Software acquisition by start-up companies

Software acquisition is very important for any type of company nowadays, including start-up companies. This study examined which software applications are acquired by start-ups, in what ways, with what motivations, and for what purposes they are used. The study was done by first conducting a survey amongst 50 start-up companies in the Netherlands and Sweden and by then doing four follow-up interviews with companies that also participated in the survey. Results showed that start-ups mostly acquire software for communication purposes, and that start-ups mainly use Freeware and Single Licensed software. Most of the time decisions about software acquisition are being made by the CEO, sometimes with help of colleagues, friends or other informal contacts. Popular applications include, amongst others, software packages as Google Apps and Microsoft Office. Reasons behind choosing for a specific software application were mainly ease of use, familiarity, requirement fit, reliability, flexibility and gradual scaling. Reasons to use free software options were mainly budget-related, however, reliability and quality were perceived to be really important, especially when it comes to customer-serving applications. Start-up companies therefore said to be willing to pay for these applications if reliability is higher in that case

Leveraging IS in the complexity of healthcare: a combined NCA- and PLS-SEM analysis on the effects of co-evolutionary IS-alignment

Several studies have advocated for the value of co-evolutionary approaches to business-IT alignment in healthcare settings because they would be better suited to deal with complexity. However, empirical evidence supporting this premise is scarce and mainly based on qualitative works. We address this research gap by performing a survey among 85 Dutch healthcare organizations, looking into the effects of co-evolutionary information systems alignment (COISA) on organizational performance and the role of dynamic capabilities in this value path. We combine Necessary Condition Analysis and Partial Least Squares Modeling to see which aspects are indispensable and help further develop dynamic capabilities and performance. Our results confirm that COISA indeed positively influences healthcare organizations’ organizational performance through dynamic capabilities. Furthermore, we demonstrate that alignment motivation and interconnections between heterogeneous IS stakeholders are indispensable, and show the seemingly higher importance of the operational and orchestrational alignment competencies and the sensing dimension of dynamic capabilities

USING A CO-EVOLUTIONARY IS-ALIGNMENT APPROACH TO UNDERSTAND EMR IMPLEMENTATIONS

Electronic Medical Records (EMRs) are repositories of electronic medical histories of patients, main-tained over time. Hospital operations and EMRs typically become interdependent, due to the inclusion of medical workflow- and administrative process support as core functionalities. Hence, it is profoundly challenging to effectively enable complex, multi-stakeholder clinical processes, enhance patient care, and align EMRs with hospital strategies, goals, and needs. In this study, we build upon co-evolutionary IS-alignment (COISA) theories and argue that current approaches to business-IT alignment in hospitals should be reconceptualised, particularly regarding modern EMR implementations. In this effort, we respond to the call for more empirical research on business-IT co-evolution. We unfold how COISA manifests during EMR implementations using a multiple case study method. This method allows us to get a rich understanding of the complex social phenomena that emerge during EMR implementations. Outcomes show that COISA manifests in all three cases, involving different stakeholder groups, but in different localities and intensities. These findings suggest that COISA is a suitable framework to de-scribe and understand EMR implementations and that different configurations of interaction patterns can lead to comparable results. This understanding enables EMR practitioners to more effectively iden-tify improvement areas in dealing with internal and external complexity

Co-evolutionary IS-Alignment: A Complex Adaptive Systems Perspective

Many studies have investigated the effects of information technology (IT) in achieving organizational performance. However, despite substantial IT investments, organizations often fail to improve organi-zational performance using IT. This failure could be the result of a lack of Business-IT alignment. Re-cently, scholars and practitioners have adopted a complexity science approach to better address the many interwoven IT, organizational and environmental turbulence challenges. These efforts resulted in the emergence of the complexity-based concept of co-evolutionary IS/IT-alignment (COISA). COISA involves “the series of coevolutionary moves that makes IT aligned over time.” However, the notion of COISA remains conceptual, and further operationalization in preparation for more empirical evidence seems appropriate. Therefore, this study aims to provide further clarification on the conceptualization of COISA in turbulent environments. We conducted a structured literature review using a theoretical foundation of Complex Adaptive Systems theory. In this effort, we developed a COISA model composed of five continuous alignment processes characterized by co-evolutionary moves toward alignment, situated in two organizational contexts. This model provides a basis for further empirical re-search on COISA

Exploring choices of software sourcing methods among start-ups

In the paper we discuss the following research questions: How do start-ups provide themselves with software and what are the motivations behind deciding on a specific sourcing option? The questions are motivated from the fact that acquirement of software is a challenging question, and it is especially interesting to explore how start-ups do, since they do not have a legacy to deal with. The research was conducted as a mixed approach including a survey among startups followed by interviewing decision-makers in some start-ups. The research indicates that motivations for choosing a specific software application include ease of use, compatibility, reliability, flexibility, and previous familiarity. Right now, sourcing of paid software mostly occurs in a single license set-up, although interviewed start-ups showed to prefer Pay-Per-Use, as it is more flexible and because they feel more in control over how much money they spend. The startups said to consider free software options in case alternatives that fulfilled their requirements were available. In the cases where start-ups paid for software the motivation was either because there were no other options available, or they felt that this sourcing method secured support

Examining the relationship between a hospital’s IT infrastructure capability and digital capabilities: a resource-based perspective

Hospitals increasingly make use of information technology (IT) infrastructures to enhance their services. However, it remains unclear how IT infrastructures affect clinical and operational excellence. We examine the relationship among hospitals’ IT infrastructure capability and their so-called digital capabilities, i.e., IS competences regarding information processing, digitally enabled clinical decision making, health information exchange, and telehealth. We conceptualize a research model taking a resource-based lens, and we propose two hypotheses. First, we argue that hospitals that invest in their IT infrastructure capability will outperform other hospitals regarding their digital capabilities. Furthermore, as many hospitals receive financial incentives for professionalizing digital services, we hypothesize that the strength of this particular relationship is dependent on such incentives. Findings—based on an SEM-PLS analysis on a sample of 1143 European hospital—suggest that there is a positive relationship between an IT infrastructure capability and digital capabilities, and, surprisingly, financial incentives negatively affects this relationship

Aligning Effectively: The Case of Electronic Medical Records

Co-evolutionary IS-alignment (COISA) is a relatively new approach to understanding business-IT alignment (BITA) in complex environments. It is defined as continuously exercised alignment processes, characterized by co-evolutionary interactions between different IS stakeholders, in pursuit of a common interpretation and implementation of what it means to apply IT in an appropriate and timely way, in harmony with strategies, goals, and needs. This concept is well applicable in hospitals, given their many different stakeholders and quickly changing environments. For example, although hospitals heavily invest in advanced Electronic Medical Records (EMR), it remains unclear how EMR should align with the strategies, goals, and needs of hospitals and its stakeholders. Earlier work has shown that COISA may be a useful lens in revealing the manifestation of stakeholder interactions behind alignment during EMR implementations. However, it is insufficient only to assess the manifestation of COISA interactions, as this is no guarantee that these interactions are effective in pursuing alignment. Our study reveals facilitators of efficacious COISA interactions during EMR implementations, using theoretical insights on BITA, COISA and efficacious dynamics in complex organizations and empirical insights from a single case study and three focus groups. Our findings reconcile and complement existing knowledge, specifically for EMR implementations

Capturing Co-evolutionary Information Systems Alignment: Conceptualization and Scale Development

Co-evolutionary approaches to business-IT alignment, such as Co-evolutionary information systems alignment (COISA), have gained attention from scholars and practitioners over the last decade. COISA is an organizational capability defined as continuously exercised alignment competencies, characterized by co-evolutionary interactions between heterogeneous IS stakeholders, in pursuit of a common interpretation and implementation of what it means to apply IT in an appropriate and timely way. In spite of some conceptual and empirical work on COISA, a validated operationalization for empirical measurements for science and practice is not available in the extant literature. We developed a measurement scale through acknowledged procedures, entailing a multivariate structural model consisting of specific facilitators leading to effective alignment competencies. To the best of our knowledge, we are the first to propose such a scale

Evolving competencies to align electronic medical records - a dynamic resource-based perspective on hospitals' co-evolutionary information systems alignment capability

PURPOSE: Advanced Electronic Medical Records (EMR) provide many potential benefits to hospitals. However, because of their broad scope, many stakeholders deal with the EMR and a continuous effort has to be made to keep up with internal and external change. Therefore, hospitals need to deliberately shape their organizational competencies considering the pursuit of alignment, i.e. making sure that the EMR remains optimally aligned with strategies, goals and needs of the hospital and its stakeholders. This paper aims to investigate the evolutionary paths of these alignment competencies and their drivers, from a theoretical perspective of co-evolutionary information systems alignment (COISA). DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: This paper reports on a longitudinal multiple case study of three Dutch hospitals which each recently implemented an advanced EMR system. The authors conducted 35 in-depth interviews in 2 phases (before and after go-live of the EMR), and studied documentation related to the EMR implementations. FINDINGS: The findings show that each hospital's COISA capability shows a different evolutionary path. However, two of the three case hospitals ended up coordinating part of their COISA capability to an ecosystem level, i.e. they incorporated other hospitals using the same EMR system to coordinate their alignment efforts, either from an operational perspective, or in terms of orchestration and strategy. The found evolutionary paths' key drivers include “stakeholder initiative”, “accumulating experience”, “driving events” and “emerging issues”. ORIGINALITY/VALUE: The findings help healthcare practitioners to deliberately shape their organization's COISA capability in pursuit of EMR alignment. Furthermore, the authors add to the knowledge base on co-evolutionary approaches to alignment through the longitudinal approach