Factors Necessitating It Implementations

Published Date: 02 Nov 2017

Introduction

In this age, technology keeps evolving at a rapid pace; and the organizations that do not have a dynamic attitude towards the changes in technology, tend to lose against the competition. The main objectives behind the implementation of Information Technology in an organization are; increasing the overall efficiency of the organization, reducing duplication, simplifying labour, and enhancing the overall flow of data within the organization. Although a high degree of confidence is placed on all the IT implementations, the results are rarely in accordance with the initial expectations. It is often the case that the IT implementations do not produce the desired results. IT implementations fail frequently, and even the implementations that succeed create numerous complications within the organization. The following paper will explore the factors that necessitate the implementation of a new information system in an organization, the factors are responsible for the failure of IT implementations, factors that cause complications after successful implementations, and the steps that can be taken to ensure that IT implementations remain successful.

Factors Necessitating IT Implementations

There are a number of factors that have made it absolutely necessary for organizations to implement information systems. Some of the factors are external to the organization, such as; industrial pressure and external environment. Other factors are internal to the organization, such as; efficiency of the operations, minimization of costs, and speed of processes. Following is a brief explanation of some of the factors that make it necessary for organizations to implement information systems.

Industrial Pressure

One of the most important factors for an organization is the pressure faced from the industry in which it operates. If all the other firms in the industry implement an information system, it becomes a necessary component of the industry and an organization cannot survive in the industry unless it acquires and implements that information system. One such example is the information system used by ‘insurance companies’. There is a standardized management system that makes it simpler for the industry as a whole to operate in a similar manner (Hall, 2012). The management system creates a central database which is used by all the departments of the organization i.e. the department dealing with booking insurance policies, the department handling the client claims, finance department, and other peripheral departments. Thus, duplication is avoided by a significant extent.

Common Computing Platform

An information system is operated over common computing platforms therefore they are easy to manage. The hardware architecture and software framework which is generally used in organization is also applicable for information systems. Therefore, it becomes effective to upgrade to an information system while keeping the current hardware.

Cost Effectiveness

Information systems significantly reduce the cost of operations in an organization. The only significant cost an organization bears is the initial implementation of information system and the training of its employees to operate the system. After the initial costs, the system benefits the organization for a significant period of time and the cost effectiveness derived from the implementation of the system is greater than the initial investment made by the organization in the implementation and operability of the system. However, this factor is valid only when the implementation of the information system is completely successful.

Integration of Operations

The main feature of an information system is that it integrates all the operations of an organization. It enables all the divisions to access centralized information easily. Information system is built as modules and its multiple software modules make the coordination of diverse operational departments of an organization easier. The integration of multiple operations of an organization provides the organization an opportunity to maintain a centralized database system to ensure effective flow of information within the organization (Li et al., 2009). Management systems also include effective system security for the preservation of confidential data.

Enhancement of Work Efficiency

The main benefit of an IT system is that it increases the overall efficiency of an organization by integrating its diverse operations. IT system saves an organization from multiple documentations of the same data and the time it takes. It provides an online central database which is available for all the operational divisions of the organization at the same time, therefore the retrieval of information becomes easy and quick. Management information system also ensures real time updating of the database. Due to continuous updating the organization remains aware regarding the market conditions and this information helps an organization enhance the effectiveness of its decisions.

International Operations

The implementation of Information Technology enables an organization to operate internationally. An information system supports multiple standards at the same time. An information system can be used to manage diverse tax structures, languages and standards; therefore a system can be used for managing diverse operations of an organization. An information system, such as, Entity Resource Planning (ERP) also supports the linkages between geographically diversified branches and divisions of an organization (Chen et al., 2009).

Factors Responsible for Failure of Information Technology Implementations

Although there are multiple advantages attached with the implementation of Information Technology in organizations, these advantages are completely redeemed only when the IT implementations are completely successful; and that is rarely the case. In most cases, it is observed that IT implementations fail or do not produce the required results. There are a number of factors that are directly responsible for the failure of IT implementations. Following is a brief explanation of some of those factors.

Difference in Social Perspectives

It has been mentioned by Bartis and Mitev (2008) that the success or failure of IT implementation depends upon perspectives of the relevant social groups. For example; an IT implementation that is successful according to the key management personnel of the organization may be a failure according to the users of the new system. The project manager may have an opinion that the system has been implemented effectively; however, the users of the system may think that the system has not been properly implemented and it does not operate effectively. This difference in social perspectives is also caused by lack of communication within the organization.

In most of the cases, the success or failure of an IT implementation is defined by the group of individuals that hold power and authority within the organization. Even though the system may be a failure, a powerful group may have a perspective that it is a success. On the other hand, the IT system may be successful, but a group of key personnel may declare it as a failure. Thus, it can also be said that the success or failure of an IT implementation depends upon the politics of technology within the organization. There needs to be a unified opinion throughout the organization to ensure whether the new system is actually a failure or a success.

Lack of Strategy and Planning

One of the biggest factors that are directly responsible for the failure of IT implementations is lack of a proper strategy and planning. This is the most important phase in any IT implementation and this is the phase that is mostly ignored. A number of project managers fail to realize that the success of the IT implementation depends upon the effectiveness of the initial strategy and the efficiency of the planning as in the case of Cerner Hospital system in New South Wales (Southon et al., 1999).

The strategy includes the determination of the overall scope of the implementation, the direction of the implementation, the extent of resources that will be applied, and the time period within which the implementation will be completed. The implementation plan is a more comprehensive task which is conducted under the guidelines set by the implementation strategy. The strategy provides the direction for implementation; the plan provides the nature and timing of procedures that will be conducted in order to follow that direction. Therefore, both the strategy and the plan for implementation are integral to the whole process and their determination beforehand can greatly assist in the effective implementation of the new information system.

Insufficient User Involvement

According to Social Construction of Technology (SCOT) theory, human action shapes technology (Mingers & Willcocks, 2004). Thus, the development of an IT system generates from the needs and requirements of the individuals. Thus, another significant factor responsible for the failure of IT implementations is the lack of user involvement. The management fails to realize that ultimately it is the staff members who will be required to operate the new system, and failure to acquire the opinion of the staff members renders the information system ineffective. Due to lack of user involvement, the IT systems are developed with features that staff members do not need, or without features that are essential to the operations. The lack of user involvement may also result in a user interface that is difficult for the staff members to use (Al-Ahmad et al., 2009). All these factors render the IT system ineffective and lead to its failure.

One of the examples of failure of IT implementation is that of the failure of the implementation of the New Zealand Education Department’s payroll system (Mingers & Willcocks, 2004). There was lack of user involvement and differing interpretations of the new system. Therefore, the system implementation was a failure because it did not cater the needs and requirements of the users.

Inadequate Oversight by Strategic Core

Another important factor that is responsible for failure of IT implementations is the lack of oversight over the implementation process by the strategic core of the organization. For successful implementation, it is highly important that the personnel from the highest level of the hierarchy of the organization take active part in the implementation process (Bartis & Mitev, 2008). This can be done by acquiring regular reports regarding the advancements in the implementation of the new system.

Lack of Experienced Project Managers

It is often the case that the manager overseeing the IT implementation is unaware of the technical aspects of the implementation, and this leads to numerous shortcomings. It is highly important that the individual, or the team, responsible for implementation holds sufficient IT knowledge and carries adequate experience to ensure that the implementation process if conducted properly (Marshall, 2006).

Lack of Mutual Understanding between the Organization and the Software Provider

Another major reason behind the failure of IT implementation is that the software provider has a different understanding of the IT requirements of the organization. This leads to the development of an information system that is irrelevant for the organization.

Resistance to change

The staff of the organization may show resistance towards the implementation of the new information system. The staff members may become used to the current system of execution of the operations of the company therefore they may find it difficult to accept the new system. The staff may also show reluctance towards learning how to operate the new information system. This attitude of the staff members may be responsible for the failure of a new information system.

Lack of competent staff

Staff members already hired by the company may lack the level of competence required to operate the new information system. Since information systems like ‘Entity Resource Planning’ are highly complex systems as they integrates all the aspects of the business of the organization and consolidate the information in a centralized database, it may be difficult for the staff members to operate the system effectively. There is also a risk of mismanagement of the new system and the risk of loss of data.

An example of IT implementation failure in this regard is that of LAS information system (Mingers & Wilcocks, 2004). The LAS computer-aided despatch system collapsed shortly after its launch and the main reason of its failure was the lack of skilled staff to deal with the new tasks and rules of the system. This caused a massive disruption in the whole system and ultimately, manual procedures were reintroduced.

Factors Causing Complications after Successful Implementations

In certain circumstances, the IT implementations are successful, but they increase complexities and restrictions that effectively impair the efficiency of the operations; therefore rendering the implementation ineffective. There are a number of factors that cause complexities after successful implementation of IT systems. Following is a brief explanation of some of those factors.

Lack of Staff Training

The most important factor that leads to complexities after successful implementation of IT systems is lack of proper training of the users of the new system. The staff members may not aware of the features of the new system and they may require extensive training to familiarize themselves with the new system. In most cases, the training is conducted merely as a formality and the staff members take a long time to acclimatize with the system. In this span of time, the pace of operations of the organization remain slow and the overall efficiency is impaired. Thus, despite successful implementation, the inability of the staff members to use the new system renders it ineffective.

Migration of Data

In most cases, the biggest complexity after implementation of IT system is the migration of data from the previous system to the new system. Significant amount of data is lost or rendered ineffective due to incompatibility with the new system. The overall success of the implementation of an IT system depends upon the migration of data from previous system used by an organization to the new system. Therefore, migration of data is a comprehensive process and it requires an extensive plan to be conducted successfully. Since most organizations that implement IT for the first time conducts most of their operations manually, the data migration may be extremely complex and it may require extensive care. This step is important because there is a risk of loss of data involved in this process. The extensive planning requires additional time and resources by an organization therefore it also affects the on-going operations of an organization to a significant extent.

Recommendations

The reasons for failure discussed above are the factors that need to be rectified if the organizations are to implement IT systems successfully. Following are some of the recommendations that may help the organization implement new information system in an effective manner.

Integration of Social Perspectives

As mentioned above, one of the factors that lead towards failure of an IT implementation is; the different social perspectives regarding the new system. The SCOT theory endorses the fact that the success or failure of an IT implementation mainly depends upon the human actions. Therefore, if there are different perspectives regarding the success of an IT implementation in an organization, the new system may eventually fail. Therefore, it is important to ensure that all the relevant personnel in the organization have a unified opinion regarding the new system. Thus, there will be a lower chance of failure of the IT system.

User Involvement

The most important recommendation is the involvement of users throughout the process of IT implementation. If the organizations intend to make the IT implementation a success, the need to realize that it is the staff members that are eventually required to operate the information system. Therefore, the system should be developed considering the ease of the users.

In order to achieve this objective, the opinion of staff members should be obtained at all stages of IT implementation. The initial stage is the development of the new system, and user involvement at this stage is highly important. The users should put forward their needs and requirements, and the desired user interface; and the developers should develop the new system keeping the opinions of the users in consideration. This will increase the familiarity of the users with the new system and it will also encourage the staff members to adopt the new system quickly.

Development of Strategy

The organizations should develop a proper strategy for the implementation of a new IT system. The strategy should be developed after taking all the relevant factors into account. The management should determine the timeframe within which the implementation should be completed, the extent of resources that will be utilized, and the overall scope of the implementation (Sharma & Yetton, 2011). The strategy will act as an underlying framework for the development of a comprehensive implementation plan.

Development of Implementation Plan

Although planning is conducted in each organization to some extent, it is not conducted adequately. Even if an exhaustive plan is development, it is not followed up and all the activities are eventually deferred. For successful implementation of a new system, an organization must ensure that an exhaustive implementation plan is developed which is in line with the strategy for implementation (Yeo, 2002).

The implementation plan should include details regarding the individuals that will be responsible for the process, and the responsibilities for each of the individuals. The plan should also indicate the nature and timing of the procedures that will be conducted during the implementation process. It should be ensured that each procedure is allocated a reasonable amount of time, and the responsibilities are allocated to proper individuals. The plan should also account for contingencies if possible. For example, the plan should indicate the course of action in case any of the steps involved in implementation does not go as expected.

The manager responsible for implementation should ensure that regular feedback is taken from the responsible personnel. It should also be ensured that the implementation is conducted exactly in accordance with the timing specified in the implementation plan.

Change Management

One of the most important factors behind failure of IT implementations is the lack of proper change management. Organizations should ensure that proper steps are taken to introduce the new system. In order to ensure the effective implementation of change in an organization, the manager responsible for change should consider certain factors that may help the manager implement the change successfully. Such factors are; prioritizing the change, involving the staff members and key personnel in the change process, and implementing the change sequentially (Doppler & Lauterburg, 2002).

In order to implement change effectively in an organization, the management should prioritize change i.e. implementation of the new system, against all other operations. This may also act as a driving force for the implementation of change in the organization. Prioritising change would also communicate the underlying message to staff that management is taking the process of implementation of change very seriously and it is of utmost importance for the organization to implement the change.

Change can only be implemented effectively when the process of implementation has an oversight by the key management personnel of the organization. The key management personnel of the organization should take an active part in the process of implementation of change because they their acts are followed by the staff of the organization. If the key management personnel do not take any active part in the process of implementation of change, the change may be regarded as unimportant and the staff of the organization may remain inactive towards the implementation of change. Thus, in order to ensure effective implementation of change in the organization the key management personnel of the organization must execute oversight on the process of implementation of change.

Another success factor for effective change management is the sequential implementation of new system. Change cannot be implemented in a single step therefore in order to ensure effective implementation of the system, a set of logically sequenced steps should be followed.

Adequate Training

Another important aspect of success of IT implementation is the familiarity of the staff members with the new system. In order to ensure that there is high level of familiarity, the organizations should conduct adequate training sessions in which staff members are introduced to each and every aspect of the new system.

At times, staff members actively resist learning about the new system. In that case, monetary incentives may be offered to the staff members to encourage them to learn about the new system. The target incentives of the staff members may be linked to the performance of staff members in the training and the application of the learned skills while operating the new system. This way, the staff members will remain motivated to learn about the new system and the chances of success of the new system will improve significantly.

Conclusion

Thus, it can be concluded that there are numerous benefits attached to IT implementations but those benefits are redeemed only if the implementations are completely successful. Success or failure in it sense could mean different thing to various interest group in achieving its own specific objective

In most cases, the IT implementations are not successful and the reasons for the failure of implementations of the new systems are; lack of an effective strategy, lack of planning, lack of proper oversight by the strategic core of the organization, insufficient involvement of users in the development phase, lack of expert staff in organizations, difference in the understanding of the software vendor and the organization, and resistance to change by staff members.

The inherent part of IT implementation is that it success or failure story will often plagued by the not just the technical factor, organisational factor setting but also the social and political nature of humans in an organisation.