The importance of policy to effective IM use and improved performance

Abstract

Purpose Although the use of instant messaging (IM) at work has been studied in the IS field, its effective use and impact on performance have not been adequately addressed. The purpose of this paper is to explore the antecedents and consequences of the effective use of IM at work by adapting Burton-Jones and Grange’s theory of effective use. Design/methodology/approach The authors introduce “Comprehensive IM policy” as a facilitator of adaptation and learning actions to improve the effective use of IM, which will improve communication quality and productivity. The impact of IM competence on effective use is also discussed. Based on a survey of 215 managers, this study applies the partial least square technique to test the research model. Findings The results indicate that comprehensive IM policy encourages adaptation and learning actions, which improve the effective use of IM and thereafter improve communication quality and productivity. Meanwhile, IM competence has a substitutive interaction effect with IM reconfiguration and self-learning on effective use. Originality/value The results refine the general theory of effective use and provide managers with an approach to leverage IM use at work for performance gains.

Facilitating or inhibiting? The role of enterprise social media use in job performance

“…Thus, the managerial question changes from whether to use ESM to how to use it best to support goals (Kane, 2015). Organizations find various ways to enhance the effectiveness of ESM, such as enacting organizational policies that guide employees better to utilize technologies (Jia et al. , 2020), training employees to improve their information technology competency (Mao et al.…”

“…Thus, the managerial question changes from whether to use ESM to how to use it best to support goals (Kane, 2015). Organizations find various ways to enhance the effectiveness of ESM, such as enacting organizational policies that guide ITP 36,6 employees better to utilize technologies (Jia et al, 2020), training employees to improve their information technology competency (Mao et al, 2021), and cultivating an organizational IT culture (Abubakre et al, 2017). However, these measures do not answer the fundamental question of the productivity outcome of using new technologies (i.e.…”