A grounded theory of international information systems

This research project establishes theoretical foundations for a better understanding of thefactors that influence the design, creation and implementation of international informationsystems (IIS). Three cases of multinational companies - in 9 locations on 3 continents - wereinvestigated to that end, using a grounded theory methodology.Grounded theory was chosen because the paucity of research into international informationsystems means that there is an insufficient base for verification-t1pe research approaches'The traditional grounded theory approach was extended to work with cases, whilst fullypreserving the principles ofjoint coding and collection, constant comparison and theoreticalsampling.After every case, the relationships between categories were formally subsumed intotheoretical frameworks. As a final step, a substantive theory of the factors influencing IISwas formulated. It explains the specific nature and architecture of international informationsystems, what affects the way in which they are built and why their users will accept or rejectthem.The theory defines a generic architecture, specific for international information systems,consisting of a 'Central' part, containing shared systems, and 'Local' systems that are uniquefor each site. Synchronicity, the degree to which systems require same-time use of identicaldata and information, determines the central and local applications. It further governs theconfiguration and technical architecture of the IIS.The 'CentraI'/'Local'debate can become embroiled in antagonistic politics, acted out in anever-present 'Force Field'. Two variables influence the intensity of the Force Fieldinteractions:o Utitity of the system's functionality lowers the conflict potential all around;. using the IIS to increase central Control intensifies local management's resistanceagainst invasion of their'turf .Acceptance or Rejection of an intemational information system depends on the net-balanceof these opposing forces.At a more sophisticated level, User/IT Consensus Processes are effective instruments forneutering faction politics and maximising the Utitity of the resulting system, substituting'Coutrol' conflict with rational dialogue or amicable persuasion.Most of the theory can be directly translated into a practical methodology for designing,building and implementing international information systems. Manyparts of the theory,however, are still in an 'approximate' state and point to several future research projects- Theywill be concemed with refining concepts, constructs and their relationships as well as furtheradapting and improving the extended grounded theory methodology used in this study.