Green IT adoption via virtualization

Dissertação apresentada como requisito parcial para obtenção do grau de Mestre em Estatística e Gestão de Informação

This study attempts to test and validate the theoretical framework proposed by Bose and Luo (2011) that identifies and examines the factors that contribute to the assessment of a firm’s readiness to go green via IT-enable virtualization. The conceptual framework is based on three theoretical foundations: (1) technology-organization-environment (TOE) framework; (2) process virtualization theory (PVT); and (3) diffusion of innovation (DOI) theory. To test the framework, data were collected from 251 firms in Portugal and partial least square (PLS) was used to estimate the research model. The study found that environmental context (i.e., competition intensity and regulatory support) influences Green IT adoption more than the technological and organizational contexts. The research also confirmed that the pre-stage of adoption (i.e., Green IT initialization) influences the formal stage of adoption (i.e., Green IT integration), which in turn influences the post-adoption stage (i.e., Green IT maturation). As sustainable products and practices become increasingly relevant, the study adds new knowledge to this emergent area of IS research and provides valuable insights to IS managers and decision makers.