THE INFLUENCE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY DIFFUSION AND BUSINESS PROCESS CHANGE ON PERCEIVED PRODUCTIVITY - THE IS EXECUTIVES PERSPECTIVE

A hallmark of the emerging 'information age' is the dramatic rise in e xpenditures by modern business enterprises on information technologies (IT). On account of these investments, senior managers anticipate gai ns in productivity, which are commensurate with the cost of modern IT and Information Systems. While the evolving capabilities of emerging T T are evident, the association between technological diffusion and inc reased productivity has not been readily demonstrated in terms of corp orate repositioning or scholarly research findings. One possible sourc e of this paradox is the absence or presence of Business Process Redes ign in positioning the organization to assimilate and leverage technol ogical innovation. This study empirically examines the nature and magn itude of relationships between IT diffusion, perceived productivity im provement, and process redesign. The findings suggest that process red esign and IT have a complex relationship with productivity, and that t hese can be represented by a mediating or moderating model for differe nt technologies. The data, while exploratory, do suggest alternate way s to examine the productivity paradox. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.