A lag effect of IT investment on firm performance

Abstract

This article discusses the positive effects of IT investment on firm financial performance when a distinct range of characteristics is examined. The relationship between IT investment and firm performance considering the information intensity of the industry is explored using a distributed lag model. Findings indicate both a positive effect and a positive lag effect of IT investment. The effects of IT investment in the high information-intensive industry are significantly larger than in the low information-intensive industry. Furthermore, a lagged effect of IT investment is larger than an immediate effect, regardless of the information intensity of the industry. We conclude that firms in the high information-intensive industry need to be more cognizant of performance factors when investing in IT investment than in the low information-intensive industry. Moreover, it is necessary to consider the time lag between IT investment and firm performance. Copyright ？ 2006, Idea Group Inc.