Abstract
We investigate the effect of exploitative and exploratory learning activities on ITO vendor profitability. We present a mixed-method strategy to iteratively inform our research with an unprecedented data set of both qualitative and quantitative data on projects of the ERP service vendor OMEGA. In this paper, we report on initial quantitative findings, which show that exploitative activities have a positive linear effect on vendor profitability, suggesting that OMEGA benefits from learning curve effects. In contrast, we show that exploratory activities have a negative non-linear effect on profitability, suggesting that OMEGA deliberately relaxes profitability objectives to invest into new capabilities. By combining these findings with qualitative data, we hope to describe and understand the relationship of organizational learning and vendor profitability in more detail. Advancing our understanding of this relationship is crucial to offer sound and relevant guidance to an increasingly competitive and mature ITO industry.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | 35th International Conference on Information Systems "Building a Better World Through Information Systems", ICIS 2014 |
| Publisher | Association for Information Systems |
| ISBN (Print) | 9781634396943 |
| State | Published - 2014 |
| Event | 35th International Conference on Information Systems: Building a Better World Through Information Systems, ICIS 2014 - Auckland, New Zealand Duration: 14 Dec 2014 → 17 Dec 2014 |
Conference
| Conference | 35th International Conference on Information Systems: Building a Better World Through Information Systems, ICIS 2014 |
|---|---|
| Country/Territory | New Zealand |
| City | Auckland |
| Period | 14/12/14 → 17/12/14 |
Keywords
- Exploitative learning
- Exploratory learning
- GAMLSS
- Information technology outsourcing
- Organizational learning
- Vendor profitability