How Strategic Posture and Competitive Environment Influence Firms\u27 Information Technology Investments: Theory and Evidence

This paper examines how strategic posture in IT investment with respect to industry peers (i.e., level of IT investment compared to the industry norm for IT investments) and competitive environment influence IT investments of a firm. We synthesize prior literature on determinants of IT investments and competitive dynamics to develop our theoretical framework. Using archival data for about 380 firms for the 1999 to 2006 period, we find that firms increase their IT investments under higher competitive uncertainty and higher industry competition. The results also indicate that firms differentiate from the industry norm in IT investments under higher competitive uncertainty and higher industry competition but imitate the industry norm in IT investments under higher industry dynamism and higher industry growth. Collectively, these findings provide new insights on how the competitive environment of a firm shapes strategic actions related to IT investments

The Effects of Information Technology and Service-Oriented Architectures on Joint Venture Value

Alliances represent a variety of governance contexts, and hence provide a rich empirical setting for studying the value-creation mechanisms of Information Technology (IT). We examine the influence of IT investment and flexible IT infrastructure, through Service Oriented Architecture (SOA), in the effect of alliance activity on firm performance. We find that the marginal contribution of each joint venture to intangible firm value increases with investment in IT and in SOA. We also find that the impacts of IT and SOA are greater in the case of joint ventures than in non-equity alliances. Given that the hierarchical controls built into joint ventures may be offsetting many of the transaction and coordination costs inherent in joint venture activities, our results suggest that IT and SOA, through enhancement of flexibility, are likely to be reducing the costs of reconfiguration of firm resources. We test our hypotheses using data from 375 firms that are publicly listed in the United States and that span multiple industries; these firms have collectively engaged in more than 8,000 alliances over a period of 10 years

Chronic productive cough and extensive cysts in left lung

Bronchiectasis refers to dilated and thickened airways due to chronic inflammation and infections, with anatomic distortion of the bronchi. Here, we describe a 29-year-old man with a history of multiple hospitalizations for lung infection who presented to the pulmonary clinic with a complaint of worsening chronic productive cough in the previous year. This case presentation prompted a review of the etiologies of bronchiectasis in 291 recent cases admitted to Masih Daneshvari Hospital, Tehran

Information Technology, Revenues, and Profits: Exploring the Role of Foreign and Domestic Operations

How does information technology (IT) enable firms to globalize their operations and achieve higher foreign profits? We use archival data for multinational firms publicly-traded in the United States for the years 1999 – 2006, and find indirect evidence for the role of IT to help firms achieve higher foreign profits through revenue growth rather than cost reduction. Our findings suggest that foreign responsiveness plays a more important role in generating foreign profits than does value chain structure. Our exploratory analyses for the effect of IT on domestic revenues and profits suggest some evidence for equalization of returns across foreign and domestic operations. Among additional results, we find that R&D is positively associated with foreign revenues and foreign profits with an effect greater than that of IT, and advertising is positively associated with foreign revenues with an effect greater than that of IT. By documenting how IT creates value for firms through globalization, we extend the business value of IT and international business literatures that have so far touched on firm-level globalization benefits from IT only in passing. The findings can help managers decide how to allocate discretionary expenditures to achieve strategic objectives suc

How Does the Positioning of Information Technology Firms in Strategic Alliances Influence Returns to R&D Investments?

Because software is fungible, has low marginal replication costs, and requires relatively high levels of initial investment to develop, understanding how IT-producing firms protect and leverage value from their research and development (R&D) investments is important. We examine how the positioning of IT-producing firms within their networks of strategic alliances moderates profits from R&D investments. We posit that alliances with IT-consuming firms generate relation-specific rents that, in turn, protect the value of R&D investments by making software innovations difficult for rivals to appropriate. Among IT-producing firms, we make a distinction between software consulting and services firms and software package-product firms. Our analyses of 464 IT-producing firms for the 14-year period 1996-2009 suggest that IT-producing firms’ returns on R&D investments increase with alliance ties to IT-consuming firms. We also find that alliances with IT-consuming firms have a more beneficial effect on R&D investment returns for software consulting and services firms than for software package-product firms. Our findings yield nuanced insights into how IT-producing firms should position themselves within a network of alliances with IT-consuming firms. We discuss implications for research and practice

The Role of Information Technology in Alliances and Mergers.

This dissertation examines how investments in information technology (IT) influence the value that firms derive from merging or collaborating with other firms. The dissertation is organized as follows. The first chapter, entitled Towards a Theoretical Framework of Information Technology in Alliances and Mergers, describes the central themes of this dissertation, synthesizes the prior relevant research, and elaborates upon three theoretical perspectives useful in understanding role of IT in corporate alliances and mergers. This is followed by a theoretical essay, entitled Propositions on the Value of Flexible IT Systems in Strategic Alliances, which focuses on the contexts in which IT flexibility has value in strategic alliances, reveals some open questions on this topic, and provides a set of propositions intended to motivate further work. The next chapter, entitled Information Technology, Service-Oriented Architectures, and the Firm-Value Effects of Alliance Formation, examines the influence of flexible IT architecture and IT investment in the effect of alliance activity on firm performance utilizing data from 375 firms that are publicly listed in the United States and that span multiple industries. The final chapter, entitled The Effects of Information Technology Investment and Integration Costs on Merger Value in the U.S. Commercial Banking Industry, examines the influence of IT investment and merger integration costs on merger value, using measures of both long-term performance change and short-term cumulative abnormal returns. Core findings of this dissertation suggest that IT investment and flexible IT infrastructures have measurable effects on firm-value in multi-firm contexts, by enhancing the value that firms derive particularly from collaborative corporate alliances or deeply integrative mergers.Ph.D.Business AdministrationUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/64702/1/atafti_1.pd

How Human Resource and Information Systems Practices Amplify the Returns on Information Technology Investments

This study examines the important roles that human resources (HR) for information technology (IT) professionals and information systems (IS) practices for all workers in an organization play in shaping returns on firms’ IT investments. In particular, we consider how incentives, autonomy, and training for IT professionals can enable a firm to better leverage the value of its IT investments. We argue that well-trained, motivated, and empowered IT professionals can help firms make better strategic choices in allocating IT investments and implementing IT projects. We also demonstrate how this moderating relationship depends upon collaborative IS and autonomy-enhancing IS practices that affect other knowledge workers in the firm. We leverage archival data for 228 firms with 736 firm-year observations and document two key findings. We find (1) that empowering HR practices for IT professionals positively moderate the effect of IT investments on firm performance, and (2) that the alignment between empowering HR practices for IT professionals and firm-wide collaborative IS practices enhances the value that firms derive from IT investments. Our results suggest that the business value of IT investments is linked to the rewards and opportunities offered to IT professionals, who have a pivotal role in the effective deployment of IT in organizations

Patološka i biokemijska istraživanja pokusno izazvanoga hipotireoidizma u ovaca.

The objective of this experiment was to determine pathological and biochemical changes in hypothyroid sheep. Experiments were carried out using 12 Iranian crossbred sheep aged between 3-3.5 years old and weighing 45-65 kg. The animals were divided into two groups, 4 sheep as control and 8 as the experimental group. Hypothyroidism was induced in experimental animals by giving thiourea 50 mg/kg body mass daily for 4 weeks. Blood samples were taken weekly for T3 and T4 measurements. There was a highly significant decrease (P<0.01) in values of T3 and T4 in experimental animals as compared to the control group. At the end of the experiment all the animals of control and experimental groups were sacrificed and necropsied. Tissue samples were collected from the thyroid, kidney, liver, skin and spleen and stained by hematoxylin and eosin and sudan 3 and 4. In the experimental group the following changes were observed: the thyroid gland was moderately enlarged and firm in texture and darker in color. Histopathologically, the epithelial lining of the thyroid follicles showed hypertrophy and hyperplasia which projected into the lumen. The lumens of the follicles were empty of colloid. Kidneys were apparently normal but microscopically showed glomerular lipidosis and tubular changes including mild congestion and lipidosis. The liver was pale, anemic, friable and enlarged. The hepatocytes exhibited fatty change and some inclusion bodies in their nuclei. Moreover, hyperplasia of bile ducts and mononuclear cell infiltration of liver were seen. The skin was mainly normal in the majority of the cases but histologically one case showed hyperkeratosis of the epidermis, associated with excessive keratin formation within the hair follicles. In the spleen, the number and size of macrophages were increased and one case showed some petechial hemorrhages on its surface. The treated ewes showed significant hyperlipidemia (P<0.01) and hypercholesterolemia (P<0.01). A significant decline (P<0.01) was detected in HDL as well as a significant increase (P<0.01) in LDL serum levels of the treated ewes.Svrha pokusa bila je istražiti patološke i biokemijske promjene u ovaca s hipotireoidizmom. U pokus je uzeto 12 iranskih križanih ovaca u dobi od 3 do 3,5 godine tjelesne mase 45 do 65 kg. Ovce su bile podijeljene u dvije skupine: četiri su uzete u kontrolnu, a osam u pokusnu skupinu. Hipotireoidizam je u pokusnih životinja bio potaknut davanjem 50 mg/kg tjelesne mase tioureje dnevno u tijeku četiri tjedna. Uzorci krvi uzimani su tjedno za mjerenje T3 i T4. Ustanovljeno je značajno smanjenje (P<0,01) vrijednosti T3 i T4 u pokusnih životinja u odnosu na kontrolnu skupinu. Na kraju pokusa sve su životinje pokusne i kontrolne skupine bile žrtvovane i razuđene. Uzeti su uzorci tkiva štitnjače, bubrega, jetre, kože i slezene te su pripremljeni histološki preparati obojeni hematoksilin-eozinom i sudan 3 i 4 postupkom. U pokusnoj skupini štitasta žlijezda bila je blago povećana, čvrste strukture i jače obojena. Epitel tireoidnoga folikula je hipertrofirao, a uočena je i hiperplazija projicirana u lumen. U lumenu folikula nije ustanovljen koloid. Bubrezi su makroskopski bili nepromijenjeni, ali je mikroskopski ustanovljena glomerularna lipidoza i tubularne promjene uključujući blagu kongestiju i lipidozu. Jetra su bila blijeda, anemična, prhka i povećana. U hepatocitima je ustanovljena masna degeneracija i inkluzijska tjelešca u jezgrama. Povrh toga ustanovljena je hiperplazija žučovoda i mononuklearna infiltracija jetrenoga tkiva. Koža je makroskopski bila normalna u većine životinja, ali je patohistološki u jednom slučaju ustanovljena hiperkeratoza epidermisa povezana s obilnom tvorbom keratina unutar dlačnih folikula. U slezeni je bio povećan broj makrofaga i njihova veličina, a u jednom slučaju ustanovljena su petehijalna krvarenja na površini. Pokusne ovce pokazivale su značajnu hiperlipidemiju (P<0,01) i hiperkolesterolemiju (P<0,01). Ustanovljen je značajan pad razine (P<0,01) lipoproteina velike gustoće kao i značajno povećanje (P<0,01) razine lipotroteina male gustoće u pokusnih ovaca

Isolated Trochlea Fracture: A Rare Case Report

Background: Trochlea fracture usually happens with other fractures such as capitellum fracture or medial or lateral condyle fracture and isolated trochlea fracture is very rare because of its location and there are only a few cases of isolated trochlea fracture that have been reported.   Case Report: We present here a 40-year-old man who suffered from an isolated trochlea fracture due to falling from three meters height on his flexed left elbow. After examination, imaging, and setting up a plan for surgery, the patient's fragment was fixed with two Herbert screws through anterior approach and after five years of follow-up which was the longest follow-up that had been reported, the patient’s elbow range of motion was 5° to full flexion with Mayo Elbow Performance Index (MEPI) of 85/100 and Disabilities of Arm, Shoulder, and Hand (DASH) score of 13.6/100.   Conclusion: Isolated trochlea fracture is very rare, and it is best treated with open reduction and secure internal fixation using anterior or medial approaches