Charles E. Downing
College of Business -OMIS, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL
60015
e-mail: downinch@bc.edu
John Gallaugher
Wallace E. Carroll School of Management, Boston College, Chestnut Hill,
MA 02467
e-mail: john.gallaugher@bc.edu
Albert H. Segars
Kenan-Flagler Business School, University of North Carolina at Chapel
Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599
e-mail: al_segars@unc.edu
Accepted for publication in the Journal of Global Information Management
ABSTRACT
Empowerment is an important and desirable state for employees within
business enterprises around the world. Yet, the pursuit of empowerment
across national boundaries may vary due to innate differences within cultures.
This may be particularly true with respect to choice of technologies for
achieving empowerment. Through case study of Fellows within the Japanese
MITI and U.S. Dept. of Commerce Manufacturing Technology Fellowship (MTF)
Program, this study suggests that the achievement of empowerment through
choice of information technology is matched to cultural context. Specifically,
employees of Japanese companies prefer, need, and use media-rich information
technologies in their efforts to achieve empowerment. In contrast, employees
of American companies prefer, need, and use collaborative information technologies
in their pursuit of empowerment. These findings suggest that information
technology is used as a compensating factor of cultural attributes in the
enhancement of employee empowerment.