Does IT (Information Technology) Matter? A look at how IT helps businesses.

Essay - Does IT Matter?

In this day and age, it definitely can be said that IT is everywhere and integrated with everything that we use. IT has also enriched our lives in terms of how easily information is readily accessible; using this information enables us to make better-informed choices. In this essay, we are going to examine an article written by Nicholas G. Carr. A summary of Carr's main points will be written, followed by my opinion in relation to Carr's arguments. This essay will end by talking about how Carr's theories will affect the IT environment, which I will be working in in the future.

Carr's main argument is that IT has become an invisible commodity in a company, a necessary addition to a business but one that does not provide any competitive advantage, therefore companies should try to minimize IT implementation. He reaches his conclusion based on a number of facts, which are "Vanishing Advantage", "Commoditization of IT" and risk mitigation (Carr 2003).

English: Nicholas Carr speaking at the 12th Annual...

Nicholas Carr speaking at the VINT Symposium held ...

RYAN CARR

Recently, companies have embraced the power of IT, and therefore have integrated IT into its strategies, processes and business models. Carr does not see this as a good move, as he claims "what makes a resource truly strategic - what gives it the capacity to be the basis for a sustained competitive advantage - is not ubiquity but scarcity" (Carr 2003). Scarcity, in this context refers to proprietary technologies, and the widely accepted Internet standards have seen the companies change in favor of generic applications. Due to efficient distribution channels and low costs technologies, Carr argues that IT does not give a company an advantage, as everyone would have access to the benefits derived from such generic applications.

Carr also compares between the developments of transport infrastructure (railroad systems and telegraphs) to the...