Pre-negotiated influences on business-IT alignment in a project setting

Joint-venture alliance project partners have different and sometimes conflicting goals and incentives, and project members often have short project stays and weak allegiance to overall project goals. Given this, the sources of alignment required for the diffusion of selected and mandated ICT on projects appears to be limited. We ask, how are individual, organizational and project incentives aligned so that ICT is diffused in projects to achieve coordination and success? The results from this exploratory study conclude that alignment occurs from the external and pre-negotiated influences of goal, work output, work value, technological expectations, and professional peers which aids in the diffusion of technology in project settings. The study findings contribute to various theories of diffusion and the implications for managers is to understand and employ these pre-negotiated influencers to shape ICT diffusion and acceptance in projects.