The Amsterdam Information Model (AIM), like the Strategic Alignment Model (SAM), takes a strategic perspective on business and IT alignment. Known as the 9-cell, it recognizes a middle layer that focuses on structure and tactics, including planning and architecture. More ever, it recognizes the necessity of information communication (expressed as the information governance and data quality pillar in the AIM Model).

The creators of both the SAM and the AIM frameworks describe in detail the relation between the components, from both the horizontal (Business/IT strategy) and vertical (Business Strategy / Business Operations) perspective.