Abstract
We examine the common claim that "best practices" are encompassed and represented in Enterprise Systems (ES). We suggest that an ES can at best only represent the ostensive and not the performative elements of work tasks. Thus, representation of best practice in an ES does not take practical action into account. This has two important implications. First, ostensive abstractions of best practice in an ES are a sparse and superficial representation of a "good" business process, at a specific moment in time. Second, the practical understanding required for performance is often ignored in the ostensive representation of best practice in the implementation of an ES. This constrains user and business adaptability. Inflexible coding of ostensive business tasks furthermore leads to rigidity where flexibility should be sought, to keep on top of the competition. Implications and directions for further research are discussed.
Original language | English |
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Title of host publication | 14th Americas Conference on Information Systems, AMCIS 2008 |
Pages | 3045-3051 |
Number of pages | 7 |
Volume | 5 |
Publication status | Published - 1 Dec 2008 |
Event | 14th Americas Conference on Information Systems, AMCIS 2008 - Toronto, ON, Canada Duration: 14 Aug 2008 → 17 Aug 2008 |
Conference
Conference | 14th Americas Conference on Information Systems, AMCIS 2008 |
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Country/Territory | Canada |
City | Toronto, ON |
Period | 14/08/08 → 17/08/08 |
Bibliographical note
This material is brought to you by the Americas Conference on Information Systems (AMCIS) at AIS Electronic Library (AISeL). It has been acceptedfor inclusion in AMCIS 2008 Proceedings by an authorized administrator of AIS Electronic Library (AISeL). For more information, please contact
[email protected].
Keywords
- Best practice
- Enterprise systems
- Ostensive
- Practical action
- Task performance