CIO herds and user gangs in the adoption of open source software

Open Source Software (OSS) has received wide attention from the research community, analyzing both the innovation process of software development by distributed and unrelated teams, and the market dynamics at play between "free" and proprietary software. Up until now, OSS adoption has been irregular, although it seems to be breaking the dominance of existing players in some market segments. In this paper, we contend that due to the particularities of its development process, traditional ways of explaining IT adoption -rational decision making, technology diffusion models, and the psychology of the decision maker- are insufficient to explain the case of OSS diffusion. We believe that the existence of a strong and diffused development community leads to a new role of the user community, as both are intertwined. In addition, new concerns for social corporate responsibility and welfare create a new context, in which "user gangs" may exert some degrees of pressure on the IT decision maker. By analyzing some significant cases we depict under what conditions significant OSS adoption may unfold, showing that in two of the cases studied user gangs play a significant role. The resulting preliminary framework will inform future work, in which we aim at validating the emerging insights gained in this research.Open source software; IT adoption; user communities; CIO herding;

Research Agenda for Studying Open Source II: View Through the Lens of Referent Discipline Theories

In a companion paper [Niederman et al., 2006] we presented a multi-level research agenda for studying information systems using open source software. This paper examines open source in terms of MIS and referent discipline theories that are the base needed for rigorous study of the research agenda

The Process of Introducing FLOSS in the Public Administration: The Case of Venezuela

This study analyzes the mandatory FLOSS policies of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and the initiatives associated with the adoption process. An expanded version of Gallivan\u27s (2001) framework of contingent authority innovation describes the way new policies extended through the public structure of the country. Findings indicate that Venezuela’s FLOSS migration process fuses the agendas of social inclusion, sovereignty, and freedom that the government is pursuing with the availability of a “Free Libre” technology. The present project specifically contributes to the literature that examines information and communication technology policies and their impact on developing countries. In addition, the theoretical expansion of Gallivan\u27s framework can apply to other governmental technological adoptions where ideology and politics play critical roles

A Research Agenda for Studying Open Source I: A Multi-Level Framework

This paper presents a research agenda for studying information systems using open source software A multi-level research model is developed at five discrete levels of analysis: (1) the artifact; (2) the individual; (3) the team, project, and community; (4) the organization; and (5) society. Each level is discussed in terms of key issues within the level. Examples are based on prior research. In a companion paper, [Niederman, et al 2006], we view the agenda through the lens of referent discipline theories

Post-bureaucracy and reanimating public governance: A discourse and practice of continuity?

Purpose 'Seeks to examine changes in the environment in which public policy and public management operate and the claim that bureaucracy has been replaced by post-bureaucracy as a result of these changes. Design/methodology/approach – It proposes reanimated public governance as a concept that occupies the space between public administration and restructured public governance (including reinvented government and New Public Management (NPM). Rather than accepting the existence of post-bureaucracy, per se, the paper argues that there has been a process of extending bureaucracy that cuts across public and non-public boundaries rather than the development of post-bureaucracy per se. Findings – In examining the claims for post-bureaucracy, we are witnessing a discourse and practice of continuity rather than difference. The need for economies of scale and scope, standardisation and the existence of indivisibilities in public services suggest that public sector reforms and proposals for new governance models establish extended or flexible forms of bureaucracy rather than post-bureaucratic organisational forms. Attempts to introduce ICT-based services and the need for regulatory agencies to oversee the contracts with private and non-profit service providers reinforce these findings. Research limitations/implications – The arguments in this paper are based on marshalling the literature and debates surrounding public sector reform to advance a central thesis. It draws on real world examples but does not advance direct empirical evidence. There is scope for internationally comparative case-studies of different public service functions and discourses and practices in different countries Practical implications – Policy makers and managers should treat the clarion call of post-bureaucracy as a way of liberating public services from a lack of creativity, innovation and accountability with healthy scepticism. In particular, the view that public sector reforms through post-bureaucratic re-organisation will lead to efficiencies is one to be challenged. Reforms in any service driven organisations are not zero-cost and any implied operational cost saving should be considered against increased transaction costs. Originality/value – There have been heroic claims made for post-bureaucracy in many organisations enabled by developments associated with the concepts of information society and knowledge society. By locating public sector reforms under the rubric of 'restructured public governance' a deeper investigation of the implications for the discourses and practices associated with public sector reform is advanced

Cohesion, Structure and Software Complexity: A Model of Open Source Software Development

As the use of open source software gains popularity, it is important to understand the factors that contribute to the success of open source software development projects. This research contributes to this understanding by developing a set of propositions about the organizational structure that supports open source software projects. We argue that in open source software development it is important to understand the existence and interaction of two related but distinct entities; the interest community and the software development group. We propose relationships between the development group, the interest community and software complexity in open source software development. Implications of the propositions for research and practice are discussed

Loyalty, Ideology, and Identification: An Empirical Study of the Attitudes and Behaviors of Passive Users of Open Source Software

Extant research on open source software (OSS) has primarily focused on software developers and active users but has paid limited attention to the less visible “passive” users who form the silent majority of OSS communities. Passive users play a critical role in the adoption and diffusion of OSS, and we need more research to understand their behaviors and motivations. We address this gap by drawing on the sociological theory of community markers. The three community markers in the context of OSS are loyalty, ideology, and identification. We also draw on marketing literature to propose four contributory behaviors of passive users of OSS that we theorize to be impacted by the community markers: user brand-extension, word-of-mouth, endorsement, and community involvement. We further classify passive users’ contributory behaviors according to the difficulty of their enactment and examine the differential influence of the OSS community markers. Partial-least squares (PLS) analyses of data obtained through a survey of passive users of an OSS product provide support for the majority of the hypotheses