An Organizational Perspective on the Collection and Use of Personal Information: The Relationship Between Privacy, Value Creation, and Firm Success

在我们日益数字化的社会中，在线服务背景下的个人隐私是一个令人感兴趣的话题。然而，对于公司在处理个人隐私方面面临的挑战，缺乏研究。考虑到公司活动对个人隐私的影响以及隐私在未来社会中的作用，这一点令人惊讶。目前的项目是解决这一研究差距的第一步，可以作为这一被忽视领域未来工作的基础。特别是，本研究旨在调查在线服务提供商面临的a)隐私保护与b)基于个人数据的价值创造之间的组织紧张关系：试图增加隐私保护的公司可能会因此限制其通过个人数据创造价值的可能性。另一方面，从消费者的个人数据中创造价值可能只有通过干涉这些个人的隐私来实现。这种紧张关系给企业带来了重大挑战。然而，我们对公司如何处理这种紧张关系缺乏足够的了解。本项目的目标如下：(1)更好地理解隐私保护与通过个人数据创造价值之间的组织张力；(2)检验本提案提出的“平衡假设”：通过个人数据实现隐私保护与价值创造之间的平衡与组织的成功相关；(3)检验背景因素对上述“平衡假设”的潜在影响。为此，计划连续进行两次研究。首先，在定性研究的基础上，对隐私保护和通过个人数据创造价值之间的紧张关系的性质和方面有一个基本的理解和概念化。此外，本定性研究为后续第二项研究奠定了基础。在第二种定量研究中，对上述“平衡假设”和背景因素的潜在影响进行统计检验。该项目的研究成果将在主要学术期刊上发表，并可作为未来研究的基础和跳板。此外，更好地理解上述紧张关系可以作为公司在当今数据驱动的价值创造和隐私问题时代所面临的战略决策的重要基础。

Individuals’ privacy in the context of online services presents a topic of significant interest in our increasingly digital society. However, there is a lack of research on the challenges faced by companies regarding their handling of individuals’ privacy. This is surprising, considering the impact that companies’ activities have on individuals’ privacy and the future role of privacy in our society. The current project presents a first step towards addressing this research gap and can serve as a foundation for future work in this neglected area.In particular, this research aims to investigate the organizational tension between a) privacy protection and b) value creation based on individuals’ personal data, which providers of online services face: Companies that try to increase privacy protection might limit their possibilities to create value through personal data as a result. On the other hand, creating value from the personal data of consumers might only be accomplished by interfering with these individuals’ privacy. This tension presents a significant challenge for companies. However, we lack adequate knowledge on how companies can deal with this tension.The goals of this project are as follows:(1) Developing a better understanding of the organizational tension between privacy protection and value creation through personal data; (2) Testing the “balance hypothesis” as posed in this proposal: a balance between privacy protection and value creation through personal data is associated with organizational success; (3) Testing the potential influence of contextual factors with regard to the “balance hypothesis” as stated above.To this end, two consecutive studies are planned. First, based on a qualitative study, a fundamental understanding and a conceptualization regarding the nature and facets of the tension between privacy protection and value creation through personal data are to be developed. Furthermore, this qualitative study includes groundwork for the second subsequent study. In this second, quantitative study, the above-stated "balance hypothesis" and potential influences of contextual factors are to be tested statistically.The results of this project are intended to be published in leading academic journals and can serve as a foundation and springboard for future research. Moreover, a better understanding of the tension described above can serve as an important basis for strategic decisions faced by companies in today’s era of data-driven value creation and privacy concerns.