The Contradictory Structure of Systems Development Methodologies: Deconstructing the IS-User Relationship in Information Engineering

Cynthia Mathis Beath and Wanda J. Orlikowski
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Cynthia Mathis Beath: Management Information Sciences Department, Edwin L. Cox School of Business, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, Texas 75275-0333
Wanda J. Orlikowski: Information Technologies Group, Sloan School of Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 50 Memorial Drive, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02142-1347

Information Systems Research, 1994, vol. 5, issue 4, 350-377

Abstract: In this paper we show that systems development methodologies may contain incompatible assumptions about the role of users and information systems (IS) personnel during systems development. Using deconstruction, we analyze and interpret a systems development methodology currently receiving considerable attention—Information Engineering. We find that this methodology's characterization of IS-user relations and, in particular, its recommended partitioning of responsibility between IS and users is inconsistent and contradictory. Despite a heavy emphasis on user involvement, users are given a relatively passive role to play during development. At the same time, users are expected to sign off on projects and take responsibility for project outcomes. We suggest that such prescriptions, when put into action during systems development, make the relationship between users and IS personnel problematic. Further, we argue that the contradictions we surface in the methodology reflect contradictions and ideologies in the context within which systems development occurs. Our analysis raises important questions about the relationship between the production and consumption of information technology in organizations.

Keywords: information systems implementation; systems development methodologies; information engineering; IS-user relationship; user involvement; deconstruction (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 1994
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