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The growth of end-user computing and the trend toward the use of packaged software have focused greater attention on issues related to user support. A varied user population is requiring more tailored support, yet vendor-supplied software with a generic interface is increasingly being used. Four case studies illustrate ways in which organizational forms of support can enhance or overcome the limitations of the software interface. A framework called the organizational interface incorporates these organizational mechanisms by integrating the computer-human interaction (CHI), management information systems (MIS), and end-user computing (EUC) approaches to user support. This framework can be used in the design of end-user systems developed with packaged software and for retrofitting outdated user interfaces for an end-user computing environment. The organizational interface provides IS and end-user managers with a means to consider alternative methods of providing support for systems based on purchased software with fixed user interfaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article describes an approach for managing the introduction of information technologies in organizations which we have called "implementation by cultural infusion." The approach was developed and successfully used in response to the necessity of setting up a low-overhead, high-growth computer services function for a small research organization of about 200 non-technical users. The article first describes how the organization established the infrastructural mechanisms to make such an implementation method successful. It then describes the concepts and dynamics of the cultural infusion approach to implementing information technologies, how it was used in the organization, what successes and failures were encountered, and what the impacts were after four years. Finally, the possibility of using the cultural infusion approach in larger organizations and different settings is examined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]