un administrateur de l'institution) afin d'en apprécier l'opportunité et la portée sur la réussite du projet. Les leçons tirées de cette étude permettent de traiter cet aspect du projet ERP dans le cadre d'autres projets dans le futur. La présente thèse représente une contribution à la gestion des projets ERP de façon générale et plus particulièrement à la mise en oeuvre des projets en milieu universitaire

Information systems research methodology curricula.

Doctor of Philosophy in Education Studies. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Edgewood 2015.The academic discipline of Information Systems (IS) is relatively young and its history is sprinkled with debates about identity and various quests to differentiate itself from related disciplines. Research in IS reflects these diverse quests, with a historically dominant quantitative tradition and an emerging qualitative and critical research paradigm. The formal research preparation of IS students is the phenomenon of interest, viewed from a curriculum perspective. This study explores intended and enacted research methodology (RM) curricula at the postgraduate level in South African public universities. The study is located in the interpretivist paradigm and was conducted in three phases. The first phase, comprising document analysis of formal handbook entries and module outlines, informed phase two, which was an eight week online virtual focus group discussion involving 12 RM lecturers across eight universities. The third phase involved site visits to two purposively selected, contrasting cases of RM curricula and included seminar observations, interviews and material analysis. An analytical framework, based on the curriculum analysis work of Lattuca and Stark (2011) and Posner (2004), informed analysis of the data. Content and thematic analysis of intended RM curricula yielded key themes which informed the analysis of cases. These themes are paradigmatic orientation, pedagogical orientation, linkage of the RM module to the research project and stakeholder orientation. Additional themes, namely, lecturer identity and the disciplinary identity of IS, were identified in the analysis of cases and emerged as key constructs in explaining the diversity of RM curricula in IS. Specific instantiation of a curriculum is conceptualized as a product of the interactions between the relative agency of the identities of the RM lecturer and the disciplinary culture. A model (identities in dialogue) and a matrix (RM structure-agency) have been developed to depict the specific RM curriculum identity produced through the interactions between the components of the constructs RM lecturer identity and discipline identity. The thesis thus build new theory, drawing from the case data to illustrate the explanatory power of the model and matrix. Furthermore, the thesis argues for the influential role of RM curricula in shaping research choices and the resultant influence on the evolving identity of IS as a discipline

An empirical evaluation of client-vendor relationships in high maturity Indian software outsourcing companies

The study presented in this thesis investigates offshore software outsourcing relationships. Offshore software outsourcing has been increasing continuously for the last decade. More and more software vendor companies from different countries such as India, Russia, Brazil and China are joining the offshore `bandwagon'. Indian software companies especially have managed to secure a leading position as offshore software outsourcing vendors. However, with more client companies outsourcing their software operations offshore, issues associated with the establishment and management of offshore outsourcing relationships have become more important. With the growing volume of offshore outsourcing, the number of failures is also increasing. A review of the literature suggests that success or failure is mainly dependent on the management of relationships between client and vendor. Subsequently, it is imperative to identify critical factors that can help to better manage offshore software outsourcing relationships. Furthermore, it is also important to identify the difficulties faced in managing offshore relationships and also how clients and vendors develop mutual trust. Trust is important to understand in the offshore software outsourcing context as it has been reported as the most significant contributor to the management of any human relationship. Nonetheless, different advantages that motivate clients to outsource are also important in understanding offshore software outsourcing. In this study, motivators, difficulties, critical relationship management factors and trust building factors are studied by means of empirical investigation into eighteen high maturity Indian software companies and six of their clients based in the USA and Europe. Multiple case studies with grounded theory analysis techniques are used to conduct the empirical investigation. Grounded theory, which is a part of qualitative research, helps to develop emergent model from empirical data. Furthermore, multiple case studies are used as objects to collect qualitative data and organise overall investigation. The research methods used were piloted with two Indian software companies before conducting the full empirical investigation. The results of this investigation suggest that client companies are motivated to outsource their software offshore by cost savings, quality, flexibility, core competence, skills availability, higher productivity, faster development, technical expertise and high maturity of vendor. The results also uncovered difficulties faced by clients and vendors in managing relationships. Difficulties include managing cultural differences, expectation mismatch, language differences, loss of control, distance, time zone differences, workforce reshuffling and post-contractual matters. This investigation further identifies critical factors to managing offshore outsourcing relationships such as effective communication, a process driven approach, commitment to the project, transparency in actions, consistency in performance, value addition and allocating resources effectively in the project. Furthermore, results from this study suggest that previous work reference, experience and reputation in the offshore outsourcing business, background of the key vendor employees, investments, prototyping and personal visits from the client are important for achieving trust. This study also identifies that to maintain trust in the relationship both clients and vendors perceive critical factors such as commitment, process driven approach, communication, confidentiality, performance, honesty, transparency, demonstrability, personal relationships and working together in outsourcing project. Based on the results of the empirical results and their discussions, this study presents an emergent model and practical guidelines for managing offshore software outsourcing relationships. The uniqueness of this investigation is in its large scale empirical investigation into high maturity software companies. Furthermore, most previous studies have investigated either clients or vendors, whereas this study investigates vendors and their corresponding clients. An investigation into trust in offshore software outsourcing relationships is also a significant addition to the existing literature relevant to software outsourcing. The empirical investigation gave rise to proposals for discussions and to an emergent empirical model. Thus the current body of knowledge in offshore software outsourcing is enhanced by this work. Moreover, practical guidelines, based on empirical results are proposed for client and vendors to help them manage their offshore software outsourcing relationships

Evaluating How Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Interventions Affect the Wellbeing of Indigenous Communities in the North Rupununi, Guyana

Having its roots in computer science and information systems, the field of information and communication technologies (ICT) in development has arguably been dominated by technocentric approaches, mainly concerned with describing and managing the mechanisms of technology diffusion and adoption. However, the high failure rate of many ICT for development (ICT4D) interventions and their limited focus on wellbeing impact has drawn attention to the needs for designing better evaluation frameworks to help make sense of the complex realities in which ICT interventions take place, and for interrogating the usefulness of mainstream approaches on the impact of ICT4D interventions on wellbeing. Efforts to operationalise the capability approach, and to apply it to the field of ICT4D constitute an increasingly popular alternative in this regard. The alternative shifts the focus of ICT4D evaluation away from an exclusive focus on technology access and use, towards understanding their multidimensional development outcomes, including their impact on wellbeing. One avenue, which has largely been underexplored, is the potential contribution of systems thinking approaches for further strengthening the focus on multidimensional development outcomes while improving the practical applicability of ICT4D evaluations. This doctoral research sets out to explore how systems thinking concepts and techniques can be used to complement existing approaches so as to increase the success rate of ICT4D interventions, as measured by their effect on the wellbeing of intended beneficiaries. Drawing on multiple theoretical influences, including the capability approach, systemic inquiry, critical theory and pragmatism, this thesis evaluates four ICT4D interventions, including a researcher-led ICT4D intervention, which have all taken place in Indigenous communities of the North Rupununi, Guyana, between 2005 and 2015. The findings of this study suggest that the wellbeing impact of ICT4D interventions is primarily determined by whether they are introduced to address locally-defined needs and the extent to which beneficiary communities are involved in their design, implementation and evaluation. It argues that applying concepts and techniques from systems thinking can help address some of the criticism and shortcomings of established and emerging approaches for evaluating ICT4D interventions, by looking beyond efficiency and optimisation towards questions of participation, power, purpose and values. The research then outlines the contours of a Systemic Implementation and Evaluation (SIE) framework, as a way to draw attention to the inevitable clashes of worldviews that characterise interventions involving multiple stakeholders, and to allow a critical reflection on the nature of these interventions and the changes brought about. It concludes by producing a series of policy recommendations associated with enhancing the impact of ICT4D interventions on Indigenous wellbeing

The development of IT identity due to social media use : antecedents and impact on computer-based office work during COVID-19 pandemic

IT identity is a relatively new concept in the area of Management Information Systems (MIS). Its importance has become increasingly pronounced as identity is one of the predictors of human behavior. At the same time, understanding the behavior of individuals when using information technology (IT) in the workplace represents the link between technology investments and increased performance through IT. In this respect, one of the most used communication technologies recently, social media, allows individuals to extensively experience different facets of their identities. The overall objective of this thesis is to understand the development of IT identity due to social media use and assess its impact on computer-based office work during the COVID-19 pandemic. Three specific objectives were defined for this purpose. Thus, the thesis is structured in three papers that sought to respond to each of the specific objectives, which are: (i) identify the possible antecedents of the development of IT identity due to social media use, (ii) the connection between them and the three reflective dimensions that constitute the identity of IT and, finally, (iii) the impact of IT identity due to the use of social media in the organizational scope. The first paper is a theoretical study and proposes the adaptation and expansion of Carter's original theoretical model (2012) from the theoretical instances related to this technology and that can influence the development of IT identity due to social media use. As a result, a conceptual model was developed. Ten propositions related to the concepts derived from the literature and inserted in three main instances of IT identity development were presented due to the use of social media. The empirical investigation of the relationship between the antecedents of the model proposed in the first paper and the three dimensions of IT identity began in the second article of the thesis. For this purpose, a netnography was proposed and executed between 2019 and 2021. One of the paper's findings indicated that the frequency of use of WhatsApp can lead to precipitation of the most strongly polarized behavior and that one of the reflective dimensions of IT identity, relatedness with WhatsApp, can play a preponderant role in the precipitation of such behavior. From this result, in paper 3, a quantitative and exploratory study, based on duality theory, sought to develop and test hypotheses about how IT identity concerning social media can benefit, but at the same time bring negative consequences for computer-based office workers in the current period of the COVID-19 pandemic. For this, a model was proposed showing the relationship between the dimensions of IT identity and four facets of the so-called New Ways of Working. Among the study's findings, it was verified that IT identity in relation to social media platforms could be a positive factor in preserving the cohesion of employees professional identity since feelings of affinity and emotional energy in relation to these technologies favored access to organizational knowledge and colleagues when working remotely. This thesis can contribute to expanding Carter's (2012) model to contemplate a class of IT as social media is constituted (paper 1). In turn, the expansion of the original model can potentially contribute to broadening the understanding of this technology's role in fostering polarized behavior in the use of WhatsApp, one of the most used social media these times(paper 2). Finally, in the third paper, the indication that the frequency of WhatsApp use may be associated with a strong IT identity about this technology (verified in paper 2) led to the proposition of a model to empirically test how the three dimensions of IT Identity in relation to the use of social media, directly and indirectly, influence the aspects of new ways of working for workers using computer devices to perform their duties. Emotional energy in relation to social media (i.e., prolonged feelings of confidence, enthusiasm, and energy toward social media) is positively related to superior performance when individuals direct it to their work use, allowing them to better handle the work-life conflict. The thesis presents limitations regarding its ability to inferences that were addressed in each of the papers. Similarly, suggestions for future research were presented in each paper. Finally, the conclusion chapter presents the integration of the thesis papers to form the complete study, the overview of research objectives, the main results, contributions to academia and practice, its limitations, and suggestions for future research.A identidade de TI é um conceito relativamente novo na área de Gestão de Sistemas de Informação (GSI). A sua importância tem se tornado cada vez mais acentuada na medida que a identidade é um dos preditores do comportamento humano. Paralelamente, a compreensão do comportamento dos indivíduos ao utilizar a tecnologia da informação (TI) no ambiente de trabalho representa o elo entre os investimentos em tecnologia e o aumento do desempenho por meio da TI. Sob esse aspecto, uma das tecnologias de comunicação mais usadas em tempos atuais, as mídias sociais, permitem de forma extensiva que os indivíduos experimentem diferentes facetas das suas identidades. O objetivo geral dessa tese é compreender o desenvolvimento da identidade de TI devido ao uso de mídias sociais e avaliar o seu impacto para os trabalhadores de escritório que utilizam dispositivos computacionais para executar suas funções de trabalho durante o período da pandemia de COVID-19. Para isso foram definidos três objetivos específicos. Sendo assim, a tese está estruturada em três artigos que buscam responder a cada um dos objetivos específicos, quais são: (i) identificar os possíveis antecedentes do desenvolvimento da identidade de TI devido ao uso de mídias sociais, (ii) a conexão entre eles e as três dimensões reflexivas que constituem a identidade de TI e, por fim, (iii) o impacto da identidade de TI devido ao uso de mídias sociais no âmbito organizacional. O primeiro artigo, de natureza teórica, propõe a adaptação e expansão do modelo teórico original de Carter (2012) a partir das instâncias teóricas aderentes ao uso e que influenciam o desenvolvimento da identidade de TI pelo uso de mídias sociais. Como resultado, foi desenvolvido um modelo conceitual em que foram apresentadas dez proposições interrelacionando os conceitos derivados da literatura e inseridos em três instâncias principais de desenvolvimento da identidade de TI devido ao uso de mídias sociais. A investigação empírica da relação entre os antecedentes do modelo proposto no artigo 1 e as três dimensões da identidade de TI iniciou-se na sequência no segundo artigo da tese. Para isso foi proposta uma netnografia que foi executada entre 2019 e 2021. Um dos achados do artigo indicou que a frequência de uso do WhatsApp pode levar a precipitação do comportamento mais fortemente polarizado e que uma das dimensões reflexivas da identidade de TI, a afinidade com o WhatsApp, pode desempenhar um papel preponderante na precipitação de tal comportamento. A partir desse resultado, no artigo 3, de natureza quantitativa e exploratória, tendo como base a teoria da dualidade, buscou-se desenvolver e testar hipóteses sobre como a identidade de TI em relação às mídias sociais pode beneficiar, mas ao mesmo tempo trazer consequências negativas para os trabalhadores de escritório que usam principalmente dispositivos computacionais para cumprir suas tarefas no atual período da pandemia de COVID-19. Para isso, foi proposto um modelo apresentando a relação entre as dimensões da identidade de TI e quatro facetas das chamadas Novas Formas de Trabalho. Entre os achados deste estudo, foi verificado que a identidade de TI em relação às plataformas de mídias sociais pode ser um fator positivo na preservação da coesão da identidade profissional dos colaboradores, uma vez que sentimentos de afinidade e energia emocional em relação a essas tecnologias favoreceram o acesso ao conhecimento organizacional e aos colegas ao trabalhar remotamente. Destacam-se como contribuições dessa tese a expansão do modelo de Carter (2012) para contemplar uma classe de TIs como são constituídas as mídias sociais (artigo 1). Por sua vez, a expansão do modelo original contribuiu para ampliar a compreensão do papel dessa tecnologia em fomentar o comportamento polarizado no uso do WhatsApp, uma das mídias sociais mais utilizadas em tempos atuais (artigo 2). Finalmente, no terceiro artigo a indicação de que a frequência de uso no WhatsApp pode estar associada a uma forte identidade de TI em relação a essa tecnologia (verificada no artigo 2), levou a proposição de um modelo para testar empiricamente de que forma as três dimensões da IT Identity em relação ao uso de mídias sociais influenciam direta e indiretamente os aspectos das novas formas de trabalho para os trabalhadores que utilizam dispositivos computacionais para desempenhar suas funções. A energia emocional em relação às mídias sociais (ou seja, sentimentos prolongados de confiança, entusiasmo e energia em relação às mídias sociais) está positivamente relacionada a um desempenho superior quando os indivíduos a direcionam para o seu uso do trabalho, permitindo-lhes também lidar melhor com os conflitos entre a vida profissional e a vida profissional. A tese apresenta limitações quanto a sua capacidade de inferências que foram endereçadas em cada um dos artigos. Da mesma forma, sugestões de pesquisas futuras foram apresentadas em cada artigo. Por fim, o capítulo de conclusão apresenta a integração dos artigos da tese para a formação do estudo completa, a retomada dos objetivos de pesquisa, os principais resultados, contribuições para a academia e para a prática, suas limitações e sugestões para pesquisas futuras