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Global information and communication technologies permeate organizational structures, while questions of security pervade strategic plans of corporations worldwide. From the spectacular to the sublime, the effects of geomagnetic disturbances (i.e., electrical current produced by solar storms) can be as devastating to an organizationâ??s telecommunications systems as a hacker breaching a firewall. Using a dataset spanning 31 years (1978-2009) with 580,000 solar activity records, we investigate the effects and relationships of natural anomalies, specifically solar storms, on the security of corporate telecommunications. The ionosphere is a natural barrier around the earth to protect it from the sun and serve as a shield, but some electrical currents break this barrier causing significant telecommunications outages and security breaches within corporations. In this exploratory empirical study, we present the initial evidence that tracking geomagnetic disturbances can provide vital cautions for business continuity planning. The results of the study should help organizations with strategic planning efforts with respect to their overall security, especially as it relates to telecommunications.

Business continuity plans for the wireless world must address solar activity.

As IEEE802.11 Wireless Fidelity communications move out through the organization, a question arises as to which practices are safe and which are not. Most of the concern is for protection at the wireless access point to which the nomadic devices attach; some authors offer solutions outside of this device. The following is the result of a survey of 100+ people with wireless experience.

The concept of site selection has received extensive attention throughout history. Although plant location decision issues have always been important to US manufacturing firms, the impact of global competition has increased recognition of their importance. To successfully compete globally, manufacturers must have an effective global supply chain infrastructure, which requires effective communications. However, plant location strategies change over time, because of the dynamic nature of the variables that determine a location decision. This study was conducted to extend the location decision taxonomy by including telecommunications. The research included a specification of telecommunications attributes that impact site selection, the importance of telecommunications as a location decision criterion and the differences in location decision criteria between domestic (US) and foreign sites. The telecommunications-specific attributes determined in this study include: telecommunications infrastructure, cost, reliability, bandwidth, personnel, local and US government restrictions, and local and US government regulations on exporting and importing data. The conclusions of this study not only present evidence that telecommunications is influencing decision-makers in site selection, but also provides a list of criteria that are critical to site selection.

More than 100 IS executives discuss their organizations' plans to decentralize information systems and the larger role decentralization will play in their systems architecture. This changing architecture reflects a changing role for IT, which will be increasingly more responsible for setting enterprisewide standards and supporting business strategies.

The success of an organization depends on rapid, reliable, and direct communications within the organization and with the outside world. To determine if electronic mail (e-mail) provides a competitive benefit, a sample of 99 management-level participants in 41 companies responded to a survey that assessed their intraorganizational (internal) and interorganizational (external) uses of e-mail. Through the use of factor analysis and regression methodologies, the researchers investigated whether a significant relationship exists between the internal and external uses and benefits of e-mail. The intraorganizational uses of e-mail indicated a significant and positive relationship with the organizational benefits of e-mail, thus, supporting the electronic exchange of information within organizations.However, the results indicated that interorganizational uses of e-mail did not promote corporate communication outside the company. Thus, managers need to know which communication technology is appropriate for intraorganizational and interorganizational uses.

In this study, senior executives with electronic data interchange (EDI) experience explained the factors their firms considered when deciding to use EDI. The majority of their comments focused on the operational (i.e., internal) benefits they are receiving from EDI. Most of the firms that participated in the study have moved from an operational mindset regarding EDI and noted external/competitive benefits as they electronically link to customers and suppliers. The executives acknowledged power inequities between their large firms and the trading partners with whom they use EDI. Although EDI is a mature technology, when classified by innovation adoption and diffusion theory, it provides adopting firms significant benefits.

In this article, senior executives comment on the strategic issues involved in EDI. Trading partner relationships and the balance of power are critical issues when firms participate in electronic commerce. the relationships between trading partners who exchange data electronically are very important to these executives. the participants in the study also are concerned about the relative power between their firm and other members of the supply chain.

As the use of information technology (IT) has expanded, managers of organizations have come to realize that IT can be used to gain, sustai, or combat competitive advantage. The implementation of IT involves significant risks both from external sources and from the technology and process of implementation. Risk management is the science and art of recognizing the existence of threats, determining their consequences on resources, and applying modifying factors in a cost-effective manner to keep adverse consequences within bounds. Strategies for handling risk necessarily address one or more of the components of risks identified here. The appropriate strategy depends on the nature of the risk and other situational variables that influence the organization's range of choices. This paper discusses approaches to risk analysis appropriate for IT and contains some suggested tools for risk analysis and management.

In organizations in which the information center has matured, a stable set of services is offered. A survey was done of 126 information centers to determine the services they currently provide to users and to obtain a perspective on the future of the information center itself.

End user computing (EUC) has developed into a critical part of the information resource of the organization. The information center (IC), an essential support and control mechanism for EUC, has also become a critical component of the organization's information resource. ICs support the end users by providing services for them. Our study surveyed 126 ICs to determine which services they presently offer, which ones they do not offer, and which ones they previously offered but discontinued. In addition, the study collected data on services requested by the end users. This paper furnishes a definitive catalog of services offered by ICs and compares them with the services requested by end users. The findings illustrate the responsiveness of ICs to their end user communities. Even though ICs typically offer a broad variety of services, there are differences in the services most offered by ICs and services most requested by end users.

Image processing is a new technology that may prove to be strategically significant for information management in many organizations. This article uses survey data from 14 organizations to examine the costs, benefits, alternative and complementary technologies, and critical success factors associated with implementing image processing systems.

As Information Technology (IT) has become increasingly important to the competitive position of firms, managers have grown more sensitive to their organization's overall IT risk management. Recent publicity concerning losses incurred by companies because of problems with their sophisticated information systems has focused attention on the importance of these systems to the organization. In an attempt to minimize or avoid such losses, managers are employing various qualitative and quantitative risk analysis methodologies. The risk analysis literature, however, suggests that these managers typically utilize a single methodology, not a combination of methodologies. This paper proposes a risk analysis process that employs a combination of qualitative and quantitative methodologies. This process should provide managers with a better approximation of their organization's overall information technology risk posture. Practicing managers can use this proposed process as a guideline in formulating new risk analysis procedures and/or evaluating their current risk analysis procedures.

The information center (IC) is a well-established resource for supporting end-user computing in an organization. Since IBM-Canada's installation of its information center, thousands of organizations have developed ICs to provide a variety of services to the user community, the MIS department, general management, and the IC staff. This article examines the services currently provided by information centers and identifies which group or groups request each service. The article also discusses the influence of the MIS department on these IC services. These findings are based on the results of a survey of 92 IC managers.

During the past decade, strategic information technology (IT) applications, such as electronic mail (e-mail), have been used to gain competitive advantage over rivals or prevent rivals from gaining a competitive advantage. The use of e-mail has been considered a component of overall business strategy, and its application depends more on understanding unique business opportunities than on competitive benefits from technological features that are easily duplicated. Since the first message was sent in 1971 by Ray Tomlinson, e-mail has emerged as an important technological requirement in business. E-mail is as common as the U.S. postal mail in the twentieth century. Businesses, schools, and universities are insisting that employees and students have an e-mail account to check updates or download information concerning business tasks or class activities. Given the widespread acceptance and use of this technology, the strategic value of e-mail within an organization should be apparent.

The EXIS export information expert system that facilitates the use of the UN's COMTRADE export-import database is described. It is based on the assumptions that business needs for international trade data are different from the needs of governmental, international, and supranational agencies. Business executives make decisions based on market size, market share, competitors, growth rates, and so on, whereas government personnel have different criteria. In addition, business executives utilize this trade data on a nonroutine basis and require aid and assistance in acquiring, using, and understanding it. EXIS provides inexpensive technology to aid the executive in the decision process. >

This chapter provides a new perspective on the competitive advantage of electronic mail within organizations. Essentially, e-mail assists individuals with efficiency and effectiveness. It improves the overall productivity of the firm and provides better coordination of internal processes. Electronic mail has been considered an important channel of communication. Since quality, time and cost are considered the main means of competition in today’s global market, this study investigated the relationship between the strategic uses and competitive benefits of electronic mail in contemporary organizations. A sample of 99 management-level staff members in 41 companies responded to a questionnaire assessing their e-mail usage and their perceived e-mail benefits. The results suggested that e-mail usage could augment the competitive posture of the firm.

The increased cost of doing business domestically and the impact of global competition are two reasons companies establish plants in foreign locations. To have a successful global business, manufacturers must have an effective global supply chain infrastructure, which requires effective information technology. Firms now routinely consider remote domestic and international locations when evaluating potential sites. Many factors must be considered when choosing the right location for manufacturing facilities. These include: physical infrastructure, proximity to suppliers and customers, tax considerations, international trade conditions, and as this research explored, telecommunications infrastructure. This study examined the degree to which the telecommunications infrastructure impacts the decision to select a specific foreign manufacturing site for the organisation. The results of four case studies of electronics firms indicated that telecommunications is a necessity to conduct business. Two of the firms indicated that telecommunications was considered in their most recent site selection. Although the other two firms did not overtly consider telecommunications in the site selection criteria, they did indicate that it is critical to the success of the company in a global market.

Information systems ecutfy remains high on the list of key issues facing information systems exo ecutives. Traditional concerns range from forced entry into computer and storage rooms to destruction by fire, earthquake, flood, and hurricane. Recent attention focuses on protecting information systems and data from accidental or intentional unauthorized access, disclosure, modification, or destruction. The consequences of these events can range from degraded or disrupted service to customers to corporate failure. This article reports on a study investigating MIS executives" concern about a variety of threats. A relatively new threat, computer viruses, was found to be a particular concern. The results highlight a gap between the use of modern technology and the understanding of the security implications inherent in its use. Many of responding information systems managers have migrated their organizations into the highly interconnected environment of modern technology but continue to view threats from a perspective of a pre-connectivity era. They expose their firms to unfamiliar risks of which they are unaware, refuse to acknowledge, or are often poorly equipped to manage.

The concept of the Information Systems Research Center (ISRC) is not new, yet its purpose, structure and activities are not universally agreed upon. This paper compares ten centers in the U.S.A. as to their objectives, organizational structure, curriculum, current research areas, and activities. The ISRCs are then examined in an attempt to assess benefits and problems.

End-user computing (EUC) has become a key element in the overall information resource of the organization. The information center (1С) has developed into an essential support mechanism for EUC, and therefore is also a key element of the firm's information resource. The strength of the information center is its staff. A questionnaire was developed to ascertain some key information center staff career dimensions. Profiles of 1С staff positions, descriptions of career paths, and respondents' views of current ic positions and future career possibilities are based on 205 responses from ic managers and staff members. Sources of ic personnel, career ladders within the ic, and destinations for ic personnel after service in the ic are examined.

There are a number of organization structure alternatives for supporting decision suport systems, and each alternative has its advantages and disadvantages. One emerging alternative, that of providing support through an end-user services group, is being successfully used by the Oglethorpe Power Corporation.

The use ofthe critical success factor (CSF) method has been suggested by several sources as a means of ensuring the success of an organization. An investiga- tion was performed to determine the existence and nature of CSFS for information centers (ic). Twenty-six CSFS were determined from various sources. The importance of each was rated in a survey of ic managers, and a principal components analysis was performed to indicate the underlying structure. This paper reports the effect on the composite CSFS of the ic variables age, size, and hardware option supported.

A stage hypothesis for information centers (ICs) is proposed and 26 critical success factors (CSFs) for IC managements are investigated. Based on 311 responses from IC managers, support is found for the proposed stages and information is provided about the importance of the CSFs. A principal components analysis is performed on the 26 CSFs which identifies five composite CSFs: (1) commitment to the IC concept; (2) quality of IC support services; (3) facilitation of end-user computing; (4) role clarity; and (5) coordination of end-user computing. Statistical tests show that the importance of these composite CSFs tend to vary among themselves but is relatively constant individually across the IC stages.

The information center concept originated in the mid-seventies as IBM attempted to respond to the growing backlog of requests for MIS service. IBM, like many firms, discovered that the DP/MIS organization was unable to respond to the large number of requests for new systems. As a partial solution, information centers were installed at IBM and other firms to support end-user computing - the environment in which users address information needs directly. This concept of support for end-user computing has been well accepted.This research studied the way 20 firms in the Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas, area operationalized the concept, comparing their information centers with the IBM/Hammond model. This paper compares the findings of empirical research to the contentions made by Hammond in his IBM Systems Journal article of 1982. Agreement was found with only one-half of Hammond's propositions. The areas of disagreement are considered important.