Patterns in information technology portfolio decision making: an inductive approach

This dissertation examines the structural properties of patterns in the decision-making processes used for information technology (IT) portfolio management with an emphasis on two key issues; (1) strategic alignment and (2) the mitigation of risks early-on during planning. Based on the cross sectional analysis of a large portfolio of decisions, I build on the Defender-Prospector-Analyzer typology and the corresponding IT strategies to develop theoretical profiles of decision models in alignment with these archetypes. I theorize key differences in decision models across these three strategic orientations and empirically test hypotheses by analyzing actual decisions for a large portfolio of IT initiatives in a unique, naturally controlled empirical setting. By examining decision-making processes over a two-year consecutive period, I systematically address risk mitigation during IT portfolio planning. I build on the logic of appropriateness, to propose an endogenous explanation for the evolution of these planning routines. Using an organizational routine as the unit of analysis; I propose their characteristics that are likely to explain the generation, deletion, retention and adaptation of these routines over time. I corroborate my hypotheses in a unique empirical setting using a three-stage methodology. This dissertation examines strategic alignment and risk-taking from an inductive perspective. Findings reported in this dissertation, based on minimal assumptions, indicate that a pattern-enabled approach to planning for IT portfolios can potentially alleviate the planning paradox. Decision trees I present offer insights for alignment and have substantial managerial implications for IT governance. Meta-routines presented in this dissertation — based on the evolutionary analysis of routines over a two-year period — give us a visual vocabulary for articulating the anatomy of dynamic capabilities. These findings have substantial implications for improving the maturity of IT portfolio management processes within organizations.