Aligning IT To Business In Complex Multinational Corporations: The Case Of The U.N. Secretariat

Business-IT strategic alignment grows in importance as organizations strive to link business and technology in light of the internationalization of their businesses. This positivistic research method uses a field survey design to examine (a) the role of knowledge management processes in the relationship between contextual factors and alignment in the U.N. Secretariat, and (b) the role of IT projects in the relationship between alignment and the performance and effectiveness of the U.N. Secretariat. Structural equation modeling techniques are conducted to analyze data collected through a sample of 166 IT managers and 97 business managers from 50 offices in the U.N. Secretariat. The measurement model exhibited a fairly good fit. The results of the study have at least four implications to leaders in the U.N. Secretariat and in multinational corporations (MNCs). A theoretical and practical perspective of business-IT strategic alignment in the U.N. Secretariat is provided. The study draws upon the strategic alignment model and the typology of MNCs to propose and test an IT strategic alignment model for MNCs (mSAM). The business-IT strategic alignment implementation model for MNCs (mSAIM) is the model for application proposed as the critical recommendation of the research study.