Influence of Network Characteristics on Inter-Organizational IT Integration: The Role of Commitment and Trust

Research on inter-organizational relationships has become prominent in business and IS research and over the past two decades networks in particular have been widely recognized by both academics and practitioners as an important form of multi-organizational governance. Those networks rely heavily on information systems, and the integration of IS across partnering organizations has become the backbone of collaboration. In this context, the importance of organizational attributes has been highlighted by various studies, but antecedents of integration have primary been derived from IT related factors and do not consider network characteristics. This study sets out to expand the understanding of how network organizations can effectively develop and manage IT integration in order to co-create relational value. By drawing on the commitment-trust theory we develop and test a theoretical model based on data gathered from 228 network organizations to explain how network attributes facilitate IT integration.