Strategic Planning for Information Systems (IS 6003) Masters in Business Information Systems 2004 /...

Strategic Planning for Information Systems

(IS 6003)

Masters in Business Information Systems 2004 / 2005Programme in Professional Information System Practices

Dr. Tom Butler / Fergal CartonBusiness Information Systems

MBS (BIS) / 6003 / Strategic Planning for Information Systems

IS6003 Strategic Planning for Information Systems

• Monday 13.00 - 15.00 pm, Connolly

• Lecturers : Dr. Tom Butler & Fergal Carton

• Alternate weeks with each lecturer

• Start Monday 4th October: Fergal Carton


Lecturer contact detailsName: Dr. Tom ButlerPhone: 021-490 3340Office: Room 2.117, O’Rahilly BuildingE-mail: [email protected] Web: http://afis.ucc.ie/tbutler/

Name: Fergal CartonPhone: 021-490 3734Office: Room 2.113, O’Rahilly BuildingE-mail: [email protected]: http://afis.ucc.ie/fcarton/default.htm

University College CorkColáiste na hOllscoile Corcaigh


Course Objective

To provide students with a grounding in strategic planning and how businesses in today’s networked economy plan for and manage their investments in Information and Communication Technologies (ICT).


Opposing views of IT function

• Business Executives view of IT– Apprehensive

– Technocracy

– New feature focus

– Little relevance to real world

• IT executives view of Business– Short-sighted

– Lacking in vision

– Unwilling to exploit IT

Increasingly complex IT, rapidly changing economy


2 basic questions

In a networked economy:

• How to plan and prioritise ICT investments?

• How to manage ICT operations?


Why is planning important?

• IT tends to evolve, not follow a plan

• Difficult to align IT to corporate goals

• Perception of poor “value” from IT

• IT considered “too operational”

• IT can constrain as well as enable

• IT considered a major driver of cost


Consulting Practice

• Typical consulting assignments:– Select and justify investment in new s/w

– Improve IT planning process

– Advise on IT cost reduction costs

– Develop requirements for new system

– Build business case for new system


Hidden agenda?

“One reason, then, that we expect top acceptance of information technology is its implicit promise to allow the top to control the middle just as Taylorism allowed the middle to control the bottom.”

Leavitt and Whisler (1958)


Topics coveredIntroduction to Strategic Planning

Impact of IT on Strategic Decision Making

Networked business models

Knowledge – the new strategic resource

Building networked businesses: capabilities

Networked infrastructure and operations

Organising and leading the IT function


Other research themes

Centralising decision making and standardising processes

Knowledge – the new strategic resource

Open Source software and ICT strategy

Use of analytical tools in ICT planning

Current research perspectives on the value of ICT


Case study approach

• Work in groups or individually

• Simulates consulting assignments

• Facilitates presentation / debate of findings

• Practical evaluations will be partly case based


Case study example

• IT Strategy for UCC

– Meeting to discuss the structure the project team

– 3 roles• Computer Center• Consultant• Users (Finance Office)

– Prepare meeting agenda (one slide each)


Marking scheme

• A consulting assignment, 1st term – (worth 20%)

• A business report, 2nd term – (worth 20%)

• Written exam, May / June – (worth 60%)


Required text

• Corporate Information Strategy & Management– 6th edition, 2003

• Authors : – Lynda M. Applegate

– Robert D. Austin

– F. Warren McFarlan

• Publisher : McGraw Hill


Recommended text

• Strategic Management and Information Systems

– 2nd edition, 1997

• Author : Wendy Robson

• Publisher : Pitman Publishing

• In Library Ref. 658.4 ROBS


Recommended text

• Strategic Planning for Information Systems – (2nd edition 1996)

• Author : John Ward & Pat Griffiths

• Publisher : Wiley

• In Library Ref. 658.4 WARD


Recommended text

• Exploring Corporate Strategy (Text and Cases)

– 6th edition, 2002

• Author : Gerry Johnson & Kevan Scholes

• Publisher : Prentice Hall

• In Library Ref. 658.4 JOHN (5th edition, 1999)


Reading for 18th Oct

• Corporate Information Strategy & Management– 6th edition, 2003, Lynda M. Applegate, Robert D.

Austin, F. Warren McFarlan

– Introduction: Challenges of managing in a networked economy (pp 1-22)

• Carr, Nicholas G. (2003), IT Doesn’t Matter, Harvard Business Review, May

Strategic Planning for Information Systems (IS 6003) Masters in Business Information Systems 2004 /...

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