A contingency framework for the investigation of information systems failure

It is suggested that the social nature of IS needs to be a central feature in the study, analysis and action to mitigate failure and context plays a significant role in the development of an understanding of failure incidents and in the adoption of relevant action.

Abstract

Despite the increasing sophistication of information technologies, information systems (IS) continue to fail either during development, or at the points of implementation and use. This paper argues that effective practices to deal with, or prevent, such failure require wider organizational awareness and a deeper understanding of the nature, phenomena and implications of IS failure. The paper suggests that the social nature of IS needs to be a central feature in the study, analysis and action to mitigate failure. Following this view, context plays a significant role in the development of an understanding of failure incidents and in the adoption of relevant action. These concerns can be accommodated within a contingency perspective for the investigation of IS failure. The paper proposes a framework of concepts that support this perspective and then moves on to provide examples of how such a perspective could inform study of, and action upon, IS failure.