Alignment of It Strategy - Essay Example

ALIGNMENT OF IT STRATEGY [Insert al Affiliation] The contemporary corporate world is becoming competitive and technology has been earmarked as the fundamental tool that can help businesses survive the stiff competition. Modern-day businesses have been forced to be aligned with IT. Alignment, in this context, implies the capacity to demonstrate a positive association between various measures of financial performance assessment and information technology, and helps a business to optimize the worth that IT adds to the corporate (Keyes, 2005; Berkman, 2001). The unabated incorporation of cutting edge technology into business strategies, rather than wreaking havoc, should be perceived as a move in the right direction. This paper will candidly and comprehensively explicate why an IT strategy focused on maintaining a cutting-edge technology position is the most effective way to support any kind of overall business strategy. Firstly, from a vaguest and broadest perspective, cutting-edge technology can be described as technological techniques and/or devices that are at the frontier of knowledge, but have been used for a relatively long time jettisoning the unreliability threats to users. Apparently, with cutting-edge technology, a business stays informed on the feasibility of their objects and the possibility of its strategy succeeding. Hence, an IT strategy focused on maintain cutting-edge technology enables the business to triumph by guaranteeing that decisions will be made based on latest available information (Keyes, 2005). Any incongruity of information or rather information asymmetry that would have torpedoed the business’s plan can be thwarted through implementation of IT strategies pinpointed on cutting-edge technology. Additionally, in the past, organizations were unable to bridge the fissure between business and IT professionals due to the perceived dissimilarities in culture, objectives, mutual ignorance and incentives. Consequently, the IT systems proved to be expensive and unable to deliver sufficient returns on investment. However, an IT strategy centered on cutting-edge technology position helps the present organizations to maximize value on investments by openly defining who is responsible for the attainment of certain goals and objectives and unequivocally specifies the indispensable resources (Keyes, 2005). Moreover, the misunderstanding often associated with incorporation of technology into the management of a business is eliminated and replaced with a mutual understanding of how the business’s strategies or objectives will be attained. For instance, cutting edge technology informs a firm on the best way and time to undertake actions such as outsourcing by informing the management about the best party to outsource to and the trends and incipient issues within the locality of the targeted contracting party. What’s more, an IT strategy focused on maintaining a cutting-edge technology position bolsters the collaboration of organizations that carry out business together. Berkman (2001) supports this assertion by presaging that the success of future organizations will be determined by their ability to share information with their competitors. According to Berkman (2001), IT strategies that are centered on cutting-edge technology expedites or rather facilitates this cooperation leading to emergence of streamlined operations that save time and money for the parties involved. Interestingly, Holmes (2007) also recognizes that IT strategies focused on bringing in latest technological ideas supports marriage between businesses, and empowers the business to access more of the resources that it requires for its effective and efficient operations. While the incorporation of cutting-edge technology into the IT strategies of businesses is no longer adamant, many businesses are still hesitant due to the monies required to upraise their technology (Keyes, 2005). However, the reserve obstacles that meets the information sharing among organizations that trade together has hardly hampered the execution of the ideals of IT strategies focused on cutting-edge technology. Marketplace competitiveness and increased financial performance are fundamental aspects that contemporary businesses are striving to attain. Since most business strategies focus on attaining a predetermined level of financial performance and marketplace competitiveness or a competitive advantage, the IT strategy of the business must be fixated on cutting-edge technology. In his article, “The ROI of Alignment”, Holmes (2007) brazenly asserts that “Alignment brings the money”. In the survey presented by Holmes (2007), 24 of the 35 interviewed CIOs admitted that assimilation of IT strategies that are fixated on cutting-edge technology enabled them create a competitive advantage for their respective organizations. Similarly, they admitted that IT strategies that are focused on cutting-edge technology doubled their revenue stream. Considering the sheer fact that the main goal of the firm is profit maximization, it is indisputably clear that cutting-edge technology accelerates the success of the business’s IT strategy and enables the firm to serve its needs and meet needs, demands or interests of the shareholders. Apparently, the success of the business strategy relies on innovation which is not only derived from technical experience and educational training, but also through modern technologies. As an imperative source of innovative ideas, the IT department increases the possibilities of success by updating the various involved parties about the possible dangers of misalignment, potential risks to the business’ strategy, and effective ways of handling the imminent hitches and/or challenges (Berkman, 2001). For instance, the banking and financial services industry are faced with rapidly changing challenges that may result in losses if a firm operating in the aforementioned sectors does not have an IT strategy that is augmented with cutting-edge technology. As a driving force in business, innovation is becoming unceasingly imperative, and is unachievable if the business’ IT strategy is not augmented with cutting-edge technology as accentuated by Holmes (2007) when he states that “CIOs who are aligned frequently work within organizations that put a high value on innovation”. Hence, through IT strategies which rely on cutting-edge technology, the IT domains, and the business strategies, often articulated trough business objectives, becomes aligned. This further helps in thwarting detrimental managerial conflicts which are becoming frequent due to existence of miscellaneous interests (Keyes, 2005). Similarly, while some might consider a cutting-edge technology position to be difficult to attain, it is certainly worth the investment. It helps the business articulate its prospects, and visualize the viability of its strategic horizon. Hence, the business can perennially revisit its strategies to outline points of weaknesses by comparing its strategies with those of competing and prosperous businesses (Keyes, 2005). Through this, the many risks that face businesses in the 21st century will be easily transformed into opportunities. The above elucidation candidly and expansively validates why an IT strategy focused on maintaining a cutting-edge technology position is the most effective way to support any kind of overall business strategy. It keeps the business fraternity updated/informed on the best method to use in pursuing certain missions or goals, bolsters cooperation between various entities within and without the business, eradicates misalignment between business strategies and objectives, and fosters innovation in the entity. Present and upcoming managers must, therefore, consider IT as a strategic force that bolsters the organization’s success in all aspects rather than considering it as a factor that causes mere efficiency. They should stay abreast of hi-tech improvements and advancements by incorporating cutting-edge technology into their IT strategies remembering very well that an IT strategy focused on maintaining a cutting-edge technology position is the most effective way to support business strategy. References Berkman, E. (2001). Why were Still Talking About Alignment, CIO Magazine. Retrieved from http://www.cio.com.au/article/38724/why_we_re_still_talking_about_alignment/ Holmes, A. (2007). The ROI of Alignment. CIO Online. Retrieved from http://www.cio.com/article/27969/The_ROI_of_Alignment Keyes, J. (2005). Implementing the IT balanced scorecard: Aligning IT with corporate strategy. Boca Raton, FL: Auerbach Publications. Read More