Risk Assessment of the Project to Migrate to the Free Office Suite Under Linux "End-User" Group

The penetration and performance of free software is raising issues regarding its true capacities and, particularly, the desirability of choosing it. It is from this perspective that the Linux Migration Project was launched within the Sous-secrétariat à l’inforoute gouvernementale et aux resources informationnelles (SSIGRI). The project, supported by a CIRANO research team, seeks to assess the risks involved in the migration project and to identify the conditions for success. This report describes an assessment of the risk exposure of one of the groups participating in the project: end users. Principal results The risk assessment that was conducted enabled the following observations to be made: The project risk exposure is medium to high. Three objectives, and more particularly the first, are vulnerable to a relatively high level of risk: Operational continuity for the user, Interactional continuity for users, and Technical support. Two risk factors were undervalued in this project because of the very nature of the project: Mismatch between the functionalities of the free office suite/functionalities targeted by the organization; Degree of interdependence with non-project units/persons. This factor is important as a result of the context in which the project is being carried out, particularly the absence of a shared interoperability framework. A review of these risk factors could result in a new positioning on the risk exposure map for four of the five objectives, in particular for the two objectives that are related to the two undervalued factors.

Key Success Factors for the Project of Migrating to the Open Office Suite

The penetration and performance of free software is raising issues regarding its true capacities and, particularly, the desirability of choosing it. It is from this perspective that the Linux Migration Project was launched within the Sous-secrétariat à l’inforoute gouvernementale et aux resources informationnelles (SSIGRI). Its accompaniment by a team of researchers from CIRANO is intended to assess the risks and identify the conditions for success. The purpose of this report is to identify and assess the key success factors of this project. Principal results An analysis of the project’s characteristics has enabled its specific features to be identified and the analytical tool to be adapted. From this approach, analysis of the key success factors has revealed that the pilot project substantially contributes to the reflection about migrating to free software. It demonstrates that, despite medium to high risk exposure, such a migration can be controlled. This is supported by considerable managerial ability and the reliability of the technology. Finally, it draws attention to a major problem that arises in a migration context: the absence of a shared interoperability framework, as is seen in two out of three parameters. The assessment grid of the project’s key success factors (Table 1, p. 6) allows the following to be ascertained: The importance of the Risk Assessment and Monitoring factor during the software implementation process. Its estimated value of 3.7, in particular due to the absence of a common interoperability framework and the impossibility of remedying it within the context of the project, lowers the average of the Processes success factor, which is 4.8/7. Managerial skills are high (6.2/7), and the values found for this factor’s components are generally comparable. Technology is assessed at 5.5/7; this parameter covers a contrasted reality: The technology’s intrinsic characteristics (independence with regard to software and publishers, cost controls, data continuity), assessed at 6.6/7, raise this ratio. The technology’s performance, assessed at 4.5/7, lowers this ratio. It implicates both the intrinsically high quality of the software tested, and problems due to the context of the pilot project—characterized, as it was, by the absence of a migration plan (choice of services/people to migrate) and to the absence of a common interoperability framework.

User Developed Computer-based Applications: A Model Of The Factors Of Success

The development of computer-based applications by Data Processing (DP) end users is a relatively new phenomenon, which is said to have the potential of solving some of the problems inherent in application development by DP professionals. User developed computer-based applications (UDA) is said to relieve DP application development and maintenance workload, and to eliminate communication problems which often lead to difficulties in the development process.;While UDA is spreading rapidly little research has been done on it and organizations considering its introduction face the issue of what to do so as to make it a successful endeavor. The purpose of this research was to develop and provide empirical evidence for a model of the factors of success for UDA.;The study was conducted in phases and followed a multi-method approach. An initial research model was first developed, which integrated the UDA literature with literature from other relevant areas. This model served as a basis for the field investigation, wherein interviews were conducted in 10 larger firms, with representatives from both the DP department and the user community. The outcomes of this phase were a description of UDA in each firm studied and a revised, improved version of the research model. This revised version consists of two sub-models. The Favorable Cost Benefits of UDA Sub-Model stresses the importance, for DP, of the UDA evaluation process. The User Satisfaction Sub-Model defines success from a user point of view.;The survey phase which followed the field investigation was aimed at obtaining additional data on UDA from a user point of view and at testing the relationships embodied in the User Satisfaction Sub-Model.;Data analysis, based on the questionnaire responses of 272 users, provided support for nine of the 10 propositions in the model. It was found that user satisfaction with independence from DP, user satisfaction with support provided by DP, user friendliness of the software tools, user attitude toward UDA, and DP readiness for change, were the most important variables in explaining overall user satisfaction with UDA

Nouvelle économie, nouvelle organisation et technologies de l'information

In order to adequately respond to the challenges of the knowledge-based economy several firms adopt non-traditional organisational forms. These new organisational forms are characterised by their high degree of flexibility and adaptability, their customer focus, their process orientation and their emphasis on team work. Notwithstanding the strengths of these new organisational structures, their contribution to firm performance is contingent on other dimensions, such as strategy, management systems, information technology deployment, and leadership. This paper presents the case of the Danish firm OTICON which adopted such a non-traditional organisational structure. The case illustrates how the various pieces of the management puzzle fit together in this instance. Pour faire face aux défis de la nouvelle économie, nombre d'entreprises avant-gardistes adoptent des formes organisationnelles non-traditionnelles. Ces nouvelles formes partagent un certain nombre de caractéristiques : organisation autour des processus plutôt qu'autour de la tâche, structure aplatie, maximisation des contacts avec les fournisseurs et les clients, par exemple. Bien que prometteur, ce nouveau type de structure organisationnelle n'est pourtant qu'une pièce d'un puzzle d'une grande complexité; pour avoir un véritable impact sur la performance organisationnelle, elle doit être combinée à d'autres pièces, tout aussi importantes, qui sont : la stratégie organisationnelle, le déploiement des technologies de l'information, le leadership et les modes de gestion. Ce texte présente l'expérience de la firme danoise OTICON qui illustre l'une des façons d'agencer ces pièces du puzzle.Knowledge-based economy, organisational structure, new organisational forms, information technology, strategy, leadership, Économie basée sur les connaissances, structure organisationnelle, nouvelles formes organisationnelles, technologies de l'information, stratégie, leadership

Development of Measures to Assess Dimensions of IS Operation Transactions

Information Systems (IS) researchers often rely on organizational economics models to describe and explain various IS management issues. While those models are found to be useful, measures are yet to be proposed to assess the dimensions of IS transactions. In this paper, we present the results of a study that was a first effort toward this end. The focus of the study was on one type of transaction, IS operations, in a particular management context, that of outsouring. Measures were developed for four critical dimensions of IS operation transactions: asset specificity, measurement problem, origin of the most important investment, and governance mechanism. Data from 250 large Canadian firms were used to assess the measures, using the Partial Least Squares (PLS) technique. L'économie des organisations est souvent mise à contribution par les chercheurs en systèmes d'information (SI). Peu de travaux ont cependant proposé des instruments de mesure des dimensions transactionnelles des opérations de SI. Ce mémoire marque un pas dans cette direction. Nous proposons des instruments de mesure utiles à l'analyse de l'impartition des opérations informatiques. Quatre dimensions importantes des transactions informatiques retiennent notre attention : la spécificité des actifs, les problèmes de mesure, l'origine des investissements les plus importants et le mode de régie des transactions. Une analyse de moindres carrés partiels (Partial Least Squares) est effectuée à l'aide de données provenant de 250 grandes entreprises canadiennes.Organizational economics; Outsourcing, Économie des organisations ; Impartition ; Sous-traitance

Managing IT Outsourcing Risk: Lessons Learned

This document takes stock from several studies on outsourcing risk. A definition of risk is offered and illustration from many case studies is used to show how risk can be managed. Results show that an active risk management approach can reduce risk exposure subtantially while enabling the organizations to still reap the benefits associated with outsourcing. Cet article fait un constat des leçons tirées de récentes analyses du risque d'impartition. Une définition opérationnelle du risque d'impartition est donnée. Les mécanismes de gestion de risque sont également discutés. Les résultats de différentes études démontrent qu'une gestion active du risque permet de réduire sensiblement les niveaux d'exposition au risque, notamment dans le cas de contrats d'impartition des technologies de l'information.Outsourcing of IS, IS risk management, agency theory, transaction cost economics, decision making under risk and uncertainty, Impartition, gestion des risques, agence, coûts de transaction, décision, risque et incertitude

A process model of outsourced information systems development projects

In order to cut costs and gain access to specialized technical expertise, organizations often outsource some of their information systems development projects. While the globalization of exchanges has helped facilitate the adoption of this practice, research on this topic has identified a number of potential hinderers that can threaten their success and applied a variety of theoretical lenses to their study. Within this context, we propose a theoretically grounded process model to explain events occurring during the course of outsourced information systems development projects. To do so, we follow an inductive approach that integrates a variety of theoretical lenses and rely on different sources to provide examples of our arguments in the form of illustrative vignettes. We rely on institutional theory to characterize the systems development and project management practices in place at the client and provider and argue that these practices either focus primarily on the control or coordination mechanisms in place for the project, thereby defining different forms of contracts between parties. We then study the conflicts that may occur between these practices before and during the project and posit that there are processes that can be used to try and resolve them. Finally, we identify the impact these processes can have on the project both in terms of process and potential outcome, thereby influencing the contracts in place between parties in the form of a feedback effect that effectively demonstrates the dynamic nature of outsourced information systems development projects