A typology for business transformations (research in progress)

The term “business transformation” is a buzzword, often used to signify fundamental changes undergone by organisations. Despite numerous works in enterprise transformation, IT-enabled business transformation and organizational transformation, there appears to be a lack of consensus on what actually constitutes a business transformation as opposed to other types of redesign or organisational improvement projects. Consequently, knowledge about which elements of a business system that are impacted by such an endeavour is largely inconsistent, and partially conflicting. We present a business transformation typology that considers 18 attributes pertaining to the transforming organisation and the transformation initiative. To explore our typology, we analysed 10 published case studies and classified them along two dimensions – one ranging from marginal to fundamental changes, and another on internal and external visibility. Our literature review reveals how the terminology has been misused, and we provide some directions to provide more clarity around transformation phenomena in IS research.

IT-supported business process outsourcing (BPO): the good, the bad and the ugly

Outsourcing decisions are not, technically, irreversible. But in practical terms the organizational disruption and financial costs of bringing services back in house (“backsourcing”) mean that few organizations revert, even when quite dissatisfied with an arrangement. Instead, organizations typically seek to move to another outsourcing arrangement, that is sometimes less attractive than the original in-house delivery. Preliminary evidence from studies of business process outsourcing (BPO) experiences, like those into IT outsourcing’s success, suggests that only a minority of organizations report their BPO arrangements as satisfactory, implying that many are caught in this “can’t go back” bind. In this paper the authors examine two organizations contemplating the adoption of BPO, and consider their expectations and experiences in light of existing empirical literature. The paper concludes with a set of principles to assist organizations to avoid BPO failure.

Implementing green business processes : the importance of functional affordances of information systems

An environmentally sustainable and thus green business process is one that delivers organizational value whilst also exerting a minimal impact on the natural environment. Recent works from the field of Information Systems (IS) have argued that information systems can contribute to the design and implementation of sustainable business processes. While prior research has investigated how information systems can be used in order to support sustainable business practices, there is still a void as to the actual changes that business processes have to undergo in order to become environmentally sustainable, and the specific role that information systems play in enabling this change. In this paper, we provide a conceptualization of environmentally sustainable business processes, and discuss the role of functional affordances of information systems in enabling both incremental and radical changes in order to make processes environmentally sustainable. Our conceptualization is based on (a) a fundamental definition of the concept of environmental sustainability, grounded in two basic components: the environmental source and sink functions of any project or activity, and (b) the concept of functional affordances, which describe the potential uses originating in the material properties of information systems in relation to their use context. In order to illustrate the application of our framework and provide a first evaluation, we analyse two examples from prior research where information systems impacted on the sustainability of business processes.

Towards a better understanding of how effective IT governance leads to business value : a literature review and future research directions

This paper reviews the existing literature on IT governance to assess whether IT governance has contributed to delivering business value from IT and if so, how. The conducted literature review has shown the scarce number of studies that focus on why and how effective IT governance may lead to business value. By using a structured literature review analysis, the paper has offered a number of insights to the topic of IT governance: a) provided a systematic definition of effective IT governance based on a multi-dimensional framework, b) listed benefits of effective IT governance, and c) identified mechanisms that lead effective IT governance to those benefits. This paper takes a step towards addressing the ‘why’ and ‘how’ knowledge gaps by synthesising the fragmented knowledge to provide the best that is known about the subject and to identify future research directions.

Acknowledging risks when deciding to outsource business processes : the case of data theft

Outsourcing is generally framed in terms of benefits and cost savings, rather than risks. One important risk is “data theft”. This paper draws upon a longitudinal study into IT and business process outsourcing to present a theoretical model incorporating risk. Sources include qualitative interviews with purchasers, non purchasers, and vendors of outsourced business process services. It concludes that data theft is an under-acknowledged risk in all business process outsourcing (BPO), but is higher for offshore outsourcing. This risk may be mitigated, but when factored into the business case can invalidate typically small cost savings. In acknowledging and adequately costing this risk, decision-makers may find BPO, particularly where offshore vendors are involved, less attractive.

Building information modelling project decision support framework

Building Information Modelling (BIM) is an information technology [IT] enabled approach to managing design data in the AEC/FM (Architecture, Engineering and Construction/ Facilities Management) industry. BIM enables improved interdisciplinary collaboration across distributed teams, intelligent documentation and information retrieval, greater consistency in building data, better conflict detection and enhanced facilities management. Despite the apparent benefits the adoption of BIM in practice has been slow. Workshops with industry focus groups were conducted to identify the industry needs, concerns and expectations from participants who had implemented BIM or were BIM “ready”. Factors inhibiting BIM adoption include lack of training, low business incentives, perception of lack of rewards, technological concerns, industry fragmentation related to uneven ICT adoption practices, contractual matters and resistance to changing current work practice. Successful BIM usage depends on collective adoption of BIM across the different disciplines and support by the client. The relationship of current work practices to future BIM scenarios was identified as an important strategy as the participants believed that BIM cannot be efficiently used with traditional practices and methods. The key to successful implementation is to explore the extent to which current work practices must change. Currently there is a perception that all work practices and processes must adopt and change for effective usage of BIM. It is acknowledged that new roles and responsibilities are emerging and that different parties will lead BIM on different projects. A contingency based approach to the problem of implementation was taken which relies upon integration of BIM project champion, procurement strategy, team capability analysis, commercial software availability/applicability and phase decision making and event analysis. Organizations need to understand: (a) their own work processes and requirements; (b) the range of BIM applications available in the market and their capabilities (c) the potential benefits of different BIM applications and their roles in different phases of the project lifecycle, and (d) collective supply chain adoption capabilities. A framework is proposed to support organizations selection of BIM usage strategies that meet their project requirements. Case studies are being conducted to develop the framework. The results of the preliminary design management case study is presented for contractor led BIM specific to the design and construct procurement strategy.

Implementation of enterprise resource planning (ERP) software in a major construction contracting organization in Hong Kong

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to summarize the scope, methodology and main findings of a doctoral thesis about the implementation of enterprise resource planning (ERP) software in a major construction contracting organization in Hong Kong. This research is taken from a leadership and power and project management (PM) perspective.

Design/methodology/approach – The project adopted a case study approach in which the candidate was an employee/observer, who was embedded as a member of the business transformation team taking an action learning approach to study the ERP adoption. The research used the soft system methodology to identify gaps in the observed maturity level which exists in the organization. Data was gathered using public and private documentation, semi-structured interviews, observation and was validated through review of evidence with participants.

Findings – The results identified the importance of leadership and cultural issues in implementation of the business strategy. This research includes a contribution in two spheres: PM and construction procurement. The first implication for PM theory was to illustrate how knowledge has been efficiently managed within a construction organization by using information communication technology (ICT). It can be represented by the ladder of ICT>ERP>KM>PM. The second implication was to pave the way for the use of partnering strategies in PM practice. It can be represented by the ladder of National Culture>Organizational Culture>Leadership>Partnering Strategy>PM.

Practical implications – This model could be adapted to other large and complex organisational contexts. The research project also has implications as opening up a PM perspective on business transformation.

Originality/value – The contribution of this research is proving the success of adopting KM in a construction company by using an ERP system. The importance of culture in the traditionally collectivistic construction industry, and the issues senior management should take into account when formulating business strategies.

Service engineering based on service oriented architecture methodology

Service Engineering (SE) and Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) originally reside on different plateaus of discipline. SE is defined as a set of activity introducing a new business service, while SOA is a technical approach to redefine an enterprise business processes as a set of IT enabled services. This paper proposes a SOA embedded SE framework as a comprehensive approach in re-defining business service and its IT implementation. After an introduction, a review of existing SE frameworks and SOA methodologies is presented in the paper. Afterward, a complete SE framework is proposed with several results on early case studies. A survey results are then presented to prove the usability and benefit of the proposed framework. The framework is designed and proposed to help practitioners and researchers to conduct service engineering by employing principles and methodology offered by SOA approach.

Moving personal tax online: the Australian Taxation Office's E-Tax initiative

In exploiting the capabilities of online technologies, governments have developed policies and launched projects to conduct transactions and deliver their services through the Internet. The motivations for this include cost cutting, efficiency improvements, service enhancements, and leadership in business transformation. However, these diverse goals are not necessarily consistent, especially in the early stages of implementation. The e-government initiative discussed in this case study (E-Tax) provided an additional service to individual Australian taxpayers by enabling them to file their tax returns online. This case study provides an analysis of the E-Tax implementation in the first three years of its operation. Data on E-Tax use compared to other filing methods show that the package worked well technically, was favorably received by users, and was consistent with policy on e-government. However, adoption levels in the early stages did not meet government targets. The analysis suggests that impediments to a greater level of E-Tax use included entrenched patterns of filing, the nature of the taxation system, and political sensitivities. The E-Tax case demonstrates how complex e-government projects can be and the need to take contextual factors into account in planning and evaluating e-government implementation.

Toward successful knowledge transfer in web-based self-service for information technology services

Web-based self-service has emerged as an important strategy for providing pre- and post-sales customer support. Yet, there is a dearth of theoretical or empirical research concerning the organisational, customer-oriented, knowledge-based, and employee-oriented factors that enable web-based self-service systems (WSS) to be successful in a competitive global marketplace. In this paper, we describe and discuss findings from the first phase of a multi-method research study designed to address this literature gap. This study explores critical success factors (CSFs) involved in the transfer of support-oriented knowledge from an information technology (IT) services firm to commercial customers when WSS are employed. Empirical data collected in a CSF study of a large multinational IT services business are used to identify twenty-six critical success factors. The findings indicate that best-in-class IT service providers are aware of a range of critical success factors in the transfer to commercial customers of resolutions and other support-oriented knowledge via WSS. However, such firms remain less certain about what is needed to support customer companies after support-oriented knowledge has initially been transferred to the customer firm.

Modeling data processing activity to assess the internal control function

This thesis describes research that was conducted into the potential of modeling the activities of the Data Processing Department as an aid to the computer auditor. A methodology is composed to aid in the evaluation of the Internal Controls, particularly the General Controls relative to computer processing. Consisting of three major components, the methodology enables the auditor to model the presumed activities of the Data Processing Department against the actual activities, as recorded on the Operating System Log. The first component of the methodology is the construction and loading of a model of the presumed activities of the Data Processing Department from its verbal, scheduled, and reported activities. The second component is the generation of a description of the actual activities of the Data Processing Department from the information recorded on the Operating System Log. This is effected by reducing the Operating System Log to the format described by the Standard Audit File concept. Finally, the third component in the methodology is the modeling process itself. This is in fact a new analysis technique proposed for use by the EDP auditor. The modeling process is composed of software that compares the model developed and loaded in the first component, with the description of actual activity as collated by the second component. Results from this comparison are then reviewed by the auditor, who determines if they adequately depict the situation, or whether the models description as specified in the first component requires to be altered, and the modeling process re-initiated. In conducting the research, information and data from a production installation was used. Use of the ‘real-world’ input proved both the feasibility of developing a model of the reported activities of the Data Processing Department, and the adequacy of the operating system log as a source of information to report the departments actual activities. Additionally, it enabled the involvement and comment of practicing auditors. The research involved analysis of the effect of EDP on the audit process, structure of the EDP audit process, data reduction, data structures, model formalization, and model processing software. Additionally, the Standard Audit File concept was verified through its use by practising auditors, and expanded by the development of an indexed data structure, which enabled its analysis to be conducted interactively. Results from the trial implementation of the research software and methodology at a production installation confirmed the research hypothesis that the activities of the Data Processing Department could be modelled, and that there are substantial benefits from the EDP auditor in analysing this process. The research in fact provides a new source of information, and develops a new analysis technique for the EDP auditor. It demonstrates the utilization of computer technology to monitor itself for the audit function, and reasserts auditor independence by providing access to technical detail describing the processing activities of the computer.

Smartpumps: a negotiated relative advantage?

Significant improvements in smart healthcare are only possible if a multidisciplinary approach is taken to the design, implementation, and application of technology in their respective social context. Pregnant women living with type 1 diabetes (PWT1D) face a series of challenges including ongoing management of diet and physical activity, continued delivery and adjustment of insulin doses. These women often feel socially and geographically isolated, due to the rarity of their condition, the paucity of accurate personal healthcare information, and the demands of a high-risk pregnancy. ITenabled smartpumps which allow information to be shared between women with type 1 diabetes and their healthcare team, are one possible solution to this problem. This paper highlights the adoption and application of IT-enabled smartpumps by PWT1D. Using a Cross Community Information Systems (CCIS) approach we examine some of the benefits and drawbacks of smartpumps from the perspective of a range of stakeholders associated with the health and wellbeing of PWT1D and their unborn children. Ultimately we argue that with a considered approach to their adoption and use smartpumps provide an effective tool for ongoing support and collaboration within the healthcare team.

Exploring the use of enterprise content management systems in different types of Organisations

Researchers and practitioners are starting to realize that it is unlikely that the full advantage of Electronic Content Management Systems (ECMS) can be realized unless both the technology capabilities and organisational context are taken into consideration. This study explores ECMS use in Replication, Diversification, Unification and Coordination type of organisations. A framework of ECMS-use is proposed suggesting different ways of using ECMS to support diverse organisational needs. Following a qualitative case study research approach, interviews were conducted with IT and business managers and ECMS users from each of the four types of organisations. Results suggest that, depending on the organisation’s business needs, ECMS use in organisations can be categorized as 1) Minimal-use, 2) Standard Adoption-use, 3) Customized-use or 4) Leveraged-use. Findings suggest that managers can gain more realistic benefits from ECMS use by understanding why and how different types of ECMS-use can support the way in which their businesses operate.