Outlining organisational failure in information systems development

Abstract

Defines the concept of “organisational failure” in information systems (IS) development, and proposes a diagnostic model drawn from research done into IS consultancy firms that develop systems using a variety of methodologies. The research involved a qualitative study aimed at the nature of the development process and the role of organisational issues in this process. The model’s elements and relationships were determined by the research findings. Presents two cases of failure that show how IS failure is rooted in organisational pathology and examine existing failure concepts. The concept and model proposed can be used by practitioners and management before and during a project for diagnosing organisational failure before it interferes with IS development and afterwards for extracting deeper rooted organisational learning from failure.

Supply chains and their management: Application of general systems theory

“…Miller (1978) found that living systems can be broken down into a number of smaller subsystems. Yourdon (1989) applied this principle in the development of structured systems methodology in which the often difficult task of successfully developing an information system (Chae and Lanzara, 2006;Guolielmos, 2003), is broken down into developing and implementing smaller, and more easily understood, components of the information system. Successful completion of each component brings the overall information systems development one step closer to its successful completion.…”

IS Project Management and Risk Escalation: Towards A Dynamic Model

“…This can explain why the projects that have a lot of publicity are more prone to project escalation e.g. Mandata project (Sauer, 2003),Taurus project at London Stock Exchange (Drummond 1996, Goulielmos, 2003, Smith and Keil, 2003, Computer Aided Dispatch system at London Ambulance Service (Finkelstein, 1993, Goulielmos, 2003, and US Census Bureau Information System (Krigsman, 2008).…”

The Use of an Axiological Lens to Review Globalised Automation and Control Systems Projects

“…Some researchers have suggested that the values that inform systems engineering, and the methodologies that are used to develop and deploy automation and control systems, require attention, especially in our attempts to understand the dynamics of system failure (Freeman, Stapleton & Byrne (2007), Goulielmos (2005Goulielmos ( ) & (2003). In spite of this, a conceptualisation of culture and organisation has yet to be incorporated into theories of technology design, development and management.…”