Business and IT Alignment: The Rate of ChangeInformation Technology is continuing to challenge the way companies organize their business processes, communicate with customers and potential customers, and deliver their services. Although there is no single dominant re-organization strategy, common company structures all lean towards decentralizing IT, shifting it closer to end-users and melding the knowledge-base to business strategy. Business and IT alignment is vital for market impact and growth. Show
This tactic means as business goals pivot, IT can more readily respond with necessary solutions to support and maintain enterprise momentum. In turn, technological advances and improvements are hardwired into current and future strategies and initiatives. As working ecosystems replace strict organizational structures, the traditional question “Which department do you work in?” has been replaced by, “How do you work?” Business and IT Alignment: StrategyThis continuous strategic loop means enterprises function better, make more profit, and see better ROI because they hit their goals with less effort. And while there may be no standard way to align successfully, an organization where IT and business strategy are in lock-step can improve agility and operational efficiencies. In fact, such is the importance of this synergy, successful companies are those that dive deeper. Amazon and Apple are prime examples—of course technology is integrated and aligned within their operational structure. In several cases, they created the integral technology and business strategies themselves! Business and IT Alignment: Convergence and IntegrationThese type of aligned companies have increased the efficiency of technology investments and significantly reduced the financial and operational risks associated with business and technical change. However, if this rate of change and business flux is as fast as we continually say, we need to be talking about convergence and integration, not just alignment. In other words, let’s do the research and learn, but empower next level thinking so we can focus on the co-creation of “true value” and respond quicker to customers and users. Without this granular strategy, companies may spend too much on technology without ever solving the business challenges they face due to different departmental objectives, cultures, and incentives. Simply put, business and IT alignment integrates technology with the strategy, mission, and goals of an organization. The benefits of better synchronization between business and IT allow us to approach the competitor chain differently.For example:
Hot Topic: View webcast recording Empowering Collaboration Between Business and IT, with Fabio Gammerino, Signavio Pre-Sales Consultant. Four Steps to Better Business and IT AlignmentWhile it may seem intuitive, many organizations struggle to achieve the elusive goal of business and IT alignment. This is not only because alignment is a cumbersome and lengthy process, but because the overall process is made up of many smaller sub-processes. Each of these sub-processes lacks a definitive start and ending point. Instead, each one comprises some “learn and do” cycles that incrementally connect. These cycles aren’t simple fixes, and this explains why issues still exist in the modern digital world. But by establishing a common language, building internal business relationships, ensuring transparency, and developing precise corporate plans of action, the bridge between the two stabilizes. These four steps can enable you to position your business and IT alignment strategies:
Being in the KnowTemporarily rotating IT employees within business operations is also a top strategy in reaching business and IT alignment because it circulates company knowledge. This cross-pollination encourages better relationships between the IT department and other silos and broadens skill-sets, especially for entry-level employees. Better knowledge depth gives the organization more flexibility with well-rounded employees who can fill various roles as demand arises. How Signavio Enables Business and IT AlignmentFrom the get-go in 2009, Signavio has been committed to embracing innovations, enabling business success with the IT devices and working practices of today, while keeping the future in mind. SAP Signavio Process Transformation Suite translates smoothly between business and IT, facilitating data migration to–and step-by-step updates of–any ERP system, including SAP® S/4HANA. But thanks to its support of open standards and generic application programming interfaces, Signavio's products can be integrated with any modern ERP system. For example, when migrating to SAP®, Signavio's seamless integration with SAP® Solution Manager 7.2 ensures business requirements are transferred to SAP® application management environments. Migrating your process landscape from legacy software can also be performed with a considerable degree of automation. Automation means you accelerate business transformations without setbacks. Empowerment Through SignavioSignavio products empower process-oriented management, meaning your change specification and transformation roadmap is derived from actual needs, and you don’t need to compromise between IT and business managers. SAP Signavio Process Transformation Suite positions IT as a critical partner to–and an enabler of–any organizational changes or process improvements. SAP Signavio Collaboration Hub is a Suite component that offers a centralized location for business knowledge. It eases communication and provides decision-makers with the most up-to-date data. This means any workforce can utilize IT consolidation capabilities making business reporting and company productivity more accurate, focused, and capable. Hot Topic: View webcast recording Empowering Collaboration Between Business and IT, with Fabio Gammerino, Signavio Pre-Sales Consultant. Trial Without ErrorDiscover how Signavio can put your organization on the path to business and IT excellence with SAP Signavio Process Transformation Suite. Try it for yourself by registering now for a free 30-day trial. Why is IT important that IT systems be aligned with the business strategy?IT-business alignment helps ensure that the organization gets the right technology at the right time so it can meet its key performance indicators and reach its business transformation goals and objectives -- whether those are improving customer service or developing new revenue streams.
Why is IT important that the goals are aligned?Everyone should be working to achieve the organization's overall strategy, and aligning goals gets everyone on the same page and moving in the same direction. Aligned goals create a familial atmosphere where everyone works together and understands their role.
Why is the alignment of business processes and information systems so important for organizations?The process of alignment is important to business organizations for several reasons. The key advantage is to simplify the overall business organizational goals and objectives and to professionally identify the role of information systems to better support the business organization to achieve its goals and objectives.
Why is IT important to align decisions with business objectives?Organizational alignment is important because it helps to encourage collaboration and a mutual pursuit of company goals, which has several long-term benefits to the success and productivity of an organization. Organizational alignment may also improve the happiness of employees and improve customer experiences.
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