Identifying organizational culture clash in MIS implementation. When is it worth the effort?

A prerequisite to succeeding in MIS implementation is analysis of both technical and organizational validity prior to implementation. In this paper we show that of the various organizational validity aspects, organizational culture presents a particularly difficult challenge. On the one hand, without a match between the culture of an organization and the cultural assumptions embedded within the MIS, a costly implementation failure is likely. On the other hand, a significant effort to detect a cultural clash prior to implementation might not be worthwhile for each and every MIS. This paper identifies two characteristics of the MIS, culture content and predictability of outcome, as relevant to the question of when is an early detection of a culture clash worth the effort. The following general guidelines are offered: for MISs characterized by high culture content and low predictability of outcome, an effort to detect contrasting orientations of culture prior to implementation is justified; for MISs characterized by low culture content and high predictability of outcome, it is relatively safe to avoid early detection. The guidelines are accompanied by a series of mini-cases. The paper concludes with suggestions for future research.