Determinants of Information System Success in Public Sector Organizations: With Special Reference to Organizations Located in the Matara District of Sri Lanka

Abstract

Public sector organizations in Sri Lanka have started implementation of ICT based solutions rapidly along with the recent e-government initiatives. Despite the increase in the number of beneficiaries of such systems, their success and productivity remain unsatisfactory and has been subjected to severe criticism. However, due to lack of literature, the reasons behind the poor performance of Information Systems are largely unknown particularly in the context of public sector organizations in Sri Lanka. Therefore, this study investigated the effect of system quality, user quality and service quality on the Information system success based on the data collected during 2013 on 32 public sector organizations located in Matara District through a questionnaire survey supplemented by interviews. The findings suggest that, issues associated with the system quality, service quality and lack of a clear and centrally planned mechanism for implementing information systems have seriously diluted the potential benefits associated with information system success. These findings emphasize the necessity of focusing on a central ICT policy and implementation of consistent and interoperable solutions rather than ad hoc locally developed solutions for improving the information system success at public sector organizations. Provision of necessary infrastructure, support services and qualified staff are also essential in ensuring the successful implementation of information systems in the public sector.