Effective IT Strategy Implementation
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Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Perustieteiden korkeakoulu |
Master's thesis
Authors
Date
2022-07-29
Department
Major/Subject
Software and Service Engineering
Mcode
SCI3043
Degree programme
Master’s Programme in Computer, Communication and Information Sciences
Language
en
Pages
81+11
Series
Abstract
Digitalization forces organizations to transform constantly. This increases the significance of IT strategy for organizations, as effective IT strategy implementation is essential to maintain and increase firm performance. The goal of this thesis was to understand how IT strategy can be implemented effectively. This was done as qualitative research, consisting of a systematic literature review and an empirical study through semi-structured interviews. The approaches to IT strategy both in academic literature and organizations as well as the factors impacting the implementation of IT strategy were examined. The most prominent approaches to IT strategy in academic literature are contingency theory and the strategy-as-practice approach. Both approaches suggest that effective IT strategy implementation is achieved in organizations through ensuring that stakeholders are able to effectively implement the defined IT strategy through operational level activities. The results indicate that no superior organizational approach exists. However, having an approach to IT strategy implementation is beneficial as it enables prioritization of actions and facilitates a shared understanding of IT strategy objectives. The results also indicate that a plethora of factors impact effective IT strategy implementation by contributing to the creation of three key capabilities, namely agility, business-IT cooperation, and stakeholder commitment. The most important factors include communication, company culture, organizational structures, and the role of top management. Based on the results, it can be concluded that supporting stakeholders in executing operational level activities enables effective IT strategy implementation. In addition, it can be concluded that the three aforementioned key capabilities enable effective IT strategy implementation.Description
Supervisor
Kauppinen, MarjoThesis advisor
Luokkamäki, SamiKeywords
capabilities, information technology, IT strategy, IT strategy implementation