Key Information Systems Management Issues Research Articles

Key issues of information systems management in Botswana

Studies on key issues in information systems (IS) management aim at finding out critical IS issues that are of concern to IS executives and business leaders. The purpose of this paper was to investigate the key IS management issues in Botswana. A questionnaire was administered to collect data from information systems professionals working from the level of a programmer and above. A simple average was used to rank the key factors while factor analysis was carried out to determine the major groups of key issues in IS management. The results of simple average calculation showed that an information system security is the key management issue in Botswana. The results of factor analysis showed that the classification of key issues of IS management put forward by Niederman et al. (1991) has continued to change with new issues such as mobile applications and ecommerce showing up strongly and information systems security becoming a group in its own right. The findings continue to show that the key issues of IS management tend to differ across space and time. Culture and level of economic development are some of the factors which can make key issues differ from one country to another.

Key Information Systems Management Issues in Estonia for the 2000s and A Comparative Analysis

This study reports key information system (IS) management issues in Estonia, for a second time since 1993. The study enlists the views of knowledgeable practitioners from both the information technology (IT) and non-IT (business managers) fields. The primary objective was to compare and contrast the findings in the previous study with the present effort. Other secondary objectives included investigating the views across professional classifications and sectors. Further, a comparison between Estonia (an emerging economy) and Norway (a developed country) was made. The findings of the study indicate the following: 1) the past decade has produced salient changes in the ranking of key IS issues for Estonia, 2) there are significant differences in key IS issues across professional groupings (IT and non-IT), 3) a convergence of opinions regarding key IS issues seems to be noticeable in Estonian public and private sectors, and 4) there is a significant difference in the ranking of comparable issues between Estonia and Norway. The implications of the study for both research and practice are discussed.

Key information systems management issues: A comparative study in South Africa

The identification of key Information Systems (IS) management issues is important for all players in the industry. Most academic research has followed the form of the Society for Information Management (SIM) studies, originating in the early 1980’s in the United States of America (USA), and since replicated in many countries, yet no comprehensive recent study had been carried out in South Africa. This study was performed within weeks of September 11, 2001 on a sample of 121 members of the Cape IT Initiative (CITI), and of the Computer Society of South Africa (CSSA), from a range of industries and geographical regions. Highest rated issues were business intelligence, a responsive IT infrastructure and disaster recovery, while Business Relationship and Technical Infrastructure issues were prominent overall. Demographic factors did not significantly influence overall results. Rankings were correlated with an earlier South African study and with 1997 Australian research, but not with a 1995 USA study. The economic developmental status of a country was found to be linked to the key issues that country faces.

Key Issues in IS Management in Norway

Information systems (IS) departments face many challenges in today’s rapidly changing environment. One approach to understanding these challenges is to survey IS managers to elicit what they consider are key issues. Studies of key IS management issues have been conducted for some years in many nations and regions. However, most of these surveys lack a theoretical basis for the selection of key issues. Furthermore, most studies have used a single-round or a multi-round Delphi method. This paper provides an overview of research approaches to key issues studies combined with key issues results from previous research. The paper presents methodological issues and choices for a survey on key issues in IS management which was conducted in Norway. A three step procedure for key issues selection is introduced, and a Q-sort analysis is adopted. The paper presents results from the Q-sort survey and analysis. The highest ranked key issue in Norway, according to the survey, is concerned with improving links between information systems strategy and business strategy.

Studies of key issues in IS management around the world

Information systems (IS) departments face many challenges in today's rapidly changing environment. One approach to understanding these challenges is to survey IS managers to elicit what they consider are key issues. Studies of key IS management issues have been conducted for some years in many nations and regions. Based on such studies and a theoretical framework, this paper predicts the following key issues into the 21st century: (1) improving links between information systems strategy and business strategy, (2) developing and implementing an information architecture, (3) implementing knowledge management systems, and (4) reducing IT projects’ completion time and budget deviations. For future studies of key issues in IS management around the world, this paper provides an overview of research approaches to initial key issues selection and key issues surveys.

Global Comparisons of Key Issues in IS Management: Extending Initial Selection Procedure and an Empirical Study in Norway

Information systems (IS) departments face many challenges in today's rapidly changing environment. One approach to understanding these challenges is to survey IS managers to elicit what they consider are key issues. Studies of key IS management issues have been conducted for some years in many nations and regions. However, most of these surveys lack a theoretical basis for the selection of key issues. Furthermore, most studies have used a single-round or a multi-round Delphi method. This chapter provides an overview of research approaches to key issues studies combined with key issues results from previous research. The chapter presents methodological issues and choices for a survey on key issues in IS management which was conducted in Norway in 1998. A three step procedure for key issues selection is introduced, and a Q-method analysis is adopted. The chapter presents results from the Q-sort survey and analysis. The highest ranked key issue in Norway, according to the survey, is concerned with improving links between information systems strategy and business strategy. Global comparisons of key issues in information systems management confirm this top ranked issue. Also, the issue of planning information technology projects for competitive advantage is a high ranking issue in Norway and most other countries. Improving interorganizational information systems planning was the third highest ranked issue in Norway, but it is non- existent in other survey lists. This can be partly explained by the lack of theoretical framework when issues were selected in other studies and by the small organizational sizes in Norway.

A CEO View of Key Issues in Australian Information Systems Management - 1997

As part of a research programme on key information systems management issues, a survey of Australasia's largest 500 organisations was conducted to identify which issues were perceived by their chief executive officers (CEOs) as being important, problematic and critical over the next three to five years. The results reported are based on a relatively low response rate (though perhaps reasonable for the target group) so should be regarded as only exploratory. The most critical issues were revealed to be a mix of technology management issues (IT infrastructure, disaster recovery), strategic management issues (BPR, competitive advantage, information architecture), people management issues (organisational learning), systems development and data management issues (effective use of the data resource, effectiveness/productivity of IS, effectiveness of software development), and their own support systems (EIS/DSS). This reflects their interest in a wide range of issues, but all with an organisation-wide focus. Non-critical issues were mostly related to the individual technologies and the place and role of IS in the organisation. While the CEOs showed some agreement with their chief information officers (CIOs) on issues such as the IT infrastructure, competitive advantage, and organisational learning some distinct differences exist, particularly in relation to the quality and effectiveness of systems and processes and also how CEOs and CIOs perceive each other.

Information Systems Management: an Australasian view of key issues - 1996

As part of a longitudinal study of key information systems management issues, a survey of Australasia's largest 500 organisations was conducted to identify which issues were perceived by the IS executives as being important, problematic and critical over the next three to five years. The most critical issues were revealed to be a mix of technology management issues (IT infrastructure, communications, disaster recovery), strategic management issues (competitive advantage, IS planning, aligning the IS organisation), people management issues (organisational learning, educating senior management in IT), systems development and data management issues (effective use of the data resource), and end-user computing. This reflects the need for a balance of business, technical, and people skills in an IS executive. Non-critical issues were mostly related to systems development and the individual technologies which must be integrated and managed to ensure a responsive IT infrastructure. The study also reveals that some issues are much more important than problematic (disaster recovery, competitive advantage, information architecture, and IS alignment) while others are much more problematic than important (end-user computing, IS role and contribution, and BPR). The former reflects a growing level of knowledge in handling these issues, while the latter reflects a continuing problem with them. The differences between this study and similar studies conducted in 1988 and 1992 show that there is a growing confidence in the IS executive's ability to manage the strategic issues, a continuing concern about providing a responsive IT infrastructure (especially communications), and a continuing concern with educating all 'customers' in the organisation in the effective use of IT, including senior management.

Information systems management issues in Central America: a multinational and comparative study

As business move to increased levels of globalization, information systems (IS) management issues in the global economy become increasingly significant. This study identified and evaluated the key IS management issues in two Central American countries—Costa Rica and Guatemala—and compared those issues to two other countries—Australia and the US. Good agreement was found on the importance of the issues in the two Central American countries, while the comparison of the key issues with Australia and the US showed differences between the developing and developed countries. Some issues were found to be important in all the countries compared. Based on the findings, key IS issues are classified as developed-country developing-country and universal.

Coping with Information Technology? how British Executives Perceive the Key Information Systems Management Issues in the Mid-1990s

Survey research amongst senior information systems (IS) and non-IS executives in UK organizations was conducted in order to identify their views as to the most important and problematic issues they face in managing information systems. The survey mirrored similar research that has been undertaken in the USA and elsewhere, thus enabling international comparisons in the future. The aim of this paper is to provide comparisons of (i) the views expressed by IS executives vis à vis those with a ‘non-IS’ role and (ii) the findings of this study with those of a previous similar British study undertaken in 1987.

Coping with information technology? How British executives perceive the key information systems management issues in the mid-1990s

Survey research amongst senior information systems (IS) and non-IS executives in UK organizations was conducted in order to identify their views as to the most important and problematic issues they face in managing information systems. The survey mirrored similar research that has been undertaken in the USA and elsewhere, thus enabling international comparisons in the future. The aim of this paper is to provide comparisons of (i) the views expressed by IS executives vis a vis those with a ‘non-IS’ role and (ii) the findings of this study with those of a previous similar British study undertaken in 1987.

Information systems issues facing senior executives: the culture gap

The development of necessary business skills in IT professionals, and the appropriate role and structure of the information systems function, have long been seen as key information systems management issues 1–4. In addition, the questions of what motivates IT professionals and what their relationship is with their business colleagues have been the focus of much research effort over the last decade 5–9. As a result of some recent surveys 10,11, it is clear that IT directors in the UK identify the ‘culture gap’ between IT professionals and business colleagues as a key factor in limiting the successful utilization of IT in their companies.

Key Information Systems Management Issues for the Public Sector

The sector has multiple, conflicting, and often intangible goals. It produces public goods for problems that should be solved (like crime and poverty), even though these problems may have no known feasible solutions; and it is heavily impacted by politics and bureaucratic red tape. These and other features of the sector make it potentially a much different setting for IS management than the private sector. This article reports on the first national survey of sector managers identifying their most important IS issues. The survey, covering respondents from federal, state, and local governments, drew upon prior survey research in the private sector and the literature on public/private sector differences.While most of the top sector issues also appear on the top private sector issue lists, the rankings show a lag in IS development as compared to the private sector. Perhaps the most interesting results of the survey, however, are from a deeper analysis. At the main effects-level, we have preliminary evidence that (1) middle-level (instead of top-level) managers are critical for IS technology development; (2) small government agencies are more interested in IS technology transfer than large ones; (3) governments with a lot of red tape tend to have flexible IS; an d(4) local government IS issues are driven by transaction processing while state and federal governments have IS more suitable for their oversight mission.

Key Information Systems Issues for the 1980's

Knowledge of the most important issues in the information systems field would help focus research and educational efforts. A Delphi study, using leading information systems (IS) professionals, was used to identify and rank ten key IS management issues for the 1980's. Measures were also taken to the amount of agreement achieved on these issues and rankings. The number one issue identified was improved IS planning, followed by facilitation and management of end user computing. This article describes the research approach involved and discusses the results.