Managing e-Government system implementation: a resource enactment perspective

Abstract

The research presents a theoretical and empirical analysis of an e-Government system implementation. The resource-based view and the enactment concept were leveraged as a theoretical sense-making lens to study the system through its planning, development and operation phases. Consequently, a process model of resource enactment was developed to theorize how organizational resources were mobilized for successful implementation. It was found that the environmental climate at each phase gave rise to a particular focal capability. This was developed through the symbiotic enactment of a focal resource in conjunction with other complementary resources. Specifically, knowledge, social and leadership resources were found to be pertinently enacted in developing the focal capabilities. When observed across the phases, such symbiotic enactment of complementary resources followed a co-evolutionary path. The empirical research was conducted through a qualitative case analysis. This research would therefore be of interest to both academics and practitioners as it contributes to cumulative theoretical development and provides practical grounded insights to inform and advance e-Government system implementation.

Keywords:

• e-government
• resource-based view
• enactment
• resource enactment
• process model
• case study

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Calvin M L Chan

About the authors

Dr. Calvin M.L. Chan is a lecturer in the School of Business at the SIM University (UniSIM) in Singapore. He holds a Ph.D. in Information Systems from the National University of Singapore (NUS) and a B.Sc. (Hon) in Computer and Management Science from the University of Warwick. His research interests include e-government, information systems management and strategy, innovation and knowledge management, and case study research. He has published in journals such as the Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, Journal of Strategic Information Systems, Government Information Quarterly, as well as major conferences in the information systems discipline. He was awarded the NUS President's Graduate Fellowship in 2006, the NUS School of Computing Dean's Graduate Award in 2005, and a finalist for the Carolyn Dexter Award at the Academy of Management Meeting in 2005. Prior to joining academia, Dr. Chan worked as a Strategic Planning and Master Planning Manager as well as an e-Government Consultant with the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore.

Ray Hackney

Professor Ray Hackney is Chair in Business Systems and Head of the Information Systems Evaluation Research Group within the Business School at Brunel University, U.K. He has contributed extensively to research in the field with publications in numerous national and international conferences and journals. He has taught and examined on a number of doctoral and MBA programmes including Manchester Business School and the Open University. He led the organizing committee for the annual BIT and BITWorld Conference series and is a member of the Strategic Management Society and Association of Information Systems. Professor Hackney has served on the Board of the U.K. Academy for Information Systems since 1997 and was also the Vice President Research for IRMA (U.S.A.). He is currently Associate Editor of the JGIM, JEUC, JLIM, ACITM, EJIS and case editor for IJIM. His research interests are the strategic management of information systems within a variety of organizational context, with an increasing speciality in government sectors and has contributed to a number of EPSRC and European funded research projects. Professor Hackney was President of the Information Resource Management Association (IRMA) during 2001/2002 and is now an executive member of the Information Institute www.information-institute.org. Professor Hackney is also currently a member of the EDAMBA Executive Committee.

Shan L Pan

Dr. Shan L. Pan is the Academic Programme Director of Strategic Technology Management Institute and Associate Professor in the Department of Information Systems, School of Computing at the National University of Singapore (NUS). Dr. Pan's primary research focuses on the recursive interaction of organizations and information technology (enterprise systems), with particular emphasis on organizational issues such as work practices, cultures, structures, decision-making, change, strategy implementation that often require qualitative research methods. Specifically, he is interested in understanding the complex issues related to the adoption, implementation and use of enterprise systems within organization. He is currently Associate Editor of the MIS Quarterly, Information Systems Research and Communications of the AIS.

Tzu-Chuan Chou

Dr. Tzu-Chuan Chou is an associate professor in the Department of Information Management, School of Management, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Warwick in U.K. His research interests include the social perspectives of IT management, e-Government, IT Governance and Information Security Management. He has published in various journals including Decision Support Systems, Information and Management, International Journal Information Management, Omega, Journal of Information Science, Electronic Commerce Research and Applications, and among others.