Information systems vs.

information technology
Differences between IT and IS
Author: Tim Fipps
11 November 2016
Business strategy: Where is the business going, and why. Business decisions; objectives
and direction; planning and change; sets the direction for IS.
IS strategy: What is required, for the business strategy, for advancing and expanding the
business, for product applications; defines needs and priorities in IT.
IT strategy: How it can be delivered. Infrastructure & services: Activities, available
products, required technologies.
IS answers the question: "What goal do we need to achieve through strategic use of IT?"
IT answers the question: "Which piece of equipment would best work towards achieving
this goal?"
IS is concerned with the quality of information, how it is captured, stored, organized and
managed, and how it can be retrieved and transmitted, and what are the appropriate means
and methods. This must be done in full consideration with the nature, objectives and
context of the organisation when it is going about its business and projects. Therefore IS
acts as the coordinator - the proverbial bridge - between IT (i.e. the IT department) and the
rest of the organisation.
IT deals with the (information & communication) technological infrastructure of the
organisation and manages it. This entails being knowledgeable of the currently used
technologies and of technologies that could potentially be used to further improve the
infrastructure.
Alongside management and maintenance of existing information & communication
technologies within the organisation, IT has to ensure integration and that the infrastructure
stays functional to the organisation's needs and also competitive regarding what is available
and practiced.
IS and IT are concerned with the implementation of information technologies to best
inform and direct business decisions.
Due to the equipment and the business relevance, both must put risk management at high
priority, which includes policies for security and use, privacy protection and ethical
compliance.
IS and IT relate to the business strategy, though each in their own unique way.
IS is concerned with:
How raw data can be managed and processed in systems to solve business problems and to
create new business opportunities.
What is required to meet objectives of a given business strategy.
Fast analysis of typically high volumes of information to assist businesses in gaining a
competitive edge.
How can IT and business systems provide a foundation for superior organisaional
performance.
Re-engineering business processes.
Bridging the gap between business and technology.
What are systems and processes that govern the efficient use of IT.

IT is concerned with:
The implementation of processes whereby IT is used in the most effective and efficient
manner to minimise risk and maximise benefits.
How something can be delivered to meet requirements and achieve objectives of a given
business strategy.
Purchasing the correct hard- and software, and effectively utilising what is already
available.
Involved with anything related to computers and computing technology.
Rotation policy (re-using hardware).
Planning and maintaining an organisation's IT infrastructure.
Maintenance of hard- and software.
Creating an IT framework to fulfil necessity (e.g. an accountant has no use for a 3D
monitor).
IT is a an engineering discipline. IS is a business discipline.
IS focuses on the information.
Though technology facilitates the gathering and processing of information, IS's primary
concern is the information itself, while IT concerns itself more with the computer hardware
and software.
IS places an emphasis on how the information provided by the technology can help an
organisation meet its needs, how the users in the organisation interact with each other, with
outside the organsiation and with the IT infrastructure & equipment to achieve the
objectives of the business.
IT focuses on setting up and maintaining an organisation's IT infrastructure and its
components (such as topology, servers, switches, hubs, and VPN technology), hence IT
focuses on the functioning of IT betwork & components and how they provide the means to
store, network, and process, manipulate and disseminate information.
IS serves to aid decision-making while IT provides & implements the means so that IS can
serve decision-making.
IT is a set of computer-based tools which can be applied to built and operate an IS, if that
IS is designed with the IT support.
However, there are information systems which do not use any IT tools: for example, IS
using pen, paper and books as in the old times.
Information systems (IS) are concerned with the information that computer systems can
provide to aid a person, company or other organisation in defining and achieving its goals.
IT deals with the technology involved in the information systems, i.e. technology for
transfer, storage, availability and generation of information.
An IS is a (collection of) platform(s)/solution(s) designed to manage a particular
information product, for example a health record system in a hospital. All devices and
softwares connected to each other that are dedicated to storing, maintaining, and
disseminating patient records can be considered part of an IS. Any individual computer and
communications component can be considered an IT system even if it is part of a specific
IS. In a business environment, IT may more commonly refer to anything that deals with the
transport and storage of information, particularly network and telecommunications
equipment.

Information technology (IT):

- abbreviated IT
- refers to all computer-based information systems used by organizations and their
underlying technologies
- related terms: IT architecture & IT infrastructure
- hardware, software, databases, networks, etc, all are used to build information systems
Information system (IS):
- a set of interrelated components that collect, manipulate and disseminate data and
information and provide feedback to meet an objective
- collect (input), process, store, analyze, and disseminate (output) information for a specific
purpose
- examples: ATMs; airline reservation systems; health record system in a hospital
- marketing system, sales & customer management system, inventory system, payroll
system
- more than computers: linking organisation, management and technology