Vol. 7 No. 1, January 2004
EDITORIAL PREFACE:
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY IN THE MIDDLE EAST
Jafar M. H. Ali, Kuwait University, Kuwait
The forces of globalization, privatization and liberalization are sweeping the global,
regional and country economies including in the Middle East. The Middle East as a
region exhibits some unique socio-economic characteristics which potentially both inhibit
and facilitate IT development and adoption. For example, the region is characterized by
contrasting national economies and includes both oil rich sparsely populated smaller
countries like the GCC and less developed economies with larger populations such as
Egypt. At the same time, the region is culturally homogeneous. This unique regional
context provides a challenge for IT researchers
ARTICLES:
COMPUTER TECHNOLOGY ACCEPTANCE SUCCESS FACTORS IN SAUDI
ARABIA: AN EXPLORATORY STUDY
Said S. Al-Gahtani, King Khalid University, Saudi Arabia
IT acceptance is a necessary condition for effectiveness and competency in the
information age. However, there is a recognized rejection of these technologies in
advanced societies let alone in less developed societies. As most technology is designed
in developed societies, we expect there would be some social and cultural gap with less
developed societies. Failing to consider the proper social context of economic,
sociopolitical, and cultural dimensions can inhibit the success of the process and increase
the risks of failure. This study, based on data from fifty six private and public
organizations in Saudi Arabia, examines individual, technological, and organizational
factors affecting computer acceptance as reflected in computer usage and user
satisfaction. We contend that social and cultural influences could bridge the gap towards
a better understanding of IT acceptance if certain "rational factors" are taken into
account.
E-GOVERNMENT FOR ARAB COUNTRIES
Alexander Pons, University of Miami, USA
This article focuses on the potential of instigating an e-government system within and
possibly throughout the Arab world. E-government is currently being adopted in many
countries throughout the world. We analyze the problems and difficulties encountered in
promoting e-government in the Middle East and highlight the potential opportunities.
Many countries have and continue to benefit from the acceptance of e-government;
understanding its applicability and effectiveness beyond and within the Arab countries is
of vital importance. Our analysis presents a perspective on regional e-government and
utilization of technology within and among Arab countries. We also propose the EGovernment
System Framework that solves many problems associated with the adoption
of e-government in the Arab world
ADOPTION AND IMPLEMENTATION PROBLEMS OF E-BANKING: A STUDY OF
THE MANAGERIAL PERSPECTIVE OF THE BANKING INDUSTRY IN OMAN
AbdulwahedMo. Khalfan, and Abdulridha Alshawaf, Kuwait University, Kuwait
This article explores the potential impeding factors for the wide adoption of electronic
commerce (EC) applications in the Omani banking industry. Data were collected using a
questionnaire complemented with semi-structured interviews, and review of internal
banking documents.
The participants were IS executives and managers. One of the major inhibiting factors is
the lack of top management support. Information privacy and security issues were
identified as serious inhibiting factors. Other factors such as power relationships (e.g.,
conflict between managers that arise during the process of IS/IT adoption), and lack of
investment in EC applications were found less significant. The findings are relevant to
businesses in Arab countries in particular and developing countries in general.
THE EXPERT OPINION:
An Interview with Dr. Fadi Shehaib, CIO, National Bank of Kuwait, conducted by Jafar
M. H. Ali, Kuwait University, Kuwait.
National Bank of Kuwait is considered by far the largest and the most profitable publicly
held financial institute in Kuwait. Dr. Shehaib provides insights into the development of
IT in the Middle East and GCC countries, as well as describes the successful use of IT at
their bank.
BOOK REVIEW: GOING WIRELESS: TRANSFORM YOUR BUSINESS WITH
MOBILE TECHNOLOGY
Jaclyn Easton. Review written by Joo Eng Lee-Partridge, CentralConnecticutState
University.
In her book, the author provides the business community with an informative overview of
current trends in wireless mobile applications. The focus of her book is on using mobile
technology linked through wireless networks to create business applications that truly
provide meaning to the concept of “anytime, anywhere.” Predictions about the future are
also made.
Vol. 7 No. 2, April 2004
EDITORIAL PREFACE:
INTER-COUNTRY ANALYSIS OF E-BUSINESS
Purnendu Mandal, MarshallUniversity, USA
The guest editor discusses the digital divide, the global business environment, and the
critical success factors for e-commerce technology adoption in different parts of the
world. Developing countries have much inferior IT infrastructure, fewer financial
capabilities, poor education system, limited political participation, low economic growth,
and an underdeveloped social justice system. Investigating the critical success factors
and how they contribute to the overall growth of e-business need closer look from
researchers and policy makers.
ARTICLES:
RISK-FOCUSED E-COMMERCE ADOPTION MODEL: A CROSS-COUNTRY
STUDY
Jinsoo Park, Korea University, Korea
Dongwon Lee, University of Minnesota, USA
Joongho Ahn, Seoul National University, Korea
While e-commerce has proliferated, there has been insufficient research efforts
concerning its status in Korea. The United States, in contrast, has made significant effort
in empirical research on the consumer’s adoption of e-commerce. This paper validates
the e-Commerce Adoption Model (e-CAM) on the two countries. E-CAM integrates the
technology acceptance model with the theories of perceived risk to explain the ecommerce
adoption. The study findings not only provide interim support for the
generalizability of e-CAM, but also suggest that online firms should consider these
contextual factors in order to facilitate consumers’ adoption behavior.
CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS FOR ELECTRONIC SERVICES: CHALLENGES
FOR DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
Steven John Simon, Mercer University, USA
Developing countries are at a distinct disadvantage when competing with developed
countries in the electronic commerce domain. Electronic services hold both peril and
promise for developing countries as a means to expedite their entry into the world of
cyber commerce, create value-added jobs within their economies, and attract much
needed foreign investment. This paper examines critical success factors (CSFs)
developing countries encounter as they develop their cyber economy and explains
challenges and potential solutions. It develops a framework of technical and societal
CSFs whose synergy can expedite the entrance of developing countries into the cyber
economy.
INTER-COUNTRY ANALYSIS OF ELECTRONIC COMMERCE ADOPTION IN
SOUTH EASTERN EUROPE: POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE REGION
Anastasia Papazafeiropoulou, Brunel University, UK
The 'digital divide' between developed and non-developed countries in terms of the
Internet and electronic commerce is a heavily debated issue. We examine its
manifestation in the area of south eastern Europe which is in a less advanced position.
We use data from 8 countries, collected from government agencies and professional
bodies. We use a framework developed by King et al. (1994) and examine the
institutional actions pursued by regional policy makers. The data are presented using
SWOT analysis with the view to portray the situation of electronic commerce adoption in
each country under investigation. A collective analysis extracts the “success factors” in
government intervention in supporting electronic commerce diffusion and
recommendations about good practices in policy making.
INTERNATIONAL AND CROSS-CULTURAL INFLUENCES ON ONLINE
SHOPPING BEHAVIOR
Thomas F. Stafford, University of Memphis, USA
Aykut Turan, University of Memphis, USA
Mahesh S. Raisinghani, University of Dallas, USA
This paper compares and contrasts the differences of gender on online shopping in three
distinctive consumer markets: the United States, Finland and Turkey. These nations span
the present range of cultural differences in the online world: developed nations,
emerging technological niches, and emerging markets in the secular East; comparisons
can also be made between free market capitalism, European centralized planning and
social consciousness, and the emerging consumerism of secular Moslem society. The
intent is to discern likely gender and age differences between these three areas of the
world.
BOOK REVIEW: THE GLOBAL INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY REPORT 2002-
2003: READINESS FOR THE NETWORKED WORLD
Soumitra Dutta, Bruno Lanvin, and Fiona Paua Editors, Editors. Review written by
Purnendu Mandal, MarshallUniversity, USA
This edited book contains global and country specific statistics and information on
various aspects of IT. It is a comprehensive report of networked readiness of eighty two
leading economies of the world. The report uses both quantitative data and qualitative
information in measuring a readiness index for each of the major economies of the
World.
Vol. 7 No. 3, July 2004
EDITORIAL PREFACE:
WEB SERVICES FOR GLOBAL INFORMATION SYSTEMS: OPPORTUNITIES
AND CHALLENGES
Mahesh S. Raisinghani, University of Dallas, USA
A web services framework consisting of three main processes is described. Also
presented are key challenges for global corporations when deploying web services, and
recommendations for practice.
ARTICLES:
THE ICT SERVICE INDUSTRY IN NORTH AFRICA AND THE ROLE OF
PARTNERSHIPS IN MOROCCO
Giuseppe Bruno, University of Naples “Federico II”, Italy
Gianluca Esposito, University of Naples “Federico II, Italy
Luca Iandoli, University of Naples “Federico II”, Italy
Mario Raffa, University of Naples “Federico II”, Italy
This article presents a study of the state of the art of the ICT sector in North Africa.
Additionally, an in depth study of the situation in Morocco was carried out. It
investigates, using several case studies, the value of the different models of partnership
that have been created in the ICT service sector.
INSTITUTIONAL PRESSURES AS SOURCES OF IMPROVISATIONS: A CASE
STUDY FROM A DEVELOPING COUNTRY CONTEXT
Abiodun O. Bada, George Washington University, USA
Manny C Aniebonam, George Washington University, USA
Vesper Owei, George Washington University, USA
This article applies concepts and ideas from institutional theory to study improvisations
in IT and organizational change. Improvisations are regarded as unexpected actions
aimed at solving crises and/or exploiting opportunities. The article suggests that the
sources of these crises/opportunities are the normative, mimetic and coercive
prescriptions found within the institutional context of the organization. A major
implication is that the sources of improvisations are extended to include established
norms of practice from within the environment of organizations.
MANAGERIAL EXPECTATIONS OF INTERNET COMMERCE ADOPTION AFTER
THE “TECH WRECK” OF 2000 – AN AUSTRALIAN PERSPECTIVE
Alex Berrill, Australian Mutual Provident Society Ltd., Australia
Sigi Goode, Australian National University, Australia
Dennis Hart, Australian National University, Australia
This study examines post-crash expectations of managers of Australian companies
regarding Internet commerce adoption. It proposes a set of business expectations from
technology adoption: the desire to gain a competitive advantage, to remove a competitive
disadvantage, improve communication, reduce organisational costs and improve
functionality. The study finds that, in the short and long term, managers still hope to
acquire a competitive advantage and to benefit from improved communication with
customers and shareholders. Managers are optimistic about functionality improvements
in the long term but that some skepticism may have emerged regarding other benefits
obtainable from e-commerce adoption.
THE EXPERT OPINION:
An Interview with Brian Smith, Senior Advisor, TPI, Inc.
conducted by Jaak Jurison, Industry Editor.
TPI was established in 1989 and effectively established the sourcing advisory industry.
TPI is an independent and objective advisor that only represents the buy side of sourcing
considerations.Brian Smith discusses various facets of global IT outsourcing and his
company’s role in outsourcing..
BOOK REVIEW: WORLD CLASS SUPPLY MANAGEMENT: THE KEY TO
SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT
David N. Burton, Donald W. Dobler, and Stephen L. Starling
Review conducted by Roberto Vinaja, TexasA&MUniversity – Commerce, USA
The seventh edition is an updated textbook and has several special features, such as
material contributed by practitioners and real life cases. It is a descriptive volume
featuring many topics related to Supply Management and Global Management fields.
Vol. 7 No. 4, October 2004
EDITORIAL PREFACE:
CROSS CULTURAL INFORMATION SYSTEMS
RESEARCH
By Scott McCoy, Eleanor Loiacono, and Guillermo Rodríguez Abitia
The special issue contains the best papers on Cross Cultural IS research minitrack at the
2003 AMCIS conferences, and went through further reviewing and revisions.
ARTICLES:
THE INFLUENCE OF NATIONAL CULTURE ON THE LEVEL AND OUTCOME OF
IS DEVELOPMENT DECISIONS
Jon Heales, Sophie Cockcroft, and Corina Raduescu
While much work has been done on organizational cultural influences, this study
examines the influence that national culture has on organizational decision making in
respect to the evolution/redevelopment decision that organizations may face at a point in
time. Building on findings from the GLOBE research program, we show by empirical
testing of a theoretical model that national cultural dimensions are significantly
associated with a) the outcome of the decision to enhance or re-develop a system, and b)
the organizational level at which such decisions are made.
NATIONAL CULTURE AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY PRODUCT
ADOPTION
Kallol Bagchi, Paul Hart, and Mark F. PetersonNational
Culture is likely to play a role in Information Technology (IT) adoption. Data from a
large scale study of national culture are used to predict the adoption
of six information technologies -- PC, Telephone, Cell Phone, Fax, the Internet, and
Pager — over a ten year period in thirty one nations. The results show that even after
controlling for national economic and social differences, national cultural dimensions
significantly predict most IT product adoptions.
CULTURAL UNIVERSALITY VERSUS PARTICULARITY IN CMC
Bernd Carsten Stahl and Ibrahim Elbeltagi
Cultural factors are often identified as a crucial influence on the success or failure of
information systems in general and computer-mediated communication (CMC) in
particular. This paper goes one step beyond management measures and asks whether
there is a theoretical foundation on which one can base the mutual influence of culture
and CMC. The paper suggests a Habermasian approach to culture which sees a universal
background to particular cultures in the structure of communication which creates and
sustains culture. It provides an outlook on how such a Habermasian theory of culture can
enable designers and users of CMC to reflect on their activity and improve the quality
and reach of CMC.
INSTITUTIONAL IMPACTS ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF AN IT INDUSTRY: THE
IRISH EXPERIENCE
Ciara Heavin and Brian Fitzgerald
Ireland’s emergence as an economic ‘Celtic Tiger’ has evolved as a result of Ireland’s
openness to the global market and to increased overseas investment. The authors propose
a conceptual framework of factors that identify the key facets of national involvement
that have impacted this software growth. This study investigates the extent to which
institutional influences, such as government policies, have contributed to the evolution
and growth of Ireland’s software industry.
In order to identify this governmental impact on the Irish software sector, the authors
identify four small developed countries that have experienced significant IT industry
growth. The varying levels of government intervention in these cases are considered,
indicating the importance of national involvement in each of the four IT industries.
THE EXPERT OPINION:
Interview with Rafael Funes, Founder, President, and CEO of
DynaWare México, S.A. de C.V., conducted by Guillermo
Rodríguez-AbitiaRafael Funes has devoted his time to developing software applications
for enterprise solutions. In 1993 he created Enterprise
DynaWare, the first Mexican ERP solution to help local companies solve complex
operational problems and become more competitive. Rafael is very well known in the IT
Industry community in Mexico, and he is a frequent invited speaker at universities and
practitioner associations. In this interview, he describes his company’s business,
strategies, and Mexico’s role in the global IT industry.
