The relationship of the business with the in-house IT department : A customer-provider perspective.

Unsuccessful IT Implementations can often be traced to organizational issues. Some of these problems originate from failures of the working relationship between the in-house IS department and other areas of the business. Before interventions can be designed to address these issues, the nature of this relationship needs to be fully elaborated. Accordingly, the aim of this research was to develop a clearer understanding of roles played by the business areas and the in-house IS department, within the development, delivery and operation of IT services. Anecdotal and academic evidence concerning the causes of relationship difficulties and their possible solutions was gathered, to enable the objectives of the study to be determined on the basis of the topics emerging from both practical and theoretical knowledge. After the research foundations had been established, grounded theory was chosen as the most appropriate methodology for the study. Data acquired from U.K. Insurance companies was analysed for abstract concepts that composed the phenomenon and constructs developed to create a theoretical framework. This shows how the relationship between the IS department and other parts of the business is constituted from the mutual trust, credibility and interdependence of the work groups that are parties to the relationship. The framework also shows the way organizational climate, attitudes of individuals, processes and outcomes affect the formation of the three relationship bonds.The validity of the research was critically evaluated against published quality criteria for grounded theory studies and limitations to the framework were identified. The plausibility of the research was tested by comparison of the framework with the existing research literature about customer-provider relationships. The study concludes with proposals for further research work, including the operationalisation of the theoretical framework and the creation of a strategy to guide the development of the relationships in question.Two contributions to knowledge are claimed for the thesis: It is a new, holistic, view of the instrumental linkages between an internal service provider organization and its customers. Interpretive methods have been under-utilised in the field of IS/IT research. This study provides an experientially based model for employing grounded theory to explore the organizational context of IT services management.