What's your preferred strategy for ensuring business-technology alignment when assessing emerging technologies?

Business first. If the technology doesn't solve a business problem, you really shouldn't waste time on it.

You always start with the problem you're trying to solve. Emerging technologies are tools - not strategy. You don’t let the tool dictate the blueprint; you choose the right tool to bring your business vision to life. Tech should serve the mission, not define it.

This is an interesting dichotomy...(the Egg) - You need to be aware of the capabilities (and limitations) of promising technologies to evaluate its potential application to existing business requirements and operations, not to mention gaps / opportunities; equally, (the Chicken) - You need to understand your business architecture, its strategy, and the opportunities to express or alter a competitive advantage (differentiator) to further explore and/or discover emerging technologies. Once you have an initial 'potential' match, one needs to 'take it to the next level' in a PoC or Pilot...then rinse and repeat.

I've seen too many times in many different organizations where the business get's sold on a technology and it becomes a solution looking for a problem and generally ends up being wasted and leaves a bad taste for what may have been a great technology.