Paper Number
1854
Paper Type
Complete Research Paper
Abstract
This paper addresses diverging collaborating motives for digital transformation in an inter-municipal collaboration experiencing difficulties in transitioning from IT-centric to digitally-driven collaboration. Research tends to see collaboration as a uniform method to facilitate digital transformation, not directing sufficient attention to that efficiency-driven motives and motives to address complexity are based on different dependencies and require different collaborative conditions. Based on a qualitative case study of six municipalities collaborating on digital transformation, we show how efficiency-driven motives and complexity-driven motives exist parallel, but unrecognized, and thereby causing frustration and inertia in the collaboration. Theoretically, the paper contributes by identifying the importance of collaborative motives in explaining the struggles inherent in collaborative endeavours regarding digital transformation that are frequently described in IS research. Practically, the paper highlights the importance for actors in collaboration on digital transformation to reflect on the motives for collaboration to create proper conditions depending on different motives.
Recommended Citation
Silfversparre, Jonna and Andersson, Thomas, "Diverging Motives for Inter-Municipal Digital Transformation" (2024). ECIS 2024 Proceedings. 6.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/ecis2024/track12_digtrans/track12_digtrans/6
Diverging Motives for Inter-Municipal Digital Transformation
This paper addresses diverging collaborating motives for digital transformation in an inter-municipal collaboration experiencing difficulties in transitioning from IT-centric to digitally-driven collaboration. Research tends to see collaboration as a uniform method to facilitate digital transformation, not directing sufficient attention to that efficiency-driven motives and motives to address complexity are based on different dependencies and require different collaborative conditions. Based on a qualitative case study of six municipalities collaborating on digital transformation, we show how efficiency-driven motives and complexity-driven motives exist parallel, but unrecognized, and thereby causing frustration and inertia in the collaboration. Theoretically, the paper contributes by identifying the importance of collaborative motives in explaining the struggles inherent in collaborative endeavours regarding digital transformation that are frequently described in IS research. Practically, the paper highlights the importance for actors in collaboration on digital transformation to reflect on the motives for collaboration to create proper conditions depending on different motives.
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