Electronic Mediation, Transformation, and Business Value: Three Essays in the Retail Auto Industry

Title of dissertation proposal: Electronic Mediation, Transformation, and Business Value: Three Essays in the Retail Auto Industry Jason Nicholas Kuruzovich, Doctor of Philosophy in Information Systems Dissertation directed by: Professor Ritu Agarwal Decision and Information Technologies Department This dissertation seeks to answer the following research questions: (1) what properties enable some organizations to generate more value from information technology (IT) than others? and (2) through what mechanisms do organizations generate value through IT? It examines the role of technology in value creation through three essays using three different aspects of organizational performance. Chapter 1: Responding to Technology-Enabled Organizational Transformation: The Role of Strategic Change Orientation Essay one examines the role of strategic change orientation and three change enablers— IT capabilities, climate for IT use, and mindfulness of IT adoption—in influencing business process performance during a period of IT-enabled transformation. The data source for this essay is a survey of auto retailers facilitated by a leading online infomediary. Chapter 2: Profiting From the Internet Channel: The Complementarity of Electronic Commerce Capabilities and Business Process Change Essay two accesses the joint role of electronic commerce capabilities and business process change in a model that examines the value firms derive from the Internet channel. The data source for this essay is a survey of auto retailers conducted by a leading market research firm. Chapter 3: Understanding Retailer Use of Online Auction Channels: Strategies In Repeated Search Processes Essay three examines sellers’ use of the online auction market and the resulting value obtained for a given product through the theoretical lens of search theory. We model sellers’ repeated listing of unsold products and adjustment of reserve price as a process of searching for high valuation customers. The data source for this essay is transactional data from a leading online auction site specializing in automobiles. ELECTRONIC MEDIATION, TRANSFORMATION, AND BUSINESS VALUE: THREE ESSAYS IN THE RETAIL AUTO INDUSTRY by Jason Nicholas Kuruzovich Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of the University of Maryland, College Park in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy 2006 Advisory Committee: Professor Ritu Agarwal, Chair Professor Paul Hanges Professor Sanjay Gosain Professor P.K. Kannan Professor Henry C. Lucas Professor Sivakumar Viswanathan © Copyright by Jason Nicholas Kuruzovich TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES. iii LIST OF FIGURES . iv OVERVIEW: ELECTRONIC MEDIATION, TRANSFORMATION, AND BUSINESS VALUE: THREE ESSAYS IN THE RETAIL AUTO INDUSTRY. 1 CHAPTER 1: RESPONDING TO TECHNOLOGY-ENABLED ORGANIZATIONAL TRANSFORMATION: THE ROLE OF STRATEGIC CHANGE ORIENTATION . 2 1.1 ABSTRACT. 2 1.2 INTRODUCTION . 3 1.3 LITERATURE REVIEW . 5 1.4 RESEARCH MODEL AND HYPOTHESES . 20 1.5 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY. 26 1.6 DISCUSSION. 33 1.7 SUMMARY. 37 1.8 FIGURES. 38 1.9 TABLES . 40 CHAPTER 2: PROFITING FROM THE INTERNET CHANNEL: THE COMPLEMENTARITY OF ELECTRONIC COMMERCE CAPABILITIES AND BUSINESS PROCESS CHANGE. 44 2.1 ABSTRACT. 44 2.2 INTRODUCTION . 45 2.3 LITERATURE REVIEW . 48 2.4 RESEARCH MODEL AND HYPOTHESES . 54 2.5 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY. 62 2.6 DISCUSSION. 67 2.7 SUMMARY. 71 2.8 FIGURES. 72 2.9 TABLES . 74 CHAPTER 3: UNDERSTANDING RETAILER USE OF ONLINE AUCTION CHANNELS: STRATEGIES IN REPEATED SEARCH PROCESSES. 79 3.1 ABSTRACT. 79 3.2 INTRODUCTION . 80 3.3 LITERATURE REVIEW . 83 3.4 RESEARCH MODEL AND HYPOTHESES . 89 3.5 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY. 98 3.6 DISCUSSION. 103 3.7 SUMMARY. 110 3.8 FIGURES. 112 3.9 TABLES . 114 APPENDICES . 118 APPENDIX A – ESSAY 1 MEASURES. 118 APPENDIX B ESSAY 2 MEASURES. 124 REFERENCES . 126