Evaluation of factors contributing to the failure of information systems in public universities: The case of Iran

Abstract

In this paper, we evaluate the reasons for the failure of information systems in public universities. To that end, we start by presenting a hierarchical structure of criteria after reviewing related studies, and dividing the criteria into the categories of project management, organizational management, humanrelated, organizational and technical. To assess the weight of the criteria in the proposed framework, we collect the opinions of a sample of information technology experts working in different public universities in Iran, using an online questionnaire that is based on the best-worst method (BWM). By analyzing the weight of the criteria, we can reveal that misfit of information systems software (closely followed by lack of top management support and unsuccessful monitoring and measurement) has the greatest impact on the failure of information systems in the public universities of Iran. The methodology proposed in this paper can be used in other countries facing the same problem.

Overcoming the Challenges of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)

“…The findings of Khanfar et al (2018) and show that factors related to internal organizational problems, such as the environment, communication, requirement definition, lack of knowledge, and lack of team enthusiasm, have the greatest impact on project failure. These findings do not refute recent ERP challenges in the current study (AlBar & Hoque, 2019;Kheybari et al, 2020;Kohansal, 2019;Mahmood et al, 2019;Menon et al, 2019;Virzi, 2019).…”

“…The study discovered 65 challenges, as shown in Table 4. Project management, organizational, technology & vendor, technical/architecture, employee/ personnel/ HR, people/enduser, strategic, operational/ business, management commitment, and process were the major categories identified by the reviewed papers (Ebad, 2016;Amid et al, 2012;Ganesh & Mehta, 2010a;Garg & Khurana, 2017;Khanfar et al, 2018;Kheybari et al, 2020;Mahmood et al, 2019;Sar & Garg, 2012;Tsai et al, 2005). Lack of top management support, weak BPR quality, poor IT infrastructure, insufficient user education and training, poor coordination between members of the ERP project team & organizational stakeholders, underestimated timeline and budget, low efficiency of project management, lack of IT expertise, over-reliance on heavy customization, low user engagement, lack of understanding of the need for change management, weak transfer of knowledge, misfit of the ERP system with corporate culture & structure, the resistance of users to reform, unrealistic expectations from ERP top management and unreliable data are among the top 16 critical challenges facing ERP.…”

“…To solve the problem of poor project management performance on ERP systems, Kheybari et al (2020) and recommend that firms create a project management unit and assemble a project management team. Following the formation of a project management team, a project manager should be recruited, as well as relevant individuals who are familiar with corporate business practices and the value of an ERP system.…”

“…Appropriate top management assistance should be provided throughout the ERP's life cycle, whether in project participation, finance, or human resource support. According to Kheybari et al (2020), executive buy-in is high before the selection, but it is lower after the selection. As a result, it is critical to employ change management approaches to maintain executive participation.…”

Developing a Conceptual Framework for GIS Audit in an Enterprise Setting

“…Although human factors are largely responsible for GIS system failures (Madni & Jackson, 2009), lack of monitoring and evaluation equally contributes to failure (Kheybari, Rezaie, Naji, & Javdanmehr, 2020) because this phase of project implementation provides an opportunity to identify areas for improvement.…”