Important Issues for Evaluating Inter‑Organizational Data Integration Configurations

Abstract

Partnering companies can share data via various configurations. Typically problems become evident as partnering companies seek to exchange data. These problems take a different form for different data integration configurations and are thus of great relevance when evaluating different configurations. This paper identifies issues to be taken into account when evaluating inter‑organizational data integration configurations. Eight problems are discussed: difficulties to identify which information flows to automate; to relate different viewpoints on boundary objects; to agree on data formats; to distribute investments among the parties; to deliver appropriate service levels; to preserve the value of the data sharing; to clarify data ownership and to do all of this in the frame of changing relationships. For several problems it is illustrated how they surface in a completely centralized and in a completely decentralized inter‑ organizational data‑integration scenario.