Research Paper Undergraduate 3,198 words

Aligning IT Assets with Business Objectives: A Strategy Guide

~16 min read 6 sections Business · Strategic Management

Abstract

This paper examines the critical challenge organizations face in aligning their information technology (IT) assets with broader business objectives. Drawing on peer-reviewed and scholarly literature, the paper provides background on the disconnect that commonly exists between IT departments and organizational strategy, outlines the consequences of poor alignment — including diminished productivity and lost competitive advantage — and presents actionable steps for improvement. The Balanced Scorecard Model is highlighted as a particularly useful framework for translating strategic objectives into measurable IT priorities. The paper concludes with concrete recommendations for formalizing business objectives, applying performance measurement models, and establishing ongoing review processes to sustain effective IT-business alignment.

Key Takeaways

Background and Overview: Introduces the IT-business alignment problem and its origins
The Cost of Misalignment and the Case for IT-Business Alignment: Consequences of poor alignment and why it matters
Identifying Opportunities to Improve the Alignment of IT with Business Objectives: Balanced Scorecard Model as a strategic alignment tool
IT Asset Categories and Their Role in Strategic Planning: Hardware and software IT asset categories explained
Steps and Organizational Changes Required for Alignment: Practical steps and cultural shifts needed for alignment
Conclusion and Recommendations: Summary findings and three actionable recommendations

✍️ How to write this paper — guide, tools & examples ▾

What makes this paper effective

The paper grounds every claim in cited scholarly and peer-reviewed sources, lending credibility to practical recommendations and avoiding unsupported assertions.
It moves logically from problem identification (the IT-business disconnect) to diagnosis (causes and consequences) to solution (the Balanced Scorecard Model and organizational steps), giving the reader a complete arc.
The use of structured lists and tables — such as the IT asset categories and the organizational style change table — breaks down complex material into digestible, actionable formats suited to a business memorandum context.

Key academic technique demonstrated

The paper effectively synthesizes multiple sources to build a coherent argument rather than simply summarizing each source in isolation. By weaving together authors such as Bland, Rand, Hartung and Reich, and Osborn, the writer demonstrates how different scholars converge on a shared conclusion — that IT-business alignment is both strategically essential and practically achievable — while also acknowledging real obstacles such as vague objectives and top-management interference.

Structure breakdown

The paper opens with an executive summary framed as a memorandum, establishing audience and purpose. The body is divided into a background section covering the nature and consequences of misalignment, followed by a solutions-focused section centered on the Balanced Scorecard Model and enumerated IT asset categories. Organizational style changes are presented in tabular form before the conclusion synthesizes findings and offers three numbered recommendations, making the paper both analytically rigorous and practically oriented.

📘 Read the full research paper guide → Generate citations → Build an outline → Draft a literature review → 📚 More Strategic Management examples →

Essay 3,198 words

Background and Overview

In many organizations, there is a dramatic disconnect between business objectives and their information technology (IT) assets. On the one hand, most business leaders are familiar with their business objectives. For instance, according to Bland (2007), "For any manager, general business objectives are pretty much a no-brainer: profitability (or sustainability), customer satisfaction, staff satisfaction, manageable growth, perhaps community or charity involvement, and saleability" (p. 55). On the other hand, there remains far less knowledge and expertise concerning how best to align an organization's IT assets with its business objectives. In this regard, Bland (2007) emphasizes that, "It's in the attempt to achieve these goals that information technology grabs the spotlight; harnessed in the right place and at the right time, significant business goals can be realized through IT" (p. 55).

In reality, most companies today already have the IT infrastructure and business planning resources in place to effect meaningful alignment between IT assets and business objectives. For instance, Rand (2003) reports that, "While most associations today have either a strategic or operating plan that identifies business objectives, many of these plans are still missing a few key components: the enabling technologies that are required to support each of these initiatives, established performance metrics, and the built-in business intelligence to track performance" (p. 5). These shortcomings are not necessarily the fault of the IT department, but rather reflect a lack of top management coordination with these providers. In this regard, Rand (2003) points out that, "The lack of these elements doesn't mean that the IT department is not doing its job and doesn't have a strategy to implement its technology initiatives. What this scenario really indicates is that the overall strategic plan and the IT strategic plan are not aligned" (p. 5).

Despite these constraints, information technology is widely recognized as an essential asset, and the effective management of IT resources is increasingly important to businesses today (Farrukh & Fraser, 2009). For example, Rang (2003) reports that, "With the importance that technology plays in helping organizations meet their objectives, it makes sense for the information technology (IT) plan and the overall strategic plan to be in alignment" (p. 1). In many cases, though, IT assets and business objectives remain disconnected (Rang, 2003). The implications of this disconnect are profound, and include diminished productivity, fragmented work, and redundant efforts (Rang, 2003).

As applied to information technology, the term "alignment" is relatively recent in origin; however, the notion of aligning strategic business objectives with other business operations has a long history (Hartung & Reich, 2008). For instance, Hartung and Reich (2008) report that, "Business executives are familiar with the idea that alignment should exist between objectives and other functions such as marketing and finance" (p. 285). According to Osborn (2012), aligning IT assets with business objectives involves "creating and managing a business-driven IT organization for which the primary focus is implementing information-oriented solutions that are most important to meeting the business objectives of the enterprise" (para. 2).

However it is defined, aligning IT with business objectives is an essential element in developing and sustaining a competitive advantage today (Benko & McFarlan, 2009). In this regard, Benko and McFarlan emphasize that, "Objectives include developing mind-sets necessary to prosper on the information frontier. It is crucial to focus on optimizing the business, in large part by better harnessing the power of the business technology investment" (p. 59). Despite the importance of this alignment, there are far too many companies that have failed to optimize their IT assets by aligning them with their business objectives for a number of reasons, including the following:

IT organizations do not have a clear understanding of what is important to the business;
The value of IT is not understood by business executives (and some IT executives);
Opportunities to use information technology are not identified, authorized, prioritized, and implemented based on importance to meeting business objectives;
The business does not participate, from an enterprise-wide perspective, in decisions regarding IT direction and priorities (Osborn, 2012, para. 3).

Notwithstanding the challenges involved, there are a number of desirable outcomes that can be achieved by aligning IT resources and business objectives, including the following:

Ensuring that all IT activities contribute to the objectives of the business;
Encouraging executive business management to become continuously involved in plans and decisions regarding the use of information technology;
Positioning the IT organization to best address the needs of the business;
Creating a customer-focused culture in the IT organization; and
Enhancing awareness of the value of IT to the business (Osborn, 2012, para. 4).

5 Sections Hidden · 1,630 words

The Cost of Misalignment and the Case for IT-Business Alignment410 words

Hartung and Reich (2008) underscore the need for carefully and thoughtfully aligning IT with business objectives: "The IT direction within an organization must be aligned with the overall business direction. If the IT department is allowed to set its own direction…

Identifying Opportunities to Improve the Alignment of IT with Business Objectives380 words

One approach that has been used to good effect in helping companies develop timely business strategies to achieve organizational goals — and identify requisite IT resources to facilitate the process — is the use of the Balanced Scorecard Model (McGinn & Kudyba, 2002). According to McGinn and Kudyba (2002), the Balanced Scorecard Model is…

IT Asset Categories and Their Role in Strategic Planning340 words

Although every organization is unique in some fashion, some of the core components of an IT system include the following:

Steps and Organizational Changes Required for Alignment220 words

Other steps recommended to better align IT assets and business objectives include the following:

Conclusion and Recommendations280 words

The research showed that companies of all sizes and types can benefit from aligning their IT assets with business objectives, but the process can be daunting and unsuccessful unless certain guidelines are followed. While the guidelines needed by a given company may differ from…

View Full Document

References

Benko, C. & McFarland, W. F. (2009, November/December). Connecting the dots: Aligning projects with objectives in unpredictable times. Research-Technology Management, 46(6), 59.

Bland, V. (2007, September). Do techies rule? — Aligning business and ICT; development in information and communication technologies creates new business opportunities and customer expectations. New Zealand Management, 55.

Bloomfield, R. C. & Coombs, R. (2008). Information technology and organizations: Strategies, networks, and integration. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Farrukh, C. & Fraser, P. (2009, July/August). Developing an integrated technology management process. Research-Technology Management, 47(4), 39.

Fletcher, H. D. & Smith, D. B. (2004). Managing for value: Developing a performance measurement system integrating economic value added and the Balanced Scorecard in strategic planning. Journal of Business Strategies, 21(1), 1–2.

Hartung, S. & Reich, B. H. (2008, December). Information technology alignment in the Canadian Forces. Canadian Journal of Administrative Sciences, 17(4), 285–290.

Jalbert, T. & Landry, S. P. (2003). Which performance measurement is best for your company? Management Accounting Quarterly, 32–41.

Kavanagh, S. C. & Suppert, M. (2007, June). We're all in IT together: Aligning technology with business through IT governance. Government Finance Review, 23(3), 24–30.

McGinn, D. & Kudyba, S. (2002). Information technology, corporate productivity, and the new economy. Westport, CT: Quorum Books.

Osborn, P. O. (2012). Aligning information technology with the business. Raumer. Retrieved from

Rang, J. M. (2003, September). Are your IT and strategic plans aligned? ASAE Foundation. Retrieved from http://www.asaecenter.org/Resources/articledetail.cfm?ItemNumber=13514.

Tatikonda, L. U. & Tatikonda, R. J. (1998, September). We need dynamic performance measures. Management Accounting, 49–53.

Key Concepts in This Paper

IT Alignment Business Objectives Balanced Scorecard Strategic Planning IT Governance Performance Metrics Competitive Advantage IT Assets Business Intelligence Organizational Change