Information technology: Strategic necessity of source of competitive advantage? An empirical study on the retail sector of the United States

This paper investigates the conditions under which the use of information technology (IT) can produce performance advantages. Its contribution lies in the resource theory-based conceptual synthesis and empirical evidence that it provides to a still fragmented and insufficiently tested IT literature. The empirical study takes place in the retail industry and the findings show no correlation between ITs, in and of themselves, and performance. They show, however, that some retail firms have gained advantages by combining IT with intangible, difficult to imitate complementary resources, such as flexible culture, strategic planning-IT integration and supplier relationships. The findings support the resource-based approach, and help to explain why some firms struggle while others flourish with the same ITs, why IT-based advantages tend to dissipate rapidly, and how firms can gain advantages by integrating IT with the appropriate complementary resources.