Towards Maturity Models as Methods to Manage IT for Business Value – A Resource-based View Foundation

For more than three decades business value of IT attracts attention in Information Systems Research (ISR) and practice. Despite the fact, that corporate management considers enterprise IT increasingly as a strategic factor, the question on how to manage IT effectively for business value remains widely unsolved. With the goal to support this management task we suggest maturity models (MMs) as a new method. We found MMs in the resource-based view in order to provide maturity models with a theoretical basis in general and to lay out the feasibility of MMs as methods to manage IT resources for business value in particular. To accomplish these goals, we conduct an in-depth analysis using an argumentative-deductive research approach. We contribute to the knowledge base by adopting a well-proven approach, transferring it to a new application domain, and grounding it in theory. Taking an example from corporate management research we illustrate our findings schematically

On the Yellow Brick Road, A Path to Enterprise Architecture Maturity

This study concentrated on the relationship between the Enterprise Architecture (EA) maturity of an organization and the business value associated with it in the South African financial services environment. It was developed within the critical realism philosophy, which states that mechanisms generate events by accentuating the underlying EA mechanisms that lead to business value, as well as provide insights into the opportunities and challenges organizations experienced as they progressed to higher levels of maturity. Constructed using the resource-based view of the firm as the underlying theoretical framework, this research examined EA as an intangible resource and maturity as a source of heterogeneity. This research also examined the practices of business units at evolving levels of maturity and the forms of business value attainable at those levels. Further, this study demonstrated that EA is a source of both tangible and intangible forms of value

The Uncertain Path to Enterprise Architecture (EA) Maturity in the South African Financial Services Sector

The research described in this article used the resource-based view (RBV) of the firm as an underlying theoretical framework to explore the relationship between enterprise architecture (EA) maturity and associated business value in the South African financial services environment. EA maturity was examined as an intangible resource and as a source of heterogeneity. The study identified the capabilities of business units at different levels of EA maturity, and found that EA is implemented at a coarse-grain level at lower organisational levels, and at finer-grain levels as one moves up the maturity curve. The study also found that EA is a source of both tangible and intangible forms of business value.CA201

Taking a New-Generation Manager Perspective to Develop Interface Designs

Digital natives are increasingly populating organizations’ management. As they have higher expectations with respect to IS accommodating their (non-functional) user preferences, interfaces of management support systems (MSS) are becoming more important. We develop design guidelines for new MSS interfaces from a new-generation manager perspective. We compile a set of requirements from a literature review and based on a multiple-case study we synthesize five guidelines: (1) use sparklines to present information at a glance and complement them with tooltips to access details, (2) support economic value-added concepts as a “must-have” and be aware that self-service predictive analyses make them more valuable, (3) draw managers’ attention to critical events in real-time by sending notifications to their smart devices, (4) to harvest the knowledge of different users, integrate collaboration capabilities into MSS interface designs, (5) align different information media with managers’ device selection and do not forget their mobile offline use situations

The Effects of Interaction Process Characteristics between the Supplier and the Buyer on Relationship Value and Firm Performance

The thesis contributes to enhance current understanding of the interaction process characteristics between the supplier and the buyer creating relationship value and leading to the overall performance of the firm in interorganisational relationships under a variety of environmental characteristics of the firm and competitive strategies adopted by the firm. This study defines interaction process characteristics between the supplier and the buyer as structural characteristics, functional characteristics and climate characteristics. Structural characteristics consist of centralisation and formalisation, functional characteristics consist of joint action and information exchange, and climate characteristics consist of trust and commitment. It addresses the following research questions: (1) How are interaction process characteristics defined? (2) Do environment characteristics of the firm affect the interaction process characteristics of the firm and its partner? (3) Does competitive strategy of the firm affect the interaction process characteristics of the firm and its partner? (4) Is relationship value defined as the sum of sub-dimensions of value in the relationships between firms? (5) Do interaction process characteristics affect relationship value? (6) Does relationship value affect the overall performance of the firm? This research was designed and conducted on the basis of quantitative methods. Data have been collected with the drop-and-collect survey method by means of a questionnaire based on a survey of the buyer or the supplier in the factory automation system, the IT and the automotive manufacturing industries in South Korea. Sample size is 409 (response rate: 44.95%). Analysis results show that the effects of complexity and dynamism on interaction process characteristics are not significant, while munificence has a positive effect on interaction process characteristics. The effects of iv business strategy on interaction process characteristics are significant. In terms of the relationships between interaction process characteristics and their consequences, climate characteristics such as trust and commitment have considerably significant effects on relationship value and overall performance of the firm. In conclusion, this research adds to the body of knowledge about the integrated framework of interaction process characteristics in supplier-buyer relationships. First of all, in the IT and automotive industries, munificence, that is the availability of critical resources which a firm needs to compete, is the key environmental characteristic that the firm should consider to achieve overall performance. Secondly, regarding business strategy, differentiation and cost leadership strategies have positive effects on interaction process characteristics in structural, functional and climate dimensions. Thridly, this study contributes to the identification of the dimensions of relationship value and the development of its measurements. Relationship value consists of several subdimensions such as economic, operational, strategic and behavioural value and the integrated framework including subdimensions of relationship value is examined with the measurements developed in this study. The effect of relationship value on the performance of the firm is considerably significant

Institucionalização de estruturas e processos de Ti : uma análise das pressões isomórficas que influenciam o processo de institucionalização da Ti de um órgão do judiciário brasileiro

Orlikowski e Barley (2001) apontam a importância da pesquisa em TI sob a ótica dos Estudos Organizacionais, principalmente quando é utilizada a análise neoinstitucional, porque dessa forma há uma compreensão mais sistêmica sobre como a tecnologia está entrelaçada nas complexas redes interdependentes, sociais, econômicas e políticas. O estudo de caso ocorreu em um órgão do judiciário, onde foram obtidos dados por meio de entrevistas, que foram triangulados com uma pesquisa documental. A dissertação busca elucidar como pressões isomórficas podem influenciar estruturas e processos de TI recomendados pela legislação em vigor, de forma a contribuir para gestores de organizações públicas durante a definição de prioridades para a TI. Para analisar o estágio institucional utilizou-se a classificação proposta por Tolbert e Zucker (1996) e como resultado, apesar das pressões isomórficas coercitivas, obteve-se que poucas estruturas e processos se institucionalizaram totalmente e, aparentemente, só aquelas que traziam com si outros tipos de pressões isomórficas é que parecem ter maior chance de chegar ao último estágio institucional. Foi constatada que a organização, durante o processo de institucionalização, pode incorrer em novas falhas, gerando mitos burocráticos e ritos cerimoniais que por exemplo, podem causar maior descolamento da preocupação por efetividade em seus resultados. Para determinados problemas, apontados durante as entrevistas, não foi possível encontrar influência de nenhuma pressão isomórfica. Tal fato sugere que a teoria neoinstitucional não conseguiu explicar todo o cenário da organização.Orlikowski and Barley (2001) show the importance to research IT from the perspective of organizational studies, especially when is used neoinstitucional analysis, because there is more systemic understanding of how technology is intertwined in complex interdependent networks, social, economic and political. The case study took place in a court of justice, where data obtained through interviews were triangulated with a documentary research. The dissertation seeks to elucidate how isomorphic pressures can influence IT structures and processes recommended by the legislation in force, in order to help managers of public organizations in setting priorities for IT. To analyze the institutional stage it was used the classification proposed by Tolbert and Zucker (1996) and as a result, despite the coercive isomorphic pressures, it was found that few structures and processes were fully institutionalized and apparently only those who came themselves with other types of isomorphic pressures do seem to have a greater chance of reaching the last institutional stage. It was found that the organization, during the institutionalization process, incur additional failures, generating bureaucratic myths and ceremonial rites, for example, can cause detachment of the largest concern for effectiveness in their results. For certain problems, pointed out during the interviews, it was not possible to find any influence of isomorphic pressure. This suggests that the neoinstitucional theory can not explain the whole scenario of the organization