A model of the decision process for GIS adoption and diffusion in a government environment

Abstract

The way a government organisation conducts its business can be viewed as a public management system, consisting of a ‘public production process’ in an organisational setting. In this system, many factors interact with one another to make it operate. Accordingly, the decision for the adoption and diffusion of GIS in such a system also will be subject to the influence of these factors. Based on the experience of GIS adoption and utilisation observed in several Australian State government agencies in 1995, seven such factors are identified, namely, GIS paradigm, aligned vision of decision makers, production infrastructure, production process, product mix, organisational setting, and the external environment of the stakeholders. Their relationships are described in a model which confirms the need for alignment between GIS and these factors in a government organisation. It is hoped that the model will contribute to the theoretical understanding of the process of GIS diffusion in a government environment, and as a result, facilitate the planning and management of the process in future.