The Impact of Information Systems from the Perspective of IS Stakeholders in Malaysia

Abstract

The importance of canvassing multiple levels of stakeholders (i.e. Strategic, Managerial, Operational and Technical) for measuring information system (IS) success has been discussed by academics for several decades. From the literature, it is apparent that IS success researchers have measured IS success from different groups of stakeholders. This make results difficult to compare. It becomes more complicated when there are many classifications of IS stakeholders suggested in the literature. With different level of users, there are many arguments on whose perspective is important when measuring IS. Some IS success researchers argue that IS Success can be measured from only selected level of stakeholders, thus different measures are needed for different level of stakeholders. Others suggest that canvassing all level of stakeholders would be beneficial to arrive at a complete and meaningful IS success score. In this paper, we present findings from a survey that indicates that different groups of stakeholders have differing views when evaluating the success of an IS. However, we disagree that different set of measures should be used for different level of stakeholders. Based on the empirical evidence that we collected at four state governments in Malaysia, we recommend that IS should be evaluated across all level of stakeholders in order to arrive at a holistic impact score.