Towards an integrated view of IT value measurement

Abstract

One of the most enduring questions at the intersection of accounting and information systems is measuring the value of Information Technology (IT). This longevity is unsurprising - measuring the value of IT is difficult at best. Literature on this issue falls into two broad research streams. One stream, which draws largely on mainstream financial accounting and economics, employs independently observable measures, such as capital market reactions, return on assets and changes in market share, to assess the value of IT in an organization. The ready comparability of such measures makes them quite desirable. However, accurately linking them to the underlying IT is problematic as often they do n..