John Effah

Bio: John Effah is an academic researcher from University of Ghana. The author has contributed to research in topics: Developing country & Information system. The author has an hindex of 9, co-authored 60 publications receiving 513 citations. Previous affiliations of John Effah include University of Salford.

A Typology of Big Data Capabilities from Resources to Dynamic Capabilities. Evidence from a Ghanaian Health Insurance Firm.

Abstract: Big data is generating a lot of interest across different industries, with firms seeking to leverage big data to obtain enormous benefits. In the health insurance industry, especially in developing countries, there are efforts to use big data to increase healthcare access and at the same time reduce cost. Despite these efforts, there is a lack of literature on how to develop big data capabilities. Conceptually, the typology of capabilities has been suggested to follow a hierarchical order from resources and finally lead to dynamic capabilities in firms. This research examines the typology of big data capabilities in a health insurance developing country firm, to achieve dynamic capabilities from resources.

Healthcare Digitalisation in Ghana: An Assessment Based on the Realist Social Theory

Abstract: Healthcare digitalisation is one of the technological innovations within the health sector, with prospects to improve the overall performance and quality of health care around the world. The Ghanaian health sector, as in many developing countries, seeks to continuously improve patient care through the use of various healthcare technologies. The extent of digitalisation within the Ghanaian health sector, however, still remains undetermined. Underpinned by critical realism, this study seeks to understand the generative mechanisms of digitalisation in the health sector of Ghana. The study seeks to answer the following research questions: what are the generative mechanisms of digitalisation in the health sector of Ghana? How are the varying degrees of digitalisation interpreted and explained in the empirical world? We draw on the Realist Social Theory which adopts the principles of critical realism to answer the underpinning research questions.

Digital Infrastructure for Port Container Handling and Success or Failure of Stakeholders’ Goals: A Case Study of Ghana

Abstract: The purpose of this study is to understand the use of digital infrastructure for port container handling and success or failure of stakeholders’ goals. Information Systems (IS) research on digital infrastructure has focused more on health, telecommunication, government, and manufacturing and less on port container handling. IS literature on DI has focused more on e-health, e-government, e-commerce as well as different industries and platforms and less on the use of DI and success or failure of stakeholder goals. To address this gap, we employed affordance theory as an analytical lens and qualitative, interpretive case study as a methodology to investigate the use of digital infrastructure for port container handling in Ghana. The findings show how digital infrastructure conditions success or failure of stakeholder goals. The findings also have implications for research, practice, and policy. This paper contributes to the emerging literature stream on digital infrastructures. The originality of the paper lies in its focus on the use of port container handling systems as a significant IS research phenomenon.

Mobile phone use for social inclusion: the case of internally displaced people in Nigeria*

Abstract: Internally Displaced People (IDP) have received less attention in ICT4D research. This study examines how IDP in Africa use mobile phones to enhance their social inclusion. We employed Sen’s Capabi...

Digital Transformation Initiative in a Public Sector Organization: Stakeholder Viewpoints and Responses in Ghana

Abstract: The importance of digital transformation initiatives for contemporary organizations has been demonstrated in research and practice. However, stakeholder viewpoints and responses to such initiatives in the public sector are less understood. We draw on the stakeholder theory to empirically examine how a public sector transformation initiative is shaped by various stakeholders’ viewpoints and responses. This initiative involves an e-procurement platform implementation to transform procurement processes and activities in the developing country context of Ghana. We find that responses from the stakeholder groups influence which viewpoints are realized or not and what factors shape the realizations. The analysis demonstrates that: (1) Failure to realize stakeholder viewpoints is likely to affect benefits derived from public sector digital transformation initiatives; (2) Success of digital transformation initiative pivots around analysis of stakeholders’ responses to the outcomes of such projects; (3) Lack of appropriate technological infrastructure constrains digital transformation initiatives in the public sector.

The Human Condition.

Abstract: Human beings are described by many spiritual traditions as ‘blind’ or ‘asleep’ or ‘in a dream.’ These terms refers to the limited attenuated state of consciousness of most human beings caught up in patterns of conditioned thought, feeling and perception, which prevent the development of our latent, higher spiritual possibilities. In the words of Idries Shah: “Man, like a sleepwalker who suddenly ‘comes to’ on some lonely road has in general no correct idea as to his origins or his destiny.” In some religious traditions, such as Christianity and Islam, the myth of the ‘Fall from the Garden of Eden’ symbolizes the loss of the primordial state through the veiling of higher consciousness. Other traditions use similar metaphors to describe the spiritual condition of humanity:

The iron cage revisited: Institutional isomorphism and collective rationality in organizational fields (Chinese Translation)

Abstract: What makes organizations so similar? We contend that the engine of rationalization and bureaucratization has moved from the competitive marketplace to the state and the professions. Once a set of organizations emerges as a field, a paradox arises: rational actors make their organizations increasingly similar as they try to change them. We describe three isomorphic processes-coercive, mimetic, and normative—leading to this outcome. We then specify hypotheses about the impact of resource centralization and dependency, goal ambiguity and technical uncertainty, and professionalization and structuration on isomorphic change. Finally, we suggest implications for theories of organizations and social change.