Ambidexterity in Agile Distributed Development: An Empirical Investigation

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Ramesh, Balasubramaniam; Mohan, Kannan; Cao, Lan
• 署名单位: University System of Georgia; Georgia State University; City University of New York (CUNY) System; Baruch College (CUNY); Old Dominion University
• 刊物名称: INFORMATION SYSTEMS RESEARCH
• ISSN/ISSBN: 1047-7047
• DOI: 10.1287/isre.1110.0351
• 发表日期: 2012
• 页码: 323-339
• 关键词: global software-development; ORGANIZATIONAL AMBIDEXTERITY; information-technology; MEDIATING ROLE; exploration; exploitation; antecedents; performance; COMMUNICATION; dimensions

摘要

Distributed software development has become a common reality with the advent of off-shore development and the need to be close to markets. Also, the dynamic nature of the environment in which businesses operate suggests the use of agile development methods. Whereas distributed software development requires the use of formal processes advocated by plan-driven approaches, rapidly changing environments are appropriate candidates for the use of agile development methods. This tension in agile distributed development poses conflicting demands between alignment and adaptability in the software development process. We conducted a multisite case study of three projects that use agile distributed development to examine how these organizations developed contextual ambidexterity the ability to pursue conflicting demands simultaneously. Our findings, presented as a conceptual framework, indicate that conflicting demands between alignment and adaptability posed by agile distributed development can be addressed by a set of balanced practices that shape performance management and social context two important antecedents of contextual ambidexterity.