Do Complementary Effects of IT Competencies Matter for Organizational Performance?

Soerin Bipat, Nyenrode Business University The Neteherlands
Lineke Sneller, Nyenrode Business University
Hans ten Rouwelaar, Nyenrode Business University
Joost Visser, Radboud University Nijmegen

Abstract

A basic premise of resource-based theory is that an organization’s performance can be explained by how resources are deployed and used. Influenced by this theory, we examine difference between complementary and individual effects of IT capability on organizational performance. We conceptualize IT capability as four IT competencies: IT alignment, technical, relational and employee IT competence and operationalize a complementary effect as an interaction between two IT competencies. We identify two types of organizational performance: market-based and productions and operations. Using Dutch survey data collected from 117 respondents, we compare the complementary effects against the individual effects. Our results show that complementary effects only impact an organization’s market-based performance. More specifically, IT alignment competence and technical IT competence drive the, otherwise insignificant, impact of relational and employee IT competence. With respect to the resource-based theory, we demonstrate that complementary effects do not automatically impact an organization’s performance.