1. The Risks of Information System Success
Jason C. H. Chen, Ph.D.
Professor of MIS
School of Business Administration
Gonzaga University
Spokane, WA 99223

2. The Risks of Information System Success
1. Systems that change the basis of competition to a company’s disadvantage
2. Systems that lower entry barriers
3. Systems that bring on litigation or regulation
4. Systems that increase customer’s or suppliers’ power to the detriment of the innovator
5. Bad timing
6. Investments that turn out to be indefensible and fail to produce lasting advantage
7. Systems that pose an immediate threat to large, established competitors
8. Inadequate understanding of buying dynamics across market segments
9. Cultural lag and perceived transfer of power
1. Investing in mainframe software, but competitors in PC and FREE
2. Tighter links to customers becomes other company’s advantage. Since customers move to IS and easy for them to switch other IS-based service providers. E.g. Web-Commerce.
3. Work well --> effectiveness --> claims of unfair competition and cries for government regulation.
“Information monopoly” - control of the electronic channels of distribution may be unacceptable to the public.
4. Sender <----- intermediary (company) ----> Reciever
with FAX technology xxx (no loner needed) the intermediary
5. Not too early, neither too late (the timing is very short for the SIS)
6. IF … low daily transaction rates - when end users get lost
Features of great value to end users, but if it is easily replicable by the
firm’s competitors
7. HOTEL chains (failed) vs. AIRLINES
8. SW airline does NOT use airline reservation systems in the early stage, but it still performs very well on other strategic issues (low price, less services - food etc.)
9. Not all IT efforts are WIN-WIN situations due to … (and politics issues) N
Dr. Chen, The Trends of the Information Systems Technology