The misconception of an IT Strategy – Part 1

I have developed IT blueprints, roadmaps and what is most commonly known as strategies for fortune 100 organizations throughout my career.  The methodology and framework to establish a true strategy is not rocket science, the true science in a good IT strategy is the alignment to the business strategy.  That sounds logical enough – however, many IT executives don’t understand the importance of the linkage to business objectives.

Creating an IT strategy absent of understanding how it aligns to the business aspirations will inevitably gain no adoption or buy-in.  Even if the IT strategy is focused on IT initiatives only – for example, if the objective is to reduce redundant systems, which is perceived to be an IT objective – sunsetting legacy or redundant systems impacts business process and people.  So by taking out System A without understanding how it impacts the business process or people will not be a recommended approach.  That is one misconception of an IT strategy.

Organizations need to developed a deep understanding of where and what the business wants to be in 1, 3 or 5 years and ensure the underlining strategies are aligned to those business objectives.  And make no mistake, the underlining strategies are not just IT – but organizationally, process-wise, financial and the like.  The key is to ensure objectives can be measured and holistic enough to understand the impact if the business strategy changes – how does it impact the underlining strategies.