Reconsidering IT Impact Assessment in E-Collaboration

The question of the impact of information and communication technology (ICT) on company performance and its evaluation is a much discussed topic and is often analyzed ex-post after its implementation. The literature review shows two main research groups using various models making it possible to explore this impact. The first falls under the economic production theory and the information and decision theory, often referring to econometric models (Alpar & Kim, 1990; Due, 1994; Brynjolofson & Hitt, 1993). It raises the question of ICT contribution in terms of efficiency and tries to show the existence of a relation between the investments made in this technology and the operational and financial performance of companies. The second group can be divided into three subgroups. The first subgroup examines performance as a dependent variable centered on ICT success perception (DeLone & McLean, 1992, 2002, 2003; Seddon, 1997). The second considers ICT effects on operational and managerial processes (Crowston & Treacy, 1986; Bakos 1987; Mooney, Gurbaxani, & Kraemer, 1995). Finally, the third bases its research works on contingency models (Henderson & Venkatraman, 1993; Iivari 1992). Moreover, the permanent evolution of this technology and consequently its diversity of uses are accompanied by new explanatory factors of its impact. This leads to the appearance of new dependent variables that express the potential of a company in terms of strategic flexibility or competitive advantage (Porter & Millar 1985; Bakos & Treacy, 1986). In addition, some research refers to the MIT90 approach that regards the organization as an open system to study the impact of ICT. In spite of the variety of answers to be found in the literature on the subject, it remains one of the concerns of researchers and managers. Still, one may wonder if it should not be considered ex-ante when defining company strategy, if it should it not be considered in the complex and evolutionary environment of a company, and it it should not take the impact generated by new phenomena such as e-collaboration into account. The objective of this article is to highlight one of the principal limitations to the ICT success evaluation model recommended by DeLone and McLean, and proposes a new, more global model, whose finality aims at considering the question of the impact of ICT and the various phenomena like e-collaboration that have resulted from e-business.