Managing In-Company IT Standardization: A Design Theory

2023 | Information Systems Frontiers | Citations: 0

Authors: Ahlemann, Frederik; Dittes, Sven; Fillbrunn, Tim; Rehring, Kevin; Reining, Stefan; Urbach, Nils

Abstract: Today’s companies rely heavily on in-company information technology standards (I ... Expand

Abstract: Today’s companies rely heavily on in-company information technology standards (ICITS) to reduce costs, ensure flexibility, and facilitate the planning, implementation, and operation of IT systems. Steering and managing ICITS has proven to be challenging, revealing the need for efficient governance mechanisms. But even though prior research demonstrates the challenges of ICITS, viable advice on how to implement ICITS is scarce. In this paper, we develop an organizational design theory for the management of ICITS based on the framework of organizational control theory. We conducted a critical case study to identify basic goals, constitutive elements, and fundamental mechanisms of a working ICITS management. The resulting design goals and principles were then evaluated and further refined in the light of additional expert interviews. With our work, we wish to extend the body of theoretical knowledge on the management of ICITS and help practitioners master the various challenges occurring in this domain. Collapse

Topics: information systems standardization enterprise architecture IS maturity organizational control decision making

Methods: design theory qualitative interview design principle descriptive statistic case study

Theories: organizational control theory

Does IT Enable Collusion or Competition: Examining the Effects of IT on Service Pricing in Multimarket Multihospital Systems

2023 | Management Information Systems Quarterly | Citations: 0

Authors: Du, Kui; Tanriverdi, Hüseyin

Abstract: In the U.S., multihospital systems (MHSs) charge significantly higher prices fo ... Expand

Abstract: In the U.S., multihospital systems (MHSs) charge significantly higher prices for hospital services than stand-alone hospitals. Rivalry restraint theory suggests that MHS with multimarket contact (MMC) can tacitly collude and mutually forebear from price competition to keep their prices above competitive levels. We posit that the success of such MMC-induced rivalry restraints (the truce) is affected by two conflicting roles of IT at the corporate level and market unit levels, respectively. The corporate parent seeks to standardize IT applications enterprise-wide to coordinate market units as a means of jointly implementing the rivalry restraint strategy and keeping prices high enterprise-wide. However, market units, i.e., the member hospitals of MHS clustered in geographic patient markets, face competitive pressures to reduce their service costs. Market units seek to use differentiated IT applications to achieve cost reductions, which then fuel price competition in local markets, jeopardize the sustainability of the truce, and weaken the enterprise-wide price effects of the corporate parent's rivalry restraint strategy. In a longitudinal study of 195 multihospital systems in the U.S. in the 2005-2013 time period, we found support for these ideas. The corporate-wide standardization of the operational IT of MHS complements the rivalry restraint strategy to increase enterprise-wide prices. Market units' use of differentiated analytical IT reduces costs in local markets and weakens the price effects of the rivalry restraint strategy. The study advances IS research and practice by theorizing how the corporate-level and the market unit-level IT of a multi-unit, multimarket (MUMM) organization can have opposing moderating effects on the link between MMC and the average prices charged by the MUMM organization. Collapse

Topics: analytical information system operational information system database system health information system decision making

Methods: theory development robustness check instrumental variables estimation longitudinal research data modeling

Compatibility promotion for standard development within shared platforms: A rising tide does not lift all boats

2023 | Electronic Markets | Citations: 0

Authors: Lindgren, Rikard; Saadatmand, Fatemeh; Schultze, Ulrike

Abstract: Selective promotion entails the exploitation of resources offered by individual ... Expand

Abstract: Selective promotion entails the exploitation of resources offered by individual complementors to improve a proprietary platform’s competitive position. However, as governance decisions to endorse a particular complementor are made unilaterally, such promotion is less suitable for shared platforms that are ultimately owned and managed by an ecosystem of heterogeneous, autonomous complementors. We explore compatibility promotion, which involves screening a shared stock of infrastructural resources and making a choice as to which complementor to promote in light of the capabilities the platform seeks to develop. Based on a longitudinal study of a shared platform that evolved around a new technology standard in the Swedish road haulage industry, we explicate how elevating one complementor over others unsettled the governance of the platform and denied the promoted complementors the opportunity to generate the kind of value that their elevated status implicitly promised. This made the platform better off at the expense of the promoted complementor. Our surprising insight lets us theorize why compatibility promotion in shared platforms renders outcomes opposite to those of selective promotion in proprietary platforms. Collapse

Topics: information systems standardization digital ecosystem sharing platform digital platform intellectual property

Methods: theory development qualitative interview action research longitudinal data analysis case study

Where blockchain could help - An analysis of challenges in ecosystems blockchain technology may help to solve

2023 | Americas Conference on Information Systems | Citations: 0

Authors: Schaefer, Benjamin; Vetterling, Dennis; Wrobel, Lasse; Jung, Reinhard

Abstract: ... Expand

Abstract: Collapse

Topics: blockchain digital ecosystem database system public key encryption peer-to-peer model

Methods: literature study structured literature research case study qualitative coding

Impact of digital leadership capability on innovation performance: The role of platform digitization capability

2022 | Information & Management | Citations: 1

Authors: Benitez, Jose; Arenas, Alvaro; Castillo, Ana; Esteves, Jose

Abstract: Following a mixed-methods approach, we theorized that digital leadership influen ... Expand

Abstract: Following a mixed-methods approach, we theorized that digital leadership influences innovation performance by digitalizing the firm’s platform. A multiple case study of ten companies was deployed to derive a theoretical model relating digital leadership and innovation performance. The resulting model was empirically tested on a sample of 117 European firms. We find that digital leadership improves a firm’s innovation performance by digitalizing the firm’s platform. We contribute to IS research by theoretically developing the concepts of digital leadership capability and platform digitization capability and empirically analyzing the relationship of these two critical IT capabilities and their impact on innovation performance. Collapse

Topics: innovation management IT leadership business process management information technology infrastructure data integration

Methods: qualitative interview survey mixed method theory development statistical power analysis

Digital Infrastructure Evolution: A Digital Trace Data Study

2022 | International Conference on Information Systems | Citations: 0

Authors: Drechsler, Katharina; Grisold, Thomas; Gau, Michael; Seidel, Stefan

Abstract: Digital infrastructures are socio-technical arrangements of physical objects, d ... Expand

Abstract: Digital infrastructures are socio-technical arrangements of physical objects, digital technologies, users, and processes. They constantly evolve and provide the foundation for the emergence and implementation of a variety of applications. But how and why do digital infrastructures evolve? In this short paper, we report on an ongoing study of an Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) system by drawing on digital trace data about the system's development process and using code complexity analysis. We present interaction patterns between the development of a digital infrastructure's core services on the one hand and the development of specific applications on the other. Based on these patterns, we point to several puzzles that we identify around digital infrastructure evolution. Collapse

Topics: systems development information technology infrastructure computer hardware mobile system internet of things

Methods: digital trace data theory development qualitative interview

Theories: co-evolution theory

Investigating the determinants of inter-organizational information sharing within criminal justice: A context-mechanism-outcome approach

2022 | Journal of Information Technology | Citations: 0

Authors: Iannacci, Federico; Simeonova, Boyka; Kawalek, Peter

Abstract: Focusing on inter-organizational information sharing in criminal justice, it is ... Expand

Abstract: Focusing on inter-organizational information sharing in criminal justice, it is found that, while poor project management leads to unsuccessful inter-organizational information sharing, a recipe for success is more demanding as it requires both compatible technologies and good project management implemented either by means of a top-down approach of strategic alignment or an emergent approach of bottom-up alignment. Though unplanned, the latter approach may lead to mistakes that are more correctable than the large mistakes stemming from top-down, deliberate planning. The study is an analysis of context-mechanism-outcome configurations of inter-organizational information sharing activities within criminal justice systems and demonstrates the causal asymmetry between positive and negative cases. Theoretical, methodological, and practical implications are discussed by highlighting the causal role of different types of governance structure in a crisp set configurational fashion. Collapse

Topics: information exchange project management government system IT governance IS success

Methods: case study focus group longitudinal research qualitative interview theory development

Theories: fuzzy set theory

Extending Digital Ventures Through Templating

2022 | Information Systems Research | Citations: 21

Authors: Huang, Jimmy; Henfridsson, Ola; Liu, Martin J.

Abstract: Digital ventures typically face significant growth expectations. A common respon ... Expand

Abstract: Digital ventures typically face significant growth expectations. A common response is to extend the current operations into new areas through repurposing its digital core (e.g., search engine, data mining technique, platform, or voice interface). Grounded in prior literature, we surmise that the high versatility of the digital venture’s digital core facilitates such an extension by reducing cost and increasing speed. However, we know little about the process by which digital ventures draw on their digital core to extend current operations. To this end, we use Penrose’s work to analyze a two-year in-depth case study of a Chinese digital venture’s extension of its initial operations based on its credit rating technology. Our findings suggest that digital venture extension is facilitated by templating, which is a digitally enabled process of generating and using generic solutions across business areas. Through our grounded analysis, we unpack templating by tracing three processes contributing to digital venture extension: concepting, generalizing, and porting. Synthesizing our findings, we contribute to the emerging digital innovation and entrepreneurship literature by developing a process model of digital venture extension. Collapse

Topics: digital product entrepreneurship innovation management digital innovation mobile application

Methods: business process modeling qualitative interview archival research design artifact case study

Theories: resource based view of the firm

Working Remotely, But Not Remotely Stress-Free: Identifying Technostressors in and Design Principles for Collaboration Systems

2022 | European Conference On Information Systems | Citations: 0

Authors: Reinelt, Annika; Benlian, Alexander

Abstract: Accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, remote e-working has become commonplace f ... Expand

Abstract: Accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, remote e-working has become commonplace for knowledge workers around the world. This has spurred an immense uptick in employees' use of collaboration systems (e.g., communications platforms, videoconferencing tools), raising the question how effective collaboration systems should be designed. To explore this, we interview 19 knowledge workers of various backgrounds (e.g., from chemicals, industrial, and consumer goods companies) and draw on the theoretical lens of the duality of technostress and the challenge-hindrance stressor framework to identify technology-driven challenge and hindrance stressors manifested in collaboration systems. Based on this understanding of the opportunities and threats represented by collaboration systems use, we follow a design science approach to propose general design requirements for such systems and derive tentative design principles to address identified stressor facets. We conclude by providing an outlook on next steps in the design science approach and drawing implications for researchers, designers, organizations, and users. Collapse

Topics: IT supported collaboration knowledge work information system use systems design pandemic

Methods: qualitative interview design requirement design principle personal interview design science

Theories: socio technical theory

How Green Information Technology Standards and Strategies Influence Performance: Role of Environment, Cost, and Dual Focus

2022 | Management Information Systems Quarterly | Citations: 0

Authors: Saldanha, Terence; Mithas, Sunil; Khuntia, Jiban; Whitaker, Jonathan; Melville, Nigel

Abstract: How do green information technology (IT) standards and organizational strategies ... Expand

Abstract: How do green information technology (IT) standards and organizational strategies jointly influence firms’ environmental sustainability and financial performance? This is an important question, as many firms adopt green IT standards without considering the fit with their organizational strategies and therefore face uncertain or mixed outcomes. We address this question by developing a theory-driven conceptual framework and collecting archival data on green IT standards and green IT organizational strategies from more than 230 firms in India. Our analysis yields two main findings. First, an environment-focused green IT organizational strategy has a stronger positive moderating effect than a cost-focused green IT organizational strategy on the association between green IT standards and sustainability-monitoring capability. Similarly, an environment-focused green IT organizational strategy has a stronger positive moderating effect than a cost-focused green IT organizational strategy on the association between green IT standards and financial profit. Second, a dual-focused green IT organizational strategy positively moderates the association between green IT standards and profit. This study provides a theoretical explanation and empirical evidence to support the salience of green IT standards and complementary organizational strategies in advancing environmental sustainability and financial performance objectives. It also informs managerial decision-making about how firms can choose the appropriate green IT organizational strategy to enhance sustainability-monitoring capability and the financial benefits of green IT standards. Collapse

Topics: information systems standardization green IS financial performance database system information systems strategy

Methods: robustness check survey descriptive statistic qualitative interview theory development

Theories: ambidexterity theory dynamic capabilities theory