Information System Development Failure and Complexity

As the significant success of business enterprises, information system development becomes IT managers' concern to keep the balance between business and information system. The information system has an important role to deliver advantages to the business enterprises. To keep maintain these issues, information system should be developed to innovate the business process. However, in developing an information system, the information system process improvement may obtain the possibility of information system development failures. Therefore, to avoid the failures in implementing information systems there are some important factors. Those factors are called critical success factors (CSF). Therefore, this study observes the critical success factors (CSF) in information system development (ISD) projects. This systematic literature review discusses critical success factors in information system development. The method section determines the research question. It also describes how to collect and filter the data. The order of this research written is according to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses Checklist or also known as PRISMA Checklist. Therefore, to collect and filter the data, this systematic literature review uses Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses method or also known as PRISMA method. There were 20 papers selected to help this research based on the filtering papers due to PRISMA flow diagram. Most of those papers are discussing information system development and the rest are about factors of information system development. The result section has two parts, which are study characteristics and study results. This systematic literature review concluded that there are five critical success factors in developing information system projects. Those critical success factors are people, project, organization, knowledge, and expertise. Those critical success factors are also supported by several items of each factor. Therefore, the output of this research is expected to satisfy the information system development projects to meet the organizations' need and reduce also possibly avoid the failures in information system development projects.

The iterative and incremental development (IID) approach is widely adopted in information systems development (ISD) projects. While the IID approach has played an important role the management of many ISD projects, some of the key techniques have not received critical appraisal from the academic community. This paper aims to fill the gap and examines three such techniques through a case study. First of all, the gap between the theory of user participation and the reality of user’s lack of real influence on design and development is explored. The author proposes the concept of “participatory capture” to explain the side effect of user participation. Secondly, the assumption that evolutionary prototyping converges to a successful design is questioned. Thirdly, the side effect of the timeboxing technique is considered. The paper suggests that the IID approach represents the learning approach as categorized in Pich et al. (2002) and it might be ineffective in dealing with the significant uncertainties in ISD projects.

This paper focuses on 18 well-known recommended practices for information system (IS) development projects to assess their relative dissemination and effectiveness and to examine the role of standardization frameworks in promoting them. Findings from a survey of 97 information technology (IT) professionals show that most of these practices tend to be adopted, that they are associated with higher chances of success in IS development projects and that software process improvement models, project management maturity models and formal development methodologies tend to promote such practices. Findings show however some notable exceptions that may require to refine this existing set of recommended practices. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

Though information systems development (ISD) projects use modularization as an approach to better manage complex tasks by decomposing them into simpler intra-project modules, we lack clearly established modalities for managing such modularized ISD projects. Adopting a control theory perspective and leveraging a case study research approach, we unearth the underlying “control mechanisms” that an organization leveraged to manage eight modularized ISD projects. Specifically, we explore the intra-project modular dependencies that the projects’ business requirement documents indicated and use results from semi-structured interviews with project members to identify the corresponding control mechanisms. Our results indicate that, in scenarios with a low level of intra-project modular interdependencies, formal outcome and formal behavior constitute the preferred control mechanisms. However, specific situations related to flexible project practices and volatile client requirements may minimize the level of formal outcome and formal behavior control mechanisms in such projects. A low level of interdependencies between intra-project modules minimizes the need for informal clan control; nonetheless, informal clan-control mechanisms may help team members understand project requirements in a shared manner. Projects with a high level of interdependencies between intra-project modules have a high level of informal clan control. However, in some situations, projects with a high level of intra-project modular interdependencies have a low level of informal clan control often due to time pressures. Organizations may govern projects with a high level of intra-project modular interdependencies and poor structures through an enabling control style. Organizations can effectively govern projects with a low level of intra-project modular interdependencies through authoritative control style except in the projects where they assign team members to multiple projects simultaneously. By leveraging control theory to examine the intra-project modular dependencies, we add to the ongoing discourse on control theory and ISD project governance.

Knowledge hoarding in Requirements Elicitation (RE) phase could lead to Information Systems Development (ISD) project failure. Many researchers have discussed important factors in knowledge sharing. Nevertheless, the success rate for ISD projects is low and there are other major factors for consideration. Review was conducted to identify potential gaps in existing literature and to explore new factors that impact ISD knowledge sharing in RE. Based on systematic review of literature, two new factors are identified namely Organizational Justice and Social Interdependence. The success of ISD projects are impacted by organizational justice and social interdependence. The proposed theoretical model provides project managers a new platform to further understand ISD knowledge sharing between business users and external IT professionals in RE.

Relationship between the interactive use of control systems and the project performance: The moderating effect of uncertainty and equivocality

Information systems development (ISD) is typically a knowledge-intensive activity demanding coordinated application of business and information technology (IT) professionals’ expertise. However, knowledge sharing between these groups can be challenging, as their backgrounds and expertise domains differ. The problem is even more pronounced for ISD teams involving external IT consultants, where the gap between business and IT professionals is further widened by organizational boundaries. This study proposes that perceived social (goal, task, and reward) interdependencies can influence the extent of knowledge sharing between the subgroups of business professionals and external IT consultants during ISD. Results from a survey of consultant-and-client matched pairs in ongoing ISD project teams indicate that perceived goal, task, and reward interdependencies are significantly related to knowledge sharing, which is, in turn, related to ISD project phase performance. Knowledge sharing fully mediates the relationships between the interdependencies and ISD project phase performance. Perceived goal interdependence is also related to perceived task interdependence. These findings augment existing theoretical understanding of knowledge sharing in ISD. They also provide directions for the development of interventions for enhancing knowledge sharing and performance in ISD.

The success of information systems development (ISD) projects depends on the developers who deliver them. However, developers face many challenges in bringing an ISD project to successful completion. These projects are often large and highly complex, with volatile targets, creating a stressful environment for developers. Although prior literature has considered how technical ISD risk factors, such as project size, complexity, and target volatility, affect team- and project-level outcomes, their effects on developers have received limited attention. This gap in the literature is problematic for two reasons: (1) the interplay between developers and project characteristics are unaccounted for, resulting in an incomplete picture of ISD; and (2) developer stress has been shown to reduce team performance. In this research, we examine the role of empowering leadership in reducing developer stress in ISD. We develop a multilevel model of the effect of empowering leadership on the relationship between technical ISD risk factors and developers’ role perceptions, and explore the consequences for developers’ stress. The model was tested in a field study of 350 developers in 73 ISD teams from a large U.S.-based firm. Results showed that empowering leadership ameliorated the negative effects of project size and target volatility on role ambiguity as well as the negative effects of project size, complexity, and target volatility on role conflict and stress. We also found that empowering leadership reduced role ambiguity, role conflict, and stress directly, and that role ambiguity and role conflict increased stress. Project size, complexity, and target volatility were found to increase empowering leadership behaviors. We conclude that empowering leadership can be an effective means of helping developers cope with technical ISD risk factors and discuss the implications of our findings for research and practice. The online appendix is available at https://doi.org/10.1287/isre.2017.0716 .

The specialized knowledge that exists among information systems development (ISD) teams must be shared and integrated to successfully develop systems solutions. Unfortunately, knowledge sharing and integration continues to be problematic. In this study, we seek out those antecedent characteristics that ISD teams should possess to facilitate the collaboration and knowledge integration necessary for enhanced performance. We propose cooperative learning theory as a lens to understand knowledge integration activities in ISD projects. We suggest that knowledge integration behaviors are discretionary, and that ISD professionals must feel autonomy in deciding to engage in them. We investigate whether the effects of autonomy on cooperative learning and of cooperative learning on work outcomes vary depending on the types of autonomy present in ISD teams. A research model is proposed, and it is empirically tested through a study of 206 ISD professionals from 38 ISD teams. Our findings suggest that autonomous teams engage more frequently in cooperative learning behaviors, and consequently perform more effectively and are more satisfied. We also find that relationships exist between the type of autonomy present in teams and the resultant elements of cooperative learning and work outcomes.

: In entering the business competition lately, especially in restaurant industry can’t be separated from the role of information technology / information systems. In an information systems development there is two method that can be used , that waterfall and agile development. In this opportunity we believe that systems development with agile development method will bring more success for an information systems development project. This method was chosen because we undertook information system strategic planning in a company which is a family business. System information with agile development that aligns with corporate strategic planning should have always controlled, and where there is crafting strategy then move quickly the information systems development is expected to adapt. Keywords : Information Systems, Technology Information, Agile development, family business.

In the information systems development (ISD) context, project teams are expected to find creative solutions to the problems encountered in the planning, development, and execution of projects. To efficiently leverage individual knowledge, team members must develop team cognition structures that facilitate their knowledge activities. This research examines the roles of team cognition and problem solving in successful ISD project teams. Data from 96 software development teams from four universities were obtained and analyzed. Relying on a multi-level conceptualization of team cognition, problem solving, and team creativity, our findings suggest that team cognition and problem solving on the relationship between task interdependence and team creativity are significant during software development, which means team cognition and problem solving can adequately account for how task interdependence influences team creativity as a mediator. Especially, process-based creativity is enhanced when team members have higher levels of team cognition or stronger problem solving abilities. It is concluded that in the context of ISD projects, team cognition (i.e., shared mental models, specialization, credibility, coordination) and problem solving (i.e., problem solving self-efficacy, problem solving skills) largely determine the extent of process-based creativity. The results are discussed in terms of the role of team cognition and problem solving in achieving such team creativity.

The increasing need for information systems by organizations, especially in managing resources efficiently, drives the importance of implementing effective software development methods. This research discusses the integration of the Scrum method and the DevOps method in a web-based information system development project for multimedia SMEs at Aiska University (MUSKA). This integration aims to utilize the advantages of the Scrum and DevOps methods to optimize the information system development process. The integration of the two methods is assessed through team performance, by identifying the benefits and challenges faced in its implementation. This research shows that collaboration between Scrum and DevOps results in a more effective and reliable development process, because each method complements each other in overcoming MUSKA system development challenges. Projects can be managed more systematically, and automation allows for faster responses to changes and increased quality of the final output. The evaluation of this research shows that further optimization of the roles and functions of each team member requires an increase in project resources, both in terms of adding team members and using more advanced technology. These findings provide recommendations for future development, especially for large-scale information system development projects.

Since today's enterprises must constantly adapt to rapidly changing external environment, it is necessary to be able to deal with variation and changing conditions in information systems (IS) development. This may be achieved by the use of multifractal IS development methodologies. Fractal approaches to some extent have already been tested in adaptive enterprise development, adaptive manufacturing systems development, and software development. This suggests that multifractal IS development, on the one hand, is appropriate, because the information system should properly reflect the business enterprise (in this case a fractal one) and, on the other hand, it is possible, because some elements of it have already been implemented. Development of multifractal IS aims at managing relative completeness by relative simplicity that has to be discovered in different subsystems that influence the development of the information system. This, in essence, implies the need of thorough analysis an understanding of business structures and processes to discover patterns useful for the identification of fractal features. Currently, only some guidelines for development of multifractal IS are derived from reported experiences of fractal systems development and the use of fractal approaches in other domains.

The objective of the information system (IS) development project is to develop and modify systems that satisfy customers' and users' needs on schedule and within a budget. The early activities in information systems development, i.e. the front end of innovation in information systems, are recognized as critical and important steps; poor execution of these activities is an almost certain guarantee for a failure of the final IS product. However, there are many problems related to the early phases of IS development, and therefore this research paper presents a conceptual model for categorizing the problems in the front end of innovation in IS. Based on this conceptual model, we suggest that the activities in the early phases of information system development currently used in organizations do no work in large scale. In the directions for future research we discuss the need for new approaches in the front end of innovation in information systems.

As a management information systems (MIS) project manager and an action researcher, the author examined, over time, the influence on information system development (ISD) of the informal sociopolitical organizational actions. The paper reports two cases of action research findings concerning the effect on ISD project implementation processes of power-based arbitrary decisional actions in bureaucratic environments. The research focused on the relationship of such unilateral actions to the interconnected subprocesses of deliberate and conscious attempts by the ISD project members to define and resolve system implementation issues. A suggested conceptual framework for the issue-resolution processes (IRP's) and obstacle-coping processes (OCP's) is based on the author's IRP/OCP-related behavioral constructs and theoretical models dealing with soft-systems issues, especially appreciative system theory and soft-systems methodology, and innovative flexible, "complementarist" (Sinn, 1998) or pluralist problem-solving approaches.