Waves of change

by James L. McKenney

Over the past several decades, information technology (IT) has radically altered the basis of business competition. When American Airlines introduced the SABRE airline reservations system and Bank of America rolled out ERMA, its automated check-processing system, these companies did not just improve efficiency and productivity, they revolutionized the entire airline and banking industries. Yet, argue the authors of Waves of Change, the actual development of the technology, while requiring immense skill, is only part of a successful competitive transformation. A crucial - and more challenging - element is the ability of the firm's leadership to adapt the organization to take advantage of the new technology. . Waves of Change examines how management teams at American Airlines and Bank of America, starting in the 1950s, developed IT designs that changed the rules of the game for their competitors. From these cases, the authors craft a framework for an IT-driven strategy that rings true in