Blackwell Reference Online

Extract

There is typically a separate organization function within an organization that has responsibility for planning, building, and maintaining an infrastructure of information and communications technology and a portfolio of applications that provide the capabilities and services needed by the organization. The function has responsibility for building or acquiring applications and providing services to support their use. It also has responsibility for personnel to perform development, operations, and support services. There are several alternative ways that the information technology/information systems (IS/IT) function may be structured in an organization. The choice of organization structure depends on factors that reflect the overall organization structure and its focus for information technology and information systems. Here, “IT” will be used to refer to the “IT/IS” function and its organization structure. The extent to which managers are able to appropriately design and structure the IS/IT function within the organization is an important determinant of how well the IS/IT function can service the rest of the organization. The literature related to the design and structure of the IS/IT function is quite well developed. Three perspectives from this literature can be used to understand the alternatives that are possible and the choices managers make with respect to the design and ... log in or subscribe to read full text