Strategic and Institutional Perspectives in the Evaluation, Adoption and Early Integration of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID): An Empirical Investigation of Current and Potential Adopters Aditya Sharma Dominic Thomas Benn Konsynski North Carolina Emory University Emory University Central University asharma@nccu.edu dominic_thomas@bus.emory.edu benn_konsynski@bus.emory.edu Abstract This study is among the first few empirical field studies that tests a proposed RFID adoption and implementation model based on strategic choice and institutional theories using survey data. We use a multi-stage model approach as suggested by Cooper and Zmud (1990) and test our proposed model by studying factors that are critical in the evaluation, adoption and integration stages of RFID. We test our model by using data from both current and potential evaluators, adopters and integrators of the technology. We find interesting similarities and differences across the three stages and also between the current and future adoption and implementation scenarios. The model has been tested by using multiple regression and binomial logistic regression techniques. Key insights have been presented and their implications have been discussed. 1. Introduction We present a study of organizational implementation of radio frequency identification (RFID) technology testing a multi-theory model with what we believe is among the first few empirical, field data to be published in academic literature. Even with extensive writings on adoption and diffusion of innovation [20] the adoption of new and emerging technologies with unique characteristics, such as RFID, is still not well understood. Adoption of special technologies with adopter interdependencies [12] technologies that impose heavy knowledge burdens on adopters [4], and adoption of electronic data interchange (EDI) technology [3] are all instances where discussed diffusion theory generalizations could not be directly applied and new models were subsequently developed to understand and explain adoption patterns. In interorganizational systems (IOS) literature various models have been developed to identify adoption drivers. Most of the prior studies have used diffusion of innovation theory [20]. To investigate innovation attributes diffusion gets coupled with organizational innovativeness literature [6,18,28], which examines and explains characteristics of organizations in their adoption and diffusion decisions. The lens of institutional theory has also been used to predict institutional pressures as drivers of IOS based interorganizational linkages [23]. However, an integrative adoption and diffusion model incorporating drivers from multiple theoretical perspectives and combining different adoption rationales with testable predictive power is still needed. In addition, external environment factors unexplored in this IOS technology context may influence the adoption and diffusion of new technologies because of their unique features and characteristics. This study addresses an existing literature gap by building and testing an integrative model grounded in the diffusion of adoption approach coupled [5] with institutional theory to examine how companies are implementing RFID technology. RFID provides an interesting sandbox for the exploration of unknowns in the adoption literature as it is an emerging technology that may be simply used in house or, as practitioner and vendor literature suggests for benefit maximization, it can be the backbone for optimization of whole supply chains. Thus, it is a technology that possesses special features such as promoting inter- organizational linkages similar to EDI and other existing IOS, but at grander scales transcending the tight linkages and processes as seen with EDI. This paper begins with a literature review developing the research model for predicting RFID Proceedings of the 41st Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences - 2008 1530-1605/08 $25.00 © 2008 IEEE 1