Many businessman feel the benefits of information technology (IT). Some others even suggested IT support the achievement of efficiency, the company's competitive advantages. Really always the case? Some studies in the early years of widespread use of computers in private organizations reported that the use of IT to encourage efficiency, improve the quality of output. Such a conclusion spreader inilkemudian become talismans for the expansion of computer usage in the various aspects of human activity. Computer schools from the top to a shop class taught this as a dogma that must be trusted.

       Today, almost no longer a business organization, nonprofit, and public who do not use computers and the Internet in activity keseharian.Dapat imagine what would happen if the computer systems of a national bank off (shutdown) for several hours. Let alone a few hours, one minute dead the entire computer system, banks suffered big losses will be concerned.

       In a study of business strategy, computers that are arranged in a Strategic Information System (SIS), an enterprise resource that can enhance the capability and competence of the company. Along with other resources such as human resources, fixed assets, and the image or good name, SIS, if managed properly can become elements of a business strategy that relies on the resources (resourse-based strategy). However, this strategy also has not guaranteed victory in the competition, especially when resources are easily imitated or not is difficult to be held also by the competitors. Condition easily imitated by competitors, due to the nature of resources coming from external (vendors). In addition to selling our resources, the vendor also sells to competitors.

Competitiveness

       With this rationale alone may be said that the advantage of relying on IT competitiveness, will not be long-lived. Factors that undermine the triumph not only come from the equation or imitation by competitors (external), but also can arise from internal factors. When business growth shot past the limit bearing capacity of SIS, then this is the first sign for management to begin to change his SIS. Similarly, when management was reluctant to issue new investment to replace the SIS that was started out of date, these conditions can mark the start reflux carrying capacity of IT to business.

       Two other factors that may hinder sustainability of competitive advantage is related to the SIS is the quality and loyalty of HR, and regulatory situation of the industry. A firm that life and death is highly dependent on IT, had to face major problems when more than half the employees of his department of Information Systems resigned and reportedly will move to a rival company. In fact, the company has invested heavily in providing education and training to the majority of those who resigned. If this withdrawal occurs, operations will be disrupted for some time until the post is left to fill. Although filled, no guarantee can be the same again in a relatively fast tempo. Beyond that, there are threats from competitors, because knowledge which was originally owned by the company will be owned by a competitor (brain drain).

       Lessons can be drawn from this case, although it is often said human resources as valuable assets for the company, HR is very susceptible to true loose from the control of management. When this happens, as good as any SIS owned, be reduced contribution to the competitiveness of the Company 's informal regulation, ever happen in cases where a company really wants to open a new business to take advantage of SIS owned. Tingal desire memories, when apparently there is no regulation that specifically regulate the business. In fact, without any new business, the company has been approached stagnation. In other cases, almost all companies in a particular industry must change its information systems, new investment because of regulations that impact on these changes. Cases of this kind of experienced business people in a regulated industry, where the conduct or behavior of regulated industries by the government.

Challenge

       Several studies on the impact of IT on firm performance that is conducted between 2000-05 in the United States, Taiwan, United Kingdom, and Japan in general concluded that the relationship of IT investments with corporate performance is not always linear. That is, there is a period in which occurred some time after the acceleration performance of IT investments made, but these conditions will slow down until finally the curve started flattening out, until then dive. The experts call it the inverted U curve.

       The challenge for executives is how to turn an inverted U curve above the linear curve, so that each additional one unit of IT investment will generate a consistent number of Expected output for a certain time. Answering this challenge, there are several strategies that could be considered. First, change the pattern of investment, if you originally purchased the equipment specifications, consider outsourcing or investing a flexible and scalable according to business growth. Second, do the alignment between business strategy and SIS. Empirical facts show very little government agencies make alignment between IT and "business strategy" concerned agencies. Alignment is important that a business can be counterbalanced by the march carrying capacity of SIS. Third, continuous innovation. Organizations that do not innovate, he is not an organization, but rather a collection of people who are just waiting to die. Innovation can to repair the product or change business processes.

       There is danger of innovation. Innovation is easy to imitate or innovations that mobilized the majority of the company's resources thereby reducing attention to other things that also do not lose the importance of innovation can lead to a dilemma.

       Fourth, in making use of IT, should be oriented to create superior value from the value achieved by competitors. A study shows that most executives understanding of value creation by utilizing IT was still low. Fifth, take advantage and develop IT in such a way that can naturally form a barrier to entry. Industry as a natural entry barriers, such as the uniqueness of competence, the complexity in the design and operation, or the amount of investment that should be planted, are generally considered not violate positive law. Sixth, the SIS and berkelindan business strategy is built to reduce or increase the cost of switching. When woo potential customers, show that low switching costs, but when it has become a customer, create switching costs in such a way that is not easy for companies to move to a competitor. Ethical issues can meruak when the company inadvertently made this sixth strategy.

       What public policy implications from the above description? The answer more or less, how government agencies entrusted with the operation guidance in the use of IT to give guidance to all government agencies in order to utilize IT as a tool not just a complement, but more than that, how the computer can achieve good performance in public service sustainable. As for the private sectors, in general they know better what to do.