An investigation of knowledge transfer in information systems (IS) outsourcing

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.Inter-organisational knowledge transfer is of central interest both as an academic topic and in business practice. However, despite the attention given to the importance of this subject from different perspectives in various contexts, little is known about how knowledge is transferred from vendors to clients in information systems (IS) outsourcing. This research attempts to address this apparent theoretical and empirical deficiency by providing a deeper understanding and more holistic analysis of the key factors which facilitate or inhibit knowledge transfer success in IS outsourcing. This study employed a qualitative, multiple case study approach in the interpretive paradigm. Data was collected mainly from the IS departments of three public sector organisations in Oman. Oman was chosen as the context for the study due to its rapid growth in recent years and the opportunity to consider the many major IS outsourcing projects which have been undertaken by its public sector. Through semi-structured interviews, this study explored the perspectives of the internal IS staff on their experience of knowledge transfer and learning from vendors through various IS outsourcing projects. Written and electronic documentations as well as non-participant observations also served as important triangulation and complementary sources in understanding the phenomenon being studied and as means of gaining additional perspectives and further insights on key issues. The empirical evidence demonstrated that there are five sets of factors which facilitate or inhibit knowledge transfer success in IS outsourcing. These are: knowledge (knowledge tacitness and knowledge complexity), client (learning intent, absorptive capacity and motivation), vendor (vendor capability, vendor credibility and vendor openness), relationship (relationship quality, relationship duration, relationship governance and organisational distance) and knowledge transfer mechanisms (formal and informal). The findings of this study contributed and extended the growing body of research on IS outsourcing by developing a novel, holistic conceptual framework which examined five sets of factors that impact knowledge transfer success. Additionally, it provided prescriptive value for practitioners seeking to realise efficient and effective knowledge transfer in IS outsourcing

An investigation of knowledge transfer in information systems (IS) outsourcing

Inter-organisational knowledge transfer is of central interest both as an academic topic and in business practice. However, despite the attention given to the importance of this subject from different perspectives in various contexts, little is known about how knowledge is transferred from vendors to clients in information systems (IS) outsourcing. This research attempts to address this apparent theoretical and empirical deficiency by providing a deeper understanding and more holistic analysis of the key factors which facilitate or inhibit knowledge transfer success in IS outsourcing. This study employed a qualitative, multiple case study approach in the interpretive paradigm. Data was collected mainly from the IS departments of three public sector organisations in Oman. Oman was chosen as the context for the study due to its rapid growth in recent years and the opportunity to consider the many major IS outsourcing projects which have been undertaken by its public sector. Through semi-structured interviews, this study explored the perspectives of the internal IS staff on their experience of knowledge transfer and learning from vendors through various IS outsourcing projects. Written and electronic documentations as well as non-participant observations also served as important triangulation and complementary sources in understanding the phenomenon being studied and as means of gaining additional perspectives and further insights on key issues. The empirical evidence demonstrated that there are five sets of factors which facilitate or inhibit knowledge transfer success in IS outsourcing. These are: knowledge (knowledge tacitness and knowledge complexity), client (learning intent, absorptive capacity and motivation), vendor (vendor capability, vendor credibility and vendor openness), relationship (relationship quality, relationship duration, relationship governance and organisational distance) and knowledge transfer mechanisms (formal and informal). The findings of this study contributed and extended the growing body of research on IS outsourcing by developing a novel, holistic conceptual framework which examined five sets of factors that impact knowledge transfer success. Additionally, it provided prescriptive value for practitioners seeking to realise efficient and effective knowledge transfer in IS outsourcing.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

Internet of things security implementation using blockchain for wireless technology

Blockchain is a new security system which group many data into a block or so called classifying the data into a block. The block can have many types and each of them content data and security code. By using a decentralize mechanism, one security code protect all the data. That could happen at the server. In this research, a network of wireless sensor technology is proposed. The transmission of sensor data is via the Internet of things (Internet of Thing) technology. As many data transmitted, they have to classified and group them into a block. All the blocks are then send to the central processing unit, like a microcontroller. The block of data is then processed, identified and encrypted before send over the internet network. At the receiver, a GUI or Apps is developed to open and view the data. The Apps or GUI have an encrypted data or security code. User must key in the password before they can view the data. The password used by the end user at the Apps or GUI must be equivalent to the one encrypted at the sensor nodes. This is to satisfy the decentralized concept used in the Blockchain. To demonstrate the Blockchain technology applied to the wireless sensor network, a MATLAB Simulink function is used. The expected results should show a number of block of data in cryptography manner and chain together. The two set of data. Both have the data encrypted using hash. The black dots indicate the data has been encrypted whereas the white dot indicate indicates the data is not encrypted. The half white and half black indicates the data is in progress of encrypted. All this data should arrange in cryptography order and chain together in a vertical line. A protocol called block and chain group the data into the block and then chain then. The data appears in the blocks and send over the network. As seen in the simulation results, the yellow color represents the user data. This data has a default amplitude as 1 or 5. The data is chained and blocked to produce the Blockchain waveform Keywords: Blockchain, Internet of things, Wireless Sensor Network and MATLAB Simulin

Factors impacting knowledge transfer success in information systems outsourcing

Despite increased research interest on knowledge transfer in information systems (IS) outsourcing, the field still lacks sound and holistic understanding of the key factors influencing knowledge transfer success. The present paper attempts to provide a synthesis of existing theoretical perspectives and empirical findings related to the factors that facilitate or hamper knowledge transfer success in IS outsourcing. The data collection method is discussed and the key findings are presented. Conclusion is drawn and further research is suggested

Data Envelopment Analysis (Dea) approach In efficiency transport manufacturing industry in Malaysia

The objective of this study was to measure of technical efficiency, transport manufacturing industry in Malaysia score using the data envelopment analysis (DEA) from 2005 to 2010. The efficiency score analysis used only two inputs, i.e., capital and labor and one output i.e., total of sales. The results shown that the average efficiency score of the Banker, Charnes, Cooper - Variable Returns to Scale (BCC-VRS) model is higher than the Charnes, Cooper, Rhodes - Constant Return to Scale (CCR-CRS) model. Based on the BCC-VRS model, the average efficiency score was at a moderate level and only four sub-industry that recorded an average efficiency score more than 0.50 percent during the period study. The implication of this result suggests that the transport manufacturing industry needs to increase investment, especially in human capital such as employee training, increase communication expenses such as ICT and carry out joint ventures as well as research and development activities to enhance industry efficiency

Control, Process Facilitation, and Requirements Change in Offshore Requirements Analysis: The Provider Perspective

Process, technology, and project factors have been increasingly driving organizations to offshore early software development phases, such as requirements analysis. This emerging trend necessitates greater control and process facilitation between client and vendor sites. The effectiveness of control and facilitation has, however, not been examined within the context of requirements analysis and change. In this study, we examine the role of control and facilitation in managing changing requirements and on success of requirements gathering in the Indian offshore software development environment. Firms found that control by client-site coordinators had a positive impact on requirements analysis success while vender site-coordinators did not have similar influence. Process facilitation by client site-coordinators affected requirements phase success indirectly through control. The study concludes with recommendations for research and practice

Review of the IS Offshoring Literature: The Role of Cross-Cultural Differences and Management Practices

There is a world-wide trend towards global cross-cultural networks of outsourcing relationships that are enabled by the extensive use of information- and communication technology (ICT). While ICT reduces national boundaries of global collaboration, cultural differences between outsourcers and vendor firms in offshore locations pose unique management challenges. This literature review analyzes the role of cultural differences between client and vendor companies and management practices in the information systems (IS) offshore outsourcing context. The analysis of the existing IS literature reveals limitations concerning prior conceptualizations of culture and cultural differences and provides ideas for future research on the effect of cultural differences as well as cultural, relationship, knowledge, and project management techniques. In particular, the existing literature can be grouped into formal and informal mechanisms as well as learning issues. Future research could adopt a more integrated and balanced perspective, taking into account formal and informal mechanisms and analyzing the interplay with learning issues

Factors Influencing Knowledge Transfer in Onshore Information Systems Outsourcing in Ethiopia

Knowledge transfer in onshore information systems (IS) outsourcing projects in Africa is an important but under-researched phenomenon. This study focuses on the client-vendor perspective and examines the factors that influence knowledge transfer in onshore information systems outsourcing in Ethiopia. Conceptually, knowledge-based perspectives of IS outsourcing is used to identify an initial set of factors to frame the empirical study. This is followed by semi-structured interviews with ten project managers. The findings indicate that five key factors, namely mutual absorptive capacity, mutual learning intent, mutual trust, mutual disseminative capacity and project staff turnover influence knowledge transfer in outsourced IS projects. The results suggest that development and management of the resources, processes and behaviors implied by these factors are vital to ensure successful inter-organizational knowledge transfer and to reverse or minimize the failure rates of outsourced IS projects. The study concludes with implications for research and practice

Information Systems Offshoring—A Literature Review and Analysis

IS offshoring has become one of the most discussed phenomena in IS research and practice. Particularly due to its rapid evolvement, current research on IS offshoring lacks a consolidated view on existing results. The article at hand seeks to meet this need by systematically reviewing and analyzing prior academic literature on IS offshoring. Based on a review of top-ranked IS and management journals as well as IS conference proceedings, we compile an exhaustive bibliography of ninety-six publications solely focusing on IS offshoring from a (project) management perspective. To adequately address the immense diversity of these publications, a multi-perspective research framework consisting of three perspectives, namely, research focus, research approach, and reference theory, is introduced and forms the basis for our literature analysis. The analysis results confirm the appropriateness of our framework and reveal directions for future research along the framework perspectives: Most importantly, in an effort to increase the significance and the trustworthiness of their results, researchers should apply a more theory-driven approach and provide a better description of their research context. Moreover, future research needs to pay particular attention to the pre-implementation stages of an IS offshoring initiative as well as the special nature of nearshoring and captive offshoring. Across all project stages, researchers should not only concentrate on the client point of view but incorporate multiple points of view