Abstract
Information technology (IT) is indisputably perceived as a catalyst for efficiencies and innovations across a multitude of economic sectors. That is, through IT, organisations can improve their processes and the way in which they conduct business operations, thus gaining a competitive advantage or reversing any competitive disadvantages suffered in their respective markets. However, the mere presence of IT alone is not adequate. IT should be turned into an efficient and effective usable service for its benefits to be entirely realised. This transition process requires IT to be deployed and integrated using approaches that are well organised and structured. Like other sectors, local government, in the form of municipalities, should not be immune to the benefits realised through IT.
The aim of this study was therefore to understand how IT should be deployed and integrated into local municipalities of the Republic of South Africa to enable efficient delivery of services. Two key cases, one in an urban area and another in a predominately rural setting, were selected for the study, which followed an interpretive research paradigm. To achieve this aim, the study set a goal of conceptualising a framework outlining how IT should be deployed and integrated in order to realise efficiencies and innovations in the delivery of basic services to lo constituencies.
With regard to conceptualising the framework, the study employed a combination of theories such as actor network theory, activity theory, resource-based view, the technology acceptance model, and the technology, organisation and environment framework to correctly understand how IT is currently deployed and integrated into municipalities, and to assess enabling and inhibiting factors in the technological, organisational and environmental contexts, including how these factors are manifesting. The understanding, views and opinions were gained from end-users, professionals and management echelons in municipalities, including community members, through semi-structured interviews. Unstructured observations and document analysis were also used as additional data collection methods. The collected data was analysed through thematic analysis.
The findings of the study imply that deployment and integration are currently done abruptly, without consistently adhering to any structured approaches and methods.