The antecedents and consequences of the use of information systems

The thesis examines the antecedents and consequences of the use of information systems with emphasis placed on the effect of organisational culture and business – information technology (IT) alignment on the use of information systems, and the impact of information systems on organisational performance via the moderating role of leadership. The study also examines the antecedent role of dynamic capabilities in affecting the use of a specific type of information system, namely Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems and the subsequent impact on organisational innovation and performance. Data were collected by mail survey questionnaire from 228 managers in Indonesian manufacturing organisations. The thesis adopts the ‘thesis by publication’ format and consists of three research papers. Paper One examines the mediating role of business – IT alignment on the association between organisational culture and the use of information systems. The results indicate that the influence of specific organisational culture dimensions (orientation to change, centralised decision-making, processes orientation, internal orientation, external orientation, and personal experience) on the use of information systems is enacted through business – IT alignment. The results also show there was a direct positive association between the orientation to change, personal experience, and the short-term time horizon cultural dimensions and the use of information systems. Paper Two examines the moderating role of leadership on the association between the use of information systems and organisational performance. The results provide empirical evidence that the association between the use of information systems and organisational performance can be strengthened by the transformational (inspirational communication) and transactional xi (passive management by exception) leadership styles. In addition, the results confirm the importance of information systems in enhancing organisational performance, with the results showing a positive association between the use of information systems and all three dimensions of organisational performance (financial performance, manufacturing efficiency, and customer employee satisfaction). Paper Three examines the antecedent role of dynamic capabilities in influencing the use of ERP systems and the subsequent impact on organisational innovation and performance. The results show that dynamic capabilities (strategic flexibility and employee empowerment) have a significant positive effect on the extent of use of ERP systems. The results also show that the extent of use of ERP systems was positively associated with organisational innovation (exploitation and exploration innovation). In addition, the extent of use of ERP systems influences the organisation’s ability to improve organisational performance (financial performance, manufacturing efficiency, and customer and employee satisfaction). The thesis contributes to the information system contingency literature by empirically examining the antecedents and consequences of the extent of use of information systems. The findings provide managers with an insight into how to shape their organisational culture in a way which facilitates the alignment of business and IT strategy so as to enhance the use of information systems. The thesis also contributes to the literature highlighting the importance of information systems in enhancing organisational performance, highlighting the moderating role of the transformational (inspirational communication) and transactional (passive management by exception) leadership styles on the association between the use of information systems and organisational performance. Further, the thesis contributes to the limited empirical research on the process through which dynamic capabilities are linked to the success of xii information systems by examining the mediating role of the extent of use of ERP systems on the success of two dynamic capabilities (strategic flexibility and employee empowerment), with success assessed in respect to both organisational innovation (exploitation and exploration innovation) and organisational performance (financial performance, manufacturing efficiency, and customer employee satisfaction).