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Organizational Learning and Information Systems

A key area affecting library management is the effective and efficient management and development of information systems. The concept of an information systems development methodology (ISDM) is a management approach that has been virtually ignored in the context of library management. Provides a critique of the literature relating to ISDMs with a view to exploring their use by libraries in the future. Examines the historical development of ISDMs, followed by a definition of the term, and an outline of the requirements for ISDM. Subsequently discusses themes in information systems development in relation to the main types of ISDM associated with them, leading to a consideration of the problems with ISDMs and with their usage. Outlines the need for the further refinement of ISDMs in the light of these problems. Finally, suggests theoretical reasons for the use of ISDMs by library managers.

A Review of Information Systems Development Methodologies

Organizational Learning and Information Systems : The Case of Monitoring Information and Control Systems in Machine Bureaucratic Organizations

As a result of the growing use of computers and continuing improvements in
communication technologies, there has been an accelerating growth of LANs on campus
and WANs between campuses. The developed countries, such as the
USA and UK, are developing high-speed networks to establish a powerful
national information technology infrastructure. A developing country, such as Saudi
Arabia (SA), is now considering how best to provide comparable national network
services. [Continues.]

The impact of networking and information technology on Saudi Arabian and British universities

The motivation for this research is a concern with the high rate of information
system failures reported in the academic literature and in practitioner publications. It
is proposed that the adoption of the customer-centred ideals and methods of quality
management in information system development will increase the likelihood of the
delivery of successful information systems. The approach taken in the research is to
work with the ideas of multiple perspectives - organizational effectiveness, work-life
quality, and technical artefact quality - and multiple stakeholders.
The research approach is to use action research. The fieldwork comprises
three phases. The first phase involved interviewing system developers and the
second phase consisted of two case studies of implemented information systems.
This preliminary analysis, together with a theoretical investigation of the foundations
of quality, was used to inform the development of a quality approach to information
system development. The information system development methodology (ISDM) is
based upon Multiview, a multiple perspective approach to information system
development, and the total quality management method used is quality function
deployment. The resultant hybrid methodology is known as ISDM/Q.
The ISDM/Q is tested using action research on a live system development
project concerned with the development of a wind tunnel control and data collection
system. Extensive organizational analysis was conducted to place this software
development within a wider organizational context, involving quality requirements
workshops and quality planning. The outcomes of the research are assessed in terms
of the learning recorded with respect to the framework of ideas, the methodology
(ISDM/Q) and the domain in which the action research took place. The field work
showed that there were benefits to using a quality metaphor in information system
development but that this would require a significant change in the culture and style
of information system development organizations. A practical contribution of the
research is the development of quality function deployment for information system
development.

N. Jayaratna

Papers

Systems analysis: The need for a better understanding