Data Warehousing Implementation Success: The Findings Using Different Research Methodologies

1. Data Warehousing Implementation Success: The Findings Using Different Research Methodologies Hugh J. Watson Terry College of Business University of Georgia hwatson@terry.uga.edu http://www.terry.uga.edu/~hwatson/implementation_success.ppt

2. Research on Data Warehousing • Started in 1994 • Has focused on implementation issues and organizational benefits • Has utilized a variety of research methodologies

3. First American Corporation • FAC -- A bank in trouble • Enter a new management team • A CRM strategy, Tailored Client Solutions, was created

5. First American Corporation • FAC -- A bank in trouble • Enter a new management team • A CRM strategy, Tailored Client Solutions, was created • A data warehouse called VISION was developed to support the strategy

7. First American Corporation • Applications using VISION were developed for every component of TCS

8. Applications for Every Component of the Strategy • Client Information: Customer Preferences and Profiles • Flexible Product Line: Profitability Analysis for Seniors Accounts • Consistent Service: Contact Management System • Distribution Management: Distribution Management System

9. First American Corporation • External talent was brought in as needed • A phased implementation strategy was followed, with short-term wins • Only after early successes, was the strategy fully communicated throughout the bank • Incentive and reward systems were changed

10. The Outcomes at FAC • The bank was transformed • A shift from “banking by intuition” to “banking by information and analysis” • Profits of over $211 million (US) in 1998 • A leader in the financial services industry • Won the 1999 Society for Information Management Award

11. What Was Learned • A strong business vision is more important than existing in-house IT expertise • Acquire the needed business and technical personnel • Both organizational and technological changes are necessary • Plan for "quick hit" success, and repeated successes

12. Whirlpool • An international manufacturer of appliances • In the early 1990s, several business units saw the need for integrated data • IT saw a data warehouse as a way to improve the technical infrastructure • Sponsorship for the warehouse came from a senior IT manager, who left shortly after initiating the project

13. Whirlpool • Specific applications were developed based on the warehouse -- quality, global purchasing, and cost recovery • Users are pleased with the warehouse but it has not dramatically affected how the company is run • Senior management is aware of the warehouse but does not view it strategically

14. A Question: Why were the returns from data warehousing so much greater at FAC than Whirlpool?

17. What Was Learned • Kotter’s theory of organizational transformation can help explain and predict why some organizations are more successful with their data warehousing efforts

18. Factors Affecting Data Warehousing Success • Data warehouses are claimed to have high failure rates; hence, the need for research • Most of the current knowledge is anecdotal and based on experiences in a few firms • A research model was developed and data were collected from 111 organizations

19. Factors Affecting Data Warehousing Success • Partial Least Squares (PLS) was used to test the research model

21. What Was Learned • Many of the traditional IT implementation factors apply to data warehousing • Other factors, however, affect system and data quality • Implementation success factors can be grouped together for parsimony • Findings may be applicable to other infrastructure projects

22. Comparing the Research Methods • Choose a best practices company • The company can be a source of useful insights and examples • A single or multiple case studies can be used to develop or test theories • Positivistic research provides more generalizable findings but may be weaker for providing new insights

23. References • Cooper, B.L., H.J. Watson, B.H. Wixom, and D.L. Goodhue, "Data Warehousing Supports Corporate Strategy at First American Corporation," MIS Quarterly, (December, 2000), pp. 547-567. • Haley, B.J., “The Benefits of Data Warehousing at Whirlpool,” Annuals of Cases on Information Technology Applications and Management in Organizations, Hershey, PA, Idea Publishing Group, 1999, pp. 14-25. • Kotter, J.P., “Leading Change: Why Transformation Efforts Fail,” Harvard Business Review, (March/April, 1995), pp. 59-67.

24. References • Watson, H.J., D.L. Goodhue, and B.H.Wixon, “The Benefits of Data Warehousing: Why Some Organizations Realize Exceptional Benefits,” Information & Management, (forthcoming). • Wixom, B.H. and H.J. Watson, “An Empirical Investigation of the Factors Affecting Data Warehousing Success,” MIS Quarterly, (March, 2001), pp. 1-25.

25. Danke