Rethinking the concept of the IS organization

Abstract

Do conceptualizations of the information systems (IS) organization reflect findings from research studying requirements for successfully harnessing information, systems and technology to achieve operational and strategic objectives? This paper addresses this question, reporting on an analysis of articles published in leading academic and practitioner journals. It describes how the IS organization is portrayed in these studies and examines the results of this analysis through a sensitizing lens constructed from research that has studied how organizations generate business value from IS. The lens depicts this objective as a quest to harness knowledge that is distributed enterprise wide. The analysis suggests that conceptualisations of the IS organization used by researchers do not reflect the requirements for generating business value from information technology that have been identified in the literature. Whilst highlighting that definitions are vague or more often absent, it challenges the dominant orthodoxy of the IS organization as a separate organizational unit suggesting that it is a more pervasive construct. The implications of this conclusion for practice, research and teaching are considered.

Causing factors, outcomes, and governance of Shadow IT and business-managed IT: a systematic literature review

“…IG4-3 IT organization supporting implementation. The IT organization may provide continuous support for the development and implementation of projects conducted in BUs [6,12,21] and provide expertise in areas such as project management [67], vendor management [67], service management [1,119,125], and collaboration and knowledge exchange [83,126].…”

Building a Supply Chain Ecosystem: How the Enterprise Connectivity Interface (ECI) Will Enable and Support Interorganisational Collaboration

“…This hinders effective collaboration with partners: vertical collaboration with suppliers and customers, as well as horizontal collaboration with competitors. Furthermore for many organizations it is challenging to generate value from their IT investments [1]. Peppard [1] concludes 40 % of all investments in IT to be lost, due to legacy thinking and practices.…”

“…Furthermore for many organizations it is challenging to generate value from their IT investments [1]. Peppard [1] concludes 40 % of all investments in IT to be lost, due to legacy thinking and practices. Luftman and Derksen [2] researched the main IT managerial concerns in the decade spanning from 2003 till 2012.…”

Editorial: Researchers and the stakeholder's perspective

“…In the third paper, Peppard () focuses on the IS organization , one of the core concepts for the IS discipline, though it has been labelled in a variety of different ways over the decades (e.g. Data Processing Department, Computer Services, IT Function).…”