Information Architecture: In Search of Efficient Flexibility

This article addresses how information systems architecture can be used to support organizations in the 1990s—organizations that face the dual challenge of “speed and flexibility” and “low cost and efficiency. ” At the heart of this challenge is the basic notion that information systems have been anything but flexible in the past and that, for many firms, information systems are more disablers of flexibility than enablers. The article discusses two architectural solutions to this problem: “the high road and the low road, ” and the benefits and pitfalls of each. We conclude that neither solution will succeed on its own and that firms need to combine elements of both to meet the challenges of the 1990s. This article is based on some of the things we have learned through research, case writing, and consulting while working with a variety of organizations over the past three years. These experiences have illustrated the importance of and the struggle with IS architecture for today’s global competitors. The content is intended to help guide, provoke, stimulate, and entertain others who believe that the integration of information technology with organizational strategy and structure is of paramount concern to senior managers.