Investigating IT Effectiveness: Perspectives Relative to Cultural Differentiation Between IT Users and Service Providers

Richmond Adebiaye

doi:10.11648/j.ajnc.20170603.11

Abstract

The inherent relationship between business and Information Technology creates two simultaneous constituencies of diverse organization architectures with correspondingly valued models. However, the widening chasm between information technology (IT) groups and their business Professionals produces perceptual and cultural gaps between the users and providers of IT services. Several studies have used inductive reasoning to investigate corporate culture, organizational architecture, and IT effectiveness to determine the best framework for mitigating these different perceptual and cultural gaps. Using technological self-efficacy theory, this study tests and analyzes the perceptual and cultural silos in the relationship between modern business and information technology services. The research provides empirical evidence that supports the research hypothesis that there exists the aforementioned chasm between business and IT services, leading to different approaches for delivering IT service in various business organizations. This chasm holds true of the silo effects for all firms regardless of the strategic intents of businesses and information technology. The study also shows a positive relationship between business and IT professionals with differential perceptions and cultural gaps. This relationship illustrates how business professionals rely on “trusted IT partners while IT professionals argue for a valued organizational model with high standards of efficiency and reliability”. The study ultimately provides a framework for measuring the perceived effectiveness of IT within business architecture and the alignment between providers of IT services and the strategic goals of a modern business.

Highlights

The increasing differences between Information Technology (IT) experts and their business Professionals have produced perceptual and cultural gaps between the IT service users and the IT services providers
The results show that Cronbach’s alpha for IT service effectiveness (DV) was 0.950 with a sample of 168 respondents, for perceptual and cultural aspects (IVs), Cronbach’s alpha was 0.803 with same sample size and the demographic factors (CVs) had Cronbach’s alpha of 0.783
It is worth noting that organizational architecture alone has influences on the perceptual and cultural differences of IT effectiveness (F=55.128 and p

Summary

Introduction

The increasing differences between Information Technology (IT) experts and their business Professionals have produced perceptual and cultural gaps between the IT service users and the IT services providers. This study, seeks to investigate IT effectiveness by examining how the widening chasm between IT experts and business groups has generated gaps in perceptual and cultural aspects among the IT users and IT providers, resulting in complex partnerships among the IT stakeholders. (a) To determine existing differences/gaps between the IT providers/experts and their business professionals (IT users). (b) To investigate how corporate cultural framework mitigates the perceptual and cultural differences between the IT service users and providers. (d) To determine how an IT effectiveness framework will help in the reduction of perceptual and cultural differences between the IT service users and providers. (c) To establish how IT providers and their business professionals’ plan organizational architecture ameliorate the perceptual and cultural differences between them.

Methods

Results

Conclusion