Strategic planning for information systems at British Rail

Abstract Information technology (IT) can give firms a competitive edge or break them apart. The successful use of IT requires a strategic information plan that is aligned with business objectives, clearly identifies information needs of the business, and ranks IT opportunities available to the business. The authors describe an approach which systematically identifies the information needs of a business and their priority in terms of the contribution of information to supporting the business strategy. The process results in a strategic information plan which is structured in such a way that the conclusions can be reviewed and kept up to date at regular intervals.