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Category: Business and Industry
Date Submitted: 09/11/2012 07:27 AM
ASSESSING THE IMPACT OF DECISION
PROCESS ON EFFECTIVENESS OF
STRATEGIC IT DECISIONS:
A TRIANGULATION APPROACH1
C Ranganathan
Department of Management
Southern Illinois University, Carbondale
U.S.A.
Vijay Sethi
Nanyang Technological University
Singapore
Extended Abstract
Research on strategic information systems planning (SISP) has been characterized by a heavy emphasis on normative models for
IT strategy formulation. Numerous approaches to formulating strategic plans and for designing IT planning systems have been
suggested in the literature. Despite this, evidence from empirical studies indicates that IT executives have a great deal of trouble
in translating plans into actions and specific decisions. Hence, our knowledge on IT planning needs to be supplemented with an
understanding of strategic IT decisions and the processes underlying them.
Strategic IT decisions are those fundamental decisions that shape the IT strategy of an organization. While there has been
considerable research on issues pertaining to formulating and implementing IT strategy, research on strategic IT decisions has
received relatively limited attention. Addressing this gap, this study focuses on the process and effectiveness of strategic IT
decisions. We define strategic IT decision as an IT-related decision whose intended impact is perceived as crucial to the
organization. The dynamics of strategic IT decision process are investigated using two constructs, namely rationality and politics.
Rationality in decision making refers to the extent to which the decision process involves gathering of information relevant to the
decision and the reliance upon the analysis of this information in making the final choice. Politics are the observable, but covert,
actions performed by executives within an organization or by agencies external to the organization in order to influence a decision.
Our study is guided by two key research questions. First, to what extent does rationality...