Pacific Networking Links Ltd. (PNL) is a large Brisbane-based developer of advanced networking software for the worldwide market in open-system architectures. The company is divided into ten major departments, based around particular products and services that it offers to customers. Over its 15 -year life, the success of the company has varied considerably. It is generally agreed by market analysts that PNL operates a high-risk business. Nonetheless, the returns provided to shareholders on average have compensated them for the risks they take.

At a recent meeting of the senior management team, the managing director has pointed out a concern raised by a member of the board of directors about the increasing levels of hardware investment within PNL. The board member had asked why the increased investments in hardware had not been accompanied by increased levels of profitability for PNL. He asked the managing director to determine the reasons why the extra investments in hardware were necessary and to prepare a report for the board.

When the managing director undertook an investigation to try to find out the reasons for the hardware investments, he found out that they were motivated primarily by the need to service the exponential growth of e-mail use and World Wide Web use by PNL's employees. In addition, PNL had established an extensive set of Web pages about its own operations, and these pages were receiving a high number of hits from Web users who were scattered throughout the world.

When the board received the managing director's report, several members immediately expressed grave concerns about the effectiveness of PNL's use of e-mail and the World Wide Web. For example, they asked whether employees were over-communicating among themselves and with people outside PNL and whether they were spending too much time "surfing the Web" for no real gain. The board also asked whether the Web pages that PNL had established had produced any payoffs in terms of additional sales of products and services. In this light, the board has now asked the managing director to prepare a report on the effectiveness of PNL's use of e-mail and the World Wide Web. Some members of the board have already indicated that they believe that e-mail and World Wide Web access should be restricted and perhaps limited to only one or two hours in the day.

At the meeting of the senior management team, several managers have expressed their alarm about the possibility of the board restricting use of email and World Wide Web use within PNL. They argue that the activities of their staff will be severely impaired. The managing director points out, however, that beliefs will not be enough to convince the board. Several members of the board are astute users of computer technology themselves, and they want hard facts on whether PNL's use of e-mail and World Wide Web services is effective.

You are an external consultant engaged by PNL's managing director to investigate the issue of whether PNL's use of e-mail and World Wide Web services is effective. You have a substantial reputation for your high-quality work and your independence in terms of examining the effectiveness of information systems. Your report will be presented to the board. In this light, the managing director has asked you to focus in particular on the impact of PNL's use of e-mail and World Wide Web services on the overall effectiveness of the organization.

Required: Outline the major areas that will be the focus of your investigation of the effectiveness of PNL's use of e-mail and World Wide Web services. In discussing your approach, be sure to remember that effectiveness can be evaluated from multiple perspectives.