Qualitative, interpretive case study approaches were adopted in the study. This was due to the nature of the study, which sought to understand the impact of the interplay between the existing structures and humans in the development and implementation of IT strategy. Rowlands (2005) argued that the interpretive research method acknowledges the intimate relationship between the researcher, what is being explored, and the factors which shapes process. The study was unpinned by the Structuration Theory (ST), a theory by Anthony Giddens (1984). The analysis was carried out using the duality of structure from ST.
It was believed that the case study approach was the appropriate research strategy. This was primarily because of the advantages and opportunities it presented to create novel and profound insights and to examine the rich contextual influences (Myers, 1997; Yin, 2009). Other approaches could have been adopted. However, this would not have revealed in detail the unique experiences of individuals in the organisations and the factors influencing their IT strategy. According to Noor (2008), the case study approach is best used in probing particular area of interest.