Example Essay

Does IT Matter?

An essay presented to the

Department of Information Systems

University of Cape Town

in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the course on

Information Systems Honours

(INF 414W)

by

(

March 200x

Declaration

1. I know that plagiarism is wrong. Plagiarism is to use another’s work and pretend that it is one’s own.

2. I have used the APA Convention for citation and referencing. Each contribution to, and quotation in, this essay from the works of other people has been attributed, and has been cited and referenced.

3. This essay is my own work.

4. I have not allowed, and will not allow, anyone to copy my work with the intention of passing it off as his or her own work

Signature …………………….. Date ….../….../…...…

Full name of student: A

Table of contents

1. Introduction………………………………………………………………………1

2. Resources: what makes them strategic?.....................................................1

1. Characteristics of Strategic Resources………………………..…………2

3. Strategic value of Information Technology………………………….………..2

4. The evolution of the IT function in business………………………………...4

5. Using IT to gain Sustainable Competitive advantage………...……………7

6. Conclusion……………………………………………………………………….8

7. Bibliography………….………………………………………………………….9

8. Appendices …………………………………………………………….………14

1. Critique of Sources……………………………………………...……….14

Abstract

The IT function in business has changed and evolved throughout the years. IT has now become increasingly ubiquitous and accessible to companies. The fact that it is accessible to more companies, has led to the belief that IT is no longer a strategic resource. This essay illustrates that IT can still be regarded as a strategic

Bibliography: Barney, J., (1991) “Firm resources and sustained competitive advantage”, Journal of Management, Vol 17, Issue 1, pp 99-120 Clemons, E Dedrick, J., Gurbaxani, V., Kraemer, KL. 2003 “Information Technology and Economic Performance: A Critical Review of the Empirical Evidence” ACM Computing Surveys, Vol. 35, No. 1, pp. 1–28. Galbreath, J., 2005, “Which resources matter the most to firm success? An exploratory study of resource-based theory”, Technovation, Vol. 25, Issue 9, pp. 979–987. Gerrard, M. (2004) Four Giant Steps to Maximize the Business Value of IT, (Research Note for Gartner). Lynch, R., (2003), Corporate Strategy, Third edition, Prentice Hall, Essex Morris, M.H., 2001, “The Critical Role of Resources”, Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship, Vol Pereira, E.R., (1999), “Resource View Theory Analysis of SAP as a Source of Competitive Advantage for Firms”, The DATA BASE for Advances in Information Systems, Vol