View article

Prior research has generated considerable knowledge about the design of effective IT organizational architectures. Today, however, increasing signs have accumulated that this wisdom might be inadequate in shaping appropriate insights for contemporary practice. This essay seeks to direct research attention toward the following question: How should firms organize their IT activities in order to manage the imperatives of the business and technological environments in the digital economy? We articulate the platform logic as a conceptual framework for both viewing the organizing of IT management activities as well as for framing important questions for future research. In articulating this logic, we aim to shift thinking away from the traditional focus on governance structures (i.e., choice of centralized, decentralized, or federal forms) and sourcing structures (i.e., insourcing, outsourcing) and toward more complex …