Toward A Theory Of Information Systems Partnership Success

Due to multidimensional problems, nowadays Africans continue facing poor PublicrnInformation Service (PIS) which hindering their daily activities. To improve the Africans’rndelivery of vital electronic PIS, it requires the joint efforts of the private, public, andrnvoluntary actors of various sectors. The question is, while this issue is observed in manyrnAfrican countries, including Ethiopia, how best to synergize the Public-Private Partnershiprn(PPP) efforts continues to be a topic of ongoing debate. One of the issues is, how canrnacademicians and practitioners accurately examine the Critical Success Factors (CSFs) ofrnPPPs for feasible Information Systems Partnerships (ISPs) amongst private and publicrnsectors envisioned for transforming the delivery of electronic public service to citizens?rnDespite the high failure rate of Information System (IS) projects worldwide, especially in thernthird-world context, studies fail to provide plausible explanation how public agencies andrnprivate sectors should negotiate on alternative strategies such as PPPs amongst each other.rnMinimal attention is also given to evaluate how success factors of a partnership account forrnthe IS projects success in the developing countries with no PPP laws such as Ethiopia. Tornthis end, this study develops a theoretical framework (i.e., a Theory of IS PartnershiprnSuccess) for a deeper understanding of the case. The study applies positivist qualitativernresearch paradigm to extract the interdependent technical and multidimensional successrnfactors that explain the degree of information asymmetry in order to determine arnpartnership success/failure.rnPartnership is a complex process which requires frequent re-negotiations among an agentrnand a principal. The existence of any flaw during ISPs may potentially lead to informationrnasymmetry and opens various gaps. Designed on a qualitative research methodology, therntheoretical framework of this case study is based on Agency Theory. Systems Thinkingrnapproach which includes Soft Systems Methodology is also consulted as an analytical tool.rnThe ongoing “Lehulu” (for-All) PPP is studied in Ethiopia. Lehulu is initiated by thernEthiopian Government after incorporating seven stakeholders (six public sector principalsrnand a private agent). The data collection was conducted via interviews, indirectrnobservations, and document analysis. Based on the findings of the study, three researchrnpropositions are developed to depict how both Technical and Multidimensional CriticalrnSuccess Factors (i.e., TCSFs and MCSFs) impact the degree of information asymmetry andrnconsequently influencing the Partnership Success. The research findings have bothrntheoretical and practical implications for understanding the role, sustainability, and successrnof ISP under a PPP model for national PIS and ICT infrastructure transformation inrndeveloping economies. In sum, the research contributes to both IS and PP

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