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The Impact of Executive Information Systems on Organizational Design, Intelligence, and Decision Making

Author

Listed:
  • Dorothy E. Leidner

    (Hankamer School of Business, Baylor University, Waco, Texas 76798)

  • Joyce J. Elam

    (College of Business, Florida International University, Miami, Florida 33199)

Abstract

Managerial decision making is regarded as among the most important functions of senior managers. The presence of easily accessible, reliable information contributes to effective decision making. Sources of information may be oral, written, or computer-based. The computer-based information sources remain the least studied in the context of executive decision making because executives have tended to use other managers and their own intuition as their primary information sources. Recently though, computer-based information systems directly tailored for use by executives have begun to be implemented within organizations. Such systems, referred to as Executive Information Systems, may help executives make faster and higher quality decisions, an increasingly important requirement for executives given such trends as globalization and heightened competition. This study uses survey responses of 91 high level managers to empirically examine the relationship of executive information system use by managers with decision making speed, problem identification speed, information availability, and the involvement of subordinates in decision making. The study found that when used frequently and over time, executive information systems are positively related to perceived problem identification and decision making speed for senior and middle managers. Whether such effects lead to higher quality decisions are topics for further study. In addition, the frequency of use of executive information systems is shown to be related to a perceived increase in information availability although the length of time the system is in use is not related to perceived information availability. This suggests that the information needs of senior and middle managers is malleable and systems designed to support the decision making of managers need to be flexible to adapt to changing information needs. Lastly, the study found that the use of executive information systems does not reduce the reliance of senior or middle managers on their subordinates to help in decision making. This may be because the involvement of subordinates does not necessarily connote a consistent positive or negative behavior among American managers, whereas speed and information are consistently considered as positive. The implications of the results for a previously developed theory of the effects of advanced information technology on organizational design, intelligence, and decision making are discussed.

Suggested Citation

  • Dorothy E. Leidner & Joyce J. Elam, 1995. "The Impact of Executive Information Systems on Organizational Design, Intelligence, and Decision Making," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 6(6), pages 645-664, December.
  • Handle: RePEc:inm:ororsc:v:6:y:1995:i:6:p:645-664
    DOI: 10.1287/orsc.6.6.645
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Bernroider, Edward W.N. & Schmöllerl, Patrick, 2013. "A technological, organisational, and environmental analysis of decision making methodologies and satisfaction in the context of IT induced business transformations," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 224(1), pages 141-153.
    2. repec:dau:papers:123456789/4907 is not listed on IDEAS
    3. Peters, Matt D. & Wieder, Bernhard & Sutton, Steve G. & Wakefield, James, 2016. "Business intelligence systems use in performance measurement capabilities: Implications for enhanced competitive advantage," International Journal of Accounting Information Systems, Elsevier, vol. 21(C), pages 1-17.
    4. Fischer, Caroline & Döring, Matthias, 2021. "Thank You for Sharing! How knowledge sharing and information availability affect public employees' job satisfaction," SocArXiv nvfsr, Center for Open Science.
    5. Elvis C. Foster, 2016. "Towards Measuring the Impact of Management Support Systems on Contemporary Management," Athens Journal of Business & Economics, Athens Institute for Education and Research (ATINER), vol. 2(4), pages 389-404, October.
    6. Jonghak Sun, 2017. "The effect of information technology on IT-facilitated coordination, IT-facilitated autonomy, and decision-makings at the individual level," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 49(2), pages 138-155, January.
    7. François-Xavier de Vaujany, 2005. "Information Technology Conceptualization: Respective Contributions of Sociology and Information Systems," Post-Print hal-00644428, HAL.
    8. Kirsten Martin & Bidhan Parmar, 2012. "Assumptions in Decision Making Scholarship: Implications for Business Ethics Research," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 105(3), pages 289-306, February.

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