Developing a Framework for Business Information Technology Alignment in South African Development Banks

Business-information technology alignment is a current information systems research key issue and a current business challenge. Thus, the relevance of this thesis is in addressing business-information technology alignment issues within development banks in South Africa. Using government resources, development banks are mandated to address financial market failures through financing and funding finance projects, economic segments, and segments of the population that commercial banks do not finance. South African development banks, as state-owned institutions, have recently been subjected to intense scrutiny due to unjustified but rocketing IT investments that often do not produce improved or tangible productivity and performance. The research problem is that despite the investments in information technology, the development banks are not realising a tangible return on IT investment made. The thesis argues that the lack of return on investment is due to the business-information technology misalignment within the development banks. To improve their performance, development banks must align their business and IT strategies. It is argued that organisations tend to improve their performance when their business strategy and IT strategy are aligned. The issue and challenge is that development banks in South Africa currently lack a contextualised framework that may inform the aligning of business and IT strategies. To this point, the goal of the present study was to bridge this gap by conceptualising a framework for business-information technology alignment for South African development banks. The present study used the Strategic Alignment Model, MIT90s Model, Strategic Alignment Maturity Model and the IT Capability Model as theoretical lenses to explore and describe when and how the alignment could be achieved in South African development banks. The study followed an interpretive paradigm and an inductive research approach with a case study adopted as a research strategy. Semi-structured interviews, observation and document reviews were used as data collection methods. The collected data were then analysed using thematic and content analysis techniques, respectively. The interpretation of findings suggest that to achieve business-information technology alignment, South African development banks must institutionalise knowledge sharing practices among the varied business units with the IT division leading the synergy and mutual understandings. Senior and executive managers need to increase their involvement and contribution in the business-information technology decision-making, business-information technology resource allocations, and the prioritising of IT projects. The original contribution of this thesis is in conceptualising a contextualised framework that may help improve business-information technology alignment within the development banks in South Africa.

Grantor dc:publisher

North-West University (South Africa)

Year dc:date.issued

2023

Author dc:creator

• Mongale, Aubrey Mmaniki

Advisors dc:contributor.advisor

• Kekwaletswe, R.M.
• Jackson, L.T.B.

• IT capability
• Alignment maturity
• IT strategy
• Business strategy
• Business-IT alignment
• Development bank
• South Africa

Language dc:language.iso

en

Identifier URI

0000-0003-0756-2324

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:repository.nwu.ac.za:10394/41961