Expertise and Innovation Information Technology Strategies in the Financial Services Sector

by Fincham, Robin; Fleck, James; Proctor, Rob; Scarbrough, Harry; Tierney, Margaret; Williams, Robin

• ISBN13: 9780198289043
• ISBN10: 0198289049
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 1995-02-23
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

This book discusses the strategic uses of IT in retail financial services.It is based on the Scottish part of the industry, a highly cohesive sector inits own right, but one with universal linkages to UK and global finance. A setof seven case studies forms the empirical base, while the study also focuses onkey strategic projects within these case companies. The purpose is to arrive atan understanding of how firms develop a strategic approach to IT.This hinges on the management of expertise - the ability to integrate detailedtechnological expertise with wider organizational and marketing goals. Thestudy examines a number of themes around this key issue: the process offormation of IT strategy, sectorial influences on the implementation ofcomputer-based systems, and the occupational and career factors that shape ITexpertise.

Table of Contents

List of Figures	p. x
List of Tables	p. x
Abbreviations	p. xi
Expertise And Innovation	p. 1
Introduction	p. 1
Strategy	p. 9
Technology	p. 14
Expertise	p. 19
Structure of the Book	p. 23
Context And Methods Of The Study	p. 25
Retail Financial Services	p. 26
Sectoral Change in the 1980s	p. 34
Methodology	p. 38
The Case Studies	p. 43
Introduction and Review	p. 43
Bank of Scotland's Cabinet project	p. 47
Royal Bank of Scotland and the Royline Corporate Cash Management System	p. 56
Clydesdale Bank and the Telebank System of Home Banking	p. 61
Mutual Life and the Customer Care Project	p. 67
Home and Auto's Management Information System	p. 75
Premier Financial Services' Index Package	p. 80
Bank of Scotland Visa Centre	p. 85
Strategy	p. 95
The Negotiation Of The Sector	p. 99
Sectoral Structure and Competences	p. 100
Social Networks and Knowledge Exchange	p. 104
Structural Position Of The Is Function	p. 112
Organizational Structure of Expertise	p. 113
Structure of the IS Function	p. 119
Control over the IS Function	p. 123
The Managerial Claims of IS	p. 127
Strategy And Innovation	p. 133
Project Scope	p. 133
Political Interests	p. 138
Structural Positioning	p. 141
Technology	p. 149
Information Technology And Financial Services	p. 151
Evolution of It in the Sector	p. 152
Current Trends in Technologies	p. 156
Current Trends in Applications	p. 161
Conclusion: Applications and Implementation	p. 165
Software Development Practices	p. 168
The Management of Software Expertise	p. 169
The Emergence of Software Engineering	p. 170
Development Practices and the Case Material	p. 179
Conclusion	p. 187
Implementation And Innovation	p. 189
The Nature of Implementation	p. 189
The Exploitation of Expertise	p. 206
User Relations And It Integration	p. 209
The Changing Role of Users	p. 210
Integration Strategies and User Participation	p. 214
Conclusion	p. 225
Expertise	p. 227
The Dimensions Of Expertise	p. 229
Expert Knowledge	p. 232
Power and Expertise	p. 237
The Tradeability of Expertise	p. 240
Managing Expertise in Financial Service Firms	p. 243
It Careers: Organizational And Occupational Strategies	p. 247
Introduction	p. 247
MSD and the Cabinet Project	p. 252
Survey Findings	p. 258
It-Skilled Careers	p. 268
The Economy Of Is Expertise	p. 278
Black-boxing and the Conmmodification of It	p. 280
Collaborative Development in the Case Firms	p. 285
Provision by Markets and Hierarchies	p. 290
Conclusions	p. 297
Introduction	p. 297
Strategy and the Sectoral Context	p. 300
Technology and Expertise	p. 305
The Management of Expertise	p. 308
References	p. 315
Index	p. 327
Table of Contents provided by Syndetics. All Rights Reserved.