Dimensions of I/S Planning and Design Aids: A Functional Model of CASE Technology

Abstract

Information technology is playing an increasingly integral role in the competitive strategies of many organizations. As this trend continues, it is not surprising that there is growing emphasis on the ability of organizations to plan, design and implement critical information systems. A major strategy to improve the effectiveness of these processes is the use of computer-based planning and design aids. However, there is little empirical evidence that using this technology provides a significant performance impact. One factor limiting research on the impact of technology on planning and design is the manner in which this technology has been conceptualized for measuring usage behavior. This research develops a functional model of I/S planning and design support technology that distinguishes three general functional dimensions: Production Technology, Coordination Technology and Organizational Technology. An empirical analysis is used to test the robustness of the proposed model and its ability to discriminate among current design aids in a meaningful way. Implications for the use of this model in the study of I/S planning and design processes are discussed.

Antecedents of Coordination Effectiveness of Software Developer Dyads From Interacting Teams: An Empirical Investigation

“…Unfortunately, technical approaches are not the "silver bullet". Consistent with previous studies in IS research Henderson et al 1990;Vessey et al 1995), our study suggests more attention should be paid to understand the social processes or behavior in software development. This also conforms to the spirits of agile software development methods (Cockburn 2002), which place the emphasis on human factors.…”

“…However, several previous studies also have similar findings. Some researchers argue that it may be due to the lack of coordination functionality inherent in many CASE tools Henderson et al 1990;Vessey et al 1995). Sawyer et al argue that tools do help software developers improve individual productivity but they are not directly linked to team performance (1998).…”

“…Based on previous studies, coordination technology use is defined as functionality of information technologies that enables or supports the interactions of two software developers from interacting teams in the execution of cross-team tasks , (Henderson et al 1990). There are a lot of different kinds of coordination technology available for software development.…”

Information Systems in Organizations and Society: Speculating on the Next 25 Years of Research

“…Functional conceptualizations of ICT differ from feature-based views in the level of abstraction (Henderson and Cooprider 1990;Taylor 1982‚ 1986. Feature-based conceptualizations detail the design intentions of an ICT and focus on the direct or intended effects of particular elements of an IS or the ICT in an IS.…”

On Understanding Evaluation of Tool Support for IS Development

“…Firstly, published frameworks can differ significantly. For example, both Henderson and Cooprider (1990) and Ovum (1993) have developed rather extensive frameworks for CASE-tools, but they differ in scope, structure and detail. Secondly, frameworks must be continually updated to reflect technology changes.…”