Enterprise systems
(725G76)
Lecture 2
Ulf Melin
Information Systems, IEI, LiU
Ulf.melin@liu.se
Agenda
 ES characteristics – again…
 Enterprise systems and organizing
 Organizational needs for IT – ES as a response
 ES and centralization – potentials and pitfalls
 Paradox and challenges
 Context and process
 Summary
2014-11-06
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ES Characteristics
 Modular Construction
 C/S-architecture
 Allows configuration
 Central database
 Variable GUIs
 …
(Davenport, 2000)
2014-11-06
Föreläsning 1: Affärssystem för företag
2014-11-06
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An organizational perspective on ES
 ES implementation
 Organizational effects
 Processes
 Culture
 Norms
 Behaviour
 Success
 Failure
 Technology – yes, but within an organizational context
2014-11-06
Enterprise systems and organizing
 “[IT systems] is intimately implicated in the
structuring of actors’ daily work through information storage, retrieval, and transmission
capabilities, through providing the means to
accomplish tasks, through imposing a rhythm
and schedule on the flow of computer-based
work, through providing technical
vocabularies to mediated meanings ascribed
to events, objects, and relationships, and
through coordinating activities over time and
space” (Orlikowski, 1991, s. 13)
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Enterprise systems and organizing
 “[IT systems] is intimately implicated in the
structuring of actors’ daily work through information storage, retrieval, and transmission
capabilities, through providing the means to
accomplish tasks, through imposing a rhythm
and schedule on the flow of computer-based
work, through providing technical
vocabularies to mediated meanings ascribed
to events, objects, and relationships, and
through coordinating activities over time and
space” (Orlikowski, 1991, s. 13)
Organizational needs for IT – ES as a
response
 The need for real time information for
better/faster decisions
 A system legacy
 A governance tool for control and monitoring
 Can lead to centralization…
 … in contrast: the need for decentralization
and flexibility (Walsham, 2001; Melin, 2010)
 BI applications on the top
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Organizing and organization
 Organizing
 “[…] to organize is to assemble ongoing interdependent actions into sensible sequences that
generate sensible outcomes.” (Weick, 1979, p. 3)
 Organization
 “[…] social structures created by individuals to support
the collaborative pursuit of specific goals.” (Scott, 1998, p. 10)
 More associated with


Structural dimensions of an organization
The legal entity
ES for centralization
 Increased control and structure can be
appropriate, but…
Organizations need to be

Autonomous

Innovative
 …not just be based on standard operating
procedures (SOP) (Walsham, 2001)
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ES for centralization
 Increased control, standardization and
structures based on SOP can be
appropriate, but…
 Organizations have different
 Routines and procedures/processes
 Context
 History
 … even within the same industry (Walsham, 2001)
ES as a part of an organization’s
organization's administrative paradox
 An ES can take the part of an organization’s
administrative paradox
 An administrative paradox is two sides of the
same coin when coordinating organizations – the
concurrent striving for flexibility and stability
 The studied ES even centralizes control, creates
norms, and enhances power for actors in
positions of authority (top management) (Melin,
2010)
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ES as a part of an organization’s
organization's administrative paradox
 Because of its structure and configuration
the ES is a powerful tool to coordinate
 The ES is considered to be
organizationally ungainly, but at the same
time indispensable (Melin, 2010)
ES challenges
 To standardize software is easier than to
standardize IS to support key processes in
organizations
 Legacy systems have often emerged organically
to support business processes, local practices
and vocabulary
 New or upgrades ES does not automatically
support local, emerged practice (Walsham, 2001)
 How we view ES and organization – and the
relation matters!
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IT and organization/organizing
(Markus and Robey, 1988, p. 586)
IT and organizing
 Why do we get different effects of ES?
 Enterprise systems are:
 Social and organizational embedded
 Technically embedded
 On a commercial market
 Complex
 Changed/developed (Kallinikos, 2004)
 Enterprise systems has a structural potential
(DeSanctis and Poole, 1994)
(Melin, 2010)
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Context and process
 Inspired by Pettigrew (1985, 1987, 1990)
 Management of change and implementation of IT is not a
straight forward and rational process…
 …it is a analytic, learning and political process
 ”[…] complex”, ”messy process inseparable from its
intraorganizational and broader context.” (Walsham, 1993, s. 53)
 ”[…] an understanding of the context of the information
systems, and the process whereby the information system
influences and is influenced by its context” (Walsham, 1993, s.
4 f.)
 Conclusion
 It is important to study processes and context in order to
understand IT and ES in organizations and the link between them
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How one (possibly…) can reduce some
problems related to ES implementation…
 Don’t ignore legacy systems
 Link to business vision
 Top management support
 Model business processes
 Don’t underestimate training
 Client acceptance
 Communicate
 Project schedule and plans
 Vendors may over promise
(Grossman and Walsh, 2004; Holland and Light, 1999)
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Success stories
http://na.sage.com/us/erp/success-stories
2014-11-06
Failure stories
http://www.cio.com/article/2429865/enterprise-resourceplanning/10-famous-erp-disasters--dustups-anddisappointments.html
2014-11-06
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Summary
 IT in general and ES in particular is intimately
implicated in the structuring of actors’ daily work
 Organizing and organization
 ES and centralization – potentials and pitfalls
 The need to understand
 Context and process - messy
 ES and its embedded character
 Paradox and challenges
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