Enhancing Software-As-A-Service With Insufficient Domain Knowledge

This study addresses the question “How do Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) vendors enhance their software with insufficient domain knowledge?” Results were obtained by analyzing a dataset from a SaaS vendor that provides administrative software to small schools around the world. The dataset includes archived data (email messages, company documents, and Skype messages) and access to the company’s online repositories (sales pipeline, client online chats, and engineering repository). We identified three types of domain knowledge that are relevant to SaaS vendors – organization specific, industry-wide, and regional variation. We also generated six propositions explaining how industry-wide and regional variation knowledge influences the SaaS enhancement process, and at which points in the process these two types of domain knowledge come into play. This study refines our current knowledge by highlighting the unfolding stages between insufficient levels of domain knowledge and software enhancement outcomes

Trust: The Panacea of Virtual Management

As more and more information systems (IS) development teams work in distributed arrangements, concerns about enhancing virtual workers’ effectiveness will become more common and important for IS management. Trust between managers and employees can potentially enhance employee effectiveness by reducing uncer- tainty and increasing satisfaction and commitment. To study this, employees’ perceptions of interpersonal trust between themselves and their manager in both a virtual management and a non-virtual management environ- ment were quantitatively examined (n = 631). Contrary to suggestions in the literature, it was found that trust had a larger impact on key outcome variables such as job satisfaction and job stress for non-virtually-managed workers than it did for virtual workers. The results also suggest that cognition-based trust is more important than affect-based trust in a virtual workplace. Managers should concentrate on activities that demonstrate their competence, responsibility and professionalism, since this increases cognition-based trust. Although trust is an important determinant of effectiveness for organizations to manage, it does not appear to be any more important in a virtual setting than it is in a non-virtual setting

Using Electronic Media for Information Sharing Activities: A Replication and Extension

This article reports a replication and extension of a study that explored individual perceptions of factors that underlie the use of electronic media (electronic mail, world-wide-web, list serves, and other collaborative systems). The original study was conducted in a single Australian university. The study was replicated in a Canadian university. The replication allowed testing of the enlarged research model that involves organizational culture variables as well as attitudes toward information policies. Overall, the expanded research model includes culture variables, task and technology related variables, as well as individual attitudes and beliefs. We found that task and technology related variables explained more of the use of electronic media for sharing than culture related variables or the individual attitudes and beliefs. Specifically, task interdependence, perceived information usefulness and the user’s computer comfort were most strongly associated with the person’s use of electronic media. Two dimensions, employee orientation and need for achievement, of organizational culture had a significant influence on the use of electronic media for information sharing activities although less strongly than the task and technology related variables. Of the individual attitudes and beliefs, attitudes about information policies had a significant influence on the use of electronic media for information sharing activities. Besides the value of replication of a research model in another culture, the study contributed to the information systems literature by developing initial scales for two new constructs: attitudes about information policies and information culture

Managing Information Systems Development Projects: What’s on Your Mind?

Drawing on a mental model perspective, we investigate information systems (IS) project members’ knowledge and beliefs about how to manage information systems development (ISD) projects. A new construct – ISD mental models – is proposed and defined as the knowledge and belief structures that help IS project members to understand, conduct, and manage ISD projects. Literature reviews and cognitive interviews using the repertory grid technique are used to identify the fundamental concepts that are in project members’ mental models. This study further proposes that the structure of mental models is organized into four ISD project-related areas: product, process, people, and organization. This proposition will be tested by a survey with ISD project members using the pairwise comparison technique. Expected contributions and implications are discussed

An Investigation of Information Systems Topic Coverage in IS versus Functional Area Business Journals

The purpose of this study is to explore the extent to which IS topics have been published in non-IS business journals (i.e., Accounting, Marketing, Operations, and Organizational Behavior), and to assess whether the IS research in these disciplines lags or leads the comparable coverage in the IS journals. Over 500,000 citations and abstracts have been collected from on-line sources and stored in a database, and analyses are underway

Exploring Critical Success Factors in Agile Analytics Projects

Via updating Chow and Cao’s list of success factors for agile projects, attributes of potential critical success factors (CSF’s) for agile analytics projects were identified from the literature. Ten new attributes were added to Chow and Cao’s original list. Seven new attributes from the general agile project literature address: risk appetite, team diversity and availability, engagement, project planning, shared goals, and methods uncertainty. Three attributes specific to analytics projects were added: data quality, model validation, and building customers’ trust in model solution. The potential validity of the various CSF’s and attributes was explored via data from case studies of two analytics projects that varied in deployment success. The more successful project was found to be stronger in almost all the factors than the failed project. The findings can help researchers and analytics practitioners understand the environmental conditions and project actions that can help get business value from their analytics initiatives

COMPARING GOAL SETTING APPROACHES TO BOOST COMPUTER-RELATED PRO-ENVIRONMENTAL BEHAVIORS

This research focuses on improving individuals’ pro-environmental behaviors related to information technology and system use. To do so, we draw on and extend goal-setting theory by comparing three goal interventions: goal-setting, goal-setting plus implementation plans, and goal-setting with both implementation plans and visualization of success. Two longitudinal studies examine individuals’ selfset goals: the first examines employees’ computer-based electricity usage in the workplace over six weeks and the second utilizes a diary approach method over four weeks to examine the effects of different goal setting conditions on students’ environmental outcomes. Both studies find that setting goals increases pro-environmental behaviors. However, rebound effects can occur when interventions are removed. Visualization of success appears to reduce this rebound effect and we suggest that future research continue to investigate methods for reducing rebound, including the roles of values and multiple goals on the efficacy of goal-setting. This paper contributes to Green IS research in several ways: conceptually (by responding to calls for more theory-based research), methodologically (by measuring objective computer-based energy usage in study 1 and by utilizing a diary method in study 2), and practically (by demonstrating the effectiveness of visualization to goal setting)

Full and Partial Knowledge Sharing on Intra-Organizational Broadcast Media

Knowledge sharing, along with its potential predictors, has been a popular research topic. This research extends prior research by examining potential predictors of knowledge sharing together within a more comprehensive model with two additional contexts: the type of recipient of the knowledge is the recipients of intraorganizational broadcast media, and the type of knowledge sharing behavior (full knowledge sharing and partial knowledge sharing). The results of this study suggest that what predicts knowledge sharing behaviors depends on the type of knowledge sharing behavior when considering why people share their knowledge through intra-organizational broadcast media. We explore theoretical implications and future research avenues

New Developments in Practice I: Risk Management in Information Systems: Problems and Potential

Risk management can be an extremely powerful approach to dealing with the complexities and uncertainties that increasingly surround technological change and its management. Conventionally in information technology (IT) projects, risks have been narrowly defined. Today, with IT becoming integral to a company\u27s existence, the stakes are considerably higher and broader in scope. However, risk is sometimes seen a negative concept in information systems (IS) organizations because it implies that something could go wrong with an IT project. To understand effective risk management in IS, the authors convened a focus group of senior IS managers from a number of organizations in a variety of industries. The results of this discussion, the managers\u27 presentations, and a review of the current research on risk management, were integrated and are presented in this paper. The nature of risk, identifying risk in IT initiatives, determining appropriate levels of risk, and dealing with unacceptable types and levels of risk are discussed. The following conclusions were reached. Risk management is a means to an end - whether it is a successful IS project; stable, secure technical operations; or a properly implemented business strategy using technology. It is not a one-time activity, but rather an ongoing process of identification, assessment, and action, which needs to be well integrated into every part of IS management. IS managers must learn to control both the problems and the potential that risk represents. Several general principles to help IS managers deal effectively with risks were identified. Effective risk management involves taking a holistic approach to risk, developing a risk management policy, establishing clear accountabilities and responsibilities, balancing risk exposure against controls, being open about risks to reduce conflict and information hiding, enforcing risk management practices, and learning what works and doesn\u27t from past experience