Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> This article presents a review of the book “The External Control of Organizations: A Resource Dependence Perspective,” by Jeffrey Pfeffer and Gerald R. Salancik. <s> BIB001 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> The long-standing debate over whether to centralize or decentralize computing is examined in terms of the fundamental organizational and economic factors at stake. The traditional debate is examined and found to focus predominantly on issues of efficiency vs. effectiveness, with solutions based on a rationalistic strategy of optimizing in this tradeoff. A more behavioralistic assessment suggests that the driving issues in the debate are the politics of organization and resources, centering on the issue of control. The economics of computing deployment decisions is presented as an important issue, but one that often serves as a field of argument that is based on more political concerns. The current situation facing managers of computing, given the advent of small and comparatively inexpensive computers, is examined in detail, and a set of management options for dealing with this persistent issue is presented. <s> BIB002 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> This article defines and discusses one of these qualitative methods - the case research strategy. Suggestions are provided for researchers who wish to undertake research employing this approach. Criteria for the evaluation of case research are established and several characteristics useful for categorizing the studies are identified. A sample of papers drawn from information systems journals is reviewed. The paper concludes with examples of research areas that are particularly well-suited to investigation using the case research approach. <s> BIB003 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> We examined 155 information systems research articles published from 1983 to 1988 and found that although this research is not rooted in a single over-arching theoretical perspective, it does exhibit a single set of philosophical assumptions regarding the nature of the phenomena studied by information systems researchers, and what constitutes valid knowledge about those phenomena. We believe that a single research perspective for studying information systems phenomena is unnecessarily restrictive, and argue that there exist other philosophical assumptions that can inform studies of the relationships between information technology, people, and organizations. In this paper, we present two additional research philosophies for consideration-the interpretive and the critical-and for each we provide empirical examples to illustrate how they are used. We conclude by suggesting that much can be gained if a plurality of research perspectives is effectively employed to investigate information systems phenomena. <s> BIB004 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> This article develops an option-theoretic perspective for organizational strategic management. Grounded in the basic intuition that people seek to “keep options open” in situations that involve an unforeseeable future, and supported by theory in financial economics, this view is a recent development in strategy. The theory integrates resource allocation, sense making, organizational learning, and strategic positioning in a unified framework, and it provides a new explanation for some counterintuitive empirical findings. <s> BIB005 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> Matthew B. Miles, Qualitative Data Analysis A Methods Sourcebook, Third Edition. The Third Edition of Miles & Huberman's classic research methods text is updated and streamlined by Johnny Saldana, author of The Coding Manual for Qualitative Researchers. Several of the data display strategies from previous editions are now presented in re-envisioned and reorganized formats to enhance reader accessibility and comprehension. The Third Edition's presentation of the fundamentals of research design and data management is followed by five distinct methods of analysis: exploring, describing, ordering, explaining, and predicting. Miles and Huberman's original research studies are profiled and accompanied with new examples from Saldana's recent qualitative work. The book's most celebrated chapter, "Drawing and Verifying Conclusions," is retained and revised, and the chapter on report writing has been greatly expanded, and is now called "Writing About Qualitative Research." Comprehensive and authoritative, Qualitative Data Analysis has been elegantly revised for a new generation of qualitative researchers. Johnny Saldana, The Coding Manual for Qualitative Researchers, Second Edition. The Second Edition of Johnny Saldana's international bestseller provides an in-depth guide to the multiple approaches available for coding qualitative data. Fully up-to-date, it includes new chapters, more coding techniques and an additional glossary. Clear, practical and authoritative, the book: describes how coding initiates qualitative data analysis; demonstrates the writing of analytic memos; discusses available analytic software; suggests how best to use the book for particular studies. In total, 32 coding methods are profiled that can be applied to a range of research genres from grounded theory to phenomenology to narrative inquiry. For each approach, Saldana discusses the method's origins, a description of the method, practical applications, and a clearly illustrated example with analytic follow-up. A unique and invaluable reference for students, teachers, and practitioners of qualitative inquiry, this book is essential reading across the social sciences. Stephanie D. H. Evergreen, Presenting Data Effectively Communicating Your Findings for Maximum Impact. This is a step-by-step guide to making the research results presented in reports, slideshows, posters, and data visualizations more interesting. Written in an easy, accessible manner, Presenting Data Effectively provides guiding principles for designing data presentations so that they are more likely to be heard, remembered, and used. The guidance in the book stems from the author's extensive study of research reporting, a solid review of the literature in graphic design and related fields, and the input of a panel of graphic design experts. Those concepts are then translated into language relevant to students, researchers, evaluators, and non-profit workers - anyone in a position to have to report on data to an outside audience. The book guides the reader through design choices related to four primary areas: graphics, type, color, and arrangement. As a result, readers can present data more effectively, with the clarity and professionalism that best represents their work. <s> BIB006 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> This article refers to recent debates about the potential methodological costs and benefits of computer use in qualitative research and about the relationship between methodological approaches (eg. 'Grounded Theory') on the one hand and computer-aided methods of qualitative research on the other. It is argued that the connection between certain computer-aided strategies and methodological approaches is far more loose than is often assumed. Furthermore, the danger of methodological biases and distortion arising from the use of certain software packages is overemphasized in current discussions, as far as basic tasks of textual data management ('coding and retrieval') usually performed by this software are concerned. However, with the development of more advanced and complex coding and retrieval techniques, which are regarded by some authors as tools for 'theory building' in qualitative research, methodological confusion may arise if basic prerequisites of qualitative theory building are not taken into consideration. Therefore, certain aspects of qualitative theory building which are relevant for computer aided methods of textual data management are discussed in the paper. <s> BIB007 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> This paper examines the implementation of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system in a multinational organization. In doing so, it evaluates and critiques the existing literature, and then provides an alternative analysis of ERP implementation based on the concept of knowledge integration, which involves the on-going interaction cross-functionally between organizational members. By examining the case company through action research, the paper elaborates three distinctive but interrelated types of barrier that inhibit the implementation of ERP, namely relation-, structuredand knowledge-based barriers. The central message of the paper is that the implementation of ERP is not merely a technological task influenced by users’ perceived usefulness. Also, the implementation of ERP is a cross-functional knowledge integration process enabled by the establishment and maintenance of social relationship intraand inter-organizationally. <s> BIB008 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> Throughout its history, the information systems (IS) discipline has engaged in extensive self-examination, particularly with regard to its apparent diversity. Our overall objective in this study is to better understand the diversity in IS research, and the extent to which diversity is universal across journals that publish IS research. We developed a classification system that comprises five key characteristics of diversity (reference discipline, level of analysis, topic, research approach, and research method) based on a review of prior literature. We then examined articles over a five-year period, from 1995 to 1999, in five journals acknowledged as the top journals of the field, at least in NorthAmerica.Analyses reveal considerable diversity in each of the key characteristics. Perhaps not surprisingly, the research approach used is more focused with most studies being conducted using hypothetico-deductive approaches, whereas reference discipline is perhaps the most diverse of the characteristics examined. An interesting finding is that IS itself emerged as a key reference discipline in the late 1990s. The Journal of Management Information Systems and Information Systems Research publish articles displaying the greatest diversity, and MIS Quarterly and Decision Sciences publish articles that focus on subsets of the field. Our research provides a foundation for addressing the direction that diversity in the IS discipline takes over time. In the shorter term, researchers can use our classification system as a guide to writing abstracts and selecting key words, and the findings of our journal analyses to determine the best outlet for their type of research. <s> BIB009 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> .This case study investigates various ways in which different internet-based information systems (IS) are used by organizational participants. Borrowing theoretical insights on information behaviour accumulated over 50 years of information studies research, a conceptual framework is presented to help understand and assess the social and organizational impacts of internet-based IS. The framework describes the use of internet-based IS as a dynamic cycle of information needs–seeking–use activity situated in the context of a firm's information environment. Research questions pertain to the process of how individuals in organizations seek and use information from internet-based IS to satisfy information needs. In terms of information needs, this involves understanding the problem situations that lead participants to use internet-based IS, as well as the characteristics of those problems beyond subject matter. With respect to information seeking, this involves analysing how information from internet-based systems is displayed and formatted to signal their potential usefulness. In terms of information use, this involves how information obtained from internet-based systems is used in practice to resolve or redefine problems. Both quantitative and qualitative research methods are used. Data collection involves web tracking to identify significant episodes of internet-based IS activity, as well as one-on-one interviews to explore the context behind these episodes. Results suggest that it is possible and valuable to identify scenarios of internet-based IS use dominant in an organizational work setting. Doing so can help to identify ways to improve the situated use of internet-based IS that ameliorate the information needs–seeking–use cycle in firms. <s> BIB010 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> Many firms have adopted outsourcing in recent years as a means of governing their information technology (IT) operations. While outsourcing is associated with significant benefits, it can also be a risky endeavour. This paper proposes a scenario-based conceptualization of the IT outsourcing risk, wherein risk is defined as a quadruplet comprising a scenario, the likelihood of that scenario, its consequences and the risk mitigation mechanisms that can attenuate or help avoid the occurrence of a scenario. This definition draws on and extends a risk assessment framework that is widely used in engineering. The proposed conceptualization of risk is then applied to the specific context of IT outsourcing using previous research on IT outsourcing as well as transaction cost and agency theory as a point of departure. <s> BIB011 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> Despite the importance to researchers, managers, and policy makers of how information technology (IT) contributes to organizational performance, there is uncertainty and debate about what we know and don't know. A review of the literature reveals that studies examining the association between information technology and organizational performance are divergent in how they conceptualize key constructs and their interrelationships. We develop a model of IT business value based on the resource-based view of the firm that integrates the various strands of research into a single framework. We apply the integrative model to synthesize what is known about IT business value and guide future research by developing propositions and suggesting a research agenda. A principal finding is that IT is valuable, but the extent and dimensions are dependent upon internal and external factors, including complementary organizational resources of the firm and its trading partners, as well as the competitive and macro environment. Our analysis provides a blueprint to guide future research and facilitate knowledge accumulation and creation concerning the organizational performance impacts of information technology. <s> BIB012 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> With its vivid illustrations of the governance systems used by top performers in public and nonprofit sectors, this important book provides the framework and tools necessary to customize an IT governance system. <s> BIB013 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> In the last fifteen years, academic research on information systems (IS) outsourcing has evolved rapidly. Indeed the field of outsourcing research has grown so fast that there has been scant opportunity for the research community to take a collective breath, and complete a global assessment of research activities to date. This paper seeks to address this need by exploring and synthesizing the academic literature on IS outsourcing. It offers a roadmap of the IS outsourcing literature, highlighting what has been done so far, how the work fits together under a common umbrella, and what the future directions might be. In order to adequately address the immense diversity of research on IS outsourcing and outsourcing in general, we develop a conceptual framework that helps us to categorize the literature. In particular, we look at the research objectives, methods used and theoretical foundations of the papers. In identifying the major research objectives, we view outsourcing as an organizational decision process and adapt Simon's stage model of decision making. This allows us to identify five major sourcing issues, from which at least one is covered by each academic article. These are the questions of why to outsource, what to outsource, which decision process to take, how to implement the sourcing decision, and what is the outcome of the sourcing decision. In analyzing the literature, we identify and structure the main explanatory factors and theoretical relationships within each of these sourcing stages. Based on our discussion of the research objectives, theoretical foundations and research approaches taken in the literature, we show how the various research streams hang together and we come up with a number of implications for research. Moreover, we identify a number of emerging sourcing issues. We believe that research on these "new" phenomena such as offshore outsourcing, application service providing and business process outsourcing would benefit from 'standing on the shoulders' of what has already been accomplished in the field of IS outsourcing. <s> BIB014 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> Information systems researchers have a long tradition of drawing on theories from disciplines such as economics, computer science, psychology, and general management and using them in their own research. Because of this, the information systems field has become a rich tapestry of theoretical and conceptual foundations. As new theories are brought into the field, particularly theories that have become dominant in other areas, there may be a benefit in pausing to assess their use and contribution in an IS context. The purpose of this paper is to explore and critically evaluate use of the resource-based view of the firm (RBV) by IS researchers. ::: ::: The paper provides a brief review of resource-based theory and then suggests extensions to make the RBV more useful for empirical IS research. First, a typology of key IS resources is presented, and these are then described using six traditional resource attributes. Second, we emphasize the particular importance of looking at both resource complementarity and moderating factors when studying IS resource effects on firm performance. Finally, we discuss three considerations that IS researchers need to address when using the RBV empirically. Eight sets of propositions are advanced to help guide future research. <s> BIB015 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> Real options can be a powerful tool for quantifying the value of strategic and operational flexibility associated with uncertain IT investments. However, they also constitute a new way of thinking about how projects can be organized and managed to maximize upside potential while minimizing downside risk. Explains how practitioners can incorporate options thinking into contemporary IT project management. Options thinking means recognizing real options and how they add value. Just as important is managing projects so that the option value that exists in theory is realized in practice. Several real-world examples illustrate how the value of embedded real options can be realized through active project management. There are pitfalls associated with each option, as well as benefits and limitations of different approaches to valuing options. Organizations must decide whether to undertake the challenges of adopting options thinking as a project management philosophy. <s> BIB016 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> This paper presents a review of existing theoretical perspectives and empirical work on strategic IT outsourcing. By presenting the main findings of various recent studies and elaborating on current research gaps it conveys a picture of the past research, the present findings and the future applications of IT outsourcing. Prior research has generated theoretical insights and largely qualitative evidence on IT outsourcing. While quantitative studies remain sparse, limited to decision making and performance, there is a lack of quantitative empirical research examining outsourcing processes more comprehensively. This paper outlines a simple, yet integrative process model and develops propositions, which serve to integrate and compare theoretical strands, to evaluate existing empirical research and to stimulate new avenues of empirical research. <s> BIB017 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> This paper introduces a framework for conducting and writing an effective literature review. The target audience for the framework includes information systems (IS) doctoral students, novice IS researchers, and other IS researchers who are constantly struggling with the development of an effective literature-based foundation for a proposed research. The proposed framework follows the systematic data processing approach comprised of three major stages: 1) inputs (literature gathering and screening), 2) processing (following Bloom’s Taxonomy), and 3) outputs (writing the literature review). This paper provides the rationale for developing a solid literature review including detailed instructions on how to conduct each stage of the process proposed. The paper concludes by providing arguments for the value of an effective literature review to IS research. <s> BIB018 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> This paper presents an illustrative demonstration of the qualitative data analysis tool NVivo (version 2.0), as employed across a multi-method research design as a comprehensive tool in support of overall research management. The paper will be of interest to (a) novice researchers, as a reference in their research design efforts; (b) academics, involved in research training, where this narrative can be used as a rich teaching case and; potentially to (c) vendors, of similar software tools, who may identify potential new tool applications and valuable tool enhancements. <s> BIB019 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> Shared service centers (SSCs) have gained the interest of politicians and public administrations to improve efficiency. By unbundling and centralizing activities, the basic premise for SSCs seems to be that services provided by one local department can be provided to others with relatively few efforts. The introduction of a SSC is a major decision having a long-term impact on all the participants and is often competing with outsourcing arrangements. As such it is of essential importance to get a better understanding of the motives for introducing SSCs. The motives for introducing a SSC in public administration are presented and discussed in this paper. First, by means of investigating an existing SSC in time, the initial motives for introducing a SSC have been compared with the accomplished benefits after realizing the SSC. The introduction of a SSC was driven by a series of complex, interrelated motives. Second, because SSCs can be regarded as a specific kind of sourcing arrangement, the motives for establishing a SSC have been compared with the motives associated with outsourcing as found in literature. This should help decision-makers in making a tradeoff between SSCs and other sourcing arrangements. <s> BIB020 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> Purpose – To reveal similarities between the business process reengineering (BPR) and shared service approaches, in order to improve outcomes of shared service implementation processes through lessons learnt from previous BPR projects.Design/methodology/approach – As the focus of this paper is primarily theoretical, the paper starts out with a literature review of developments in the BPR and shared service movements. Similarities between the two change alternatives are discussed and drawn up.Findings – The paper concludes by identifying which previously learnt lessons the emerging shared service movement should take into account from the BPR era when implementing shared services.Research limitations/implications – The paper is primarily based on previous findings from a literature review. To increase insights into the contemporary shared service phenomenon, complementary research in the form of in‐depth case studies are recommended.Practical implications – Based on the similarities between BPR and shared ... <s> BIB021 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> IS research has considered the outsourcing decision from the perspective of transaction cost economics (TCE) and institutional theory. In this research, we consider how the appropriation of the logic of transaction cost economics is contingent on decision makers’ institutional context. The institutional contexts contrasted are professional versus political <s> BIB022 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> In this paper we address the concept of business architecture. We explain the concept and, based on a case study, discuss its relevance, operation, relationship with strategy and business models, and value for an organization. We also shortly discuss the approach that was taken to create the business architecture; how it was based on and derived from the business strategy. Business architectures contribute to clarify the complexity within an organization and form a useful starting point from which to develop subsequent functional, information, process and application architectures. We clarify these relationships through an architecture linkage model. Having an explicit business architecture also helps to structure the responsibilities within an organization, and to shape outsourcing activities, within the primary process as well as with regard to ICT-support. Business architectures contribute to an adequate ICT-governance in order to orchestrate the resources for critical business activities and how to manage the development and support for e-business efficiently. <s> BIB023 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> One of the most important steps in the qualitative research process is analysis of data. The purpose of this article is to provide elements for understanding multiple types of qualitative data analysis techniques available and the importance of utilizing more than one type of analysis, thus utilizing data analysis triangulation, in order to understand phenomenon more fully for school psychology research and beyond. The authors describe seven qualitative analysis tools: methods of constant comparison, keywords-in-context, word count, classical content analysis, domain analysis, taxonomic analysis, and componential analysis. Then, the authors outline when to use each type of analysis. In so doing, the authors use real qualitative data to help distinguish the various types of analyses. Furthermore, flowcharts and tables are provided to help delineate when to choose each type of analysis. Finally, the role of computer-assisted software in the qualitative data-analytic process is discussed. As such, use of the analyses outlined in this article should help to promote rigor in qualitative research. <s> BIB024 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> Purpose – Driven by cost reduction and improved quality of service, some firms have adopted shared services as a governance model to manage their staff functions. This paper seeks to explore this behavior using the resource‐based view.Design/methodology/approach – The case of an information technology (IT) unit of a multinational manufacturing firm is presented to provide insight into the issues involved when adopting and migrating an IT resource system to a shared services model. The analysis is extended using conceptual models of the relevant sub‐systems developed through the soft systems methodology (SSM), using a set of root level definitions that are intended to express the transformation to a shared services model.Findings – The results suggest that the major changes involved when transitioning to shared services are process and communication related. Aligning the team members and gaining their commitment are necessary for success.Practical implications – The case analysis and SSM models provide som... <s> BIB025 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> Organizations increasingly need to build an enterprise-wide capability to leverage technology that is distributed in different business units. Some organizations establish enterprise architecture (EA) standards to enable greater compatibility of information technology (IT) components and integration of applications and data across the enterprise. Through a firm-level survey, we sought to answer two key questions about the use of EA standards: (1) How do different governance mechanisms affect the use of EA standards? and (2) To what extent does the use of EA standards help organizations to improve the sharing and integration of IT resources across the enterprise? We identified four key governance mechanisms for EA standards management and examined how each mechanism affected the use of EA standards. We also examined how the use of EA standards affects the management of IT infrastructure, applications, and data resources across business units. Our empirical results showed that the use of EA standards is effective in helping organizations to better manage their IT resources. Our study also provides detailed insights into how organizations can set up governance mechanisms to facilitate the use of EA standards in achieving enterprisewide goals. <s> BIB026 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> This article considers real options approaches through the lens of firm's resource reallocation processes. It explores some potential drivers and consequences of mismatches between initial resource allocation logics and subsequent reallocation realities, highlighting a process of rational escalation in the presence of sunk costs. It also presents a new perspective on the traditional stage-gate process, and considers some recent empirical evidence on the efficiency of resource reallocation processes in organizations. <s> BIB027 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> In today’s increasingly competitive environment, there is constant pressure for corporate leaders to add value to their organizations. These contemporary organizations are increasingly moving into business models that attempt to reduce duplicate supporting processes and staff by streamlining business processes that are not central to the organization’s operations and concentrating on strategies on strategic or core, business processes. This concept, known as Shared Services, attempts to bundle some of the supporting processes and non-strategic activities into a separate organization, which in turn treats those processes and activities as the core of its own business. Shared Services consolidate and support redundant functions, such as accounts payable and procurement, for disparate business units. By leveraging economies of scale from a common IT infrastructure, such a group is able to market specific services to business units. Many organizations are employing Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems, for example SAP, to facilitate Shared Service initiatives by aggregating backroom functionality across departments. This research-in-progress paper investigates issues and problems with ERP enabled Shared Services in 19 organizations. The results reveal five main issues that organizations face in implementing a Shared Services initiative. <s> BIB028 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> As businesses reconfigure their value chains and scale up their global expansions, they have to cope with a myriad of complex IT management challenges. This research examines how enterprises realign their global IT strategies for scale, speed, and innovation. Anchored in the IT governance literature, we seek to unravel the required governance structures and processes in balancing the inherent global-local tensions. Through field interviews with CIOs of global enterprises with established Asian presence, we derived a research framework for global IT management. Our findings suggest evolving global-regional-local structural elements in global IT organization supplemented by the institution of horizontal/linking mechanisms. Specifically, the key tension points appear to be in the flexible design of IT service delivery, the facilitation of IT innovation flow, and the nurturing of a global IT management mindset. <s> BIB029 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> Shared service has proven to be a key element when it comes to increasing government efficiency by collaboration. Here, we seek to investigate into the shared services phenomenon in the context of government reforms. For this purpose, an interview and document analysis-based multiple case study has been conducted in Germany. The qualitative analysis covers three shared service implementations on the local government level and identifies important preconditions for shared service emergence, namely cost pressure as motive, the existence of key actors promoting the topic and the existence of prior cooperation. Moreover, it is shown that the structure of such previous cooperation determines, if shared services are being organised in a centralised (shared service centre) or decentralised format (shared service network). <s> BIB030 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> Shared service centers are a common approach for organizing IT service provisioning. However, current research reveals little that both consultants and scientists maintain a fragmented understanding of the basic characteristics of SSCs and their different variations. From SSCs with free access to external markets, to SSCs with restricted access or no access to external markets, many facets of the SSC require further clarification. Other criteria such as legal form, organizational structure, and accounting approach vary across different departments. The general elements describing SSCs are extracted from literature and show a common understanding. Based on material gathered during focus groups and extensive case studies in 7 SSCs from Europe and North America, our study extracts typical SSC characteristics, as well as their distinctive attributes, and designs a classification grid. This framework is used to classify three typical profiles that have been identified. <s> BIB031 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> In today's volatile global economy, where many organizations face severe pressure to downsize, the “shared services” model, in which a firm merges common functions performed by multiple units into a single service delivery organization, provides an innovative approach to make business more efficient and effective. To successfully implement shared services, firms need to strategically decide whether and how to pursue various service transformation alternatives such as simplification, standardization, consolidation, insourcing, or outsourcing. In this study, we develop the notion of real options into a unique theoretical lens for conceptualizing service organizations and their transformation in an uncertain business environment. Specifically, we view service organization as a set of strategic options that give the firm preferential access to future transformation opportunities. We create a taxonomy of these options, and introduce a decision methodology for valuing alternative shared services transformation approaches. We illustrate this methodology by applying it in a real business case to justify a global firm's decision regarding the transformation of its finance organization. <s> BIB032 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> This paper explores the implementation of shared services, and in particular centers of excellence, in Swedish government agencies. It investigates how context shapes the translation of general guidelines on how to implement this type of backoffices. The study shows that the homogeneous picture drawn up in the management literature is not met in reality. Instead, different translations take place based on how context influences the implementation. This clearly shows that it does not exist one common approach as suggested in the literature. It proves that general guidelines cannot simply be applied by organizations, but that they rather need to be translated to fit an organization’s specific preconditions and demands. It also proves that the literature takes a too simple view on implementing shared services centers. <s> BIB033 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> We analyzed the effect of the level of low asset specificity IT outsourcing on firm-level financial performance. We used transaction cost economics (TCE) as the theoretical basis to explain the effect of the level of network and telecommunication services outsourced on financial performance. An analysis of 1444 Integrated Healthcare Delivery Systems revealed that higher levels of network and telecommunication services outsourced were associated with superior financial performance. Specifically, each additional network and telecommunication service outsourced resulted in an average $3,120,000 in savings, a 25% increase in profit. In addition, increases in IT budgetary expenditures were found to be associated with increased financial performance. Our study provided preliminary support for the use of asset specificity to guide outsourcing decisions. In particular, IT activities that have become commodities (having 'low specificity') should be outsourced to improve the firm's financial performance. <s> BIB034 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> This book, with its companion volume The Practice of Outsourcing: From Information Systems To BPO and Offshoring (Palgrave, 2009), draws upon rich case and survey research conducted between 1988 and 2008, a period that saw the rise of outsourcing to a global phenomenon. We, along with our co-authors, have examined every aspect of information technology outsourcing and most twists and turns in the market and practice, from both client and supplier perspectives. Academic research methods are extremely well equipped to explore and diagnose contemporary organizations. One fundamental aim we have shared has been to improve practice by disseminating the behaviors, arrangements and lessons that differentiated successful from failed sourcing outcomes. Our research base comprises literally hundreds of organizations from around the world across both private and public sectors. Our initial research projects focused on IT outsourcing. Since 1988, we have interviewed over 1,000 client and supplier stakeholders in over 500 organizations in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific and conducted five large-scale sample surveys. Our primary co-authors have been Sara Cullen, Wendy Currie, David Feeny, Guy Fitzgerald, Eric Van Heck, John Hindle, Rudy Hirschheim, Thomas Kern, Julia Kotlarsky, Ilan Oshri, Peter Reynolds, Joseph Rottman and Peter Seddon. <s> BIB035 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> It is suggested that a motivation for the formation of shared services partnerships (SSPs) in local government is to manage dependencies on other levels of government. A framework that links the composition of a shared services partnership, its effectiveness and dependency management is proposed. A case study of an SSP between four local councils in Australia is examined through the lens of that framework. The results suggest that while the specified objective of the SSP was to improve efficiency the impetus for its implementation was indeed to manage a dependency. Interestingly that dependency appears to have been managed despite the SSP failing to deliver significant efficiency gains. The case also highlights that the components of the framework are more complex and multifaceted than thought. In particular it appears while an SSP may be an effective vehicle to manage a dependency it also creates new dependencies – between the SSP participants themselves. <s> BIB036 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> We studied the early-stage development of a newly formed shared services unit providing IT infrastructure services to multiple enterprises and examined the evolution of the organizing vision established for the unit. Through a three-cycle action research design, we found that the initiallyarticulated organizing vision failed to take hold with constituents and no effort was undertaken to evolve this organizing vision. In the absence of a strong and compelling organizing vision, client entities interacted with the shared services unit on an individual basis, compromising the initial purpose of the shared services unit as an innovation that had the potential to provide value as a ‘social good’ across a community. In examination of contributing factors of a failed organizing vision, we found that discourse across multiple levels of the community and effective chargeback processes were critical elements for evolving a meaningful organizing vision. Research and practical implications of these findings are discussed. <s> BIB037 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> This study empirically explores generic management challenges in the early phase of adopting IT-shared services, which are organizational independent units for delivering organization-wide IT services. Data has been collected by the means of twenty case studies, conducted between 2002 and 2010. Seven themes are general, reoccurring management challenges for the whole organization that includes business units as well as IT units. The challenges are as follows: (i) ability to deliver IT services, (ii) communication, (iii) IT service portfolios, (iv) nature of IT services, (v) power and control, (vi) pricing, and (vii) service level agreements. Better understanding these challenges is essential for further research on how to manage the transition towards shared-services arrangements. This study, therefore, is an elementary step in this complex endeavor, providing valuable insights into which management challenges need consideration. <s> BIB038 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> Complementing knowledge management (KM) initiatives, specialized service units can support intra-organizational knowledge transfer by conducting research, offering edited contents, or participating in internal networks. This research concentrates specifically on the knowledge center (KC) model, thus following Hertlein et al., whose blueprint is evaluated and further developed by building on a multiple case study. In this design science research process, five KCs from the branch of professional services firms are studied, with particular emphasis on the process dimension. This allows new insights to be gained into the characteristics of KCs. Not only is the KC model largely confirmed, but new details are also added. Furthermore, directions for further research – specifically on the KC’s integration into KM initiatives– are provided. <s> BIB039 </s> Exploring Shared Services from an IS Perspective: A Literature Review and Research Agenda <s> Volume 22 <s> An enormous amount of information has been produced about the IT outsourcing phenomenon over the last 20 years, but one has to look to the academic literature for consistent, objective, and reliable research approaches and analyses. Our review finds that, in practice, the academic literature on IT outsourcing has very much honored both rigor and relevance in the ways in which research has been conducted. Our central purpose in the review was to answer two research questions: What has the empirical academic literature found about information technology outsourcing (ITO) decisions and outcomes? What are the gaps in knowledge to consider in future ITO research? To answer these questions, we examined 164 empirical ITO articles published between 1992 and 2010 in 50 journals. Adapting a method used by Jeyaraj et al. (2006), we encapsulated this vast empirical literature on ITO in a way that was concise, meaningful, and helpful to researchers. We coded 36 dependent variables, 138 independent variables, and 741 relationships between independent and dependent variables. By extracting the best evidence, we developed two models of outsourcing: one model addressed ITO decisions and one model addressed ITO outcomes. The model of ITO decisions includes independent variables associated with motives to outsource, transaction attributes, client firm characteristics, and influence sources. The model of ITO outcomes includes independent variables associated with client and supplier capabilities, relationship characteristics, contractual governance, decision characteristics, and transaction attributes. We also examined the interactions among broad categories of variables and the learning curve effects resulting from feedback loops. Overall, ITO researchers have a broad and deep understanding of ITO. However, the field continues to evolve as clients and suppliers on every inhabited continent participate actively in the global sourcing community. There is still much research yet to be done. We reviewed recent studies that have identified gaps in current knowledge and proposed future paths of research pertaining to strategic motivations, environmental influences, dynamic interactions, configurational and portfolio approaches, global destinations, emerging models, reference theory extension, and grounded theory development. <s> BIB040
Article 15 [following BIB018 . Selecting a target set of sources within a predetermined justified scope, has been practiced in past IS literature studies [e.g.,  BIB004 BIB009 . As the aim of this study is to explore and synthesize shared services research from an IS perspective, we focused on literature sources targeted at the IS community. Thus, academically refereed, full text papers were sought from a clearly defined sampling frame that included the main IS outlets, derived by consolidating a list of IS journals and conferences of four main sorts (see Figure 1) 2 . The study started in 2010 and hence the selected outlets were defined based on the information that was then available. The extraction and analysis has continued, with the information reported herein based on data extracted from the selected outlets through September 2011. Article 15 were then grouped into higher level themes (adapting an axial coding approach). When prior research on the topic existed we would introduce them at this point (after preliminary synthesis of the data had taken place), allowing the literature's frameworks and theories to then influence the coding in an abductive manner. "Abductive inference combines in a creative way new and interesting empirical facts with previous theoretical knowledge" BIB007 , hence at times, introducing literature called for revisions to the inductively derived themes. The coding approaches used for the different outcomes are discussed in more detail as each section is presented. Analysis of 'stakeholders' and the 'notion of sharing' resulted in a priori conceptual frameworks. Conceptual frameworks explain, either graphically or in narrative form, the main aspects of the phenomena of interest. It is the researcher's representation of the conceptual structure brought to the research; which will capture core concepts, possible interrelationships between these concepts and related boundaries BIB006 . Carroll and Swatman [2000] explain how conceptual frameworks can form an essential start for theory building and further investigations. Some studies [i.e.,  BIB010 , Xia and Lee, 2005 are solely dedicated to deriving literature based conceptual frameworks for topics of interest. IS research still relies heavily on conceptual/framework developments  . We too present conceptual frameworks in an attempt to better understand the stakeholders and the notion of sharing. These conceptual frameworks are a springboard to assist the derivation of broader research themes, intended to provide an understanding of current knowledge in the areas to which they relate [following BIB006 . The application of a qualitative data analysis tool in a literature review process can increase 'representation'; "the ability to extract adequate meaning from the underlying data" BIB024 . Most of the main qualitative data analysis software packages (there are many tool options, such as NVivo, Atlas/ti) have similar features  that can be used to systematically capture, code, and analyze the literature within a single repository. The study employed NVivo 8.0, adapting coding-and-analysis strategies from prior work by BIB019   . The study protocol prescribed how extracted papers would be stored in the data base, how they would be coded and analyzed, and how the results would be captured and presented. The high-level analysis approaches are explained below, following brief introduction to the tool used (and tool-related terminology employed hereafter in the paper). Further details of how the outcomes were derived will be explained as the findings unfold. NVivo is a computer program for qualitative data analysis that allows one to import and code textual data, edit the text; retrieve, review and recode coded data; search for combinations of words in the text or patterns in the coding; and import from or export data to other platforms. All data within the NVivo tool is arranged around 'Documents' and 'Nodes'. Documents are simply data that one analyzes in the study. Nodes are places where one stores ideas and categories. It is important to note the difference between a code and a node, in NVivo parlance. A Node is a physical location where you store the groups of ideas that would be coded, and these nodes can be organized in branches (like a folder-tree) or as free nodes. Coding (putting things into codes) is a process; a way to label certain aspects of the data and to sort information in distinct categories. The node on the other hand holds all the information that has been coded under a certain category. Another useful aspect in the tool is 'Attributes'. Attributes are properties assigned to nodes or documents. Once attributes are defined, each document or node will have specific values for each attribute. These attribute values can be numeric, string, Boolean or date-time type and they can be usefully applied for better data management and effective searches. The NVivo 'Query' functions can be used to search for strings, coding patterns or attribute values in the project database; which enables one to search for patterns across their data. All 193 articles selected were entered and saved within NVivo as 'documents'. The overall coding was designed to be conducted at two levels. The goal of the first-level-coding was to capture the content that related to each main theme (based on the pre-codification scheme), as main tree-level nodes within the NVivo database (a tree-level node being a logical location within NVivo, where one can capture and store content and ideas that are logically grouped together). The protocol specified that the content be identified inductively from the data, where each paper was manually scanned within NVivo. Coding involved mapping relevant sentences/statements to the nodes (with annotations and memo notes made, to keep track of emerging thoughts), at single or multiple nodes as deemed relevant. Two coders coded a sample of 5 primary papers from the data set, to confirm this first level coding scheme. There was little disagreement with the coding at this level, so one coder continued coding all papers to the high level nodes (that mapped to the topic areas of interest) as specified in the pre-coding scheme. With secondlevel-coding, coded content of the nodes resulting from the first level analysis was reviewed in detail to synthesize and derive further findings from the data coded. As described above, themes were first inductively derived (using an open coding approach). Sub-folders (with relevant labels) were created to group the statements that described the same (or similar) aspects within these themes. Two coders coded the full content at this level, and the results were corroborated. At times, themes were either redefined, merged or dissolved in this corroboration effort. Once the lower level themes were confirmed, these themes were grouped to form higher level themes using a mixed approach. First an axial coding approach was used to inductively derive higher level themes, which was completed in full and corroborated by both coders. Relevant literature was introduced, in support of the corroboration effort and Volume 22 as a result the content was abductively re-coded at times -with the full involvement and consensus of both coders. The analysis was conducted iteratively, yielding summary concepts (including definitions), synthesized lists, and conceptual frameworks based in the literature. The overall research findings and the analytical activities that supported these findings are presented in detail in the next sections. Article 15 literature, we proposed a new category to capture 'process' objectives. We see strategic and organizational motives as those that are more long-term, high-level goals related to achieving a company's vision while we see process motives as those that are more related to operational, day-to-day activities. Figure 3 presents a summary of this analysis depicting the main categories, how many papers mentioned each category, and how many times each category was mentioned across the different papers. Two coders reviewed and confirmed the coding procedures and results. The results provide a clear account of the objectives of shared services as reported in IS literature, although they may not be complete or mutually exclusive due to the approach applied (i.e., limitations of content analysis in general). Economic objectives are most prevalent (59 instances from 30 papers), followed by strategic and organizational objectives (33 instances from 19 papers). Economic objectives relate mainly to cost reduction. For example, BIB030 state that "We assumed that reduction of costs is the crucial motive for establishing a shared service organization." BIB031  also conclude that the main objective of shared services is cost reduction. In addition, economies of scale and leveraging resources are also often mentioned as economic objectives, which are related to cost reduction. Within the strategic and organizational category, professional service delivery was the most cited objective; also mentioned were customer orientation, synergy and innovation, restructuring and working better across multiple regions. For example, BIB032 argue that "shared services may increase service quality by forming a customer-oriented mindset within the service organization and professionalizing service delivery." Economic and strategic objectives are often stated jointly, the core goal being provision of better services against lower costs. For example,  The process objectives (9 instances from 7 papers) related mostly to process improvement. BIB025 report on the formation of shared services with global governance to improve processes, and BIB026 state that "the sharing of IT services helps organizations to innovate business processes." Process objectives are particularly relevant from an IS perspective; business processes being a core IS research focus [e.g.,  and seen as fundamental to capturing value from IT [e.g., BIB012 . Political objectives received little attention in the IS literature on shared services. Other than BIB020 , only BIB032 stated that "shared services may also bring political advantages such as enhancing credibility and solving internal conflicts." More research into the political objectives of shared services may be warranted as their importance in relation to the centralization or decentralization of IS has been recognized early in the IS discipline. For example, BIB002 , from a behavioral viewpoint, states that the driving issues in the centralization or decentralization debate are the politics of organization and resources, centering on the issue of control. Moreover, the prominence of political objectives may differ based on study context. For example, political objectives may be more or less prominent depending on the sector (e.g., public or private sector). Some 'other' objectives did not fit the five categories (10 instances from 8 papers) and none of these 'other' objectives were mentioned in more than 1 or 2 papers. Examples of themes within the 'other' category are; 'Information sharing', a topic of interest to IS -e.g., "The objective of the ERP implementation was to create a shared service hub for the organizational logistics and financial systems so as to facilitate multi-functional information sharing" BIB008 and 'a less risky alternative to outsourcing' [e.g., BIB025 . Within the IS context, the objectives for shared services can relate both to shared services as an organizational arrangement and sourcing approach for the IS function, and to the enabling role of information systems for shared services in general. Firstly, the question rises whether shared services as an organizational arrangement for the IS function, requires an IS specific understanding of the objectives. Hence, we encourage further research about the objectives of shared services as an organizational arrangement for the IS function based on the discussion above of economic, strategic and organizational, technical, process and political objectives:  . This discussion suggests the following research questions in relation to IS as an enabler of shared services: As implied in the earlier discussion on the definition, shared services is often seen as combining the benefits of centralization, decentralization and outsourcing [e.g., BIB025 BIB033 ; for example, providing efficiency gains and an increase in service levels without yielding control of organizational and technical arrangements and expertise BIB020 . While this combination of advantages has made shared services popular, Janssen and Joha observe that it has also resulted in unrealistic expectations. They warn that stakeholders often have different requirements and expectations and that best practices can be conflicting. For example, economies of scale often come at the expense of customer focus. BIB020 consider expected versus realized benefits (relating to objectives) and based on a public sector case study, observe that some main benefits anticipated from initiating shared services are not realized, while other benefits realized, were not anticipated. To realize the benefits of shared services,  argue that coordinated integration of four change programs is required: business process redesign (BPR), organizational redesign, sourcing redesign, and technology enablement. Similarly, BIB021 concludes that the implementation of shared services can benefit from lessons learned in the BPR area. A critical approach to the objectives and benefits of shared services and their realization is warranted. Hence, we also suggest the following research questions: 3. How can the objectives for shared services as an organizational arrangement be realized? a. How realistic are the objectives of shared services in terms of combining the benefits of different approaches such as centralization, decentralization and outsourcing? b. What is needed for the realization of the objectives of shared services? What is required in terms of business process redesign, organizational redesign, sourcing redesign, and technology enablement? In summary, the literature suggests a broad range of objectives for shared services, however, it is unclear how realistic benefit expectations are or how they can be realized. The onus is on IS researchers to understand, on the one hand, what the implications of shared services are for the organizational arrangement of the IS function, and on the other hand, how IS can play an enabling role for objectives of shared services in general. Article 15 governance mechanisms can be used for that: decision-making structures, alignment processes and formal communications BIB013 . Janssen and Joha conclude that the governance structure and mechanisms largely determine the ability to share services and the accomplishment of objectives, and need to carefully balance customization and commoditization. BIB029 study global IT strategies from an ITG perspective, with a particular focus on global-local tensions. They position global/regional shared services within the structuring of global IT organizations as "centralized structures to achieve global scale efficiencies through the provision of standardized services and IT infrastructure." In addition to global/regional shared services, BIB029 also identify global/regional centres of excellence and regional/local site IT support units. They stress that "much of the inherent global-local tension in global IT plays out in the establishment of these structural elements and the interactions among them, and has to be carefully coordinated through a central planning unit." They also notice that different governance processes evolve when organizations move to global IT from different legacies of governance structures. Shared services can also be understood from a Resource Dependence Theory (RDT) perspective. BIB036 applies RDT to understand the motivation for and the composition of shared services partnerships in local government. RDT stresses the dependence of organizations on external sources of resources, the strategic choices organizations have in relation to external constraints, and the role of power (as opposed to, for example, rationality or efficiency) BIB001 ]. According to Pfeffer and Salancik the survival of organizations is determined by their effectiveness, that is, its ability to create acceptable outcomes and actions. Organizational effectiveness "derives from the management of demands, in particular the demands of interests groups upon which the organizations depend for resources and support" BIB001 . Within RDT, organizations are viewed as coalitions, altering their structure and patterns of behavior to acquire and maintain needed external resources thereby decreasing the organization's dependence on others and/or increasing others' dependence on it [Ulrich and Barney, 1984] . BIB036 argues that "the establishment of an effective shared services partnership at the local government level can help participants manage their dependencies on other levels of government" and that "the effectiveness of the shared services partnership is influenced by its composition, in terms of the resources it provides and the relationships established for its operation." Based on a case study, Borman states that RDT helps to understand why certain objectives are important for the establishment of a shared services partnership and provides insight into the effectiveness of the shared services partnership and dependency management for the composition of the shared services partnership in terms of the resources and relationships. With respect to dependency, Borman concludes that while shared services can be a means to manage dependency, it also introduces new dependencies between the participants. BIB032 applied Real Options Theory (ROT) as a theoretical lens for conceptualizing service organizations and their shared services transformation in an uncertain business environment.  linked the investment strategy of the firm to real options, which are opportunities to purchase real assets on possibly favorable terms, similar to call options in financial markets. In this way organizational resource investments can be viewed in their ability to generate choices and gain preferential access, which is helpful for strategic decision making BIB005 . Real options help to capture the value of managerial flexibility by properly structuring the evaluation and management of investment opportunities when uncertainty and irreversibility are high BIB016 ]. An attractive feature of the real options perspective is its seeming correspondence to the resource allocation process at many firms BIB027 . According to BIB032 firms need to strategically decide whether and how to pursue various service transformation alternatives (e.g., simplification, standardization, consolidation, in-sourcing, or outsourcing) to implement shared services successfully. A service organization can be viewed as a bundle of options that give the firm preferential access to future transformation opportunities. BIB032 provide a decision methodology for valuing alternative shared services transformation approaches, supported by a taxonomy of transformation options: stage, defer, alter scale, abandon, switch and grow. In distinguishing shared services from outsourcing, Yee et al. [2009] build on Transaction Cost Economics (TCE). TCE describes the firm and market as alternative modes of governance, the choice between which is decided by transaction cost differences [Williamson, 1999] . According to  transactions are the ultimate units of economic activity. Transaction cost analysis examines the comparative costs of planning, adapting, and monitoring activity completion under alternative governance structures. Although the principal ideas were in place earlier [e.g.,  , TCE became well known via the work of Williamson [e.g., 1979 Williamson [e.g., , 1981 . According to Williamson a transaction occurs when a good or service is transferred across a technologically separable interface: one stage of activity terminates and another begins. Transactions can be described by three attributes: uncertainty, frequency and asset specificity. Depending on these attributes, transaction costs (in combination with production costs) will determine the most efficient boundaries of organizations because of bounded rationality and opportunism. TCE has been widely applied to information systems outsourcing [e.g., Dibbern et al., 2004, Miranda and BIB022 . For example, BIB034 show that asset specificity can be used to guide outsourcing decisions and BIB011 use transaction costs in their conceptualization of IT outsourcing risks. Yee et al. [2009] argue that a Volume 22 transaction cost approach could also be useful to argue for or against the decisions to adopt shared services (versus outsourcing). However, their application of TCE is very exploratory and their findings with respect to TCE and shared services are rather limited. As only a few papers have applied a theoretical approach, it is too early to draw conclusions from this pool of papers by itself. However, a comparison with outsourcing, an area closely related to shared services, can provide some insights for future research. The theories applied in IS literature on shared services are mainly reference discipline theories that focus on economic and strategic aspects. This is similar to the early literature on outsourcing, which was initially focused on the outsourcing decision with respect to competitive, costs and risk considerations (see literature reviews from BIB035 ; BIB017 ; and BIB014 ). Later, literature on outsourcing made use of social and organizational theoretical perspectives to understand the process and outcomes of outsourcing. Drawing on this, one can, on the one hand, argue for a further development of theoretical perspectives from economics and strategy for the shared services decision and, on the other hand, for the addition of social and organizational theoretical perspectives addressing the process and outcomes of shared services. This further theoretical development can be guided by the themes addressed in the primary papers, such as business process redesign BIB021 , (out)sourcing [Sako, 2010, Yee and Chan, 2009] , organizing visions BIB037 , alignment [Borman, 2008a, Fonstad and  , service management BIB038 , organizational structure BIB030 , knowledge management BIB039 , business architecture BIB023 , and technology (ERP) BIB028 . While so far the emphasis in IS literature on shared services has been on how reference discipline theories can contribute to understanding shared services, the contribution of IS research on shared services to the reference discipline theories should also be recognized as an opportunity once shared services research has matured. As  conclude, IS is more and more becoming an important intellectual contributor to its reference disciplines as well as to other disciplines. Understanding and identifying this potential early may contribute to shaping the future research on shared services research in IS. For example, the Resource-Based View (RBV) is an important theory for IS in general BIB015 as well as for IS research on shared services (as discussed above). Wade and Hulland see the refinement of the resource complementarity concept as a contribution of IS to RBV as IS resources mostly act in conjunction with other firm resources to create strategic benefits. IS research on shared services can advance the understanding of resource complementarity as shared services may, on the one hand, strive to achieve the further development of IS resources via consolidation, and, on the other hand, need to maintain an enhancing relationship between the shared resources and the other firm resources. For example, shared services could be positioned as an integration effort to ensure that the IT asset and the organizational resource are purposefully combined  . Based on the analysis and discussion of the application of reference discipline theory in IS literature on shared services (and the comparison with the theoretical development of outsourcing research), we propose several questions for future research: 1. What reference discipline theories are valid for describing, explaining, predicting and/or prescribing shared services in information systems? a. What are the reference discipline theories shared services can apply? How are these theories related to reference discipline theories in information systems and to reference discipline theories in related areas such as outsourcing? b. What theoretical perspectives, other than from economic and strategic perspectives, are valid for shared services, in particular organizational and social perspectives? c. What theoretical perspectives go beyond a focus on the shared services decision, in particular a focus on the shared services process and outcome? d. How can shared services research contribute to reference discipline theories? The IS discipline has a growing number of indigenous theories, for example  provides a sample of ISspecific theories that have appeared over the years. Within the IS research on shared services, IT Governance Theory has been the only indigenous theory applied so far. IS research on shared services could potentially leverage IS-specific theories related to governance, organizational design and sourcing. Shared services research could also contribute to the further development of these theories. For example, could the notion of 'sharing' be seen as an alternative to a centralized or decentralized organization of the IS function, and how it is distinctive (or not) from other alternatives such as a federal organization of the IS function [e.g.,  , Zmud et al., 1986 . In addition to the application of theories, we also set out to identify the development of indigenous shared services theory. As may be expected given the limited number of primary papers and the current maturity of shared services research in IS, none of the papers tried to develop indigenous shared services theory (see also the next section on Volume 22 Article 15 research methods). Whether or not there is a need and opportunity to develop indigenous shared services theory, similar to an indigenous theory of IT outsourcing BIB040 , could be an important topic in the future debate on shared services. It is also worth debating whether or not IS research could contribute to an indigenous theory on sharing and shared services and whether this could or should be IS-specific. In summary, the application and development of indigenous, IS-specific theories on shared services is still in a very early stage. We propose several questions for future research: 2. What indigenous, IS-specific theories are valid for describing, explaining, predicting and/or prescribing shared services in Information Systems? a. Is there a need for building indigenous theory on shared services and would this be viable and feasible? b. Should shared services be included in indigenous theories in related areas such as governance, organizational design, and/or sourcing? c. How would indigenous theory on shared services relate to the reference disciplines theories used for shared services? d. What is the role of the IS discipline in building indigenous theory on sharing and shared services, and should this be IS-specific? While there are only a few IS papers on shared services applying theory, different theories have been applied in different papers and one paper  ] uses multiple theories. The application of multiple theories in IS research on shared services will also raise the question of whether this theoretical diversity is beneficial and desirable or not, as also discussed in IS research in general [e.g., Weber, 1996, Robey, 1996] and in IS research on outsourcing BIB014 , e.g., Lacity and Willcocks, 2009 BIB017 . A multi-theoretical perspective on shared services can cater for the many different aspects of IS shared services. This means that different theories are perceived as complementary and research will evolve into integrated multi-theoretical approaches and frameworks. Alternatively, a multi-theoretical perspective on shared services acknowledges the early, pre-paradigmatic phase of shared services research. This means that different theories are perceived as competing and research will need to determine the most valid theory. We propose several questions for future research related to the potential of theoretical diversity for shared services research in the IS discipline: 3. Will shared services research benefit from a diversity of theoretical perspectives? a. Should shared services research strive for developing and applying different indigenous and/or reference discipline theories? b. Should different theories in shared services research be seen as complementary or competing? Article 15 analysis of the overall domains covered indicates that most empirical work on shared services in IS is focused on strategic issues in the public sector. From the empirical work reported (25 papers in total), 18 papers (Column 6 of Table 5 ) used case studies as the main research methodology. Case studies are popular in IS research, being used to gather rich data  . They are also appropriate and popular for a new area [Yin, 2009] . The fact that shared services is a 'young' and emerging phenomenon in IS, warranting the investigation of rich contextual data, explains the popularity of the case study method in these studies. 6 papers (Column 8 of Table 5 ) used archival analysis, drawing on readily available information about case sites which had implemented shared services. 2 studies (Column 9 of Table 5 ) used design science while 1 study (Column 7 of Table 5 ) used action research. An overview of the research approaches used can provide a preliminary impression on the maturity of the field of research. Case studies are most prominent in the very early phases of a field's maturity, where qualitative, exploratory work is essential to derive a common understanding of the core concepts of the field; commonly, there is a tendency to proceed with more quantitative approaches, such as surveys and experiments, in later phases of maturity [Yin, 2009] . Papers that had used a case study approach (the most prominent approach) were analyzed in more depth. See Table 6 for the summary results of this. The papers were analyzed by capturing how they contributed towards knowledge accrual. BIB003 suggest three categories of knowledge accrual phases: descriptive cases, exploratory cases (for theory/ hypothesis generation) and explanatory cases (for theory/ hypothesis testing) (Column 2 of Table 6 ). The overall Case study design was captured, based on whether it was a single case study or a multiple case study design (and, if multiple cases, how many were included; see Column 3a of Table 6 ), and if the study depended solely on the case study method or used case studies with other methods (Column 3b and 3c of Table 6 ). Finally, this analysis reviewed the nature of the papers' data collection and analysis (Column 4 -5 of Table  6 ). The different data collection methods were captured and classified as per the classification of Dube and Pare [2003] (Column 4 of Table 6 ). The time period of the study was analyzed based on BIB004 classification (Column 5 of Table 6 ). 8 of the 18 papers used case studies for descriptive purposes. The rest used it for exploration and/or explanation. As presented in the prior section [see Table 6 and those cells of Table 6 -Column 2 denoted by a ], 6 of these papers used one or more reference discipline theories to support the exploratory/ explanatory activities in their studies. None of these studies tested shared services theories that originated from the shared services domain. Those that did attempt to make novel theoretical contributions were only in the very early phases of theoretical exploration, where very early versions of frameworks and models were built and presented (none being empirically validated). 8 of the 18 case based studies used a single case study design, where the rest used multiple case designs, with the number of included cases ranging from 2 to 20 cases. A few (4) reported on the use of other methods such as expert interviews, archival/ literature analysis and focus groups to complement the case study findings. Interviews and documentation (and the combination of these two) were the most common methods of data collection in the reported cases. The occasional use of questionnaires and observations (mostly in combination with interviews) was also reported. All studies were cross-sectional-single-snapshots except for Jansen and Joha [2006b], who presented a single case study with evidence of cross-sectional, multiple-snapshots. We call for IS researchers to pay more attention to the articulation of the research method -to make sure that all essential aspects in the selection, design and conduct of the research approach are made transparent -and to conduct more rigorous empirical work on shared services. In particular we suggest that academic studies of IS researchers can contribute to understanding shared services by: 1. Conduct further exploratory research, in particular in areas that have not been addressed to date and empirically validate practical observations (such as lessons learned and documented guidelines) discussed in practitioner outlets 2. Better design and conduct case studies when this is chosen as the research approach: a. Consider multiple case study designs that complement other methods b. Consider longitudinal case designs 3. Build and test theories in areas where initial exploratory work has been conducted