Management of the Information Center: The Relationship of Power to End-user Performance and Satisfaction

Information centers are appearing in many large organizations. Some Chief Information Officers (CIOs) have proclaimed them to be immediate successes, while other CIOs have not been convinced. When questioned further, they often mention the issue of control of the information center as a central concern. This study examines how the coercive and noncoercive use of power affects user performance and user satisfaction within the information center. The causal model is then analyzed by path analysis techniques using data collected from 180 end users in two states. The results indicate that the model is normologically valid and that information centers should rely on noncoercive sources of power in the control of their information centers.