"Don't pressure me!" Exploring the Anatomy of Voluntariness in the Organizational Adoption of Network Technologies

Vehring Nadine, Riemer Kai, Klein Stefan

Abstract

The design and management of the roll-out of new IT in an organization comprises several managerial decisions, one of which is whether IT adoption should be mandatory. Voluntariness to adopt has mainly been researched as a variable in explaining individual IT acceptance, however with contradicting results. By drawing on a case study of a financial service company, we aim to expand our understanding of the notion of voluntariness. We distinguish between management's claim that adoption is voluntary (espoused voluntariness) and the perception of this claim at the employee (perceived voluntariness) and team level. Moreover we elaborate on the changing role of voluntariness in the different stages of the roll-out process of a particular network technology. This allows us to observe a dilemma presented in the case: While voluntariness initial seems to be prerequisite for implementation and technology roll-out, it may act as an inhibitor to full diffusion in later stages.