A General, Yet Useful Theory of Information Systems

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A General, Yet Useful Theory of Information
Systems

• Steven Alter
• CAIS, Vol. 1, Article 13
• March 1999

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Determination of a Comprehensive IS Theory

• Author speculates that one is needed
• Alter offers proof by example
• States criteria for evaluating the theory should
  be
• Is it understandable by various relevant
  audiences?
• Is it comprehensive and broadly applicable?
• Is it useful?
• Does it provide a basis for deep analysis?

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Alters IS Theory

• Consists of 14 points
• Addresses traditional focal points as well as
  more controversial work system approach
• Each point discussed in detail and summarized in
  conclusion

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1 Definition of a Work System

• A system is defined to be a set of parts
  coordinated to accomplish a set of goals (Alter,
  13)
• To that end, the meaning of a system can be
  represented by observing
• Total system objectives and performance measures
• System environment
• System resources
• System components and benchmarks
• System management

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1 Definition of a Work System

• To extrapolate, a work system might then be
  defined as
• a system in which human participants and/or
  machines perform a business process using
  information, technology, and other resources to
  produce products (and/or services) for internal
  or external customers (Alter, 12)
• In other words, a work system is the whole
  enchilada all the ingredients that together
  form a set of processes, products, and actions

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1 Definition of a Work System

• An organization may be defined as a work system,
  but it can be more effective to examine specific
  work systems within an organization rather than
  take the organization as a whole
• Work systems have internal and external measures
• Internal measures may be productivity, output
  rates and times, and consistency
• External measures may be costs, quality,
  reliability, responsiveness, and the ability to
  meet the customers overall needs

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1 Definition of a Work System

• To be adequately evaluated, a work system must be
  defined similarly by those with a stake in the
  system
• Comparatively, although goals for work subsystems
  may differ, those of the entire work system
  should coincide
• In the event goals clash within the system,
  problem displacement may occur within subsystems,
  performance trade-offs may occur, and total
  system failure becomes a risk in extreme cases

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2 Elements of a Work System

• Elements internal to the work system are
• Business process
• Participants
• Information
• Technology
• External elements central to the comprehension of
  the work system are
• Customers
• Products

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2 Elements of a Work System

• The business process is the ostensible structure
  defining the steps taken throughout the work
  system and its subsystems
• The business process accounts for individual
  variations by man and machine in the work system,
  which is why it is more valuable to examine as a
  facet of the work system than as a stand-alone
  unit of analysis its traditional usage

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2 Elements of a Work System

• Participants are those directly charged with
  providing value-added services to a work system,
  not those who use the output of said system
• Workers may participate in many simultaneous work
  systems, or they may participate in one and
  simply use other systems

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2 Elements of a Work System

• Information refers to the hard (codified) and
  soft (intuitive or subjective) data within a
  system
• Includes data and human knowledge that pertain
  and contribute to the work systems operation
• Does not include data that is irrelevant to the
  primary operation of the work system

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2 Elements of a Work System

• Technology is the hardware, software, and other
  tools used by the participants when doing their
  work (Alter, 22)
• Information technology tasks include
• Information capture
• Information transmission
• Information storage
• Information retrieval
• Information manipulation
• Information display
• Other tools and technologies may be used to
  accomplish work system goals

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2 Elements of a Work System

• The customer is the recipient of the work
  systems product
• Typically, the customer is not a participant or
  manager within the work system
• Differentiation between customers, managers, and
  stakeholders is important to completely
  understand the work system

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2 Elements of a Work System

• The product is the end result of the work system
  be it information, services, or tangible goods
• Production and goals are not the same, although
  high quality products and productivity levels may
  be work system or subsystem goals

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3 Environment of a Work System
Work System Business processes
Participants Information
Technology Customers
Products
RELIES ON
Infrastructure Support and training staff
Shared databases Telecommunica
tions networks Programming technology
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3 Environment of a Work System

• Infrastructure need not be included in each work
  system as it is, itself, one or more work systems
  and is essential yet peripheral to the specific
  purpose of a given work system
• Technology, while pervasive, should be identified
  as closely with a specific work system as
  possible to facilitate greater understanding of a
  work system in toto

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4 Fit Between Elements of a Work System

• Disruption in the work system may occur when
• Goals are conflicting within the system
  participants, customers, and managers
• Participants and/or infrastructure resources are
  overtaxed between work systems
• Architectural imbalances between work system
  elements transpire

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4 Fit Between Elements of a Work System

• Architectural imbalances include
• Product vs. customer (disappointment,
  dissatisfaction)
• Business process vs. product (incapable of
  producing, exorbitant consumption of resources)
• Participant vs. business process (participant not
  capable of tasks, process ill-defined or abstract)

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4 Fit Between Elements of a Work System

• Information vs. business process (insufficient
  information, underutilized information)
• Technology vs. business process (insufficient,
  unavailable, expensive or unsuitable equipment)
• Technology vs. participants (lack of training,
  low self-efficacy, detrimental health risks)

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5 Definition of an Information System as a Work
System

• Information system is its own work system
• Participants should be included in the work
  system definition if their primary focus is
  related to the successful operation of the
  information technology system

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6 Roles of Information Systems in Work Systems
They Serve

• Information systems can serve one or many work
  systems
• The structure provided by an information system
  varies according to the level of integration in a
  work system

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6 Roles of Information Systems in Work Systems
They Serve

• When information systems play a large role in a
  work system, that work system is typically fairly
  structured
• If the information system plays a large role in a
  work system, it is essential for the information
  system to work well and to be a good fit for its
  purpose within the work system

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7 Degree of Integration Between an Information
System and a Work System it Serves

• When an information system is an integral part of
  a work system, it is essential to ensure that the
  information system is fully functioning and
  bug-free
• Information systems that are customized to their
  particular work systems are likely to be more
  responsive to the participants of the system

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8 Content vs. Plumbing in Information Systems

• Content is the presentation layer of information
  systems what the user sees
• Plumbing is the subtext the underlying
  programming that allows everything to work
• Users typically dont care about plumbing as long
  as the system works well

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8 Content vs. Plumbing in Information Systems

• Since work system users typically focus on tasks
  accomplished via content, information systems
  training should focus on content as opposed to
  plumbing
• Training should address how users will use the
  information system in the context of the work
  system, not how to handle technical issues and
  problems

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9 Impact of an Information System

• The direct impact of an information system on a
  work system depends on the level of integration
  enjoyed by the information system and in how it
  is utilized to support the work system
• Tangential impacts on the work system include
  efficiency measures, customer satisfaction, and
  product function and performance

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9 Impact of an Information System

• The role of the information system and the level
  of integration within the work system dictates
  the amount of impact it has on that system
• An information system requiring innovative
  workarounds or one that inhibits changes in
  business processes may actually degrade the
  overall performance of the work system

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10 Definition of a Project as a Work System

• Projects can be classified as work systems
• Although time-limited, they utilize participants
  and resources in the same manner as a work system
  and therefore fall under the same general
  categorization

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11 Phases of a Project that Creates or
Significantly Changes a Work System

• Projects creating or changing a work system
  typically include four phases
• Initiation
• Development
• Implementation
• Operation and maintenance

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11 Phases of a Project that Creates or
Significantly Changes a Work System

• The stages mentioned are not specific to
  information systems projects, but apply equally
  to them
• Implementation is the key stage, wherein the
  transformation from an older system or process to
  a newer one occurs
• Participants should be aware of users as
  implementation occurs and should address content
  concerns in addition to plumbing issues

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12 Impact of the Balance of Content and
Plumbing in a Project

• Projects including changes in plumbing and
  content tend to be more difficult and involved
  than those affecting only one area
• Thus, the failure rate of information systems
  projects tends to be higher than other work
  system projects

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12 Impact of the Balance of Content and
Plumbing in a Project

• Information system projects involve all six
  elements of a work system
• Customers
• Products
• Business process
• Participants
• Information
• Technology

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13 Work System Success

• The success of a work system depends on the
  relative strength of forces supporting the system
  versus forces and obstacles opposing the system
  (Alter, 57)
• Success is impacted by both internal and external
  features from resource allocation to
  infrastructure

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14 Inheritance of Generalizations, Truisms, and
Success Factors

• Success factors for work systems, information
  systems, and projects are found in a series of
  tables on pages 60 63
• Alter asserts that success factors governing
  general work systems and information systems are
  the most relevant and pertinent

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Conclusion

• The theory presented here started from an
  unusual premise, namely, that in order for a
  business professional to understand an
  information system it is necessary to understand
  the work system that the information system
  serves (Alter, 64)

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Conclusion

• Information systems and work systems are distinct
  entities, but operate according to the same
  general prescripts
• Understanding an information system in the
  context of a work system can help bridge the gap
  between business professionals and techies
  seeking to improve technological capabilities