A Strategic Outlook for Managing Information and Communication Technology: An Overview

Increasing investment of capital on Information and Communication Technology (ICT) within corporations has created expectations of optimized return from deployed ICT solutions. That is to say, organizations not only maximize the benefits of adopting ICTs but also avoid the many potential drawbacks and risks of rapid technological change. This paper is concerned with the value of strategic management of ICT solutions with a focus on maximizing ICT benefits. It is based on a review of previous studies, technologists' and strategists' views and consideration of a number. of cases studies within the Canterbury region of New Zealand. The review of case studies confirm that organizations do not vigorously follow strategic planning process. This could be due to perceived complexity and cost of strategic planning for SMEs.