User Managers' Systems Needs

Based on responses from over five hundred user managers, this article investigates managers’ demand for new application systems. To begin, the current situation is assessed from two aspects. First, how many systems by type do user managers now have and how appropriate are the systems. Second, for important managerial tasks, what support (by systems type) do users have and how appropriate are those systems. Then the two components of user managers’ demand for new systems, the number of systems and the types of systems, are examined. The results reveal an overwhelming level of managerial demand for new systems and major shifts in demand mix by systems type. The implications of this current and future demand for IS management are presented.