Abstract
To process and draw value from their customer databases, firms set up information systems based on informational processes which make it possible to turn data into information and knowledge for action. Technical and cognitive knowledge is necessary but difficult to master, which leads some firms to opt for outsourcing. This research draws on the study of a supermarket retailer that engaged an IT services firm specializing in the study of large commercial databases to perform all aspects of management control related to its jewelry sales activity. A value chain for the inter-organizational information process was identified, showing the importance and fragility of the subprocess of knowledge transfer between the two entities.
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Notes
For reasons of confidentiality, the specialist data processing company is referred to as S and the client firm, a supermarket retailer, as R.
The principle is that articles are displayed in windows with reference numbers; the customer enters the number on a small screen to see full product details.
Top sales by turnover, margin, and quantity.
According to the management controller from S seconded to R.
Pearl necklaces, for instance, sell well in the Paris area but not in the south of France.
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Janicot, C., Mignon, S. & Walliser, E. Information Process and Value Creation: an Experimental Study. J Knowl Econ 7, 276–291 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13132-015-0306-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13132-015-0306-z