Implementing enterprise content management: from evolution through strategy to contradictions out-of-the-box

Received: 28 February 2005 Revised: 31 October 2005 2nd Revision: 31 March 2005 Accepted: 2 October 2006 Abstract This study examines a strategic development and implementation process of enterprise content management (ECM) in a large oil company. In view of the framework of four motors of development and change in organizations, this study represents a revelatory case of a hybrid development approach to ECM that involves the teleological, life-cycle, and dialectical motors of development. This is in contrast to the evolutionary development motor, which has prevailed in the hitherto reported content management research. The case study also complements process-based research on enterprise system implementations in general. We suggest that research and practice on large-scale ECM implementations should acknowledge all the four motors of change. European Journal of Information Systems (2006) 15, 648–662. doi:10.1057/palgrave.ejis.3000647