Computing and Information Systems - Theses
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ItemExploring the Use of Enterprise Content Management Systems (ECMS) to Support Business Processes( 2013)Organizations are investing considerable resources towards implementing Enterprise Content Management Systems (ECMS) with the expectation that these technologies can deliver productive outcomes. While these technologies have been well-designed, it is often reported that they are of limited value to organizations. This may be attributed to insufficient research, particularly information systems (IS) research, on ways in which ECMS can be used in a specific organizational context. Current ECMS literature indicates that, depending on the nature of an organization’s business, ECMS-use can vary considerably from one organization to another. However, there is only limited explanation and understanding of how and why such variations exist. Therefore, the aim of this study is to better understand how different types of organizations can use ECMS to support their business processes. A cross-sectional case study approach was used to study ways in which ECMS were used in coordination, replication, unification and diversification types of organizations. These types of organizations emphasize different levels of business process standardization and integration in line with Ross et al.’s (2006) business operating model criteria. Seven large organizations were selected and the ways in which they used ECMS were investigated and explored during the ECMS post-implementation period. Data collection involved semistructured interviews, observations and an analysis of key artefacts relevant to ECMS-use. Data analysis used Orlikowski’s (2000) ‘practice lens theory’ as a theoretical lens through which to obtain an in-depth understanding of how and to what extent organizations used ECMS to support business processes. ECMS-use patterns across these case studies led to the development of meaningful insights that explained how different types of organizations (i.e. coordination, replication, unification and diversification) use these technologies to support specific business needs. Two profound insights arose from the data analysis activities. Firstly, it was evident that organizational structures, particularly business process structures, influenced ECMS-use. Secondly, the interaction between ECMS, the organizational context (processes, norms, practices) and users shaped the way in which ECMS were used. Based on these findings, this study concurs that the following aspects need to be considered in terms of ECMS-use: ECMS functionalities (i.e. technological conditions), organizational structures and context (i.e. institutional conditions) and users (i.e. interpretive conditions). With this focus in mind, this study informs both researchers and practitioners of key elements that are required to understand and plan ECMS-use to enable and support business processes. This study makes two important contributions. Firstly, it proposes an ECMS-use framework that explains ECMS-use in terms of minimal-use, standard-use, customized-use or leveraged-use. This framework offers a clearer picture of how organizations can use ECMS to support busienss processes or other work practices. Secondly, alongside the framework are key elements that offer guidance to organizations on how to effectively use these technologies. These outcomes make a significant contribution in guiding organizations to plan their intended ECMS-use, understand why their ECMS technology may be underutilized and design ways to exploit the use of these technologies. Overall, the results of this research are of interest not only to IS researchers but also to IS practitioners, business and IT managers, business process owners and ECMS users.