Abstract:
In Sri Lanka, the current government is heading for a major digitalization programme to streamlining
the administrative processes of government organizations with the view of expediting workflows improving their
services. Past experience shows that many such major transformations, in both in public and private sectors, have
failed. One major reason behind experiencing such problems associated with digitalization programs has been the
lack of readiness with respect to implementation of information systems (IS). Assessment of readiness with respect
to implementation of IS is a critical prerequisite for addressing the anticipated problems in future digitalization
programs. A comprehensive literature review of a wide spectrum of published research articles in reputed journals,
points to the fact that there are neither IS implementation readiness frameworks nor comprehensive instruments
for making such assessments suitable for public sector organizations. This is particularly true to government
sector in the context of Sri Lanka, where the social, cultural and other environmental aspects are somewhat unique.
Therefore, this research aims to a comprehensive IS readiness framework and an instrument that can be used to
assess the IS implementation readiness in government organizations focusing on Sri Lanka, to bridge the abovementioned
knowledge gap. This paper presents the results of the first phase of this study dedicated to developing
the framework that explains the implementation of IS readiness and the associated instrument. After a
comprehensive literature review, a tentative conceptual framework has been developed for using it as the basis to
refine the IS readiness framework through qualitative investigations. A series of one-on-one interviews with IS
professionals in universities and practitioners, including those in the Ministry of Public Administration, Home
Affairs and Local Government were conducted. The interview findings were then analysed as an expert opinion
review to derive the framework with 07 dimensions and 31 measurement items. These findings are to be used in
the next phase of investigation to develop a valid and reliable IS implementation readiness instruments applicable
to government organizations in Sri Lanka.
