Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) System Tools: The Context of their Creation and Use Within the Technology Transfer Process

This paper represents a discussion of research-inprogress which deals with the creation of information systems (IS) tools within a given context (environmental, cultural, historical, social) and their transfer to and implementation within another context. The mutual contingency of skills and tools is highlighted as a major contextual factor for the successful transfer and implementation of an IS. Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems are a relatively new and strategic class of IS which are gaining in importance for the function and competitive advantage of the modern organisation. Which ERP contextual skills issues need to be addressed in order to facilitate the successful transfer and implementation of these IS into varied organisational contexts? This paper poses a number of research questions within the area of ERP transfer and implementation using the University of NSW as a case example.

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