Returns to Cloud Computing Investments: The Role of Environmental Uncertainty

Although a substantial portion of IT spending has shifted to the cloud, empirical evidence on economic value of cloud computing is lacking. This study examines the effect of cloud computing on productivity and scrutinizes how its effect differs depending on environmental uncertainty. Using publicly available data on the product sales and the inter-industry purchase flows, we measure purchased cloud services in U.S. industries during 1997-2018 and distinguish between software-as-a-service (SaaS) and infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS). Employing a production function approach, our findings suggest that cloud computing investments do not always lead to productivity gains, but its effect varies by the level of environmental uncertainty. Specifically, while cloud computing contributes to productivity under high environmental uncertainty, it may have an adverse effect under stable environments. Further, this positive impact under uncertain environments is found to be driven mainly by IaaS, rather than SaaS. This study provides important implications on cloud computing investment strategies

Adoção de Cloud Computing nas organizações: uma análise bibliométrica desta tecnologia no contexto da transformação digital

Purpose: The purpose of this study is identify and analyze articles on the adoption of Cloud Computing services in the business field. The study intends to demonstrate the increasing relevance and impact of Cloud Computing technology on business processes.Design/methodology/approach: The study adopted a Bibliometric Review methodology to collect and analyze data. A total of 1,330 articles were collected from the Scopus (Elsevier) database, and various aspects such as authors, journals, and countries were considered. The analysis includes the use of maps to visualize the co-occurrence of terms, co-citation of references, and bibliographic coupling.Findings: The investigation reveals that the adoption of Cloud Computing services in the business environment is a rapidly growing area of research. The study provides an overview of the theme and highlights the significance of Cloud Computing technology in enhancing business processes’ efficiency.Research limitations/implications: The study’s limitations include relying solely on articles available in the Scopus (Elsevier) database and focusing on the period between 2008 and 2020. Future research can expand the analysis by including a broader range of databases and considering a more recent timeframe.Practical implications: The findings of this study have practical implications for businesses, as they highlight the benefits of adopting Cloud Computing services. The technology offers low cost and flexible use, contributing to increased efficiency in business processes.Social implications: The adoption of Cloud Computing services can have significant social impacts by enabling businesses to provide enhanced value to their clients. The technology’s efficiency and flexibility contribute to improved service delivery and customer satisfaction.Originality/value: This study contributes to the advancement of knowledge in the field of Cloud Computing adoption in the business field. The bibliometric analysis provides a comprehensive overview of the research landscape and highlights the key contributions and trends in this area.Finalidade: O objetivo deste estudo é identificar e analisar artigos sobre a adoção de serviços de computação em nuvem na área empresarial. O estudo pretende demonstrar a crescente relevância e impacto da tecnologia Cloud Computing nos processos de negócio. Desenho/metodologia/abordagem: O estudo adotou uma metodologia de Revisão Bibliométrica para coleta e análise de dados. Um total de 1.330 artigos foram coletados da base de dados Scopus (Elsevier), e vários aspectos como autores, periódicos e países foram considerados. A análise inclui o uso de mapas para visualizar a coocorrência de termos, cocitação de referências e acoplamento bibliográfico. Constatações: A investigação revela que a adoção de serviços de computação em nuvem no ambiente de negócios é uma área de pesquisa em rápido crescimento. O estudo oferece uma visão geral sobre o tema e destaca a importância da tecnologia Cloud Computing na melhoria da eficiência dos processos de negócios. Limitações/implicações de pesquisa: As limitações do estudo se apresentam na utilização de somente artigos disponíveis na base de dados Scopus (Elsevier) e em focar no período entre 2008 e 2020. Pesquisas futuras podem expandir a análise incluindo uma gama mais ampla de bases de dados e considerar um período de tempo mais recente. Implicações práticas: Os achados deste estudo têm implicações práticas para as empresas, pois destacam os benefícios da adoção de serviços de computação em nuvem. A tecnologia oferece baixo custo e flexibilidade de uso, contribuindo para o aumento da eficiência nos processos de negócios. Implicações sociais: A adoção de serviços de computação em nuvem pode ter impactos sociais significativos, permitindo que as empresas forneçam maior valor aos seus clientes. A eficiência e a flexibilidade da tecnologia contribuem para melhorar a prestação de serviços e a satisfação do cliente. Originalidade/valor: Este estudo contribui para o avanço do conhecimento na área de adoção de computação em nuvem na área empresarial. A análise bibliométrica fornece uma visão abrangente do cenário de pesquisa e destaca as principais contribuições e tendências nesta área

Three Essays at the Interface of Operations Management, Accounting and Entrepreneurship

This dissertation is a study on the role that metrics and measures serve to incentivize actions by stakeholders whose payoffs are related to how these metrics perform relative to a goal. Specifically, stakeholders maximizing individual payoffs by affecting these measures, may lead to actions that jeopardizes the larger system objective. I study this phenomenon (referred as Goodhart's Law) in the areas of Crowdfunding and Supply Chains. In crowdfunding an entrepreneur sets a target amount to raise, through the duration of a live ``campaign." Unless the target is reached, the entrepreneur does not get the investments put forth by investors (``backers," in crowdfunding parlance). If the target amount is raised, the entrepreneur is obligated to deliver the physical product to the investors. The intended purpose of having the target as threshold is to incentivize the entrepreneurs to set a target amount that is large enough to cover for the product development cost, so that the entrepreneur does not find itself in a position where the campaign manages to reach the target, and yet does not have enough to start production. In chapter 2 we find that an entrepreneur, responding rationally to a platform's rule of ``campaign promotion," sets a target amount that is lower than the product development cost and exposes backers to the risk of non-delivery. In chapter 3, the entrepreneur can choose to not pursue production after observing the subscription level of the crowdfunding campaign. The investors are exposed to the risk of non-delivery when the crowdfunding campaign manages to reach the target, and yet the entrepreneur chooses to not pursue production. To exercise its right to not produce, the entrepreneur pays a premium to the supplier who supplies the parts to the entrepreneur. In chapter 4, I critique the Cash Conversion Cycle, a measure for operational efficiency. Including individual firm differences of sales growth rates, fiscal year endings and seasonality can significantly alter the interpretations. We show that a lower cash conversion cycle can merely be a result of firm specific differences which, if unaccounted, can be mistaken for better operational efficiency