The Role of Developer and User Knowledge Domains and Learning in Systems Development

Research on Information Systems development has been central to the Information Systems field and the focus had been to improve the interactions between the users and developers during the process. Further examination of the change process reveals the necessity for research on user and developer knowledge domains and on approaches to change them resulting in better systems. IS development outsourcing intensifies the necessity to understand the user developer relations from a knowledge perspective. A framework is developed to explain the user-developer knowledge domains and a case research is performed, spanning insourcing and outsourcing environments, to further explore and explain the learning processes that could occur

A Conjoint Approach to Understanding IT Application Services Outsourcing

The sourcing of application development is becoming increasingly complex. While much prior work has investigated sourcing in a homogeneous marketplace, sourcing choices have increased in complexity, with a myriad of choices ranging from insourcing to domestic outsourcing to engaging Application Service Providers (ASP) to offshoring . In this study, based upon four organizational theories (Transaction Cost, Resource-Based View, Resource-Dependence View, and the Knowledge-Based View of the Firm), we suggest 10 attributes that firms consider when deciding upon outsourcing of applications. We tested the attributes’ strength by performing conjoint analysis on data collected from 84 IS executives. We constructed profiles, which are combinations of attributes having different levels. Each executive responded to 18 such distinct profiles and selected corresponding outsourcing choices. Our results found that the three most significant drivers of an IT application service choice were cost, risk, and vendor capability. However, the importance of these drivers varied across the different sourcing options. Based upon this, we offer implications for decision-makers and researchers, along with directions for future research

An Epistemological Taxonomy for Knowledge Management Systems Analysis

Knowledge Management Systems (KMS) play increasingly important roles in organizations due to the realization of the value of knowledge and capabilities of computerized systems to support knowledge management activities. Earlier researchers have explained the activities and processes important for knowledge management, which is useful for the development of systems to support knowledge management. The wide variety of knowledge domains and interactions among them in organizations makes it necessary to understand the broad epistemological spectrum that can enable effective utilization of computerized systems for knowledge management. Although, previous research had considered the processes required for dissemination of knowledge in organization, more fundamental epistemological consideration, along objective and subjective dimensions will enhance analysis of systems requirements. This paper attempts to conceptually develop taxonomy useful for analysis of knowledge requirements and for implementation of systems. Furthermore, the paper illustrates the classification using exploratory cases

Time, Space and Effectiveness of Wireless Systems

research interests are data communications, knowledge management, IT outsourcing change and organizational change. Before joining the academic community, he worked for General Electric at Johnson Space Center, NASA, in Houston where he developed real-time data systems for the Life Sciences Project Division. Wireless-networks: are they emancipating or constraining? With the advent of wireless computing and the use of wireless computing in information systems, we expected to see more enabling and emancipating influences. This can be expected due to the capability of wireless technologies to overcome space and time barriers that could not be overcome by the wired-networks. However, there may be constraining affects of wireless networks and the time and space concepts as well. It is necessary to examine these from a theoretical perspective that includes social factors also in order to understand better the effectiveness of wireless networks and mobile systems. This paper attempts to develop a theoretical framework based on the necessity to consider time and space more distinctly instead of structures to explain the influences of wireless networks. To illustrate the use of theoretical framework more specific propositions are derived from it

Information Systems Outsourcing : A Survey and Analysis of the Literature

In the last fifteen years, academic research on information systems (IS) outsourcing has evolved rapidly. Indeed the field of outsourcing research has grown so fast that there has been scant opportunity for the research community to take a collective breath, and complete a global assessment of research activities to date. This paper seeks to address this need by exploring and synthesizing the academic literature on IS outsourcing. It offers a roadmap of the IS outsourcing literature, highlighting what has been done so far, how the work fits together under a common umbrella, and what the future directions might be. In order to adequately address the immense diversity of research on IS outsourcing and outsourcing in general, we develop a conceptual framework that helps us to categorize the literature. In particular, we look at the research objectives, methods used and theoretical foundations of the papers. In identifying the major research objectives, we view outsourcing as an organizational decision process and adapt Simon’s stage model of decision making. This allows us to identify five major sourcing issues, from which at least one is covered by each academic article. These are the questions of why to outsource, what to outsource, which decision process to take, how to implement the sourcing decision, and what is the outcome of the sourcing decision. In analyzing the literature, we identify and structure the main explanatory factors and theoretical relationships within each of these sourcing stages. Based on our discussion of the research objectives, theoretical foundations and research approaches taken in the literature, we show how the various research streams hang together and we come up with a number of implications for research. Moreover, we identify a number of emerging sourcing issues. We believe that research on these “new” phenomena such as offshore outsourcing, application service providing and business process outsourcing would benefit from ‘standing on the shoulders’ of what has already been accomplished in the field of IS outsourcing

From virtual organization to e-business: Transformational structuration

This article shows how the technical hype of 1990s has been transformed into the e-business organizations at the beginning of the 21st century. The authors took an interpretive stance in this study, grounded theory, and investigated the ontology of virtual organization by the metaphorical analysis. The metaphorical analysis adopted in this study provides the analytical power to conceptualize the social structure of virtual organization in the context of structuration theory with the process of grounded theory. As the e-business structuration indicates in this study, virtualization, the metaphor of virtual organization is interpreted as flexible domination, where the rational relationships in power distribution with other e-business characterized temporal (virtual) bond with low switching costs. Copyright © 2010, IGI Global

Softlifting: Exploring Determinants of Attitude

softlifting, ethics, piracy, attitude,