Reference no: EM133778038

Problem: Alignment of IT Strategy and Business Strategy

Information Technology strategy development and implementation will take practice, but this is a journey. A firm's IT strategy will evolve over time and improve over time. The CIO must draw from diverse sources to develop new ideas, tactics, and projects. Diverse sources include employees of different racial and ethnic backgrounds and diversity in gender. These workers bring a fresh perspective in determining systems requirements and can result in innovative solutions.

Begin with business practice articles such as those in the Wall Street Journal, which covers business generally, but also has a good section for technology executives and Chief Information Officers. Forbes often covers technology topics that you might find interesting. In terms of books on strategy, Michael Porter is a must. His original text is on competitive strategy, but he has a variety of other books to consider. Also look at this piece on creativity and diversity: "Why diversity is the mother of creativity". You should follow leading thinkers in the world of technology, from venture capitalists and technology executives to those who write primarily for a CIO audience.

Look at the business-IT alignment at Amazon. Compare the business-IT alignment of the Amazon business line that sells products to customers with the Amazon business that sells IT cloud services to organizations. Look for articles in Forbes and Business Week that discuss the organization and strategy of Amazon and specifically address the issue of alignment. Discuss the synergy across these lines of business for Amazon and the diversity that Amazon uses in its hiring practices to enable innovation across the business units. Provide specifics in your discussion to enable a comparative analysis, including any experience you may have had with Amazon.