Incorporating Technology Acceptance and IS Success Frameworks into a System Dynamics Conceptual Model: A Case Study in the ERP Post-Implementation Environment

Like any IT project, the intricacy of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) implementations brings with it high risks to the organization because of high upfront costs and low success rates. ERP implementations are not simply software installations but a radical integration and transformation of an organization’s business practices. System acceptance and perceptions of success weight heavily on non-technical forces such as people, processes, policies, and organizational culture. This study employs system dynamics techniques to elicit perceptions regarding system acceptance and success in an ERP post-implementation case study setting. A conceptual model was developed based on various literature streams and structure validation was conducted with ERP experts via semi-structured interviews. The resulting model includes technology acceptance and information system success model concepts as well as theories from related literature. Interview findings and methodology reflections are also discussed in this paper. DOI: 10.4018/jitsa.2012070103 42 International Journal of Information Technologies and Systems Approach, 5(2), 41-56, July-December 2012 Copyright © 2012, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited. Not only are ERPs exceptionally complex but their scope is enormous because the system is enterprise-wide and impacts all departments in the organization (Bansal & Negi, 2008; O’Brien & Marakas, 2006). While there is a reasonable amount of research dealing with ERP implementation success, there is a need to explore the postimplementation phase of ERP (Al-Mashari, 2003; Ifinedo, 2007). Some research has been conducted more recently focusing on user satisfaction and ERP success factors in the post-implementation environment (Ifinedo, 2007; Ifinedo & Nahar, 2009; Ifinedo, Udo, & Ifinedo, 2010; Wu & Wang, 2006, 2007). This study extends this work by using system dynamics techniques to study system acceptance and perceptions of success in the maintenance phase of an ERP lifecycle.