Research On Knowledge Transfer Portfolios In Information Systems Development

In recent years, firms have invested heavily in information systems as informationtechnology plays a critical role in many aspects of the value chain However, firmsoften fail in their attempts to build and deploy the software. With the development oftechnology and diversity of the methodology, the process of information systemsdevelopment (ISD) is becoming more and more intricate; and the critical factor of thefailure is the domain knowledge scarcity. What critical to the success of theseinitiatives is the transfer of knowledge across stakeholders who occupy a range ofroles in various organizational units involved in ISD.Embeddedness of knowledge in ISD has been emphasized by various researchers.Information systems are bodies of knowledge integration, and ISD is knowledgeintensity work, the core work of IS experts is to develop and maintain informationsystems. From prospective of knowledge management, our research examines theactivities in ISD process to identify five knowledge areas, which should be transferredbetween users and IS developers. The knowledge is embedded in activities of ISDProcess. The knowledge transfer in ISD process was analyzed at the level of activities,and the iterative process of knowledge transfer was presented here. In this study,knowledge transfer mechanisms were classified as direction and organizationalroutine. We conceptualize knowledge transfer portfolios in terms of their compositionand their intensity. Further, the research approach followed Multi-case studies ofinformation systems development project, and 74 Mechanisms were identified fromthe field, we found the strategy of knowledge transfer, that is, high performance canbe achieved at higher intensity with a Portfolios composed of more routines in homedevelopment, or at low intensity with a portfolios composed of more directions inoutsource. The results suggest a useful framework for organizing practically relevantIS knowledge.Based on the research, we find out that the knowledge transfer in ISD is a reiterationprocesses among knowledge transfer of the five knowledge areas. Finally, we discussthe implications of our findings for managers who intent to promote knowledgetransfer to improve ISD processes in their organizations.