Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Information technology Value'

A digitalização da informação vem proporcionando mudanças nos relacionamentos dos indivíduos, na competitividade das empresas, influenciando até mesmo a forma de organização da sociedade. Esse contexto é objeto de análise de diversos autores que consideram a tecnologia da informação desde um ativo super valorizado, tal como as empresas ponto com, até uma commodity sem importância estratégica, em razão de poder ser facilmente copiada. O presente estudo debruça-se sobre essa questão do valor. Busca saber qual a contribuição da tecnologia da informação para as organizações. Para tanto, o trabalho percorre o caminho do estudo de casos empresariais como método de análise do processo valoração da tecnologia. O exame constata que o valor atribuído à tecnologia da informação tem estreita relação com o locus organizacional. É dependente da posição que ocupa no sistema de trabalho e do espaço alcançado por suas respectivas contribuições. A tecnologia da informação, normalmente, é um dos componentes dos processos do negócio e, portanto, o seu valor deve ser contabilizado em conjunto com outros aspectos na análise do desempenho organizacional. Conclui-se que o valor da tecnologia da informação torna-se mais visível e explícito nas atividades primárias da empresa, decorrente dos projetos de geração de receita da área de marketing e venda ou de redução de custo nos processos de fabricação e distribuição. Por outro lado, nas atividades de apoio, sua mensuração é mais complexa e menos tangível.
The digital form of the information is changing individuals relationships, companies competitiveness, and influencing even the form of society organization. This context is object of analysis of diverse authors who is setting the information technology from an asset overpriced, such as the dot.com companies, to a commodity without strategic importance, because it can easily be copied. The present study is about this question of the value. This work examines the contribution of information technology to the organizations. It use enterprise multiple case studies as method to perform analysis of the valuation process. The examination found evidences that the attributed value of information technology has narrow relationship with organizational locus. Is dependent on the position it occupies in the system of work and the space reached for its respective contributions. The information technology, is one of the business process component and, therefore, its value must be set in conjunction with other aspects of the organizational performance analysis. The results indicates that the information technology value becomes more visible and explicit in the primary activities of the company, as a consequence of revenue generation projects from the sales and marketing areas or cost reduction from manufacturing and distribution areas. On the other hand, in the support activities, its evaluation is more complex and less tangible.

Many projects fail despite the use of evidence-based project management practices such as Performance Measurement Baseline (PMB), Earned Value Management (EVM) and Risk Management (RM). Although previous researchers have found that integrated project management techniques could be more valuable than the same techniques used by themselves, these findings do not address the benefits of integrated EVM with PMB created from RM-based Work Breakdown Structures (WBS) that could positively influence project results. The success of a project is partly dependent on accurately forecasting the performance of future states of current projects. The focus of this quantitative descriptive study is to improve current project management knowledge by identifying whether the integration of EVM with PMB created from RM-based WBS adds project value in accurately predicting the future performance of current projects. This study was conducted by surveying project leaders who have had some experience in EVM with project management. The results of this research significantly support the belief that integration of EVM with PMB created from RM-based WBS adds value to a project.

Technology is often presented as a neutral tool to be used when and where appropriate to perform work more efficiently and improve the quality of life. This dissertation explores the possibility that computers are distributed as though they were value-laden objects rather than neutral tools. This is done by focusing on the similarity between computers and income, because income is also distributed by organizations and is generally valued positively. The literature on organizational symbols is reviewed and evidence of the value attached to computers is presented. Previous research on income inequality is discussed focusing on factors empirically associated with income and on factors influencing the allocation of valued goods within a group. Earlier work on individual wage allocation and on the determinants of wage inequality within work groups is partially replicated and extended to the area of computer resources. Hypotheses regarding the distribution of income and computers are developed at both the individual and group level and the possibility that computer terminals act as value-laden objects is explored by comparing their distribution to that of income in white-collar work groups when computer use is statistically controlled. At the individual level, computer terminals and income shared many of the same correlates and predictors. For the sample as a whole, computers and income were slightly positively correlated and previous findings that characteristics of work and of individuals are related to income were replicated. The same set of predictors was also related to having one's own computer terminal, providing evidence that computer resources could act as symbols of status. Exploratory analyses indicated that the pattern of results differed by the organizational function of the work group and by job classification. Though use was consistently related to having one's own terminal, it was never the only factor involved. Group-level evidence of symbolic value was equivocal; previous findings regarding the distribution of income were not replicated and the pattern of relationships for computers was different from that for income. Implications of the symbolic value of computers for managers and directions for future research were described.

The value of an IT system can be considered from a number of different perspectives. Specifically, the same IT system can be valued differently across different stakeholders, time periods, usage environments, and other contextual factors. When measuring the value of an IT system, it is important to consider what value perspectives are relevant and how those perspectives affect the development of value metrics. An IT value assessment framework is proposed to aid in identifying such contextual factors and exploring how those factors affect the value that is realized from an IT system.

The idea that the deployment and strategic utilization of information technology (IT) resources as factors of production can be used by organisations to improve performances has been around for many decades. The contributions of the IT resources in improving organisation’s performances give rise to what is termed IT business value (ITBV). There have been varieties of conceptualizations and attempts to measure the ITBV by different researchers. However, most of these attempts to quantify ITBV have led to inconsistencies and paradoxes. Furthermore, a major part of the literature in the area continues to be anecdotal and primarily descriptive. Therefore, there is little evidence of an accepted theoretical framework for applying the ideas and there is even less in the way of empirical evidence concerning the validity and utility of these concepts. The research adopts multi-theoretical concepts of process-based, resource-based and microeconomics views as the theoretical framework in order to mitigate the absence of structured theoretical framework in the previous studies. A non parametric approach of Data Envelopment Analysis was used for empirical testing of the model developed. The findings present an empirically tested model for benchmarking IT-induced productivity in construction industry. Also the outcome of the research establishes that IT provides business value in undertaking the engineering and construction business processes, which leads to significant impact on the organisations performances in the areas of project delivery, customer relationship and overall profit growth. For practical purposes, the model could be used to provide support to managers in decision making on IT investments, utilization of the IT resources and how combination of strategic IT resources with other organizational resources could in increase efficiency in delivering project value chains.

Executives and directors are seeking to transform their enterprises into more efficient operations to achieve a competitive advantage and increase shareholder value. In addition, modern enterprises are deploying new technologies to attain the desired efficiencies inherently promised by technology advancements. However, the transformation and technology adoption results vary considerably between failure and success. Therefore, to identify an efficient and consistent method for guiding transformation efforts, we conducted a literature review of the technology adoption models, enterprise transformations, systems of systems, and human factors to identify efforts directed at integrating these research areas. This holistic approach guided the research method in which we subsequently conducted a qualitative action research case study to identify the influencers of technology adoption factors. The results of the case study identified the factors of human perception (salience, effort, expectancy, and value) are key influencers that accelerate technology adoption during the deployment phase similar to the application of human factors during the development phase of the technology lifecycle. These influencers generate perceived value for the technology and tools employed during enterprise transformations. Furthermore, we propose a model for using technological capabilities to enhance enterprise transformations based on context, process-based work instructions, work-instruction-based training, and subject-matter-expert desk-side support. Consequently, we determined that this perceived value technology adoption model should be a preferred tool for new technology deployments in addition to updating existing deployed technology for increased value that can be leveraged for lasting enterprise transformations.

Despite the use of earned value management (EVM) techniques to track development progress, federal information (IT) software programs continue to fail by not meeting identified business requirements. The purpose of this logistic regression study was to examine, using IT software data from federal agencies from 2011 to 2014, whether a relationship between schedule variance (SV), cost variance (CV), and actual cost (AC) could predict the success of IT software program, as operationalized by meeting the identified business requirements. The population of interest was 132 IT software programs developed between 2011 and 2014 for federal agencies. The sample source was an archival database located at ITdashboard.gov. The theoretical framework for the study was earned value (EV) project management theory. The EV project management theory is a project performance measurement system that involves integrating cost, schedule, and performance elements for planning and control. EVM contributes to project success by providing early warnings when programs deviate from cost and schedule plans. This study found that only SV was significant (SV days, p = .002). The null hypothesis was rejected, suggesting that a relationship exists between IT program success and the SV, CV, and AC. This study may contribute to social change by increasing the program managers' understanding of EV in federal project management and by decreasing federal spending through successful programs and more cost-efficient use of taxpayers' money.

Thesis (MTech (Business Information Systems))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2020
A shared common understanding or context awareness (CA) of IT Audit and Governance among all the internal stakeholders of a business remains an important factor. This context awareness is needed between the business itself, the IT department, and the Audit and Risk functions of the business. The research problem states that there is a lack of shared context awareness among all stakeholders when conducting IT audits and implementing IT Governance. To answer the research questions, a case study research strategy was followed using an International Services Group of companies operating from South Africa. The case study offered a diverse group of companies and vast experience in the South African Services, Trading, and Distribution sector. The diversity of this group of companies made it a perfect candidate for understanding context and the value of context in IT when conducting IT audits. The following research questions were asked: i) What are the factors affecting a shared context understanding among the stakeholders when conducting IT audits and implementing IT Governance? ii) How can a shared context understanding among stakeholders be achieved when conducting IT audits and implementing IT Governance? The aim of the study was to explore the value of context awareness within IT Audit and Governance in order to identify the value of shared context understanding. Data collection was done by means of interviews using semi-structured questionnaires and an interview guide. Qualitative data analysis techniques were adopted for this research. The conclusion of the study highlights the importance of a collective understanding of the business’s context in order to obtain alignment in business, IT, and Audit. It refers to the same or a similar understanding of the business processes; this takes time and is unique on all levels.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, 2011.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 125-133).
Health information exchange (HIE) - the electronic exchange of health information among healthcare institutions - has been projected to hold enormous promise as an antidote to the fragmented healthcare delivery system in the United States. After decades of mostly failed attempts, we still do not know how to make HIE work. This thesis is the beginning of a systematic understanding of HIE, focusing on the clinical users and the context in which the users and the technology interact. It uses a systems approach to understand HIE from the perspectives of the core stakeholders including healthcare providers, patients, health IT vendor companies, public policy, and the HIE organizations that supply data exchange services. The core contributions of the thesis are contained in four studies. Values of healthcare providers as stakeholders in HIE In a stud y of three communities, healthcare provider organizations were found to expect regional HIE organizations to bring them benefits from the ability to measure care quality. However, one relatively larger community placed greater value on the strategic interests of its individual provider institutions, whereas two smaller communities valued the interests of the communities as a whole. Factors that affect clinicians' usage of HIE. In a study of clinician-users of an operational HIE, usage factors were categorized as motivators and moderators. Motivators for individual clinicians' usage of HIE included improving care quality and time savings. Moderators were numerous and included gaps in data, workflow complexity and usability issues. Several policy options and implications are discussed including: requiring HIE organizations to report metrics of HIE contributions and accesses; certifying HIE vendor companies to provide standardized usage metrics; and creating incentives for clinicians as well as HIE organizations and regional health IT extension centers to meet HIE usage targets. Analysis of opportunities to use HIE. In one community, 51% of visits involved "care transitions" among individual providers, and 36-41% involved care transitions between medical groups. The percentage of a provider's visits which involved care transitions varied considerably by clinical specialty and even within specialties. Within primary care, individual clinicians' "transition percentages" varied from 32% to 95%. This study discusses how policies designed to foster HIE usage should take this variation into account. Analysis of mergers and provider recruitment on HIE value. In a simulation study of patient visit patterns in 10 communities, the results suggest that even after substantial consolidation of medical groups, an HIE would still have considerable value as measured by the number of opportunities for data exchange. However, in each community a small number of medical groups were key: if absent from a community HIE, these groups would reduce the value by 50%. Conversely, if they were the only groups participating, the HIE's value would only achieve 10-20% of its value with all groups participating. The results of these studies suggest that HIE will be needed even in the event of the expected large-scale consolidation of healthcare providers. However, efforts will be needed to recruit medical groups to join HIE organizations, to improve HIE technology, and to train clinicians to integrate HIE into their workflows.
by Robert S. Rudin.
Ph.D.

Thesis (M.S. in Systems Technology)--Naval Postgraduate School, June 2006.
Thesis Advisor(s): Thomas J. Housel. "June 2006." Includes bibliographical references (p. 53-55). Also available in print.

The purpose of this study was to determine the factors associated with outsourcing of information systems (IS), and if there is a difference in IS sourcing based on the strategic value of the outsourced functions. The theoretical framework is based upon a synthesis of strategic management theory (SMT) and transaction cost economics (TCE) as they apply to vertical integration in the health care sector; therefore, IS sourcing behavior was conceptualized as a case of vertical integration. The conceptual model proposed that sourcing behavior would be determined by asset specificity, uncertainty, the interaction of asset specificity and uncertainty, bargaining power, corporate strategy needs, and the strategic value of the IS functions outsourced.A cross sectional design was used, consisting of data from the American Hospital Association (AHA), the Area Resource File (ARF), the HIMSS Analytics database, and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) hospital cost reports for 2003. The final sample consisted of 1,365 health care delivery systems and 3,452 hospitals. Analysis was conducted using a two-stage negative binomial regression model (using instrumental variables) to correct for suspected endogeneity. Tests of joint restrictions using the group of variables derived from TCE and SMT, respectively, were done with the dependent variable divided between strategic and non-strategic IS functions (the division was done based on a model of Core IS Capabilities developed as a model for a high-performance IS function).The results supported the relationship between bargaining power and IS outsourcing. Results for asset specificity and corporate strategy needs were significant in the opposite direction than hypothesized. No other findings were significant. These results suggest that hospital system managers are likely not considering significant factors when making sourcing decisions, including the relative strategic value of the functions they are outsourcing. This study contributes to the limited body of knowledge surrounding IS sourcing behavior in the health care sector. Future research should examine the effect of cost on IS sourcing decisions, and consider the use of alternative theoretical frameworks, particularly Institutional Theory.

Thesis (M.S. in Information Technology Management)--Naval Postgraduate School, December 2005.
Thesis Advisor(s): Thomas Housel. Includes bibliographical references (p. 65-66). Also available online.

Business Administration/Interdisciplinary
Ph.D.
Effective investment strategies help companies form dynamic core organizational capabilities allowing them to adapt and survive in today's rapidly changing knowledge-based economy. This dissertation investigates three valuation issues that challenge managers with respect to developing business-critical investment strategies that can have significant impacts on firm performance and growth in the competitive, information-orientated business environment. Using firm-level data collected from Taiwan, this dissertation examines specific valuation issues that are vital in shaping not only firm performance but also competitive advantages in current knowledge-based economy: (1) investments in information technology (IT), (2) human capital, and (3) corporate governance. To address these three major managerial challenges relating to firm investment strategies, this dissertation focuses on investigating the impact of three sources of business value creation, including IT investment, workforce education, and Chief Audit Executive (CAE) turnover. The results of investigating service infrastructure in the banking industry support the idea that in today's complex, fast moving multichannel business environment, evaluation of the strategic value of IT must consider both the direct impact of individual channels and the complementary relationships between IT-based channels and the traditional branch channel while constructing an effective business strategy to align IT use with firm strategic objectives. The interdependence between channels found in this study has a significant effect on firms' short term profitability and long term market competition capability, suggesting that the true value of IT will be fully realized only when coupled with complementary investments in organizational resources. Second, results of examining investments in workforce and research and development (R&D) activities in IT industries indicate that firms with more highly educated workforces have, on average, better performance. Investment in R&D for improving innovation capability is positively associated with firm performance. More importantly, higher levels of workforce education moderate the impact of R&D investment on firm performance, confirming the hypothesized interdependency between workforce education and firm innovation capabilities. In other words, firms benefit more from investment in R&D activities when they have a higher level of educated workforce. An important strategic implication from the DuPont Analysis is that the complementarity between workforce education and R&D capital reinforces a firm's differentiation strategy. Finally, the results of analyzing CAE turnover in Taiwan public companies show that CAE turnover is positively correlated with executive turnover (Chief Executive Officer [CEO] and Chief Financial Officer [CFO]) and financial restatements, which are commonly viewed as a signal of a troubled business or failure. The study also shows that CAE turnover has a negative impact on contemporaneous and future firm performance, suggesting that, to some extent, changing the head of the internal audit function conveys a negative signal to the market regarding a firm's performance. Given that the CAE monitors and assesses enterprise risk practices, the findings of this study suggest that CAE turnover could be used as an indicator of business volatility and potential business risk. The passage of the governance law which improves the quality of a firm's internal control system is found to reinforce the signaling role of CAE turnover and improve firm performance. The results of this dissertation provide important strategic insights regarding the factors managers should consider when making investment choices that are expected to align with a firm's long term development and performance. This dissertation complements literature in managerial accounting and information systems, particularly contributing to business value of IT investment, human capital, and internal audit research streams. It also addresses regulatory implications for policy makers such as regulating relevant disclosures of company information for interested parties and developing a regulatory environment that minimizes regulatory barriers which can suppress businesses and economy growth.
Temple University--Theses

According to Gartner Inc., $3.7 trillion dollars was spent in the United States alone in 2013 on IT services. The continued anticipated growth of United States IT spending will reach as high as $3.9 trillion in 2014, representing an average increase in spending of 4.1% between 2013 and 2014. A significant percentage of those investments were lost to waste and failed projects. The combination of rising costs and losses has driven a considerable amount of research on the impact of successful project management on the value that IT creates within an organization. The results of a recent study confirmed a significant relationship between the success of an IT project and the quality of the IT department’s technical efficiencies and processes. Recent studies have also demonstrated a link between enterprise architectural planning and an organizations ability to manage IT investments. This study on IT managers’ perceptions of the business value of IT and the effectiveness of enterprise architectural planning as moderated by age, gender, and education, used a non-experimental quantitative design and a random sample provided by the SurveyMonkey contribute panel to obtain 109 survey responses. The use of a random sample and the size of the study were intended to allow for the generalizability of the results within the geographic region of the United States. A bootstrapped hierarchical linear regression statistical methodology was employed using SPSS as the data were not normally distributed. Ethical considerations were mediated according to the requirements outlined in the Belmont Report (2014). This study found a statistically significant relationship between IT managers’ perceptions of the business value of IT and the effectiveness of enterprise architectural planning as moderated by age, gender, and education. The results of the study support existing research on the topic of the perceived business value of IT and enterprise architectural planning.

Thesis (MTech (Information Technology))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2017.
In Information Technology (IT) service management, the Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) has been established as a standard and framework for managing IT services within private and public sector. However, in South African public sector, the value of this framework including the capacity management process has not been determined. The aim of the study was to assess the capacity management process within the service design stage of the ITIL framework in managing IT services at a selected public organisation in South Africa. Assessing capacity management in the context of this research was to judge whether it adds value to the organisation. Main questions asked were: to what extent has ITIL been implemented in the public sector in South Africa?, what benefits have been achieved through the implementation of ITIL in the public sector in South Africa? and how effective is the capacity management process of ITIL in the South African public sector? The study adopts a qualitative approach based on primary and secondary data. A purposive sampling method was used to collect data through interviews of ICT officials in Pretoria and Western Cape regions. It is evident in terms of the findings that capacity management within the organisation is practiced, but the organisation still has challenges in managing the process. Findings reveal challenges around user account management, ICT skills shortage and capacity constraints, information, network monitoring tools, and ITIL implementation. DeLone and McLean theoretical framework was used to analyse the capacity management process to explain the findings. A lack of clear ICT planning among the leadership is a contributing factor. Lack of adhering to standards, procedures and processes make it almost impossible to manage capacity. Efforts to address the technical and organisational challenges such as technical skills and stakeholders immediately reporting the users that need to be terminated on systems prohibit the success of capacity management process. Drawing the conclusion, it is recommended that efforts to address challenges should move beyond just ICT, into a comprehensive action by all stakeholders in respective of inter departmental units and executive who make decisions. Solutions should be embedded with ICT being able to manage technology, auditing of processes, and capacity to ensure excellence through reduced risk, increased efficiency, confident forecasts, and cost effectiveness is essential.

Successful Supply Chain Management (SCM) depends on how well an organization performs internal and external communications with trading partners, executes the logistics component, and understands/monitors related costs of conducting its business. The use of information technology (IT) is considered a prerequisite for the effective control of today's complex supply chains. Increased communication technology has redefined how businesses work together, raised customer expectations, and placed new demands on supply chain performance. IT components with proven and rapid return-on-investment are favored to support critical supply chain processes such as leaner manufacturing processes, consumer-driven supply chains, and customer responsiveness. The use of IT in the digital era has become critical and it is treated as a major competitive tool for success. Complex and comprehensive IT infrastructures support the firm's communications network, databases, and operating systems. Information technology facilitates the creation of value. However, the creation of value is defined by the different groups of stakeholders. Therefore, stakeholders must be integrated into this process of change management that uses IT as the enabler. Supply chains are due to change when higher levels of performance and/or adaptation are required as mandated by changes in the business structure and/or benchmarking and/or regulations. One of the major problems for any supply chain executive is to understand and manage these changes. These changes usually require the implementation of an IT project. Therefore, the successful design, execution, and completion of these IT projects are important for the supply chain. SCM is now a strategic function addressed at the highest levels of the organization in concert with multiple stakeholders on both the supplier and customer side of the table. The aim of this dissertation is to develop a value mapping framework involving stakeholders to improve supply chain performance when implementing IT projects. The framework has components that help define the supply chain, measure the size of the issues, identify necessary changes in the metrics to improve performance, measure the organizational consequences of these changes, and develop and follow a plan to implement IT projects to achieve the new goals of performance. Through this new framework, these IT projects will be able to bring the supply chain from a current state "As is" to a future state "To be"; capturing the existing and desired states of the proposed changes which are aligned with the objectives and goals of the organization. Therefore, the IT project can be designed, executed, and completed. One unique component of this framework is the inclusion of the stakeholders at different stages. This framework identifies the group of stakeholders to be taken into consideration in order to define the future "To be" state. In addition, the framework identifies the value creation of the "To be" system as seen by the stakeholders.
Ph.D.
Department of Industrial Engineering and Management Systems
Engineering and Computer Science
Industrial Engineering PhD

Based on the Government Performance and Results Act, the United States Air Force is transforming its business through e-government, the adoption of information technology enabled enterprise business systems. The problem this research addressed was the lack of theory on implementation success of enterprise business systems, especially when users perceive that organizational mission and the value of the systems differ from the enterprise vision and goals. The purpose of the study was to conceptualize the acceptance of enterprise business systems by internal users. The research was based on theories about the influence and interaction of drivers of technology adoption and user acceptance. The critical research questions involved exploring the internal users' perceptions of the value of the systems, what users need, and how those perceptions align with the vision and goals of their organization and the enterprise business systems. Grounded theory was used to construct a theory of the value and acceptance of the enterprise systems from the users' perspectives and experiences. Data were collected from twelve study participants using open-ended and semi-structured interview questions. The data were analyzed using an iterative comparative process to derive commonalities and differences among user value. The findings demonstrated that when internal users value an enterprise business system, shared understanding of the vision the system will be effective and efficient and will meet organizational goals. These findings can be used to improve the alignment of the Air Force systems' value for the user and the enterprise, increase the transparency in IT transformations, and enhance the effectiveness of enterprise system change initiatives, thus resulting in overall reduced business costs.

Thesis (S.M.M.O.T.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management, Management of Technology Program, 2003.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 89-90).
Information Technology (IT) is a major enabler of business, yet the most questioned of investments. Time and again, the question asked by senior executives is: What is the business value of IT to our firm? This question is coming in from all directions and bringing to bear enormous pressure on the CIO role. More challenging is the expectation that the business value of IT projects be converted to cash flows, albeit for the sake of easy comparability among projects. The crux of the issue facing organizations with regard to assessing IT projects derives from the fact that there is now wide variety in the nature of such projects and consequently great differences in the nature and measurability of project benefits. Many organizations would like to reduce all benefits from all IT projects to a comparable financial metric, such as NPV based on investment and cash flows returns. While calculating the dollar value of IT projects may not be realistic, anything that helps managers to get a "sense" of, or better judge, the value of IT projects is money on the table. The approach to the thesis is to find a methodology to valuate IT projects. The solution that is recommended is a framework that is accompanied by a survey. The survey probes the business project manager and IT project manager of each project to asses the extent of benefits and risks that impact the objectives of both business management and IT management. It also probes the business unit manager to assess the importance each of these benefits and risks to the business strategy of the business unit. Based on the responses of the business unit manager, business project manager, and IT project manager, the survey assigns weights to the benefits, risks, and the responses, and then computes an Expected Business Value score and an Expected Technical Value score for each project.
by Ravi Chivukula.
S.M.M.O.T.

Research Question: Can organizations truly create value for all its stakeholders simultaneously, without a significant trade-off from one group to another? And what role does current ICT infrastructure play?

Purpose: This study is aimed at determining how organizations create value simultaneously for stakeholders without a trade-off, and also examine the role of ICT (Information and communication technologies) in balancing responsibility in trying to satisfying all stakeholders (customers, suppliers, society, environment, employees and shareholders) in complex ICT environments.

Methodology: The study involves business organizations in Sweden. A research questionnaire was sent to one thousand five hundred top level management executives in Swedish based business organizations, to collect data.  Business organizations were carefully selected to cut across many industry sectors.

Findings: Some of the findings includes: that many companies in Sweden still have a hard time satisfying all stakeholders simultaneously without trade-off, even with the huge ICT infrastructures. We discovered that although companies invest a lot on ICT, but the combination of strategy which will bring corporate partnership and create value for all without “robbing Peter to pay Paul” is still lacking.

Research Limitations: First, the study was limited to Sweden because of lack of resources to conduct interviews in many countries. Thus, there is the need to exercise caution in generalising these findings. Second, the number of respondents was limited, because it was difficult to get very busy top management executives from different companies to respond to our questionnaire.  

Originality: This research work provides insight to understand and interpret balanced stakeholder value creation in companies, identify attributes for simultaneous value creation, as well as the role information and communication technology play in achieving this objective.

Keywords: Stakeholder, Value Creation, Information and communication technology, Sustainable Value, and Stakeholder Analysis

This study examines the environmental and economic effects of green information technology (IT). Green IT describes two sets of IT innovations: one set includes innovations that are implemented to reduce the environmental impact of IT services in organizations; and the other IT to reduce the environmental impact of other organizational processes. The two sets respond to the call for more environmentally friendly or “greener” organizational processes.

I developed and tested a preliminary model. The model applied the resource based view (RBV) of the firm (Wernerfelt 1984) the stakeholder theory (Freeman 1984) and included four constructs: (1) BAS implementation; environmental value conceived in a novel way as the conservation of electric energy in buildings; economic value -- from energy cost savings; and BAS complements. These four constructs formed three propositions: (1) BAS implementation is positively associated with environmental value; (2) environmental value is positively associated with economic value; and BAS complements moderate the relationship BAS implementation and environmental value.

The model was used to guide the investigation of three research questions: 1. What are the environmental and economic values of green IT? 2. How do green IT create the above values? 3. Are other dimensions of value created? If so, what are they?

The focal IT investigated was the building automation system – a system designed to conserve electric energy and decrease operational costs. The unit of analysis of the study was the facilities management team – the implementers of the system.

I collected data on a sample of six diverse cases of BAS implementations. The cases were diverse in terms of the BAS types, the building purposes, the building locations and the building occupancy and management. Two types of BAS were involved in the study, each with a different level of artificial intelligence: the more intelligent BAS self-reconfigured when changes in setpoints, for example, were necessary; the less intelligent BAS must be reconfigured by an engineer in similar circumstances.

There was also diversity in terms of the buildings in which the systems were implemented and the occupancy and management of the buildings. The buildings include: the corporate headquarters of a global telecommunications firm; university classrooms; a residence hall in a university; and three multi-tenanted office complexes. The building occupancy and management differ in that some buildings are owner-occupied and are managed in-house, while the others are leased and their management outsourced.

Data collection involved recorded semi-structured interviews of three sets of users in the organizations: building engineers; chief engineers; and property/facilities managers. The interviews were prearranged and were conducted onsite using an interview protocol. Each interview lasted approximately one hour and was conducted in one session. The data were transcribed and analyzed in Nvivo 10.

The findings showed support for the presence of the four constructs within the preliminary model as well as for the three propositions in the preliminary model. The data also revealed contextual details of the BAS implementation and BAS complements constructs. There were also new dimensions value including: unanticipated types of economic value (including savings from reduced labor demand; social value (comfort and safety for building occupants); and strategic value (knowledge used to position the organizations for greater efficiency and effectiveness). Overall, the value outcomes of the implementations can be summarized as short term social, environmental and economic value as well as strategic value – consistent with the concept of sustainable value defined by Hart et al. (1995).

Also, consistent with Zuboff’s (1985) description of the duality of intelligent IT systems -- the ability to informate and automate, the BAS implementation construct was found to include two distinct sources of value: equipment automation; and equipment information. The unanticipated value dimensions and types, as well as the sources of value were used to refine the research model.

The study therefore a preliminary theoretical model – the resource based view of the sustainable organization (RBV-SO) -- as well as contextual implementation details that can be used to guide future investigations of the value created by intelligent green IT systems such as the BAS, as well as measurement items that can be used to inform quantitative studies of these systems. The study also adds to the practical body of knowledge concerning green IT implementations in general and implementations of the BAS in particular, concerning: details of the information value – for example, for measuring the environmental impact of the system and for substantiating claims in the application for green funds available to organizations; and details of some key complementary resources that enhance value creation within the context.

Two major limitations of this study are: (1) a single coder was used in the analysis process and therefore no inter-coder reliability was established for the results; and (2) user perceptions rather than actual quantities were used to validate the findings.

Some future research prospects include: use of these findings to conduct a quantitative study of an intelligent system extended with, for example, investigation of the impact of external forces such as government regulations, environmental issue salience, and market forces on the value created by green IT (such as the BAS); and investigation of the impact over time of the development of the strategic capabilities enabled by the BAS on creation of value.

Using a sample of information and security data breaches the present research examines the public announcement impact between Brick and Mortar firms and E-Commerce firms. The dissertation initially analyzes the effects of publicly announced information and security breaches on abnormal stock returns, abnormal trading volume, and firm risk. The dissertation then analyzes differential impact between Brick and Mortar firms and E-Commerce firm’s market value following a data breach. Using a sample size of 38 information security breaches, E-Commerce firms resulted in more negative abnormal stock returns than Brick and Mortar firms. While data breach announcements did not significantly impact retail firms as a whole, they did have a significant impact when broken into the subsets. E-Commerce firms that announced an information security breach experienced abnormal trading volume.

This is a qualitative case study of the 2005-2008 Utah State University Information Technology reorganization from the perspective of key change advocates. The study identified and documented the unfolding change process involved in the reorganization in terms of dissatisfaction, executive changes, internal executive strategic planning, implementation and initial impacts, and continuous "in situ" strategic planning. The study also answered a set of supporting concluding questions indicating increased value to the institution in areas of customer service and confidence, organization, financial resources, planning and policy, security, and increased/improved services and service functions.

Thesis (M.S. in Contract Management) Naval Postgraduate School, December 2001.
"December 2001". Thesis advisor(s): Nissen, Mark E. ; Selby, Richard P. Includes bibliographical references (p. 153-157). Also available online.

This study examines the environmental and economic effects of green information technology (IT). Green IT describes two sets of IT innovations: one set includes innovations that are implemented to reduce the environmental impact of IT services in organizations; and the other IT to reduce the environmental impact of other organizational processes. The two sets respond to the call for more environmentally friendly or “greener” organizational processes. I developed and tested a preliminary model. The model applied the resource based view (RBV) of the firm (Wernerfelt 1984) the stakeholder theory (Freeman 1984) and included four constructs: (1) BAS implementation; environmental value conceived in a novel way as the conservation of electric energy in buildings; economic value -- from energy cost savings; and BAS complements. These four constructs formed three propositions: (1) BAS implementation is positively associated with environmental value; (2) environmental value is positively associated with economic value; and BAS complements moderate the relationship BAS implementation and environmental value. The model was used to guide the investigation of three research questions: 1. What are the environmental and economic values of green IT? 2. How do green IT create the above values? 3. Are other dimensions of value created? If so, what are they? The focal IT investigated was the building automation system – a system designed to conserve electric energy and decrease operational costs. The unit of analysis of the study was the facilities management team – the implementers of the system. I collected data on a sample of six diverse cases of BAS implementations. The cases were diverse in terms of the BAS types, the building purposes, the building locations and the building occupancy and management. Two types of BAS were involved in the study, each with a different level of artificial intelligence: the more intelligent BAS self-reconfigured when changes in setpoints, for example, were necessary; the less intelligent BAS must be reconfigured by an engineer in similar circumstances. There was also diversity in terms of the buildings in which the systems were implemented and the occupancy and management of the buildings. The buildings include: the corporate headquarters of a global telecommunications firm; university classrooms; a residence hall in a university; and three multi-tenanted office complexes. The building occupancy and management differ in that some buildings are owner-occupied and are managed in-house, while the others are leased and their management outsourced. Data collection involved recorded semi-structured interviews of three sets of users in the organizations: building engineers; chief engineers; and property/facilities managers. The interviews were prearranged and were conducted onsite using an interview protocol. Each interview lasted approximately one hour and was conducted in one session. The data were transcribed and analyzed in Nvivo 10. The findings showed support for the presence of the four constructs within the preliminary model as well as for the three propositions in the preliminary model. The data also revealed contextual details of the BAS implementation and BAS complements constructs. There were also new dimensions value including: unanticipated types of economic value (including savings from reduced labor demand; social value (comfort and safety for building occupants); and strategic value (knowledge used to position the organizations for greater efficiency and effectiveness). Overall, the value outcomes of the implementations can be summarized as short term social, environmental and economic value as well as strategic value – consistent with the concept of sustainable value defined by Hart et al. (1995). Also, consistent with Zuboff’s (1985) description of the duality of intelligent IT systems -- the ability to informate and automate, the BAS implementation construct was found to include two distinct sources of value: equipment automation; and equipment information. The unanticipated value dimensions and types, as well as the sources of value were used to refine the research model. The study therefore a preliminary theoretical model – the resource based view of the sustainable organization (RBV-SO) -- as well as contextual implementation details that can be used to guide future investigations of the value created by intelligent green IT systems such as the BAS, as well as measurement items that can be used to inform quantitative studies of these systems. The study also adds to the practical body of knowledge concerning green IT implementations in general and implementations of the BAS in particular, concerning: details of the information value – for example, for measuring the environmental impact of the system and for substantiating claims in the application for green funds available to organizations; and details of some key complementary resources that enhance value creation within the context. Two major limitations of this study are: (1) a single coder was used in the analysis process and therefore no inter-coder reliability was established for the results; and (2) user perceptions rather than actual quantities were used to validate the findings. Some future research prospects include: use of these findings to conduct a quantitative study of an intelligent system extended with, for example, investigation of the impact of external forces such as government regulations, environmental issue salience, and market forces on the value created by green IT (such as the BAS); and investigation of the impact over time of the development of the strategic capabilities enabled by the BAS on creation of value.

The public higher education sector in South Africa is governed by an act of Parliament which defines the governance organs and mechanisms required within institutions and the sector. This doctoral thesis begins by contextualising ICT governance within the levels of systemic governance in South Africa that have relevance to this study. It then continues by advancing the understanding of the state of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) governance in public higher education institutions in South Africa by investigating the level of pervasiveness, the level of ICT process maturity and the alignment of ICT to the institutional processes within these institutions. Subsequently, this thesis results in the production of a contextually appropriate value framework that contributes towards an understanding of the need for the improvement of ICT governance. A survey of the extant literature on governance, ICT governance, and the frameworks and standards associated with governance indicates that the methodological approach currently favoured in ICT governance research is predominantly interpretive and based on surveys and interviews. This study leans towards a Design Science approach paradigm using surveys for the qualitative data collection process. The empirical research data was gathered from the highest ranking ICT officers at public higher education institutions in South Africa. This study makes contributions on a number of levels – from the first known measurement of ICT pervasiveness within the context of higher education, to the measurement of ICT process maturity and the measurement of the alignment of ICT and institutional processes, to the design of a value framework that breaks down governance into layers indicating which governance organs are appropriate at the relevant layers and which governance mechanisms can be used to address governance at each layer of governance. This study therefore makes a contribution to the ICT domain for development research by demonstrating praxis for the improvement of ICT governance implementation in the public higher education sector in South Africa. This study makes both method design and practical contributions to the ICT body of knowledge at various stages of the research process. These contributions include reflection on and analysis of the data gathering approaches that occur within the public higher education sector and in the complex environment of institutional autonomy and academic freedom; the use of Agency Theory to support the ‗governance intent‘ transfer between the layers of governance in the value framework and the synthesis of the improvement of ICT governance with value creation. The findings of this study further contribute to an understanding of the dynamics and interrelatedness of aspects of governance and management, while making a contribution to theoretical research by extending practical and empirical understanding of the ICT governance environment in the public higher education sector in South Africa.

The study was triggered by a discussion with one of Transwerk’s executive management during an MBA tea break. The discussion was centred on the lack of IT Governance Structure in some organisations that are centrally managed due to geographical location and spreading of branches countrywide. The purpose of this study was to analyse the information and communication technology initiatives that can be implemented at Transwerk by the ICT department to ensure significant value from their information and communication technology investments. This was undertaken by means of a literature and an empirical study. The elements of the information and communication technology initiatives were discussed and the study then analysed the responses in an attempt to determine the initiatives that are currently implemented at Transwerk’s ICT department. The literature study indicated that is it critical for any organisation that needs to be successful should have an integrated ICT Governance Structure. The empirical study found out that the current situation at Transwerk’s ICT department requires attention because their IT Governance Structure does not involve major stakeholders from other business units. Recommendations were made as a result of analysing the literature study and empirical study to ensure the implementation of key initiatives that can add value to the organization.

Electronic medical records (EMRs) or electronic health records have been in use for years in hospitals around the world as a time-saving system for patient record keeping. Despite its widespread use, some physicians disagree with the assertion that EMRs save time. The purpose of this study was to explore whether any time saved with the use of the EMR system was actually devoted by doctors to patient-care and thereby to improved patient-care efficiency. The conceptual support for this study was predicated employing the task-technology fit theory. Task-technology theorists argue that information technology is likely to have a positive impact in individual performance and production timeliness if its capabilities match the task that the user must perform. The research questions addressed the use of an EMR system as a time-saving device, its impact on the quality of patient-care, and how it has influenced patients? access to healthcare in Nigeria. In this research, a comparative qualitative case study was conducted involving 2 hospitals in Nigeria, one using EMRs and another using paper-based manual entry. A purposeful sample of 12 patients and 12 physicians from each hospital was interviewed. Data were compiled and organized using Nvivo 10 software for content analysis. Categories and recurring themes were identified from the data. The findings revealed that reduced patients? registration processing time gave EMR-using doctors more time with their patients, resulting in better patient care. These experiences were in stark contrast to the experiences of doctors who used paper-based manual entry. This study supports positive social change by informing decision makers that time saved by implementing EMR keeping may encourage doctors to spend more time with their patients, thus improving the general quality of healthcare in Nigeria.

Thesis (M.S. in Information Technology Management)--Naval Postgraduate School, December 2002.
Thesis advisor(s): Thomas Housel, Glenn Cook. Includes bibliographical references (p. 85-87). Also available online.

This research determines the fundamental rationales, principles of copyright law and droit d'auteur, in order to ascertain whether these legal mechanisms or institutions are viable in the light of information technology. Moreover, the analysis is directed towards the determination of the emergence of intellectual property rights in their cultural, economic, historical, political and legal relation to technological change. It is argued that none of the current intellectual property mechanisms are viable in the light of information technology. Further, only the fundamental rationales of droit d'auteur would appear to respond adequately, on principle, to the challenges of the information age under a new concept of authorship. The inadequacies of the current intellectual property institutions and information technology derive from the manner in which intellectual property rights emerge. Legal rights ought to be the spontaneous product of individual claims and the basis of a new system of voluntary interactions, where legal institutions, such as intellectual property, validate common practice instead of dictating it. As a result, it is demonstrated that as opposed to early intellectual property systems which emerge out of the individual claims, modern copyright law dictates the emergence of rights by granting to authors property rights in commodities. By contrast, droit d'auteur rationally secures property rights in works as a simple recognition of authors' rights in their work, being thus independent of technologies with the attribution of copyright. Following this line of thinking, markets are systems for consensual exchange of owned goods which are intended to encourage individuals to make productive use of resources. Since works of the mind produce externalities which prevent markets from forming efficiently, copyright is sought to provide incentive for the production of the optimal amount of information.

This paper explores the value propositions that exist within ecosystems comprised of organizational and individual actors. The concept of value in general and how value is cocreated in multi-actor networks is explored by using service-dominant logic. The ecosystem is further framed by the intrinsic traits of digital technology as portrayed in The Layered Architecture of Digital Technology. Together, both of these framing conventions create what the paper refers to as a digital service ecosystem. In order to understand the important characteristics of a digital service ecosystem this paper analyzes a case study involving several actors participating in an ecosystem project in northern Sweden. This paper identifies six overarching themes that serve as the basis for three value propositions. A model is introduced as a way to simplify the understanding of each value proposition and how they interact with one another.

Thesis (M.B.A. (Rhodes Investec Business School)) - Rhodes University, 2008.
Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Master of Business Administration in the Rhodes Investec Business School (RIBS)

Confucian value, as the China traditional value, has been extensively researched in Chinese management, since the culture value is the essence for studying management. These existing studies ignore a critical issue that is the generational value change. As the direct result of China fast developed economy and 'opening' policy, much international companies entry into China, which bring the Western production and ideology to Chinese. The value and lifestyle of Chinese people have dramatically changed, especially for those young generations. This generation is in the value verge stage, which they are more individualistic and less Confucianism. The existing Chinese management theory is inappropriate since it considers all Chinese hold a same value, the study focused on Chinese young generation employee and identifying a young generation employees suited management style is little and undeveloped, which is forms the distinctiveness of this research. The aim is to explore, illuminate and gain the deep understanding of Chinese young generation employees' perceptions of value and impact of their behaviour, further to propose effective management style including the effective management approaches, to potentially contribute Chinese local managers and Western managers in their global employee management. The concepts in the Confucianism, Individualism serve as the theoretical framework for this research. Also, the knowledge of management effectiveness, management style and management approaches ground the further analysis in this research. With its characteristic, this research selects China Information Technology industry to deeply study Chinese young generation employees' value and managers' first hand experiences, It employs social constructionism followed by qualitative methodology to understand participants' perceptions. Semi-structured interview is a method to gain the participants' thoughts and stories which later to be analysed by narrative analysis followed by thematic approach. An analysis of data revealed that Chinese young generation employees different to elder employee. Four distinctive perceived values have been discovered: practicality; self centered; performance orientated and anti-traditions. To respond young generation employees' value change, the analysis revealed a management style, entitled 'Elder- brother'. Heading this management, seven effective management approaches are explored: benevolence; equal and learning supervision style; open decision making style; direct communication style; performance based evaluation; flexible staff management and encouragement for young enployees' creations. At the same time, the analysis also provides an image for the qualified manager, who is self discipline; skilled and knowledge; competence in managing and having nice personal traits. Above all, they have not been discovered by past studies. They have offered new insights and raised awareness of the Chinese young employees' value, and corresponded managerial thought and behaviour. The contributions of this research are: 1) it extends the current literature of Chinese management theory, which was never concerned in past research, with the specific interest on the Chinese young generation employees; 2) it develops a new and practice based framework for managing Chinese young generation employees in a contemporary environment, by addressing the management style, detailed management approaches and the image of the manager; 3) it provides timely information for other academics and practitioners understand the current value presence in Chinese young generation employees, as well as guides both China and expatriate managers adopt their management behaviour in the future.

Thesis (M.S. in Information Technology Management)--Naval Postgraduate School, September 2005.
Thesis Advisor(s): Dan Boger. Includes bibliographical references (p. 119-124). Also available online.

When a company includes a new technology or innovation into their value proposition, customers may perceive it as an enhancement or deterioration. This phenomenon was explored in this study with a case study of a present case in the esports industry. Research have shown that AI (Artificial Intelligence) technology can be used to predict which team is going to win in a match in the esports game DotA 2. A prototype AI called Znipe Sense was developed and analyzed during this study to answer the question: How can a predictive AI affect the value proposition of live esports consumption? Znipe Sense was included into Znipe Esports’ value proposition during a tournament in February 2018. It was observed that Znipe Sense could predict outcomes of professional matches with a higher accuracy than human experts. The observations of Znipe Sense, an interview with experienced players, interviews with business professionals and internal company documents were used as empirical material for the analysis. How Znipe Sense affected the value proposition was analyzed through the factors: Performance, Ease-of-use, Reliability, Flexibility and Affectivity, also known as the PERFA framework. It was concluded that a predictive AI can enhance the value proposition of live esports consumption through the Performance and Ease-of-use factors, and it would not affect the value proposition through Reliability or Flexibility. However, in the analysis of the Affectivity factor it was identified that there is a risk related to negative effects of gambling addiction that could deteriorate the value proposition.
När ett företag inkluderar en ny teknik eller innovation i sitt värdeerbjudande kan kunderna uppleva det som en förbättring eller försämring. Detta fenomen undersöktes i denna studie med en fallstudie av ett aktuellt fall i esportsindustrin. Forskning har visat att AI (Artificiell Intelligens) teknik kan användas för att förutsäga vilket lag som kommer att vinna i en match i esports spelet DotA 2. En AI prototyp, Znipe Sense, utvecklades och analyserades under denna studie för att svara på frågan: Hur kan ett prediktivt AI påverka värdeerbjudandet av live esports konsumtion? Znipe Sense inkluderades i Znipe Esports värdeerbjudande under en turnering i februari 2018. Det observerades att Znipe Sense var bättre än mänskliga experter på att förutse det vinnande laget i professionella matcher. Observationerna av Znipe Sense, en intervju med erfarna spelare, intervjuer med affärsfolk och interna företagsdokument användes som empiriskt material. Hur Znipe Sense påverkade värdeerbjudandet analyserades genom faktorerna: ”Performance”, ”Ease-of-use”, ”Reliability”, ”Flexibility” och ”Affectivity”, även känt som PERFA-ramverket. Slutsatsen visar på att ett prediktivt AI kan öka värdeerbjudandet av live esports konsumtion genom Performance och Ease- of-use faktorerna, och att värdeerbjudandet inte skulle påverkas genom Reliability och Flexibility. I analysen av Affectivity-faktorn identifierades emellertid att det finns en risk i relaterat till negativa effekter av spelberoende som kan försämra värdeerbjudandet.

Includes bibliographical references.
As libraries are in the transition of moving from print to electronic resources, the purpose of the study was to investigate the use and value of library's e-resources by academics and postgraduates at Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT). There is evidence from previous studies that today's users have their information needs met via a number of options. They need not physically come to the library; they can stay at home or at their offices to access e-resources. The study focused on the use and value of the library's e-resources in two departments (Electrical, Electronic and Computer Engineering and Mechanical Engineering) in the Faculty of Engineering. The main aim was to determine whether academics and postgraduates use e-resources, the purpose for which they used e-resources in the process of teaching, learning and research, the extent to which they were aware of the e-resources, the value they regarded as the benefit from using e-resources and the problems they encountered in their use of e-resources. The study population consisted of 251 academics and postgraduates. A questionnaire was used as data collection instrument. The questionnaire was distributed to 82 academics, 135 MTech and 34 DTech students. The results of the study are based on the data from 60 returned questionnaires from academics and postgraduates. The study found that the majority of the respondents used e-resources, but a few respondents did not use e-resources because they were not aware of them. Respondents who used e-resources used them for a variety of purposes, including gathering information for a specific topic; doing literature reviews, getting answers to specific questions, and gaining general information. The study also encountered respondents who had problems when using e-resources. These problems included internet connections, slow downloading of articles; time constraints and the need for training in the use of e-resources. The majority of respondents from the study thought that they benefited from using the library's e-resources.

Information technology (IT) organizations have become an integral part of many firms, with increasing strategic significance. Consequently, investments in IT represent a significant percentage of a firm's expenditure. Despite the investment, the business value of IT has been difficult to quantify, creating uncertainty about a firm's investments in IT innovation. The purpose of this nonexperimental study was to examine relationships between a firm's innovativeness and 3 IT organizational design factors: knowledge creation, dynamic capabilities, and communication structures. The research questions addressed the relationships between a firm's ability to innovate and specific design elements of the IT organization. The study was based on Nonaka's dynamic theory of organizational knowledge creation, Schumpeter's industrial market structure, and Wernerfelt's resource-based view of the firm. Data were collected from an online survey with 115 employees of firms that depend on IT to deliver their products or services. Pearson product-moment correlational analysis revealed statistically significant relationships between the IT organizational design factors and a firm's ability to innovate. The implications for positive social change stemming from this study affect managers of firms that rely on IT to deliver products or services. The findings suggest that the design of the IT organization influences the performance of the firm through cost reduction and its sustainability through innovation, both of which lead to community economic empowerment thus benefiting the general public.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2004.
Title from first page of PDF file. Document formatted into pages; contains xi, 120 p.; also includes graphics. Includes bibliographical references (p. 115-120). Available online via OhioLINK's ETD Center.

Today's information technology (IT) professional must go beyond their technical ability and obtain new leadership skills. Simultaneously obtaining business acumen, developing successful IT-business relationships, communicating effectively, and still being technical makes being an IT professional more challenging than ever. It is the viewpoint of this researcher that self-awareness is the foundational level skill set needed to foster the insights needed to adopt and apply these skills to increase success in the IT professional. Previous research has examined the relationship of self-awareness and it's impact on leadership effectiveness and even explores correlations with emotional intelligence and IT organizations success. However, gaps remain in the literature to the specific correlations of the value and perception of self-awareness within the IT professional, and what specific role self-awareness plays in IT professionals' success. The purpose of this research was to understand and quantify how IT professionals perceive the meaning of the word self-awareness, and the connection between self-awareness and increased effectiveness. A comprehensive survey was conducted with 164 IT and business professionals of different levels, different size organizations and different industries to formalize quantitative answers to these questions. Follow-up interviews were also conducted to gain further clarification of survey results. The results reveal that self-awareness was viewed positively and critical to the success of the IT professional regardless of gender, role, educational level or years in the industry. The data also showed that if more investment in self-awareness training where to incur, the importance of that skill would increase, and the importance of technical skills would decrease; provided they had an external influence ("sponsor") that provided feedback to invest in such skills. They had to have their awareness raised, to raise their awareness, and this effort had to be intentional. Self-awareness had direct positive correlations to improved relationship management. Study limitations and implications to the organization development field are also discussed.

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited
As the Department of Defense (DoD) begins transitioning to face the new global threats of terrorism, the new requirements of a refocused National Strategy will inherently force the DoD to transform its processes in support of the new National Strategy. In the next few years the technology used to support the DoD will continue to grow with the new demands thus, the DoD will have achieve transformation at all levels enterprise-wide. "Transformation" or radical change has been occurring successfully in the corporate business world for over 25 years and through this transformation the e-business technology has created an exponential growth in the knowledge producing information exchange systems. As the DoD looks to the e-business world for methodologies and solutions to capture this knowledge and manage it, it must also look for a surrogate definition of value or revenue that can be used as a measurement of return on the knowledge. This thesis will seek to define this value by presenting the e-business methodologies called Return on Knowledge (ROK), Knowledge Value Analysis (KVA) and Business Process Reengineering (BPR) by developing a web-enabled environment called the Transformation Information Technology Enabler (TITE) as a DoD transformation solution.
Lieutenant Commander, United States Navy
Lieutenant, United States Navy

Nurse educator perspectives about knowledge, awareness, skills, and attitudes regarding documentation, as a component of health information technology can offer important data on the links between achieving safe and quality patient outcomes. A classic grounded theory approach was used to explore nurse educator faculty perceptions of issues and strategies related to teaching effective patient care documentation. The current problem with teaching nursing documentation among nurse educators surfaced during the interviews with nurse educators and the specific problem was identified in the study from the views of study participants. This study included two main purposes: (a) to explicate the issues and strategies of nurse educators teaching of nursing documentation while transitioning from paper-based to an electronic health record format, and (b) to generate an explanatory theory of teaching nursing documentation and its negative or positive influences of student learning of the competency. In-depth interviews with observation were conducted among sixteen nurse educators from a baccalaureate nursing program. A grounded theory of internalizing accountability emerged as the core variable/core category through classic grounded theory data collection and analysis in a simultaneous fashion. Four sub-categories and components also emerged and include (a) progressing levels, (b) reflecting on conflicting roles of nurse educators, (c) accepting transitioning, and (d) engaging and empowering through leadership. As a result of the analysis of the study findings, conclusions in this study filled the current gap in the literature through development of a new theory of internalizing accountability with future use in undergraduate and graduate nursing education.

Thesis (MBA)--University of Stellenbosch, 2010.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The purpose of this study was to determine the impact possible revisions to the international accounting standard (IAS) for intangible assets, under international financial reporting standards (IFRS), could have on the perception of value of information technology. Furthermore, the study discusses the fact that value of IT is still a debate and asks the question why. The use of the term information technology capability in IT research is used in many different contexts. The study also tested a framework that could possibly be used to view IT capability as, and used this framework to ascertain how accounting treatment of IT capability is happening in practice. The study is exploratory in nature since the impact of the possible revisions on IT capability is a current event. The revisions are in a second round of discussion and as such this study could provide insight to the discussion regarding the possible influence on IT capability. The revisions primarily focus on the recognition and measurement of internally generated intangible assets. It is currently being proposed that internally generated intangible assets be recognised as it would during a business combination at any point and also that fair value be considered as an alternative to the cost basis during initial recognition. While those are the most significant revisions, the discussion paper makes minor proposals regarding the identification of intangible assets and makes no suggestions regarding disclosure. A number of CIO’s and CFO’s or their direct delegates were interviewed to determine from a practitioner perspective what the impact of the revisions could be from both a financial perspective and IT management perspective. The participants were engaged through a semi-structured interview and the collective responses analysed for common themes. The study found that while the debate around IT value still exists, from the participant’s perspective, it centres on the fact that in the absence of appropriate performance measurement of businesses, it is difficult at best to reflect how IT contributes value to the organisation. The participants do not see the currently proposed revisions as being able to improve the perception of value of IT. This is primarily due to the fact that the financial reports are not for consumption of internal business stakeholders to whom CIO’s need to communicate the value contribution. Secondly, the cost focus of the financial reports is acknowledged and as well as the fact that increasing the uncertainty of values in financial reports due to subjective valuation of IT capability, will detract from the integrity of the financial accounting and reporting. Lastly, participants also recognised that it would be a significant revision if internally generated assets are recognised in the same way as during business combinations and that the use of fair value during initial recognition is allowed. As such the participants felt that it would be a long time before the revisions move onto the next stage. This pragmatic response indicated that the focus should rather be on ensuring business performance is measured and IT capability measured through business measures. The study is limited by focusing on organisations that do not create IT capability for resale. Also, the focus is on internally generated IT capability, and excludes the process of acquiring IT capability through merger and acquisition activity. Lastly, the focus has been limited to the impact of the revision on IT value perception. Practically, given the fact that the revisions are not seen to create an opportunity for IT value to be reported, practitioners are advised to focus on using benchmarking to report IT value for the business-as-usual IT capability, in business terms. Furthermore, in terms of ensuring the value of investment in IT capability is articulated, the upfront business case and investment decision process must articulate the business benefits clearly and thereafter ensure benefits tracking is done to measure the performance and value of the constituent parts that deliver the benefits can be measured. This study has value since these particular concepts have not been analysed in this way before. Previous studies have focused on certain elements of IT capability, or organisations that create IT capability for resale, not internal use, amongst others. The originality stems from linking accounting treatment to the definition of IT capability and investigating the impact it has on how the value of IT is perceived.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die doel van hierdie studie was om vas te stel wat die impak van moontlike hersienings van die internasionale boekhoudingstandaard (IAS) vir ontasbare bates, volgens internasionale finansiële verslagdoeningstandaarde (IFRS), sal wees op die persepsie van inligtingstegnologie (IT) se waarde. Voorts bespreek die studie die feit dat die waarde van IT steeds 'n voortgaande debat is en vra waarom dit die geval is. Die term inligtingstegnologievermoë in IT-navorsing word in verskillende kontekste gebruik. Die studie het ook 'n raamwerk getoets wat moontlik gebruik kan word om IT-vermoë holisties te bekyk. Die studie is verkennend van aard aangesien die impak van moontlike hersienings op IT-vermoë 'n gebeurtenis is wat tans plaasvind. Die hersienings is tans in die tweede ronde van bespreking en die studie sou insig kon verskaf oor die moontlike invloed van die bespreking op IT-vermoë. Die hersienings fokus primêr op die erkenning en meting van intern gegenereerde ontasbare bates. Tans word voorgestel dat intern gegenereerde ontasbare bates erken moet word soos dit in 'n besigheidskombinasie op enige punt erken sou word, en ook dat billike waarde oorweeg moet word as 'n alternatief tot die kostebasis gedurende aanvanklike of inisiële erkenning. Terwyl hierdie die mees belangrike hersienings is, sluit die besprekingsdokument kleiner voorstelle in oor die identifisering van ontasbare bates, maar verskaf geen voorstelle oor die bekendmaking van ontasbare bates nie. 'n Aantal hoof inligtingsbeamptes en hoof finansiële beamptes of hulle direkte gedelegeerdes, is ondervra om vas te stel, vanuit 'n praktisyn se oogpunt, wat die impak van die hersienings sou kon wees – gesien uit beide 'n finansiële en 'n IT-bestuursperspektief. Die deelnemers is betrek deur 'n semi-gestruktureerde onderhoud en die kollektiewe response is geanaliseer vir gemeenskaplike temas. Die studie het bevind dat, hoewel die debat rondom ITvermoë steeds bestaan, vanuit die deelnemers se perspektief, die debat sentreer rondom die feit dat in die afwesigheid van toepaslike prestasiemeting van besighede, dit op sy beste moeilik is om te besin oor hoe IT waarde bydra tot die organisasie. Die deelnemers sien nie in dat die voorgestelde hersienings by magte sal wees om die persepsie oor die waarde van IT te verbeter nie. Dit is primêr as gevolg van die feit dat die finansiële verslae nie beskikbaar is vir interne besigheidsbelanghebbers nie aan wie hoof inligtingsbeamptes die waardebydrae moet kommunikeer. Tweedens word die kostefokus van finansiële verslae erken, asook die feit dat om die onsekerheid van waardes in finansiële verslae te verhoog weens die subjektiewe waardasie van IT-vermoë, die integriteit van die finansiële boekhouding en verslagdoening sal benadeel. Laastens het deelnemers ook erken dat dit 'n belangrike hersiening sal wees indien intern gegeneerde bates op dieselfde manier erken word as gedurende besigheidskombinasies en dat die gebruik van billike waarde gedurende aanvanklike erkenning toegelaat word. As sodanig was die deelnemers van mening dat dit nog lang sal duur voordat die hersienings na die volgende fase sal beweeg.

Despite the impact of Information Technology (IT) in today's service economy, its nature and role are elusive or ambiguous to say the least. This ambiguity has made it so difficult to measure the value of IT. To clarify the ambiguity, this study, with a focus on the strategic dimension of IT application in the web of organizational activities, proposes a conceptual model that relates IT application to Knowledge Management and then to Strategy. In this effort, incorporating the Co-alignment model as a theoretical binding agent, the role of IT is defined as a facilitator of organizational knowledge management that is regarded as the core of strategic management. The conceptual model proposed is further developed into a structural model for empirical testing. The goodness of fit of the model is assessed through the technique of the Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) along with first-order and second-order confirmatory factor analyses (CFA) using the survey responses of unit managers of multi-unit restaurant companies of the U.S. and Korea. Since the mail survey was conducted in two different nations, relevant multi cultural issues are also addressed to justify the use of combined samples for the study. The results of the statistical analyses indicate that IT application can be incorporated successfully into the domain of strategic management of restaurant companies as the facilitator of Knowledge Management activities. The hypotheses of the links between IT application and financial performance remained unsolved due to invalid data. However, this study made a certain degree of contribution in identifying the dynamics of IT application in the process of strategic management incorporating the principle of the Co-alignment model.
Ph. D.

Thesis (M.S. in Information Technology Management)--Naval Postgraduate School, June 2006.
Thesis Advisor(s): Thomas J. Housel. "June 2006." Includes bibliographical references (p. 71-72). Also available in print.