Knowledge Management Systems Success: An Assessment Model for Project Based Knowledge Repositories

Knowledge has been broadly recognized as the key element for gaining competitive advantage. Companies are investing more on knowledge management systems. However, no models are customized to evaluate the success of knowledge management systems. To address this issue, this study seeks to develop and test two models for the assessment of the success of a particular type of KMS: project repositories. These two models are based on DeLone and McLean’s model of Information Systems Success and Seddon’s respecified model. Their models are updated for project repositories through the addition of three relationships

Beyond Routine: Symbolic Adoption, Extended Use, and Emergent Use of Complex Information Systems in the Mandatory Organizational Context

Organizational investments in complex information systems (CIS) have reached a record high. However, the underutilization of these expensive CIS prevents organizations from achieving the advertised return on investment. This study attempts to address this issue from the perspective of extended use and emergent use. Extended use concerns using more of the technology features, while emergent use concerns applying the technology in a novel manner to support task performance. To study uses that surpass routine use, a special focus is placed on the motivational factor that drives these behaviors. Drawing upon the insights from information system (IS) infusion, the IS continuance model, and the symbolic adoption theory, this paper proposes a research model for understanding extended and emergent use in mandatory organizational contexts. The model was examined in two large manufacturing firms that had implemented CIS for at least two years. The results suggest that perceived usefulness, satisfaction, and symbolic adoption influence extended use, and that perceived usefulness, symbolic adoption, and extended use affect emergent use. More importantly, the concept of symbolic adoption offers a theoretical explanation for extended and emergent use from the motivational point of view. Implications for theory and practice are also discussed

Explaining Employees Extended Use of Complex Information Systems

Investments in complex information systems by organizations reached a record high of U.S.$26.7 billion in 2004. Yet, organizations seldom use these systems to the fullest extent and attain the expected return on investment. This paper addresses the issue of system underutilization by investigating Extended Use, which refers to using more system features to support one\u27s tasks. Extended Use was examined in the nomological networks of the IS Continuance (ISC) Model and Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). A field survey was conducted in a large manufacturing firm that had successfully implemented a popular enterprise resource planning solution for more than 2 years. All paths in both ISC and TAM were statistically significant. A synthesized model was later proposed and examined in a post hoc analysis. The results indicate that the synthesized model, as compared to ISC and TAM, explained slightly higher variances in Extended Use, Perceived Usefulness (PU), and Satisfaction. Specifically, both Perceived Ease of Use (PEOU) and PU both affected Extended Use. Interestingly, Satisfaction has no direct impact on Extended Use in the presence of PU and PEOU. In contrast to most technology acceptance research, PEOU has a stronger behavioral impact than that of PU. This research provides a framework that explains Extended Use and is one of the few studies that investigates IS use behavior that exceeds simple, shallow, and routine use

Comparing e-Learning Tools’ Success: The Case of Instructor–Student Interactive vs. Self-paced Tools

E-learning tools have profoundly transformed modern pedagogical approaches. Vendors provide different types of systems, such as self-paced (SP) and instructor–student interactive (ISI) e-learning tools. Although both types of tools represent promising solutions to facilitate the learning process, it is important to theoretically identify a framework to evaluate the success of these tools and assess whether one type of tool is more effective than another. Toward this end, we (1) propose a model to evaluate e-learning tools’ success by extending and contextualizing Seddon’s information systems (IS) success model for the e-learning environment and (2) formulate four hypotheses to predict the differences in the success factors between SP and ISI tools. We test the model and hypotheses using data from 783 students across seven higher education institutions in Hong Kong. The results support the proposed e-learning tool success model and three of the four hypotheses. ISI tools outperform SP tools in terms of system quality, perceived usefulness, satisfaction, and learning outcome

Impact of Transformational Leadership on System Exploration in the Mandatory Organizational Context

Organizational investments in such complex information systems as customer relationship management (CRM) systems have reached a record high. Unfortunately, underutilization of these sophisticated technologies hinders organizations from realizing the promised returns on investment. This study tackles this issue from the perspective of intention to explore, which refers to individual intentions to explore the technology and seek new ways of using it. Drawing upon insights from concepts of exploration, extra-role behavior, technology acceptance, and transformational leadership, this paper proposes a research model for employees’ intention to explore in mandatory organizational contexts, with special emphasis on the effect of transformational leadership. The model was examined in a large telecom service company that uses CRM information systems. The results suggest that transformational leadership, intrinsic motivation, and extrinsic motivation (i.e. perceived usefulness) directly affect employees’ exploratory intentions. Transformational leadership also indirectly influences intention to explore through individuals’ intrinsic motivation and computer self-efficacy

Understanding Post-Adoptive Usage Behaviors: A Two-Dimensional View

Recent information systems (IS) publications reveal an emerging interest in studying postadoptive system use behaviors. Compared to the well-established research stream of IS adoption and initial usage, understanding of IS use behaviors after initial implementation stage is still at its early stage. To further develop knowledge about this phenomenon, this study reviews the IS implementation stage model and a variety of post-adoptive usage concepts in extant literature. These usage concepts are classified into three types and are mapped against their corresponding implementation stages. A two dimensional view of these use concepts is then proposed as an alternative perspective to understand these post-adoptive behaviors. Implications are also discussed at the end of this paper

A Motivational Account for Post-Acceptance Routine and Innovative Use: Introducing the Concept of Tri-Dimensional Intrinsic Motivation

We conceptualize two distinct post-acceptance usage behaviors: (1) routine use (RTN) refers to the use of information system (IS) consistent with normal work processes and (2) innovative use (INV) means users’ applying system features in novel ways. While RTN helps integrate the implemented IS into work processes, INV further extracts the value of the IS. Drawing on motivation theory, we propose a tri-dimensional intrinsic motivation (3D-IM) construct and hypothesize about the differential roles of intrinsic motivation (IM) and extrinsic motivation (EM) in explaining RTN and INV. Our first study confirms the measurement model of 3D-IM and illustrates its superior predictive power over perceived enjoyment, a typical measure of IM in prior literature. Study 2 reveals the differential impacts of IM (measured as 3D-IM) and EM (measured as perceived usefulness) on INV and RTN. Specifically, relative to EM, IM has a stronger effect on INV but a weaker impact on RTN

Addressing Digital Inequality for the Socio-economically Disadvantaged through Government Initiatives: Forms for Capital that Affect ICT Utilization

Digital inequality, or unequal access to and use of information and communication technologies (ICT), is a severe problem preventing the socio-economically disadvantaged from participating in a digital society. To understand the critical resources that contribute to digital inequality and to inform public policy for stimulating initial and continued ICT usage by the socio-economically disadvantaged, we drew on capital theories and conducted a field study to investigate: (1) the forms of capital for utilizing ICT and how they differ across potential adopters who are socio-economically disadvantaged (SED) and socio-economically advantaged (SEA); (2) how these forms of capitals are relatively impacted for the SEA and the SED through public policy for ICT access; and (3) how each form of capital influences the SED’s intentions to use initially and to continue to use ICT. The context for our study involved a city in the southeastern United States that offered its citizens free ICT access for Internet connectivity. Our results show that SED potential adopters exhibited lower cultural capital but higher social capital relative to the SEA. Moreover, the SED who participated in the city’s initiative realized greater positive gains in cultural capital, social capital, and habitus than the SEA. In addition, we find that the SED’s initial intention to use ICT was influenced by intrinsic motivation for habitus, self-efficacy for cultural capital, and both important referents’ expectations and support from acquaintances for social capital. Cultural capital and social cultural capital also complemented each other in driving the SED’s initial use intention. The SED’s continued use intention was affected by both intrinsic and extrinsic motivations for habitus and both knowledge and self-efficacy for cultural capital but was not affected by social capital. We also make several recommendations for future research on digital inequality and ICT acceptance to extend and apply the proposed capital framework

Consuming Information Systems: An Economic Model of User Satisfaction

This paper has two major objectives. The first objective intends to answer the following question which is of significant interest to information system (IS) researchers and practitioners: How does user satisfaction (satisfaction) respond to changes in system use and system attributes? The second and more ambitious objective is to promote the application of economic theories in user behavior research. In contrast to prior research that conceived the development of user satisfaction as an information valuation and integration process, we consider such development to be embedded in the IS consumption process, that is, users gain utility (satisfaction) from consuming (using) the system. This perspective enables us to re-conceptualize user satisfaction as a proxy of utility and apply utility research in economics to study user satisfaction. An economic model of user satisfaction was developed. Two empirical studies were conducted to examine the research model. The findings confirmed the consumptive nature of user satisfaction. Apart from enriching our understanding of user satisfaction, this research demonstrates the usefulness of economic theories in user behavior research

Understanding Intention to Explore Business Intelligence Systems: The Role of Fit and Engagement

This paper explores how user engagement affects users’ intention to explore business intelligence system (BIS) and how user engagement is promoted by the cognitive fit between BIS interface and tasks and the regulatory compatibility between BIS interface and personal characteristics, such as style of information processing. Results from the lab experiment suggest that the cognitive fit and the regulatory compatibility could both influence users’ engagement experience, which in turn affected users’ intention to explore BIS. This study may contribute to the extant information systems (IS) literature by uncovering the impacts of engagement experience on intention to explore and responding to the call for investigation of the BIS context where rich visualizations of the systems influence users’ engagement experience