Mediation and time-lag analyses of e-alignment and e-collaboration capabilities
| Published date | 13 July 2015 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/IMDS-01-2015-0016 |
| Pages | 1113-1131 |
| Date | 13 July 2015 |
| Author | Maomao Chi,Jing Zhao,Joey F. George |
| Subject Matter | Information & knowledge management,Information systems,Data management systems |
Mediation and time-lag
analyses of e-alignment
and e-collaboration capabilities
Maomao Chi and Jing Zhao
School of Economics and Management,
China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, China, and
Joey F. George
College of Business, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, USA
Abstract
Purpose –Basedon the literature of ITstrategic alignmentand e-collaboration,the purpose of thispaper
is to specify how e-business strategic alignment (e-alignment) influences e-collaboration capabilities and
improves firmperformance, and whether the time-lag effect existed in this relationship.
Design/methodology/approach –The authors tested the research hypotheses using a field survey
of 145 Chinese corporations. The research model was validated using SmartPLS 2.0 with both subjective
and objectivedata collected from the survey and Orianadatabase.
Findings –The results support the notion of a positive and significant link between e-alignment and
e-collaboration capabilities and between e-collaboration capabilities and firm performance. The authors
also show that the effect of e-alignment on performance is fully mediated by e-collaboration capabilities
and that e-collaboration with suppliers hasa one-year time-lag effect onfirm performance.
Research limitations/implications –This research extends and integrates the literature on IT
strategic alignment and e-collaboration, and explains why and how e-alignment generates firm performance.
Practical implications –This paper includes two implications for managers. First, when
formulating e-business strategies, managers should focus on establishing e-collaboration capabilities
with partners. Second, the downstream process is the direct sources of business value. Managers
should take the establishment of e-selling process as a critical business strategy.
Originality/value –By focussed on intermediate factors and time-lag effects, this study provides
significant implications for IT strategic alignment and e-collaboration literature.
Keywords e-Alignment, e-Collaboration capabilities, Mediators, Time-lag
Paper type Research paper
1. Introduction
For decades, chief information officers have treated business-IT alignment as the top
issue in their business activities (Luftman and Zadeh, 2011; Siurdyban, 2014). Because
of this industry concern, much research has been conducted on whether and how IT
strategic alignment can generate value for firms (Chan et al., 2006; Tallon and
Pinsonneault, 2011; Wu et al., 2015). These studies mainly focus on firm performance
such as financial performance, market growth, cost reductions, and improved
operational efficiency(Tallon and Pinsonneault, 2011; Gerow et al., 2014).
However, studies examining the IT strategic alignment-performance relationship
have been far from conclusive (Tallon and Pinsonneault, 2011; Wu et al., 2015).
Some research found “an alignment paradox”(Tallon, 2003), which means aligned
firms report no improvement or even a decline in performance. There are two reasons Industrial Management & Data
Systems
Vol. 115 No. 6, 2015
pp. 1113-1131
©Emerald Group Publis hing Limited
0263-5577
DOI 10.1108/IMDS-01-2015-0016
Received 20 January 2015
Revised 10 April 2015
Accepted 19 April 2015
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
www.emeraldinsight.com/0263-5577.htm
This research was supported by grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China
under Grant 70672064, 71072080, and 71372174.
1113
Mediation and
time-lag
analyses
underlying this paradox. First, there is difficulty in isolating the benefits of alignment
from other factors that may also contribute to organizational performance (Tallon and
Pinsonneault, 2011). In order to quickly respond to changing market conditions,
IT should integrate resources into bundles of digital capabilities (Barua et al., 2004).
Consequently, these digitally attributable capabilities (Drnevich and Croson, 2013),
which can operationalize information system strategy and generate value , have become
critical mediators between IT strategic alignment and firm performance. Second,
because the alignment process is too time-consuming, benefits from IT strategic
alignment may not be realized immediately but rather may emerge over an
extended period of time. Alignment might provide full benefits only after integra tion
with organizational processes and completion of organizational changes over time
(Das et al., 2011).
In order to solve the alignment paradox, this study combines e-collaboration
capabilities and time-lag effects in the study of e-business strategic alignment[1] (a fusion
between e-business technologies and business strategy) and firm performance (Bharadwaj
et al., 2013; Burn and Ash, 2005). First, we do so by placing both e-alignment and
e-collaboration capabilities[2] in a nomological network predicting firm performance. Many
manufacturing firms now view e-alignment and e-collaboration capabilities as concurrent
goals, but researchers have not yet integrated the e-alignment and e-collaboration
capabilities literature as a way to assess how these two objectives might be achieved. Our
knowledge and understanding of how, or if, e-alignment and e-collaboration capabilities
are related is limited. Each area of literature evolved separately and remains so today
(Tallon and Pinsonneault, 2011; Cheng et al., 2006). Second, we also consider the time
lagged effect of e-alignment and e-collaboration. Benefits from IT strategic alignment may
be realized over an extended period of time. Alignment might provide full benefits only
after integration with organizational process and completion of organizational changes
over time (Das et al., 2011). Specifically, we examine financial data collected from 145 firms
over a three-year time period, assessing the relationship between e-alignment and firm
performance, and the mediated effect of e-collaboration capabilities, which are defined as
the ability to facilitate coordination of various decisions and activities between a firm
and its partners over the internet.
Therefore, this study explores the adding-value evolution process from e-business
strategic alignment to building distinctive e-collaboration capabilities and
consequently creating financial performance through a study accounting for time -lag
effects regarding firm performance. We try to answer the following two questions:
(1) How does e-alignment affect firm performance through e-collaboration capabilities?
(2) Is there a time-lag where e-alignment and e-collaboration improve firm performance?
2. Theory development
IT strategic alignment is a hot issue among practitioners and researchers. Prior
research features two streams regarding IT strategic alignment (Chan and Reich, 2007).
The first stream treats IT strategic alignment as an ongoing process, which requires
specific IT management capabilities, encompasses specific actions and reactions
and has discernable patterns over time (Kearns and Sabherwal, 2006; Wanger
et al., 2014). These papers help us understand how business-IT alignment works.
The second stream treats IT strategic alignment as an end state, which focusses on
the antecedents, measures, and outcomes of IT alignment (Chan et al., 2006; Raymond
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