Information, strategy and people

In many organisations the information manager is required to produce a strategy, usually to justify demands and to ensure that technological and organisational issues are thought out. What about the corporate leaders to whom the information strategy is presented? Have they presented their strategy to the stakeholders of the organisation? Have they got a corporate strategy worth the name? They may have a list of wishes that they would like to see come about, financial or other targets they would like to hit, but have they identified clear points of focus, market segments or service priorities and worked through what needs to change to make the organisation achieve these aims? If the organisation does not have a sound clear overall strategy, the information strategy is an orphan likely to be discarded or disowned at any moment. But the information management function has a key role in the creation of the corporate strategy.