| Summary: | This research examines the practice of information resource management in the Korean (South Korean) banking industry. It analyses the perceptions of managers, employees and union representatives with regard to the manpower and work environment implications of information technology (IT), and to the impact of IT on decision-making and industrial relations. It gives particular attention to the importance of, and attention paid by, management to training/education for IT. The research method adopts a comparative analytical approach based on questionnaire survey responses from three work groups - managers, employees, and union representatives - drawn from a sample of five Korean banks. Concerning the impact of IT on the banking industry, the evidence indicates that all three groups agree that IT improves banking efficiency and reduces job repetitiveness. However, all respondents indicated dissatisfaction with IT-based work. The reasons are mainly lack of training/education and poor user manuals. The study shows that most respondents would like to get further training/education to more adequately fit them for their jobs. IT was perceived to improve working conditions while adversely affecting health & safety. IT was not thought to be a direct threat to job security, which could be explained by the facts that banks were still expanding their businesses and that the culture of lifetime employment is widely held. The results indicate that similarities and differences exist between the three responding groups. Where differences did emerge they were mainly between managers and the other two groups. Generally, broad unanimity was found with regard to the positive attitudes towards IT. Concerning training/education for IT, even though the staff members were deficient in technical skills before starting their IT jobs, respondents from banks which invested in continuing training/education showed more positive work attitudes and higher job satisfaction. The thesis concludes with a discussion of the managerial implications of the study and suggestions for future research.
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