E-government and citizen's engagement with local affairs through e-websites: The case of Spanish municipalities

As a mixture of new technologies, processes and services oriented to the citizen, e-government has become one of the most important keywords for the public sector reform with proponents claiming that it guarantees transparency, accountability and better communication between local and national administrations and their public. Few if any studies have investigated the factors that might contribute to the establishment of trusting relationship between city councils and citizens. This paper examines the relative importance and significance of three types of information communication technologies (ICTs) towards the use of e-government and the development of civic engagement. We conduct an empirical investigation of 179 Spanish official town websites (web sites in the municipalities). The research findings suggest that implementing ICT not only involves a step towards an increase in the use of e-government services by people, but also provides numerous opportunities for their civic engagement. The main conclusion of this study is that although ICT can leverage the adoption of e-government, it cannot create alone engagement with traditional activities of the local government. What is missing from this relationship is a mediating variable (adoption of e-government by government officers), which in turn can greatly help to better understand how ICT impacts relationships between governments and their citizens.     

试论我国电子政务绩效评估方法的完善——以杭州的实践为样本

近年来,随着电子政务在我国的快速发展,与之有关的绩效评估也在各地进行。其中,杭州2012年开展的电子政府发展指数评估具有典型意义,因而文中以之为样本,在对其基本情况作概括介绍并结合外部经验就其利弊得失予以思考的基础上,对我国电子政府绩效评估方法的完善路径加以探讨。总体看来,应做到客观评估与主观评估(定量与定性)相结合,更加注重专家评审委员会和群众意见在评审中的作用,考察范围应当更为全面,等等。     

Enabling innovation in the face of uncertainty through IT ambidexterity: A fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis of industrial service SMEs

Taking a configurational approach, this paper investigates the causal configurations of IT ambidexterity (i.e., IT capabilities for exploitation and exploration), dynamic capabilities (i.e., innovation and networking capabilities) and environmental uncertainty that are associated to service innovation performance in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Results from a fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) of 63 industrial service SMEs show that these firms attain high service innovation performance with three different configurations under conditions of high uncertainty. Two configurations highlight the importance of IT exploration capabilities (combined with the absence of innovation and networking capabilities in one configuration and with the absence of networking capabilities and IT capabilities for exploitation in another), whereas another configuration accentuates the importance of IT exploitation capabilities (combined with the presence of innovation and networking capabilities). Our study contributes to the literature in multiple ways. For instance, due to the equifinal properties of the configurational approach, our results suggest that SMEs can attain high innovation performance through both sequential and simultaneous IT ambidexterity, thus providing a starting point for reconciling competing views of IT ambidexterity. Other contributions to theory and practice and avenues for future research are also discussed.     

Innovation systems and global value chains: A Co-citation analysis of established linkages and possible future trends

This study draws a historical picture of conceptual linkages of innovation systems (IS) and global value chains (GVC). We used a co-citation technique to map the evolution of these two fields since 1990. We highlighted the connecting nodes over the past three decades. The first decade witnessed a connection between national innovation systems (NIS) and GVC, mediated by regional studies related to industrial clusters and district-based innovation. The tradeoff between tacit sticky local and codified transferable global knowledge and innovation and learning's importance in upgrading in GVC generated two new routes in the second decade. In the last decade, although these routes are retained, their mediating nodes have changed with the literature on technology and sustainable transition from IS and the path dependency role in the evolution of districts in global production networks. Recent trends indicate that evolutionary views on economic geography and catch-up may open new opportunities to link the two, and some lessons highlight the need for more structured interactions in the future.     

A case analysis of Savecom: The role of indigenous leadership in implementing a business intelligence system

Evidence suggests that some factors can determine the successful implementation of strategic IT systems, i.e. Business Intelligence (BI). Although BI systems can provide companies with insights into their business operations they are painstakingly difficult to implement. Most frequently, employee resistance and change management related issues have been identified as the main causes of system implementation failure. This is particularly true for Chinese firms, where cultural nuances such as personalism and particularism serve as powerful barriers to ‘intelligence’ sharing. In this case study, we report how Chinese CEOs can overpower these restraining forces to facilitate implementation success. Preliminary evidence from our case firm suggests that a strong, committed and adaptive leadership style provides a basis for effective BI exploitation. Further, we also identify some strategic and tactical actions that Chinese CEOs can use to foster a knowledge sharing culture that is conducive to BI systems implementation.     

A case analysis of the adoption of Internet applications by local sporting bodies in New Zealand

As a unique type of community-based organisation (CBO), local sporting clubs are typically run by volunteers who regularly carry out the playing, coaching and administrative roles that keep them functioning. Through a case study involving a New Zealand hockey association, this article examines the extent to which sporting clubs use Internet applications by examining their use of email (for communications), club websites (for information provision) and online statistics (transactions). Rogers’ (2003) Innovation-Decision Process provides the theoretical framework for the study.     

Information and communication technology adoption for business benefits: A case analysis of an integrated paperless system

This case study analyses the benefits of implementing a paperless software solution (Alert^®pfh–Alert Paperfree Hospital, developed by Alert Life Sciences Computing) in a Portuguese Hospital, the Espírito Santo Hospital, in the city of Évora. Alert^®pfh is a complete hospital clinical information system with real time clinical information input. It was implemented in emergency medical services, inpatient and outpatient services, and operating room services. Data were collected between 2006 and 2011 prior to, during and after the system's implementation. The case analysis demonstrates that paperless software systems have a significant potential when applied in healthcare organization services. Besides financial benefits, other important organizational features were identified, namely higher levels of patient and professional satisfaction; an increase in efficiency in hospital operations; improvement in the quality of information for management decision-making; and a reduction in medical errors. Lessons learned are noted and conclusions drawn for both theoretical and practical ICT benefits analysis.     

eGovernment Document Management System: A case analysis of risk and reward

United Kingdom Local Authorities (UKLA) have the responsibility for delivering a wide range of services to the general public which include a number of significant problems in many delivery areas. The information technology (IT) field is arguably one of the most challenging. Consequently, a senior executive issue within UKLA is transforming organisations through the deployment of IT. This is due to the call from the UK National Government for the public sector to be more innovative. This paper investigates via a case analysis, the rationale for the implementation of an organisational-wide, corporate electronic document management system (EDMS). There is a paucity in the literature, which this research aims to help address. This paper analyses how the EDMS was deployed and how the case organisation was transformed and the findings are mapped against the normative literature.     

Supporting performance management with business process management and business intelligence: A case analysis of integration and orchestration

The case(s) demonstrates the importance of business process management (BPM) and business intelligence systems (BIS) in achieving better firm performance. It has been well documented in the literature that research on the effectively usage and combination of knowledge from BPM and BIS in turbulent service environments is limited. In response, we conduct an exploratory comparative case study of four firms in banking and telecommunication industries that have implemented BPM initiative and BIS solution. Our results firstly highlight that actual results of applying BPM and BIS differ greatly from the results that were originally planned. Secondly, we find that BIS initiatives are usually driven by improving marketing and sales, while BPM initiatives are driven by improving business processes. Thirdly, we identify that there is a lack of strong commitment to using both systems for supporting performance management.     

Understanding the effects of a social media service failure apology: A comparative study of customers vs. potential customers

Service failure apologies on social media are a new crisis communication outlet trend used by companies to apologise to affected customers quickly and offer solutions, ultimately to restore customers' trust and brand loyalty. This paper contributes to the nascent literature on companies' social media service failure apologies and fills a gap in the social commerce literature by recognising that due to the open and public nature of social media, these apologies may reach not just affected customers, but also unintended audiences such as potential customers among the general public, which could potentially damage a company's reputation and market share. An online survey administered to 241 customers and 271 non-customers of a famous mobile phone brand, which used YouTube to apologise to its customers for a service failure incident, is used to explore potential behavioural outcomes, after exposure to the apology. Findings confirm that both customers and non-customers of the service provider may become exposed to a social media service failure apology. The hypothesised model predicts behavioural intentions to remain a customer after exposure to the social media service apology better than behavioural intentions to become a customer, even though relationships hold for both groups. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.     

Digitally enabled service transformation in UK public sector: A case analysis of universal credit

The race against ‘Digital Darwinism’ in public sector had caused failures of several high profile large-scale Digitally Enabled Service Transformation (DEST) projects. While technical and managerial issues are often emphasised as the factors underpinning such failures, the vital role of key actors and the interplay between these actors and structures is underplayed when examining the causes of DEST failure. To enable a richer understanding of DEST, this paper proposes an analytical lens combining Institutional Theory (IT) and Structuration Theory (ST) to explore the case of ‘Universal Credit’, a very large and ambitious DEST project in the UK. Analysis reveals that the institutional actors and structures played significant roles in the transformation process. Albeit governing the actors’ actions, institutional structures are shaped through actions that are influenced by knowledge, power and norms. Hence, recognising and addressing these subliminal factors are critical to promote actions that can facilitate DEST success. The contributions of this case study are two-folds. Theoretically, it provides a distinctive conceptual approach to study DEST; and practically, the lessons help in signposting better managerial practices.     

Service strategies of small cloud service providers: A case study of a small cloud service provider and its clients in Taiwan

Small enterprises play an important role in the technology innovation and economic development of most countries all over the world, particularly in Taiwan. Due to a lack of financial resources and expertise, small enterprises tend to find novel ways to utilize IT resources in order to reduce IT adoption costs, to achieve better flexibility, business agility and scalability, and to react faster to market demands. Whereas Taiwan has been promoting cloud computing to help Taiwanese enterprises adopt more effective information technologies, we found that the service strategies of small cloud service providers are individually differentiated in order to survive in the competitive cloud computing market. This paper reports a case study of a small e-learning service provider and its four clients in Taiwan. Some novel insights are revealed through this case study and recommendations are provided accordingly.     

A case analysis of a product lifecycle information management framework for SMEs

Information management during the product lifecycle has received a great deal of attention over the last few years, mainly because firms work in a complex business environment characterized by information overload, high levels of competitiveness and the acceleration of technological change. In this context, Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) software has been evolving rapidly and, today, powerful tools in the market enable high levels of information to be managed. However, commercial PLM software is mostly oriented towards large-sized firms, which poses a big challenge for small and mid-sized enterprises (SMEs). To address this issue, SMEs can develop their own Product Lifecycle Information Management (PLIM) Frameworks for managing data and information throughout the product lifecycle processes. This article presents a successful example of a PLIM Framework: the case of Pladomin’s PLIM Framework.     

基于网络数据文本分析的目的地形象维度分异研究——以南京为例

随着Web2.0技术的发展,网络文本已成为目的地形象研究的重要数据来源。本文选取南京作为案例地,以马蜂窝游客对南京的10 077条在线评论文本为数据,运用网络大数据文本挖掘法、词频统计法和共现网络法,分析得出目的地形象维度重要性存在差异,旅游吸引物是第一层次,公共基础设施是第二层次,休闲和娱乐、旅游环境和地方氛围是第三层次,旅游基础设施是第四层次。其次,南京感知形象中突出的认知成分源于旅游吸引物和公共基础设施维度的感知,而情感形象为正面,并产生了一定的意动形象,形成了网络口碑效应。此外,南京整体形象主要源于旅游吸引物和公共基础设施维度的感知,进一步验证了感知维度的重要性存在差异。本文验证了旅游形象的相关理论,丰富了旅游大数据研究方法,并可为南京旅游形象建设和发展提供科学依据。