The extent of organizational innovation with IT, an important construct in the IT innovation literature, has been measured in many different ways. Some measures are more narrowly focused while others aggregate innovative behaviors across a set of innovations or across stages in the assimilation lifecycle within organizations. There appear to be some significant tradeoffs involving aggregation. More aggregated measures can be more robust and generalizable and can promote stronger predictive validity, while less aggregated measures allow more context-specific investigations and can preserve clearer theoretical interpretations. This article begins with a conceptual analysis that identifies the circumstances when these tradeoffs are most likely to favor aggregated measures. It is found that aggregation should be favorable when: (1) the researcher's interest is in general innovation or a model that generalizes to a class of innovations, (2) antecedents have effects in the same direction in all assimilation stages, (3) characteristics of organizations can be treated as constant across the innovations in the study, (4) characteristics of innovations can not be treated as constant across organizations in the study, (5) the set of innovations being aggregated includes substitutes or moderate complements, and (6) sources of noise in the measurement of innovation may be present. The article then presents an empirical study using data on the adoption of software process technologies by 608 US based corporations. This study—which had circumstances quite favorable to aggregation—found that aggregating across three innovations within a technology class more than doubled the variance explained compared to single innovation models. Aggregating across assimilation stages had a slight positive effect on predictive validity. Taken together, these results provide initial confirmation of the conclusions from the conceptual analysis regarding the circumstances favoring aggregation.

Abstract not found

Local government has made use of information technology for a long time, but the level of information technology capacity varies tremendously across local governments. While web-based E-government applications development becomes more prevalent, applying newly developed IT continues to depend on the general ability of government to obtain, manage and utilize IT. This paper starts by providing a comprehensive definition of IT capacity, which incorporates both human aspect and non-human aspect of IT capacity. Next, we propose a theoretical model to identify and knit together the crucial factors affecting the achievement of IT capacity in local governments. Managerial capability of IT manager affects the level of IT capacity of a local government through the interactions with support from administrative authorities and financial supports available for IT innovation. A series of cases from New Jersey municipalities illustrate the proposed theory and enrich it by revealing the relationships between the factors not identified in the theory.

Abstract not found

at Boston University, ETH Zürich,

In this paper we contrast the notions of best-practice and configurations contingent on environmental conditions. The analysis draws upon our study of 38 UK and 70 US service firms which includes an assessment of the organization, processes, tools and systems used, and how these factors influence variation in the development and delivery of new services. The best-practice framework is found to be predictive of performance improvement in samples in both the UK and USA, but the model better fits the USA than UK data. We analyze the UK data to identify alternative configurations. Four system configurations are identified: project-based; mass customization; cellular; and organic-technical. Each has a different combination of organization, processes, tools and systems which offer different performance advantages. The results provide an opportunity for updating the typologies of operations and adapting them to include services, and begin to challenge the notion of any universal ‘best practice’ management or organization of new product or service development.

Wesley J. Johnston est professeur à l’Université de l’état de Georgie à Atlanta. Il enseigne le marketing

The Net-Enabled Business Innovation Cycle (NEBIC) was offered by Wheeler [1] as a subjective understanding of how firms can gain competitive advantage through enabling and emerging technologies (ET). NEBIC consists of four capabilities that lead a firm from choosing ET, to matching ET with business opportunities, executing for growth, and assessing customer value. The first capability of NEBIC is the choosing capability.

Study protocol for the translating research in elder care (TREC): building context – an organizational monitoring program in long-term care project (project one)

the New York State Board of Regents, and education scholars, researchers and policymakers from New York and around the country. By bringing education researchers together with policymakers, the Consortium seeks to address critical questions about the state of public education in New York. The Consortium’s mission is to foster an exchange of information and ideas that informs education policy decisions, assist education policy decision-makers in identifying issues that require initial or further study, and produce quality and timely research that contributes to the development of sound education policy. The Consortium is housed in the Center for Policy Research, Rockefeller College of Public Affairs & Policy, University at Albany – SUNY. Condition reports are written using education data compiled by New York State agencies and from data independently collected by the researchers. Consortium researchers work closely with agency staff to identify and analyze trends in school district spending, school staffing and student performance. The condition reports describe various characteristics of New York State's public school systems and also identify potential areas for further study.