Lost in Translation: Implications of a Failed Organizing Vision for the Governance of a Multi-Organization Shared IT Infrastructure

We studied the early-stage development of a newly formed shared services unit providing IT infrastructure services to multiple enterprises and examined the evolution of the organizing vision established for the unit. Through a three-cycle action research design, we found that the initiallyarticulated organizing vision failed to take hold with constituents and no effort was undertaken to evolve this organizing vision. In the absence of a strong and compelling organizing vision, client entities interacted with the shared services unit on an individual basis, compromising the initial purpose of the shared services unit as an innovation that had the potential to provide value as a ‘social good’ across a community. In examination of contributing factors of a failed organizing vision, we found that discourse across multiple levels of the community and effective chargeback processes were critical elements for evolving a meaningful organizing vision. Research and practical implications of these findings are discussed.