IS Infusion: The Role of Control and Empowerment Jan-Bert Maas

Paul van FenemaJoseph Soeters

Tilburg University Netherlands Defense Academy

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Introduction• Organizations struggling with ERP implementations

• High IS usage necessary for ERP benefits

• Challenge: Under-utilization of ERP (Hsieh & Wang, 2007)

• Important: Deep IS use or Infusion

Highest level of individual level IS use

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Introduction

• ERP Logic: Fundamental changes to tasks and jobs

• ERP supports control and empowerment (Sia, 2002)

• How do these phenomena affect system usage?

RQ: To what extent does control and empowerment induced by ERP systems, influence infusion of the ERP user and to what extent does this account for changes in ERP success?

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Conceptual Background: Infusion

• Different measures of IS Usage

• Lean and Rich Measures (Burton-Jones & Straub, 2006)

• Infusion: Comprehensive use (Saga & Zmud, 1994)

• Extended use: using more of the system features to complete tasks,

• Integrative use: using the system to reinforce linkages among tasks

• Emergent use: using the system in an innovative manner to support tasks

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Conceptual Background: Control

Bentham’s Panopticon (Foucault, 1977)

Ability to ‘gaze’

Self-discipline

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Conceptual Background: Control

X XX

X

Management Control

Peer Control

System Tracking Capability

• ERP can be seen as information panopticon (Zuboff, 1988)

Not physical but by the use of IT representations

• Stores actions real-time in database

• Drill down tracking capability

• Information transparency

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1) Greater access to information (procedural formality)

• Changing formal authority/roles – value added role

2) Higher task concentration/job scope (job discretion)

• Cross-functional integration

3) Increased decision making (job discretion)

• More insight in processes, more information

Conceptual Background: Empowerment

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Research Framework

H1: A curvilinear relationship between the perceived control

of an ERP user and the infusion of an ERP user exists.

H1: A curvilinear relationship between the perceived control

of an ERP user and the infusion of an ERP user exists.H2/3: The higher the perceived empowerment of a user of

an ERP system, the higher the infusion of an ERP system user.

H2/3: The higher the perceived empowerment of a user of

an ERP system, the higher the infusion of an ERP system user.H4: The higher the infusion of a user of an ERP system,

the higher the ERP system success will be.

H4: The higher the infusion of a user of an ERP system,

the higher the ERP system success will be.

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Methodology

• Survey in public organization in the Netherlands.

• Total sample: N = 220 ERP Users

• Matched with 73 supervisors: Rated the level of infusion of their subordinates (Common Rater Effect).

• Analysis: Multiple Regression & SEM

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Results‘Linear’ control not significant, quadratic control significant.

Sweet spot of Control

Trade-off between

self-discipline and

‘distrust’.

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Results

• All other hypotheses accepted by Multiple Reg./SEM

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Discussion

1) Curvilinear influence control on infusion

• Optimization of control, not mini- or maximization.

• Differentiations of sweet spot: e.g. work ethic.

2) Empowerment and infusion positively related

• Supportive work environment is important.

• Empowered employees engage in higher system use.

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Discussion

3) Control & Empowerment not related directly

• Concepts coexist next to each other: paradox

• Take both in to account when managing ERP.

4) Link between deep use of ERP and success.

• Infusion mediates empowerment and control.

• Study usage as a rich instead of a lean concept.

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Implications & Further Research• Encourage empowerment by giving users means. (deep, extended user training, key user support)

• Optimize the control of ERP users.

• Make sure the ‘advantages’ of system use outweigh the ‘disadvantages’.

Further Research:

• Longitudinal designs: Changes over time?

• Add more individual characteristics of users.

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IS Infusion: The Role of Control and Empowerment

Thank you foryour attention!

Questions?