Managing the User Relationship im Information Systems Development Projects: a Transaction Governance Approach

This paper compares the effectiveness of two mechanisms for governing the relationship between an information systems development team and the new system's users. This relationship is traditionally governed using phased commitments and user involvement. Drawing on the organizational economics literature, the paper proposes a new view in which a project is characterized as a transaction, or an exchange, between IS and the users. Two alternatives for governing this exchange, one based on explicit, classical contracting and the other relying more on implicit, social contracting, are hypothesized to be differentially effective in governing exchanges of low or high difficulty, respectively. The model is explored in a field study at a single site and found to be supported, indicating that more rigorous tests of the model are warranted. INTRODUCTION this multitude is usually condensed to a "virtual user" who combines some of each characteristic; Information systems (IS) development projects are a that is, he or she is high enough in the organizaway of life in MIS departments. On these projects, tion to influence the flow of resources and is also a project teams composed principally of IS specialists knowledgeable participant in the business function specify, develop (or obtain) and install an applicato be supported. The term "user" is employed here tion system for business users in other parts of the in the same sense. same organization. There are many stresses and strains in systems work, but the relationship In IS development projects, two things need to be between the IS specialists and their organizational accomplished in the project/user relationship. First, colleagues is one of the most problematic. Boehm to invest organizational resources wisely, the costs (1981) notes that difficulties in this relationship can and features of the new system should be agreed double the costs of a project. Since it is the users upon in advance. Second, the user must find value who will ultimately pass judgement on the system, in the installed system. That is, it is not enough and by extension, on the IS function, it would seem that the IS department delivers a system that desirable to have a more satisfactory model for matches the specifications. It is also necessary that understanding, and thus managing, the relationship the system be useful. The two principal mechanisms between IS project teams and their user community. by which we seek to accomplish these goals are This paper proposes and explores such a model. aspects of the systems development life cycle (SDLC) and user involvement. The major business users of information systems include clerical personnel, first-level managers, staff An SDLC has many features which support the dayspecialists, and higher management (Davis 1974). In to-day activities of the project team. Its primary the IS literature the term "user" frequently goes support for investment management, however, lies in undefined, but it usually includes that person or a series of checkpoints at which proposed costs and persons who (a) hold or control the resources being features of the system are reviewed by the users, exchanged for the system (hence the term "client" providing them an opportunity to reconsider the or "customer"), and (b) will provide or use data decision to invest in the system. Beginning with f'rom the new system. In theory and in practice the initial project authorization, the SDLC takes the