to function at high levels of efficiency and effectiveness. Stage VI Key points: Systems now reflect the real information needs of the organization. Greater use of data resources to develop competitive and opportunistic applications. Data processing organisation is viewed solely as a data resource function. Data processing now emphasizes data resource strategic planning. Ultimately, users and DP department jointly responsible for the use of data resources within the organization. Manager of IT system takes on the same importance in the organizational hierarchy as say the director of finance or director of HR Initial reaction Richard Nolan's Stages of Growth Model seemed ahead of its time when it was first published in the 1970s. Legacy Critics agree that Nolan's model presents several shortcomings and is slightly out of date. As time has progressed, Richard Nolan's Stages of Growth Model has revealed some apparent weaknesses. However, many agree that this does not take away from his innovative look into the realm of computing development. Criticism An argument posed dealt with the main focus on the change in budget, and whether it is “reasonable to assume that a single variable serves as a suitable surrogate for so much.” It seems logical that this single variable could be an indicator of other variables such as the organizational environment or an organization's learning curve, but not that it is the sole driving force of the entire model. Nolan shows little connection that would make his initial point a valid one. In his model, Richard Nolan states that the force behind the growth of computing through the stages is technological change. King and Kramer find this to be far too general as they say, “there are additional factors that should be considered. Most important are the "demand-side" factors that create a ripe environment for technological changes to be considered and adopted.” As proposed, technological change has a multitude of facets that determine its necessity. Change cannot be brought forth unless it is needed under certain circumstances. Unwarranted change would result in excess costs and potential failure of the process. Last, the stages of growth model assumes straightforward organizational goals that are to be determined through the technological change. This can be viewed as very naïve from the user perspective. King and Kraemer state, “the question of whether organizational goals are uniform and consistent guides for the behavior of organizational actors, as opposed to dynamic and changing