Information security: Listening to the perspective of organisational insiders

Aligned with the strategy-as-practice research tradition, this article investigates how organisational insiders understand and perceive their surrounding information security practices, how they interpret them, and how they turn such interpretations into strategic actions. The study takes a qualitative case study approach, and participants are employees at the Research & Development department of a multinational original brand manufacturer. The article makes an important contribution to organisational information security management. It addresses the behaviour of organisational insiders – a group whose role in the prevention, response and mitigation of information security incidents is critical. The article identifies a set of organisational insiders’ perceived components of effective information security practices (organisational mission statement; common understanding of information security; awareness of threats; knowledge of information security incidents, routines and policy; relationships between employees; circulation of stories; role of punishment provisions; and training), based on which more successful information security strategies can be developed

Information Systems as Representations: A Review of the Theory and Evidence

Representation theory proposes that the basic purpose of an information system (IS) is to faithfully represent certain real-world phenomena, allowing users to reason about these phenomena more cost- effectively than if they were observed directly. Over the past three decades, the theory has underpinned much research on conceptual modeling in IS analysis and design and, increasingly, research on other IS phenomena such as data quality, system alignment, IS security, and system use. The original theory has also inspired further development of its core premises and advances in methodological guidelines to improve its use and evaluation. Nonetheless, the theory has attracted repeated criticisms regarding its validity, relevance, usefulness, and robustness. Given the burgeoning literature on the theory over time, both positive and negative, the time is ripe for a narrative, developmental review. We review representation theory, examine how it has been used, and critically evaluate its contributions and limitations. Based on our findings, we articulate a set of recommendations for improving its application, development, testing, and evaluation

VESTIGE OF THE PRESENT SOCIO-TECHNICAL FACTORS IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF LEGACY PERCEPTIONS OF INFORMATION SYSTEMS ARTIFACTS

Legacy systems are formerly adequate incumbent information systems perceived as insufficient through a combination of social and technical factors. Legacy systems continue to be an expensive and challenging information technology asset for organizations to manage. However, much of the existing information systems literature does not focus on end-of-life information systems phenomena. This dissertation responds to this need for research on end-of-life information systems phenomena from a behavioral perspective by reviewing the information systems literature on legacy systems, developing a definition of legacy systems as a socio-technical construction, creating a scale for measuring a legacy perception of a system, and developing four additional scales for measuring the characteristics of information technology artifacts. New scales and statistical models were tested through a survey of IT managers in the United States.Findings from this research provide support for legacy perception as a new construct. Results also suggest that system age is not a key influencer of legacy perception, but system capability shortcomings and a lack of system support availability are key influences. This research also models interactions of the physical structures of legacy systems, finding that integration and complexity positively influence the adaptability of legacy system artifacts. As well as the adaptability of an artifact and state tracking abilities have a positive influence on representational fidelity. This study also finds that a legacy perception of a system positively influences both system investment behaviors and intentions to replace a system. Implications for theory and practice and opportunities for future research are discussed