Information Systems Capabilities and Their Effects on Competitive Advantages: A Study of Chinese Companies

Over the past three decades, business managers and academic researchers have shown considerable interest in understanding how information systems (IS) can lead to competitive advantages for firms. Although in the United States researchers have found that IS competences lead to competitive advantages, it remains unknown whether firms working in emerging economies can capitalize on IS competence for competitive advantages. This article examines the moderating effect of the learning intensity of organizations on the relationship between IS competence and competitive advantages in 122 Chinese firms. Data were collected from a mailed survey of 122 information-technology (IT) managers. The results indicate that flexibility of IT infrastructure, IT business skills, and learning intensity have significant effects on competitive advantages. The learning intensity of organizations positively moderates the relationship between IS business skills and competitive advantages, but has no moderating effect on the relationship between the flexibility of IT infrastructure and competitive advantages.