IT Culture

The term “IT culture” has become a construct of wide research and discussions among scholars, experts and managers. Many researchers identify that IT culture is important for managers to better control and manage their organizations. In today`s technological era, understanding how culture and technology relates may help improve business flow and organizational success. Organizational leaders pay great attention to this important issue. In the common sense all cultures are different. As far as IT culture is concerned, different organizations are likely to accept or deny different technologies in their workplaces.

The structural placement of the IT function within an organization may differ according to the organizational specifications, needs and desires. Not all technologies could be accepted equally in all cultures and organizations. Many experts consider that organizational leaders can better succeed and maximize the necessity of new information technology within their organizations, if they understand IT culture. In the modern IT environment, employees show the great response to technological innovations. The research asserts that it is important for organizational leaders to realize that organizations must focus on IT culture, which very often does not reflect the national culture in an efficient and professional manner. There could be various reasons for that, such as different demographics, backgrounds, and individual approaches. Understanding of the objectives will give the opportunity to manage the process of the IT function within an organization.

The philosophical approach to the development, deployment, and use of IT should be taken into consideration and the idea will be well understood within an organization. Many researches assert that culture colors every aspect in humans` life. The survey of the literature on IT culture identifies different philosophical approaches on it. From the cognitive perspective, IT culture exists in individual`s mind and it can be seen indirectly, i.e. through the individual`s thoughts and actions. In terms of changing and transforming an organization, it presents the greatest challenge, because it is hard to correlate humans` minds and thoughts. Moreover, different employees within organizations may be from different backgrounds and cultures, and each of them may have their own approaches to IT culture. The research asserts that the scientific method should be used in order to manage IT culture, at least to some extent. “Live-positively” approach should be the most common and successful one.

There are three types of structural placement of the IT function within an organization: top down silo, matrix, fully integrated. Each structure has advantages and disadvantages, but if used correctly and in the right environment, it can work well. The research asserts that a top down approach is the best way to revitalize the role of IT management. The top down management provides a clear picture of organizational performance. To reflect how IT assets have been deployed and are used by the organization, top-down management gathers details about endpoints and applications and bridge silos. The research asserts that in order to succeed the organizational leaders have to find out the structure that works best. Otherwise, poor product development, lack of communication, low-qualified customer service and other business problems may lead to lost revenue and even the organization`s break down.

In conclusion, it is worth noting that many researchers identify that IT culture is important for managers to better control and manage their organizations. In today`s technological era, understanding how culture and technology relates may help improve many business processes and organizational activities. Organizational leaders pay great attention to this important issue. In the common sense all cultures are different. As far as IT culture is concerned, different organizations are likely to accept or deny different technologies in their workplaces.