The Why and Why Not of User Participation in IOS Development

(IOS) are developed, the intention is that these systems are adopted by users outside the initiating organisation. Such us-This paper argues that user participation can enhance the development of interorganisational systems (IOS). Under certain circumstances participation may be particularly desirable or may be facilitated; other circumstances make participation seemingly less important or inhibit participation. Such contingencies for participation during IOS development are identified and described. ers may be private individuals (for instance , users of Internet or of automated teller machines) or may be organisations (for instance, users of order entry systems or corporate cash management systems). Implementation of IOS and system uptake by intended users is not necessarily easy or successful. There are a number of measures and practices which organisations can employ to enhance implementation. Some of these (like large-scale marketing of the system) are used after a system has been developed, at a time when the IOS is ready to be offered to potential users. It is also possible to take a proactive stance towards facilitating implementation and encouraging adoption of the IOS by users; by seeking participation of intended users during the development process, the opportunity is created to consider potential implementation problems before the IOS has been built. the concept and the final design of the IOS take account of various interests. When the IOS addresses intended users' needs and interests, the system is more likely to be accepted and used by the intended users. While the argument in favour of participation is compelling, there are also arguments against participation. One of those is that IOS are so new to users that the users can not possibly know what they need and cannot express what they would like from the system. Another argument against participation is that different organisations pursue their own self-interest and that it may be difficult to achieve full cooperation from various parties. However , by encouraging participation, an organisation can be seen to want to cooperate with other parties. Also, the participation effort itself can make interests of various parties explicit and can allow latent needs to surface. Once the wish to cooperate is apparent and the various interests are clearly expressed, participation can be used to try and achieve consensus on the concept of the system to be developed.-Intended use of the system Systems which are to be imposed on users and use of which is compulsory, do not necessarily …