A Framework to Study Knowledge Transfer During Information Systems Development (ISD) Process

Abstract

The information systems development process (ISD) remains a topic of great interest for IS researchers, especially due to the increase in the number of ISD failures. The IS researchers suggest that one possible cause for the failure of ISD may be the lack of relevant knowledge transferred from the system users to system developers. However, IS researchers have not yet directed their attention toward examining the factors that impede the transfer of knowledge among the system users and developers. In order to understand the impediments to the knowledge transfer process during ISD, it is crucial to systematically study how the nature of knowledge transfer unfolds during this process. This chapter provides a framework that allows researchers to study this phenomenon in a systematic fashion. Specifically, it identifies a comprehensive set of factors that influence the knowledge transfer process and posits a set of propositions that future research should examine.