IT Strategy

Definition

IT Strategy is a set of objectives that an organization tries to achieve with their IT programs. IT Strategy can cover angles of technology management such as cost, human resources, hardware and software, vendors, and risk management.

Concepts and Methods

Concept: Return on Investment (ROI) - is one of IT strategies that measures and evaluate the efficiency of an investment. Any IT investment projects are embedded in an organization's technology infrastructure, relevant business processes, organizational environment, and external relationships (Investopedia, 2013). Technology infrastructure - has direct costs associated with the technology and services where the company invests as well as costs of the impact on other technology systems already in place. Business processes - ROI isn't only account for the improvements to relevant business processes, but also for the costs  associated with training staff involved in using the technology system.Organizational environment - has other costs and returns that are linked to the organization, such as resource flows, performance changes, and internal relationships. External relationships - is linkages with the external environment. Resources are committed from this environment to support the project, and additional costs may be imposed on outsourcing.

Method: The Economics of Information -studies the value of information and information systems that affect to the organization, strategy, and economy (Wikipedia, 2013). Two concepts of economics of information are referred to the economic activity course and social meaning (Zhengjie, 2010). The economic activity course is to secure the greatest economic benefit through a certain kind of economic activity under the condition of uncertain or incomplete information. The other concept is the social meaning of the economics of information that focuses on the macro economic characteristic.

Tools and Best Practices

Strategic Security Architecture Principles Worksheet written by Scholtz (2008) is a toolkit for IT Strategy. In situations where security and risk are important factors, the tool provides a great visual breakdown of security architecture called the enterprise information security architecture (EISA). The EISA framework consists of a hierarchy of evolving documentation containing models, requirements and templates (Scholtz, 2008). The documentation at the high level tends to focus on concepts and is less detail and more stable. The lower level is more detail and dynamic. In essence, while more-frequent changes in the technology and tactical business process landscapes affect low-level artifacts, changes in the strategic business requirements (less frequent) affect high-level artifacts. This dynamism alludes to the fact that the security architecture is a continuous process, rather than a single event or periodic activity.

My Approach

According to my knowledge I have learned from this course, I feel that IT strategy and the functions of the business should not be discussed separately. I think to align IT with the business strategy seems outdated. It is important to establish the fact that IT is business and business is IT. The strategy and implementation of IT in business should be a cohesive, mutually involving process from the first step. IT doesn't come into play at a certain step in business processes. On the other hand, it is always there because of the nature of how integrated technology with business is. This is the approach I will use when I think about IT and Business strategies and how to meet the needs and create value. 

Along with the idea, Schiller and Miller (2012) stated that “a data strategy must start with business drivers, priorities and needs. Every project within the strategy roadmap must show a direct link to these business initiatives.” This is another aspect of IT Strategy that I will use as the approach. This roadmap delivers the architectural discipline to provide a design that addresses business goals, initiatives or pain points. This also will outline what specific business objectives are, how to achieve them, their ROI, and the risks involved. Roadmaps, along with tools like the balanced scorecard, are crucial aspects of strategy to ensure organizational success.