在資訊技術（IT）被大多數高級主管視為會計和處理單調交易的「後勤部門」的三十年之後，資訊技術如今大有突破。在當今大部分執行者所交談的內容是關於網際網路、電子商務、知識管理、商業變革的資訊技術以及資訊技術監管和體系架構。

很明顯，在一個越來越具競爭性的全球化世界，商業必須使自己變得更富有成效，能夠收集和保存顧客訊息以及競爭性訊息，並且能捕獲雇員所持有的那些「隱性」知識。大的套裝軟體如SAP、Baan、i2、Siebel和Oracle的產品吹噓他們有能力改變業務、供應鏈以及客戶關係。成功的實施其中一個套裝軟體能夠為組織的決策者提供更新或更好的訊息，以及實現全球化生產和分銷過程。另一方面，商業成功的關鍵要素並不是技術本身，而是改變技術所支持的業務流程和工作。拙劣的（軟體）實施會妨礙產品和服務的交付，而且至少在短期內代價也是相當昂貴的。

公司正改變他們的整個供應鏈。在供應鏈的一端，像通用電氣公司和汽車製造商一樣的公司正要求他們的全部供應商透過網際網路進行貿易往來。而另一端，以網際網路起家的公司和更多的實體公司使全世界的顧客能夠透過網際網路購買。公司正在逐漸地讓用戶能夠查看其內部系統來確定訂單什麼時候能夠交付。

因為資訊技術，工業本身正迅速改變形式和經營模式。例如，由於MP3.com，音樂工業正處於較大的轉變中。新服務體系已經建立，例如雜貨店交付，線上拍賣和網站開發公司。為了向大客戶提供端至端服務，以前在技術服務或者運輸方面的競爭對手正在形成合作和聯盟。

但是在資訊技術迅猛發展對公司和工業的戰略性影響的這些清晰可見的跡象下是資訊技術的基礎架構。執行者的注意力已經集中到投資，外包業務選擇，組織和基礎設施的人員配備，以便能夠驅動和支持數位化商業的轉變。這些問題成為董事會和管理高層的重大議題。我們是在應用需求之前，還是受當前的業務驅動而投資網路和處理能力？我們應該構建強大資訊技術中心來管理資訊技術，還是讓各個部門分而治之？我們的體系架構應該強調使用網際網路和外部服務還是更加強調私有權？

資訊技術和商業變革（ITBT）的研討會的目的是提供學生關於透過資訊技術（IT）進行變革以及資訊技術管理的戰略問題的見解。研討會將邀請資訊長（CIO），執行長（CEO）以及有經驗的諮詢顧問、產業觀察員提供他們個人觀點以及講述關於當今資訊技術管理和使用的故事。他們談論的話題將涉及到新技術、新應用、實施問題、產業和公司的變革以及資訊技術的策略管理。此外，提供了一些高層管理決策問題的案例討論，學生可以在這些案例討論中扮演執行者和諮詢顧問的角色。還提供了定位所有材料和演講者的架構；最後，將會有一堂課由資訊技術和商業變革的校友，就利害關係為特別是來自麻省理工的學生探討就業發展的機會和議題。正如在電子商務應用的表徵、資訊技術身為商業變革的驅動者和發動者及所有交易的基礎架構資源，學生將會了解對資訊技術管理的策略性角色以及其中會遇到的問題。

這門課有一課程讀物。另外，一些講師將為他們的學生提供課前的閱讀材料。在講師上課的前一周，這些材料將在班級上分發。學生們應該就老師分派的相關閱讀材料進行應對的準備。

在上課的前幾周每個學生將選擇3名演講者並為之準備問題並編寫應答報告。（如果演講者和學生組合不一致，將透過抽籤解決）。期待這些學生將在演講者發起的討論中呈現更重要的部份。向演講者提問的問題應該在上課前準備好，應答報告應該在下一次課上交。

• 期初報告（3-5頁）︰期初報告要在第二次開課前完成，它能讓你有機會來回顧你在資訊技術領域的經驗以及構建你自己的資訊技術問題的思惟圖。反過來，我們也有機會了解到班級的知識、技能和興趣的分佈情況，或許會對課程進行對應的調整。
  
  
• 準備好的問題︰對於你選擇的每名演講者，你應該為上課準備3個經過深思的問題。這些問題將用在口頭報告過程中的問答部分。問題可以來自於個人工作，公司的書面文檔，你個人的經驗和課程概述等等。請在上課前一天用電子郵件把這些問題發送給教授。
  
  
• 應答報告（ 2-3 頁）︰這些報告應該是你對3名演講者中每一個人的想法及回應的綜合。你應該在合適的情況下結合以前的或者其他課程的相關經驗。好的報告將討論有爭議的或者不完善的想法。報告不應該簡單的敘述或者總結口頭報告的內容，而應該參考口頭報告和討論過程中的觀點並且超越那些觀點。每份報告（列印稿）應該在你報告所針對的討論會的下一周上課前提交。在對這些報告進行分級處理後，發送這些報告給講師，講師將會給出其回饋意見和評論。
  
  
• 期末報告（5-10頁）︰一篇期末報告，要在最後一次課後一星期完成，它讓你有機會融會貫通研討會所學的知識。在這種情形下，你可以選擇參考以前的期初報告，或許可以進一步提升你的資訊技術思惟圖。此外，好的報告會挑選研討會的一個或多個的關鍵主題，並從商業成功的重要性方面，闡述兩個或者兩者以上的演講者如何解釋和說明這個主題。
  
  報告應該使用雙倍行間距和使用 12 號字體 。

40% 課堂討論的參與程度
30% 3份應答報告
30% 期初和期末報告

After three decades in which information technology (IT) was viewed by most senior executives as belonging to the "back office" of accounting and hum-drum transaction processing, IT has broken out. In most executive suites today, the talk is about the Internet, electronic commerce, knowledge management, IT for business transformation, and IT governance and architecture.

It is clear that, in an increasingly competitive global world, businesses must transform themselves to be more productive, to gather and store customer and competitive information and to capture the "tacit" knowledge that employees hold in their heads. Large software packages such as SAP, Baan, i2, Siebel, and Oracle tout the potential to transform operations, supply chains, and customer relationships. A successful implementation of one of these packages can provide new or better information to an organization's decision makers, and enable global manufacturing and distribution processes. On the other hand, the critical path to business success is not the technology itself, but changing the business process and the work supported by the technology. Botched implementations can stymie product and service deliveries and prove extremely costly in at least the short term.

Firms are transforming their entire supply chain. At one end of the supply chain, companies like GE and automobile manufacturers are demanding that all their suppliers interact through the Internet. On the other end, both Internet start-up companies and more established brick-and-mortar firms are enabling customers around the world to buy from them through the Internet. Increasingly, firms are enabling customers to look into their internal systems to assess when orders will be delivered.

Industries themselves are rapidly changing form and business methods due to IT. The music industry, for example, because of MP3.com is in a major transformation. New services have been created, such as grocery store delivery, on-line auctions, and Web development companies. Partnerships and alliances are forming among former competitors, like competitors in technology services or transportation, in order to provide end-to-end services to large customers.

But beneath these visible manifestations of the breakout of IT to strategic impact in firms and industries lies the IT infrastructure. Executive attention has come to focus on the investments, outsourcing options, organization and staffing of infrastructure to drive and support the transformation to digitized business. The issues become board- and top-management critical.Should we invest in networking and processing capacity ahead of applications needs, or be driven by the current business? Should we govern IT with a strong center or let the divisions have their head? Should our architecture emphasize using the Internet and external services or be more proprietary?

The purpose of this Proseminar in Information Technology and Business Transformation is to provide students with a view of IT-enabled transformation and the strategic issues in the management of IT. The seminar will bring in CIOs, CEOs, and experienced consultants and industry observers to provide their perspectives and tell their stories about the use and management of IT today. Their talks will deal with the new technology, the new applications, the issues of implementation, the changes in industries and companies, and the strategic management of IT. In addition, there will be several case discussions of issues to be decided by senior management, with students taking on the position of executives and consultants. There will also be frameworks presented and used to position all material and speakers. Finally, one session will consist of ITBT alumni discussing career opportunities and issues for students, particularly from MIT, with these interests. Students will gain a perspective of the strategic role of and issues in managing IT as manifested in e-business applications, as a driver and enabler of business transformation, and as an underlying infrastructure resource for all businesses.

There is a course reader for this class. In addition, some speakers will have pre-reading materials as preparation for their sessions. These will be distributed in class the week before the speaker is scheduled to present. Students should be prepared to respond to the speakers in the context of their assigned readings.

In the first weeks of class each student will choose three speakers to prepare questions and write reaction papers for. (If there is not an even disbursement of students to speakers, this will be done through a lottery system). These individuals will be expected to take on a more significant part of the discussion for the given speaker. Questions for the speaker should be prepared in advance of the class and reaction papers should be turned in the following class session.

• Initial Paper (3-5 pages): An initial paper, due the beginning of the second class, shall give you the opportunity to reflect upon your own experience in the field of IT and build your own mental map of IT issues. In turn, this will give us the chance to see how knowledge, skills, and interests are distributed in the class and maybe adapt the course accordingly.
  
  
• Prepared Questions: For each speaker that you choose you should prepare 3 thoughtful questions for the class meeting. These questions will be used to jump start the Q&A session of the presentation. Questions may come from the individuals work, written materials about the company, your own experience and the course overview, etc. Please email your question to the professor the day before the class.
  
  
• Reaction Papers (2-3 pages): These papers should be a synthesis of your thoughts and reactions to each of the three speakers that you chose to write about. You should incorporate relevant experiences from you past or other courses when appropriate. Good papers will discuss ideas that may be controversial or not fully developed. Papers SHOULD NOT simply recount or summarize the presentation, but should refer to points made in the presentation and discussion and go beyond those points. Each paper should be handed in (hard copy) at the beginning of class the week following the talk you are writing on. After grading a selection of the papers written for each week will be sent to the speaker and his/her feedback and comments invited.
  
  
• Final Paper (5-10 pages): A final paper, due one week after the last class, is your opportunity to synthesize the learnings of the seminar. In this context, you may choose to refer back to your initial paper and maybe advance your own mental map of IT. In addition, good papers will pick one or more of the major themes of the seminar and illustrate how two or more speakers illustrate and illuminate the theme, in terms of its importance to business success.
  
  Papers should be double-spaced and use 12 point font.

40% Participation In Class Discussions
30% 3 Reaction Papers
30% Initial and Final Paper