Contribution Of Information Systems Research Articles

Calling for Information Systems Research on Esports: An Overview Study

Online gaming has become a pervasive entertainment activity, and its professionalization has resulted in esports (i.e., electronic sports)—a new blend of sport and business. Esports has a promising future given its widespread acceptance and significant business value. Its innovative nature necessitates more research to help understand and shape its future. We hold that scholars, especially information systems (IS) researchers, should pay more attention to this phenomenon since the IS discipline has a key interest in examining esports’ constituents (i.e., people, organizations, and technologies). To increase research attention and help readers understand esports, we compiled this research overview. In it, we first comprehensively define esports. Then, we summarize the esports development. We outline the current state of research in general and systematically review the IS perspective. Based on these efforts, we propose an esports research framework with four promising IS research avenues. We end by discussing “IS contributions” to esports and this overview’s implications. This study serves as a foundation for comprehensively mapping the esports practice and research landscape. We hope our findings can help others, especially IS researchers, more clearly understand esports and guide them towards creating increasingly impactful works.

Interplay between information systems and environmental management in ISO 14001-certified companies

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to identify the contributions of information systems (IS) for the evolutionary process of corporate environmental management by highlighting implications for big data research.Design/methodology/approachThe authors conducted two case studies with Brazilian enterprises certified by ISO 14001, by conducting interviews, document analysis and direct observation. Implications for a research agenda on big data are also presented.FindingsAs results, the authors present the identification of the main contributions of IS for the evolution of environmental management in the studied cases. The authors found that advanced stage regarding IS may be considered a factor that implies a more effective environmental management.Originality/valueThe main contribution of this research consists of the presentation of a framework that identifies the support of IS for corporate environmental practices. By confirming the relation between IS and maturity levels of environmental management, the authors highlight that application of big data has the potential of boosting the relation between IS and corporate environmental management.

Approaching information system evaluation methodology and techniques: a comprehensive review

This paper advances our knowledge of information systems (IS) by drawing ideas and insights from IT/IS evaluation. The emergence and increasing pressure to invest in new IS architecture and infrastructures has become a high priority issue within organisations, and largely influenced by the need to deliver better value products and service through robust and responsive supply chains. With this in mind, business managers are seeking to use appropriate methods and techniques to appraise and justify the financial contribution of IS at strategic, operational and tactical levels. Thus, comprehensive but understandable methodologies are needed to solve the complicated project justification problems arising from the complexity of new technologies. Notwithstanding, a wide body of literature has emerged that sheds light on various methods for evaluating the cost and benefits of IT/IS investment, ranging from simple to very complex techniques. This paper sets out to provide a review of this literature in order to lend insights into our understanding of the plethora of reported research in the literature that has propagated investment justification and benefits management models and frameworks. We show that the IT/IS evaluation literature contributes significantly to scholarship on the IS.

Designing Business Models and Similar Strategic Objects: The Contribution of IS

In this paper, we argue that information systems (IS) research has the potential to contribute to improving strategic planning, just like it has substantially contributed to improving decision making and its support in organizations in the past. Based on our work and experience in the field of business models, we outline how IS research can help strategic management researchers study the design of business models and other similar strategic notions. The paper suggests that the current research focus in strategic management could be improved and enlightened by some of the more conceptual and design-oriented research in IS. We highlight three areas in particular in which IS research has excelled that could inform research in strategic management. The first area concerns the identification, formalization, and visualization of the core constructs and models of interest related to the design and analysis of strategic business issues. The second area corresponds to the exploration of how design techniques and tools might contribute to improving the design of answers and alternatives to strategic business questions. The third area addresses the research in computer-aided design assisting the process of designing strategic management objects such as business models.

The effects of IS resources, capabilities, and qualities on organizational performance: An integrated approach

Several theories, such as the resource-based view (RBV) and the information systems (IS) success model (ISSM), have provided inconclusive results on the impacts of IS on business processes and organizational performance. The current study reviews the effects of these theories in terms of IS resources, capabilities and qualities, and further proposes an integrated approach for examining organizational performance. Our integrated model was statistically tested by using a structural equation modeling (SEM) method. Our results provide an integrated view of the associations among theories and enhance the understanding of IS contributions to organizational performance.

The IS–business relationship and its implications for performance: An empirical study of South African and Australian organisations

Lack of a close ‘Information systems (IS)–business relationship’ has been described as a potential inhibitor to improving the contribution that information systems (IS) make to business performance. Yet the value of specific attributes of an enduring relationship between IS and business remains to be demonstrated by empirically confirming their link to IS performance. Using data collected from 167 South African and Australian companies, this study examined the effect of three relational attributes, namely commitment, mutual understanding and shared vision, on the contribution of IS to business performance. The study also examines the interrelationship amongst the relational attributes. Results revealed that a strong IS–business relationship is a significant determinant of IS performance. Organisations more successful in their use of IS are characterised by strong commitment on the part of the business to IS efforts, higher levels of IS understanding of the business, and a long-term agreement, between business and IS executives, on IS priorities. Results have important implications for organisations looking to improve the contribution of IS to organisational performance.

Security of Organizations' Information Systems (IS) and the Auditors: A Schematic Study

The purpose of IS security is to protect an organization's valuable information and knowledge resources, such as information, data, hardware, and software. Over the past few years, the potential of criticality of information systems (IS) and its equally critical support to organizational activities to gain competitive advantage has been widely recognized. Competencies in the area of IS are becoming increasingly important (Quinn & Paquette, 1990) in business organizations. At the level of strategy, there is a genre of organizational activities dedicated to realizing this potential. It has been claimed that strategic IS planning can help an organization visualize the potential contribution of IS (Lederer & Gardiner, 1992). The purpose of this paper is to outline and review the organizational requirement of IS security vis-a-vis the strategic mission of the auditors and the entities. The entire discourse is based on the cause-effect analysis pertaining to the auditing best practices, cost effectiveness, and system owners' transgression of responsibilities beyond their domains. The concept of total and comprehensive approach with the need for periodical reassessment is described in brief and applied to show why and how IS security supports the mission of auditors and the owners. The concluding part of this paper revisits and identifies the impact of society-centric factors on IS security establishment and mechanism.

Organizational Environment and Information Systems

The convergence of information technologies has opened new vistas of opportunities as well as risks for organizations. Organization structure, controls, and management have all witnessed a sea change with their information systems (IS) becoming technology driven. IS is seen as a strategic tool that must be watched carefully in order to lead to corporate vision. For the first users, IS may bring competitive advantage but, for most, it becomes a need for survival. To sustain in this dynamic environment, executives need to be on all- time-alert to make sure that they do not lag behind competition. A study of best-run organizations indicates that to keep business and IS aligned, they have highly collaborative behaviour as well as well-defined policy for evaluating IS. This paper suggests an ACE Model – a 3-ring model, comprising of processes to (A)dapt, (C)ollaborate and (E)valuate, in order to establish and evaluate organizational effectiveness for improved IS effectiveness in the organizations. At the core is the need to cultivate a culture to adapt the latest tools and techniques for higher end use. Next, the people must collaborate and work in teams for faster and beneficial plans and implementation. Finally, a well-defined process for constant monitoring and refinements of the plans is required. The rings signify continuity of the three processes. These processes should not be triggered at specific intervals. Rather, these must be imbibed in the culture of the organization so that the employees breathe in and breathe out the same thoughts and execute them together. The model offers a simple, flexible, and modular approach to assess organization's environment for IS effectiveness on a 5-point scale. This paper highlights the following issues: There is a need for IS evaluation vis-a-vis organizational environment. In order to realize value from IT, it is worthwhile to analyse and ensure an effective environment in the organization that is conducive to change of technology and systems. This can ensure alignment of organization, its purpose, employees, functions, and stakeholders. Irrespective of the technologies in use, organizational evaluation process must be an indicator of contribution of IS towards growth or sustenance of business though the opponents of IS evaluation may like to conclude this as infeasible on the ground that IS benefits are largely intangible and hence unquantifiable. The findings of this study can help the business organizations in identifying and improving the environment for cultivating IS in their organizations. It is recommended to have more software tools for decision-making and information analysis so that the spending on IT can be utilized better. Decision makers can deploy the suggested model on their intranets to keep a constant watch on the culture of the organization and act accordingly in order to keep the effectiveness index to the highest level.

Knowledge Management and Organisational Effectiveness: balancing the mild, the wild and the crazy

In the Knowledge Age, effective Knowledge Management (KM) is seen as fundamental to the survival of many organisations. Information Systems (IS) increasingly underpin KM in such organisations. The value of the contribution of IS to the goals of these organisations depends on balancing various conflicting requirements. For example, stable, robust and reliable business processes are often fundamental to their efficient operation. However, less structured environments are conducive to the innovation and knowledge creation that are considered to be fundamental to their on-going effective operation. The paper presents a model developed to relate these conflicting requirements to organisational effectiveness and describes how it was used to examine the outcomes of a Knowledge Management study conducted in the Australian Defence Organisation.

Information systems and competitive advantage: a competency-based view

In this paper, we offer a competency-based view of how information systems (IS) can be used to achieve competitive advantage. Building on the resource-based research that links distinctive organizational competencies to sustainable competitive advantage, we argue that the potential contributions of IS to competitive advantage can be understood in terms of their impact on the development and utilization of distinctive organizational competencies. To explore the potential IS linkage to organizational competencies, we examine whether and to what extent IS can be used to foster and facilitate the development and utilization of three types of organizational competencies at the operational level: input-based competencies, transformation-based competencies and output-based competencies. Our analysis shows that IS may play an important role in enabling firms to develop and leverage these organizational competencies. We discuss research and managerial implications of the competency-based framework for the strategic management of IS.

Assessing the impact of proactive versus reactive modes of strategic information systems planning

Integration between business planning (BP) and information systems planning (ISP) is crucial for the information systems (IS) function to more effectively support business strategies. This study examines two modes of ISP — reactive and proactive — as defined by the extent of BP–ISP integration. Questionnaires were sent to 600 firms (addressed to IS executives and business planners) and 157 usable matched responses were received (26.2% response rate). Statistical analyses determined that firms operating in a proactive mode had significantly higher status for IS executive, significantly greater perceived IS contributions to organizational performance and significantly fewer ISP problems than did those operating in a reactive planning mode. Prescriptions such as IS plans should be as comprehensive and complete as possible; and involvement of top managers and users is important for greater perceived benefits of ISP, are made based on the results.

The impact of information systems on the efficiency of banks: an empirical investigation

Financial institutions, and banks, in particular, are one of the largest investors in information systems (IS) and information technologies (IT) and there are indications that this trend is likely to continue. However, there is growing concern that IS investments are not yielding the anticipated results, an issue that is of grave concern to many CEOs and top managers. One way to address this concern is to analyse the relationship, if any, between investments in IS and an organization’s efficiency measures. Reports the results of an empirical study that assesses the role and contribution of ISs to a bank’s efficiency, based on a study of nationalized banks in the state of Florida. More specifically, reports on the role of ISs in achieving business goals, improving productivity, and enhancing customer service in banks.

An empirical investigation of the contribution of IS to manufacturing productivity

Next to the financial sector, the manufacturing industry is the second largest investor in information systems (IS) and technologies (IT). However, in recent years, many CEOs have expressed skepticism and disappointment on the returns from investments in IS. There is reluctance on the part of these CEOs to continue to invest in IS because of a nagging feeling that existing systems are often under-utilized. The dissatisfaction of CEOs with returns on them combined with the suspicion that existing IS are under-utilized clearly has serious implications for the IS community. Using empirical survey data of small and large manufacturing firms in the electronic industry, this paper investigates whether, in fact, IS are under-utilized and, if so, explores the underlying reasons for this situation. In particular, we explore the differences, if any, between small and large manufacturing firms in their ability to deploy and utilize IS to achieve organizational excellence.

Assessing the impact of integrating business planning and IS planning

One of the key elements of strategic planning for information systems (IS) is the integration of IS planning (ISP) and business planning (BP). Although this issue has received significant attention in recent years, empirical research focusing specifically on it is still relatively sparse. Here, BP-ISP integration is considered in four ways (administrative, sequential, reciprocal, and full integration), reflecting various degrees of BP-ISP integration. The relationships between these and organizational impact (measured in terms of the extent of ISP problems and the extent of IS contributions to organizational performance) are investigated through the analysis of data gathered in a “matched pair” field survey of business planners and IS executives. The results empirically validate the importance of BP-ISP integration, since it was found to have a significant positive relationship with IS contributions to organization performance and a significant negative relationship to the extent of ISP problems.

Paradox Lost? Firm-Level Evidence on the Returns to Information Systems Spending

The “productivity paradox” of information systems (IS) is that, despite enormous improvements in the underlying technology, the benefits of IS spending have not been found in aggregate output statistics. One explanation is that IS spending may lead to increases in product quality or variety which tend to be overlooked in the aggregate statistics, even if they increase output at the firm-level. Furthermore, the restructuring and cost-cutting that are often necessary to realize the potential benefits of IS have only recently been undertaken in many firms. Our study uses new firm-level data on several components of IS spending for 1987–1991. The dataset includes 367 large firms which generated approximately 1.8 trillion dollars in output in 1991. We supplemented the IS data with data on other inputs, output, and price deflators from other sources. As a result, we could assess several econometric models of the contribution of IS to firm-level productivity. Our results indicate that IS spending has made a substantial and statistically significant contribution to firm output. We find that the gross marginal product (MP) for computer capital averaged 81% for the firms in our sample. We find that the MP for computer capital is at least as large as the marginal product of other types of capital investment and that, dollar for dollar, IS labor spending generates at least as much output as spending on non-IS labor and expenses. Because the models we applied were similar to those that have been previously used to assess the contribution of IS and other factors of production, we attribute the different results to the fact that our data set is more current and larger than others explored. We conclude that the productivity paradox disappeared by 1991, at least in our sample of firms.

Assessing strategic information systems planning

Strategic Information Systems (IS) planning has become a key management issue for both practitioners and academic researchers because of the increasingly significant impact of IS on organizations' operations and the need for many to develop a long-term vision that will enable IS to play a more strategic role. This study addresses a variety of issues related to IS planning including analysing the planning practices of organizations, their impacts on organizations, and the effects of some organizational / environmental factors on IS planning practices. A large-scale field survey of IS planning practices of 245 U.S. firms provided the data for the study. The results indicate that most organizations have some form of IS planning, but there is wide variation in the planning practices among organizations. The information input from business plans and planning resources is found to significantly influence the quality of the planning process. The quality of the planning process, in turn, significantly influences the contributions of IS to an organization's performance. The role of IS in the organization is also found to significantly influence the planning practices in organizations.