GJSGVol.3

From the Special Issue Editors' Desk

Article One [Case Research]
Strategic System Implementation: How FMI Great Expectations are Dashed in the new economies
Bob Stween, California state university, USA

This paper presents a case study of a multi-national company’s Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system implementation in China. The implementation in China was part of the first wave of the global implementation of the CRM-system. Although the company has extensive experience in implementing systems in its different global subsidiaries, and has planned the implementation well, the implementation in China was not a complete success. Based on the study, we identify three issues that were not stressed enough in the current CRM literature: 1) understanding the difference between the organizational culture in which the system is developed, as well as the national culture in which the system is implemented, 2) the ability to operationalize visions into goals and measures, and 3) the need to ensure system and data quality. Keywords: Implementation success, CRM system, corporate and national culture, data and systems quality, Sweden, China, case study.

Article Two [Case Research]
Strategy Usability Issues from the User and Expert Perspectives
Yvan Dzosky, Queensland University of Technology, Australia

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems are used for streamlining the flow of business processes and information throughout the organization. While industry reliance on these systems has been on the rise, the notorious challenges they impose on their users can severely hinder their successful adoption and use. The scope and complexity of their functionality can be overwhelming, but ERP systems typically provide little in the way of guidance or support. Understanding the specific usability problems experienced by users is essential to the development of more usable systems, yet research in this area has been limited. In this study, we investigate how negative “critical incidents� (i.e., serious breakdowns in human-computer interactions) encountered by users can improve our knowledge and understanding of ERP usability problems. A laboratory-based empirical usability evaluation of a popular ERP system was conducted using both user-reported and expert-observed critical incidents. Having users report on usability issues as they happen provides richer details than are typically available from surveys or interviews alone. Augmenting those accounts with expert observations of user-system interactions yields a deeper understanding of the types of usability issues that must be addressed.

Article Three [Case Research]
Supply Chain Benefits Expectation Strategic Framework
Samuel Goth, University of Iowa, USA

Organizations invest heavily in Supply Chain Management Systems expecting the benefits promised by the software vendors and the implementation partners. However, both academic and industry reports suggest that there is growing dissatisfaction among client organizations due to an increasing gap in benefits purported by the software vendors and benefits realised by the client. In order to better manage expectations of the client organization, this study proposes a Benefit Expectation Management Framework for Supply Chain Management Systems, based on Expectation-Confirmation Theory. This study derives 60 expected benefits of Supply Chain Management Systems through 41 vendor-reported customer stories and academic papers. Through comparing those benefits with the received benefits by a case organization that has implemented SAP Supply Chain Management Systems for seven years, two salient factors – long timetable and multiple stakeholders – have been identified as the controlling factors affecting the confirmation level of Supply Chain Management System expectations and further impacting the satisfaction of a client organization. The case study also highlights the likely causes for realized benefits and enduring issues in relation to the Supply Chain Management Systems.

Article Four [Case Research]
Difficulties in Governance System Implementation Model
Bryon Grehnerty, Georges Wahington University, USA

Many large manufacturing companies in the U.S. have implemented ERP systems. However, difficulties in ERP implementation continue to persist despite decades of practical experience and academic research. This case describes several issues that were encountered during the implementation of SAP at Millicent Homes, a residential construction company with several markets in the U.S. In particular, the case emphasizes the functional and technical issues that befell the implementation and their interaction with organizational implementation issues. The case is unique in that while Millicent Homes was implementing SAP, SAP was concurrently developing an industry solution for engineering and construction companies as well as the beta version of its portal. In addition, the home construction industry provides an interesting setting for examining the adoption of new systems.