State of ICT-Business Alignment: A Case of Zimbabwe

Considering the dynamic nature of ICT and its contribution to business growth and prospects which later translate to national development and prosperity, the aim of this research was threefold; study and examine ICT-business alignment cases in Zimbabwe, establish the current state of ICT-business alignment in the Zimbabwean business sector, and determine factors that have a propelling or frictional effect on alignment transition. The research results indicated that ICT and business executives in Zimbabwe appreciate that ICT contributes positively to business growth and sustainability of their organizations. However, the majority of these executives do not understand and apply the concept of IT-business alignment in their organizations. Another notable result was that to achieve alignment in a turbulent environment there are many factors that have a propelling or dragging effect on alignment. The factors have differing magnitude of effect on alignment as such a critical analysis of each factor is required. DOI: 10.4018/jitbag.2012070101 2 International Journal of IT/Business Alignment and Governance, 3(2), 1-20, July-December 2012 Copyright © 2012, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited. this research. The last section gives a detailed discussion of the results and conclusion of the work.