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Unraveling the Alignment Paradox: How Does Business—IT Alignment Shape Organizational Agility?

Author

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  • Huigang Liang

    (College of Business, East Carolina University, Greenville, North Carolina 27858)

  • Nianxin Wang

    (School of Economics and Management, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, Zhenjiang, 212003 Jiangsu, China)

  • Yajiong Xue

    (College of Business, East Carolina University, Greenville, North Carolina 27858)

  • Shilun Ge

    (School of Economics and Management, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, Zhenjiang, 212003 Jiangsu, China; School of Management, Yancheng Institute of Technology, Yancheng, 224051 Jiangsu, China)

Abstract

Contradictory views exist regarding whether business–information technology (IT) alignment enhances or reduces organizational agility, and no consensus has been achieved. To disentangle this puzzle, this study takes both the intellectual and social dimensions of IT alignment into account and investigates how they influence agility in opposite directions through distinct mechanisms. Based on survey data from 429 dyads of business and IT executives, we uncover that intellectual alignment impedes agility by increasing organizational inertia, while social alignment facilitates agility by enhancing emergent business–IT coordination. We also find that social alignment weakens the effect of intellectual alignment on organizational inertia. This paper fills a gap in the information systems (IS) literature by providing a theory-driven explanation of the alignment paradox, which makes a significant contribution to both IS research and practice.

Suggested Citation

  • Huigang Liang & Nianxin Wang & Yajiong Xue & Shilun Ge, 2017. "Unraveling the Alignment Paradox: How Does Business—IT Alignment Shape Organizational Agility?," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 28(4), pages 863-879, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:inm:orisre:v:28:y:2017:i:4:p:863-879
    DOI: 10.1287/isre.2017.0711
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    9. Lööf, Hans, 2022. "What prevents spillovers from the pool of knowledge?," Working Paper Series in Economics and Institutions of Innovation 489, Royal Institute of Technology, CESIS - Centre of Excellence for Science and Innovation Studies.
    10. Nicolas van Zeebroeck & Tobias Kretschmer & Jacques Bughin, 2021. "Digital is Strategy: The Role of Digital Technology Adoption in Strategy Renewal," ULB Institutional Repository 2013/325553, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
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