Firm-level benefits of IT-enabled resources: A conceptual extension and an empirical assessment

IT Governance mechanism and IT-enabled dynamic capabilities drives firm performance: An empirical study in Sri Lanka

Despite the growing amount of IT investment, IT governance decisions have ever more become complicated due to vague cost relationships, uncertain payoffs, rapid technological changes, and uncertain business environments. This study examines how IT governance mechanism and IT-enabled dynamic capabilities (ITDC) impact on firm performance in the turbulent environment. Drawing on the resource-based theory and dynamic capability theory this study conceptualizes that IT governance mechanism positively effect ITDC, that in turn positively impact on business process agility and firm innovative capability to achieve firm performance. Further, the moderating effect of turbulent environment is hypothesized between ITDC - business process agility and ITDC - firm innovative capability relationship. The finding from 188 senior IT and business manager's responses from Sri Lanka reveals the strong and positive relationship in the hypothesized relationship. In contrary to the expectation, the turbulent environment's both hypotheses (H6a and H6b) failed to show a significant moderating effect. This study proposes the theoretical and practical implications by empirically testing the proposed model in the Sri Lankan context. This study adds to the existing literature and extends the managerial practice by focusing on the key constructs such as IT governance mechanism, ITDC, Turbulent environment, and firm performance

Organizational E-Readiness for the Digital Transformation of Primary Healthcare Providers during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Poland

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced many countries to implement a variety of restrictive measures to prevent it from spreading more widely, including the introduction of medical teleconsultations and the use of various tools in the field of inpatient telemedicine care. Digital technologies provide a wide range of treatment options for patients, and at the same time pose a number of organizational challenges for medical entities. Therefore, the question arises of whether organizations are ready to use modern telemedicine tools during the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of this article is to examine two factors that impact the level of organizational e-readiness for digital transformation in Polish primary healthcare providers (PHC). The first factor comprises operational capabilities, which are the sum of valuable, scarce, unique, and irreplaceable resources and the ability to use them. The second factor comprises technological capabilities, which determine the adoption and usage of innovative technologies. Contrary to the commonly analyzed impacts of technology on operational capabilities, we state the reverse hypothesis. The verification confirms the significant influence of operational capabilities on technological capabilities. The research is conducted using a questionnaire covering organizational e-readiness for digital transformation prepared by the authors. Out of the 32 items examined, four are related to the operational capabilities and four to the technological capabilities. The result of our evaluation shows that: (i) a basic set of four variables can effectively measure the dimensions of OC, namely the degree of agility, level of process integration, quality of resources, and quality of cooperation; (ii) a basic set of three variables can effectively measure the dimensions of TC, namely adoption and usage of technologies, customer interaction, and process automation; (iii) the empirical results show that OC is on a higher level than TC in Polish PHCs; (iv) the assessment of the relationship between OC and TC reveals a significant influence of operational capabilities on technological capabilities with a structural coefficient of 0.697. We recommend increasing the level of technological capability in PHC providers in order to improve the contact between patients and general practitioners (GPs) via telemedicine in lockdown conditions.

Information technology (IT) governance and IT capability to realize firm performance: enabling role of agility and innovative capability

Purpose

With the ever-growing turbulent business setting, there is a great interest to study how a firm tailors information technology (IT) capability to shape agility and innovation capability to stay ahead of the competition. This study examines how IT governance and IT capability can be tailored to achieve firm performance through agility and innovative capability in a turbulent environment.

Design/methodology/approach

Drawing on the dynamic capability theory, this study based on the primary survey data of 253 responses from senior IT and business executives in China proves the hypothesized relationship in the proposed model.

Findings

This study shows that the IT governance mechanism positively impacts on IT-enabled dynamic capabilities. Further, IT-enabled dynamic capabilities positively impact on agility and innovative capability that in turn support to achieve firm performance. The environmental uncertainty is only significant in the IT-enabled dynamic capabilities–business process agility relationship.

Research limitations/implications

This study suggests corporate leaders and executives to better exploit their resources and tailor IT capabilities in the turbulent environment. Further, this study offers theoretical and practical implications.

Originality/value

This study proposes ways for executives to examine the multifaceted nature of environmental uncertainty to achieve agility, innovation and firm performance rather than simply investing in IT.

How do agribusinesses thrive through complexity? The pivotal role of e-commerce capability and business agility

The recent COVID-19 pandemic has clearly shown how agricultural foods and e-commerce initiatives are critical for many organizations, regions, and countries worldwide. Despite this vital importance, prior IS research on the business value of IT has not paid enough attention to the potential specificities of the agribusinesses. This study examines the impact of e-commerce capability on business agility in agribusinesses. Using a sample of Chinese agriculture firms, we find that: 1) The e-commerce capability of agribusinesses enables two types of business agility: market capitalizing agility and operational adjustment agility, and 2) while environmental complexity positively moderates the effects of e-commerce capability on the market capitalizing agility and operational adjustment agility, environmental dynamism does not. This study contributes to the IS research on the business value of IT by providing an eloquent theoretical explanation and empirical evidence on how e-commerce capability help agricultural firms to thrive through complexity by enabling market capitalizing agility (strategic focus) and operational adjustment agility (operational focus).

The Role of Information Systems in the Sustainable Development of Enterprises: A Systematic Literature Network Analysis

Information Systems (IS) play an important role in improving the efficiency of firms’ operations and supply chains, which links to sustainability. Therefore, this study conducted a systematic literature network analysis to review 132 articles that discuss current trends in the IS discipline. Based on a citation network analysis, this study discovered three main research domains (sustainable competitive advantage, environmental sustainability, and sustainable online social communities), and two emerging research domains (the role of IS in developing countries and sustainable information infrastructures). Furthermore, a main path analysis was conducted to understand the knowledge structure of each research domain. This addresses how different trends are reflected in the IS literature related to improving firms’ competitive advantages and environmental sustainability. The results found that the sustainable competitiveness of enterprises is improved by the synergy between IS and other recourses within in the enterprises. Green IS initiatives not only solve the issues of environmental sustainability, but also enhance sustainable competitive advantage (i.e., stock price). As social media becomes the optimal enterprise communication channel, this study discusses the factors affecting sustainable online social community, such as structural dynamics (i.e., membership size, communication activity), social dynamics (the basic nature of interactions among members), participation costs, and topic consistency. Overall, the Information System literature is highly focused on three areas—economy, environment, and society, which supports Triple Bottom Line theory.

Conceptualizing big data practices

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide a conceptual understanding of Big Data practices in organizations, which will enable exploring the operational and strategic roles of Big Data in organizational performance.

Design/methodology/approach

Both academic and non-academic literature studies on Big Data were reviewed so as to capture what was known about Big Data practices. Qualitative interviews were conducted with firm executives about Big Data practices in their organizations. Both literature review and interview results were analyzed based on the dynamic capabilities perspective.

Findings

The analysis of the results suggests that Big Data capability develops when the resources parts of Big Data and the skill and competency parts are integrated and then grow into a dynamic capability.

Research limitations/implications

This study contributes to the literature with the concept of Big Data capability that best characterizes Big Data practices in organizations. Validity of this concept should be tested in empirical studies.

Originality/value

The development of the concept of Big Data capability helps to fill a gap in the research literature that theoretical understanding of big data practices is lacking or needs to be updated. It motivates practitioners to develop this capability so as to create and maintain their strategic advantage.

Exploring the Impact of a Telehealth Care System on Organizational Capabilities and Organizational Performance from a Resource-Based Perspective

This study explored the effects of information technology (IT) resources-in conjunction with IT infrastructure and organizational resources-on organizational capabilities and performance. The study further analyzed the mediating effect of organizational capabilities on the relationship between IT resources and organizational performance. A cross-sectional research design was adopted, and questionnaire copies were administered to senior care supervisors of Taiwanese day care centers, care institutions, and hospitals. In total, 328 valid questionnaire responses were obtained. The study results are summarized as follows: (1) A direct effect analysis revealed that IT infrastructure significantly affected service performance and financial performance; organizational resources significantly affected service performance but did not significantly affect financial performance. (2) A mediation model analysis indicated that organizational capabilities exerted a mediating effect on the relationship between IT resources and organizational performance. These results can serve as a reference for medical care organizations in developing strategies for reviewing internal IT resources, integrating internal and external capabilities, creating a competitive advantage, and boosting their performance.

Reconceptualizing synergy to explain the value of business analytics systems

How can we use synergy to explain the value created by business analytics systems? In this article, we conceptualize and operationalize two important aspects of synergy: namely, the synergistic relationship and the synergistic outcome. We explore the enablers and mechanisms that are involved in a synergistic relationship between business analytics systems and customer relationship management systems and define it as the ability of systems to work together, span their boundaries and complement each other. Synergistic outcomes are the new business analytics–enabled customer relationship management systems that emerge from the synergistic relationship between business analytics systems and customer relationship management systems. Taking a whole system perspective, business analytics–enabled customer relationship management systems comprise the components and the emergent properties that arise from their interaction (e.g. the ability to cross-sell and up-sell based on advanced computational methods), in which the emergent properties are new because they do not exist in the individual components. We develop a research model that uses Synergistic Relationship and Synergistic Outcomes to explain the business value created by business analytics systems and customer relationship management systems, and we test this model using a survey of 201 managers in Australia and the United States. We find that the synergistic relationship plays a significant role in the creation of business analytics–enabled customer relationship management systems and subsequently business value. Business analytics–enabled customer relationship management systems—comprising business analytics systems, customer relationship management systems and their emergent properties—contribute to transactional, informational and strategic value. This goes beyond the value created by the business analytics and customer relationship management systems individually, as measured through statistical interaction.

Does participation in health information exchange improve hospital efficiency?

The federal government allocated nearly $30 billion to spur the development of information technology infrastructure capable of supporting the exchange of interoperable clinical data, leading to growth in hospital participation in health information exchange (HIE) networks. HIEs have the potential to improve care coordination across healthcare providers, leading ultimately to increased productivity of health services for hospitals. However, the impact of HIE participation on hospital efficiency remains unclear. This dynamic prompts the question asked by this study: does HIE participation improve hospital efficiency. This study estimates the effect of HIE participation on efficiency using a national sample of 1017 hospitals from 2009 to 2012. Using a two-stage analytic design, efficiency indices were determined using the Malmquist algorithm and then regressed on a set of hospital characteristics. Results suggest that any participation in HIE can improve both technical efficiency change and total factor productivity (TFP). A second model examining total years of HIE participation shows a benefit of one and three years of participation on TFP. These results suggest that hospital investment in HIE participation may be a useful strategy to improve hospital operational performance, and that policy should continue to support increased participation and use of HIE. More research is needed to identify the exact mechanisms through which HIE participation can improve hospital efficiency.

Characteristics of Project Management Assets and Project Management Process Outcomes

The resource-based view of the firm from strategic management literature is applied to examine project management as a source of competitive advantage. In this view, assets contribute to competitive advantage if they add economic value, are rare, are difficult to imitate, and have organizational support. This research examines project management assets and project management process outcomes in a cross-industry study that attempts to replicate findings from a prior study, using the same survey tool with a larger sample. Exploratory factor analysis extracted four factors that comprised characteristics of project management assets that are valuable, rare, and inimitable, three factors that comprised of organizational support for project management assets, and two factors that comprised of project management process outcomes. The extracted factors mostly replicated the findings from the prior study; differences emerged in the factors that comprised of project management assets.

Integration through orchestration

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the mechanisms through which the use of enterprise systems (ESs) enhances buyer-supplier integration (BSI). More specifically, the authors explain a model where ES enhances BSI indirectly, mediated by inventory management capabilities (IMCs), as the way ES enhances BSI remains under-explored in the literature.

Design/methodology/approach

Application of the resource orchestration framework to explain how capabilities and mechanisms interplay to enhance BSI. Data were collected by means of a survey instrument. Data collection took place as part of a larger project, sponsored by the Spanish Government, to evaluate logistics competitiveness in Spain.

Findings

ES enhances BSI by serving as a coordinating mechanism that maintains capability configurations in a value-creating alignment. IMC plays a key, yet under-explored role as a mediating mechanism that supports ES-enabled BSI.

Research limitations/implications

First, this research does not fully capture the multi-party nature of the supply chain context. Second, data collection was limited to companies that were more likely to have a systematic approach to logistics issues (i.e. large- and medium-sized companies) and companies based in Spain.

Originality/value

This paper enhances both scholarly and practitioner understanding of the mechanisms through which the implementation and use of ES contributes to BSI. In addition, this paper integrates literature from different fields (e.g. strategy, information systems, and operations) to gain a better understanding of how the implementation and use of ES affects BSI.

Examining organizations’ continued use of open source technologies

Purpose

Our knowledge of why organizations continue to use open source software (OSS) infrastructure technologies is relatively limited, and existing models appear inadequate to explain this continuance phenomenon given that they are set at the individual level and also do not take into account the unique characteristics of OSS. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

Using an institutional perspective, this paper posits that coercive (business value of IT) and normative (open source ideology (IDEO)) factors may be credited with sustaining the continued use of OSS technologies. The study argues that organizations that subscribe to IDEO are more likely to continue using OSS technologies. Survey data are collected from organizations that have implemented an OSS infrastructure technology and a moderated multiple regression analysis is performed to test the proposed hypotheses.

Findings

In addition to the business value provided by OSS technologies, adherence to IDEO also impacts decisions to continue using those technologies. The results suggest that once an OSS is implemented in an organization, IDEO can enhance organizations’ intentions to continue using such technologies, directly, as well as indirectly, by amplifying the impact of the perceived business value of the technology.

Originality/value

Much of extant literature on continued use focuses on end-user technologies. This paper is one of the first to focus on infrastructure technologies and examine organizations’ intentions to continue using those technologies by developing a parsimonious theory-driven model for examining organizations’ continued use intentions toward infrastructure IT. Additionally, much of open source research to date has been inwardly focused, and this paper is one of few empirical studies to focus on the demand or consumption side of OSS technologies.

Competing Through Knowledge and Information Systems Strategies: A Study of Small and Medium-Sized Firms

In this study, we investigated strategies that small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Canada employ to create, transfer, and apply knowledge, and we evaluated the importance of supporting dynamic knowledge capabilities and information systems. To examine the empirical support for a model based on the resource-based view of the firm, we conducted a survey of SMEs operating in knowledge-intensive industries. We tested relationships among knowledge strategy, information systems strategy, dynamic knowledge capabilities, and firm performance. SME performance was measured by their physical and financial capital, as well as four intangible types of capital: structural, human, innovation, and relational. We observed that dynamic knowledge capabilities only partially mediate the link between knowledge strategy and performance in SMEs. However, dynamic knowledge capabilities fully mediate the link between information systems (IS) strategy and performance in the small and medium-sized firms studied. We observed that information systems only indirectly influence firm performance, but they directly support the knowledge and innovation capital of SMEs. Further, our results indicated that, in SMEs, knowledge strategies directly influence IS strategies, and that alignment between knowledge strategies and IS strategies positively impacts dynamic knowledge capabilities, and hence firm performance.

Analysis of interactions between IT and organisational resources in a manufacturing organisation using cross-impact analysis

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to contribute to a growing body of research on the applicability of resource-based theory (RBT) to the information systems (IS) area. In particular, the paper provides an understanding of the IS value creation process, and strategies for managing it by demonstrating the application of cross-impact analysis.

Design/methodology/approach

– RBT and systems theory are adopted as a theoretical framework in this study. Cross-impact analysis is used as a method for investigating interactions among elements of an IS value creation system. These elements were identified through 22 semi-structured interviews with organisational stakeholders, and assessed in terms of direction and strength of their interactions, and depicted in a coordinate system.

Findings

– The result of the analysis is a meaningful classification of elements in an IS value creation system as: levers, indicators, identities, buffers or trends, based on their position in the system. The results provide additional clarity and insights into the relationships between IS and organisational resources and their effect on IS value.

Research limitations/implications

– The research findings have important implications for researchers and managers in terms of understanding the impact of interactions among IS and organisational resources on formulating successful strategies for managing the IS value creation system.

Originality/value

– This study explores interactions among IS/information technology resources and organisational resources by using cross-impact analysis. It shows that interactions among the identified resources do have a major influence on the overall IS value creation system.

Netsourcing Strategies for Vendors: A Resource-based and Transaction Cost Economics Perspective

This paper discusses Netsourcing strategies for vendors, a little explored area of outsourcing research, using both a resource-based (RBV) perspective and a transaction cost economics (TCE) perspective. Using both theories and an infrastructural view of Information Technology service, we present a conceptual model of vendor sourcing decisions. We then present a number of propositions based on case studies of vendor decisions. Finally we conclude by discussing the theoretical contribution of RBV and TCE and, crucially, the value of combining both theories for the study of Netsourcing, and for other areas of IS research.

Valor da tecnologia da informação na firma: estudo com empresas brasileiras

Estudos realizados no início de 2000, a partir de dados objetivos de desempenho, confirmaram o valor da Tecnologia da Informação (TI) diretamente no nível da firma (A. S. Bharadwaj, 2000; Santhanam & Hartono, 2003). Contudo, a literatura recente tem sinalizado para resultados distintos, tendo em vista a padronização na oferta de produtos e serviços de TI. Na perspectiva da Teoria Baseada em Recursos, o artigo testa se o valor da TI continua a ser captado pelas medidas de desempenho da firma, conforme estudos realizados no início de 2000 com firmas americanas. Para isso, reúne dados objetivos e variáveis de 149 empresas líderes em TI no Brasil, no período de 2008 a 2011. Utilizando a Regressão Linear e a análise de dados em painel, testou-se aquela associação e constatou-se que as capacidades de TI estão associadas ao desempenho em apenas quatro dos 32 relacionamentos testados, sendo um negativo. Portanto, no conjunto, confirmou-se o impacto nulo das capacidades de TI diretamente no nível da firma - corroborando as demandas da literatura para análise desse impacto em níveis intermediários de desempenho. Limitações e oportunidades de pesquisa constam nas conclusões.

IT can matter: co-evolution fostering IT competitive advantage

Purpose

– This article revisits Nicolas Carr's popular Harvard Review articleIT Doesn't Matteron its ten-year anniversary. The purpose is to analyze Carr's argument by analyzing the development of the argument itself as opposed to finding exceptions to the argument, which has been done in the past.

Design/methodology/approach

– The authors use co-evolutionary theory as a case against Carr's argument by showing that Carr has only looked at the growth of IT from a population ecology perspective and has failed to anticipate the adaptive nature of IT within the organization.

Findings

– The authors show that Carr's new rules for IT management may not be applicable if viewed through the lens of the three principles of self-renewing organizations espoused by co-evolutionary theory.

Research limitations/implications

– The authors provide a new basis for evaluating the strategic nature of IT and offer a background for future research and case studies into evaluating IT strategic competitive advantage within the organization.

Practical implications

– The research provides guidelines for organizations to better decide how to strategically implement IT to more fully utilize its capabilities.

Originality/value

– The paper provides a new method for refuting a popular article by attacking the argument as opposed to finding exceptions to the argument. This is valuable to those who wish to evangelize the strategic capacity of IT within the organization.

Absorptive Capacity and ERP Implementation in Indian Medium-Sized Firms

Whilst absorptive capacity has been identified as an important contributor to the effective implementation of IT systems, previous studies have failed to explicitly consider the contribution of individual and organizational knowledge processes. Nine case studies of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) implementation were undertaken. The case studies were all undertaken in SMEs in a developing country since this is an important but under researched area for the application of the concept of absorptive capacity. A particular implication of the findings is that firms lacking knowledge of IT implementation cannot simply seek this from external sources but must develop internal organizational knowledge processes if their implementations of IT systems are to be effective. This finding is particularly pertinent to the developing country and SME context of this study, where low levels of experience within the firm and the loss of experienced staff are found to impact on the development of absorptive capacity.