Resource-Based View and Competitive Strategy: An Integrated Model of the Contribution of Information Technology to Firm Performance

In the information technology (IT) literature, therelationship between IT and firm performance has been examined from aresource-based perspective and from the perspective of strategy. The goal ofthis study is to use the complementary nature of the two perspectives in orderto shed light on the contribution of IT to firm performance. A model that comprises both a competitive strategy framework and theresource-based perspective is used to achieve this objective. By depicting theeffects of IT support on business strategy and firm assets, the model capturesthe impact of IT on firm performance. Data from a survey of 96 Canadian firmsare used to test the model. According to the data, the variance in the sampled firms' market performanceis due, on the one hand,mostly to the direct effect of IT support forstrategy and the indirect effect of IT support for the firms' assets. Thevariance in profitability, on the other hand, is due to the direct effect of ITsupport for the firm's assets and by market performance. (SAA)