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'mature' or even 'seriously depressed' it is possible to PLANNING IN SPECIFIC MANAGEMENT

grow successfully. These c o m p a n i e s - - o n e in the oil AREAS--MIS


sector, one in clothing, one in industrial supplies, one
in farm equipment--redefined their missions, took E.V. MARTINEZ
advantage of the weaknesses in their respective sector Successful reengineering demands IS/business
and exploited the challenges, turning them into partnerships
opportunities. The need is to be creative, forward Sloan Management Review 36 (4), 51-60 (Summer
looking, and not to accept excuses. 1995)
Unless management gives information systems (IS) a
prominent role in the reengineering project, the effort
will be doomed. Five steps are suggested. The role of
R.C. BARTLETT IS needs to be redefined and there should be debate
Mary Kay's Foundation on IS's new partnership role. Current capabilities
Journal of Business Strategy 16 (9), 16-19 must be assessed. Strategy and architectures need to
(July/Aug 1995) be developed. It is important to prepare a well-
An ethical c o m p a n y does not exist in a vacuum. To thought plan to avoid project crises which usually
make ethical decisions, the impact on the wider result from a lack of advanced planning. The last step
society of which the company is part must be is to execute and to manage. For reengineering
considered. The Mary Kay Corporation took the high success, business leaders and IS must work together
ground and put a hold on new products for a while. to strike a balance.
That meant lost sales and also involved additional
investment in evaluating alternatives. By behaving P. MCKIERNANand Y. MERALI
consistently, the company did succeed. Integrating information systems after a merger
Long Range Planning 28 (4), 54-62 (August 1995)
Empirical research into M and A performance has
produced one consistent finding that ex post per-
A. HOWARDand J. MAGRETTA formance does not generally live up to ex ante expec-
Surviving success: an interview with the Nature tations. Two case studies were used as the first in a
Conservancy's John Sawhill two-stage research programme. The survey showed
Harvard Business Review 73 (5), 108-118 that acquisition target selection was based primarily
(Sept/Oct 1995) on the quality of strategic fit. Where acquired IS/IT is
The Conservancy has always had a very clear mission: perceived to be of strategic importance, IS/IT are key
to preserve plants and animals and special habitats factors. Planning for ex post integration of IS/IT tends
that represent the diversity of life. The approach is to be deferred until after completion of the acquisition
n o w changing. The emphasis is more on strategies transaction. In the majority of cases IS integration was
that address the conservation issue of the 1990s: inte- not considered in the ex ante period. Over 50% of the
grating economic growth with environmental protec- predator group believed that IS/IT was essential for
tion. In addition to being in real estate and science, their company yet in the ex ante stage IS/IT was
two n e w skills are r e q u i r e d - - c o m m u n i t y devel- absent from the strategic decision-making. The fin-
opment organizing skills and business development dings suggest that management 'IS maturity' is a more
and marketing skills. The conservancy likes to see fundamental determinant of integration effectiveness
itself in fact as Adam Smith with a green thumb. for IS/IT than organizational maturity in the usage of
IS.

B.L. MARTIN, G. BATCHELDOR,J. NEWCOMB,


L.C. THUROW J.F. ROCKART,W.P. YETTER and J.G. GROSSMAN
Surviving in a turbulent environment The end of delegation? Information technology
Planning Review 23 (5), 24-29 (Sept/Oct 1995) and the CEO
There are five fundamental reasons w h y today's world Harvard Business Review 73 (5), 161-172
economy is undergoing radical change; the end of (Sept/Oct 1995)
communism, the shift from an economy based on Today IT plays a role in most aspects of a company's
national resources to one based on manmade brain- business. The rules, as a result, have shifted. Tech-
power industries, demography, the development of nology requires general management leadership. Six
a global economy, and the absence of a dominant experts share their views on what this means. One
economic, political or military power. As a result responsibility of a CEO is to distinguish between
business is entering u n k n o w n territories, the best that information technology risks and business risks, and
can happen is not just to be smart; the essential not to delegate decision-making. Another is the need
characteristic is luck. to make joint decisions with the Chief Information

Long Range Planning Vol. 28 December 1995

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