Given societies’ massive investment in information technology and the potentially catastrophic consequences of IT failures, it is becoming increasingly critical to understand how IT management policies influence IT management practice and, ultimately, organizational success in implementing and employing information technology. This paper describes a study that took place in a large government agency and sheds some light on the interaction of IT policy, practice and success (or, in this case, failure). Following an exploratory case-study research design, the study employed both interpretivist- and positivistoriented perspectives to develop a descriptive model that identifies significant factors influencing levels of policy compliance. The model describes the central roles that organizational culture and knowledge play in mediating the effects of information technology, organizational resources and IT management policies on IT policy compliance, implementation and use. The model refle...
John C. Beachboard