Knowing the Impacts of Information Technology: Towards an Organizational Memory System as a Tool for IT-Management

This paper analyses major problems concerning IT management and examines how an organisational memory system (OMS) may help to overcome them. Emphasis is placed on the organisational impacts of IT, particularly its effects on business processes. This domain was selected because (1) the problems of managing IT and the urge to continuously improve business practices are both very important and closely connected aspects, (2) despite the many excellent approaches to the field, some major questions call for further research, (3) it consists of a bounded knowledge area that can be managed by means of an OMS. Thus, our work discusses theoretical as well as practical questions of knowledge management for the purpose of IT-based process improvements and aims at providing instruments which will help people who are concerned with managing IT.