KEY M.I.S. ISSUES FOR MANAGEMENT:AN EASTERN EUROPEAN PERSPECTIVEbyENN KIUDORFB.Com., The University of Toronto, 1988A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OFTHE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OFMASTER OF SCIENCE(BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION)inTHE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIESThe Faculty of Commerce and Business AdministrationDepartment of Management Information SystemsWe accept this thesis as conformingto the required standardTHEUNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIANovember 1991Enn Kiudorf, 1991ABSTRACTConsiderable research has been done to identify issues of importance to MIS managers inNorth America and other Western countries. However, little is known about the priorities of EasternEuropean managers with respect to the application of information technologies (IT).IT will play an increasingly important role in Eastern Europe as organizations adapt toWestern business practices. An understanding of managerial concerns is therefore useful forindividuals and organizations with an interest in the economic transition and restructuring process ofthe region. This research aims to establish an understanding of MIS issues in an Eastern Europeanorganizational environment, and how these compare to the West. The study focuses on Estonia,which is judged to be an appropriately representative site for the research.A three round Delphi methodology was used to elicit the issues of importance from EstonianMIS managers and the research findings suggest a significantly distinct set of priorities. Themanagerial issues that have dominated the North American IS scene are of comparatively littleimportance; instead, the top issues for Eastern European managers are primarily technologicalconcerns.iiTABLE OF CONTENTSAbstractTable of Contents iiiList of Tables viAcknowledgments viiiChapter 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background 1 1.2 Motivation 2 1.3 Overview 3Chapter 2. INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY: EASTERN EUROPE AND ESTONIA 2.1 Introduction 4 2.2 Background 4 2.3 Emulation of Western Technology 5 2.4 The Reality of CMEA Computing 5 2.5 Computing in Estonia 7 2.6 The Future View 8Chapter 3. THE RESEARCH SITE: ESTONIA 3.1 Introduction 9 3.2 Background 9 3.3 Independent Estonia 10 3.4 Soviet Estonia 14 3.5 The Re-establishment of Independence 17Chapter 4. REVIEW OF PREVIOUS ISSUES RESEARCH4.1 Introduction 204.2 Ball & Harris (1982) 214.3 Martin (1982) 224.4 Dickson, Leitheiser, Nechis & Wetherbe (1984) 234.5 Arthur Andersen & Co. (1986) 254.6 Hartog & Herbert (1986a), (1986b) 264.7 Brancheau & Wetherbe (1987) 294.8 Rao, Huff & Davis (1987) 304.9 Graham (1988); Dexter, Graham, Huff (1990) 314.10 Index Group (1988) 334.11 Watson (1989); Watson & Brancheau (1991) 344.12 Silk (1989), (1990) 354.13 Deans, Karwan, Goslar, Ricks & Toyne (1991) 364.14 Alpar & Ein-Dor (1991) 374.15 Niederman , Brancheau & Wetherbe (1991) 39iiiChapter 5. RESEARCH QUESTIONS AND METHODOLOGY5.15.25.35.4Research QuestionsSelection of MethodologyDelphi Methodology and Estonia - An OverviewInstrument Development5.4.1 Round 1 Questionnaire5.4.2 Round 2 Questionnaire5.4.3 Round 3 Questionnaire404142444445515.4.4 Translations 525.5 Participant Recruitment 555.6 Data Collection Procedures 565.6.1 Round 1 565.6.2 Round 2 575.6.3 Round 3 585.7 Summary of Methodological Differences 595.8 Conducting Research in Estonia - Observations 595.8.1 Introduction 595.8.2 Accessing the Research Site 605.8.3 Logistics and Costs 615.8.4 Telephones and Technologies 625.8.5 Participant Attitudes 635.8.6 Local Allies 64Chapter 6. ANALYSIS AND RESULTS6.1 Introduction 666.2 Round 1 Results 666.3 Round 2 Results 676.4 Round 3 Results 686.4.1 Final Ratings of the 30 Issues 686.4.2 Top 10 Issues in Estonia 716.4.3 Issues of Least Importance 766.5 Movement Towards Consensus 786.6 Issue Classification 796.7 Comparisons to Other Studies 836.7.1 Introduction 836.7.2 Unique Estonian Issues 836.7.3 Comparison of Common Issues 846.7.4 Correlating the Studies 856.8 General izeabil ity of Results 866.9 Study Participants 886.10 Limitations of the Study 92Chapter 7. CONCLUSIONS7.1 Main Conclusions 937.2 Future Directions 94ivBIBLIOGRAPHY 96APPENDIX 1 - ROUND 1 COVERING LETTER AND QUESTIONNAIRE 100APPENDIX 2 - ROUND 2 COVERING LETTER AND QUESTIONNAIRE 105APPENDIX 3 - ROUND 3 COVERING LETTER AND QUESTIONNAIRE 118vLIST OF TABLESTABLE 1 - COMPARISON OF PER CAPITA GDP (1988) 16TABLE 2 - TOP ISSUES: BALL & HARRIS (1982) 21TABLE 3 - TOP ISSUES: MARTIN (1982) 23TABLE 4 - TOP ISSUES: DICKSON ET AL. (1984) 24TABLE 5 - TOP ISSUES: ARTHUR ANDERSEN & CO. (1986) 26TABLE 6 - TOP ISSUES: HARTOG & HERBERT (1986a) 27TABLE 7 - TOP ISSUES: BRANCHEAU & WETHERBE (1987) 30TABLE 8 - TOP ISSUES: RAO, HUFF & DAVIS (1987) 31TABLE 9 - TOP ISSUES: GRAHAM (1988) 32TABLE 10 - TOP ISSUES: INDEX GROUP (1988) 34TABLE 11 - TOP ISSUES: WATSON (1989) 35TABLE 12 - TOP ISSUES: SILK (1990) 36TABLE 13 - TOP ISSUES: DEANS ET AL. (1991) 37TABLE 14 - TOP ISSUES: ALPAR & EIN-DOR (1991) 38TABLE 15 - ALPAR & EIN-DOR'S SYNTHESIS OF PREVIOUS STUDIES 38TABLE 16 - TOP ISSUES: NIEDERMAN ET. AL. (1991) 39TABLE 17 - ROUND 1 RESULTS 66TABLE 18 - ROUND 2 RESULTS 67TABLE 19 - ROUND 3 RESULTS 69TABLE 20 - CLASSIFICATION OF ISSUES 80TABLE 21 - CLASSIFICATION OF ISSUES: ESTONIA VS. USA 82TABLE 22 - UNIQUE ISSUES IN THE ESTONIAN STUDY 84viTABLE 23 - COMMON ISSUES IN THE INTERNATIONAL STUDIES 84TABLE 24 - CORRELATING THE INTERNATIONAL STUDIES 86TABLE 25 - RESEARCH SUBJECTS: PARTICIPATION PATTERN 88TABLE 26 - RESEARCH SUBJECTS: ORGANIZATIONAL CATEGORIES 89TABLE 27 - RESEARCH SUBJECTS: BUSINESS ACTIVITIES 89TABLE 28 - RESEARCH SUBJECTS: POSITION 90TABLE 29 - RESEARCH SUBJECTS: ORGANIZATIONAL SIZE 91TABLE 30 - RESEARCH SUBJECTS: LANGUAGE CAPABILITIES 91TABLE 31 - TOP TEN ISSUES IN ESTONIA 93viiACKNOWLEDGEMENTSThis thesis is dedicated to my parents, Erich and Linda Kiudorf, who have supported andencouraged me throughout my years at university.I would also like to thank my thesis supervisor, Professor Albert S. Dexter, and the membersof my committee, Professors Marius Janson and Izak Benbasat, for their advice and enthusiasm. Theassistance of Professor Kiri Laast-Laas at Tallinn Technical University and Dr. Ahto Kalja at theInstitute of Cybernetics is also greatly appreciated.In addition, there are a number of individuals, both in Canada and Estonia, who providedhelpful assistance at various stages of the research. Special thanks are extended to Man Kit Chang,Professor Juta Kitching, Aira Kiudorv, Professor Brendan McCabe, Mart Mannik and Jaak Vilo.I would also like to gratefully acknowledge the support of Andersen Consulting, the Centrefor International Business Studies and the Humanities and Social Sciences Small Grants Division atthe University of British Columbia.viiiCHAFFER 1 - INTRODUCTION1.1 BackgroundIn the early 1980s, information systems (IS) researchers began conducting surveys to identifythe most critical issues in the management of the IS function. Studies were conducted to elicit thethoughts, needs, priorities and issues that were of concern to IS managers. Research in this domainis useful in helping managers, consultants, vendors, professional organizations and other membersof the IS community to better understand the needs and concerns of the discipline of IS management.The early work on IS issues originated in the United States and focussed on the concerns ofthe American IS manager. In the late 1980's, similar studies began to emerge in other parts of theworld including Canada, Australia, Europe and the Far East. Considerable work has also been doneto update and verify these IS issues studies since it is recognized that the fields of informationtechnology (IT) and management are in a constant state of evolution. The resulting body of researchmakes a significant contribution to our understanding of the IS issues of importance to managers inmany parts of the world.While extensive research has now been completed in identifying issues of importance to ISmanagers functioning in well established market economies, little is known about the priorities ofEastern European managers with respect to the application of IT. The dramatic political andeconomic changes sweeping Eastern Europe in recent years suggest that these economies will becomeincreasingly important and integrated into the global economy. Information technologies will playa pivotal role in the region as organizations adapt to Western business practices and standards. Anunderstanding of the concerns of Eastern European IS managers is useful for individuals andorganizations with an interest in the economic transition and restructuring of this region. Thisresearch therefore aims to establish an understanding of IS issues in an Eastern European1environment, and how these issues compare to the priorities of managers in the West.The study focuses on the Eastern European country of Estonia, which is judged to be anappropriate representative transitional socialist economy. Although Eastern Europe is a region ofgreat historical and cultural diversity, the constituent nations have shared common political, economicand social systems over the past half-century, resulting in considerable convergence of experience,especially in the areas of technology and economic management. It is therefore suggested that theresults of an Estonian study are relevant for other areas in Eastern Europe.It should be noted that for the purposes of this research, the term 'Eastern Europe' refers tothe European member countries of what was the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (CMEA).In particular, this includes the various Republics of the Soviet Union, the newly independent Balticcountries and Central European states such as Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Poland and former EastGermany.1.2 MotivationThe goal of the research is to better understand the priorities and needs of IS managersfunctioning in an Eastern European organizational and technological environment. This informationis useful for the following reasons:Assist researchers in directing their efforts at better satisfying IS needs in Eastern Europe.Help domestic and foreign firms interested in competing in Eastern European markets tounderstand relevant issues and concerns so that products and services can be tailored to localneeds.Document conditions in the management information systems (MIS) field within a socialisteconomy in the early stages of the transformation to a market system; this sets the stage forfuture work which would provide an evolutionary or developmental perspective on EasternEuropean MIS.2Help Eastern European training and educational institutions to better focus on the full rangeof important issues and, in so doing, to produce effective MIS managers.Help North American researchers to better understand how the role of MIS is perceived ina different setting, thereby providing a fresh perspective at delineating the discipline.1.3 OverviewThis thesis proceeds as follows. Chapter two provides background information on computingand information technology in Eastern Europe. This is followed in chapter three with historicalinformation on Estonia, the chosen research site. Chapter four reviews previous IS issues studies inNorth America and elsewhere. Once these contextual reviews have been completed, the specificresearch questions and methodological details of the study are formulated in chapter five. Chaptersix presents the study's findings and the final chapter presents the conclusions.3CHAPTER 2 - INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY: EASTERN EUROPE AND ESTONIA 2.1 IntroductionThis chapter describes the state of computing and information technology in Eastern Europe.The IT industry in this region can best be descibed as highly centralized and integrated. Estonia isa typical CMEA setting in the realm of information technology and shares a common experience withthe other countries in the area, making it an appropriate setting for conducting MIS issues research.Dissimilarities within the entire CMEA group appear to be minor compared to their collectivedissimilarity with the West, especially in the areas of technology and economic management.However, it should be stressed that Eastern Europe is a large and diverse region and generalizationsmust be made cautiously.2.2 BackgroundThe information technology environment familiar to managers in the West is characterizedby a highly competitive market consisting of thousands of independently acting firms offering a widevariety of products and services. Conversely, the IT sectors in Eastern European countries weredominated by central authorities that assign research and production efforts according to variouspolitical and economic goals (Judy (1987)). While the dominant theme of centralization of control insocialist economies is well documented, it is particularly true of the IT sector over the last twodecades. Moscow has defined policy for much of the CMEA community, resulting in a relativelyuniform IT experience in the member countries. Estonia is well integrated into the Eastern Europeancomputer sector and shares a common experience with the other regions.42.3 Emulation of Western TechnologyBefore 1970, Eastern European countries largely pursued their own agendas and strategiesin the computer industries. As planners and politicians began to understand the significant role thatIT could play in national security and economic productivity, there was increased effort to improvethe quality and coordination of CMEA computing. Independent national research and developmentprograms were largely abandoned and replaced by the Ryad Project, a coordinated effort to buildmachines based largely on the IBM S/360.The decision to copy Western machines was adopted because of persistent problems inindependently developing machines of comparable quality as well as supplying appropriate software.In addition to copying IBM mainframes, minicomputers based on DEC and Hewlett Packardspecifications have been widely imitated. IBM-PC and Apple II microcomputers have also beencopied, primarily to satisfy educational needs. Actual production of these machines has fallen belowplanning targets, resulting in a continual shortage of units and parts (Davis and Goodman (1978);Goodman (1979), (1984); Judy (1987); Barker (1990)).The policy of imitation is well entrenched, with the West providing the innovations andtechnological advances, followed by CMEA attempts to copy these efforts. Most of the membercountries have specialized in a narrow segment or niche of this inter-compatible computer industry,and trade extensively with each other.2.4 The Reality of CMEA ComputingDespite the efforts at coordination and integration, the CMEA has been unable to producecomputer equipment of comparable power and quality with Western machines. The state of Soviet5computing was summarized by Nyren (1987) in the following manner:- Computer hardware developments lag those in the West by an estimated 4 to 10 years,depending on the type of hardware.- The software industry has virtually no experience in developing software for PC applications.The computer industry has been unable to produce reliable equipment in significant numbers.Computer users are consistently frustrated by poor-to-non-existent technical service and thelack of computer spare parts.Industrial managers have few incentives to take risks associated with incorporating newtechnologies at the plant level.There is a critical shortage of computer programmers and other technical personnel.An additional problem in CMEA countries concerns the inadequate telecommunicationsinfrastructures. The systems are incomplete, technologically outdated and prone to breakdown. Theyare often inadequate in providing verbal communications links, let alone the types of data transfersassociated with modern IT (Heymann (1987)).Judy (1987) has noted that the Soviet software industry rivals the telecommunications industryfor its lack of effectiveness, and that the lag with the West in terms of software is comparativelygreater than the lag in hardware. CMEA countries often resort to pirating software from the West,although Hungary is a notable exception and usually pays for these products (Barker (1990)). Forlarge scale applications, industrial and military systems have received top priority and numerousdesign and implementation successes have been registered in areas such as CAD and DSS for centralplanning activities, although the quality of these systems still lags comparable projects in the West.Applications to process and control organizational and national data such as management informationsystems and automatic data processing systems have been less successful (Judy (1987); McHenry(1987); McHenry and Goodman (1986)).62.5 Computing in EstoniaBecause Estonia was well integrated into the Soviet and CMEA sphere, the IT experience inEstonia is typical for the region. Estonian factories, ministeries, schools and other organizations havereceived the same types of equipment as has been distributed elsewhere in Eastern Europe. The smallsize of Estonia necessarily precluded any sort of a major role in terms of developing or manufacturingcomputer technologies. However, Estonia has played a relatively significant role considering its size.The Institute of Cybernetics in Tallinn was established by the Soviet government as a majorresearch centre for computer science and artificial intelligence. This institute is one of only threesuch centres in the Union, the other two being in Russia and Ukraine. Both universities in Estonia(Tartu University and Tallinn Technical University) have extensive computer science programs, andalso teach courses in the use of information technology for non-specialists. The EstonianManagement Institute in Tallinn offers short courses to experienced managers that cover the area ofcomputing and information systems. These programs have resulted in considerable diffusion ofknowledge about computing in the Republic.Estonian schools and institutes have good contacts with the expatriate communities abroad,and have received considerable aid to help acquire new technologies. As an example, an Estonian-Canadian organization donated 90 IBM-ATs to Tartu University in 1991.' Tallinn TechnicalUniversity had received similar assistance the previous year. Estonian organizations have thus beenable to take advantage of contacts with the West that are simply not available to many of the otherRepublics. Recent estimates suggest that between 5,000 and 10,000 western PCs are in use inEstonia. A 1990 survey of computing in Estonian organizations indicated that approximately 36%I Vaba Eestlane. "Akadeemiline vahetus Toronto Ulikooliga." April 30, 1991. p.7.7of existing computers were bought with the help of foreign contacts . 22.6 The Future ViewThe recent political and economic changes in Eastern Europe have upset the traditional ITtrade arrangements and this will undoubtedly lead to significant restructuring of the computerindustry. Western manufacturers will likely supply many of the needs, and local producers will haveto increase the competitiveness of their products if they are to survive. However, the lack of fundsto pay for Western technology, as well as a desire to support past investments in locally producedsystems, may well result in continued support of the indigenous Eastern European computer industry.2 Estonian Independent. "Computer business in Estonia." May 30, 1991. p.3.8CHAPTER 3 - THE RESEARCH SITE: ESTONIA 3.1 IntroductionThe previous chapter discussed the topic of information technology in the CMEA andEstonia's integration into regional programs. Estonia is also a relatively typical Eastern Europeansetting in terms of economic development, recent political history and standard of living. The goalof this chapter is to provide a basic knowledge of Estonia so that the reader will be familiar with theresearch location. The various historical, political, socio-cultural and economic conditions that haveshaped modern Estonia will be investigated.Eastern Europe is comprised of dozens of distinct nationalities with widely divergent cultural,social, educational, political and economic histories. Although no study of IT issues conducted inthe region could ever claim to be completely representative, it is possible to find a setting whichallows for some generalizeability about the concerns of managers in Eastern Europe. It is suggestedthat Estonia is an appropriate location for such research. Estonia has been chosen as the researchsetting for two primary reasons. First, the researcher speaks the language and has numerousacademic and business contacts in the Republic. This makes it possible and practical to conduct on-site research. Second, the researcher believes that the setting is well-suited for exploring EasternEuropean IT issues since it provides a relatively representative perspective encompassing both Sovietand Central European views. 3.2 BackgroundEstonia is a small country, only slightly larger than Denmark, located in northern Europe andbounded by Russia and Latvia, as well as the Baltic Sea. As of 1989, there were 1.56 million9inhabitants, of which 62% were ethnic Estonians, 30% were Russian, and 8% belonged to othernationalities.' The capital is the ancient trading city of Tallinn, which has approximately one-thirdof the population and is the most important political, administrative, and commercial centre. Theuniversity town of Tartu in southern Estonia is another important centre.The Estonian language belongs to the Finno-Ugric linguistic group and is closely related toFinnish and more distantly to Hungarian. Estonian is not related to the Slavic, Germanic, andRomance languages common in Europe, that all belong to the Indo-European linguistic group.Culturally, Estonians are similar to the Finns, sharing a common folk tradition and history. As isthe case in neighbouring Scandinavia, the Lutheran religion predominates. Education has beenstressed in Estonian culture for many years; by the end of the nineteenth century, literacy approached98%, while in neighbouring Russia it was barely 20%. 4Estonia has a long history of domination by other nations; since the middle ages it has beengoverned by Denmark, Sweden, Poland, Germany and Russia. Independence was finally proclaimedin 1918 when the country broke away from the Russian Empire, which was preoccupied with theBolshevik revolution. The Soviet Union recognized Estonian independence in 1920 and renouncedall rights to the territory in perpetuity.'3.3 Independent EstoniaOnce independence was secured, Estonia began establishing Western Style politicalinstitutions. A constitution based on the Weimar, Swiss, French and U.S. models was approved by3 Rahva Hail. "Rahvastiku jaotus rahvuse ja keele jirgi." September 19, 1989. p.2.Aun, Karl. The Political Refugees. 1985. p.7.5 Raun, Toivo. Estonia and the Estonians. 1987. p.110.10June of 1920. It established the superiority of parliament (Riigikogu), which was to be elected everythree years by all men and women having reached 20 years of age. The state executive and cabinetwere chosen by the Assembly from within its own ranks.The political history of independent Estonia can be divided into two eras: a period of liberaldemocracy (1920-1934), and a period of moderate authoritarianism (1934-1939). The Republic wasstable through five elections from 1920 to 1932, electing predominantly centre or centre-rightgovernments.' By 1932, the effects of the world-wide depression were undermining the health ofthe Estonian economy, and parliament was paralysed by a lack of consensus on how to react,resulting in four changes of government in less than one year. Movements from both the extremeright and left began to agitate for drastic political change. Parliament reacted to this threat with anew constitution that granted additional powers to the executive, and a moderate-right Presidentnamed Konstantin Pats emerged from the Assembly. He invoked emergency powers, outlawedextremist groups and had 100 rightist leaders arrested. Under the mild authoritarianism of Pats, therewere no political executions and amnesties were eventually granted to those arrested.' Electionswere held during this period, but these should not be seen as fully democratic as some politicalparties remained outlawed. By 1938, the Republic appeared returning to stability and opendemocracy.While the Estonian experience with democracy in the interwar period cannot be seen ascompletely successful, it must be seen in the context of interwar Europe. The instability in the yearsleading up to World War II can be attributed to a deeply troubled world economy, and to theinsecurity and uncertainty associated with living between the two powerful, repressive andexpansionist regimes in Russia and Germany. In comparison to most other Central and Eastern6 Ibid. p.113.7 Vardys, Stanley and Romuald Misiunas. The Baltic States in Peace and War: 1917 - 1945. 1978. p.72.11European nations, the Estonian experience with democracy was moderate and favourable.In terms of socio-cultural variables, the interwar period allowed Estonia to establish itself asa liberal Western nation. Upon achieving independence, there were approximately 1.1 million peoplein Estonia and this remained almost constant over the time of independence due to low birth rates.Ethnic Estonians comprised approximately 88% of the total, with Russians accounting for 8% , andGermans, Swedes and Jews together totalling about 3%. 8 This made Estonia a relativelyhomogenous country by Eastern European standards. The 1920 Constitution separated religion fromthe state and churches became independent and purely voluntary organizations that did not play adominant role in society. Education at all levels continued to be stressed. Instruction at theUniversity of Tartu was now conducted in the Estonian language instead of in German, and a newpost-secondary technical school was established in Tallinn. Female participation in universities madeup 27% of the total. By the late 1920s there emerged an over-production of university graduates whosubsequently had trouble seeking employment.' Rights were also guaranteed for ethnic minorities;any group of at least 3,000 persons had the right to receive state funding to maintain their religious,educational and cultural institutions.' This policy benefitted the German, Russian, Swedish andJewish minorities which were able to establish state-funded schools.Upon achieving independence, Estonia was a predominantly agricultural society with manylarge landowners. Extensive land reform created 56,000 new family farms from large, private estatesand transformed Estonia into a predominantly middle class society. A modest compensation,including up to 50 ha was offered to the former owners." By 1930, 83% of the people working8 Raun, Toivo. Estonia and the Estonians. 1987. p.130.9 Aun, Karl. The Political Refugees. 1985. p.8.19 Vardys, Stanley and Romuald Misiunas. The Baltic States in Peace and War: 1917 - 1945. 1978. p.66.11 Aun, Karl. The Political Refugees. 1985. p.9.12in the agricultural industry were landowners or direct family members.' This established a traditionof private ownership and economic self-sufficiency that is quite distinct from the experience of mostnations in the Soviet Union.By the early 1930s, agricultural activities including forestry accounted for approximately 70%of net national production, while industry accounted for approximately 25% and transportationservices for the balance. However, industry and agriculture were of approximately equal importancefor international trade since much of the farm output was consumed domestically. The inter-warperiod saw the doubling of agricultural output in Estonia!' There was a consistent agricultural tradesurplus and a wide variety of items were exported including butter, eggs, milk, cereals, fruits,vegetables, meat, and cheese.Important industrial exports included textiles, processed foods, paper, chemicals, woodproducts and engineering. Estonia's overall trade account was generally balanced in the interwarperiod, with Great Britain, Germany, and the Scandinavian countries accounting for most of thetrade!' Once the effects of the depression passed, industrial development and output began toaccelerate. In particular the chemical industry, based on the extensive oil shale deposits innortheastern Estonia, received extensive investment from both the Estonian state and foreign Britishinvestors!' With the exception of the chemical and textile industries, and a few large producersin other sectors, Estonian industry was characterized by comparatively small-sized manufacturingconcerns. Estonia also developed Western financial services such as banks, insurance companies andinvestment houses to support continued industrial development. A relatively good road, rail and12 Pullerits, Albert. Estonia: Population, Cultural and Economic Life. 1935. p.63.13 Parming, TOnu and Elmar Firvesoo. A Case Study of a Soviet Republic: The Estonian SSR. 1978. p.132.14 Pullerits, Albert. Estonia: Population, Cultural and Economic Life. 1935. p.68.15 Raun, Toivo. Estonia and the Estonians. 1987. p.126.13communications infrastructure had also been built.The period of independence saw Estonia begin to mature in economic terms; contemporarybusiness practices were established and the free market system functioned relatively well. A largeand secure middle class shared in the general prosperity of the period, and a spirit of self-sufficiencyand entrepreneurialism became well entrenched.3.4 Soviet EstoniaEstonia was forcibly annexed by the Soviet Union in 1940, as part of the agreement betweenHitler and Stalin to partition Central Europe. By 1945, the population of Estonia had declined byat least 200,000 citizens, or 19% of its pre-war total. Approximately half of this number had fledWest, while the rest were either killed during the war or deported by Stalin. An additional 50,000to 80,000 civilians were deported in 1949 during the collectivization of Estonian agriculture.Additional banishments of 'bourgeois nationalists' totalling perhaps 3,000 occurred in 1950-51 andpolitical arrests continued for many years. The seriousness of these losses for Estonia was furtherexacerbated since these numbers included disproportionately high numbers of business, political,educational, artistic and other societal elites. From 1945 to 1988, the Estonian share of thepopulation shrank from 88% to 62% due largely to Russian immigration.' The political andeconomic institutions in Estonia were also radically transformed to correspond to Soviet norms.Private ownership and enterprise was outlawed and/or discouraged, and dissent was not tolerated.These demographic and political changes have had a number of important effects on Estoniansociety. There can be no doubt that the entrepreneurial and individualistic attitudes that developedin the inter-war period have been lessened, as has understanding of the market mechanism. In16 Rahva Hill. "Rahvastiku jaotus rahvuse ja keele järgi." September 19, 1989. p.2.14addition, Estonians felt culturally threatened during this period, resulting in an enhancement ofnationalist feelings. Despite five decades of Communist rule, the political and socio-cultural attitudesthat prevailed in Estonia were considerably more Western than in other Soviet Republics. This waspartly due to the experiences with independence, but also linked to the relatively high levels ofinteraction that continued with the West. The geographical location of Estonia, and the similarity ofthe language to Finnish, made it possible for people to follow Finnish radio and television. Inaddition, there are sizeable Estonian communities in Sweden, the United States and Canada thatprovided a connection for Western ideas and consumer goods that rarely penetrated deeper into theSoviet Union.In addition to the negative political and cultural legacy, the economic record of the Sovietperiod is also unfavourable. In 1939, Estonia had a per capita income slightly higher than Finlandwhile today, Finland is at least six times richer.' Soviet historians have argued that the Republicis better off in the Union, but there can be little doubt that the opportunity cost of such anarrangement has been very high for Estonia.The most important change to the Estonian economy in the post-war period was itsaccelerated transformation to an industrial and urban society. Soviet planners assigned the highestpriority to industrial development, and particularly to oil-shale mining, electricity generation, textilesand light industry. By 1960, industrial production had tripled over pre-war levels and had surpassedagriculture as the most important economic activity. By the mid-1970s, industry employed twice asmany people as agriculture and the country had become highly urbanized with 71% of the populationliving in cities. 18 Estonia became the world's largest producer of oil-shale, allowing it to rank third,after Canada and Norway, in per capita production of electricity. This energy was used to power17 Economist. "Survey of the Soviet Union." October 20, 1990. p.10.1g Panning, Tau and Elmar Jirvesoo. A Case Study of a Soviet Republic: The Estonian SSR. 1978. p.138.15Estonia and parts of Latvia and Russia, including the city of Leningrad. The development of thisparticular industry has caused significant environmental damage to portions of the northeastern cornerof Estonia.Index of Per CapitaCountry/Republic Per Capita GDP GDP (Estonia =100)Japan $23 325 853Finland 21 156 774Sweden 21 155 774USA 19 815 725Canada 18 834 689OECD AVERAGE 17 097 626East Germany 5 256 192Czechoslovakia 2 737 100ESTONIA 2 733 100Hungary 2 625 96Latvia 2 528 92Lithuania 2 343 86Yugoslavia 2 279 83Russia 2 261 83Bulgaria 2 217 81EASTERN EUROPEAN AVERAGE 2 162 79USSR (15 Republics) 2 055 75Ukraine 1 973 72Poland 1 719 63Romania 1 374 50Albania 1 102 40TABLE 1 - COMPARISON OF PER CAPITA GDP (1988) 19Agricultural production in Soviet Estonia dropped sharply after collectivization and did not19 Adapted from: Economist Book of World Statistics. 1990, p.124. and Study of the Soviet Economy. V.1, 1991, p.231.16recover to pre-war levels until the early 1960s.' However, labour productivity in agriculture wasstill among the highest in the USSR and shelves were better stocked in Estonia than in otherRepublics. By the mid-1970s stagnation in output began setting in, and occasional shortages ofcertain food products began appearing.While the Soviet system has had many negative effects on Estonia, there were some positivefactors as well. Since the mid-1960s, industrial development in Estonia was directed towards lightindustry and the manufacturing of consumer goods. The evolution of a strong industrial base withan emphasis on small manufacturing operations allowed Estonia to develop valuable experience insectors that are likely to provide growth in the re-transformation to a market economy. Additionally,the agricultural base is relatively intact, and the economy has not been burdened with many large,outdated, heavy industries as compared to other Republics. Estonian productivity also remainedhigher than the Soviet average, indicating a relatively skilled and motivated work force.Western analysts generally agree that Estonia maintained the highest standard of living of the15 Soviet Republics, but lagged behind areas in Eastern Europe such as eastern Germany andCzechoslovakia. In 1988, the per capita income of Estonia was 133% of the Soviet average. Table1 provides a comparison of per capita income (in US dollars) of various OECD and Eastern Europeancountries and Soviet republics.3.5 The Re-establishment of IndependenceIn the years since the emergence of Mikhail Gorbachev as the leader of the Soviet Union,Estonia has undergone significant economic, political and social changes. Events in the Republichave demonstrated that the population was deeply dissatisfied with the status quo, and there wasParming, Team and Elmar Jiirvesoo. A Case Study of a Soviet Republic: The Estonian SSR. 1978. p.144.17significant pressure for meaningful reforms. Unlike other Soviet leaders, Gorbachev demonstratedconsiderable desire and tolerance for change.Events in the Republic have indicated that Western style attitudes and beliefs are stillrelatively intact. Democratic reforms were welcomed by the population, and a new parliament waselected to attempt the restoration of independence. This government had the support of virtually allEstonians, as well as a majority of ethnic Russians; a poll conducted in August of 1990 found that80% of the people approve of the current leadership.' However, a sizeable minority of the Russianpopulation did not support Estonian sovereignty and this has lead to strikes and some political unrest.Estonian tactics for attaining independence were somewhat less confrontational than those adoptedby the Lithuanian parliament. Instead of a bold declaration of independence, Estonia adopted astatement of intent to secede. There was also a greater emphasis on economic reforms andmaintaining good relations with neighbouring republics.Estonia set up its own police force and border guard units to try to stem the drain of food andconsumer goods into other Republics and this action was accepted by Moscow.' The Estoniangovernment also unilaterally ended food subsidies, successfully issued its own savings bonds, set upits own state bank and made plans to introduce a free market currency.' While regulation of thebusiness and foreign investment environments is less advanced than in Poland, Hungary orCzechoslovakia, Estonia is considerably ahead of the rest of the Soviet Union.Business interest and investment in Estonia has also outpaced other areas of the USSR. By1990, 109 joint-ventures with foreign companies had been set up in the Republic, and this comprised21 Estonian Independent. "Estonian leaders enjoy firm support, poll says." Sept. 6, 1990. p.3.n Globe and Mail. "Estonian moves challenge integrity of Soviet Union." Nov. 13, 1990. p.A7.23 Globe and Mail. "Escaping the Soviet economic whirlpool." Nov. 16, 1990. p.B29.186.7% of the Soviet total.' Considering that the Republic had only about 0.5% of the total Sovietpopulation, Estonia has been comparatively very successful at beginning the transition to a marketeconomy. Finns, Swedes and expatriate Estonians are the groups that have shown the most interestto date in terms of establishing joint-ventures.In August 1991, the attempted coup on Mikhail Gorbachev caused the Estonian parliamentto declare immediate independence from the Soviet Union in a bid to avoid a repressive new regime.The coup attempt eventually failed but the power and legitimacy of the Soviet central government hadbeen weakened; Western countries seized this opportunity and extended diplomatic recognition to thethree Baltic Republics. In September 1991 the Soviet central government agreed to recognize the fullindependence of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, thus ending 50 years of forceful occupation. Not asingle death occurred over the course of the struggle to re-establish independence in Estonia,suggesting that tolerance and social stability are still a part of the national fabric.The likelihood of eventual economic prosperity seems quite high in Estonia? The historyof a market economy, a high level of skills and education, a demonstrated ability to adopt reformsquickly, and a culture and geography close to the West are elements in Estonia's favour. Thesefactors make the economic prognosis for Estonia unlike much of the Soviet Union, and closer to thepotential of Hungary or Czechoslovakia. In recent years, Estonia had been at the forefront ofeconomic reforms in the Soviet Union, but it has lagged behind developments in some of the fullyindependent Eastern European countries; it will be interesting to see whether the newfoundindependence will accelerate the rate of reforms.24 Study of the Soviet Economy. Vol. 2, Table W.4.7. 1991. p.104.25 Fortune. "Opportunity in the Baltics." October 21, 1991. p. 68.19CHAPTER 4 - REVIEW OF PREVIOUS ISSUES RESEARCH4.1 IntroductionVarious studies have been conducted over the last ten years to identify issues of importanceto MIS managers. Researchers elicited and investigated the concerns and priorities of practitionersto develop a better understanding of their needs. These studies also helped shape the direction ofMIS research, as consultants and academics focused their efforts on addressing the various concerns.In addition to identifying priorities and directing resources, issues research has been useful at trackingthe evolution and progress of the information systems community.While considerable research has been done to identify issues of importance to North AmericanMIS managers, very little is known about managerial perspectives from other parts of the globe. Inrecent years researchers have begun to explore other settings and studies have now been conductedin Australia, Singapore and the United Kingdom. To date there have been no studies conducted inan Eastern European environment. The research conducted in these studies provides a soundtheoretical base for future issues research. There has been some variability in results between thevarious studies due to research location, year of study and methodological differences, but there isalso considerable consistency in the issues that keep reappearing in the top ten list. Most of thechanges from study to study occur in the form of revised orderings in the top ten list, indicatingshifting priorities and concerns in the IS managerial community as the MIS discipline evolves. Theforthcoming sections present a chronological review of these studies. Note that the given dates referto the year of publication and not data collection times, which are typically a year earlier.204.2 Ball & Harris (1982)The first significant attempt to identify issues of importance to IT managers was conductedby Ball & Harris in 1982. Their primary purpose was to gather information on the membership ofthe Society for Management Information Systems. A questionnaire was mailed to each of theSociety's 1400 members and resulted in a 30% response rate. Individuals were asked to completea detailed demographic profile of themselves, and also to rate 18 pre-defined issues on a 6 pointLikert scale so that means and standard deviations could be calculated for each issue. The issueswere then ranked from most important to least important based on the mean score. No additionalsignificance testing of the results was attempted.Table 2 summarizes the top ten issues as identified by Ball & Harris. A revised rankingscheme grouping issues that were not significantly different from each other is also provided. Notethat two sample t-tests were conducted on subsequent pairs of issues; 95% confidence level was used.Revised B & HRanking Ranking IssueMeanScoreStandardDeviation1 1 MIS Long Range Planning 5.13 1.081 2 Gauging MIS Effectiveness 5.01 1.093 3 Impact of Communications on MIS 4.67 1.113 4 Developing Role of the IS Manager 4.59 1.285 5 Decision Support Systems 4.43 1.315 6 Office of the Future Management 4.39 1.355 7 Employee Training and Career Path 4.35 1.315 8 Education of non-MIS management 4.35 1.395 9 Centralization vs Decentralization 4.29 1.345 10 Employee Job Satisfaction 4.29 1.35TABLE 2 - TOP ISSUES: BALL & HARRIS (1982)21This study had a number of weaknesses. It did not provide opportunities for respondents toadd issues which they might have felt were important, but that were not on the original list. Thewording of the issues and a lack of issue clarification by way of an issue rationale may have alsobiased some of the results. Finally, as noted above, no statistical testing on the significance levelswas provided. The Ball & Harris study is noteworthy because it marked the first attempt to identifyMIS concerns. It also alerted the research community to some of the more important issues, and laida foundation from which subsequent work could evolve.4.3 Martin (1982)A study by Martin appeared in the literature soon after the work by Ball & Harris. Martinused a technique developed by Rockart (1979) to identify the Critical Success Factors of senior ISexecutives. He asked the fifteen participants in the study to identify the factors that 'must go rightin order for the manager to be successful.'The study began by asking each participant to write out their critical success factors and thishad the advantage of not directing or biasing the responses as might have occurred in the Ball &Harris work. The responses were then tabulated, and the results returned to each manager for anopportunity to revise the factors after considering the collective group response. Eight of the fifteenmanagers revised their initial lists during this second iteration. Table 3 itemizes the most importantfactors, and indicates how many of the fifteen managers listed each in their responses.The study concluded that the first six of these factors are important to most MIS/DPorganizations. Direct comparisons with the Ball & Harris study are difficult because the CSFs aremore general in nature and may each encompass a number of sub-issues. The small sample size offifteen managers also limits confidence in any general inferences to the overall MIS community.22Nevertheless, Martin's study is important because it was the first to use more than one iteration inthe process enabling movement towards a consensus on the most important factors.Critical Success Factors Cited By1 Systems Development 142 Data Processing Operations 133 Human Resource Development 114 Management Control of the MIS/DP Organization 115 Relationships with the Management of Parent Organization 116 Support of Objectives/Priorities of Parent Organization 117 Management of Change 78 Other Factors 8TABLE 3 - TOP ISSUES: MARTIN (1982)4.4 Dickson, Leitheiser, Nechis & Wetherbe (1984)This group of researchers from the University of Minnesota felt that both the Ball & Harrisand Martin studies had certain methodological strengths which could be combined in a singlecomprehensive study. The scope of the issues identified by Ball & Harris were useful because theywere quite specific, yet the allowance for feedback and revision employed by Martin was also veryimportant. Dickson et al. decided to employ the Delphi approach to establish a definitive list ofissues of concern to MIS managers. Specifically, they set out to answer the following questions:1/ What are the top 10 IS issues as seen by IS professionals?2/ What is the order of importance of these issues?3/ How much agreement is there on this issues list?The Delphi technique requires several rounds so that the issues can be identified and ranked. Withincreasing iterations, it is also likely that a consensus will begin to emerge as managers educate and23inform each other. This study went through four rounds, with the number of participants varyingbetween 52 to 102.The authors measured the strength of each issue based on a mean ranking out of ten for eachissue; participants had been asked to allocate a 10 to the most important issue, 9 to the second mostimportant, and so on. Consensus was measured by the standard deviations for each issue, and alsoby the width of the inter-quartile range. Finally, the percentage of participants who ranked the issueamong the top ten was also tracked. Table 4 summarizes the results of the study after the lastiteration had been completed.Rank Issue Mean Sdev TopTen1 Improved IS Planning 9.1 1.5 100%2 Facilitation of End user computing 7.4 2.1 1003 Integration of data processing, office automation, telecommunications 6.4 2.4 984 Improved Software development and quality 6.0 2.6 935 Measuring and Improving IS effectiveness and productivity 5.3 3.0 896 Facilitation of organizational learning and usage of IS technologies 4.7 2.6 897 Aligning the IS organization with that of the enterprise 3.7 2.8 818 Specification, recruitment and development of IS human resources 2.3 2.0 769 Effective use of the organization's data resources 2.2 2.3 7010 Development and Implementation of decision support systems 1.5 2.1 65TABLE 4 - TOP ISSUES: DICKSON ET AL. (1984)In the first round, the participants were asked to identify and describe between five and tenof their most important IS issues. The researchers received 52 responses which they combined intoa list of 19 key issues and rationales. In rounds two through four, the 19 item list was sent out andrevised according to comments received. By the end of the second iteration, the top ten issues andtheir ordering had become quite stable with very few changes in subsequent rounds. However, theremaining rounds were useful because there was a clear trend towards a consensus because thestandard deviations and widths of the inter-quartile range continued to decrease. In round four there24were 54 respondents, and the final results are based on these. It should be noted that regardless ofwhether the issues are ranked using means or medians, the ordering remains the same except that tiesemerge for 3rd and 8th place.As in the Ball & Harris study, the authors chose not to do any statistical tests to determinewhether the issues were significantly different from each other. There are a series of complicatingfactors in this methodology that make the relevance of such tests questionable and thus notworthwhile. Firstly, the assumption of normally distributed populations is once again tenuousbecause the issues are rated on a ten point scale by the participants. In addition, the point allocationsare not independently distributed because only the top ten issues are ranked, with each issue receivingan ordered ranking from 10 for the most important issue, down to 1 for the least important issue.Furthermore, the use of multiple iterations might have an effect on both the normality andindependence of the samples. Finally there is the issue of which iteration should be tested forsignificant differences because the rankings remain virtually unchanged while the number ofparticipants varies considerably.The Dickson study established a sound methodology for conducting issues research and itidentified a specific list of concerns shared by a large group of MIS managers.4.5 Arthur Andersen & Co. (1986)The Arthur Andersen consulting firm conducted a study of 120 senior MIS executives fromFortune 500 companies to try to elicit their concerns. The goal of the study was to develop a profileof the MIS executive, his/her position, and the organizational roles of information technology. Thestudy essentially consisted of two parts: an unaided questionnaire where participants were free toexpress their concerns, and an aided survey where 22 pre-defined issues were rated on a scale. The25two parts were administered within the same questionnaire, and there was no opportunity to revisethe format or content of the instrument after the study had begun.The unaided part of the survey generated a wide variety of responses but no clear consensusor series of issues dominated the findings. Many of the issues that had been identified in the Dicksonstudy also surfaced here, but there was little indication of the relative priorities of the issues sincemanagers cited a wide variety of challenges.The second part of the study presented a list of 22 issues and asked respondents to rate theimportance of each on a five point scale ranging from 'not important at all' to 'very important'. Thiswas similar in approach to the Ball & Harris study and is subject to the same weaknesses. Nostatistical details on the results were disclosed, other than the percentage of all respondents rating anissue as either 'somewhat or very important.' The top ten issues rated in this manner are shown inTable 5.Rank Issue Percentage1 Facilitating/Managing End User Computing 76%2 Translating IT into Competitive Advantage 723 Having Top Management understand needs of MIS 694 Measuring/Improving MIS/DP Productivity/Effectiveness 665 Keeping Current with Technology Changes 636 Managing Information Resources 637 Integration 628 Data Security and Control 599 Impact of New Technology 5610 Training and Education of DP Personnel 55TABLE 5 - TOP ISSUES: ARTHUR ANDERSEN & CO. (1986)The primary contribution of the Arthur Andersen study was to confirm that many of the issues thatwere identified in previous research are ongoing concerns to MIS managers.264.6 Hartog & Herbert (1986a); Hartog & Herbert (1986b)Hartog & Herbert were involved in two studies of MIS issues published in 1986. The firststudy obtained opinions from over 100 St. Louis area MIS managers (1986a) while the follow-upresearch had a nationwide focus and targeted IT professionals at Fortune 1000 companies (1986b).In the first study, Hartog & Herbert referred to the previous work of Ball & Harris, Martin,and Dickson et al. to develop a list of issues. In addition, twelve 'experts' were used as consultantsto refine the list and to add emerging issues such as telecommunications deregulation and expertsystems to the group. Once the resulting list of 21 issues was finalized, questionnaires were sent to107 representative companies, and 63 companies responded. Note that some organizations submittedmore than one response. The questionnaire asked that each issue be rated on a four point scaleranging from 'not important' to 'extremely important'; this method is similar to Ball & Harris andallows a ranking to be calculated for each issue. After the return of the questionnaire, follow-upinterviews were held with some of the participants to help the researchers to better understand therationales and concerns of the managers.In general, the findings of Hartog & Herbert are similar to the Dickson study with many ofthe same issues receiving emphasis. Table 6 summarizes the top ten issues.Rank Issues Importance Score1 Planning 3.42 Aligning MIS with Business Goals 3.33 Software Development 3.34 Data Utilization 3.35 End User Computing 3.16 Data Security 3.17 Integration of Technologies 3.18 Educating Senior Personnel 3.09 Quality Assurance 2.910 Telecommunications Technology 2.8TABLE 6 - TOP ISSUES: HARTOG & HERBERT (1986a)27As in the Ball & Harris study, the ranking of these issues is probably not statisticallysignificant in some cases. For instance, items two through four seem not to differ enough to justifysuch an explicit ordering. However, the authors do not provide us with standard deviations or theexact number of responses, and thus testing this hypotheses is not possible.In addition to developing this list of important issues, Hartog & Herbert make an additionalimportant contribution because they tried to understand the underlying themes in the top issues. Theyconcluded that these issues are dominated by two main themes: MIS planning and alignment, andcontrolling the technical and managerial pressures created by end-user computing. They go on to usefactor analysis to group issues into categories and they identified four classifications of interest. Thegroupings that emerged, and the number of issues that fell into each, are:1/ planning/management (6)2/ telecommunications (3)3/ users (5)4/ data (5)5/ other (4)It should be noted that two of the issues fell into more than one category.The second study undertaken by Hartog & Herbert used the same questionnaire format as wasemployed in the St. Louis research, although two additional questions were included. A total of1,500 questionnaires were sent to 'key' managers at Fortune 1000 companies, and 600 were returnedresulting in an impressive response rate of 40%.The results of this survey differed somewhat from the St. Louis study despite themethodological similarity. The ordering of important issues was considerably different although mostof the important issues identified in the earlier study again appeared in the top ten. Exceptions to thisare the issues of 'data security' and 'end-user computing' which dropped down to be replaced by the'productivity' and 'office automation' issues. A number of reasons have been advanced to explainthe disparity. Perhaps St. Louis area managers are different from their national counterparts, or the28different sample sizes and slightly revised questionnaire could have affected the results. Finally, thechanges in ordering may have been expected since the original ordering was likely not statisticallysignificant. These findings suggest that attempts to identify the ordering of important issues may besomewhat questionable in such research, although the various studies have been quite consistent inidentifying the overall group of the ten most important issues.4.7 Brancheau & Wetherbe (1987)These researchers undertook to replicate the Dickson et al. (1984) study by using the Delphitechnique to rank issues. They were interested in updating the findings since three years had elapsedfrom the time of the earlier study, and this is a relatively long period of time in the IT profession.Their methodology was very similar to the Dickson work except that they undertook onlythree rounds of the study. In the first round, they asked participants to contribute any issues whichthey felt might of concern, but they also provided a list of past issues that had consistently beenranked as important; this differs from the Dickson study where the first round questionnaire merelysolicited the issues. Again, the issues were ranked directly from one to ten, instead of using a ratingscale as in the Hartog & Herbert study. The researchers also included a group of general managersin the survey so that their responses could be compared to IS managers.As would be expected, Brancheau & Wetherbe found that the ordering of the issues hadchanged in the three years since the Dickson study. In addition, three new issues emerged into thetop ten list. Interestingly, there was perfect consensus between the IS and general managers on whatthe top ten issues should be, although they disagreed on the order. The rankings are given inTable 7.Brancheau & Wetherbe used Kendall's coefficient of concordance (W) to test the level of29agreement on the final rankings. They reported that W increased over the three iterations in thestudy, implying movement towards consensus. By the end of the third round, W was calculated tobe 0.618 and this was statistically significant at p < 0.001. Note that W ranges from '0' signifyingno agreement, to '1' which indicates perfect agreement. As in the Dickson study, standard deviationsof subsequent rounds also decreased, providing alternative evidence of increasing consensus.IS GMRank Rank IssueIS Round 3Mean Sdev TopTen1 1 Strategic Planning 8.6 2.6 96%2 2 Competitive Advantage (new) 7.4 2.5 943 3 Organizational Learning 7.0 2.2 984 5 IS Role and Contribution (new) 6.6 3.0 935 7 Alignment in Organization 4.9 2.9 876 6 End User Computing 3.8 2.5 857 8 Data as a Corporate Resource 3.6 2.6 788 9 Information Architecture (new) 2.9 2.7 769 4 Measuring Effectiveness 2.6 2.8 6010 10 Integrating Information Technologies 2.2 2.2 68TABLE 7 - TOP ISSUES: BRANCHEAU & WETHERBE (1987)As in the Hartog & Herbert study, Brancheau & Wetherbe recognize that there are someunderlying themes to the issues; they broadly categorize them into management/enterprise relatedproblems, and technology/application related problems. They noted that the trend in the years sincethe Dickson study is for the managerial issue types to become relatively more important.4.8 Rao, Huff & Davis (1987)This team of researchers appear to be the first to investigate MIS issues of importance in anon-North American setting; Singapore served as the research site for this survey of 19 senior MIS30managers. The methodology parallels the approach created for the Arthur Andersen survey.Participants were first asked open-ended questions designed to elicit the most important issues, andthen each participant was asked to rate a given list of issues. Specific methodological details suchas descriptions of the instruments used and rationales for study procedures were not disclosed. Theresearchers also did extensive comparisons of their findings to the Arthur Andersen results from theUnited States. Table 8 shows the top issues from both the Singapore and USA studies to facilitatecomparisons.SingaporeRank IssueUSAPercentage Rank1 Measuring/Improving MIS/DP Productivity/Effectiveness 94 42 Facilitating/Managing End User Computing 79 13 Keeping Current with Technology Changes 74 54 Integration 68 75 Training and Education of DP Personnel 63 106 Data Security and Control 63 87 Disaster Recovery Planning 63 128 Translating IT into Competitive Advantage 63 29 Having Top Management understand needs of MIS 63 310 Impact of New Technology 58 9TABLE 8 - TOP ISSUES: RAO, HUFF & DAVIS (1987)Interestingly, the strategic planning issue, which has been deemed very important in mostother MIS issues studies, did not arise in the open-ended sections of the questionnaire and was alsonot included for measurement in the structured section; no explanation is provided by the authoursfor this peculiarity.4.9 Graham (1988); Dexter, Graham & Huff (1990)As part of a Master's thesis project, Graham, along with co-researchers Dexter and Huff,31attempted to discover whether the priorities of Canadian managers were different from their Americancounterparts, and also to investigate how the various research methodologies affected the results. Thestudy was carried out in Vancouver with members of the local IS community.A five part questionnaire was used in the research with the first part asking for generaldemographic data and parts two through five investigating the issues. Part two asked respondentsto list their top three issues (unaided), while the remaining three sections presented lists of 29 issuesand asked for level of importance (rating), rank of importance, and level of agreement respectively.A total of 603 questionnaires were sent out with 257 responses received for a response rate of 43%.The researchers used Spearman Rank correlation tests to investigate the relationships betweenthe rankings. They found that the there was a highly significant relationship (p < 0.006) betweenthe aided and unaided methodologies. They also confirmed a high degree of consistency betweenranking and rating methodologies and concluded that the two methodologies give consistent results(p < 0.001). Although the methodologies give significantly similar results, it is still possible forindividual issues to vary from one method to another.GrahamRank 88 IssueDicksonRank 84HartogRank 86BrancheauRank 871 Planning 1 5 12 Data Management 8 2 53 Integration of Technologies 3 6 74 Data Security 12 9 115 Software Development 4 4 106 End User Computing 2 10 47 Educating Senior Personnel 13 3 28 Measuring Productivity 5 13 69 Office Automation 10 8 1210 Telecommunications Technology 11 7 811 Organizational Learning 6 1 312 Decision Support Systems 9 12 1313 Recruiting and Training 7 11 9TABLE 9 - TOP ISSUES: GRAHAM (1988)32Table 9 summarizes the findings in the Dexter, Graham & Huff study; note that the finalrankings are aggregations of the individual ratings using the various methodologies. To facilitatecomparisons, the results from the other major studies are repeated here as well.Graham and Dexter also conducted a factor analysis to see if the list of issues could bereduced to a shortened group of major themes. They identified a number of primary groupings,although 7 of the 29 issues did not load into any of these:1/ IS Quality and Performance (6)2/ Strategic Issues (5)3/ End User Computing (3)4/ Integration of Technologies (3)5/ Software Development (2)6/ Data and Architecture (4)7/ Other (7)One of the issues fell into more than on category, and this accounts for the total not summing to the29 issues.) Many of these classifications are similar to the major themes identified in the Hartog &Herbert study, although they grouped the items into fewer categories.4.10 Index Group (1988)American and European readers of the Index Group publication Indications were sentquestionnaires asking them to rate 20 pre-defined issues. This study was a single-round study andno opportunity was allowed for revising or adding new issues. Participants were typically senior ISmanagers, with over half being the highest-ranking IS executive in their organization. 553 Americansand 75 Europeans responded to the mail questionnaire, resulting in response rates of I 1 % in the USand 4% in Europe. It is unclear whether the European respondents were strictly from the UnitedKingdom or also from the mainland since the terms Europe and UK are used interchangeably. Thelow response rates are a potential shortcoming of the research as it is difficult to know whether the33respondents were representative of the underlying populations. This appears to be one of the firstattempts to study a European environment.One of the most interesting findings is that American and UK/European IS managers seemto have very similar priorities. The top ten issues in Europe and the corresponding Americanrankings are presented in Table 10.Rank RankIssue UK/Europe USAIS Strategic Planning 1 2Aligning IS and Corporate Goals 2 1Educating Senior Mngmnt of IS Role 3 3Using IS for Competitive Advantage 4 4Developing and Information Architecture 5 5Determining Appropriate IS Funding Level 6 10IS Human Resources 7 8Managing Organizational Change 8 9Telecomuunications 9 15Integrating Systems 10 6TABLE 10 - TOP ISSUES: INDEX GROUP (1988)4.11 Watson (1989); Watson & Brancheau (1991)The first attempt to utilize the Delphi methodology for issues research in a non-NorthAmerican environment was undertaken by Watson in Australia. This study essentially followed theprocedures established by the Dickson et al. (1984) and Brancheau & Wetherbe (1987) although twoimportant methodological modifications were introduced. Firstly, participants were asked to rate,rather than rank, each issue as this is less taxing mentally. Secondly, participants who failed torespond to any particular iteration were still included in future iterations so that response rates couldbe improved. The study had three rounds, with the number of participants ranging from 48 to 55per round.34Watson went on to compare his findings to American and European research conductedpreviously by Brancheau & Wetherbe (1987) and the Index Group (1988) respectively. Watson'sfindings are presented in Table 11.1989 RankAustralia Issue1987 RankUSA1988 RankUK/Europe1 Improving IS Strategic Planning 1 12 IS Human Resources 12 73 Developing an Information Architecture 8 54 Quality of Software Development 13 145 Aligning IS Organization and Enterprise 5 26 Understanding Role/Contribution of IS 4 37 IS for Competitive Advantage 2 48 Facilitating/Managing End-User Computing 6 149 Effective Use of the Data Resource 7 1210 Organizational Learning 3 8TABLE 11 - TOP ISSUES: WATSON (1989)As a continuation of this work on international MIS issues, Watson co-authoured an articlewith James Brancheau which added the Singaporean study into the comparative analysis (Watson &Brancheau (1991)). The authours concluded that the UK/European, American and Australian ISmanagers had shown a reasonable level of agreement on the most critical issues, but IS managersfrom Singapore had a considerably different view. The divergence could be due to the influence oflocal business culture and the relatively smaller size of Singaporean organizations.4.12 Silk (1989); Silk (1990)David Silk conducted two studies at the Henley Management College in the United Kingdom.Established managers from a variety of backgrounds come to this institution to update and improve35their knowledge of management techniques. Silk asked groups of managers involved in the programto indicate the issues of information management that are of concern to them. The research was firstconducted with 268 managers, and then repeated a year later with with a new group of 401 managers.The results of the two studies were very similar and are presented in Table 12.Issue 1989 Rank 1990 RankThe Impact of IS on the Organization 1 1Linking Information and Business Strategies 2 3Maintaining the Security of Electronic Data 3 2Managing the IS Function 4 5Justifying IS Investment 5 4TABLE 12 - TOP ISSUES: SILK (1990)There are a number of potential problems with this study, making it difficult to drawconclusions and compare results with prior research. Firstly, only 5% of the participants were ITprofessionals, with the rest coming from other functions. Secondly, the data was gathered after thestudents had taken an IS course, meaning that the issues raised were quite possibly a function ofexposure to the material.4.13 Deans, Karwan, Goslar, Ricks & Toyne (1991)Deans et al. conducted a two stage survey investigating the concerns of IS executivesmanaging the IS function in an international context. In particular they attempted to identify the keyinternational issues facing US-based multinational corporations. The methodology used was similarto that used by Hartog & Herbert. The first stage involved creating a questionnaire that listed aseries of issues gathered from various issues studies and the international literature. This36questionnaire was then sent to the senior IS executive at 588 US-based international companies, and31% eventually responded to the survey. The second stage of the study involved a series of extendedtelephone interviews with selected respondents; 26 executives participated in this stage, helping theresearchers to understand the issues more fully. The most important IS issues as seen by internationalIS executives are presented in Table 13.Rank Issue1 Educating Senior Personnel2 Data Security3 Integration of Technologies4 (tie) End-User Computing4 (tie) Price and Quality of Telecommunications6 International Protocal Standards7 Use of IT for Competitive Advantage8 Data Utilization9 Telecommunications Deregulation10 Changes in Telecommunications TechnologyTABLE 13 - TOP ISSUES: DEANS ET AL. (1991)This study revealed that a multinational perspective on IS issues was quite distinct fromdomestic concerns. In particular, telecommunications issues were of greater concern, with threeaspects of this problem ranking in the top ten issues.4.14 Alpar & Ein-Dor (1991)Alpar & Ein-Dor investigated IS issues specifically from the perspective of 636 small,entrepreneurial firms. Comparisons of this work to previous research is difficult since the targetgroup of companies, methodology and issue classification scheme are each unique. They used asimple unstructured questionnaire which asked participants to describe their 'major concerns withrespect to the use of computers in the firm.' Once the responses were received, the concerns were37classified by the authours into several general concerns. Small companies were found to have manyconcerns that differ considerably from those of larger IT organizations; the results are presented inTable 14.Rank Cited By Issue1 11.6% Reliability2 9.1 System Quality3 8.9 Change4 8.6 Cost5 7.6 Development6 6.7 Integration7 6.5 Control8 5.5 People9 4.2 Data Management10 (tie) 3.2 Hardware10 (tie) 3.2 SoftwareTABLE 14 - TOP ISSUES: ALPAR & EIN-DOR (1991)OverallRank Issue1 Long Range/Strategic IS Planning2 Aligning IS with the Organization3 Organizational Learning/Educating Senior Management4 Measuring IS Effectiveness and Productivity5 Data as a Corporate Resource6 Increase Understanding of IS Role/Contribution7 End User Computing/Computing Centres8 Technology Integration9 Office Automation10 Software DevelopmentTABLE 15 - ALPAR & EIN-DOR'S SYNTHESIS OF PREVIOUS STUDIESIn addition to the research on small-company IS concerns, Alpar & Ein-Dor attempted anextensive synthesis of previous issues studies (Ball & Harris (1980); Dickson et al. (1984); Hartog& Herbert (1986a); Brancheau & Wetherbe (1987)). By categorizing issues into groups of similarconcerns and standardizing original scores, they were able to identify the most consistently important38issues in North America. The top ten issues in North America according to this synthesis arepresented below in Table 15. These ten issues provided an appropriate basis for the most importantNorth American issues and were therefore included in the Estonia study to facilitate comparisons.4.15 Niederman, Brancheau & Wetherbe (1991)This North American Delphi study was an update of the work originated by Dickson et al.(1984), and previously updated by Brancheau & Wetherbe (1987). The two methodologicalmodifications of rating, rather than ranking issues, and including non-respondents in subsequentrounds, as introduced in Watson's (1988) Australia study, were also used in this research. The studyhad three rounds, with the number of participants ranging from 104 to 126 per round.The research showed that many of the priorities of MIS managers had shifted over theprevious three and six year periods; the results are shown in Table 16.1991 Rank 1987 Rank 1984 RankNiederman Issue Brancheau Dickson 1 Developing an Information Architecture 8 na2 Effective Use of the Data Resource 7 93 Improving IS Strategic Planning 1 14 IS Human Resources 12 85 Organizational Learning 3 66 IT Infrastructure na na7 Aligning IS Organization and Enterprise 5 78 IS for Competitive Advantage 2 na9 Quality of Software Development 13 410 Telecommunications System 11 13TABLE 16 - TOP ISSUES: NIEDERMAN ET AL. (1991)It should also be noted that the Niederman et al. (1991) study provided the primarymethodological basis for the Estonian study.39CHAPTER 5 - RESEARCH QUESTIONS AND METHODOLOGY5.1 Research Questions0 The previous chapters provide background information on previous issues studies, theresearch site and the state of Eastern European information technology. In order to proceed with theinvestigation of IS issues of importance in Estonia, it is necessary to formalize the specific researchobjectives. This section outlines and discusses the research questions for this project.The primary research questions are:What are the top information systems issues as seen by IS professionals in an EasternEuropean organizational and technological environment?What is the order of importance of these issues?How much agreement is there on this issues list?How do these priorities compare with the various North American findings, and findingselsewhere? What are the similarities and differences?The first three of these questions parallel the motivations of the Dickson et al. (1984) study.The fourth question attempts to reconcile the concerns of managers in an Eastern European settingwith their counterparts in North America and elsewhere. Since there is considerable agreement inthe North American literature on the top issues (although perhaps not their ordering), it is ofparticular interest to see if these issues are also relevant to managers in Estonia.Numerous researchers (Goodman (1984),(1987); Judy (1987); Nyren (1987)) have noted thattechnological developments and applications in Eastern Europe tend to lag progress in the West bysome five to fifteen years. This factor, coupled with the distinctive economic and organizationalsettings of Eastern European enterprises, suggests that many of the concerns faced by local ISmanagers will differ from those of their counterparts in North America; it is expected that there willbe a set of unique issues that are a function of the Eastern European environment. However, it isalso likely that there will be a set of common concerns stemming from the shared experiences ofmanaging information technology.The findings of the Estonian study will be compared to recent North American studies(Niederman et al. (1991)), and to earlier work (Dickson et al. (1984); Brancheau & Wetherbe(1987)). Additional studies from Europe (Index Group (1988)) and Australia (Watson (1989)) willalso be considered.5.2 Selection of MethodologyNumerous investigators in the field of IS issues research have noted that the methodologicalapproach used has some effect on the findings of the study, although this effect is thought to be minor(Hartog & Herbert (1986); Brancheau & Wetherbe (1987); Dexter et al. (1990); Alpar & Ein-Dor(1991)). This variance due to methodology can be attributed to factors such as ranking versus ratingissues, multiple iterations resulting in subject change, social desirability response, and artifacts suchas instructional wording or questionnaire design. Dexter et al. (1990) have called for the adoptionof a single methodology so that results can be directly compared.The strategy employed by many of the leading issues studies has been the Delphi approach(Dickson et al. (1984); Brancheau & Wetherbe (1987); Watson (1989); Niederman et al. (1991)) andthere are currently additional studies of this form underway in various countries. Using the Delphiapproach to investigate MIS issues in Estonia would thus have the important advantage of having aseries of studies available for the comparison of findings, and possibly a number of forthcomingstudies as well. The Delphi approach therefore has the distinct advantage of allowing the researcher41to control for methodology, thus strengthening claims that any differences observed between Estoniaand North America are solely a function of the environment. No other approach can offer theseadvantages.Using a Delphi study for this research project is appropriate for the following reasons:Allows for an open ended first round questionnaire, thus facilitating unbiased solicitation ofviews from the Estonian IS community and identification of new issues. This provides aninitial database of objective information that can be used on its own to prepare an analysissimilar to the Alpar & Ein-Dor (1991) study.Allows for the integration of new issues with previously identified concerns, therebyfacilitating rating the issues and identifying the most important concerns. It also gathersinformation on Estonian perspectives on important North American issues.The methodology emphasizes feedback in subsequent rounds which encourages reflection anda movement towards consensus. A greater depth of insight is facilitated by multiple rounds.Maintains the anonymity and privacy of participants, thereby allowing each to have equalinfluence, and avoids conflict and social pressures that might surface in the relatively smallEstonian IS communityThe Delphi approach provides a good general fit with the research objectives. Each previousDelphi study has been similar in approach, but minor variations are often necessary to achieveresearch goals, and to match a particular setting. The forthcoming section will undertake a briefoverview of the Delphi methodology and decribe general details related to conducting the study inEstonia. Specific details of study procedures are left to future sections.5.3 Delphi Methodology and Estonia - An OverviewThe Delphi approach requires several iterations of questionnaire completions by the study'sparticipants. In the first round, an unaided questionnaire to solicit issues of concern is used since it42does not bias or lead the participants in any way. Once the first round questionnaires have beenreturned, the responses will be analyzed to isolate the primary issues of concern to Estonianmanagers. This analysis requires some degree of judgement to interpret and classify the responsesso it is desireable that it be carried out by two or more researchers working independently. Theresults can then be compared and any differences reconciled through discussion. The unstructurednature of the first round will likely make this the most difficult and time consuming iteration in thestudy. To reduce turnaround time, this round will seek to solicit views from 8 to 10 participants whoare judged highly knowledgeable about the Estonian IT environment. To enhance overall confidencein our ability to identify all of the important Estonian MIS issues, the study will also make use ofsupplementary techniques. These are described more completely in the 'Instrument Development'section which follows below.The analysis of the first iteration results, and the inclusion of issues generated usingsupplementary techniques, will lead to the creation of a new questionnaire for the second round. Inthis iteration, participants will be asked to rate a list of issues in terms of their importance on a scalefrom 1 to 10. In this manner, the top issues will be identified and the appropriate comparisons canbe made with other studies. In addition, participants will be given a final opportunity to add issuesto the list to ensure that all the top Estonian concerns have been identified.In the third round, participants will be provided with a questionnaire similar to the round 2questionnaire, but which also provides feedback in the form of group means from the results of round2. Participants can then reflect on their choices, and the Delphi process will move the group towardsa consensus on the key issues. As was demonstrated in both the Dickson et al. (1984) and Brancheau& Wetherbe (1987) studies, two iterations are generally enough to establish the list of issues and theirrelative ordering. The third iteration serves primarily to confirm the ordering and promote aconsensus among participants.43It was estimated that this study could be completed on-site in approximately eight to tenweeks. Proponents of the Delphi technique have suggested that approximately six weeks are requiredfor a three iteration study, but difficulties in conducting research in Eastern Europe can be expected,and this may lengthen the process (Delbecq et al. (1975)). Arrangements were made to spend tenweeks in Estonia to conduct the research.In order to identify, recruit and access study participants, it was necessary to establish aresearch base in Estonia. The capital city of Tallinn was the most appropriate location for such abase because it contains over one third of the population of the Republic, a major university,numerous research and training institutes, and a substantial industrial base. Additional travel tosecondary cities such as Tartu is easily arranged from Tallinn.An appropriate final goal for this Delphi study would be to solicit views from 20 to 30 middleand senior level IT personnel from a cross section of the local Estonian economy. This number ofparticipants should be sufficient to achieve a proper understanding of IS issues in Estonia. Since nodatabase of Estonian MIS managers appears to exist, it will be necessary to use a convenience sampleof IS professionals. Each participant in the study will be contacted directly to stimulate interest andbuild commitment to the study, as well as to attempt to motivate respondents to reply quickly.5.4 Instrument DevelopmentThis study consists of three rounds, requiring the development of three separatequestionnaires. The following sections outline the procedures followed to develop these instruments.5.4.1 Round 1 QuestionnaireThe first questionnaire is of an open-ended format, asking participants to contribute issues44of importance to the Estonian MIS manager. The open-ended format minimizes the risk of biasingresponses. Some recent Delphi studies (see Brancheau & Wetherbe (1987), Niederman et al. (1991))have abandoned the strictly open-ended first round in favour of a format that asks participants toreview issues from previous studies and to identify and add new issues to the list. Because theEstonian study was the first one conducted in an Eastern European setting, it was felt that an openround would be necessary in order to ensure that bias was minimized. In particular, it was desirablethat Estonian managers be given an opportunity to relate important issues without the distraction ofconsidering issues from North American studies.The round 1 questionnaire and covering letter can be found in Appendix A. The instrumentconsists of three parts: 1. covering letter, 2. core of the questionnaire (space for issues to beidentified), 3. participant identification section. In addition to the instructions presented in thisinstrument, the researcher personally met with each first round participant and verbally explained andclarified the instructions and the purpose of the study. This step was taken to promote commitmentand to ensure a short turn-around time for the first round. Care was taken not to colour the viewsof respondents during these sessions.5.4.2 Round 2 QuestionnaireThe primary purpose of the first round was to generate a list of issues that can then be ratedon subsequent rounds. In a conventional Delphi study, the round 2 issues list would be generatedsolely from the round 1 questionnaire (Dickson et al. (1984)). However, the requirement forcompleting the research within the two month study period in Estonia necessitated a smaller round1 study group and therefore a number of supplementary techniques for generating issues for the round2 questionnaire were also employed. The primary purpose of these supplementary issue generation45techniques was to ensure that all the relevant issues were identified, to the extent that this is possible.An additional important goal in this study was to facilitate comparison with previous issues work,particularly the North American findings, and therefore important issues from these studies were alsoincluded in the round 2 questionnaire.The issues for the round 2 questionnaire were thus generated using the following fourtechniques:i/ Issues of Importance from North American Studiesii/ Literature Searchiii/ Informal Discussion with Estonian IT Professionalsiv/ Results from Round 1 QuestionnaireEach of these sources, and the issues which arose from using the technique, are discussed in moredetail below.i/ Issues of Importance from North American Studies - some of the issues that have been identifiedas highly important in North American studies will likely have international relevance. Thereforea review of past research was conducted to isolate top issues that have consistently appeared in theissues literature.In an attempt to summarize and tabulate existing issues research, Alpar & Ein-Dor (1991)synthesized most of the major studies from the 1980s. The top 10 issues according to theirclassifications were:1/ Long Range/Strategic IS Planning2/ Aligning IS with the Organization3/ Organizational Learning/Educating Senior Personnel464/ Measuring IS Effectiveness and Productivity5/ Data as a Corporate Resource6/ Increase Understanding of IS Role/Contribution7/ End User Computing/Computer Centres8/ Technology Integration9/ Office Automation10/ Software DevelopmentIn their synthesis, Alpar and Ein-Dor required that an issue be reflected in at least two studies, andhence their method tends to exclude newly emerging issues. To compensate for this, two additionalissues that have been rated highly in the most recent North American research will be included:11/ Developing an Information Architecture#1, from Niederman et al. (1991)12/ IS for Competitive Advantage#2, from Brancheau & Wetherbe (1987)These twelve issues from the North American literature were thus included in the round 2questionnaire given to Estonian IT managers.Note that to promote comparability and consistency, the wording for these issues was takendirectly from the study by Niederman et al. (1991), which in turn drew on the conventions of theearlier Dickson et al. (1984) and Brancheau & Wetherbe (1987) studies. A partial exception to thisconvention was issue 11. The 'information architecture' issue did not translate well into Estonian,and thus it was felt that an additional sentence clarifying the concept of an information architecturewould help Estonian respondents.47ii/ Literature Search - a review of articles on Eastern European computing was useful in creatingan initial list of possible issues of importance to the Eastern European and Estonian IT communities.The following list indicates issues that Western observers have speculated to be of importance in thisregion:13/ Planning and Implementing a Telecommunications System: whether the poor state ofthe telephone infrastructure constrains the IS function14/ Specifying, Developing and Recruiting Human Resources for IS: whether CMEAorganizations are able to obtain and maintain qualified personnel for the IS function15/ Regulatory Constraints on IS Activities and Ambitions: whether CMEA and Westernregulations and restrictions are having a serious impact on IS management16/ Availability of Appropriate Hardware and Software Resources: whether the well-documented shortages common in CMEA economies extend into the informationtechnology sector17/ Affordability of Hardware and Software: whether the high cost of importedinformation technology is a serious issue for Estonian organizations18/ Ensuring that Applications Satisfy the Needs of Users/Organization: whether systemsthat are useful and usable have been developed19/ Building and Maintaining Reliable Information Systems: whether breakdowns andmalfunctions are a serious problem in Estonian MIS20/ Establishing Alliances and Linkages with Western Organizations: whethercoordination and joint ventures between Eastern European and Western firms are anIS priorityIssues 13 and 14 have also been common problems in the North American surveys, and thusthe wording for these was taken directly from the Niederman et al. (1991) study. However, in thecase of the 'telecommunications' issue, it was felt that a major component of this issue in an EasternEuropean setting was the need to improve the national telecommunications system, and thus thisaspect was explicitly stated in the issue rationale.The wordings for issues 15 through 20 were composed to reflect what was felt to be the key48aspects of these issues in Eastern Europe. To maintain consistency, an attempt was made to wordthese issues in the same style as found in previous Delphi studies.iii/ Informal Discussions with Estonian IT professionals - upon arrival in Estonia, a series of visitsto organizations using computers and information technologies helped to familiarize the researcherwith the Estonian IT environment. During these visits, two additional issues of importance wereuncovered:21/ Ensuring the Physical Security of Computer Systems: a number of people relatedstories and anecdotes about computers being stolen from offices, and also about ageneral lack of care with respect to looking after existing machines. Constructioncrews sometimes damage hardware by not adequately protecting it while engaged inrenovations.22/ Legislating Copyright Protection for Software: another issue that came up repeatedlywas the lack of copyright protection legislation for software. This impacts firmsbecause their own software is in danger of being distributed, and software firms areless willing to set up and offer after sales servicing because the market consistsprimarily of pirated software.iv/ Results from Round 1 Questionnaire - Each of the questionnaires was examined by the primaryresearcher, both alone and with the help of a co-researcher (an Estonian professor specializing ininformation technology and management). The results from round 1 were analyzed and a list of newissues was identified and clarified by the researcher. To check on the validity of the issueidentification, the questionnaires were then given to the co-researcher for independent analysis. Nextthe two sets of results were compared and the researchers agreed on a final set of eight additionalissues:23/ Educational Weaknesses of the Workforce: whether schools and universities areproducing well-trained IS personnel24/ Implementing and Improving Computer Networks: acquiring and implementingtechnology to facilitate the linking of computers4925/ Promoting Standards for Hardware, Software and Data: coordinating IS products andapplications to facilitate integration26/ Unsettled Political and Regulatory Environment: whether massive changes ingovernment and policy are impacting the IS function27/ Obtaining Access to IS Knowledge and Advice: whether Estonian IS managers havedifficulty accessing useful publications and consulting expertise as necessary foreffective management28/ Improving Information Security and Control: whether data is secure from theft,destruction, alteration and loss29/ Changing the Attitudes of IS Employees: whether the attitudes of IS employees arecompatible with requirements for high productivity and creativity30/ Loss of Skilled IS Workers to Foreign Bidders: whether top IS employees are beingfinancially enticed to work for foreign companies, or to relocate to foreign countriesOnce the issues of importance were generated using the four techniques outlined above, theissues were combined into a single questionnaire (see Appendix B) after being randomly scrambled.The resulting instrument consists of four parts: 1. covering letter, 2. core of the questionnaire (30issues to be rated), 3. open-ended section for additional issues to be added, 4. participantidentification section.The style and format of the main body of the questionnaire closely imitates the layoutestablished in previous Delphi studies on MIS issues. The open-ended section was included as acheck to ensure that the four techniques described above had been sufficient to generate all of thepotentially important issues. The participant identification section was expanded considerably fromthe round 1 questionnaire so that data could be gathered for respondent categorization purposes. Thissection also asked for general descriptions about the types of systems currently in use at therespondents' workplaces so that Estonian IT environments could be better understood.505.4.3 Round 3 QuestionnaireThe round 3 questionnaire is an opportunity for participants to reflect on their answers inround 2 in light of the group response and to provide a final rating of each issue. This instrumentis very similar to the round 2 instrument and conventions established in previous Delphi work wereonce again followed.The issues to be ranked were now presented to the participants in decreasing order ofimportance, as determined by the mean response from round 2. In addition, each participant'squestionnaire showed their previous responses and the mean group responses for each of the 30issues. The open-ended section from round 2 failed to uncover any additional important issues, andthus the list remained at 30 issues. No further opportunity for adding issues was provided in thisfinal round.It was expected that the researcher would have to leave Estonia before all of the round 3questionnaires could be collected. Therefore an additional page was added to the questionnaire toensure that the data could eventually be retrieved. Each participant was asked to copy their finalratings onto this additional page, and to return this independently from the main questionnaire. Thisprocedure was implemented to improve the likelihod of retrieving at least one copy of the finalratings.The round 3 questionnaires and covering letter can be found in Appendix C. The instrumentconsisted of four parts: 1. covering letter, 2. core of the questionnaire (30 issues to be re-rated), 3.participant identification section, 4. additional page for copying final ratings. As a method formotivating respondents, each participant was also asked to check whether or not they would like toreceive a copy of the research results.515.4.4 TranslationsAn important methodological difference between this study and previous MIS issues studiesis the requirement for bilingual instruments. While many Estonian MIS managers understandEnglish, it was felt to be critical to the success of this research to communicate with participants intheir first language. The questionnaires were presented in a bilingual format (Estonian/English)primarily for two reasons. Firstly, the Estonian IT terminology borrows heavily from Englishstandards and thus a bilingual format will undoubtedly be useful for many respondents. Secondly,many participants will have a good command of both languages, and thus they can be used as asource to provide feedback on potentially inaccurate or misleading translations.Brislin (1980) has identified four basic methodologies for conducting and verifyingtranslations: i/ Back Translation, in which a researcher prepares material in one language and asks abilingual to translate into the target language. A second bilingual is asked to translate thematerial back into the original language and then the researcher can compare these twoversions and judge the quality of the translations. ii/ The Bilingual Technique, in which groups of bilinguals take different halves of a test in thetwo languages that they know. Sophisticated statistical techniques such as split-half reliabilityassessments can then be used to isolate items that are non-equivalent in meaning. iii/ Committee Approach, where a group of bilinguals translates from the source language tothe target language. iv/ Pretest Procedures, where the translated items are field tested to insure that people willcomprehend all the materialWhile back translations and the bilingual technique would have had substantial power in validatingthe quality of the translations conducted in this research project, they are simply beyond the scopeof this study due to budget and time constraints.The translational philosophy employed for this research is one of pragmatism rather than52theoretical elegance, and thus the committee approach with some simultaneous pretesting were used.It is believed that such an approach is sufficient for this project since the items to be translated reflectconcrete concepts, and participant responses need no further interpretation. Such research can bedistinguished from projects that attempt to measure abstract concepts such as attitudes or feelings, andwhere translational validation may be more critical in ensuring the validity of end results.The principal researcher in this project is bilingual and was closely involved in alltranslational procedures. In addition, a number of Estonian assistants, both bilingual and unilingual,were recruited to help with the translations and to ensure their comprehensibility. The researcher hasa high degree of confidence on the equivalency of the translations since the final versions for theround 2 and 3 instruments were approved by an Estonian co-researcher who has done considerablework in translations and in the field of identifying and standardizing an IT vocabulary in the Estonianlanguage. The ensuing paragraphs document the step that were followed in translating theinstruments used in this research project.Preliminary versions of the first and second round covering letters and questionnaires weredrafted before travelling to the research site. A first attempt at translations into Estonian were madeby the researcher. Prior to departure for Estonia, these questionnaires were submitted for inspectionto a professor of linguistics specializing in the Estonian language at UBC. The translations wereedited for grammar and stylistic quality, and a special effort was made to ensure that the translationswere semantically equivalent. The researcher was unable to find a Canadian expert to verify thetranslations of technical terms into Estonian, and thus this task was delayed until arrival in Tallinn.These first attempt at translation went relatively smoothly with the exception of the followingtwo problematic terms:'issue' - there is no direct translation of this seemingly simple word so we used a combination ofwords in Estonian to try to leave the same impression. We replaced 'issues' with 'problems,questions and worries' (Est: probleemid, kiisimused ja mured) in the explanations.53'IS manager' - initially we tried 'computer manager' (Est: arvutijuht) but this turned out to be aninvalid Estonian word. In the round 1 questionnaire we eventually accepted 'computer specialist'(Est: arvutispetsialist) but subsequently decided that this may have technical rather than managerialconnotations. Finally the Estonian equivalent of 'someone who oversees the IS operations of a firm'were used in rounds 2 and 3.The first round covering letter and questionnaire was submitted for inspection to colleaguesat the Institute of Cybernetics and some minor grammatical corrections were made. The concernabout the translations of technical terms was lessened upon confirmation that most Estonian technicalwords borrow heavily from the English version, and thus literal translations are generally correct.The Estonian IT community also commonly uses the English language versions of these terms andtherefore communicating these ideas is straightforward. In any event, the open, unstructured natureof the first round questionnaire required very little modification.The validation of the translations for the second round was more complex. There was muchmore material to verify with some of the material appearing for the first time (newly identified issues)and thus requiring corrections to grammar, as well as semantic clarification. Once the researcher hadmade a first attempt at translating the entire questionnaire, it was submitted to various individuals forrevision. Two individuals (an engineer (unilingual Estonian) and a computer science graduate student(bilingual Estonian/English)) helped with clarifications, revisions to grammar and the corrections oftechnical terms.Finally, the translations were submitted to the Estonian co-researcher for final approval, andthis resulted in some fairly significant changes to the existing translations. It was pointed out thatsome seemingly innocuous Estonian words are loaded with negative connotations. For example, theword 'planning' (Est: planeerimine) has connotations that associate it with the central planning systemof the Soviet regime; the appropriate word to use is 'project' as a verb (Est: projekteerimine), as in"we will 'project' the installation of the system." Another example of a word that has developed a54negative connotation over the past five decades is 'improve' (Est: parendada) since the Sovietgovernment has always stressed that things are improving. The correct word to use in contemporaryEstonia is 'fix' (Est: parandada) which implicitly recognizes that broken things do exist, even insocialist societies.The translations for the third round were relatively simple because the questionnaire wassimilar to the previous round. All modifications to the covering letter and questionnaire were onceagain revised and improved as judged necessary by translator-assistants.5.5 Participant RecruitmentNorth American Delphi studies have used databases of professional associations such as theSociety for Information Management (SIM) or the Canadian Information Processing Society (CIPS)to recruit participants. Unfortunately, no comparable list exists in Estonia and therefore this projectused a convenience sample of individuals. Before departing for the research site, numerous potentialparticipants had already been identified through speaking with members of the Estonian-Canadianbusiness community and with academic contacts in Tallinn.On arrival in Estonia, these individuals were asked to suggest additional potential participantsfor the study. Once appropriate individuals were identified, they were also asked to suggest furthersubjects. Care was taken to ensure that individuals representing each of the various types of localorganizations were recruited (academic, government, state-owned company, private or limitedcompany, joint-venture company). This sampling approach generated a group of qualified andmotivated participants, and it was hoped that they could collectively reach a reasonable level ofconsensus in judging MIS issues of importance. While planning this research, it was expected thatthere might be a non-participation bias by politically conservative individuals. However, no evidence55of resistance was experienced from any of the individuals contacted for participation.It should be noted that the concept of an 'MIS manager' per se, is not familiar to mostEstonian organizations and it would be rare to find an individual with such a title. MIS functions areoften performed by someone from accounting, engineering or other department that controlsinformation technology in the firm. In addition, many of the functions that we would associate witha senior MIS executive in North America are typically lacking, at least in a formal sense, in Estonianorganizations (eg. strategic planning, planning technology acquisitions and integration). It would bemisleading to suggest that the individuals surveyed in this study are directly comparable to the NorthAmerican MIS manager in terms of their titles, training, skills and responsibilities. Instead, thisstudy looks at established figures in the Estonian IT community, including managers of computercentres, general managers, consultants, technical specialists, and academic and governmentrepresentatives.5.6 Data Collection ProceduresThis research project was conducted on-site in Estonia between May 25 and July 26, 1991.The final data was collected by mail and was received by October 31, 1991.5.6.1 Round 1The first round questionnaire was delivered to a subset of the final survey sample. Only tenparticipants were asked to complete this questionnaire since limited time at the research site made itnecessary to achieve a short turnaround time for this preliminary round. Each participant wasinitially contacted by telephone, and a preliminary meeting was arranged so that the purpose of theresearch could be clarified to the respondents, and so that participant commitment would be56enhanced. The questionnaires were hand-delivered during the initial meeting and arrangements weremade to retrieve them at a future date so that no reliance on the local mail system would be needed.The participants were given one week to complete the questionnaire.5.6.2 Round 2The round 2 questionnaire was administered to the entire sample of 28 individuals. Onceagain the participants were contacted by telephone and the questionnaires were hand-delivered at apre-specified time and location. Whenever possible, an attempt was made to meet with theparticipants but this was not possible in approximately one-third of the cases.Given the difficulty in personally retrieving the questionnaires for this round, a decision wasmade to rely on the postal system. Each questionnaire was placed in a stamped and pre-addressedenvelope which was to be returned to the researcher at his office at the Institute of Cybernetics inTallinn. It should be noted that a number of participants expressed misgivings at the reliability ofthe local postal system and wished to make alternative arrangements for returning the completedquestionnaires. Some participants personally delivered the envelopes, and in a few cases theresearcher retrieved the questionnaires. Over half of the sample relied on the postal system.The respondents were given two weeks to respond to the round 2 questionnaire, after whichnon-respondents were contacted by telephone to encourage a reply and/or to offer alternative retrievalarrangements for completed questionnaires. A cut-off time of three weeks was imposed. The postalsystem did not appear to be problematic, with delivery typically taking between two and three days.In one case, a participant contacted during a follow-up call claimed to have mailed the questionnaire,so it is conceivable that one envelope did go astray.575.6.3 Round 3Each participant had been notified by telephone during the second round that a finalquestionnaire was to be expected, and thus telephone contact was not deemed necessary for thisround. The questionnaires were simply delivered to the offices of the participants. The round 3questionnaire was completed approximately two weeks before the researcher was to return to Canada,so it was evident that the postal system would have to be relied upon once again for returns.To ensure that the data did not go astray, a two-fold strategy was adopted for returning theresponses. Firstly, the procedures from round 2 were repeated with the questionnaire being returnedto the Institute of Cybernetics. Additional arrangements were made to have these questionnairesforwarded to Canada. Secondly, each participant was asked to copy the responses onto a separatesheet of paper and mail that directly to Canada. Stamped and pre-addressed envelopes were providedto each participant for both items which were to be returned.The timing of the third round was somewhat unfortunate for a number of reasons. Atemporary complication arose in the manner of a sudden shortage of postage stamps; it seems thatpostage rates in Estonia had been doubled in 1991 but the authorities had neglected to print additionalstamps, resulting in a severe stamp shortage by July. The researcher was able to call upon a friendlycontact employed by the post office for an adequate supply. In addition, most people in Estoniabegin taking summer vacations in late July, making the timing of responses to round 3 difficult topredict and perhaps negatively affecting the response rates. Finally, temporary ill health preventedthe researcher from attempting additional follow-ups to encourage responses while still in Estonia.Since most Estonian vacations last for the full month of August, participants were given untilmid-September to respond to the third round questionnaire. At this time, a co-researcher in Estoniawas contacted by electronic mail and given the names of individuals from whom no final round datahad yet been received. Each of these non-respondents was then contacted by telephone, reminded58of the importance of their participation and requested to return their questionnaires. 5.7 Summary of Methodological DifferencesAlthough this research project closely followed the Delphi methodology as established byNiederman et al. (1991) and other previous studies, a number of different procedures were followed: i/ Translations were necessary and instruments were presented in a bilingual format. ii/ Round 1 questionnaires were only distributed to a subset of the study's participants. This wasdone to reduce the time necessary for the first round so that the study could be completedwithin the allocated timeframe. iii/ The issue list for round 2 was generated using four techniques: i/ important issues fromNorth America, ii/ literature search, iii/ informal discussions, iv/ open-ended first round.This is in contrast to the North American Delphi studies which typically use: i/ open-endedfirst round, ii/ important issues from previous studies. iv/ The recruitment of study participants was done through personal contacts and subsequentrecommendations since no appropriate list of potential participants could be located. v/ This study had a higher degree of personal contact with participants than is typical since face-to-face meetings were held with most recruits. vi/ In the questionnaire instructions for rating the issues, participants were explicitly told thatthey could leave an issue blank if they were "uncertain about the importance of an issue, orhad no opinion." vii/ In round 2, participants were given an additional opportunity to contribute new issues toensure that all of the important issues had been uncovered. This opportunity had only beenprovided during the first round in the North American studies. 5.8 Conducting Research in Estonia - Some Observations5.8.1 IntroductionAs McHenry et al. (1990) have noted, conducting on-site research in Eastern Europe is59fraught with numerous difficulties that are generally not encountered in the West. In conductingresearch in Estonia, many problems and inconveniences did arise and individuals contemplatingprojects in the region should be prepared for such complications. Problems can best be minimizedby investigating the conditions before setting out, understanding your specific research-related needswhile on-site and planning for contingencies where possible.This section provides some practical and anecdotal descriptions about conducting research andliving in one Eastern European setting. It should be remembered that conditions in Estonia continueto change quickly, especially now that the country has re-established it's independence from theSoviet Union. The impressions that follow were formed in the summer of 1991 during the few lastmonths of Soviet authority.5.8.2 Accessing the Research SiteThe only realistic way to gain access to a Soviet research site is to first obtain an invitationfrom a Soviet institute, agency or business. The researcher must establish contacts with anappropriate organization in the USSR, and obtain an official invitation from them. Once theinvitation has been received, an application for a business visa may be made to the Soviet Consulate,and this is typically granted within a few weeks. It is also possible to enter the Soviet Union as atourist, or by obtaining an invitation from an individual (usually a relative), but these methods aregenerally slower, less reliable, less flexible and more expensive than the business visa process.Soviet officials are notorious for their inability to deal with unconventional circumstances.It is advisable to make visa applications and itinerary details as innocuous as possible. In addition,Soviet customs regulations and enforcement officials seem to vary widely in terms of their consistencyand credibility; there is no need to draw attention to items of value such as laptop computers since60this may result in processing delays, payments of unspecified duties and, in rare cases, conspiracieswith local organized crime units to steal these goods at a future date.It is virtually certain that access to the Baltic countries will be liberalized significantly in thenear future for holders of Western passports. It is unlikely that visas or invitations will be necessary,and the entry and exit procedures will be simplified. Travelling to a research site in Estonia isalready an easy matter, with Tallinn being serviced by Finnair, SAS and Aeroflot (for the adventuretraveller). Frequent ferry and hovercraft access from Stockholm and Helsinki provides anotheralternative.5.8.3 Logistics and CostsThere is a serious shortage of temporary accommodation in much of Eastern Europe andTallinn is no exception. Western quality hotels are available, but the costs are prohibitive with ratesfalling into the CDN$100 - $200 range per night. The best strategy would be to try to organize thesearrangements through local contacts, thus avoiding Intourist's thirst for hard currency. It is generallypossible to arrange a room, apartment or other suitable accommodation in Tallinn for CDN$10 - $30per night.As of the summer of 1991, there are two kinds of currencies in widespread use in the SovietUnion - roubles and hard currency. Since the exchange rate at this time is very favourable forWesterners converting their money, living can be very inexpensive if one is willing to live onroubles. For instance, once converted to roubles, one Canadian dollar can buy any of the items fromthe following list: 27 bottles of Pepsi Cola, 4 haircuts, a 4-month municipal transit pass, 4 regularlunches, 2 pizza lunches, 3 bus trips anywhere in Estonia, 3 taxi rides anywhere in Tallinn, or onedinner at a good restaurant. Of course, some of these items may require lining up for between 5 and6130 minutes. In some circumstances, bribery may also be expected of a Westerner living on roublesso that acceptable service will be rendered.It is also possible to shop at stores and restaurants that accept only hard currency and thusavoid line-ups altogether; hard currency outlets have better quality items and service, but the pricesare comparable to those in other northern European countries. As economic reforms continue, it iswidely expected that the two-currency system will disappear and commerce will begin to function ina convertible local currency. As the local economy begins to improve, local wages and the pricesof domestic products should also increase correspondingly.5.8.4 Telephones and TechnologiesResearchers contemplating a project in Eastern Europe should be prepared for the absenceof many technological conveniences that are taken for granted in the West. One of the most severehandicaps to conducting research is the quality of the telephone system. Switching systems oftenfunction poorly, commonly resulting in connections to the wrong party. It is also difficult toadequately hear or be heard since static interferes with normal conversations. Long distance calls canbe especially tedious since direct dialing is impossible from most telephones. To call long-distance,one most place an order with the operator who will then telephone back once the connection isavailable; if the operator remembers to do this, the wait is typically between 30 minutes and 2 hours.Many organizations are beginning to obtain telephones with access to direct lines and this simplifiesthe procedure enormously.Setting up meetings with study participants or colleagues can be a very time consumingexperience since many people do not have telephones at their homes. Contacting them at work mayalso be difficult since it is unlikely that anyone will answer their telephone if they are not at their62desks (message centres do not usually exist within Estonian organizations).Researchers may require access to photocopy facilities and this may be a problem in somecircumstances. Machines are in short supply, especially in smaller towns. Photocopy shops for hardcurrency are beginning to appear and contacts with local organizations might also ensure access.Access to computing facilities and printing can also usually be arranged, although be prepared toprovide your own disks and paper.Despite the poor telephone system there are many areas where the technology lag with theWest is not so serious, particularly in cases where individuals or organizations have been able tocoordinate their own affairs. A researcher living in Estonia should not be surprised to find satellitetelevision, VCRs, Western-built computers, photocopiers, fax machines, printers, even internationalelectronic mail links and other technological conveniences - the key is to ensure access to thesetechnologies as required for the research.5.8.5 Participant AttitudesEstonian MIS mangers contacted during the course of this research project were generallyvery receptive with respect to participating in this survey. Only one individual declined toparticipate, and cited a recent death in the family as the reason. It seems likely that individuals inEastern Europe enjoy contact with Western researchers, and in general try to be forthcoming andhelpful.A number of Estonian academic colleagues expressed surprise at the degree of cooperationand the high response rate experienced during the course of this survey. They felt that Estonianmanagers were generally averse to participating in such research, and in particular were unlikely totake the time to complete a questionnaire. It would seem that Western researchers have a selective63advantage over their local counterparts with respect to gaining access to and motivating surveyparticipants.Estonian managers, and indeed professionals all over Eastern Europe, have increasingly beenexposed to visitors and 'experts' from the West. While much of the advice and judgement renderedby these individuals is undoubtedly valuable and appreciated, in some cases there is a belief that theWestern advisors have not taken the time to fully understand local conditions. Western consultingfirms should be particularly vigilant about the quality of their advice because they often charge world-price fees from clients who have considerable difficulty in affording these services. In contrast toconsultants and other 'experts', researchers appear to be seen in a particularly favourable light sincetheir mandate is to ask questions and listen, rather than to explain and prescribe. This researchproject was undoubtedly one of the first Western studies to contact these Estonian managers, whichmay also help to explain the favourable response.5.8.6 Local AlliesArguably the most important aspect in ensuring a successful research project in a foreignenvironment is the necessity of developing and maintaining good local contacts. As mentionedearlier, contacts are often critical in an Eastern European setting for helping to arrange suchpreliminaries as visas and accommodation. Once on-site, various problems and inconveniences arecertain to arise, and an individual fully familiar with the local environment can help to solve thesedifficulties.A particularly useful ally would be a local co-researcher who could be fully involved in theresearch project itself. This can help streamline the research process, identify cultural variables thatmight negatively affect the research, and to generally eliminate much of the uncertainty associated64with functioning in a non-familiar environment. This project was able to recruit a co-researcher aftera few weeks on-site, and the research appeared to proceed more quickly and with more confidencefrom this point onwards. Ideally, a co-researcher should be identified before commencing on-siteresearch.65CHAPTER 6 - ANALYSIS AND RESULTS 6.1 IntroductionThe forthcoming sections report the central findings from the survey. The results fromrounds 1 and 2 are discussed only briefly since these are preliminary results. The round 3 findingsare the final results and are therefore discussed in more detail and are used for comparative purposeswith other studies. Specific details on the study participants are outlined at the end of this chapter. 6.2 Round 1 ResultsFor the first round, ten individuals were recruited for participation in the study and all tenreturned their questionnaires resulting in a response rate of 100%. Table 17 shows the most criticalissues identified by this group. The issues are presented in order of the number of citations givenby the respondents. In addition, issues which have not appeared in previous Delphi studies butsurfaced during this round are designated as 'new' issues.Citations New Issue6 New Educational Weaknesses of the Workforce6 Legislating Copyright Protection for Software6 New Promoting Standards for Hardware, Software and Data5 New Implementing and Improving Computer Networks5 New Unsettled Political and Regulatory Environment4 Planning and Implementing a Telecommunications System2 Affordability of Hardware and Software2 Availability of Appropriate Hardware and Software Resources2 New Changing the Attitudes of IS Employees2 New Obtaining Access to IS Knowledge and Advice1 Ensuring that Applications Satisfy Needs of Users/Organization1 New Improving Information Security and Control1 New Loss of Skilled IS Workers to Foreign BiddersTABLE 17 - ROUND 1 RESULTS666.3 Round 2 ResultsIn round 2, each participant was given a list of 30 issues and asked to rate each in terms ofimportance for Estonian MIS management. The total number of questionnaires distributed was 28,and 25 were returned resulting in a response rate of 89.3%. (An additional round 2 questionnairewas returned after the deadline and thus the data from this participant was not included in the round3 questionnaire, nor the results as presented below.)Rank Mean Sdev Issue1 8.96 1.27 Planning and Implementing a Telecommunications System2 8.64 1.52 Promoting Standards for Hardware, Software and Data3 8.28 1.61 Building and Maintaining Reliable Information Systems4 8.24 1.84 Establishing Alliances and Linkages with Western Organizations5 8.17 1.70 Ensuring that Applications Satisfy Needs of Users/Organization6 8.16 1.91 Implementing and Improving Computer Networks7 8.00 2.37 Developing an Information Architecture8 7.84 2.15 Improving Information Security and Control9 7.68 2.07 Legislating Copyright Protection for Software10 7.64 2.21 Affordability of Hardware and Software11 7.60 2.15 Ensuring the Physical Security of Computer Systems12 7.32 2.11 Unsettled Political and Regulatory Environment13 7.28 2.18 Educational Weaknesses of the Workforce13 7.28 1.80 Making Effective Use of the Data Resource15 7.25 1.83 Facilitating Organizational Learning and Use of IS Technologies16 7.24 1.80 Specifying, Recruiting and Developing Human Resources for IS17 7.00 2.22 Improving the Quality of Software Development18 6.96 2.41 Changing the Attitudes of IS Employees19 6.88 2.41 Improving IS Strategic Planning20 6.70 2.01 Integrating DP, OA, Telecommunications and Factory Automation21 6.64 2.62 Availability of Appropriate Hardware and Software Resources22 6.63 2.04 Facilitating and Managing End-User Computing23 6.52 2.4.0 Increasing Understanding of the Role and Contribution of IS24 6.48 2.26 Aligning the IS Organization with that of the Enterprise25 6.46 2.10 Measuring IS Effectiveness and Productivity26 6.25 2.50 Using Information Systems for Competitive Advantage27 5.87 2.15 Planning, Implementation and Management of Office Automation28 5.84 1.93 Loss of Skilled IS Workers to Foreign Bidders29 5.40 2.47 Obtaining Access to IS Knowledge and Advice30 4.26 2.25 Regulatory Constraints on IS Activities and AmbitionsTABLE 18 - ROUND 2 RESULTS67Table 18 shows the results for this round, as well as the mean and standard deviations foreach issue. Of the top ten issues in round 2, seven had been identified by participants in round 1,indicating a strong degree of consistency in reporting the issues of importance. Issues 3 (reliability),4 (linkages with West) and 7 (information architecture) failed to surface in round 1 and the reasonsfor this are unclear. It is possible that if all the participants had been invited to complete the round1 questionnaire, then these three issues might also have been reported in round 1. Nevertheless, itappears that round 1 was successful in uncovering most of the potentially important issues, and thesupplementary issue generation techniques were useful for completing the list.As a final check on the completeness of the issues list, the round 2 questionnaire provideda last opportunity for participants to contribute additional issues of importance. While a number ofparticipants volunteered comments and clarifications, no additional issues were submitted at this stagesuggesting that the existing list of 30 issues was comprehensive.6.4 Round 3 Results6.4.1 Final Ratings of the 30 IssuesThe round 3 results are the final research results. Unless noted otherwise, all observationsand conclusions about the research from this point onwards are based on these findings. The totalnumber of round 3 questionnaires distributed was 28, and 24 were returned resulting in a responserate of 85.7%. The round 3 participants are essentially the same individuals as were sampled inround 2, although the response rate decreased slightly. Table 19 summarizes the results for thisround. Note that ties emerged in the final rankings for the 4th, 10th and 24th place issues.The round 3 results are closely related to the findings from the previous round and the top68ten issues remained substantially similar. However, the opportunity to reflect on round 2 results didresult in a number of minor changes to the list of most important issues.Rank Mean Sdev Issue1 8.92 1.38 Planning and Implementing a Telecommunications System2 8.71 1.24 Promoting Standards for Hardware, Software and Data3 8.58 1.55 Implementing and Improving Computer Networks4 8.46 1.47 Ensuring that Applications Satisfy Needs of Users/Organization4 8.46 1.50 Improving Information Security and Control6 8.42 1.35 Building and Maintaining Reliable Information Systems7 8.25 1.64 Establishing Alliances and Linkages with Western Organizations8 8.21 1.58 Developing an Information Architecture9 7.79 1.66 Ensuring the Physical Security of Computer Systems10 7.75 1.36 Making Effective Use of the Data Resource10 7.75 1.76 Legislating Copyright Protection for Software12 7.54 1.98 Educational Weaknesses of the Workforce13 7.48 1.50 Facilitating Organizational Learning and Use of IS Technologies14 7.42 2.00 Affordability of Hardware and Software15 7.39 1.55 Improving the Quality of Software Development16 7.33 1.70 Specifying, Recruiting and Developing Human Resources for IS17 7.30 1.84 Unsettled Political and Regulatory Environment18 7.08 2.06 Changing the Attitudes of IS Employees19 6.88 2.24 Improving IS Strategic Planning20 6.58 2.02 Increasing Understanding of the Role and Contribution of IS21 6.52 1.95 Facilitating and Managing End-User Computing22 6.32 1.84 Integrating DP, OA, Telecommunications and Factory Automation23 6.26 2.21 Using Information Systems for Competitive Advantage24 6.21 2.16 Measuring IS Effectiveness and Productivity24 6.21 2.33 Availability of Appropriate Hardware and Software Resources26 6.17 1.91 Aligning the IS Organization with that of the Enterprise27 5.79 2.02 Loss of Skilled IS Workers to Foreign Bidders28 5.64 1.85 Planning, Implementation and Management of Office Automation29 5.42 2.18 Obtaining Access to IS Knowledge and Advice30 3.71 2.09 Regulatory Constraints on IS Activities and AmbitionsTABLE 19 - ROUND 3 RESULTSThe most noticeable change is the revised ordering of many of the issues and there are anumber of factors which explain this. Part of this reordering can be explained by participantsreflecting on the earlier results and subsequently refining their round 3 ratings. This process is69critically important in moving the group towards consensus and identifying the final list of importantissues. However, caution is warranted in attributing all round 3 refinements to such a processbecause part of the movement is undoubtedly a reflection of minor changes to the sample populationover these two rounds. Details on the participation patterns of individuals in these rounds arecontained in Section 6.9.The ordering of issues as presented in both rounds 2 and 3 should be interpreted with caresince the differences in mean ratings are negligible in many cases, given the sizes of thecorresponding standard deviations. Repeating the study or enlarging the sample size would likelyresult in additional revisals to the ordering and it would therefore be unwise to have completeconfidence in the current issue ordering. In a conventional situation it would be easy to conductstatistical tests on the significance of the ordering; however, as discussed earlier in Section 4.4, theDelphi methodology limits the relevance of such measures since the statistical assumptions ofnormality and independence are violated.Despite the lack of an appropriate statistical test, it is possible to make the general statementthat 'as the distance between issues increases, the likelihood of incorrect ordering decreases.' Forexample, the mean scores of issues 4 through 6 are quite close making it difficult to have muchconfidence in any particular ordering of these concerns; however, we can be highly confident thatissue 1 is correct in being ordered before the issues 4 through 6. Similarly, we can be certain thatissues 1 through 8 belong in the group of top ten issues, but as we get closer to the 10th issue ourconfidence necessarily declines. These factors help to explain why the top ten issues underwent somerevision between rounds 2 and 3. The issue of 'affordability of hardware and software' dropped from10th to 14th, while 'physical security of systems' rose from 11th to 9th and the 'data resource' issuewas boosted from 13th to a tie for 10th spot. It is acknowledged that the specific ordering of theissues may lack strong statistical support; nevertheless, this study follows the well-established70convention in MIS issues research of accepting the top ten issues as determined by their mean ratings.6.4.2 The Top Ten Issues in EstoniaThis section provides a more detailed discussion of the most important MIS issues in Estonia.There are a number of sources for the impressions and comments which follow; these includeinformal discussions held with study participants, discussions held with other individuals about MISissues in Estonia, and comments left on the questionnaires by participants about specific issues.1. Planning and Implementing a Telecommunications SystemThe top rated MIS issue concerned telecommunications and in particular the poor state of the Estonianand Soviet telephone systems. Organizations that require access to data from a central site havefound it difficult to develop integrated on-line systems, and in some cases have found it necessary todeliver data on disks to local sites. The existing telecommunications system makes it impractical tolink intra- and inter-organizational locations, since the lines are unreliable and subject to static andinterference. This basic problem is distinct from the types of telecommunications concerns faced byIS managers in the West, where the issue is focused on modernizing organizational systems, andsupporting the integration of voice, data, image and textual forms of information.2. Promoting Standards for Hardware. Software and DataIS managers are faced with trying to integrate a vast array of incompatible systems originating fromboth CMEA and Western sources. While economic and political changes have brought benefits interms of increased availability and diversity of products, these changes have also complicatedintegration efforts. Estonian IS managers are now calling for standardization of products and systems71on at least two dimensions. Firstly, there is frustration with CMEA hardware. Although thesemachines are relatively close copies of Western computers, it was common practice for CMEAengineers to attempt to create 'new and improved' versions; the resulting internal differences oftenlimit compatibility and make integration with the original Western machines impossible. Secondly,locally programmed systems are often built in isolation and there are no commonly followedprocedures or standards for data formats and database definitions. This reduces opportunities forsharing and transferring information.3. Implementing and Improving Computer NetworksTraditional computing environments in Estonia were comprised of CMEA-built mainframes with alimited number of terminals located at a single site, and thus modern networking systems were notnecessary. As the proliferation of personal computers intensifies and organizations shift more of theirinformation processing activities to new Western-standard machines, the need for improvednetworking capabilities is becoming evident. Estonian organizations typically run microcomputerson a stand-alone basis since the high cost of network technology has limited the practicality of linkingmachines. As the sophistication and scale of organizational systems increases, it is becomingnecessary to install networks so that information can be effectively managed.4. (tie) Ensuring that Applications Satisfy theNeeds of Users and the OrganizationA primary goal of the systems development process is to build applications that are functional andsatisfy the requirements of individual users and the organization. Applications designers in the Westhave been criticized for overlooking the needs of end-users, and this is also a problem in Estonia.The socialist conventions of central planning and top-down decision-making may have aggravated this72problem since developers have grown accustomed to following directions from state authorities andthe planning bureaucracies, thereby bypassing individuals and end-users as a significant source ofdevelopment ideas. In addition, the systems that have been built under the state bureaucracy areprimarily designed to support the central planning mechanism; these project have given developerslittle experience in constructing applications to support organizational competitiveness in a marketeconomy.4._(tie) Improving Information Security and ControlThe issue of information security and control relates to the protection of data from unwanteddestruction, alteration and disclosure. As Estonian organizations increase their dependence oncomputerized information systems, their potential vulnerability to security problems also increases.In addition, the dominant role of government is being weakened in Eastern European societies, andthis process is rearranging traditional patterns of information control and access. Economic activitiesare becoming decentralized and databases are being operated by companies and private agencies, aswell as the government sector. The need for secure and accountable information management isbecoming increasingly evident.6. Building and Maintaining Reliable Information SystemsThe issue of reliability concerns the development of systems that are dependable and not subject torepeated breakdowns and down-time. This issue takes on special importance in the Eastern EuropeanIS environment for a number of reasons. Firstly, replacement parts for CMEA-produced technologiesare often in short supply and cannibalizing other similar machines may be necessary. Secondly,replacement parts for Western machines are generally available but may be prohibitively expensivefor firms with no access to hard currency. Thirdly, the expertise required to service or fix systems73may also be more difficult to procure than would be the case in typical Western environments.Fourthly, even when products are under warranty it may be difficult to obtain adequate vendorsupport; qualified product representatives are rarely found in Estonia and servicing in Helsinki orStockholm may be necessary.7. Establishing Alliances and Linkages with Western OrganizationsAs the transition to a market economy progresses, it is becoming increasingly necessary for Estonianorganizations to become competitive within both the local and international environments. In termof the IS function, alliances with Western companies provide two primary benefits. Firstly, Estonianorganizations are looking to the West for managerial expertise so that contemporary business practicescan be learned and employed. Secondly, Western organizations often provide access to computersand other IT products that are too expensive for Estonian firms to procure independently. Theprimary method for forming these alliances is through setting up joint-ventures between foreign anddomestic organizations.8. Developing an Information ArchitectureAn information architecture is a high-level map that shows how major classes of information arerelated to the major functions of the organization. Estonian managers have shown particular concernfor issues related to integrating systems as evidenced by the high ranking given to thetelecommunications, networks and promoting standards issues; the information architecture issuerelates directly to these integration priorities since it is concerned with the development of an overallmap to guide and promote data sharing and integrated systems.749. Ensuring the Physical Security of Computer SystemsThere is a need to protect computer systems against damage caused by misuse and negligence. Thereis also a widespread perception that crime rates are escalating dramatically in Estonia although it isdifficult to know the reality of the problem relative to Western countries. These issues areparticularly important because of the expense of replacing or repairing technologies. In NorthAmerica the replacement cost of a desktop computer may be around $1,500, or less than one monthssalary of a typical worker. In Estonia and the Soviet Union, the same computer might cost 40,000roubles, which translates into approximately 7 years salary. Information technologies are thereforerelatively more valuable in Eastern Europe, making physical protection a higher priority.10. (tie) Making Effective Use of the Data ResourceThe data resource issue is concerned with how organizations can capitalize on information capturedwithin corporate databases. Managers are frequently unaware of the existence of data that would helpin their decision-making, or alternately they lack the ability to effectively tap this resource.Reformatting information into systems that support decision-making is central to effective use of thedata resource. Estonian managers are increasingly realizing that effective information managementis an essential factor of production, particularly in the evolving competitive economy.10. (tie) Legislating Copyright Protection for SoftwareEstonian MIS managers have indicated that the lack of copyright protection for software is a seriousmatter. The absence of legislation to protect intellectual property affects firms on a number of levels.Firstly, established software vendors are reluctant to enter and service the market because theirproducts can be easily pirated. Secondly, developers have little incentive to create programs for the75Estonian market. Thirdly, some organizations feel that they cannot protect their proprietary systemsfrom unwanted distribution. However, it should also be noted that many managers view lack ofcopyright protection as an advantage since they can obtain expensive software at no charge. Despitethe mixed views on this issue, the vast majority of software currently in use in Estonia is unlicensedand most IT professionals have extensive personal libraries of Western software products.6.4.3 Issues of Least ImportanceWhile the previous section discussed the issues that were judged to be most important, it isalso interesting to look at the issues which were not rated highly. During the course of the study,a number of participants made the comment that all the issues seemed important, and it would thusbe inaccurate to interpret these issues as unimportant. Instead the issues of least importance shouldbe viewed as a set of concerns that currently have a lower priority.Many of the issues that were rated in the bottom third of the list originated with the NorthAmerican studies. Although these issues were rated highly in the United States, they do not appearto have the same impact on Estonian MIS managers and merit no further discussion. However, thereare also a number of issues which surfaced as potentially important Estonian issues, but weresubsequently rated as relatively unimportant. These issues are discussed below:24. Availability of Appropriate Hardware and Software Resources Supply shortages are a well known aspect of socialist economies and it was felt that this conditionmight also apply to the information technology market. However, Estonian managers indicated thatthey were able to get all necessary hardware and software as needed. A number of vendors sellcommon Western computer systems, and specialized needs can be supplied through vendors in the76neighbouring Scandinavian countries. However, a number of managers indicated that parts andaccessories for existing CMEA-built computer systems might become increasingly more difficult toobtain, depending on the future prospects for these manufacturers.27. Loss of Skilled IS Workers to Foreign BiddersThe Estonian economy is currently in transition and wages are extremely low by Western standards.This poses a potential threat to Estonian IS organizations on at least two dimensions: skilled ISemployees may seek employment in foreign countries, and skilled IS employees may be lost toforeign companies operating in Estonia. Both of these factor would limit the availability of qualifiedpersonnel for existing Estonian IS organizations. While this issue may be of some relevance to largestate-run information processing departments, it does not appear to have much overall importance.29. Obtaining Access to IS Knowledge and AdviceSince Estonian is spoken by few people, there is a shortage of IS books and materials in the Estonianlanguage. Furthermore, Western business and consulting firms are unlikely to take much interest inthe market given its small size. It was believed that these factors would limit the ability of EstonianIS management to absorb and adopt contemporary knowledge on IS management and practice.However, it appears that Estonian managers have long recognized that familiarity with foreignlanguages is necessary for accessing the relevant information. The Estonian IS function is amultilingual environment and departments have abilities in many languages including English,Finnish, German and Russian.30. Regulatory Constraints on IS Activities and AmbitionsWestern countries still maintain certain restrictions on technology exports to members of the former77Eastern Bloc. In addition, the bureaucratic and regulatory environment which has evolved under theSoviet government is well known for its constraints on organizational activities. However, EstonianIS managers did not perceive this issue as serious. The types of technologies required from the Westare no longer restricted and local governmental policies are undergoing massive liberalization.Estonian IS managers appear to have confidence that the regulatory environment is becoming fullyWesternized.6.5 Movement Towards ConsensusOne of the advantages of using the Delphi technique is that it encourages participants to reacha consensus on the issues of greatest importance. Measuring the change in the standard deviationsof mean ratings between subsequent rounds is an appropriate method for showing movement towardsconsensus. A declining mean standard deviation indicates that participants are reflecting on the issuesand revising their ratings to correspond more closely with their colleagues. For the thirty issuesmeasured for importance, the mean standard deviation during the second round was 2.08 while in thefinal round the mean standard deviation was 1.80. This decline indicates a movement towardsconsensus.An additional indicator of improved consensus in determining the importance of the issuesis an increasing differentiation between the most important and least important issues (Niederman etal. (1991)). The mean rating for the ten most important issues increased from 8.16 to 8.35 betweenrounds 2 and 3, while the mean rating of the ten least important issues decreased from 6.03 to 5.83during the same period.While it is possible that additional rounds might have improved the degree of consensus, itis highly unlikely that perfect agreement would ever be attained since the study participants would78continue to maintain certain independent views. Estonian MIS managers can be differentiated amongdimensions such as position, education, language capabilities, location, industry and otherorganizational aspects; each of these factors influences a manager's view of the importance of a givenissue.6.6 Issue ClassificationIS issues can be classified along various dimensions and categorized into groups. Suchanalysis helps to clarify and understand the underlying meta-issues that dominate the IS agenda.Issues can be classified into the following three categories: managerial / technical, internal / external,business relationship / technology infrastructure / internal effectiveness / technology application.These classifications were developed in previous issues studies and are defined below. The 30 issuesin Table 4 are categorized according to previous conventions wherever possible, although judgementwas required to classify the 15 new issues which surfaced in the Estonia study. Discretion shouldbe exercised in interpreting the results since such analysis is by necessity subjective; alternativecategorizations and explanations may be equally appropriate since many issues have components thatstraddle the various dimensions.The Brancheau & Wetherbe (1987) study attempted to classify IS issues along managerial andtechnological dimensions, and this convention has also been followed in subsequent studies.Managerial issues are concerned with management and enterprise-wide problems such as policy,strategy, structure, accountability and human resources. Technology issues relate to questions oftechnologies and applications such as specification, acquisition, development, use, security andprotection.79Rank M/T I/E Group Issue1 T E TI Planning and Implementing a Telecommunications System2 T E TI Promoting Standards for Hardware, Software and Data3 T I TA Implementing and Improving Computer Networks4 T I IE Ensuring that Applications Satisfy Needs of Users/Organization4 T I IE Improving Information Security and Control6 T I IE Building and Maintaining Reliable Information Systems7 M E BR Establishing Alliances and Linkages with Western Organizations8 T I TI Developing an Information Architecture9 T I IE Ensuring the Physical Security of Computer Systems10 M E BR Making Effective Use of the Data Resource10 T E BR Legislating Copyright Protection for Software12 M I IE Educational Weaknesses of the Workforce13 M E BR Facilitating Organizational Learning and Use of IS Technologies14 T E BR Affordability of Hardware and Software15 T I IE Improving the Quality of Software Development16 M I IE Specifying, Recruiting and Developing Human Resources for IS17 M E BR Unsettled Political and Regulatory Environment18 M I IE Changing the Attitudes of IS Employees19 M E BR Improving IS Strategic Planning20 M E BR Increasing Understanding of the Role and Contribution of IS21 M E TA Facilitating and Managing End-User Computing22 T I TI Integrating DP, OA, Telecommunications and Factory Automation23 M E BR Using Information Systems for Competitive Advantage24 M I IE Measuring IS Effectiveness and Productivity24 T E BR Availability of Appropriate Hardware and Software Resources26 M E BR Aligning the IS Organization with that of the Enterprise27 M E BR Loss of Skilled IS Workers to Foreign Bidders28 T I TA Planning, Implementation and Management of Office Automation29 M E BR Obtaining Access to IS Knowledge and Advice30 M E BR Regulatory Constraints on IS Activities and AmbitionsM/T - Managerial / TechnologyI/E - Internal / ExternalBR/IE/TI/TA - Business Relationship / Internal Effectiveness /Technology Infrastructure / Technology ApplicationTABLE 20 - CLASSIFICATION OF ISSUESWatson (1989) adopted a scheme originally developed by Hirscheim et al. (1988) to classifyissues along internal and external lines. Internal matters relate to functions within the IS departmentand include such items as human resources, information architecture and software development.80External matters deal with the relationship between the IS department and the enterprise or theenvironment outside the firm. Issues such as strategic planning, the corporate data resource andcompetitive advantage are classified as external issues.Niederman et al. (1991) developed a scheme to classify issues into four groups reflectingmajor thrusts in IS management. Business relationship (BR) concerns relate to issues that are externalto the IS department and focus on the relationship between IS and the business. The internaleffectiveness (1E) category concerns the internal operations and activities of the IS function.Technology infrastructure (TI) emphasizes the integration of technology to support basic businessneeds. Technology application (TA) focuses on the application of technologies for businessapplications.The most striking element arising from this analysis is the domination of technology issuesover managerial issues (see Table 20). The first six issues are all of a technological nature, as are11 of the top 15 issues. The most important managerial issue concerns the matter of establishingalliances with Western organizations, and this is ranked seventh. Most of the other top issues areconcerned with the procurement and effective application of technology. Table 21 provides acomparison of the categories of issues deemed most important in Estonian versus American settingsfor the top 15 issues in each study.The emphasis placed on technological issues by Estonian MIS managers may be a reflectionof an earlier stage in the development of the organizational IT function. The trend from technologicalto managerial issues has been well documented in the North American literature (Dickson et al.(1984); Brancheau & Wetherbe (1987); Niederman et al. (1991)) and it seems probable that Estonianmanagers simply lag their North American counterparts. As Estonian organizations continue tomodernize and Westernize their operations and culture, managerial issues will likely move to aposition of greater importance. It should also be noted that while the technological category of issues81may dominate current Estonian IT concerns, the specific technology issues of importance bear littleresemblance to those issues that topped the MIS agenda in North America a decade ago.CategoriesManagerialTechnologyInternalExternalESTONIA 1991 USA 1991786941187Business Relationship 5 6Internal Effectiveness 6 3Technology Infrastructure 3 5Technology Application 1 1TABLE 21 - CLASSIFICATION OF ISSUES: ESTONIA VS. USA826.7 Comparisons to Other Studies6.7.1 IntroductionThere are a number of previous issues studies that are appropriate for comparative purposes.In particular, studies from the United States (Dickson et al. (1984); Brancheau & Wetherbe (1987);Niederman et al. (1991)), Australia (Watson (1989)) and Europe (Index Group (1988)) can be used.These studies are suitable for comparative purposes because they were methodologically similar tothe Estonia study. The issues were presented on the questionnaires in a similar fashion and the issuewordings were generally consistent. In addition, all of these studies except the European effort wereDelphi surveys.6.7.2 Unique Estonian IssuesThe findings of the Estonia survey are notably unlike those from studies conducted in otherparts of the world. While Estonian MIS managers face some of the same concerns as managerselsewhere, it is clear that many of the issues of importance are significantly distinct. Of the 30 MISissues which were measured for importance, 15 are unique to the Estonian study, having failed tosurface in any other research setting. Furthermore, 7 of these unique issues are among the 10 mostimportant concerns for Estonian managers. This demonstrates that the issues which are judged mostimportant by Estonian MIS managers are largely dissimilar to the concerns of managers elsewhere.Table 22 lists the 15 issues which are unique to the Estonia study.83Rank Unique Issues2 Promoting Standards for Hardware, Software and Data3 Implementing and Improving Computer Networks4 Ensuring that Applications Satisfy Needs of Users/Organization6 Building and Maintaining Reliable Information Systems7 Establishing Alliances and Linkages with Western Organizations9 Ensuring the Physical Security of Computer Systems10 Legislating Copyright Protection for Software12 Educational Weaknesses of the Workforce14 Affordability of Hardware and Software17 Unsettled Political and Regulatory Environment18 Changing the Attitudes of IS Employees24 Availability of Appropriate Hardware and Software Resources27 Loss of Skilled IS Workers to Foreign Bidders29 Obtaining Access to IS Knowledge and Advice30 Regulatory Constraints on IS Activities and AmbitionsTABLE 22 - UNIQUE ISSUES IN THE ESTONIAN STUDY6.7.3 Comparison of Common IssuesThe remaining 15 issues in the Estonian study have been encountered in other researchsettings. Table 23 shows these issues and how they have been ranked in each of the studies.EST USA USA USA AUS EUR91 91 87 84 89 88 Common Issues1 10 11 13 13 9 Planning and Implementing a Telecommunications System4 19 18 4 17 18 Improving Information Security and Control8 1 8 na 3 5 Developing an Information Architecture10 2 7 9 9 12 Making Effective Use of the Data Resource13 5 3 6 10 8 Facilitating Organizational Learning and Use of IS Tech.15 9 13 4 4 14 Improving the Quality of Software Development16 4 12 8 2 7 Specifying, Recruiting, Developing Human Resources for IS19 3 1 1 1 1 Improving IS Strategic Planning20 11 4 15 6 3 Increasing Understanding of the Role and Contribution of IS21 18 6 2 8 14 Facilitating and Managing End-User Computing22 na 10 3 18 10 Integrating DP, OA, Telecommunications, Factory Automation23 8 2 na 7 4 Using Information Systems for Competitive Advantage24 16 9 5 19 11 Measuring IS Effectiveness and Productivity26 7 5 7 5 2 Aligning the IS Organization with that of the Enterprise28 na 21 12 29 na Planning, Implementation , Managementof Office AutomationTABLE 23 - COMMON ISSUES IN THE INTERNATIONAL STUDIES84Estonian IS managers clearly place more emphasis on the telecommunications issue than theircounterparts elsewhere. Managers in the United States, Australia and Europe have relatively modernand functional telecommunications systems, and thus their priorities lie elsewhere. The issue ofinformation security and control was also found to be of high importance to Estonian organizations,unlike the findings in Western studies. However, Estonian IS managers are in relatively closeagreement with Western managers on the importance of developing an information architecture; thisissue has been rated in the top ten in many recent international studies (Watson (1989), Niedermanet al. (1991)).As noted earlier, Estonian IS managers are primarily concerned with issues related totechnology. Brancheau & Wetherbe (1987) have observed that technology issues have becomeprogressively less important to Western IS managers as they have shifted their efforts to managerialconcerns. Issues such as IS strategic planning, using IS for competitive advantage, and alignmentof organizational and IS goals have consistently been ranked highly in Western studies. In theEstonian study, each of these issues merits a low ranking. It is possible that the trend towardsmanagerial concerns will also be observed in Estonian companies as IS managers increasingly adoptWestern standards and modernize their operations and organizations.6.7.4 Correlating the StudiesThe Kendall rank correlation coefficient (tau) can be used to estimate the correlation betweenthese six international studies. Kendall's tau measures the degree of correspondence across thevarious rankings of the MIS issues of importance and can therefore be used to detect the existenceof associations between the studies. The rankings from Table 23 were used as the inputs to calculateKendall's tau (see Siegel (1956) for specific details). Table 24 shows the output matrix of85correlations between the various studies.EST91USA91USA87USA84AUS89EUR88EST911.0000.154-0.124-0.0390.124-0.243USA911.0000.205-0.1470.462**0.400**USA871.0000.1160.295*0.464**USA841.0000.116-0.215AUS891.0000.420**EUR881.000** significant at 5% level* significant at 10% levelTABLE 24 - CORRELATING THE INTERNATIONAL STUDIESAs is evident from Table 24, the recent studies from Europe, the United States and Australiadid show significant positive correlations with each other and this suggests some degree of consensusabout the most important MIS issues in these countries. However, no significant relationships werefound to exist between the Estonia study and any of the other international studies. This confirmsthat Estonian MIS managers have a unique set of priorities as compared to their Westerncounterparts.6.8 Generalizeability of ResultsWhile the results of this study provide a good indication of the priorities and concerns ofEstonian IS managers, the findings may also have relevance in other parts of Eastern Europe. Asdiscussed in chapters 2 and 3, there are a number of factors which suggest that the Estonian ITenvironment is typical of the area, but caution should be exercised in drawing specific conclusionsabout the priorities of MIS managers elsewhere in the region. Eastern Europe remains a highly86diverse region on such dimensions as language, national culture, degree of Westernization, pre-1939history and perhaps even post-1989 history. However, the countries of the region have shared acommon economic and political system for the past 50 years and this has resulted in the developmentof comparable centrally-planned economies, organizational cultures, educational systems andindustrial activities. The CMEA countries also cooperated in the development and use of computertechnologies and thus share a common tradition in information technology as well. While no countryin Eastern Europe can be seen as fully representative of the entire region, Estonia does appear to berelatively typical. These factors suggest that the concerns of Estonian IS managers may parallel thoseof their counterparts in other areas of Eastern Europe.In determining whether the most important MIS issues in Estonia may be relevant elsewherein the region, it is useful to consider the issues themselves. Of the thirty issues measured forimportance, none appear to be strictly linked to the Estonian IT environment. Most of the issues areuniversal in nature and can be seen as concerns for IS management in all parts of the world. Someof the issues do raise concerns about specific circumstances in Estonia (such as the poor state of thetelecommunications system, the need to establish alliances with Western companies, the lack ofcopyright protection for software, or the unsettled political and economic environment) but thesecircumstances appear to apply equally well to other countries in Eastern Europe. This provides somemeasure of face validity for the claim that the results may be generalizeable. This study identifiesthe most important MIS concerns in a single Eastern European environment. The nature of thefindings suggests that these concerns may also have relevance in countries other than Estonia, butadditional research would be required to establish the actual validity of generalizing the results.876.9 Study ParticipantsA total of twenty-eight individuals were recruited to take part in this study; the variouscharacteristics of these participants are disclosed in this section. Ten people were asked participatein all three rounds, and eighteen were requested to participate in rounds 2 and 3 only. Table 25indicates the actual participation of these twenty-eight individuals.During round 2, an effort was made to collect a limited amount of demographic anddescriptive data about the individuals and organizations reflected in this research. This informationhelps to provide a better understanding of some selected characteristics of the research participants.(See the end of Appendix 2 for the sections of the round 2 questionnaire that were used to gather thisdata.) Since the round 3 findings are the final research results, it is appropriate to provide thedemographic and descriptive data only for the 24 individuals who participated in round 3.3 RESPONSES:2 RESPONSES:1 RESPONSE:0 RESPONSES:TOTAL:Rounds 1Rounds 1Rounds 1Rounds 2Round 1Round 222333 811150102Round 3No Rounds28TABLE 25 - RESEARCH SUBJECTS: PARTICIPATION PATTERN88i/ Organizational CategoryGovernment Department or Company 14 58.3%Academic Institutions 4 16.7%Privately Owned/Incorporated Company 3 12.5%Joint-Venture Company 3 12.5% 24 100.0%TABLE 26 - RESEARCH SUBJECTS: ORGANIZATIONAL CATEGORIESIn the original questionnaire, an attempt was made to distinguish between governmentdepartments (or ministries), and companies owned by the state. Upon analyzing the data, it wasdecided to combine these two categories since the responses indicated that such a distinction wasartificial in the Estonian context. Similarly, the distinction between a private company and anincorporated company was found to be meaningless.ii/ Business ActivityBusiness Services 6 25.0%Traditional Governmental Activities 5 20.8%Food and Agricultural 3 12.5%Education 3 12.5%Transport 2 8.3%Manufacturing 1 4.2%Health Services 1 4.2%Communication and Media 1 4.2%Retail 1 4.2%Hotel 1 4.2%24 100.0%TABLE 27 - RESEARCH SUBJECTS: BUSINESS ACTIVITIESiii/ Position of ParticipantThe respondents in this study occupied many distinct types of positions. Although detailed89descriptions of the various backgrounds and responsibilities were not solicited from the participants,it is still possible to compile a general overview of the respondent-types in the study.A common profile is the senior IS manager, who tends to be from a technical background(computer science, mathematics, engineering) but may also come from a managerial area (planning,accounting, administration). This individual is charged with overseeing the acquisition,implementation and use of applications in the organization. The senior IS manager often reports tothe chief accountant, although reporting to other functional areas or senior management is alsocommonA familiar type of IT organization in Estonia is the 'computing centre'; these are typicallylarge centralized data processing centres for goverment ministries or departments. A number of thegeneral managers from these computing centres participated in the study. Numerous IS consultantsand university educators also took part. In addition, officials from a number of independent ITassociations and agencies participated in the survey.IS Practitioners 15 62.5%IS Observers 9 37.5%24 100.0%TABLE 28 - RESEARCH SUBJECTS: POSITIONThis two-category classification of individuals approximates the conventions used byNiederman et al. (1991). The category of 'Practitioners' includes individuals such as senior ISexecutives, IS department managers and technical managers who have responsibility for overseeingthe IS operations of the organization. The category of 'Observers' would include such positions aseducators, consultants and vendors; these are individuals who are extensively involved in the fieldof IS, but are not themselves responsible for an IS operation.90iv/ Number of Employees in the OrganizationTotal ISEmployees ProfessionalsMean 252 27Median 60 10Largest 1600 150Smallest 1 1TABLE 29 - RESEARCH SUBJECTS: ORGANIZATIONAL SIZEv/ Language Capabilities of Study ParticipantsEstonian 100.0%Russian 95.6%English 87.0%Finnish 56.5%German 30.4%French 15.4%TABLE 30 - RESEARCH SUBJECTS: LANGUAGE CAPABILITIESvi/ Hardware and Software Used by Participating OrganizationsAn open-ended question asked participants to briefly describe the types of IT products usedby their organizations. While the unstructured nature of the responses makes a statistical synopsisimpossible, it is still possible to make a number of observations:all organizations have DOS based machines, typically imported from Finland or otherWestern countries. The most common processors are 8086 and 286, although many 386machines are also in use.- some IBM PS/2, Apple Macintosh and UNIX-based workstations are also in use, althoughthese are fairly rare.large established organizations have a variety of mainframe, mini- and microcomputersmanufactured by CMEA countries; new market driven companies typically have no CMEAmachines.91- all organizations had a large variety of Western software products, the most common beingWordPerfect, Lotus and DBase IV. This software is typically copied and not purchased.- networks are a rarity, although a few firms did report Ethernet setups, and one had a NovellLAN.6.10 Limitations of the StudyWhile efforts were made to preserve the rigour of the research, various potential limitationsof the study are summarized below: i/ Fewer Participants: the study solicited views from less than 30 participants, while NorthAmerican Delphi studies have typically used between 50 and 100. ii/ Non-Random Participant Recruitment: participants could not be selected from pre-existinglists of appropriate candidates; instead, recruitment was accomplished largely throughrecommendations and personal contacts. iii/ Concept of an 'MIS Manager' is unfamiliar to Estonia Organizations: the individualssurveyed in this study are best described as 'established figures in the Estonian ITcommunity' while the participants in the North American studies are 'MIS managers'. iv/ Statistical Significance of Issue Ordering: as in previous MIS issues studies, the specificordering of consecutive issues of importance may not have statistical significance. v/ Longevity of Results: the study was conducted during a period of extensive political andeconomic reform in Estonia; it is possible that attitudes and opinions on MIS issues are alsoin a state of rapid evolution. vi/ Comparisons with Non-current Studies: the data for this study were collected in 1991 whilethe data for the North American and other studies used for comparative purposes werecollected in 1989 and earlier. vii/ External Validity: discretion should be exercised in generalizing the results to other areasin Eastern Europe.92CHAPTER 7 - CONCLUSIONS7.1 Main ConclusionsThe primary goal of this research is to identify the most important MIS issues in Estonia.The top ten issues are repeated in Table 30.Final Rank Issue of Importance1 Planning and Implementing a Telecommunications System2 Promoting Standards for Hardware, Software and Data3 Implementing and Improving Computer Networks4 (tie) Ensuring that Applications Satisfy Needs of Users/Organization4 (tie) Improving Information Security and Control6 Building and Maintaining Reliable Information Systems7 Establishing Alliances and Linkages with Western Organizations8 Developing an Information Architecture9 Ensuring the Physical Security of Computer Systems10 (tie) Legislating Copyright Protection for Software10 (tie) Making Effective Use of the Data ResourceTABLE 30 - THE TOP TEN ISSUES IN ESTONIAThe most important issue in Estonia concerns telecommunications, and in particular the needfor an improved national telephone system. An underlying theme in many of the top issues is theneed to integrate systems; this is reflected by the high rankings given to issues such as establishingconsistent standards, implementing computer networks and developing an information architecture,as well as the telecommunications issue. Two issues associated with the protection of hardware anddata were also ranked in the top ten, indicating a concern about security. Most of the top issues areof a technological nature and reflect a priority for the acquisition and implementation of systems.An additional goal of this study was to compare the findings from Estonia with existingstudies conducted in Western countries. It is clear that Estonian MIS managers face a very different93set of concerns as compared to their counterparts in the West since the majority of the top issues areunique to the Estonia study. The findings from the Estonian study bear little resemblance to theearlier investigations conducted in the United States, Europe and Australia. However, it seems likelythat MIS managers in other Eastern European countries might have concerns similar to thoseexpressed in the Estonia study.7.2 Future DirectionsWhile this study is a first attempt at uncovering the priorities and concerns of MIS managersin an Eastern European context, there are a number of additional research projects that would beuseful in improving our understanding of the topic. In particular, it would be useful to solicit viewsfrom IT managers in Eastern European settings other than Estonia; this would clarify whethermanagers in the region face a common set of concerns, or whether the findings of this study arerelevant only to Estonia. Western investment and interest in Eastern Europe has been largely directedat Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Poland and the Russian Republic, and these areas would be of particularinterest in a supplementary study.A repetition of the Estonia study in a few years would also be useful. The continuingpolitical, economic and technological changes undoubtedly have considerable impact on the entireorganizational climate in Estonia, and it would be of interest to track the evolution of MIS prioritiesover time. Such efforts have been undertaken previously in North America with the series of Delphistudies and this has proven useful in maintaining a current understanding of important issues andtrends. The Delphi approach to MIS issues research has now become well established with numerousNorth American and international studies. Future researchers should also be encouraged to utilizethis methodology in order to preserve the comparability of the various studies.94In addition to conducting supplementary issues studies, it would also be useful to studyEastern European IT organizations and their operations in more depth. Estonian MIS operationsappear different from those in North America on a number of dimensions, but additional research isrequired to uncover and clarify these distinctions. In particular, it would be interesting to investigatestages in the evolution of an IT department and to see whether the North American experience hasany relevance for predicting development paths. Reporting hierarchies and the perceived role of theIS department in the Eastern European organization also merit further study.95BIBLIOGRAPHYAlpar, Paul and Phillip Ein-Dor. "Major IS Concerns of Entrepreneurial Organizations."Information and Management. Vol. 20, February 1991.Arthur Andersen & Co. 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The Baltic States in Peace and War: 1917- 1945. UniversityPark, Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania State University Press. 1978.Watson, Richard T. "Key Issues in Information Systems Management: An Australian Perspective -1988. " Australian Computer Journal. Vol. 21., No. 2, August 1989.Watson, Richard T. and J.C. Brancheau. "Key Issues in Information Systems Management: AnInternational Perspective." Information and Management. Vol. 20, March 1991.99APPENDIX 1Round 1 Questionnaire and Covering Letter100THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIAFaculty of Commerceand Business Administration2053 Main MallVancouver, B.C. Canada V6T 1Y8Telephone (604) 224-8500/224-8316Fax (604) 224-8468June 4, 1991I am a graduate student at the University of British Columbia in Canada and am currently conductinga survey of information systems managers in Estonia as part of my thesis work.As you are aware, organizations throughout Estonia and elsewhere are increasingly making use ofcomputers, hardware, software, telecommunications systems, and various other informationtechnologies. However, it is also recognized that there are many important issues and problemsassociated with effectively utilizing such technologies.The purpose of this research is to better understand the computerization problems facing Estonianorganizations. Therefore, I am asking for your help in identifying the most important issues facinginformation systems managers and their organizations in Estonia over the next three to five years.On the attached page, please list what you feel to he the most important IS issues and provide a shortexplanation of your rationale. Please he assured that all responses will be kept strictly confidential.If you have any questions about this research, I am currently in Tallinn at the following address:Enn KiudorfInstitute of CyberneticsAkadeemia tee 21 - B434Tallinn, Estonia200108Telephone: 527 314Thank you for your help,Enn Kiudorf101THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIAFaculty of Commerceand Business Administration2053 Main MallVancouver, B.C. Canada V6T 1Y8Telephone (604) 224-8500/224-8316Fax (604) 224-84684. juuni 1991Mina olen Kanadas iiliOpilane British Columbia iilikoolist ja viibin praegu Eestis, et teha uurimusieesti arvuti-spetsialistide kohta ja uurida probleeme mis neil tekivad seoses oma tooga.See on selge, et Eesti nagu terve maailma organisatsioonid ja ettevOtted, kasutavad jarjest rohkemarvuteid, nende riistvara ja tarkvara, telekommunikatsioonisiisteeme ja muidinformatsioonitehnoloogiaid. Ometi saame aru, et tihti tuleb igasuguseid probleeme ja kiisimusi ette,kui katsume effektiivselt kasutada neid tehnoloogiaid.Minu uurimistOO siht on teada saada millised kiisimused ja probleemid on siiani filesse kerkinud javOivad tulevikus veel tekkida eesti asutustes ja organisatsioonides seoses arvutite ning teisteinformatsioonitehnoloogiate kasutamisega. Jdrelikult paluksin Teie abi !Age tdhtsamate probleemideidentifitseerimises, mis Eestis praegus olemas on, ja mis jãrgmise kolme kuni viie aasta jooksulvaivad ette tulla.Jargmisel lehekuljel palun nimetage kaige tahtsamad informatsioonitehnoloogia probleemid Eestis, jakui vOimalik siis andke igale ka Iiihikene seletus. Keiik vastused on taiesti anoniiiimsed.Kui selle uurimistOO kohta kiisimusi on, siis minu praegused koordinaadid on:Enn KiudorfKiiberneetika InstituutAkadeemia tee 21 - B434Tallinn, Eesti200108Telefon: 527314Suur tarn] Teie ahi eest!Enn Kiudorf102KOIGE TAHTSAMAD INFORMATSIOONITEHNOLOOGIAPROBLEEMID IA KUSIMUSED EESTISKEY INFORMATION SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT ISSUES IN ESTONIAPalun nimetada kOige tShtsamad informatsioonitehnoloogia probleemid, mured ja kiisimused misvOiksid eesti arvuti-spetsialistidele jirgmise kolme kuni viie aasta jooksul ette tulla.Please list the most critical issues facing information systems managers in Estonia over the next threeto five years.1. Probleem: Seletus: 2. Probleem: Seletus: 3. Probleem: Seletus: 4. Probleem: Seletus: 5. Probleem: Seletus: 6. Probleem: S el etus: TAGAPOHJALIK INFORMATSIOON / BACKGROUND INFORMATIONJärgnev informatsioon on tarvilik et kontakti Teiega pidada.The following information is needed to maintain contact with you.Nimi / NameOrganisatsiooni Nimi /Name of OrganizationAadress / AddressTelefon / TelephoneMis on Teie ametiala? /What is your job title?104APPENDIX 2Round 2 Questionnaire and Covering Letter105THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIAFaculty of Commerceand Business Administration2053 Main MallVancouver, B.C. Canada V6T 1Y8Telephone (604) 224-8500/224-8316Fax (604) 224-8468June 17, 1991I am a graduate student at the University of British Columbia in Canada and am currently conductinga survey of information systems managers in Estonia as part of my thesis work.As you are aware, organizations throughout Estonia and elsewhere are increasingly making use ofcomputers, hardware, software, telecommunications systems, and various other informationtechnologies. However, it is also recognized that there are many important issues and problemsassociated with effectively utilizing such technologies.The purpose of this research is to better understand the computerization problems facing Estonianorganizations. Therefore, I am asking for your help in identifying the most important issues facinginformation systems managers and their organizations in Estonia over the next three to five years.The attached questionnaire lists a series of IS issues which may be of importance to Estonian ISmanagers. Please rate each issues in terms of how important you feel they are. Space is alsoprovided at the end of the questionnaire for you to add any additional important issues that you feelhave not been covered. Please be assured that all responses will be kept strictly confidential.If you have any questions about this research, I am currently in Tallinn at the following address:Enn KiudorfInstitute of CyberneticsAkadeemia tee 21 - B434Tallinn, Estonia200108Telephone: 527 314Thank you for your help,Enn Kiudorf106THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIAFaculty of Commerceand Business Administration2053 Main MallVancouver, B.C. Canada V6T 1Y8Telephone (604) 224-8500/224-831617. juuni 1991Mina olen Kanadast, British Columbia iilikooli iiliOpilane. Viibin praegu Eestis, et teha uurimusi eestijuhtidest, kes kureerivad ()ma organisatsioonide arvuti- ja informatsiooni-siisteemide tegevusi. Minauurin milliseid probleeme, muresid ja kiisimusi neil tekib seoses oma tooga.On selge, et Eesti, nagu kogu maailma organisatsioonid ja ettevOtted, kasutab jarjest rohkem arvuteid,nende riistvara ja tarkvara, telekommunikatsioonististeeme ja muid informatsioonitehnoloogiaid.Ometi teame et tihti tekib igasuguseid probleeme, muresid, ja kiisimusi , kui proovime neidtehnoloogiaid efektiivselt kasutada.Minu uurimistOO siht on teada saada, millised kiisimused, mured ja probleemid on siiani Liles kerkinudja vOivad tulevikus veel tekkida eesti asutustes ja organisatsioonides seoses arvutite fling teisteintormatsioonitehnoloogiate kasutamisega. Seega paluksin Teie ahi kOlge tlihtsamate probleemidevaljatoomises, mis on Eestis praegu, ja mis jargmise kolme kuni viie aasta jooksul vOivad ette tulla.Jlirgmistel lehekillgedel on kiisimustik mis paneb ette mOned infomatsioonitehnoloogia probleemid,mured ja kiisimused. Palun hinnata igat probleemi kuivfird tahtis see on. Kiisitluslehe lOpus onruumi jlietud ka uute probleemide lisamiseks. KOik vastused hoitakse tdiestiKui selle uurimistOO kohta kilsimusi on, siis minu praegused koordinaadid on:Enn KiudorfKiiberneetika lnstituutAkadeemia tee 21 - B434Tallinn, Eesti200108Telefon: 527314Suur Teie ahi eest!Enn Kiudorf107KOIGE TXHTSAMAD INFORMATSIOONISOSTEEMIDE JUHTIMISEPROBLEEMID, MURED JA KOSIMUSED EESTISKEY INFORMATION SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT ISSUES IN ESTONIAPaluksin Teie abi kedge tahtsamate informatsioonitehnoloogiaprobleemide, murede ja kUsimuste identifitseerimises, mis onEestis praegu olemas ja mis jargmise kolme kuni viie aastajooksul vedvad ette tulla. Lisatud kUsitlusleht paneb ettemaned informatsioonitehnoloogia probleemid. Palun hinnataigat probleemi skaalal Uhest kUmneni, kus 10 on koige tahtsamhinne ja 1 kOige tahtsusetum. Kui Teie ei ole kindelprobleemi tahtsuses, vol kui Teil ei ole probleemist kindlatUlevaadet ega arvamust, siis palun jatta hinne andmata. KuiTeil on ettepanekuid ved probleeme, mis ei ole kUsitlusleheltiles t6stetud, siis palun lisada see ja hinnang kUsitluslehelOpus, kus on selleks ruumi jaetud. Vedmalik et memelekUsimusele soovite vastata tapsemalt; olen tanulik koigimarkuste ja kommentaaride eest.I am asking for your help in identifying the most criticalissues facing information systems managers in Estonia over thenext three to five years. The following list contains a setof issues that may be of concern to Estonian IS managers.Please indicate your views by rating each of the listed issueson a scale of 1 to 10, where 10 indicates your highestpriority issue(s) and 1 indicates your lowest priorityissue(s). If you are uncertain about the importance of anissue, or have no opinion, please leave the rating blank. Itis also possible that not all issues of importance have beenidentified and thus space is provided at the end of the formso that new issues can be added and rated. Any additionalcomments or clarifications are also most welcome.Oldse MitteTahtis1 2Not At AllImportantHinne /RatingHINDAMINE / RATING SCALE:KeskparaseltTahtis3 4 5 6 7ModeratelyImportantVagaTahtis8 9 10CriticallyImportantInformatsioonitehnoloogia Probleem ja Seletus /Key Issues and their Rationale1. Parandada Informatsiooni Kaitset ja Kontrolli /Improving Information Security and ControlSeletus: Organisatsioonide saltuvuse kasvades infosOsteemidest suureneb risk, mis tuleneb andmetekadunisest vai moondumisest, info soovimatust avaldamisest vol infoteenuste katkemisest. Tugevjulgeolekukontroll ja veakindel infoedastus muutub paratamatuks.Rationale: As organizations increase their dependence on information systems, there is a greater riskfrom destruction and alteration of data, disclosure to outside sources, and disruption of informationservices. Tight security controls and fault tolerant information delivery are becoming a necessity.1082. Seadustada Autoriedgused Tarkvarale /Legislating Copyright Protection for SoftwareSeletus: Tarkvara kirjutajad ei ole saanud oma ttiOd kopeerimise eest kaitsta ja ametlikele tarkvaramUOjatele on esitatud vahe nifludsisi litsenseeritud programmidele. Tarkvara kasutajad ei saanud vastavattoetust ja abi. Autoriiiiguse seadusi on tarvis selleks, et neid probleeme vähendada.Rationale: Software developers have been unable to protect themselves from pirating and retailers havehad little demand for licensed programs. Organizations that use software have been unable to obtainadequate vendor support. Copyright protection legislation is needed to help rectify these problems.3. Infosiisteemide Spetsialistide SiirdumineValismaale voi Valisfirmade Teenistusse /Loss of Skilled IS Workers to Foreign BiddersSeletus: Kui arvestada Umber likOvasse" valuutasse, siis on infotOlitlejate palgad vaikesed. Praegusedvahetuskursid ei voimalda kohalikel firmadel vOrdvdarset tootasu maksta. See pajustab paljudetippspetsialistide siirdumist valismaisele tooturule ning viimane omakorda oskustekijOu defitsiitikohapeal.Rationale: Local IS salaries are low once they are calculated in hard currency equivalents. Currentexchange rates make it impossible for local firms to pay competitive salaries. This causes many top ISprofessionals to seek work abroad, or with foreign firms, resulting in domestic shortages of highlyskilled people.4. Luua ja Korras Hoida TOOkindlaidInformatsioonisUsteeme /Building and Maintaining ReliableInformation SystemsSeletus: Peame parandama sOsteemide usaldusvaarsust. SOsteemide loojad peavad riihku panema sellele, ettOsta riistvara ja tarkvara temOkindlust.Rationale: The reliability of systems needs to be improved. Developers should place increased emphasison maximizing the reliability of hardware and software.5. Kergendadi ja Juhtida Arvuti Kasutamist /Facilitating and Managing End-User ComputingSeletus: Laienev personaalarvutite kasutamine ennustab paremat produktiivsust, aga vaib ka kaasa tuuakontrolliviiimaluse puudumise. InformatsioonisOsteemide juhid peavad siis Oigesti kaaluma lOppkasutajatevabadusvajadust ning kontrolli nende ule. Tahtis on ka liippkasutajatele selgitada nende rolli.Rationale: The proliferation of end-user computing through personal computers offers the promise ofimproved productivity but also the dangers of inadequate management control. Information systemsmanagement must balance control against the need for slack. Clarification of IS and end-user roles is anecessity.6. Sobiva Riistvara ja Tarkvara RessurssideKattesaamise VOimalused /Availability of Appropriate Hardware andSoftware ResourcesSeletus: Praegu pole riistvara ja tarkvara pakkumine piisay. Sella tulemusel on ootamisajad pikad.Tihti peame vastu vatma neid tehnoloogiaid mis on saadaval, ja mitte neid mis tapsemalt tarvis oleks.See piirab organisatsioonide vaimalusi oma sihtide saavutamisel.Rationale: There is an insufficient supply of hardware and software products, often resulting inshortages and long waiting periods. Often it is necessary to settle for what is available, rather thanwhat is most appropriate. Shortages of these technologies limit the ability of the organization to meetits goals.1097. Wiroo Automatiseerimise Projekteerimine,Realiseerimine ja Juhtimine /Planning, Implementation and Management ofOffice AutomationSeletus: Paljud organisatsioonid installeerived praegu ametikoha automatiseerimise tehnoloogiaid,selleks et t6sta teenistujate produktiivsust. InformatsioonisOsteemide osakondadel on ka sellesOlesandes taitis roll mAngida.Rationale: Office automation is being implemented by many organizations to improve 'white collar'productivity. The IS department has a role to play in this process.8. Infoarhitektuuri Loomine /Developing an Information ArchitectureSeletus: Infoarhitektuur on Uks kargetasemeline ptaan, mis nbitab kuidas Uhtsamad informatsiooniklassidon seotud organisatsiooni funktsioonidega. Korporatiivne/globaalne infoarhitektuur on tarvilik selleks,et identifitseerida kaige töhtsamad organisatsioonis kasutatavad informatsioonikategooriad ja nendeseotus organisatsiooni tegevustega. See on vajalik, et juhtida rakenduste locmist ja vaimaldada andmeteintegreerimist ja Uhist tarvitamist.Rationale: An information architecture is a high-level map that shows how major classes of informationare related to major functions of the organization. A corporate/global information architecture isneeded to identify the major information categories used within an enterprise and their relationships tobusiness processes. It is a necessity to guide applications development and facilitate the integrationand sharing of data.9. Riistvara ja Tarkvara Finantseerimise Viiimalused/Affordability of Hardware and SoftwareSeletus: Et kâtte saada riistvara, tarkvara ja muid informatsioonitehnoloogiaid, on j5rgnevalt vajalikvaba turu poole vaadata. Aga siis on tavaliselt tarvilik maksta lairgeid hindu valuutas, mis kitsendabnende tehnoloogiate praktilist köttesaamise vaimalust.Rationale: In order to obtain hardware, software and other information technologies, it is becomingincreasingly necessary to turn to free market sources. This requires paying high prices and generallynecessitates the use of hard currency which limits the affordability of these technologies.10. Soodustada Arusaamist InformatsioonisUsteemideRollist ja Panusest /Increasing Understanding of the Role andContribution of ISSeletus: InformatsioonisUsteemidele vaadatakse manikord et nad on ainult Uldkulud. Tihti on vdhearusaadav, kuidas IS toetab organisatsiooni. Seetiittu vaivad organisatsiooni juhid esitada vaimatuidnaudmisi ja v6hendada informatsioonisUsteemi osakonna fonde. Selle tagajiirjel vaib aga organisatsioonkaotada mitmeid höid vaimalusi.Rationale: IS is sometimes viewed as an overhead expense with little appreciation of its contribution tothe organization. This can lead executive management to make infeasible demands and to cut fundingresulting in missed opportunities for the organization.11. Saavutada JuurdepalsInfosiisteemide Alastele Teadmistele ningAsjatundlikule Konsultatsioonile /Obtaining Access to IS Knowledge and AdviceSeletus: Infosiisteemide-alane kirjandus pole arusaadavas keeles. On puudus ka konsultatsioonifirmadest,kellelt saaks kOsida head n6u. Need pahjused muudavad infosUsteeemide efektiivseks juhtimiseks vajalikuteabe hankimise tUlikaks.Rationale: Many useful IS books, manuals and articles are not available in familiar languages. There isalso a lack of consulting firms who could provide good advice. These factors make it difficult toobtain the information necessary for effective IS management.11012. Parandada InformatsioonisUsteemideStrateegilist Planeerimist /Improving IS Strategic PlanningSeletus: Et organisatsioonides toimiks edukas majandus, on jiirjest tkihtsam, et nad koordineeriksid omauldist strateegilist plaani ja informatsioonisOsteemide plaani. Praegusel ajal on eriti tarvilikstraategilise plaanerimise oskusi parandada, sest bisnisi Ombruskond muutub kiiresti, arvuti kasutajadveitavad planeerimisest rohkem osa ja tehnoloogia areneb kiirenevalt.Rationale: It is increasingly critical to an organization's success that it align its long-range IS planwith its strategic business plan. Rapidly changing business environments, increased involvement of end-users, and accelerated technological change underscore the need to continue improving strategic planningskills.13. InformatsioonisUsteemide TkititajateValik, Vdrbamine ja Valjaape /Specifying, Recruiting and DevelopingHuman Resources for ISSeletus: Praegune ja tuleviku puudujabk kvalifitseeritud informatsioonita6tajatest ahvardab kahandadainformatsioonisOsteemi osakonna vaimalusi organisatsiooni vajaduste t5itmisel. TOOtaja karjgärivOimalusi tuleb selgitada. Oha enam riihku peab panema bisnisi oskuste arendamisele.Rationale: Current and future shortages of qualified information systems personnel threaten the ISdepartment's ability to keep up with the needs of its parent organization. Career paths need to beclarified. More emphasis needs to be put on developing business skills.14. Kindlustada Arvutislisteemide Kaitset /Ensuring the Physical Security ofComputer SystemsSeletus: Suurem osa arvutisUsteeme ja muud informatsioonitehnoloogiad on kergesti vigastatavad jakallihinnalised. Peame hoolitsema, et need tehnoloogiad oleksid varguste, vandalismi ja Onnetusjutumiteeest kaitstud.Rationale: Most computer systems and other information technologies are fragile and valuable. Careneeds to be taken to ensure that these technologies are secure from theft, vandalism and accidentaldamage.15. Luua Liite ja ithendusi LAKneriikideOrganisatsioonidega /Establishing Alliances and Linkages withWestern OrganizationsSeletus: Luua Hite, Uhisettevateid ja muid uhendusi liineriikide firmadega on tarvilik Eestiorganisatsioonidele. Need Ohendused lbanega parandavad ligipadsemise vaimalusi uutele tehnoloogiateleja nende teenindamisele, vaba turumajanduse ekspertiisile ning muule kasulikule informatsioonile.Rationale: Establishing alliances, joint-ventures and other linkages with Western firms andorganizations is necessary for Estonian organizations. These links with the West provide improvedaccess to new technologies, services, business expertise and useful information.16. MOOta InformatsioonisUsteemideEfektiivsust ja Produktiivsust /Measuring IS Effectiveness and ProductivitySeletus: Et efektiivselt juhtida informatsioonisOsteemi osakonda, siis peame selle osakonna jOudlustmOeitma. See on tulevikus isegi veel tahtsam, kuna organisatsioonid hakkavad investeerima rohkem jarohkem raha informatsioonidesUsteemidesse.Rationale: The measurement of IS performance is crucial to its effective management. This is becomingmore important as organizations invest more and more money in information systems.11117. Integreerida Andmetädtlus, WirooAutomatiseerimine, Telekommunikatsioonidja Tootmise Automatiseerimine /Integrating Data Processing, Office Automation,Telecommunications and Factory AutomationSeletus: Praegusel ajal on v6imalik integreerida erinevaid tehnoloogiasOsteeme. Vastavalt settee,kuidas organisatsioonid katsuvad integreerida tehnoloogiaid, on tarvis lahendada ka nendeorganisatsioonilised probleemid.Rationale: The capability now exists to integrate systems that are based on these diverse technologies.As organizations try to integrate their technologies, organizational and managerial problems will needto be solved.18. Liikuda Riistvara-, Tarkvara- jaAndmestandardite Poole /Promoting Standards forHardware, Software and DataSeletus: Andoeformaadid pole sageli Ohilduvad. Paljud rakendused on loodud lima sdsteemideintegreerimise vajadusi silmas pidamata. Riistvara mitteOhilduvus muudab remondi ja kokkuOhendamisekeeruliseks. Organisatsioonid peeved pOOdma kehtestada oma sUsteemidele standardid ning m8jutamaUldriiklike standardite kujunemist selleks, et vähendada integreerimise raskusi.Rationale: Data formats are often incompatible. Many applications have been developed with littleregard for the necessity of integrating systems. Hardware inconsistencies make repairs and connectionsdifficult. Organizations must strive to establish standards for their systems, and to push for basicindustry standards so that integration problems will be lessened.19. Tarkvara Arendamise Rvaliteedi Parandamine /Improving the Quality of Software DevelopmentSeletus: Realiseerimist ootavate tarkvararakenduste järjekord on liiga pikk. Kasutajate kannatusvaheneb. Seda probleemi v8imendab tii8j6u kallinemine. Siit tulebki tarvidus t6sta sUsteemidevalmistamise efektiivsust.Rationale: The application development backlog remains at unacceptably high levels. Users are gettingimpatient. Add to this the increasing costs of human resources, and the need for improved effectivenessin systems development becomes clear.20. Arvutiviirkude Rakendamine ja Parandamine /Implementing and Improving Computer NetworksSeletus: Arvutite Ohendamine vOrku on vajalik andnete, rakenduste ja riistvara Uhiseks kasutamiseks.Asutuste v6ime oma informatsiooni t6husalt juhtida hakkab uha enam olenema arvutiv8rkudest. Tuleblahendada arvutivOrkude rakendamise tehnilised kUsimused.Rationale: Networking of computers is necessary for the sharing of data, applications and hardware. Theability of the organization to effectively manage information is becoming increasingly dependent oncomputer networks. Technical problems associated with implementing networks must be overcome.21. Soodustada Organisatsioonis Informatsiooni -Tehnoloogia Oppimist ja Rasutamist /Facilitating Organizational Learning andUse of IS TechnologiesSeletus: Need organisatsioonid, kes -digest' ja sobivalt kasutavad uusi informatsioonitehnoloogiaid, onkindlasti samad, kellel majandus hasti edeneb. Paljudes olukordades peame muutma bisnisi harjumusi,protsessi ja ka organisatsiooni struktuure. InformatsioonisOsteemide osakond peab naitama, et nadoskavad 6ppida ja kasutada uusi tehnoloogiaid.Rationale: Organizations that prosper will be those that make use of appropriate new IS technologies intheir entire operation. Business practices and organizational structures will need to be modified inmany cases. IS also must demonstrate its own ability to learn and use new technology.11222. Infosiisteemide Tegevuse ja EdasiarenduseSeadusandlik Piiramine /Regulatory Constraints on ISActivities and AmbitionsSeletus: Laneriigid veel reguleerivad ja piiravad maninga tehnoloogia eksporti. Sisereeglid piiravadorganisatsioonide tehnoloogia ja majanduse pikidlusi. Need reguleerimise faktorid teevadinformatsioonisUsteemide korraldamise keerulisemaks.Rationale: Western countries still maintain some restrictions on the exportation of certaintechnologies. Domestic regulations limit the technological and business aspirations of firms. Theseregulatory factors complicate the task of IS management.23. TelekommunikatsioonisfisteemideProjekteerimine ja Rakendamine /Planning and Implementing aTelecommunications SystemSeletus: Kommunikatsioon on organisatsioonides barmiselt tähtis. Peame parandama riiklikkutelefonisUsteemi ning organisatsioonide telekommunikatsioonisUsteeme. InformatsioonisOsteemide m6jukonkurentsvaime tastmisele oleneb tunduvalt telekommunikatsioonitehnoloogiast. Kiired jakaugeleulatuvad muutused sellel alai teevad selle Ulesande keeruliseks.Rationale: Communication is the lifeblood of the organization. Improvements must be made to both thegovernment telephone system and intra-organizational telecommunications systems. Using IS forcompetitive advantage often depends heavily on telecommunications. Rapid and major changes in theindustry complicate this task.24. Kindlustada Rakenduste KasulikkusKasutajatele ning Organisatsioonile /Ensuring that Applications Satisfy theNeeds of Users and the OrganizationSeletus: Mekidunud aastatel on patjud rakendused ja susteemid olnud tuntavalt kehva disaini kvaliteetiga,mis v5hendab nende sOsteemide praktilist kasu. Lappkasutajate vajadusi on tihti eiratud. Nald peametasiselt r6hku panema sUsteemide kasutajate ning organisatsiooni vajaduste korralikule rahuldamisele.Rationale: In past years, many applications and systems have been plagued by poor design quality,limiting the usefulness of these systems. End-user requirements have often been ignored. An increasedeffort needs to be made to ensure that new systems are able to satisfy the needs of users and theorganization.25. Efektiivselt Kasutada Andmeressursse /Making Effective Use of the Data ResourceSeletus: Organisatsioonide andneressursid kasvavad suuruses ja vaârtuses ning muutuvad Uhakomplitseeritumaks. Ometi andneressursid jäivad suurelt osalt allahinnatuteks, kittesaamatuteks javähekasutatavateks. InformatsioonisUsteemide osakond ning terve organisatsioon peab soodustama 6hkkonda,mis vadrtustab neid ressursse.Rationale: The organization's data resource is growing in size, complexity, and value. Despite this, itremains largely unrecognized, inaccessible, and underutilized. IS must develop a climate within itsdepartment and throughout the organization which values the data resource as a corporate asset.26. InformatsioonisUsteemide KasutamineKonkurentsiviiime TOstmiseks /Using Information Systems forCompetitive AdvantageSeletus: Vabas turummjanduses on paljud organisatsioonid pikaajaliselt eluvaimelised ainult siis, kuinad kasutavad informatsioonisUsteeme konkurentsi tastmiseks. Tihti ei saa firma teisiti tegutseda.Konkurentsivaimu kasu tuleneb uute vaimmluste leidmisest loovuse ja innovatsiooni kaudu ning nendekiirest rakendamisest. See on tavatiselt informatsioonisUsteemi osakonna nark kUlg.Rationale: In many businesses, long-term survival is dependent on using information systems to gaincompetitive advantage. The business can be lost without it. Competitive advantage results fromrecognition of opportunities through creativity and innovation, followed by rapid implementation. Theseare historical weaknesses of IS.11327. Infosiisteemide TOOtajate Suhtumise Muutmine /Changing the Attitudes of IS EmployeesSeletus: Tuleb muuta tiiiitajate suhtumist one tdOsse, samuti arvutitesse ja infosOsteemidesse. TuleksOhutada tddtajaid oma initsiatiivi avaldama, loomingulist ja head tiidd peaks viirtustama. Samuti peabmuutma andmetdOtluse negatiivseid stereotUOpe ja selgitama kaasaegsete infosUsteemide erinevust minevikutsentraalse juhtimise ja planeerimise sOsteemidest (AJS).Rationale: The attitudes of workers towards their jobs, as well as towards computers and informationsystems needs to be changed. Employees should be encouraged to show initiative; creative andconscientious work should be rewarded. It is also necessary to change negative stereotypes aboutcomputing and to differentiate contemporary information systems from the central planning and controlsystems (AJS) of the past.28. Puudused Koolituses /Educational Weaknesses of the WorkforceSeletus: Paljudel tiRitajatel puuduvad baasteadmised arvutustehnikast; seetlittu kujuneb vastuseis uueletehnikale ja sUsteemide rakendamise piiratus. Isegi viljaOppinud infotdatluse spetsialistidel onpuudujgAke teadmistes. Oppeasutused peavad parandama oma infotlidtluse alaseid Oppeprogramme.Rationale: Many workers lack a basic familiarity with computers, resulting in resistance to newtechnologies and constraints on systems implementation. Even trained IS professionals have serious gapsin their knowledge. Schools and universities must improve the quality of their IS training programs.29. Segased Poliitilised ja Seadusandlikud Olud /Unsettled Political and Regulatory EnvironmentSeletus: Seadusandlus on massiliste Umberkorralduste jargus. Valitseb ebakindlus selles, kuidas uuedseadused organisatsioone majustavad. Infovajadused muutuvad pidevalt tehes uute sOsteemideprojekteerimise keeruliseks. Lahendamata potiititine olukord lisab ebakindlust veelgi.Rationale: Government laws and regulations are undergoing massive changes. There is great uncertaintyas to how new legislation will impact organizations. Data requirements are changing constantly, makingit difficult to plan new systems. The unsettled political situation adds to the uncertainty.30. Viia InformatsioonisUsteemide Osakond OigeleKohale Organisatsiooni Struktuuris /Aligning the IS Organization with thatof the EnterpriseSeletus: InformatsioonisUsteemide osakonna efektiivsus organisatsiooni infovajaduste rahuldamisel olenebinformatsioonisUsteemi osakonna positsioonist organisatsioonis. Tihti juhtub, et informatsioonisUsteemiosakond ei ole organisatsiooni struktuuris Oigel kohal.Rationale: The effectiveness with which IS can support the enterprise's information needs is dependenton the IS department's position within the enterprise. Too often IS is not located appropriately withinthe organization.114OLEJAANUD TAHTSAD PROBLEEMID, MURED JA KUSIMUSED /ADDITIONAL ISSUESPalun lisada teisi infosiisteemide juhtimise probleeme, muresidja kiisimusi Eestis.Please indicate any additional issues of importance toEstonian IS managers.Hinne /Rating1.Teised Tiihtsad Probleemid ja Nende Seletused /Additional Issues and Their Rationale Seletus: 2. Seletus: 3.Seletus: 115INFORMATBIOON ANKBEDI TAITJA KOHTA / BACKGROUND INFORMATIONJargnev informatsioon on tarvilik selleks et kontakti Teiegapidada, informatsiooni klassifitseerida ja statistilisianalUUse teha. Teie vastused hoitakse taiesti anonUUmselt.The following information is needed so that we can keep incontact with you, for classification purposes and forstatistical analysis. All responses will be kept in strictestconfidence.Nimi / NameOrganisatsiooni NimiName of OrganizationAadress / AddressTelefon / TelephoneMilline kategooria kaige paremini kirjeldab Teieorganisatsiooni? /Which category best describes your organization? Akadeemiline / Academic Riigi Organ / Government Department Riiklik Firma / State-Owned Company Eraettevate / Private Company Aktsiaselts / Incorporated Company UhisettevOtte / Joint-Venture Company Kooperatiiv / CooperativeMis on Teie organisatsiooni peamine tegevusala? /What is the primary activity or business of your organization?Mis on Teie praegune amet? /What is your present position or title?Mis on Teie otsese Ulemuse ametiala? /What is the title of the person to whom you report?Mitu inimest tiititab Teie organisatsioonis? /How many people are employed by your organization?116Mitu kutselist arvutitOdtajat ttiOtab Teieorganisatsioonis? /How many computer professionals are employed by yourorganization?Palun luhidalt kirjeldada milliseid riistvara ja tarkvarastisteeme ning rakendusi Teie organisatsioon praegu kasutab: /Please briefly describe the type of hardware and softwaresystems and applications currently being used in yourorganization:Palun mdrkida keeled mida valdate: /Please check the languages in which you are conversant: Eesti keel / Estonian Inglise keel / English Vene keel / Russian Saksa keel / German Teised keeled / Other: Aitah Teie vastuste eest!Thank you for completing this survey!117APPENDIX 3Round 3 Questionnaire and Covering Letter118THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIAFaculty of Commerceand Business Administration2053 Main MallVancouver, B.C. Canada V6T 1Y8Telephone (604) 224 -8500/224 -8316Fax (604) 224 - 8468July 17, 1991Thank you for your help in completing the previous questionnaire. We have now established apreliminary list of the most important MIS issues in Estonia. In order to complete this research, Irequire your help one final time so that we may determine the final ranking of the issues. Detailedinstructions for this round are provided on the enclosed questionnaire.Since I will be returning to Canada on August 3, I am a little worried about being able to collect allof the questionnaires before this date. To ensure that the data reach me, I am proposing a two stageplan for mailing the questionnaire back to me:1/ Please mail the main questionnaire to me at the Institute of Cybernetics. I will arrange tohave all the questionnaires that reach the Institute after August 3 forwarded to me in Canada.2/ Please copy your ratings onto the single page questionnaire and mail that directly to me inCanada.I am hoping that this will ensure that the data reach me safely and I have provided self-addressed andstamped envelopes to facilitate this plan.If you are interested in seeing a copy of the results of this research, please indicate this on thequestionnnaire. I will continue working on this project over the next several months back in Canada,and will he able to forward you a copy of the highlights in the fall.Again, your help in making this research possible is greatly appreciated.Yours sincerely,Enn Kiudorf119THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIAFaculty of Commerceand Business Administration2053 Main MallVancouver, B.C. Canada V6T 1Y8Telephone (604) 224-8500/224-831617. juuli 1991Tartan Teid abi eest eelmise kfisimustiku taitmisel. Niiiidseks on koostatud Eesti tahtsamateinfotOOtlusprobleemide esialgne loetelu. Selle uurimistOO lapetamiseks palun veel viimast korda Teieahi selleks, et saaksime neid probleeme tãhtsuse jarjekorras reastada. Lisatud ankeet annab sellekstapsemad selgitused.Kuna ma pOOrdun tagasi Kanadasse 3. augustil, siis olen veidi mures selle file, kas ma suudan ankeedivastused selleks ajaks katte saada. Andmete kattesaamise tagamiseks pakun valja jargmisekaheastmelise kava:1) Palun saatke taidetud ankeet mulle Kiiberneetika Instituuti. (Korraldan nii, et kaik peale 3.augustit Kiiberneetika Instituuti saahunud ankeedid saadetaks mulle Kanadasse jarele.)2) Palun tehke oma hinnangutest koopia lisatud eraldi lehele ning palun saatke see mulle otseKanadasse.Aadressi ning markidega varustatud iimbrikud on lisatud. Loodan et selline korraldus ei tee Teilepaiju tuli ning et vaartuslikud andmed jauavad turvaliselt minuni.Kui Teid huvitavad selle uurimuse tulemused, siis markige seda palun oma ankeedil. Jatkan selleprojektiga tOiid veel mitme kuu valtel ning siigisel vOin saata Teile koopia too tahtsamatesttulemustest.Suur tanu Teie abi eest.LuizupidamisegaCnn Kiudorf120KOIGE TAHTSAMAD INFORMATSIOONISUSTEEMIDE JUHTIMISEPROBLEEMID, MURED JA KUSIMUSED EESTISKEY INFORMATION SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT ISSUES IN ESTONIAPaluksin veel kord Teie abi keiige tahtsamate infotehnoloogiaprobleemide, murede ja kUsimuste valjaselgitamises, misavalduvad praegu Eestis ja mis jargmise kolme kuni viie aastajooksul vOivad ette tulla. Eesmargiks on need probleemidreastada tahtsuse jarjekorras. Jargnev probleemide loetelu onesitatud eelmise kUsitlusringi tulemuste peihjal maaratudtahtsuse jarjekorras. Iga probleemi juures on esitatudkUsitletud spetsialistide grupi keskmine hinnang ning Teieisiklik hinnang eelmise ankeedi pOhjal. Palun vaadake needhinnangud ning seletused file, tehke oma löplik otsus ja kandkeoma lOplik hinnang selleks jaetud tUhjale kohale. Nagueelmiselgi korral, palun hinnata igat probleemi skaalal UhestkUmneni, kus 10 on kOige tahtsam hinne ja 1 kaige tahtsusetum.Kui Teie ei ole kindel probleemi tahtsuses, ved kui Teil eiole probleemist kindlat Ulevaadet ega arvamust, siis palunjatta hinne andmata.I am asking for your help in confirming the most criticalissues facing information systems managers in Estonia over thenext three to five years. The following list of issues ispresented in the order of importance as determined from theprevious round of questionnaires. The average group ratingand your original rating are also provided. Please reviewthese ratings and the accompanying rationale for each issue.Make a final decision and record it in the blank. Rememberthat each issue is to be rated on a scale from 1 to 10, where10 indicates your highest priority issue(s) and 1 indicatesyour lowest priority issue(s). If you are uncertain about theimportance of an issue, or have no opinion, please leave therating blank.HINDAMINE / RATING SCALE:Uldse Mitte Keskparaselt VagaTahtis Tahtis Tahtis1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10Not At All Moderately CriticallyImportant Important Important121Grupi Teie Teiekeskarine eelmine taplik Informatsioonitehnoloogiabinning hinnang hinnang Probleemid ja Seletus1. TelekommunikatsioonislisteemideProjekteerimine ja Rakendamine /Planning and Implementing a9,0 Telecommunications SystemSeletus: Kommunikatsioon on organisatsioonides 66rmiselt t6htis. Peame parandama riiklikkutelefonisUsteemi ning organisatsioonide telekommunikatsioonisOsteeme. InformatsioonisOsteemide m6jukonkurentsv6ime t6stmisele oleneb tunduvalt telekommunikatsioonitehnoloogiast. Kiired jakaugeleulatuvad muutused sellel slat teevad selle Olesande keeruliseks.Rationale: Communication is the lifeblood of the organization. Improvements must be made to both thegovernment telephone system and intra-organizational telecommunications systems. Using IS forcompetitive advantage often depends heavily on telecommunications. Rapid and major changes in theindustry complicate this task.2. Liikuda Riistvara-, Tarkvara- jaAndmestandardite Poole /Promoting Standards for8,6 Hardware, Software and DataSeletus: Andmeformaadid pole sageli OhildUvad. Paljud rakendused on loodud ilma sOsteemideintegreerimise vajadusi silmas pidamata. Riistvara mitteOhildUvus muudab remondi ja kokkuOhendamisekeeruliseks. Organisatsioonid peeved pOOdma kehtestada oma sOsteemidele standardid rang m6jutamaOldriiklike standardite kujunemist selleks, et vähendada integreerimise raskusi.Rationale: Data formats are often incompatible. Many applications have been developed with littleregard for the necessity of integrating systems. Hardware inconsistencies make repairs and connectionsdifficult. Organizations must strive to establish standards for their systems, and to push for basicindustry standards so that integration problems will be lessened.3. Luua ja Korras }Wide TOOkindlaidInformatsioonisUsteeme /Building and Maintaining Reliable8,3 Information SystemsSeletus: Peame parandama sOsteemide usaldusviiirsust. gisteemide loojad peeved r6hku panema senate, ett6sta riistvara ja tarkvara t66kindlust.Rationale: The reliability of systems needs to be improved. Developers should place increased emphasison maximizing the reliability of hardware and software.4. Luua Liite ja Uhendusi LaaneriikideOrganisatsioonidega /Establishing Alliances and Linkages8,2 with Western OrganisationsSeletus: Luua liite, Chisettev6teid ja maid Ohendusi l66neriikide firmadega on tarvilik Eestiorganisatsioonidele. Need Ohendused Iiinega parandavad ligip6isemise v6imalusi uutele tehnoloogiateleja nende teenindamisele, vaba turumajanduse ekspertiisile ning mule kasulikule informatsioonile.Rationale: Establishing alliances, joint-ventures and other linkages with Western firms andorganizations is necessary for Estonian organizations. These links with the West provide improvedaccess to new technologies, services, business expertise and useful information.5. Kindlustada Rakenduste KasulikkusKasutajatele ning Organisatsioonile /Ensuring that Applications Satisfy the8,2 Needs of Users and the OrganizationSeletus: M66dunud aastatel on paljud rakendused ja sUsteemid olnud tuntavalt kehva disaini kvaliteetiga,mis vahendab nende sUsteemide praktilist kasu. LOppkasutajate vajadusi on tihti eiratud. NOW peamet6siselt röhku panema sUsteemide kasutajate ning organisatsiooni vajaduste korralikule rahuldamisele.Rationale: In past years, many applications and systems have been plagued by poor design quality,limiting the usefulness of these systems. End-user requirements have often been ignored. An increasedeffort needs to be made to ensure that new systems are able to satisfy the needs of users and theorganization.122Grupi Teie Teekesk■ine eel■ine laplik Informatsioonitehnoloogiahinnang hinnang hinnang Probleemid ja Seletus6. ArvutivOrkude Rakendamine ja Parandamine /Implementing and Improving8,2 Computer NetworksSeletus: Arvutite uhendamine vörku on vajalik andmete, rakenduste ja riistvara Uhiseks kasutamiseks.Asutuste vaime cam informatsiooni tiihusalt juhtida hakkab Uha enam olenema arvutivOrkudest. Tuleblahendada arvutivOrkude rakendamise tehnilised kOsimused.Rationale: Networking of computers is necessary for the sharing of data, applications and hardware. Theability of the organization to effectively manage information is becoming increasingly dependent oncomputer networks. Technical problems associated with implementing networks must be overcome.7. Infoarhitektuuri Loomine /8,0 Developing an Information ArchitectureSeletus: infoarhitektuur on Uks kOrgetasemeline plaan, mis n5itab kuidas taltsamad informatsiooniklassidon seotud organisatsiooni funktsioonidega. Korporatiivne/globaalne infoarhitektuur on tarvilik selleks,et identifitseerida köige töhtsamad organisatsioonis kasutatavad informatsioonikategooriad ja nendeseotus organisatsiooni tegevustega. See on vajalik, et juhtida rakenduste loomist ja vaimaldada andmeteintegreerimist ja (Mist tarvitamist.Rationale: An information architecture is a high-level map that shows how major classes of informationare related to major functions of the organization. A corporate/global information architecture isneeded to identify the major information categories used within an enterprise and their relationships tobusiness processes. It is a necessity to guide applications development and facilitate the integrationand sharing of data.8. Parandada InformatsiooniKaitset ja Kontrolli / 7,8 Improving Information Security and ControlSeletus: Organisatsioonide sOltuvuse kasvades infosOsteemidest suureneb risk, mis tuleneb andmetekadumisest voi moondumisest, info soovimatust avaldamisest voi infoteenuste katkemisest. Tugevjulgeolekukontroll ja veakindel infoedastus muutub paratamatuks.Rationale: As organizations increase their dependence on information systems, there is a greater riskfrom destruction and alteration of data, disclosure to outside sources, and disruption of informationservices. Tight security controls and fault tolerant information delivery are becoming a necessity.9. Seadustada AutoriOigused Tarkvarale /Legislating Copyright Protection 7,7 for SoftwareSeletus: Tarkvara kirjutajad ei ole saanud oma Odd kopeerimise eest kaitsta ja ametlikele tarkvaramUUjatele on esitatud vihe noudmisi litsenseeritud programmidele. Tarkvara kasutajad ei saanud vastavattoetust ja abi. Autoriiiiguse seadusi on tarvis selleks, et neid probleeme viihendada.Rationale: Software developers have been unable to protect themselves from pirating and retailers havehad little demand for licensed programs. Organizations that use software have been unable to obtainadequate vendor support. Copyright protection legislation is needed to help rectify these problems.10. Riistvara ja TarkvaraFinantseerimise Veimalused /7,6 Affordability of Hardware and SoftwareSeletus: Et kötte saada riistvara, tarkvara ja maid informatsioonitehnoloogiaid, on járgnevalt vajalikvaba turu poole vaadata. Aga siis on tavaliselt tarvilik maksta kOrgeid hindu valuutas, mis kitsendabnende tehnoloogiate praktilist kãttesaamise vOimalust.Rationale: In order to obtain hardware, software and other information technologies, it is becomingincreasingly necessary to turn to free market sources. This requires paying high prices and generallynecessitates the use of hard currency which limits the affordability of these technologies.123Grupi Teie Teiekesi■ine eel■ine lOplik Informatsioonitehnoloogiahimang hinnang himang Probleemid ja Seletus11. Rindlustada Arvutislisteemide Kaitset /Ensuring the Physical Security of7,6 Computer SystemsSeletus: Suurem osa arvutisOsteeme ja muud informatsioonitehnoloogiad on kergesti vigastatavad jakallihinnalised. Peame hoolitsema, et need tehnoloogiad oleksid varguste, vandatismi ja annetusjutumiteeest kaitstud.Rationale: Most computer systems and other information technologies are fragile and valuable. Careneeds to be taken to ensure that these technologies are secure from theft, vandalism and accidentaldamage.12. Segased Poliitilised jaSeadusandlikud Olud /Unsettled Political and7,3 Regulatory EnvironmentSeletus: Seadusandlus on massiliste Umberkorralduste jargus. Valitseb ebakindlus selles, kuidas uuedseadused organisatsioone dajustavad. Infovajadused muutuvad pidevalt tehes uute sUsteemideprojekteerimise keeruliseks. lahendamata poliitiline olukord lisab ebakindlust veelgi.Rationale: Government laws and regulations are undergoing massive changes. There is great uncertaintyas to how new legislation will impact organizations. Data requirements are changing constantly, makingit difficult to plan new systems. The unsettled political situation adds to the uncertainty.13. Puudused Koolituses /7,3 Educational Weaknesses of the WorkforceSeletus: Paljudel ttiatajatel puuduvad baasteadmised arvutustehnikast; seetattu kujuneb vastuseis uueletehnikale ja sUsteemide rakendamise piiratus. Isegi valjaappinud infotaatluse spetsialistidel onpuudujaake teadmistes. Oppeasutused peeved parandama oma infotdatluse alaseid Oppeprogramme.Rationale: Many workers lack a basic familiarity with computers, resulting in resistance to newtechnologies and constraints on systems implementation. Even trained IS professionals have serious gapsin their knowledge. Schools and universities must improve the quality of their IS training programs.14. Efektiivselt Kasutada Andmeressursse / 7,3 Making Effective Use of the Data ResourceSeletus: Organisatsioonide andmeressursid kasvavad suuruses ja vairtuses ning muutuvad Uhakomplitseeritumaks. Ometi andmeressursid jaavad suurelt osalt allahinnatuteks, kattesaamatuteks javahekasutatavateks. InformatsioonisOsteemide osakond ning terve organisatsioon peab soodustama Ohkkonda,mis vaiirtustab neid ressursse.Rationale: The organization's data resource is growing in size, complexity, and value. Despite this, itremains largely unrecognized, inaccessible, and underutilized. IS must develop a climate within itsdepartment and throughout the organization which values the data resource as a corporate asset.15. Soodustada Organisatsioonis Info-Tehnoloogia Oppimist ja Rasutamist /Facilitating Organizational Learning and 7,3 Use of IS TechnologiesSeletus: Need organisatsioonid, kes oigesti ja sobivalt kasutavad uusi informatsioonitehnoloogiaid, onkindlasti samad, kellel majandus hasti edeneb. Paljudes olukordades peame muutma bisnisi harjumusi,protsessi ja ka organisatsiooni struktuure. InformatsioonisUsteemide osakond peab naitama, et nadoskavad Oppida ja kasutada uusi tehnoloogiaid.Rationale: Organizations that prosper will be those that make use of appropriate new IS technologies intheir entire operation. Business practices and organizational structures will need to be modified inmany cases. IS also must demonstrate its own ability to learn and use new technology.124Grupi Teie TeiekeskMine eel■ine lOplik Informatsioonitehnoloogiahinnang hinnang hinnang Probleemid ja Seletus16. Informatsioonislisteemide TateitajateValik, Varbamine ja Viljaape /Specifying, Recruiting and Developing7,2 Human Resources for ISSeletus: Praegune ja tuleviku puudujaak kvalifitseeritud informatsioonitiiiitajatest ahvardab kahandadainformatsioonisUsteemi osakonna v8imalusi organisatsiooni vajaduste taitmisel. T8iitaja karj5Arivaimalusi tuleb selgitada. Oha enam r8hku peab panema bisnisi oskuste arendamisele.Rationale: Current and future shortages of qualified information systems personnel threaten the ISdepartment's ability to keep up with the needs of its parent organization. Career paths need to beclarified. More emphasis needs to be put on developing business skills.17. Tarkvara ArendamiseKvaliteedi Parandamine /Improving the Quality of7,0 Software DevelopmentSeletus: Realiseerimist ootavate tarkvararakenduste jtirjekord on liiga pikk. Kasutajate kannatusvaheneb. Seda probleemi viiimendab tOtijOu kallinemine. Siit tulebki tarvidus testa sUsteemidevalmistamise efektiivsust.Rationale: The application development backlog remains at unacceptably high levels. Users are gettingimpatient. Add to this the increasing costs of human resources, and the need for improved effectivenessin systems development becomes clear.18. Infosiisteemide Tekitajate SuhtumiseMuutmine /7,0 Changing the Attitudes of IS EmployeesSeletus: Tuleb muuta tii8tajate suhtumist oma td8sse, samuti arvutitesse ja infosUsteemidesse. TuleksEihutada tödtajaid oma initsiatiivi avaldama, loomingulist ja head toed peaks v55rtustama. Samuti peabmuutma andillettieltluse negatiivseid stereotuupe ja selgitama kaasaegsete infosOsteemide erinevust minevikutsentraalse juhtimise ja planeerimise sOsteemidest (AJS).Rationale: The attitudes of workers towards their jobs, as well as towards computers and informationsystems needs to be changed. Employees should be encouraged to show initiative; creative andconscientious work should be rewarded. It is also necessary to change negative stereotypes aboutcomputing and to differentiate contemporary information systems from the central planning and controlsystems (AJS) of the past.19. Parandada InformatsioonisUsteemideStrateegilist Planeerimist /6,9 Improving IS Strategic PlanningSeletus: Et organisatsioonides toimiks edukas majandus, on jarjest tähtsam, et nad koordineeriksid omauldist strateegilist plaani ja informatsioonisUsteemide plaani. Praegusel ajal on eriti tarvilikstraategilise plaanerimise oskusi parandada, sest bisnisi Umbruskond muutub kiiresti, arvuti kasutajadv8tavad planeerimisest rohkem osa ja tehnoloogia areneb kiirenevalt.Rationale: It is increasingly critical to an organization's success that it align its long-range IS planwith its strategic business plan. Rapidly changing business environments, increased involvement of end-users, and accelerated technological change underscore the need to continue improving strategic planningskills.125Grupi Teie Teiekeskuine eel■ine loplik Informatsioonitehnoloogiahimw Mmiang himmng Probleemid ja Seletus20. Integreerida Andmetabtlus, WirooAutomatiseerimine, Telekommunikatsioonidja Tootmise Automatiseerimine /Integrating Data Processing, OfficeAutomation, Telecommunications and6,7 Factory AutomationSeletus: Praegusel ajal on v6imalik integreerida erinevaid tehnoloogiasUsteeme. Vastavalt sellele,kuidas organisatsioonid katsuvad integreerida tehnoloogiaid, on tarvis lahendada ka nendeorganisatsioonilised probteemid.Rationale: The capability now exists to integrate systems that are based on these diverse technologies.As organizations try to integrate their technologies, organizational and managerial problems will needto be solved.21. Sobiva Riistvara ja Tarkvara RessurssideKattesaamise VOimalused /Availability of Appropriate Hardware and6,6 Software ResourcesSeletus: Praegu pole riistvara ja tarkvara pakkumine piisay. Salle tulemusel on ootamisajad pikad.Tihti peame vastu v6tma neid tehnoloogiaid mis on saadaval, ja mitte neid mis tapsemalt tarvis oleks.See piirab organisatsioonide v6imalusi oma sihtide saavutamisel.Rationale: There is an insufficient supply of hardware and software products, often resulting inshortages and long waiting periods. Often it is necessary to settle for what is available, rather thanwhat is most appropriate. Shortages of these technologies limit the ability of the organization to meetits goals.22. Kergendada ja Juhtida Arvuti Kasutamist /Facilitating and Managing 6,6 End-User ComputingSeletus: Laienev personaalarvutite kasutamine ennustab paremat produktiivsust, aga v6ib ka kaasa tuuakontrolliv6imaluse puudumise. InformatsioonisOsteemide juhid peavad siis 6igesti kaaluma lappkasutajatevabadusvajadust ning kontrolli nende Ule. Tahtis on ka lappkasutajatele selgitada nende rolli.Rationale: The proliferation of end-user computing through personal computers offers the promise ofimproved productivity but also the dangers of inadequate management control. Information systemsmanagement must balance control against the need for slack. Clarification of IS and end-user roles is anecessity.23. Soodustada ArusaamistInfosiisteemide Rollist ja Panusest /Increasing Understanding of the 6,5 Role and Contribution of ISSeletus: InformatsioonisOsteemidele vaadatakse manikord et nad on ainult Uldkulud. Tihti on vahearusaadav, kuidas IS toetab organisatsiooni. Seetiittu v6ivad organisatsiooni juhid esitada v6imatuidn6udmisi ja vahendada informatsioonisUsteemi osakonna fonde. Salle tagajarjel v6ib aga organisatsioonkaotada mitmeid haid v6imalusi.Rationale: IS is sometimes viewed as an overhead expense with little appreciation of its contribution tothe organization. This can lead executive management to make infeasible demands and to cut fundingresulting in missed opportunities for the organization.126Gruipi Teie Teiekesimine eelmine loplik Informatsioonitehnoloogiahinnang h imam hirnang Probleemid ja Seletus24. Vila InformatsioonislisteemideOsakond oigele Rohale OrganisatsiooniStruktuuris /Aligning the IS Organization with6,5 that of the EnterpriseSeletus: InformatsioonisOsteemide osakonna efektiivsus organisatsiooni infovajaduste rahuldamisel olenebinformatsioonisUsteemi osakonna positsioonist organisatsioonis. Tihti juhtub, et informatsioonisUsteemiosakond ei ole organisatsiooni struktuuris aigel kohal.Rationale: The effectiveness with which IS can support the enterprise's information needs is dependenton the IS department's position within the enterprise. Too often IS is not located appropriately withinthe organization.25. MOOta InformatsioonislisteemideEfektiivsust ja Produktiivsust /Measuring IS Effectiveness and6,5 ProductivitySeletus: Et efektiivselt juhtida informatsioonisOsteemi osakonda, siis peame selle osakonna jaudlustmaiitma. See on tutevikus isegi veel t6htsam, kuna organisatsioonid hakkavad investeerima rohkem jarohkem raha informatsioonidesOsteemidesse.Rationale: The measurement of IS performance is crucial to its effective management. This is becomingmore important as organizations invest more and more money in information systems.26. InformatsioonisUsteemide RasutamineRonkurentsivelime TOstmiseks /Using Information Systems for6,3 Competitive AdvantageSeletus: Vabas turumajanduses on paljud organisatsioonid pikaajaliselt eluvaimelised ainult siis, kuinad kasutavad informatsioonisUsteeme konkurentsi tastmiseks. Tihti ei saa firma teisiti tegutseda.Konkurentsivaimu kasu tuteneb uute vaimaluste leidmisest loovuse ja innovatsiooni kaudu ning nendekiirest rakendamisest. See on tavaliselt informatsioonisOsteemi osakonna nark kUlg.Rationale: In many businesses, long-term survival is dependent on using information systems to gaincompetitive advantage. The business can be lost without it. Competitive advantage results fromrecognition of opportunities through creativity and innovation, followed by rapid implementation. Theseare historical weaknesses of IS.27. BUroo Automatiseerimise Projekteerimine,Realiseerimine ja Juhtimine /Planning, Implementation and Management5,9 of Office AutomationSeletus: Paljud organisatsioonid installeerivad praegu ametikoha automatiseerimise tehnoloogiaid,selleks et tasta teenistujate produktiivsust. InformatsioonisUsteemide osakondadel on ka sellesUlesandes tahtis roll mangida.Rationale: Office automation is being implemented by many organizations to improve 'white collar'productivity. The IS department has a role to play in this process.127Gruipi Tele Teiekesiomine eel■ine laplik Informatsioonitehnoloogiahinneng hinnang hinnang Probleemid ja Boletus28. InfosUsteemide Spetsialistide SiirdumineWilismaale vOi Wilisfirmade Teenistusse /Loss of Skilled IS Workers to5,8 Foreign BiddersSeletus: Kui arvestada timber "k5vassew valuutasse, sits on infotbdtlejate palgad viikesed. Praegusedvahetuskursid ei vdimalda kohalikel firmadel viirdviiirset tO6tasu maksta. See p6hjustab paljudetippspetsialistide siirdumist valismaisele telaturule ning viimane omakorda oskustb5j5u defitsiitikohapeal.Rationale: Local IS salaries are low once they are calculated in hard currency equivalents. Currentexchange rates make it impossible for local firms to pay competitive salaries. This causes many top ISprofessionals to seek work abroad, or with foreign firms, resulting in domestic shortages of highlyskilled people.29. Saavutada Juurdepais InfosUsteemideAlastele Teadmistele ningAsjatundlikule Konsultatsioonile /Obtaining Access toIS Knowledge and AdviceSeletus: InfosOsteemide-alane kirjandus pole arusaadavas keeles. On puudus ka konsultatsioonifirmadest,kellelt seeks kOsida head am. Need p5hjused wuudavad infosOsteeemide efektiivseks juhtimiseks vajalikuteabe hankimise tOlikaks.Rationale: Many useful IS books, manuals and articles are not available in familiar languages. There isalso a lack of consulting firms who could provide good advice. These factors make it difficult toobtain the information necessary for effective IS management.30. InfosUsteemide Tegevuse ja EdasiarenduseSeadusandlik Piiramine /Regulatory Constraints on IS4,3 Activities and AmbitionsSeletus: Liiinerifgid veel reguleerived ja piiravad meninga tehnoloogia eksporti. Sisereeglid piiravadorganisatsioonide tehnoloogia ja majanduse paidlusi. Need reguleerimise faktorid teevadinformatsioonisOsteemide korraldamise keerulisemaks.Rationale: Western countries still maintain some restrictions on the exportation of certaintechnologies. Domestic regulations limit the technological and business aspirations of firms. Theseregulatory factors complicate the task of IS management.INFORMATSIOON ANKEEDI TliITJA KOHTA / BACKGROUND INFORMATIONMimi / NameOrganisatsiooni Nimi /Name of OrganizationKas Teie soovite koopiatuurimistbd tulemustest? / Jah / Ei /Would you like a copy of the results? Yes NoAitah Teie vastuste cost!Thank you for completing this survey!5,4128KOIGE TAHTSAMAD INFORMATSIOONISCJSTEEMIDE JUHTIMISEPROBLEEMID, MURED JA KUSIMUSED EESTISKEY INFORMATION SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT ISSUES IN ESTONIAPalun tehke oma hinnangutest koopia sellele lehele ning palun saatke see mulle otse Kanadasse.Teie LOplikProbleem HinnangTeie LOplikProbleem Hinnang1. 16.2. 17.3. 18.4. 19.5. 20.6. 21.7. 22.8. 23.9. 24.10. 25.11. 26.12. 27.13. 28.14. 29.15. 30.INFORMATSIOON ANKEEDI TAITJA KOHTA / BACKGROUND INFORMATIONNimi / NameOrganisatsiooni Nimi /Name of OrganizationKas Teie soovite koopiatuurimistOO tulemustest? / Jah / Ei /Would you like a copy of the results? Yes No129