ALIGNMENT OF THE IS FUNCTIONS WITH THE ENTERPRISE - TOWARD A MODEL OFANTECEDENTS

Identifying the best way to organize the IS functions within an interp rise has been a critical IS management issue since the mid-1980s. Yet to date, MIS researchers have offered little empirical evidence on whi ch to base guidelines for the practitioner. This study seeks to explai n a firm's IS organization design decision for a decentralized, centra lized, or ''hybrid'' locus of responsibility from an expanded set of e nvironmental, overall organizational, and IS-specific antecedents as w ell as a larger concept of organizational alignment. Potential anteced ents (drivers or enablers) are selected from prior contingency researc h and the IS literature; other variables emerge from the data collecti on. Data collected via on-site interviews from IS and general managers in six multi-divisional firms, paired by industry, confirm that centr alized, decentralized, and hybrid IS structures exist-but often not in ''pure'' form-and that industry type is not a strong predictor. Data was also collected via survey form to capture ratings of importance fo r drivers (for enablers) for a recent IS design change in each firm. B ased on both qualitative and quantitative data, four configurations ar e discussed: patterns of antecedents that are associated with (1) high ly centralized or (2) highly decentralized IS structures; and patterns of antecedents that explain a firm's choice to (3) decentralize or (4 ) recentralize systems development and application planning functions in particular. A model based on these configurations is then proposed. The article concludes with implications for researchers and practitio ners.