Information Technology Governance and the individuals' behavior: A cross-sectional study

Abstract

Information technology (IT) is increasingly important to organizations and has become essential to the development of sustainable business growth. It is therefore necessary to adopt IT governance (ITG) mechanisms to ensure better solutions, sustainable growth, and better decision-making. As employee behavior is a competitive differential, this work focuses on the behavioral expression of ITG. It aims at analyzing ITG institutionalization's effect on the main dimensions of Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB) in Portugal. OCB describes individuals' voluntary commitment to an organization, including attitudes outside of their contractual functions. A descriptive-confirmative ex post facto research was conducted through survey research to 112 employees of IT-related departments and divisions from companies of all sizes in Portugal. The partial least square-structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) method was used to test the overall model. The general hypothesis was confirmed, showing that ITG institutionalization positively affects individuals' OCBs in Portuguese organizations. In practical terms, it is possible to show organizations that by implementing their ITG Mechanisms, they are increasing employees' OCBs and, consequently, organizational effectiveness.