Strategic IT Alignment and Business Value: A GE Case Study Report

This report examines the strategic IT alignment for General Electric, focusing on how IT contributes to business value. The report begins with an introduction to business-IT alignment and then provides a brief description of GE, highlighting its diverse segments. It identifies key IT strategic issues faced by GE, including information security, risk management and governance, and technology integration and upgrades. The core of the report discusses how GE can deliver business value through strategic IT alignment, emphasizing the importance of considering shareholder and customer value. The author, acting as an IT consultant, provides recommendations for improving IT strategy and ensuring proper integration to achieve business goals. The report concludes by summarizing the significance of strategic IT alignment for maximizing the value of IT investments and improving overall business performance. Relevant references are included to support the arguments.

Running head: BUSINESS VALUE AND IT MANAGEMENT
Business Value and Strategic IT Alignment
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author’s Note:

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Abstract
The main aim of this report is to understand about strategic IT alignment for the popular and
significant organization, namely, General Electric. This type of alignment is required for
focusing on the results to produce business value and also demonstrate a positive relation within
information technologies and the accepted financial performance measures. Such distinct
alignment of information technology is responsible for integrating the IT to the goals, strategies
and mission of the company and even for delivering business value to them. This report has
highlighted different IT strategic issues and process to deliver business value to GE.

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Table of Contents
1. Introduction..................................................................................................................................3
2. Discussion....................................................................................................................................3
2.1 Brief Description about my Company of General Electric...................................................3
2.2 IT Strategic Issues in General Electric..................................................................................4
2.3 Delivering Business Value for maintaining Strategic IT Alignment.....................................5
3. Conclusion...................................................................................................................................7
References........................................................................................................................................8

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1. Introduction
Business IT alignment can be referred to as a procedure, where a specific business
organization utilizes information technology or IT for achieving different business objectives and
even improving financial performances as well as market place competitiveness (Dutta, Geiger
& Lanvin, 2015). Such alignment is in the contrast of what is being experienced within different
companies, so that business professionals as well as IT professionals are not able to bring up the
gap within themselves within the major differences within objectives (Schwalbe, 2015). Being an
IT consultant in the most organization of General Electric, I have been able to deal with several
distinct and important aspects related to IT strategic alignment within the business. The
following paper outlines a brief description on strategic IT alignment for General Electric.
2. Discussion
2.1 Brief Description about my Company of General Electric
GE or General Electric is a popular and significant multinational conglomerate that is
incorporated within New York City and has its headquarters in Boston, United States of America
(GE. 2020). The organization has been operating through several segments, which include
aviation, power, additive manufacturing, healthcare, lighting and capital and finance. General
Electric is one of the most significant and important organizations in the entire world that is
being operating for several segments and almost 205000 employees are working in the company
in present situation (GE. 2020). I have working in General Electric as an IT consultant for last 1
year and have been able to provide several major advices towards the organizational growth. As
a result, it is my responsibility to ensure that my organization is free from any type of complex
situation and would gain maximum effectiveness.

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2.2 IT Strategic Issues in General Electric
A strategic issue is the critical challenge, which affects the organizational values,
resources, processes, management, stakeholders, structure and mission (Lloyd, 2017). Since, GE
is a conglomerate organization, it is extremely important and significant to ensure that the
organization is free from any type of strategic complexity and issue. I have ensured that the
technology strategy of this particular organization is effective and efficient, as compared to their
existing planning (Baller, Dutta & Lanvin, 2016). Technology strategy is the total plan that
comprises of different tactics, principles and objectives related to the utilization of technology in
a specific company.
These distinct strategies mainly emphasize on the technologies themselves and few
people, who are managing the technologies (Marchewka, 2016). IT strategy could be implied
from the organizational behavior for gaining knowledge about the technological advancements in
the most effective manner. This particular strategy is responsible for including the formalized
vision, which can provide guidance for better management, allocation and acquisition of the IT
resources, for ensuring that it could help to fulfill the organizational goals (Sittig & Singh, 2015).
I have guided the management of GE on the IT strategic issues and process to eradicate them
completely from their business and these major issues are provided in the following paragraphs:
i) Information Security: The first and the foremost IT strategic issue that might be
common for the organization of General Electric is information security (Schnoll, 2015). There
is always a high risk that the organization might be facing major issues related to data privacy,
data management and storage. Being the leader of conglomerate companies, General Electric
might eventually lose data privacy and hence would not be able to recover from the loss of data
or information under every circumstance (Tarafdar et al., 2015). It might even increase the

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chance for having issues in infrastructure management for the company. Since, I am the IT
consultant, I decided to make them realize about this particular issue.
ii) Risk Management and Governance: The second important and significant IT strategic
issue that might be common for the organization of General Electric is risk management and
governance (Avgerou & Walsham, 2017). Compliance, risk and governance refers to the distinct
strategy to manage the organizational overall governance with proper regulations. It can be easily
aligned with information technology with the respective business objectives and hence
effectively managing risks as well as fulfilling requirements of compliance (Wu, Straub & Liang,
2015). General Electric would be able to encompass the system of governance, so that it
becomes easier for them to control and operate the business with proper administration.
iii) Technology Integration and Up Gradation: Another distinct and noteworthy IT
strategic issue that might be common for the organization of General Electric is technology
integration and up gradation (Cui et al., 2015). A conglomerate company has to deal with several
types of technology oriented or integrated issues and hence periodical up gradation is mandatory
for the business. Proper integration of technology is needed for ensuring that the organization is
using upgraded technology in their business under every circumstance (Sittig & Singh, 2015). As
a result, due to such issues, the business might face issues related to strategic IT alignment.
2.3 Delivering Business Value for maintaining Strategic IT Alignment
I have even understood that the business would require to deliver business value to
maintain proper strategic IT alignment and hence gain major effectiveness and efficiency in the
business without much complexity or issue (Dutta, Geiger & Lanvin, 2015). Business includes
each and every form of value, which helps to determine the well being and health of the
company in the long run. This type of value eventually expands value concept for the company

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beyond economic value like economic profit, economic value added as well as shareholder
values. It should be amalgamated with other forms of value like employee values, supplier
values, managerial value, customer values as well as societal value. It helps in embracing the
intangible assets that are not required for the stakeholder group (Baller, Dutta & Lanvin, 2016).
The examples involve intellectual capital as well as organizational business model. The
methodology of balanced scorecard is the most distinct and important methodologies to measure
and even manage business values.
The organization of General Electric requires to have proper business value for all the
subsidiaries of the conglomerate (Tarafdar et al., 2015). Different products and services of this
particular organization are hence highlighted and kept on top priority, so that the most probable
issues and complexities are avoided eventually. Since, I am the IT consultant in this particular
organization, I have ensured that every vital aspect related to business value is being added in the
business, so that better strategic IT alignment takes place in the business. The firm is being
viewed as the network of different value creating entities and hence overall performance of the
business is improved to a high level (Lloyd, 2017). It is also being assumed that the firm is
seeking a winning or cooperative approach, in which every party would receive the values.
The main components of business value that are being considered on top priority within
General Electric, majorly include shareholders’ values and customer value. The shareholders’
value is the significant part of the capitalization, which is equity as opposed to the long term debt
(Wu, Straub & Liang, 2015). It would also be considered as the number of outstanding shares for
their current share price. As a result, the organization would be able to different complex
situations and issues related to organizational or business management to the best possible
manner. The customer value is the distinct value that is being received by the respective end

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customers of any particular product or service (Avgerou & Walsham, 2017). These end
customers could involve an individual or the entire business of General Electric for ensuring that
maximum advantages and customer satisfaction is gained, in terms of strategic IT alignment.
With the help of information technology, the business has got intelligence for their respective
product or service. Hence, making things easier for the external and internal customers is
required for ensuring that business value is created through client satisfaction. General Electric
has been able to ensure that they have clear and specific goals for the business and IT employees
to check if the integration is proper and accurate (Sittig & Singh, 2015). A proper IT alignment
has been able to increase business values for effective management of team and people.
3. Conclusion
Therefore, from the above discussion, a conclusion can be drawn that strategic IT
alignment is required for gaining maximum knowledge regarding the management of
information technology and business values to a high level. As a result, the business value of IT
investment is improved. The major features for achieving this attribute in the business include
company viewing IT as the main instrument for transformation of the business, exploration of
other revenue strategies and then integration of other facets of the business into one another.
Moreover, the respective organization should also hold customer services, both internally and
externally at the highest importance and significance. Proper communication within the company
as well as their customers should not be lost. The above provided paper has clearly outlined a
brief discussion on business value and strategic IT alignment with relevant details related to
better management for the organization of General Electric.

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References
Avgerou, C., & Walsham, G. (Eds.). (2017). Information technology in context: Studies from the
perspective of developing countries: Studies from the perspective of developing countries.
Routledge.
Baller, S., Dutta, S., & Lanvin, B. (2016). Global information technology report 2016. Geneva:
Ouranos.
Cui, T., Ye, H. J., Teo, H. H., & Li, J. (2015). Information technology and open innovation: A
strategic alignment perspective. Information & Management, 52(3), 348-358.
Dutta, S., Geiger, T., & Lanvin, B. (2015). The global information technology report 2015.
In World Economic Forum (Vol. 1, No. 1, pp. P80-85).
GE. (2020). Accessed from https://www.ge.com/ [Accessed on 28 March 2020].
Lloyd, I. J. (2017). Information technology law. Oxford University Press.
Marchewka, J. T. (2016). Information technology project management: Providing measurable
organizational value. John Wiley & Sons.
Schnoll, H. J. (2015). E-Government: Information, Technology, and Transformation:
Information, Technology, and Transformation. Routledge.
Schwalbe, K. (2015). Information technology project management. Cengage Learning.
Sittig, D. F., & Singh, H. (2015). A new socio-technical model for studying health information
technology in complex adaptive healthcare systems. In Cognitive informatics for
biomedicine (pp. 59-80). Springer, Cham.

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Tarafdar, M., DArcy, J., Turel, O., & Gupta, A. (2015). The dark side of information
technology. MIT Sloan Management Review, 56(2), 61.
Wu, S. P. J., Straub, D. W., & Liang, T. P. (2015). How information technology governance
mechanisms and strategic alignment influence organizational performance: Insights from
a matched survey of business and IT managers. Mis Quarterly, 39(2), 497-518.