Introductory description

This is an elective module available for WBS and non-WBS students. To find detailed availability and to apply for this module, log in to my.wbs.ac.uk using your normal IT login details and apply via the my.wbs module application system. Once you’ve secured a place on my.wbs you should apply via your home department’s usual process, which usually takes place via eVision. Note that you do not require the module leader’s permission to study a WBS module, so please do not contact them to request it.

Module web page

Module aims

Outline syllabus

This is an indicative module outline only to give an indication of the sort of topics that may be covered. Actual sessions held may differ.

The module takes place as one three-hour session per week. The sessions typically consist of a lecture, group work and a plenary in discussing a case study on the weekly topic. The module covers key IS/IT management topic from a strategic perspective such as:

• Strategy and competitive advantage
• Knowledge and information asset management
• Sourcing and cloud computing
• Information security and privacy
• Digital platforms and ecosystems
• The execution of IT projects
• Current hot topics (e.g. sharing economy, business analytics and future technologies)

Learning outcomes

By the end of the module, students should be able to:

• An understanding of the role of information and information systems in business organisations.
• An increased understanding of the role that IT can play in business by applying concepts and frameworks form the course in the context of real business scenarios.
• An insight into the strategic management issues associated with the planning, development and implementation of IT/IS in organisations.
• Analyse various real-life technologies using theories of strategy.

Indicative reading list

Articles and other readings:
Baldwin, Carliss Y., and Kim B. Clark. 1997. Managing in an Age of Modularity. Harvard Business Review 75(5): 84–93.
Barney, Jay. 1991. Firm Resources and Sustained Competitive Advantage. Journal of Management 17(1): 99–120.
Bharadwaj, Anandhi, Omar A. El Sawy, Paul A. Pavlou, and N. Venkatraman. 2013. Digital Business Strategy: Toward a next Generation of Insights. MIS Quarterly 37(2): 471–482.
Brown, John Seely, and Paul Duguid. 2000. Balancing Act: How to Capture Knowledge without Killing It. Harvard Business Review 78(3): 73–80.
Carr, Nicholas G. 2003. IT Doesn't Matter. Harvard Business Review, May 2003.
Ciborra, Claudio U., and Rafael Andreu. 2001. Sharing Knowledge across Boundaries. Journal of Information Technology 16(2): 73–81.
Constantinides, P., Henfridsson, O., & Parker, G. G. 2018. Introduction—Platforms and Infrastructures in the Digital Age. Information Systems Research, isre.2018.0794.
Feeny, David P., and Leslie P. Willcocks. 1998. Core IS Capabilities for Exploiting Information Technology. Sloan Management Review 39. Available here
Ghazawneh, A., & Henfridsson, O. 2013. Balancing platform control and external contribution in thirdâparty development: the boundary resources model. Information Systems Journal, 23(2): 173–192.
Hansen, Morten T., Nitin Nohria, and Thomas Tierney. 1999. What's Your Strategy for Managing Knowledge? Harvard Business Review 77(2): 106–116.
Long, Johnny. 2005. Google Hacking for Penetration Testers. Available from: http://www.blackhat.com/presentations/bh-europe05/BH_EU_05-Long.pdf
Long, Johnny. The Google Hacker's Guide Understanding and Defending against the Google Hacker. Available from: http://pdf.textfiles.com/security/googlehackers.pdf
Oh, Onook, Rajarshi Chakraborty, and H. R. Rao. 2009. "An Exploration of Unintended Online Private Information Disclosure in Educational Institutions across Four Countries," 1–11. Tacoma, WA: IEEE, 2009. Available from: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/articleDetails.jsp?arnumber=5342606(Search "IEEE Xplore digital library" through University of Warwick Library).
Peppard, J. & Ward, J. 2016. The Strategic Management of Information Systems: Building a Digital Strategy (4th Edition). Chichester, UK: John Wiley & Sons Ltd. – for 2018-2019 we use the 2002 book.
Porter, Michael M. 2001. Strategy and the Internet. Harvard Business Review, 2001, 60–78.
Tiwana, Amrit, Benn Konsynski, and Ashley A. Bush. 2010. Platform Evolution: Coevolution of Platform Architecture, Governance, and Environmental Dynamics. Information Systems Research 21(4): 675–687.
Willcocks, Leslie. 1992. IT Evaluation: Managing the Catch 22. European Management Journal 10(2): 220–229.
Willcocks, Leslie, and H. Margetts. 1993. Risk Assessment and Information Systems. Available from: http://sdaw.info/asp/aspecis/19930042.pdf
Yoo, Y., Henfridsson, O., & Lyytinen, K. 2010. Research Commentary—The New Organizing Logic of Digital Innovation: An Agenda for Information Systems Research. Information Systems Research, 21(4): 724–735.
Zittrain, J. 2006. The Generative Internet. Harvard Law Review, 119: 1974–2040.
Zuboff, S. 2015. Big other: surveillance capitalism and the prospects of an information civilization. Journal of Information Technology, 30(1): 75–89.

Subject specific skills

Explore the details of a specific technologies online.

Transferable skills

Present an analysis of the impact of a particular technology on competitive advantage.
Analytical writing.