The nature of technical expertise has become increasingly important and problematic in the post-modern era, as structured hierarchies and production methods are revised. Financial services, one of our most important economic sectors, has also been confronting very high degrees of uncertainty that reflect great institutional and market changes. In this fluid and competitive environment technological change - in particular the widening scope of information technology (IT) - has become vitally important. This study is about the strategic uses of IT in retail financial services. It is based on the Scottish part of the industry, a highly cohesive sector in its own right, but one with universal linkages to UK and global finance. A set of seven case studies forms the empirical base, while the study also focuses on key strategic projects within these case companies. The purpose is to arrive at an understanding of how firms develop a strategic approach to IT. This hinges on the management of expertise - the ability to integrate detailed technological expertise with wider organizational and marketing goals. The study examines a number of themes around this key issue: the process of formation of IT strategy, sectorial influences on the implementation of computer-based systems, and the occupational and career factors that shape IT expertise.
Reviews
This study paints a picture of an almost complete lack of dynamism within the industry, and of largely sluggish and hidebound corporate responses to the competitive environment. * Work, Employment and Society *
This book is a timely contribution to our understanding of this process ... the book makes a significant contribution to our understanding of the innovation process in an industrial sector that has experienced significant structural and technical change. * Technovation *
This is a solid and scholarly volume, well crafted and carefully researched ... This is a comprehensive and immensely valuable study which makes an important contribution to the debates on technological inovation ... It can be thoroughly recommended and deserves wide attention. * New Technology, Work and Employment *
This book is a timely contribution to our understanding of this process ... the book makes a significant contribution to our understanding of the innovation process in an industrial sector that has experienced significant structural and technical change. * Technovation *
For those who are curious and want to learn about a new multidisciplinary field of research which nowhere fits into the patterns of traditional compartmentalized disciplines, the book is highly interesting ... the book includes a helpful index, which invites the reader to work with the book and to continue to learn much from it after having read it for the first time. * Organization *



Book Information
ISBN 9780198289043
Author Robin Fincham
Format Hardback
Page Count 346
Imprint Oxford University Press
Publisher Oxford University Press
Weight(grams) 723g
Dimensions(mm) 242mm * 188mm * 26mm