Patrick J. Rondeau’s research while affiliated with Butler University and other places

A rapidly changing environment requires firms to adopt a customer-driven approach in managing their information systems. Study results indicate that firms with high levels of organizational involvement in IS related activities have higher levels of IS management effectiveness. In turn, these higher levels lead to lower levels of end-user self-reliance in application development and higher levels of end-user dependence on IS expertise. In our study, end-user self-reliance indicated the presence of independent end-users circumventing the IS unit by developing software applications and engaging in traditional IS activities. In contrast, end-user dependence on IS expertise indicated that end-users believed that the IS unit was a valuable and reliable source of technical knowledge and application support. More effective IS management practices, combined with higher end-user dependence on the IS expertise, were found to lead to improved perceptions of IS performance. Data were collected from 265 senior manufacturing managers who were selected because their perspective of IS activities and performance was desired and manufacturing units are an important user of the services. Structural equation modeling was used to test our hypotheses.

As markets and technology change, time‐based competitors create integrated product development practices that reduce response‐time and enhance customisation capabilities. Such Time‐Based Product Development Practices (TBPDP) are often computer‐mediated knowledge work, enabled by end‐user computing capabilities. This paper develops a theoretical framework that describes relationships among TBPDP, firm performance, and end‐user computing. Data collected from 265 manufacturing managers and executives support the claim that end‐user computing moderates the impact of TBPDP on performance.

Time-based competitors create product development and manufacturing practices that reduce response-time and enhance customization capabilities. These practices require an information-rich, internal environment capable of flexible resource deployment and direct and continuous feedback. These firms should have enhanced information systems planning capabilities, cross-functional involvement in information systems related activities, responsiveness to organizational computing demands, high levels of end-user development, and high levels of information systems performance. Data were collected from 265 manufacturers to develop measures for these information systems variables and to determine if there are relationships between the use of time-based practices and the levels of these variables. Results indicate that firms with high levels of time-based product development practices and time-based manufacturing practices have significantly higher scores across these information systems variables than firms with low levels of these time-based practices.

As global markets and technology change, time-based competitors create product development and manufacturing practices that reduce response time and enhance customization capabilities. These practices require an information-rich internal environment that is capable of flexible resource deployment and direct and continuous feedback. To build this environment, time-based competitors are developing end-user capabilities and involving them in information systems (IS) activities. Data collected from 265 manufacturers were used to determine if firms with high levels of time-based product development and time-based manufacturing practices also have high levels of end-user involvement in IS-related activities, end-user training effectiveness, and end-user computing skills. The results of this study support that contention.

Manufacturing planning and control (MPC) systems have existed since the earliest days of the industrial revolution. To gain a historical perspective, it is useful to look at the evolution of these systems. Five major stages were involved: reorder point (ROP) systems, materials requirement planning (MRP) systems, manufacturing resource planning (MRP-II) systems, MRP-II with manufacturing execution systems (MES), and enterprise resource planning systems (ERP) with MES. When examined in detail, each stage represents the next logical step in manufacturing philosophy and technological innovation over the preceding stage.

Manufacturing firms operating in a post-industrial environment have customers who demand specialized products and short lead times. To meet these needs, organizations are adopting time-based manufacturing practices to cut time and improve performance. The central tenet of this study is that time-based manufacturers employ traditional work system practices including standardization, formalization, and routinization plus integration to improve competitiveness. This study measures the levels of time-based manufacturing practices, work system practices, and competitive capabilities of 265 firms. The results indicate that firms with high levels of time-based manufacturing practices tend to have high levels of standardization and formalization as well as integration. Firms with high levels of standardization and integration tended to have enhanced competitive capabilities.

Manufacturing firms operating in a post‐industrial environment have customers who demand specialized products and short lead times. To meet these needs, organizations are adopting time‐based manufacturing practices to cut time and improve performance. The central tenet of this study is that time‐based manufacturers employ traditional work system practices including standardization, formalization, and routinization plus integration to improve competitiveness. This study measures the levels of time‐based manufacturing practices, work system practices, and competitive capabilities of 265 firms. The results indicate that firms with high levels of time‐based manufacturing practices tend to have high levels of standardization and formalization as well as integration. Firms with high levels of standardization and integration tended to have enhanced competitive capabilities.

Many colleges of business now assume incoming freshmen arrive on campus possessing high levels of computer skill and ability. Students are frequently offered the opportunity to take and pass a computer proficiency exam (CPE) in lieu of a freshman information technology (IT) course. While promoted as an efficient alternative, our analysis of the implementation of a CPE as a replacement for the freshman IT course at a small, Midwestern university revealed mixed results. As expected, we found those students who took and passed the CPE generally scored higher in their follow-on, sophomore IT course than those who passed the prerequisite, freshmen IT course. However, the CPE pass rate proved to be significantly lower than that of the course it replaced. This created an unexpected backlog of students unable to enroll in the sophomore IT course, delaying their program of study. Furthermore, over time the CPE highlighted patterns of weakness in students' Excel skills, proving it to be a valuable diagnostic tool. Finally, while the original objective of the CPE had been to replace the freshman IT course, it instead supported the need to reinstate at least some portion of it. This suggests that a hybrid approach may be most effective in ensuring that freshman enter their sophomore year with those IT skills needed most for follow-on course success.

The development of new products capable of satisfying customer demands on a timely basis has become a priority for firms seeking to improve their competitive advantage in a global context. However, this challenge has become highly complex due to a growing diversity of both products and processes, higher costs, and unprecedented considerations for quality and service. Despite knowing a great deal about both the characteristics of successful firms and new product development processes, little is known regarding requisite guidelines for successful strategies in product development.