Learning management systems (LMSs) are the technical foundation for online learning programs that offer benefits to learners in a variety of settings. As with many enterprise software systems, LMSs are expensive and carry considerable risk. Exploring critical success factors (CSFs) and using them as a foundation for decisions concerning complex software implementations helps increase the likelihood of success. This study addresses the gap in knowledge concerning CSFs for LMS implementations. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to discover CSFs by exploring the lived experiences of 8 association executives who identified themselves through email communications as having managed a successful LMS implementation. Organizations providing online continuing education programs were identified using a publicly available list, and program managers were identified from the organization's website. Interviews using semi-structured questions yielded a set of tightly correlated CSFs from 6 of the 8 participants. General systems theory and sociotechnical systems theory underpinned the study. Moustakas' data analysis methods were used to code the interviews and develop themes, which resulted in a set of actionable CSFs. Stakeholder support, a well-planned implementation, an experienced vendor, and software that provides a predictable user interface were among emergent CSFs for LMS implementations. This research may have a positive social impact because reducing the risk of LMS implementations will enable organizational leaders to extend learning opportunities to more individuals. Those opportunities, in turn, will lead to prosperity for membership associations and the industries they serve.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / This dissertation analyzes the development of the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), a Muslim-American religious association, from the Iranian Revolution to the inauguration of our nation's first African-American president. This case study of ISNA, the largest Muslim-American organization in North America, examines the organization's institution-building and governance as a way to illustrate Muslim-American civic and religious participation. Using nonprofit research and theory related to issues of diversity, legitimacy, power, and nonprofit governance and management, I challenge misconceptions about ISNA and dispel a number of myths about Muslim Americans and their institutions. In addition, I investigate the experiences of Muslim-Americans as they attempted to translate faith into practice within the framework of the American religious and civic experience. I arrive at three main conclusions. First, because of their incredible diversity, Muslim-Americans are largely cultural pluralists. They draw from each other and our national culture to develop their religious identity and values. Second, a nonprofit association that embraces the values of a liberal democracy by establishing itself as an open organization will include members that may damage the organization's reputation. I argue that ISNA's values should be assessed in light of its programs and actions rather than the views of a small portion of its membership. Reviewing the organization's actions and programs helps us discover a religious association that is centered on American civic and religious values. Third, ISNA's leaders were unable to balance their desire for an open, consensus-based organization with a strong nonprofit management power structure. Effective nonprofit associations need their boards, volunteers and staff to have well-defined roles and authority. ISNA's leaders failed to adopt such a management and governance structure because of their suspicion of an empowered chief executive officer.