The convergence of information technology governance and digital technologies to enhance performance capabilities in State-Owned Entities

Abstract

This thesis addresses technology governance, digital technologies, and performance capabilities in the context of South African State-Owned Entities (SOEs). These entities are governed by the Companies Act No. 61 of 1973. The Act determines the mandates, functions, and funding mechanisms as well as corporate governance of SOEs. Corporate governance includes information technology (IT) governance. IT governance ensures that technology investments meant to support organizational goals and objectives are acquired and managed to deliver bottom-line results. This thesis argues that IT governance and digital technologies, when appropriately used, can enhance SOEs’ performance capabilities. The King IV report stresses that IT governance should ensure IT strategies are in-sync with the business goals and objectives of the SOE. The research problem is that there is inadequate literature addressing how performance capabilities could be enhanced through sound IT governance and the appropriate use of digital technologies.

In addressing the problem, the study was underpinned by the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT), the Upper Echelon Theory, and the Diffusion of Innovations (DOI). The study followed an interpretivist philosophy using an inductive approach and a case study strategy to unravel how IT governance and appropriate use of digital technologies could enhance SOEs’ performance capabilities. The study’s unit of analysis was limited to executive and senior management levels. Instead of surveying a broad range of employees or operational personnel, the study concentrated solely on individuals with designations such as Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Director, Chief Information Officer (CIO), Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Managers. This delineation was intentional: these individuals possess official decision-making authority for the strategic objectives under examination, bear fiduciary responsibility for organisational goals, and serve as the principal gatekeepers for resource allocation. Thus, their perceptions, behaviours, and decisions represent the most accurate and dependable reflection of the organisational phenomena under investigation. Lastly, their perceptions, actions, and decisions serve as the most precise and reliable representation of the organisational phenomena being examined, and the single-SOE case design facilitated the analysis of how these senior figures exerted agency within the distinct institutional and political framework of the specific SOE.

The study findings suggest that factors significant to enhancing performance capabilities include proper information technology governance and practices, strategic alignment of emerging technologies with organisational goals, and stakeholder engagement for good governance through fostering a culture of innovation and leveraging information technology capabilities. The contributions of this thesis are theoretically, practically, methodologically, and contextually. That is, the original contribution is in the conceptualised framework for IT governance and the use of digital technologies to enhance SOEs’ performance capabilities.