INTRA- AND INTER- ‎ORGANIZATIONAL ‎SYSTEMS

INTRA-ORGANIZATIONAL SYSTEM, INTER-‎ORGANIZATIONAL SYSTEM, ELECTRONIC COMMERCE, E-‎COMMERCE, INTERORGANIZATIONAL SYSTEMS (IOSS), ‎INTRAORGANIZATIONAL SYSTEM, BUSINESS ‎ADMINISTRATION, MANAGEMENT SCIENCE, EDUCATION ‎AND LEARNING,‎

1. “E-Commerce (5576)”

INTRA- AND INTER- ORGANIZATIONAL SYSTEMS

‘Inter’ means ‘between’ or ‘across’. Interorganization means between two organizations.

“Therefore, interorganizational procedures occur when two or more organizations join together and
share information or collaborate. This can be helpful for businesses for several reasons. One reason
is that it may make it easier for them to compete against other businesses creating competition.
Additionally, organizations can work together to enter new markets as well as collaborate on
developing new technologies. Examples of this might include the government and local non-profit
organizations working together to help the community.”

“In Encyclopedia of Networked and Virtual Organization (Putnik & Cunha, Eds., 2008), ‘Inter-
organizational System’ is defined as:”
1. “ICT-based system that enable organizations to share information and to electronically
conduct business across organizational boundaries.”
2. “Information systems that involves multiple organizations such as buyer-supplier
purchasing system.”

‘Intra’ means ‘within’ or ‘inside’. Intraorganizational means within an organization.“This means
that people or departments within an organization are working together or collaborating. This might
mean, for example, that marketing departments collaborate with customer service departments to
ensure that the organization's goals are being met. The benefits of this are that people within the
organization are able to work together and bring their expertise to the table in working towards a
common goal. Intraorganizational could also refer to anything else taking place within the
organization, such as intraorganizational e-mail, which could occur between different branches but
still within the organization. This contrasts with interorganizational because only one organization is
involved.”(eNotes Editorial, 2018).

 “Interorganizational Systems (IOSs): Systems that provide information links between
companies.”
 “Intraorganizational Systems: Systems that provide information links within same
company.”

2. “E-Commerce (5576)”

INTRAORGANIZATIONAL SYSTEMS

“Intraorganizational systems are the aggregate of the formal and informal relationships between the
members of an organization. Depending on the presence or absence of formal and informal elements
in the tie between two members of the organization, four elementary types of intraorganizational
relationships (Wittek, 2018) can be distinguished. Together they form the intraorganizational
network system.”

1. “Formal relationships can be based both on vertical authority relations between a
hierarchical superior and a collaborator and on horizontal workflow interdependencies
between peers.”
2. “Informal relationships in the narrowly defined sense are personal ties between members of
the organization who are not connected through a formal relationship. Informal personal ties
can be positive or negative and weak or strong, depending on the level of mutual
expectations and obligations, the frequency of interaction, and the degree of multiplexity of
their relation (a relation is multiplex if it consists of more than one dimension, e.g.,
friendship and the exchange of advice).”
3. “Embedded relations consist of ties in which both parties are connected through both a
formal and an informal relationship (e.g., a boss and his collaborator have a friendship
relation).”
4. “Finally, even if they are not connected through a formal (authority or workflow
interdependence), an informal, or an embedded relationship, employees can still be
connected through a membership relation. Simply being part of the same organization
subunit or (temporary) project can be highly relevant for how employees behave towards
each other.”
“Three types of membership relations (Wittek, 2018) can be distinguished. In a one-dimensional
membership relation, employees perceive themselves as being part of one unit. In a
multidimensional membership relation, employees are part of several units (e.g., a project group, a
department, a committee). These units can overlap and/or be nested. Ambivalent membership
relations emerge where boundaries between organizational (sub)units dilute, and/or formal
membership criteria are subject to multiple interpretations (e.g., should interns or workers from
temp agencies who join a team – often for considerable periods – be considered as members of the
organization?).”

“Intraorganizational systems matter at three levels. For individuals, their personal network at work
influences opportunities, perceptions, and behavior during all stages of their contact with the
organization: from getting hired to getting promoted and getting fired and from learning the tricks of
the trade to getting ones job done. For workgroups, the structure of the informal network matters
during all phases of the production process (input, throughput, and output). For example, it can be
decisive in a workgroup’s“ability to coordinate, to sanction free riders, to prevent and solve
conflicts, and to foster creativity and innovation. On the level of the organization, the configuration
of formal and informal structures is a key element of its governance structure.”(Wittek, 2018)

Intraorganizational network systems are traditionally analyzed as “pipes” (Wittek,
2018)“connecting organizational positions and their incumbents. The major mechanism is one of
instrumental relationalism: the formation, change, and effects of networks are driven by purposeful
social exchange, motivated by calculated investments in social capital, and governed by
straightforward cost-benefit reasoning. An individual’s network position determines his or her

3. “E-Commerce (5576)”

opportunities to have access to scarce material and immaterial resources – like information,
resources, and social support. The resulting level of social capital of individuals and workgroups, in
turn, affects a large variety of outcomes, ranging from individual performance, career prospects,
creativity, well-being, and job satisfaction to the innovativeness and flexibility of workgroups and
organizations.”

“More recent approaches emphasize that intraorganizational ties also function as “prisms”“through
which individuals frame social expectations and obligations. The major mechanism is one of
constructive relationalism: intraorganizational networks are the result of cognitively mediated
functional interdependencies. This shifts the focus from social exchange of goods and services to the
sustaining or hampering role of social ties for joint production. This approach endorses a more
complex behavioral model, in which the cognitive activation of network perceptions, the
institutional and cultural context, and relational signaling processes are important elements for
modeling the emergence, dynamics, and effects of intraorganizational networks.”(Wittek, 2018)

Features of Intraorganizational Network Systems:

“The benefits can range from a reduction of paper and headcount, always having the current version
of any data or document available, to a central interface, or portal, and repository for all corporate
systems and data. Intranets may encompass many different types of content and features. Other
benefits include the use of Internet-standard network protocols that facilitate connections to the
broader Internet.”(Schiano, 2004)

Intraorganization systems are often designed to be “portals,” serving as the central point of access
to all information resources within an organization. A Portal is “a door or gate; hence, a way of
entrance or exit, especially one that is grand and imposing.”“A portal needs to be available regularly
to a wide community, with access to multiple sources of data, both internal and external, with a
useful search mechanism. These portals have established successful business models, especially
given the collapse of Internet advertising rates. Portals inside organizations, in contrast, have
thrived, often with the support of the information systems (IS) department and the business users.
One of the greatest frustrations for information technology users inside organizations is the necessity
of multiple systems with varied interfaces, including command-line based interfaces. With a portal,
users have the ability to go to a single location, use a common, intuitive, and well-established
graphical interface, and find their information.”(Schiano, 2004)

Applications of Intraorganization systems are:

1. Enterprise system: system that support all or most of the organization tasks
2. Managerial Support system: system that support specific manager or group of managers

Types of the information and services found on Intraorganization systems are:

 Human Resource Materials
 Database and Data warehousing
 Purchasing
 Operations
 Directories
 Calendar Systems
 Group Collaboration
 Syndicated Data
 Knowledge Management
 Personalization
 Content Management
 Ease of Use (Schiano, 2004)

4. “E-Commerce (5576)”





INTERORGANISATIONAL SYSTEMS (IOS)

“An interorganizational network system is interaction of three or more organizations, (two being a
dyadic relationship). Interorganizational network systems are in principle social networks. In the
broadest definition and based on the general definition of social networks, they can therefore be
characterized as a set of organizations connected by a set of linkages. Examples of
interorganizational networks are networks in policy making, innovation, public service delivery, or
alliance formation.”(Raab, 2004)

“Interorganizational networks matter at three levels. For individual organizations, their networks
influence their power position within a sector, influence the access to new knowledge,
and generally determine opportunities and constraints. For the networks themselves (network
level outcomes), how they are structured and governed influences to a great extent what outcomes
they produce and in case of engineered networks to what extent they are able to achieve their goals.
For the wider community or society, the way they are structured and governed determines the
positive or negative effects these networks might have, for example, in terms of innovative
spillovers or policy making.”(Raab, 2004)

“All organisations exist by gathering and using information, and this is as true between organisations
in the business world as it is within an organisation. Business-to-business activities, often referred to
as Interorganisational Systems (IOS), are today dominated by information technology and
electronic communications. The result is an increasingly electronic business environment. E-
business is the sharing of business information, maintaining relationships and conducting
transactions by means of telecommunications networks. It is important to note that ebusiness
includes the transactions between organisations as well as the corporate processes that support the
commerce within individual companies.”

“The linkages between businesses (B2B) and between business and consumer (B2C) along the
traditional supply chain is perhaps clearer, as well as being the fastest-growing area of e-business.

5. “E-Commerce (5576)”

This exciting area is attracting the most attention, as new configurations of the supply chain
model are enabled by ICT, giving rise to the pervasive practice of implementing intra- and inter-
organisational networks to fashion new supply chains, and giving rise to the new organisational
forms.”(Commonwealth of Learning, 2012).

“Interorganizational systems (IOSs) facilitate information exchange among business partners. Some
of these systems, such as electronic funds transfer (EFT) and e-mail, have been used in traditional
businesses as well as in the e-commerce environment. Among the most popular IOSs are electronic
data interchange (EDI) and extranets. Both EDI and extranets provide a secure connection among
business partners. Their role in B2B e-commerce is on the rise. These systems create a seamless
environment that expedites the transfer of information in a timely matter. Some organizations allow
customers and business partners to access their intranets for specific business purposes. For
example, a supplier may want to check inventory status or account balances. These networks are
referred to as extranets. It should be noted that an organization usually makes only a portion of its
intranet accessible to these external parties. Also, comprehensive security measures must ensure that
access is given only to authorized users and trusted business partners.”(Bidgoli, 2002).

“Interorganizational system permits the flow of information to be automation between organizations
in order to reach a expect supply-chain management system, which enables the development of
competitive organizations. This supports forecasting client needs and the delivery of products and
services. ”
“Interorganizational system helps to better manage buyer-supplier relationships by encompassing
the full depths of tasks associated with business processes company-wide. In doing these activities,
an organization is able to increase the productivity automatically; therefore, optimizing
communication within all levels of an organization as well as between the organization and the
supplier. For example, each T-shirt that is sold in a retail store is automatically communicated to the
supplier who will, in turn, ship more T-shirts to the retailer.”

“An Interorganizational system is an information system shared by one or more suppliers and
customers. Organizations might pursue an interorganizational system for the following reasons:
 “Reduce the risk in the organization”
 “Pursue economies of scale”
 “Benefit from the exchange of technologies”
 “Increase competitiveness”
 “Overcome investment barriers”
 “Encourage global communication”
 “Manage buyer-supplier relationships ”
 “Supply-chain management system”
 “Information exchange among business partners”

“An example of interorganizational systems is the Sabre (computer system). (Wikipedia contributors,
2020) ”

Interaction Modes in Interorganizational Network Systems

“Four interaction modes can be distinguished: Buy, make, ally, and join. Make and buy do not
constitute interorganizational networks, since no interaction between different organizations is
required (make) or the transaction is completed on a (spot) market. In case of ally, an organization
forms bilateral relationships with other organizations to secure access to resources, reduce

6. “E-Commerce (5576)”

uncertainty, or gain legitimacy. In case of join, a group of organizations together consciously forms
a network and produces an output at the level of the network. However, these interaction types are
mostly analytical and often mixed forms are practiced in empirical reality. For example, longterm
buyer-supplier relationships that started off as market transactions might gain more characteristics of
a network over time, and networks can also include elements of fiat. The common thread is that
interorganizational networks are social systems formed by vertically integrated formal organizations
that are involved in complex interactions and the exchange of material and nonmaterial resources
(including information and knowledge).”(Raab, 2004)



REFERENCES

Bidgoli, H. (2002). Electronic Commerce: Principles and Practice. San Diego: Academic Press.
Commonwealth of Learning. (2012). E1 Electronic Commerce. Vancouver: COL.
eNotes Editorial. (Nov. 2018). Define inter- and intra-organizational. Retrieved from https://www.enotes.com/homework-help/define-inter-
intra-organizational-1548762.
Putnik, G. D. & Cunha, M. M. (Eds.). (2008). Encyclopedia of Networked and Virtual Organization. Hershey: Information Science
Reference; IGI Global.
Raab, J. (2004). Interorganizational Networks. In Bidgoli, H. (Ed.), The Internet Encyclopedia, Vol. 2. New Jersey: John Wiley.
Schiano, W. T. (2004). Intranets. In Bidgoli, H. (Ed.), The Internet Encyclopedia, Vol. 2. New Jersey: John Wiley.
Wikipedia contributors. (2020, January 25). Interorganizational system. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved from
https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Interorganizational_system&oldid=937483381
Wittek, R. (2018). Intra-Organizational Networks. In R. Alhajj, & J. Rokne (Eds.), Encyclopedia of Social Network Analysis and Mining, 2
nd

Ed. (pp. 1145-1154). NY: Springer.