The Social and Organizational Consequences of the Implementation of Electronic Data Interchange Systems: Reinforcing Existing Power Relations or a Contested Domain?

This paper is based on a survey of UK firms making use of Electronic Data Interchange (EDI), and deals with the social and organizational consequences stemming from the adoption of these systems. It was found that a major factor impelling the adoption of EDI systems was pressure from major customers rather than a desire to streamline work organization. However, they do represent a capital intensification of work in the areas of purchasing and supply. This may ultimately erode the position of the less skilled incumbents of the lower job bands, standardizing functions, and, over the medium and long terms, may facilitate downsizing. It is concluded that, above all, EDI represents a strengthening of existing power relationships and imbalances between organizations, a process which opens up few opportunities for the empowerment of the rank-and-file within them.

[1]  Nancy Stern,et al.  The Rise of Systems Theory: An Ideological Analysis by Robert Lilienfeld (review) , 1979 .

[2]  George H. Thompson,et al.  Electronic Data Interchange: A Total Management Guide , 1990 .

[3]  Bernard J. La Londe,et al.  Electronic Purchase Order Interchange , 1985 .

[4]  S. Smithson,et al.  EDI in Germany and the UK: strategic and operational use , 1994 .

[5]  Laura Hall,et al.  Personnel Management: A New Approach , 1991 .

[6]  Loizos Heracleous,et al.  Organizational Change as Discourse: Communicative Actions and Deep Structures in the Context of Information Technology Implementation , 2001 .

[7]  Len Holden,et al.  The perception gap in employee empowerment: a comparative study of banks in Sweden and Britain , 1999 .

[8]  Darren Noyce.  eB2B: Analysis of Business-to-Business e-Commerce and how Research Can Adapt to Meet Future Challenges , 2002 .

[9]  C. M. Sorrill.  The Strategic Management of Technological Innovation , 1991 .

[10]  John Child,et al.  Information Technology in European Services: Towards a Microelectronic Future , 1991 .

[11]  Hagen K. C. Pfeiffer,et al.  The Diffusion of Electronic Data Interchange , 1992 .

[12]  Ray Loveridge.  Introduction: defining the field of technology and strategy , 1990 .

[13]  N Reekers.  Electronic data interchange use in German and US organizations , 1994 .

[14]  Damodar Y. Golhar,et al.  EDI Implementation in JIT and Non‐JIT Manufacturing Firms: A Comparative Study , 1993 .

[15]  Rob Kling,et al.  Social Analyses of Computing: Theoretical Perspectives in Recent Empirical Research , 1980, CSUR.

[16]  Paul J. Hart,et al.  Power and Trust: Critical Factors in the Adoption and Use of Electronic Data Interchange , 1997 .

[17]  Howard S. Rasheed,et al.  Determinants of Governance Structure For The Electronic Value Chain: Resource Dependency and Transaction Costs Perspectives , 2001, Journal of Business Strategies.

[18]  Steve Smithson,et al.  The impact of electronic data interchange on interorganizational relationships: integrating theoretical perspectives , 1995, Proceedings of the Twenty-Eighth Annual Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences.

[19]  Richard Whitley,et al.  Divergent Capitalisms: The Social Structuring and Change of Business Systems , 1999 .

[20]  A. Sayer.  Postfordism in question , 1989 .