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Does the IT manager have to switch roles?: the influence of the consumerization of IT on a B2B IT vendor.

Laarhuis, Stephan (2012) Does the IT manager have to switch roles?: the influence of the consumerization of IT on a B2B IT vendor.

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Abstract:It is predicted that by 2012 90% of organizations will support corporate applications on personal devices. This change is partly driven by Generation Y entering the labour market. Together, these two happenings---the trend to BYOD and the impact of Generation Y within companies---inevitably influence the desired services of the IT department and its suppliers. ChangeIT is on the eve of the launch of its new web shop. By means of this web shop ChangeIT sells hardware to new and recurring B2B customers. The environment of e-commerce is very dynamic. Therefore, it is important to know what customers want and what competitors do. ChangeIT does not have an accurate understanding of its business environment and this understanding should be improved. The first goal of this research is the exploration of the concept ‘consumerization of IT’. The second goal is to give an overview of the characteristics of Generation Y on the labour market. We want to know how these trends influence the services an IT vendor offers. Third is the external analysis. Finally, we want to answer the research question: How can a B2B IT vendor cope with the changing demands influenced by Generation Y and to what extent does the consumerization of IT play a role? The theoretical framework will lead to hypotheses that we will compare to the actual situation at various companies by means of interviews. With the interview results we will carry out two types of analysis. The influence of the consumerization of IT and the Generation Y will be tested with an explanatory effects matrix. The external analysis will be completed using the Business Modelling Canvas. Consumerization of IT and Generation Y The consumerization of IT and Generation Y do influence the IT manager. We distinguished three types of IT managers: trend-setters, followers and executors. Trend-setters actively follow and implement new developments and try to continuously refine their own role. In three organizations this causes employees and IT to be able to think of new solutions together. In organizations where the IT manager can better be characterized as follower this happens less often: IT still prescribes the composition of the IT environment. Next to organizations with trend-setters and followers there are also organizations where the IT manager does not participate at a strategic level. This does not help the IT manager in changing his role. In these organizations, the management chooses the IT policy and the IT manager is the executor of this policy. In all cases this policy is better characterized as a following than as a trend-setting. The transition of outsourcing the technical aspect of IT to the cloud will have the greatest influence on the tasks of the IT manager. This trend will inevitably influence the services portfolio of ChangeIT. A downside of the consumerization of IT is maintaining the security of data and the tension between what is safe and what is allowed. New advantages offered by the consumerization of IT include less pressure on the IT department, with employees being more careful with their hardware and more self-supporting. This leads to lower costs. We expected Generation Y to be very influential in trying to change the way they and their colleagues work. Nine out of ten organizations state, however, that Generation Y does not ask for ways to work in another way. Nine out of ten interviewees don’t see the characteristics of Generation Y in practice as described in literature. Half of the interviewees even disagree with these characteristics and state that Generation Y does not attract attention at all. This can have two reasons, both possibly leading to problems: • Generation Y in practice conforms to the culture of the company and therefore does not attract attention. • IT managers do not see (or want to see) Generation Y as different. External analysis Customers are satisfied with the advice ChangeIT gives. However, all interviewees expect a quick and accurate delivery, an area where, from the perception of the customer, ChangeIT too often fails to meet expectations. Additionally, customers have a need for information during the ordering process. They want to know when the hardware is delivered, so schedules can be adapted to the forecast of ChangeIT. Unfortunately, the information ChangeIT provides is often incorrect or unavailable. These two points, indicated as very important in the BM workshop with the management of ChangeIT, should be improved. The relationship between supplier and customer is very important: ChangeIT is seen as a partner, not as supplier. The business modelling canvas together with the interviews gave us the possibility to discuss the views of the interviewees and of the stakeholders of ChangeIT in a quick and easy way, enabling everyone to understand the different views. The interviews contributed to business modelling generation and created subjects for discussion
Item Type:Essay (Master)
Clients:
ChangeIT
Faculty:BMS: Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences
Subject:85 business administration, organizational science
Programme:Business Administration MSc (60644)
Link to this item:https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/62288
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