Assignment 2: IT Doesn't Matter

Time to critique! 

Mr. Carr mentions that in order to gain a competitive advantage, you need to be able to perform something that competitors are unable to perform. Thus, he concludes that because IT is widely available and is used by rivals, its strategic value does not increase. However, I disagree with his belief because even though information affordable and accessible, their reward is only measured by the constant advancement in it's manipulation to gain information in a variety of new and better ways than the competitors. The human aspect of IT plays a vital role in constantly upgrading the hardware and software aspect of IT that can make companies competitive. 

Mr. Carr writes "The trap that executives often fall into, however, is assuming that opportunities for advantage will be available indefinitely. In actuality, the window for gaining advantage from an infrastructural technology is open only briefly." I completely disagree with his statement. For example, many companies utilizes IT in order to provide their consumers with an online shopping experience. The advantage of online shopping has never disappeared, even after thousands of stores pop up on the internet. For companies, the more advanced their IT technology, the better they are able to provide their consumers with better shopping experiences. 

Finally, I disagree with Mr. Carr's  discouragement for companies to invest in IT "At a high level, stronger cost management requires more rigor in evaluating expected returns from systems investments, more creativity in exploring simpler and cheaper alternatives, and a greater openness to outsourcing and other partnerships." While not investing in IT can save a company a sum of money, but it can also greatly hurt it if company's employees are not using the latest technology in order to better perform their job efficiently and effectively. This is similar to a company that refused to upgrade a typewriter to a computer because the company felt that the employee will not be using anything else but word document (thus, they can simply use the type writer instead to save cost).