Wikipedia defines alignment as the adjustment of an object in relation with other objects, or a static orientation of some object or set of objects in relation to others. We need to start out with the central message and focus on this - the overall focus is IT business alignment. ITIL focuses on the relational mechanisms between the business and IT organization by working on the IT effectiveness of the organization in order to take full advantage of the business value from IT.
It all starts with the business and IT getting together and discussing how they are going to deliver business value. Using a typical example - normally when employees see IT they need access to some app or they need access to MyFinance and its an app. The person just walking in may not even know what that app is. The service desk will need to know what this app does, what service does it provide and what business process does it provide. If I know what MyFinance did, I could add key words to the service item for MyFinance.
Strategic alignment looks outwards at the external environment. When alignment is attained an organisation gains a competitive advantage and increases performance. This is based on the baseline from other similar organisations operating in the market share.
See also:CSI