LIN, SHU
http://hdl.handle.net/10211.3/185348
2024-03-28T17:34:45ZProject performance and the enabling role of information technology: an exploratory study on the role of alignment
http://hdl.handle.net/10211.3/185372
Project performance and the enabling role of information technology: an exploratory study on the role of alignment
Lin, Shu; Bardhan, Indranil; Krishnan, Viswanathan
As firms focus on new product, process, and service innovations, improving the performance and productivity of projects that help deliver these innovations assumes greater importance. Information technology (IT) has been an enabler of manufacturing productivity improvement, but its effect on improving the productivity of innovation-intensive operational activities has been mixed. In this paper, we explore the pathways through which IT impacts project-level performance measured in terms of speed, quality, and cost. Specifically, in this exploratory study we seek to present a theory of how the fit between enabling IT and the core characteristics of the project impacts project performance. We test our research hypotheses empirically, using a relatively large, cross-sectional sample of project data. The central contribution is the development and testing of a research model to improve our understanding of the relationship between enabling IT-project alignment, project competencies, and project performance. In doing so, our study clarifies the role of information technologies in project management, providing insights into how to integrate IT into innovation-intensive operational activities for improving project execution competence and productivity.
2007-01-01T00:00:00ZResearch note: business value of information technology: testing the interaction effect of IT and R&D on tobin's Q
http://hdl.handle.net/10211.3/185371
Research note: business value of information technology: testing the interaction effect of IT and R&D on tobin's Q
Lin, Shu; Bardhan, Indranil; Krishnan, Viswanathan
The business case for investing in information technology (IT) has received increasing scrutiny in recent years. We propose that IT investments create additional business value through interactions with other business processes. In this paper, we formalize the interaction effect of IT by focusing on one core function, namely, research and development (R&D). We hypothesize that investments in IT can interact with and complement a firm's R&D investments, enhancing the firm's shareholder value creation potential. We test this by hypothesis by estimating the interaction impact of IT and R&D investments on Tobin's q, a forward-looking measure of firm performance using a recent multiyear, firm-level, archival data set. Our results suggest that the interaction effect of R&D and IT on Tobin's q is positive and significant after controlling for other firm- and industry-specific effects. Our findings provide rigorous empirical support for recent anecdotal evidence in the managerial literature with respect to the manner in which IT is enabling R&D-intensive innovation processes. Our analysis underscores the need for coordinated investments in IT and R&D, and permeating IT capabilities throughout other business processes such as R&D.
2013-01-01T00:00:00ZPerformance impacts of strategy, information technology applications, and business process outsourcing in U.S. manufacturing plants
http://hdl.handle.net/10211.3/185350
Performance impacts of strategy, information technology applications, and business process outsourcing in U.S. manufacturing plants
Lin, Shu; Bardhan, Indranil; Mithas, Sunil
This paper develops a conceptual model to study the role of outsourcing strategies and plant-level information technology (IT) application infrastructure in the outsourcing of production and support business processes, as well as their subsequent impact on overall plant performance. We validate this model empirically using cross-sectional survey data from U.S. manufacturing plants. We find that some IT applications are more effective at enabling the outsourcing of business processes than others. For example, the implementation of enterprise management systems is associated with the outsourcing of both production and support processes, whereas operations management systems are not associated with the outsourcing of plant processes. Plants with a low-cost outsourcing strategy are more likely to outsource support processes than plants with a competency-focused outsourcing strategy. However, both cost- and competency-based strategies have a positive and similar impact on the outsourcing of production processes. In terms of implications for plant performance, our findings indicate that the outsourcing of production and support processes is associated with higher gross margins. Although plant IT infrastructure is positively associated with favorable on-time delivery rates, there is no positive association between the incidence of plant outsourcing and on-time delivery rates. These results have implications for crafting plant-level outsourcing strategies and for investments in IT systems to facilitate the outsourcing of business processes for enhanced plant performance.
This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Bardhan, I., Mithas, S. and Lin, S. (2007), Performance Impacts of Strategy, Information Technology Applications, and Business Process Outsourcing in U.S. Manufacturing Plants. Production and Operations Management, 16: 747–762. doi: 10.1111/j.1937-5956.2007.tb00293.x, which has been published in final form at http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1937-5956.2007.tb00293.x. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Self-Archiving.
2007-01-01T00:00:00ZTeam dispersion, information technology, and project performance
http://hdl.handle.net/10211.3/185349
Team dispersion, information technology, and project performance
Lin, Shu; Bardhan, Indranil; Krishnan, Viswanathan
The impact of information technology (IT) on the performance of distributed projects is not well understood. Although prior research has documented that dispersion among project teams has an adverse effect on project performance, the role of IT as an enabler of communication to bridge the spatial distance among team members in distributed networks has not been empirically studied. We focus on the role of IT as a moderator of the relationship between team dispersion and project performance using projects as the unit of analysis. We find that IT mitigates the negative effect of team disper- sion on project performance, especially in high information volume projects. Our central contribution is the development of an empirically tested model to improve the understanding of the operational impact of IT as a vehicle to bridge spatial dispersion among distributed teams that are engaged in knowledge-intensive work.
This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Bardhan, I., Krishnan, V. V. and Lin, S. (2013), Team Dispersion, Information Technology, and Project Performance. Prod Oper Manag, 22: 1478–1493. doi:10.1111/j.1937-5956.2012.01366.x, which has been published in final form at http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1937-5956.2012.01366.x. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Self-Archiving.
2012-01-01T00:00:00Z