Transition to IS project de-escalation: An exploration into management executive's influence tactics
Publication Type
Journal Article
Version
acceptedVersion
Publication Date
1-2011
Abstract
This paper seeks to understand the factors that shape management executives' influence behaviors and the influence tactics that may be utilized during de-escalation of commitment to information systems (IS) projects. De-escalation is potentially a more important issue than escalation because de-escalation provides remedies for the ills of escalation. Therefore, it is important to understand how project stakeholders' commitment to troubled IS projects may be transformed under management executives' influence, hence allowing project teams to carry out their de-escalation activities. Here, we adopt theories of leadership, politics, and interpersonal influence, as our lenses to examine the management executive's influence behaviors during the transition from escalation to de-escalation of a failing electronic procurement project at UK Borough Council. Based on the case analysis, we presented three key factors that shaped the influence behaviors and six influence tactics utilized separately or collectively by the management executive in the unfreezing, changing, and refreezing phases of project de-escalation. Through the findings, researchers may develop a deeper understanding of how project stakeholders may surrender previous failing courses of action and accept alternative courses of action. Practitioners may also devise useful influence tactics when de-escalating troubled IS projects.
Keywords
Case study, de-escalation of commitment, influence behaviors, information systems (IS) project
Discipline
Accounting | Management Information Systems | Technology and Innovation
Research Areas
Corporate Governance, Auditing and Risk Management
Publication
IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management
Volume
58
Issue
1
First Page
109
Last Page
123
ISSN
0018-9391
Identifier
10.1109/TEM.2010.2048908
Publisher
IEEE
Citation
PAN, Gary and PAN, Shan Ling.
Transition to IS project de-escalation: An exploration into management executive's influence tactics. (2011). IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management. 58, (1), 109-123.
Available at: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/soa_research/114
Copyright Owner and License
Authors
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Additional URL
https://doi.org/10.1109/TEM.2010.2048908
Included in
Accounting Commons, Management Information Systems Commons, Technology and Innovation Commons