Success factors of open‐source enterprise information systems development
| Pages | 1065-1084 |
| Date | 17 August 2012 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/02635571211255023 |
| Published date | 17 August 2012 |
| Author | Sang M. Lee,Sang‐Heui Lee |
| Subject Matter | Economics,Information & knowledge management,Management science & operations |
Success factors of open-source
enterprise information systems
development
Sang M. Lee
Management Department, University of Nebraska-Lincoln,
Lincoln, Nebraska, USA, and
Sang-Heui Lee
Management and Marketing Department, Pittsburg State University,
Pittsburg, Kansas, USA
Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify the success factors of open-source software in the
enterprise level. It expands the application of the information systems (IS) success model in the
literature to enterprise information systems (EIS). The paper presents a simplified open-source EIS
success model by removing several constructs in the existing open-source software models.
Design/methodology/approach – To test the research model, a survey questionnaire was
developed based on previous studies dealing with IS success models and adapting them to the
open-source EIS context. The research instrument contained 30 items that represent seven constructs
in the research model. Data were collected from 250 open-source enterprise software end-users. Due to
its confirmatory nature, this study applied the structural equation model.
Findings – The results of the study indicate that only community service quality has a positive
direct effect on open-source EIS use, while information quality, EIS quality, and user satisfaction do
not. Open-source EIS quality has a direct positive effect on user satisfaction, which in turn has a
positive effect on individual net benefits, which also positively affects organizational net benefits.
Research limitations/implicat ions – This study focused on the open-source EIS users’
perspective. Future studies could expand the scope by covering a broader open-source EIS aspect
such as motivation of its use, development processes, social dynamics in the development group,
diffusion process, and the like. A longitudinal study could provide a more concrete trend of
open-source EIS use by organizations. The small sample size of this study is also a limitation.
Practical implications – The present research provides a practical evidence of relationships in the
open-source EIS application model. The developers in on-line open-source communities need to take
the success factors identified in this study into account when developing open-source EIS.
Originality/value – There is a paucity of empirical studies in open-source EIS applications. The
paper expends the traditional IS success model to the open-source EIS context by collecting and
analyzing data from 150 real-world open-source EIS users.
Keywords Open source, Computersoftware, Information systems,Open-source software,
Enterprise information systems, Successfactors of open-source EIS
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
Firms constantly search for the best industry practices to manage the growing volume
of information. Enterprise information systems (EIS) are generally considered as
applications that focus on managing and integrating whole business processes
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at
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Open-source EIS
development
1065
Received 24 November 2011
Revised 6 April 2012
Accepted 6 April 2012
Industrial Management & Data
Systems
Vol. 112 No. 7, 2012
pp. 1065-1084
qEmerald Group Publishing Limited
0263-5577
DOI 10.1108/02635571211255023
including accounting, finance, manufacturing, human resources, and inventory
management (Davenport and Brooks, 2004). The implementation EIS software,
however, is typically a complex process for in-house capability of many small and
medium enterprises (SME). Also, EIS application is very expensive, often involving
millions of dollars for vendor purchasing price, consultant expertise, in-house
development, user education, and upgrades (Olson, 2004). Although the implementation
of EIS could be cost-effective in the long run (Frank, 2004), the financial resources
required and the inherent risk of EIS make firms hesitate to invest in the system.
Additionally, since EIS are widely applied by organizations, it is hard to gain
competitive advantage through the implementation of commoditized EIS (Karimi et al.,
2007). Recently, EIS vendors have realized that open-source software (OSS) offers
capabilities, both as a source of content and as a threat to the proprietary enterprise
system market (Grewal et al., 2006). OSS is not a panacea as Goode (2005) showed due to
its lack of relevance to business operations, reliable technical support, etc. However,
according to Serrano and Sarriegi (2006), there are three major reasons why OSS is
advantageous to implement and maintain EIS, especially for the globalized firms:
.the increased adaptability to match the business processes and local regulations;
.the decreased reliance on a single supplier; and
.the reduced costs.
These advantages are important for firms that require the information and
communication technology (ICT) practices at work places in different business
environments through the internet. OSS development involves voluntary participation
of individuals in on-line communities to develop computer software codes. The
underlying philosophy of OSS is to enhance software reliability and quality through
independent peer reviews and rapid evolution of applications. Johansson and Sudzina
(2008) also claimed that OSS EIS enable SMEs to implement the system at a minimal
cost which often is a critical impediment for EIS implementation.
There is an abundance of qualitative or exploratory literature on OSS. An empirical
study that measures OSS success would help delineate some success factors. This
study develops an OSS EIS success model, which expands a prior IS success model by
incorporating the characteristics of EIS and OSS. The overall objective of this study
was to examine the relationships between success factors identified in the literature
applied to OSS EIS and the net benefits to individuals and organizations that adopt
OSS EIS for business purposes.
Is success model
Few empirical studies have been conducted to develop an OSS success model.
However, a large number of studies have been conducted to identify success factors of
IS. Prior studies have focused on various aspects of IS success for over three decades
(Matlin, 1979; DeLone and McLean, 1992, 2002, 2003; Gable, 1996; Irani and Love, 2000;
Thatcher and Oliver, 2001; Rai et al., 2002; Shin, 2003; Sedera and Gable, 2004;
Sabherwal et al., 2006; Gable et al., 2008; Lee et al., 2009).
Rai et al. (2002) assessed two main IS success models: DeLone and McLean (1992)
and Seddon (1997). Their findings support DeLone and McLean’s argument that IS
success models need to be carefully specified in a given context. Shin (2003)
investigated the effectiveness of the three IS success constructs, system quality,
IMDS
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