Implementation Failure of an Integrated Software Package: A Case Study from the Far East

Abstract

The case study describes the process of implementation of an integrated software package at the Thai subsidiary (SMTL) of a Hong Kong-based multinational company (SMHK) engaged in the manufacturing of electronic equipment. Several factorssuch as a poor fit between the business process assumptions inscribed in the software and the business processes in SMTL, poor leadership at different levels, cultural clash between the headquarters and the Thai subsidiary, organizational politics, and poor human resource managementcontributed to the confusion in the organization, project delays, budget overruns, and ultimately, to the failure of the systems implementation project. The case study is likely to be valuable for illustrating issues related to managing IS implementation in a multinational context.