Exploring interorganizational systems at the industry level of analysis: evidence from the US home mortgage industry

Interorganizational Systems (IOS) can have influences that extend beyond the organizations that implement them. Much can be learned at the industry-level of analysis that might not be revealed in studies conducted at the organizational level of analysis. This article summarizes a case study of one industry – the US home mortgage industry – in order to illustrate three types of industry-level phenomena that surface when examining use of interorganizational IT-driven coordination systems: collective actions among industry participants, performance effects, and structural effects. Our discussion of case results distinguishes between industry outcomes that are the net result of the accumulation of organizational actions vs. outcomes where industry-level consequences are qualitatively different from what is observed at the organizational level. Journal of Information Technology (2005) 20, 224–233. doi:10.1057/palgrave.jit.2000051