Inter-organizational Information Systems Research Articles

A model of the adoption of radio frequency identification technology: The case of logistics service firms

Globalization and advances in information technology represent both realities and opportunities for enterprises in the 21st century. This paper aims to broaden understanding of service innovation as a critical organizational capability through which the adoption of information technology influences firm performance. This study examines how the adoption of radio frequency identification (RFID) technology influences the operational performance of logistics service firms. We develop the RFID adoption model based on the interorganizational information systems (IOS) view of the firm that integrates the various strands of research into the framework. The study draws from the related information technology and interorganizational information systems literatures to explore organizational factors associated with the adoption of RFID. A model of the associations between information technology and interorganizational information systems use, social support, power structure, organizational readiness, procedural flexibility, and top management support is developed, and hypotheses are advanced about the relationships among these constructs. An empirical survey was conducted among 500 logistics service firms in Taiwan. A total of 131 valid observations were analyzed using the partial least squares technique. Results showed that RFID adoption has positive effects on business practices, which in turn improves operational performance. We address the value of certain interactive firm behaviors in RFID adoption and identify related constructs of RFID adoption in terms of their efficiency and value for logistics service firms. These results have implications for both education and practice.

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Literature Review and Research Issues in e-Procurement

Over the last couple of years, e-Procurement has received tremendous attention from researchers and practitioners alike. However research on e-Procurement is still scarce and scattered. This paper looks into prior research on interorganizational information systems (IOIS), electronic data interchange (EDI), channel management and procurement to develop a research framework and identify research issues in e-Procurement defining important terms such as volume, width and depth of e-Procurement and classifying the ownership and governance structures of web-based IOIS. It is argued that supply market characteristics and product characteristics can explain emergence of various e-Procurement systems. Further these e-Procurement systems have different impact on interorganizational relationship and value generated from e-Procurement. However these impacts are moderated by adoption and implementation risks. This paper also summarizes the main benefits of an organization using e-Procurement and also their disadvantages and limitations.

B2B Relationships in Modern Times

Information technology (IT) enables businesses to integrate information systems across entities without altering the firms’ legal boundaries. New forms of inter-firm dependence and governance mechanisms may arise, due to the explicit investments made in technology and systems for collaboration purposes. There is an important distinction between general and customized investments in inter-organizational information systems (IOS), because the specificity level in IT exhibits certain characteristics that accentuate both the risk and value of inter-firm trade. Several research calls were made to validate governance theories on IOS. Based on a literature review, this paper provides a synthesis and integration of transaction cost economics (TCE) and IOS literature regarding governance forms. The paper discusses why the specificity level of IOS plays a central role in modern collaboration between firms, and how vertical electronic coordination (VEC) represents a mechanism for electronic governance forms and presents an agenda for future research.

IT supported collaborative work in A/E/C projects: A ten-year review

The strategic implementation of innovative, collaborative and integrated information is essential for the sustainable development of construction organizations in the new century. The emerging information technologies (ITs) offer construction organizations great potential to develop collaborative work (CW) management information systems in architecture, engineering and construction (A/E/C) projects. This paper presents an in-depth literature review of IT supported CW in A/E/C projects. Based on selected papers from well-known academic journals in construction management over a ten-year period (2000–2009), the review focuses on the implementations of IT in collaborative design, collaborative construction project management, and integrated inter-organization management information systems. A synthesis is presented on the state-of-the-art and trends of IT supported CW in A/E/C projects. Some limitations of past research studies in IT supported CW in A/E/C projects are discussed and future research directions are recommended. ► Information technologies (ITs) offer construction organizations potential to develop collaborative work (CW) information systems. ► We present an in-depth literature review of IT supported CW in architecture, engineering and construction (A/E/C) projects. ► The review focuses on collaborative design, collaborative project management, and inter-organization information systems. ► A synthesis is presented on the state-of-the-art and trends of IT supported CW in A/E/C projects. ► Some limitations of current studies are discussed and future research directions are recommended.

Exploring users' appropriation and post-implementation managerial intervention in the context of industry IOIS

Although the literature has repeatedly shown that inter-organizational information systems (IOIS) are prone to abandonment and low levels of adoption, a great deal of research examining such unsatisfactory outcomes has focused on phenomena occurring in the early stages of the implementation, thus, leaving the post-implementation period under-explored. This paper presents a conceptual lens through which we study two interrelated post-implementation phenomena: managerial intervention and users' appropriation. Specifically, we develop a structurational model to examine IOIS management intervention to boost IOIS assimilation, the situated and emergent appropriations of the IOIS that followed and the ongoing adaptations by those intervening in these processes. Actors shape the context for others' actions by offering modalities of structuring – i.e. new meanings, new procedures, new software applications – which are then taken up in practice by adopters, giving rise to both intended and unintended outcomes. The paper contributes with a multi-level process-based study that (1) conceives IOIS assimilation as an episodic process in which there are dialectical tensions between users and IOIS management; and (2) identifies two forms of managerial intervention targeting diverse aspects of the institutional context that lead to assimilation.

Editorial

Our first paper in this issue of Juan Rodon, Feliciano Sese, Ramon Llull and Ellen Christiaanse (2011) looks at an under-explored aspect of inter-organizational information systems (IOIS) abandonment and low levels of adoption, that is, the post-implementation period. The focus of the research is placed on two interrelated post-implementation phenomena: managerial intervention and users' appropriation. The case study is based on the seaport of Barcelona, and the focus of analysis is that of the implementation and post-implementation of an industry IOIS known as PortIC. The authors use the interpretative lens of the structurational model to examine management intervention. The paper contributes with a multi-level process-based study that conceives IOIS assimilation as an episodic process in which there are dialectical tensions between users and IOIS management, and identifies two forms of managerial intervention targeting diverse aspects of the institutional context that lead to assimilation. Keng Siau and Matti Rossi (2011) note the lack of standardized techniques for evaluating modeling methods. Many of the methods used in practice lack theoretical foundations and empirical evidence that demonstrate their worthiness. The paper reviews the various evaluation techniques used by both researchers and practitioners, and in so doing it provides a thorough literature review. The evaluation techniques are categorized into three classifications: feature comparison, theoretical and conceptual evaluation, and empirical evaluation. This research also analyzes the underlying philosophies and assumptions of these evaluation techniques. Yung-Ming Cheng (2011) uses an extension of the technology acceptance model to examine the antecedents and consequences for employees' acceptance of an e-learning system within financial services organizations and its impact on employees' perceived performance. Much research has looked at e-learning in the academic sector, less so for companies. Four types of determinants are demonstrated through this research; individual factors, system factors, social factors, and network externality factors.

Information Sharing among Members of the Supply Chain from the Perspective of Game

The competition among enterprises has gradually become the competition between supply chains, and it is more and more important for the cooperation among members of the supply chain to improve supply chain performance. Information sharing is an important way of cooperation among members of supply chain, which attaches great significance for the integration of the supply chain. With the development of information technology, inter-organizational information systems (IOS) have become an important means for information sharing among members of supply chain. IOS comes across organizational boundaries, whose investment and distribution of the income relates to the interests of all members involved in the supply chain, so the establishment of IOS includes many factors. From the perspective of game, the behavior that the supply chain establishes IOS for the establishment information sharing is analyzed. Through the creation of static, dynamic and incomplete information game model, it is believed that the prospects for cooperation, technological progress and the role of example is an important driving force for supply chain members’ enforcing information sharing.

Role of inter‐organisational compatibility and IOIS integration in large firms and SMEs retailing chains

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the effects of inter‐organisational compatibility on inter‐organisational information systems (IOIS) integration and supply chain performance of large enterprises (LE) and small‐medium enterprises (SMEs) in Australian retailing chains.Design/methodology/approachConvergent interviewing technique was used to collect data from managers of 12 fast‐moving consumer goods and hardware manufacturing and retailing organisations. Within‐ and cross‐case analyses were used to analyse the data.FindingsThe results indicate that technical, strategic and cultural compatibility between supply chain partners are antecedents to IOIS integration and supply chain performance of both LE and SMEs. A conceptual model explaining the relationship between inter‐organisational compatibility, IOIS integration and supply chain performance is advanced. The study extends congruency theory to information systems and supply chain contexts.Practical implicationsThe study provides some guidelines to supply chain and information systems managers on how inter‐organisational compatibility can be used to facilitate IOIS integration and enhance supply chain performance in both large and small firms. Technical, strategic and cultural compatibility emerged as antecedents to IOIS integration, suggesting the need for supply chain managers especially within SMEs to pay close attention to inter‐organisational compatibility factors when integrating IOIS with supply chain partners.Originality/valueResearch relating IOIS integration and supply chain is limited, especially in the SMEs context. Thus, this paper contributes to the body of knowledge by examining how inter‐organisational compatibility influences organisations' decisions to integrate IOIS with supply chain partners using congruency theory.

Inter-organizational information systems visibility in buyer–supplier relationships: The case of telecommunication equipment component manufacturing industry

The concept and operation of supply chain (SC) visibility remain underexplored questions in supply chain management, as is the question of the facilitating role of inter-organizational information systems (IOIS) in achieving SC visibility. This paper seeks to elaborate on the novel concept of IOIS visibility and to explore the antecedents and consequences of IOIS visibility. Investigating SC cooperation from the perspectives of both partners (buyers and suppliers) is important, especially when channel partners depend on each other and when asymmetries in IOIS visibility can exist. The data that this study requires were collected from 51 matched pairs of intermediate producers of telecommunication equipment components and their immediate suppliers. The results show that IOIS visibility is an important predictor of supply chain performance from the supplier's perspective. In turn, IOIS visibility is significantly influenced by the supply chain partner's internal IS integration and inter-organizational IT infrastructure compatibility.

Removing obstacles when implementing inter-organisational information systems

The purpose of this paper is to explore the role of collaboration in inter-organisational Information System (IS) projects when distinct organisations participate in the projects. Modern society presumes that information is easily and quickly transferred between participants who need that information. Inter-organisational ISs are one answer to this need. In case organisations participate in implementing the IS, collaboration is even more necessary. Our results highlight the importance of collaboration and the trust that lies behind it.

Interorganisational systems within SMEs aggregations: an exploratory study on information requirements of an industrial district

Even though companies have become efficient in managing information and logistics inside their boundaries, communication and coordination among partner, within an InterOrganisational Information System (IOS), is far from effective. In a global market where the success of a company relies on its entire supply chain, design and implementation of an IOS are mandatory. Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs), and in particular those inside Industrial Aggregations (IAs), could greatly benefit from IOS implementation, but a widely accepted model of IOS adoption is missing. This paper proposes a framework to analyse the relationships among the main players of IAs and presents its application to an industrial district.

Inter-organisational information systems assimilation: an empirical evaluation in light of the diffusion of innovation theory

This paper evaluates the antecedents of public e-procurement assimilation in the context of the public sector. E-procurement assimilation attributes were identified primarily through a literature review, a research model was developed, and hypotheses were formulated. Based on the Diffusion of Innovation Theory, it was hypothesised that relative advantage and compatibility impact positively whereas complexity negatively impacts the assimilation of e-procurement. Hypotheses were tested from the data collected by means of a web-based survey of procurement/e-procurement professionals in the Australian public sector. Structural equation modelling results suggest the positive relationship between compatibility and e-procurement assimilation. While a negative relationship between complexities and e-procurement assimilation emerged as expected, only partial support was found between relative advantage and e-procurement assimilation.

Analysing IOIS adoption through structural contradictions

Despite extensive research and practitioner literature on inter-organizational information systems (IOIS), our understanding of non-adoption still has some under-explored issues. This paper offers an explanation of non-adoption that focuses on the potential structural changes that IOIS adoption entails; in particular, we contend that the contradictions between the initial social structure and the structure enacted in the use of an IOIS can be a cause of non-adoption. This paper analyses adoption from a logic of opposition where non-adoption occurs because forces of transformation are offset by forces of persistence. Relying on the concepts of social structure, duality of structure, and structural contradiction from Structuration theory, we develop a framework that categorizes the underlying social structure where an IOIS is to be adopted, and formulate some theoretical propositions. From a practitioner perspective, this paper contends that the fact that IOIS management uncovers the contradictions in the social structure that result from IOIS adoption can help avoid dead ends. Accordingly, this framework, which can be used as a coarse-grained picture for anticipating adoption problems, can inform managers when devising an IOIS implementation strategy.

Local Dealer Adoption of a Foreign Manufacturer-Sponsored Internet-Based Information System

ABSTRACT Firms often use Internet-based interorganizational information systems (IBIS) to facilitate the integration of information and communication between channel members. However, in practice firms are sometimes reluctant or even refuse to adopt such systems, especially when sponsored by a foreign manufacturer to local dealers. This article presents an empirical study of 80 dealers faced with the IBIS decision from a large international tire manufacturer. The results indicate that perceived financial and usage benefits of the IBIS and security are important determinants of dealer adoption of an IBIS. Further, the results indicate that higher IBIS adoption levels correspond to changes in the nature of the channel relationship, operational and exchange benefits, and commitment of the dealer to the manufacturer.

SOA adoption in business networks: do service-oriented architectures really advance inter-organizational integration?

The emergence of the Internet as a global communication infrastructure has dramatically reduced interaction costs within and across organizations, with significant impact on inter-organizational relationships, vertical industry structures, and markets. More recently, service-oriented architectures (SOA) and Web services have introduced the next paradigm shift and foster the idea of dynamic business networks with quick connect and disconnect relationships. However, little research has systematically analyzed how companies leverage SOA to improve their inter-organizational relationships and reshape their business networks. In addition, the mature research stream on inter-organizational information systems (IOS) has not yet sufficiently considered SOA. In order to close this gap, our research seeks to improve the fundamental understanding of how SOA is applied in business networks and how it differs from prior forms of IOS. Using an exploratory research approach, we investigate 33 SOA cases to identify focus areas and patterns of SOA adoption in business networks. Our case analysis builds on a multi-dimensional classification scheme which we derived from prior literature. While our empirical findings do not confirm all promising propositions related to SOA, they underline the specific contribution of SOA compared to prior forms of IOS. We conclude by suggesting five clusters of SOA adoption in the inter-organizational domain, each of those introducing new aspects in the coordination of distributed business networks.

The difficulty of studying inter-organisational IS phenomena on large scales: critical reflections on a research journey

We argue that certain theoretical commitments that underpin much existing Inter-organisational Information Systems (IOIS) research at small scales become untenable when IOIS are studied at the scale of whole industries and over time periods greater than individual implementation projects. We make this argument by a detailed analysis of the problems we encountered when applying conventional research design methods in the early stages of a five year international comparative study of IOIS in pharmaceutical supply chains in four countries. We found that the large scale of our unit required a move away from the construction of discrete variables (dependent and independent) as well as from input-output process logic, to an alternate modelling approach derived from Structuration Theory and Practice Theory. We illustrate the revelatory power of this new lens by applying it to two cases. The paper will be of interest to IOIS researchers because we have systematically worked out the reasons for difficulties that limit IOIS research to unit and time scales smaller that the actual phenomenon. Because we refused to limit our own research object in this way, we ventured further into these problematic areas than others.

Collaboration électronique et investissement relationnel. Étude de cas exploratoire d'un SIIO dans le secteur du meuble

Based on the case of the leading European furniture haulage company, this article contributes to works about the respective roles of inter-organizational information systems and relational investment. The relational perspective we chose allowed to observe empirically a double innovation: technological, with the implementation of the tool by top management; but also organizational, through a form of ??human re-connection??, first implemented by the operators themselves before being gradually integrated by management. Finally, the case study highlights how important it is to develop transversality and knowledge diffusion at the operational level of collaborations.

Determinants of construction companies' use of web‐based interorganizational information systems

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to measure the influence of two categories of determinants – those tied to the characteristics of the organization and those tied to the characteristics of its supply chain relationships – on construction firms' use of web‐based interorganizational information systems (IOISs) to support interorganizational processes with their key suppliers.Design/methodology/approachEmpirical evidence is gathered through an electronic survey conducted with 67 senior managers of Canadian construction companies.FindingsFindings indicate that both categories of determinants strongly influence each of the facets of construction firms' use of web‐based IOISs to support interorganizational processes with their key suppliers. Findings also indicate that the two facets of the use of web‐based IOISs to support collaborative processes are influenced by the same characteristics of supply chain relationships while the use of both types of web‐based IOISs are not influenced by the same characteristics of the supply chain relationships.Practical implicationsThis study shows construction managers that a supply chain approach may facilitate firms' adoption of IT to support their interorganizational processes with their suppliers. This research also exposes practitioners to the different ways web‐based IOISs can be used by construction firms to support their relationship with suppliers and emphasizes the need for managers to consider the characteristics of their supply chain relationships and not only technological factors while developing and implementing their web‐based IOISs strategy.Originality/valueThis study is amongst the few empirical studies on the use of information technology to support supply chain processes between construction companies and their suppliers. By proposing an approach to web‐based IOISs measurement comprising five facets, this research also makes a theoretical contribution to the field of IOISs.

Toward a Theory of IOIS Variance

Observing that existing models of inter-organisational information systems (IOIS) have not been developed to explain IOIS variance, in this paper the authors develop three criteria a new theoretical framework should meet: 1) It should support identification of and distinction between essential properties of IOIS; 2) it should explain the resilience of IOIS, that is, why (properties of) IOIS persist in the face of environmental change; and 3) it should offer a way of describing IOIS on organisational and collective levels, that is, the level of various types of collectives of organisations, such as networks, associations or industries. This paper then assesses four theories commonly used in IOIS studies (Transaction Cost Theory, Resource Dependence Theory, Neo-Institutionalism, and Structuration Theory) in view of these three criteria. Based on this discussion, the authors develop a new framework for studying IOIS variance which views IOIS as constellations of aligned practices.