THE INSTRUMENTAL USE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY: THE INCREASING IMPORTANCE OF VIRTUAL ORGANIZATIONS

Abstract

Information reveals new products and technologies with distinctive features for organizations. It develops organizational working techniques. In the age of information, every organization is carrying out its activities on information technologies. Information technology provides close control of staff in the organizations and reduces the possibility of errors. It sets the ground for timely changes necessary for the organizations. It provides efficiency in collecting and analysing information necessary for administrative tasks. It gives managers more time to plan and execute administrative affairs. Thus, the organizational structure is no longer based on work; divided by information. Information technology has an impact on achieving competitive advantage, increasing productivity and performance, and creating new tasks and job descriptions. Virtual organizations, the organizational model of information technologies, are formed as a result of the integration of organizations with different knowledge and expertise towards a common goal. Virtual organizations gather various resources from different organizations in one project and enter the market with new products and respond to changing customer choices timely. Through information and communication technologies, it offers specialization, acceleration of business and operations, reducing costs and opening to the global marketplace. Information technology is one of the most important success factors for virtual organizations with its constantly renewed and evolving structure. Virtual organizations support dynamic changes for staff in the organization's working environments and duties. This study aims to evaluate the effects of information technology on organizations move in to a virtual environment. In the study, the concept of informatics and its contributions to the process of organizational change have been examined. In this context, the effects of information technology on business strategies, hierarchical structure, operational costs and staffing, decision making and changes in organizational processes are emphasized. In the second part of the study, characteristics and types of virtual organizations which are organizational model of information technologies, advantages and disadvantages of virtual organization structure, factors necessary for the success of virtual organizations are evaluated.