Great World Enterprises Limited. Great World Enterprises Limited. Textbook: Laudon, Kenneth C., & Laudon, Jane P. (2015). Managing Information Systems: Managing the Digital Firm, 14th ed. Prentice Hall.
Week 6:
Assignment:
This week you will write the Your Company’s IT Planning and Analysis Processes section of your term paper. Topics to cover in this section include your organization’s IT strategy and planning process (chapter 13 and 14), your organization’s use of management decision support and intelligent systems (chapter 12), and your organization’s IT security policy, acceptable use policy, business continuity plan, and disaster recovery plan (chapter 8). Be sure to also take ethical and social issues into consideration in relation to IT planning (chapter 4).
Paper:
IT Planning and Analysis Processes
Building a new information system is one of the important aspects of organizational change. The Great World Enterprises is a consumer electronics company that wants to deal with high-end electronics. It is an American company that wants to succeed in the modern digital world by securing business rights with companies such as Apple, Microsoft, and Samsung. In order to achieve success in the current world, it must have an effective information systems strategy. The strategy will significantly contribute to the success of its five-year strategic plan. According to Laudon and Laudon (2015), introduction of a new information system in an organization is more than new hardware and software. It involves a change in many other dimensions within an organization, including jobs, skills, management, and organization. The design of a new information system for Great World Enterprises is similar to the redesign of the organization. Therefore, the planning and analysis process will focus on how the new system will affect specific business process and the entire organization. This section discusses the firm’s IT strategy and planning process, use of management decision support and intelligent systems, and IT security policy, acceptable use policy, business continuity plan, and disaster recovery plan.
IT Strategy and Planning Processes
Great World Enterprises focuses on a hybrid approach to business process redesign. The IT planning process involves limited in-house systems as most of the IT systems will be outsourced to third parties. However, the process must be carefully planned to ensure that the IT strategy is aligned with the company’s strategy. The proposed IT strategy and planning process for the company is based on business process redesign. According to Grover and Markus (2015), business process redesign is a form of organizational change where business processes are evaluated, analyzed, simplified and redesigned. The IT planning process at Great World Enterprises will focus on reorganization of workflows, elimination of redundancies, reduction of waste, and removal of paper-intensive tasks. It will involve identification of processes for change, analysis of existing processes, design of the new process, implementation of the new processes, and constant measurement. The process will allow Great World Enterprises to achieve effective alignment between in-house and outsourced IT systems. The alignment will be critical to the success of the firm’s IT systems.
Management Decision Support and Intelligent Systems
The decision support and intelligent systems that can be used in the company include enterprise-wide systems, knowledge work systems, and intelligent techniques, Great World Enterprises will focus on intelligent techniques for the decision support. It is a database technology that will allow the firm to capture data and analyze the resulting patterns (Aronson, Liang, & Turban, 2005). Data mining will be at the center of the decision support and intelligence systems. It is important to note that data mining is the process used by organizations to sort large data sets so as to identify patterns and determine relationships. The process will begin with the construction of a data warehouse. It is a relational database system that will enable Great World Enterprises to store large quantities of structured and unstructured data. The data warehouse system will include a business intelligence section that will process the stored data to establish patterns and relationships. The analysis will be accomplished through the application of relevant analytics programs.
IT Security Policy, Acceptable Use Policy, Business Continuity Plan, and Disaster Recovery Plan
Great World Enterprises will have an IT policy that will guide the utilization of IT resources within the company. All employees within the company will have a responsibility of securing the firm’s information resources. They will be required to follow the firm’s access policy in relation to the use of usernames and passwords. Under the acceptable use policy, members of the organization will only be allowed to use the IT system to accomplish company-related work. Great World Enterprise’s business continuity plan will involve an off-site backup system. It is important to note that most of the company’s IT systems will be hosted in the cloud. Although this will act as a backup system, the firm will also have another backup system at a remote site. According to Thejendra (2014), offsite backup will enable the company to restore normalcy within a short time in case it loses company data. It is also important to note that the backup system is part of the company’s disaster recovery plan.
Conclusion and Ethical Considerations
Great World Enterprise’s operations will be significantly influenced by its IT strategy and processes. As a result, the firm should have an effective strategy that will allow alignment between technology and business processes. The firm will outsource most of its IT systems to third parties in order to concentrate on its core business. However, the company will use the business process redesign strategy to ensure effective alignment between the in-house and outsourced systems. Moreover, Great World Enterprises will use a data warehouse and business intelligence systems to support decisions within the organization. The main ethical consideration in the company’s IT system is the monitoring of the IT usage in the workplace. The process should be performed in a manner that will safeguard the employees’ privacy and confidentiality.
Thanks
References
Aronson, J. E., Liang, T. P., & Turban, E. (2005). Decision support systems and intelligent systems. Pearson Prentice-Hall.
Grover, V., & Markus, M. (2015). Business process transformation. Hoboken: Taylor and Francis integration. International Journal of Computer Applications, p. 42-45.
Laudon, K., & Laudon, J. (2015). Management information systems:Managing the digital firm (13th ed.). New York: Prentice Hall.
Thejendra, S. (2014). Disaster recovery and business continuity. Ely, Cambridgeshire, U.K.: IT Governance Pub.
Week 5:
Assignment:
This week you will write the Your Company’s Management of Data and Knowledge section and the Your Company’s Use of the Internet section of your term paper.
Topics to cover in the Your Company’s Management of Data and Knowledge section include your organization’s current use of data management systems (chapter 6), problems and difficulties faced by your organization in regards to data management (chapter 6), your organization’s procedures for collecting, storing, managing, and updating data (chapter 6), and types of knowledge management systems currently used by your organization (chapter 11).
Topics to cover in the Your Company’s Use of the Internet section include how your organization is affected by the digital economy and what issues they need to consider in regards to doing business in the digital economy (chapter 1), current messaging and collaboration software and Web 2.0 technologies in use by your organization (chapter 10), and your company’s use of e-commerce technologies (chapter 10).
Paper:
Your Organization’s Current Use of Data Management Systems
Organization of a successful system of all types of data storage, processing, searching, and transmission at all levels of the Great World Enterprises Limited hierarchical structure will facilitate company’s prompt and efficient work. Its current use of data management systems will be aimed at creation of a centralized and unified data management system where all relevant information will be easily found, edited, and transmitted without any delays or data distortion. Thus, the company will utilize non-relational database management systems (DBMS) to organize and control all information flows; moreover, the main accent will be put on cloud computing due to its flexibility, low-price, easy handling, and a significant storage capacity. As the Great World Enterprises Limited deals with electronics and advanced technologies, cloud databases will help the company to keep up with times, control information processing remotely, at the same time eliminating the physical infrastructures and enhancing work productivity.
Problems and Difficulties Faced by Your Organization in Regards to Data Management
The main problems that can arise in the course of DBMS implementation are the following ones:
Information redundancy. Indeed, an accelerated pace of technological progress and an increasing amount of company’s clients can induce the situation when it will not be able to store vast amounts of data. Thus, some information can remain unnoticed or omitted.
Lack of data sharing and availability. This problem can occur when some clients’ devices and software will not be updated or adjusted to the cloud computing technologies; thus, it can lead to disruptions in the process of data processing or will require too much time to find all necessary details.
Your Organization’s Procedures for Collecting, Storing, Managing, and Updating Data
It is important to introduce corporate information policy that will be elaborated with the consideration of the following issues: functional aspect: a specific information will be distributed by the managers of corresponding functional departments within their structural affiliations; unitizing of general facts: representatives of the Human resources management department that will transmit details, important for all employees, throughout the internal business environment.
Moreover, the leadership will also create the Department of information processing where the data quality audit, data cleansing, and evaluation will be conducted. In addition, every employee will have an opportunity to suggest his or her ideas regarding data management system improvement, organization, and optimization.
Types of Knowledge Management Systems Currently Used by Your Organization
Undoubtedly, knowledge composes the foundation for any kind of human activity; sequentially, it is important to ensure the knowledge management system, implemented within the company, will be a sophisticated and efficient one. Thus, it is necessary to provide a prompt and uninterrupted transformation of information into knowledge with its subsequent utilization in the course of making the managerial decisions. The company will apply enterprise content management systems as dealing with high-end electronics presupposes the processing of semi-structured knowledge that can be represented in different forms. Consequently, the above-mentioned technique will induce an accelerated dissemination of digital content through the cloud computing regardless of the data lay-out.
How The Organization is Affected by the Digital Economy
Currently, any business enterprise is influenced by the digital economy, selling various goods and products on-line, applying various types of e-business infrastructures, and popularizing business brands in the global network. Undoubtedly, all these processes are of an increased importance for the company as digital economy facilitates the Great World Enterprises Limited to reach potential clients regardless of their physical location, take and fulfill orders remotely, as well as handle information flows distally.
What Issues They Need to Consider in Regards To Doing Business in the Digital Economy
The first issue to be considered is the specifics and possible changes in the taxation policy as e-commerce, being a relatively new phenomenon, is very difficult to be controlled and imposed upon taxes. With mostly electronic supply chain, the company has to trace any alteration in the global tax reform plan, submitted by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), to avoid increased expenditures or violate taxations legal procedures due to a low awareness within this sphere (“BEPS Action 1”, 2014).
The second issue presupposes the elaboration of a business strategy, aimed at the explicitation of company’s operation within the digital economy, including the definition of potential competitors, business obstacles, success factors, and ways of their achievement.
The third issue includes the definition of telecommunications networks and their role in the enhancement of company’s local customization processes. In particular, its leadership should consider what social media platforms are the most beneficial to use and how official website can be designed to meet cultural peculiarities both across the country and abroad.
Current Messaging and Collaboration Software and Web 2.0 Technologies in Use by Your Organization
The company will rely on the Web 2.0 Second-generation, considering such interactive Internet-based services as the primary communication channels with the clients (Laudon, & Laudon, 2014). To this extent, the company’s marketing department will create the corporate email and organize in-team online chats, post interactive videos about the history of its operation in YouTube, share photos on Instagram and Pinterest, as well as create an official Facebook page. The above-mentioned processes will facilitate cooperation with clients and establish better corporate communication links within the enterprise.
Your Company’s Use of E-Commerce Technologies
Due to a pervasive and ubiquitous nature of the Internet and e-commerce technologies, such tools will play a pivotal role in the promotion of company’s services, popularization of the brand, and drawing the attention of potential clients. To this extent, the Great World Enterprises Limited will resort to the usage of the following interactive technologies:
Elaboration of the mobile applications to provide people with an instant and prompt access to company’s services, as well as enable customers to render any goods without the necessity to visit the physical facilities (“How technology is changing the face of e-commerce”, 2017).
Supplying of the website with search and navigation solutions that will be accustomed to person’s native language, needs in products, and include details regarding the history of his or her previous purchases.
Every customer will have an opportunity to leave the feedback and modify the order after submitting the purchase bid; moreover, people will be able to submit customized orders that will be made with the consideration of their individual preferences and demands.
Thanks
References :
BEPS Action 1. (2014). Address the tax challenges of the digital economy. Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Retrieved from https://www.oecd.org/ctp/tax-challenges-digital-economy-discussion-draft-march-2014.pdf
How technology is changing the face of e-commerce. (2017). Retail Minded. Retrieved from https://retailminded.com/how-technology-is-changing-the-face-of-e-commerce/
Laudon, K., & Laudon, J. (2014). Management information systems: Managing the digital firm. UK: Pearson Education Limited
Week 4:
Assignment:
This week you will write the Your Company’s Infrastructure and Information Systems Needs section of your term paper. Topics to cover in this section include your plan for your company’s IT infrastructure (chapter 5), use of telecommunications, networking and wireless technologies (chapter 7), use of functional information systems, such as production and operations, marketing and sales, accounting and finance, and human resource information systems (chapter 2), use of enterprise applications for supply chain management and customer relationship management (chapter 9), and an analysis of your company’s internal operations against Porter’s value chain model, with a recommendation for how IT can be used in your organization’s value chain to increase your organization’s efficiency, effectiveness, and competitiveness (chapter 3)
To get a competitive advantage, the Great World Enterprises Limited has a developed approach towards each of the five aspects. The enterprise defines it activity through analysis of the competitors and their paradigms of market behaviour to outline paramount aspects of the market trends (Mind Tools Editor Team, 2016). Gaining experience and general understanding of the industry processes provides an advantage for the enterprise before newcomers of the market. Efficient and balanced planning of the Marketing strategy and Human Resources Department activity helps to maintain a prolific cooperation with suppliers and buyers. Finally, cooperation with alternative representatives of the electronic devices market may lessen the effect of the struggle between Apple and Samsung. Meizu, Nokia, and Huawei may substitute these two companies if the market conditions change.
Paper:
The Great World Enterprises Limited intends to secure business rights from leading companies such as Blackberry, Microsoft, Apple, LG, Motorola, and Samsung. It will distribute the high-end electronics across markets of the United States. In this regard, IT infrastructure will be critical in supply chain management, distribution, employee management, and administration of inventory. It will facilitate coordination of internal operations while linking the business to various stakeholders. From this perspective, the IT infrastructure in the Great World Enterprises Limited seeks to elaborate the role of communication technology in the operations sustainability agenda of the business.
Information Technology (IT) Infrastructure
The IT infrastructure encompasses all components used in the creation, transmission, manipulation, and storage of critical and assistive soft data in the company. The components support the strategic business plan of becoming the leading distributor of high-end electronics to the American market. It will provide the basis for planning operations’ flow, giving guidance and justifying future system decisions, and assisting in budgetary allocation. In this regard, it identifies IT operating costs, mitigates operational risks, induces flexibility, eliminates duplication, and reduces complexity in service levels (Tech Target, 2016). Therefore, the IT infrastructure includes computer systems, accessories, software, data, and network used in the business as an asset to facilitate operations or communication in Great World Enterprises.
Use of Technologies
In the modern globalized world, communication is critical to the functioning of any business. It facilitates control of activities and coordination of services in the establishment of customer satisfaction. Initially, the company will begin with networked computers in the Miami store where it will commence operations. It will facilitate the deployment of a client-server application program for inventory management and point of sale service. From this perspective, all the management systems needed to execute operations such as the preparation of receipts will be hosted on the server for the network nodes to access (Ramey, 2012). Therefore, all the stores will entail a local area network (LAN) that will have routers, workstation computers, and a server. Nevertheless, the firm looks forward to establishing a conglomerate enterprise, which will use a cellular network for connectivity. In this context, networking will comprise wireless technology for connectivity among stores and interaction between the business and the clients. It means that all the premises will have a wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) for the visiting customers.
Use of Functional Information Systems
The operations and functions of the business will encompass several information systems to facilitate their execution. For instance, the human resource management system will monitor the performance and productivity of all the employees in the organization. From this perspective, it will be possible to examine the economic benefit of each member of staff. The accounting and finance department will entail a system that eases procurement, resource allocation, and monitoring. Therefore, operations in different departments will be executed on the server, which will host all the functional information systems. In prevention of activities duplication, various management systems will be integrated into a universal system with several interfaces that suit each department (Frame, 2016). In this regard, storage, manipulation, and retrieval of information across stores and departments will eliminate duplication by having a central repository.
Use of Enterprise Applications
The Great World Enterprises Limited has several stakeholders that require varying levels of interactions. The business application provides different users with interfaces that they need to execute various functions. For instance, in the supply chain management, the business will entail an e-commerce where the customers can view the available products in the premises, compare them, place orders, and pay for their purchases (Microsoft Developer Network, 2017). On the same platform, the business will obtain customers’ details and request for their processing. This enterprise application will have several interfaces to foster the convenience of the consumers. It will entail a desktop, mobile device, and mobile app interface to ensure that users can select the devices of their choice in executing transactions. Similarly, the business will encompass a multifaceted customer relationship management to foster the services that the clients can access through the application. For example, the user will be able to view products, their transactions history, and present complaint on any issues related to products, employees, or services rendered by the business.
Porter’s Value Chain Model
The success of the business will be dependent on its ability to analyze the market and make changes in its operations to suit the external factors. In this regard, the business will not operate as a franchise of a single manufacturer but will source products from Blackberry, Microsoft, Apple, LG, Motorola, and Samsung to ensure that consumers can make choices from a wide range of high-end electronics. By contacting several manufacturers, clients will not lose any privileges acquiring the products from the business rather than the producers’ stores. The strategy will ensure no single supplier will dominate the store (Mind Tools Editor Team, 2016). In this regard, the customer will not have to visit different stores to make comparisons before making a purchase decision. Instead, they will visit the premises or the e-commerce platform, compare the products, and make a purchase. It will offer one stop shopping for high-end electronics.
Thanks
References:
Frame. (2016). IT infrastructure plan for a regional university. Frame. Retrieved from http://www.framegroup.com.au/it-infrastructure-plan-for-a-regional-university/
Microsoft Developer Network. (2017). What is an Enterprise Application? Microsoft Developer Network. Retrieved from https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa267045(v=vs.60).aspx
Mind Tools Editor Team. (2016). Porter’s Five Forces. Mind Tools. Retrieved from https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTMC_08.htm
Ramey, K. (2012, October 16). Use of information technology. Use of Technology. Retrieved from http://www.useoftechnology.com/information-technology/
Tech Target. (2016, August 22). IT strategic plan (information technology strategic plan). Tech Target. Retrieved from http://searchcio.techtarget.com/definition/IT-strategic-plan-information-technology-strategic-plan
Week 3:
Assignment:
This week you will write the Overview and Structure of the Business section of your term paper. What is the mission of your organization? How is your organization structured? What are the job roles and responsibilities of the different parts/units or your organization and the different employees of your organization? How do the roles and responsibilities of each unit and/or employee fit together into the mission of your organization? Are there different levels of employees, such as managers and lower level workers who will have different information technology needs? I am looking for a big picture view of your organization in this section. Later in your term paper, you will discuss the information technology of your proposed business in more detail. But here I am just trying to get a big picture of your organization itself and how everybody fits together to fulfill the mission of the organization. The organizational overview section should describe the structure of the business that you are proposing, focusing on the different levels of employees in the organization (upper management, middle management, operational management, and lower level employees, such as production and service workers, and data workers) and their IT needs (chapter 1). Other topics to cover in this section could include a description of the main business processes in your business and the types of information systems and enterprise applications you will need to efficiently run the various business processes (chapter 2), and an analysis of your business against Porter’s competitive forces model, along with a recommendation for an appropriate strategy for your organization to gain a competitive advantage (chapter 3).
Paper:
The mission of the Greatest World Enterprise Limited is to maintain a highly qualitative system of retailing of product and services worldwide. This system aims to support the effective distribution of brand products simultaneously providing efficient technical and information support for the customers. The enterprise aims to set high standards of cooperation and integration within the company, creating high standards and long-term traditions for the buyers.
Regarding aggressive and ambitious plans of Great World Enterprises Limited, the hierarchical and straight constitution of the company is the only possible way of the effective management (Laudon K. & Laudon J., 2015). The enterprise should have a significant number of departments as it has objectives in different spheres. However, clear delineation of the departments should support individual development of the employees under fulfilling certain tasks regarding their job descriptions.
The Great World Enterprises Limited consists of five major departments that focus on the maintaining, promoting and providing of our products and services. Regarding the particular way of the company’s activity, its infrastructure is regarded as a unified information system with integral input, output, and feedback parts (Laudon K. & Laudon J., 2015). The following departments support this process of communication: Sales and Marketing Department, Service and Support Department, Information Systems Departments, Finance and Accounting Department, and Human Resources Department.
Sales and Marketing Department occupies responsibilities in the sphere of creating the conditions for the company’s products and real getting benefit from them. This department has an outstanding role in the process of organizing cooperation of business partners. Additionally, the unit targets logistics and supplies, making the process of commerce unabated by potential changes in the global market. Marketing group of the unit develops strategies for further involvement of the customers into the company’s buyers’ community and analysis the market supply and demand aspect concerning regional and global aspects.
Service and Support department is a unit of the company that supports the customers, providing service for their hardware and software. This department is a logical extension of the retailer’s politics with the company’s willingness to provide not only efficient goods but service.
Finance and Accounting Department operates with Knowledge Management Systems processing the information about the actual activity within the company and comprehensively analyzing it in the paradigm of the macroeconomic tendencies of the industry. Additionally, it controls the taxation process. The Great World Enterprises Limited department of finance and accounting develops plans of the enterprise’s development, rates of sales, and possible market tendencies for the upcoming years.
Human Resources Department has a binary occupation paradigm. It supports an efficient management within the company, analysis general and particular aspects of job performance in the enterprise. Along with that fact, the HR Department maintains the relations with the customers and distributors, developing the network of brand-loyal partners and buyers.
All the units aim the only paramount goal of the company, providing efficient service for buying and product service. That is why the company supports collaboration between the departments with organizing informal focus groups. As a result, departments have the same success to the information for quicker and deeper integration of employees into particular processes. The company aims to apply Google Apps and Google Sites for productive collaboration of the teams and team-members.
Information Systems Department provides successful work of the informational systems within the corporation. The workers of the department support hardware, software, system analysis and data collection. The departments have a hierarchical system of work organization with the division between upper management, middle management, operational management and ordinary workers. This separation is based on the paradigm of the information segmentation between people with different job descriptions.
Further development of the enterprise depends on way it performs under outer factors of the market. Regarding Porter’s model of business competition forces, the company’s position is analyzed throughout five aspects (Mind Tools Editor Team, 2016). There is a significant threat of the new competitions in the sphere as the Great World Enterprises Limited is not the only retailer company in the sphere of electronics and gadgets. Buyer’s’ behaviorstraightly defines the future effectiveness of the company as it mostly depends on the way representatives of the target market are ready to buy top-notch products by Apple and Samsung.
On this level of business performance, individual success of the Great World Enterprises Limited is closely connected with the way these companies present themselves and their products on the market. At the same time, the position of the enterprise’s suppliers is vital as they define the competitiveness and variety of goods to present to the customers. Finally, the competitiveness between the existing members of the market my significantly influences the Great World Enterprises Limited performance throughout the first several years. Apparently, the Great World Enterprises Limited expects to invest a significant amount of income into further development of the company for the following five years concerning strong positions of the competitors on the market.
To get a competitive advantage, the Great World Enterprises Limited has a developed approach towards each of the five aspects. The enterprise defines it activity through analysis of the competitors and their paradigms of market behavior to outline paramount aspects of the market trends (Mind Tools Editor Team, 2016). Gaining experience and general understanding of the industry processes provides an advantage for the enterprise before newcomers of the market. Efficient and balanced planning of the Marketing strategy and Human Resources Department activity helps to maintain a prolific cooperation with suppliers and buyers. Finally, cooperation with alternative representatives of the electronic devices market may lessen the effect of the struggle between Apple and Samsung. Meizu, Nokia, and Huawei may substitute these two companies if the market conditions change.
Thanks
References:
Laudon, Kenneth C., & Laudon, Jane P. (2015). Managing Information Systems: Managing the Digital Firm, 14th ed. Prentice Hall.
Mind Tools Editor Team. (2016). Porter’s Five Forces Understanding Competitive Forces to Maximize Profitability. Retrieved from https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTMC_08.htm
Week 2:
Tips Regarding the Content of Each Section of the Term Paper:
- Overview and Structure of the Business – What is the mission of your organization? How is your organization structured? What are the job roles and responsibilities of the different parts/units or your organization and the different employees of your organization? How do the roles and responsibilities of each unit and/or employee fit together into the mission of your organization? Are there different levels of employees, such as managers and lower level workers who will have different information technology needs? I am looking for a big picture view of your organization in this section. Later in your term paper, you will discuss the information technology of your proposed business in more detail. But here I am just trying to get a big picture of your organization itself and how everybody fits together to fulfill the mission of the organization. The organizational overview section should describe the structure of the business that you are proposing, focusing on the different levels of employees in the organization (upper management, middle management, operational management, and lower level employees, such as production and service workers, and data workers) and their IT needs (chapter 1). Other topics to cover in this section could include a description of the main business processes in your business and the types of information systems and enterprise applications you will need to efficiently run the various business processes (chapter 2), and an analysis of your business against Porter’s competitive forces model, along with a recommendation for an appropriate strategy for your organization to gain a competitive advantage (chapter 3).]
- Your Company’s Infrastructure and Information Systems Needs – Topics to cover in this section include your plan for your company’s IT infrastructure (chapter 5), use of telecommunications, networking and wireless technologies (chapter 7), use of functional information systems, such as production and operations, marketing and sales, accounting and finance, and human resource information systems (chapter 2), use of enterprise applications for supply chain management and customer relationship management (chapter 9), and an analysis of your company’s internal operations against Porter’s value chain model, with a recommendation for how IT can be used in your organization’s value chain to increase your organization’s efficiency, effectiveness, and competitiveness (chapter 3)
- Your Company’s Management of Data and Knowledge – Topics to cover in this section include your organization’s current use of data management systems (chapter 6), problems and difficulties faced by your organization in regards to data management (chapter 6), your organization’s procedures for collecting, storing, managing, and updating data (chapter 6), and types of knowledge management systems currently used by your organization (chapter 11)
- Your Company’s Use of the Internet – Topics to cover in this section include how your organization is affected by the digital economy and what issues they need to consider in regards to doing business in the digital economy (chapter 1), current messaging and collaboration software and Web 2.0 technologies in use by your organization (chapter 10), and your company’s use of e-commerce technologies (chapter 10)
- Your Company’s IT Planning and Analysis Processes – Topics to cover in this section include your organization’s IT strategy and planning process (chapter 13 and 14), your organization’s use of management decision support and intelligent systems (chapter 12), and your organization’s IT security policy, acceptable use policy, business continuity plan, and disaster recovery plan (chapter 8). Be sure to also take ethical and social issues into consideration in relation to IT planning (chapter 4)
- Conclusion – In this section, you should summarize the key points you have made in your paper and bring your paper to a close. You may also want to mention any challenges you anticipate facing in implementing the plan you have laid out in this paper, as well as what steps you plan to take to overcome them.
Paper Abstract:
The Great World Enterprises Limited is a company proposed to operate in the United States of America. The Great World Enterprise Limited should be listed on the NASDAQ as of 1st January 2018. The company has proposed to deal with the Consumer Durables sector whereby it plans to be a distributor and service provider dealing with high-end electronics. As part of the business plan, the Great World Enterprises Limited intends to secure business rights from leading companies such as Blackberry, Microsoft, Apple, LG, Motorola, and Samsung, among others, to serve as their stockists across different cities in the United States. The company, however, is first to be established in Miami, and, through a 5-year strategic plan, grow and expand to new territories. The Great World Enterprises will focus its business around the retail shops of the six companies that have been listed above. The Great World Enterprises Limited is focusing on a niche market of the Miami developing middle-income populace as its client construct. Miami has a big population of young people, and, therefore, has a big potential.
Keywords: Mobile devices, electronics, internet, mission vision and core values
Great World Enterprises Limited
The Great World Enterprises Limited is a business franchise that is proposed to dealing with top brands in mobile gadgets and other electronics. The Great World Enterprises Limited name is suggested as it incorporates every aspect of the business intended by the company. The business is mainly in enterprise and incorporates brands from all over the world. The Great World Enterprises Limited as well will set its mark on the market with quality products and services hence the name great. The Great World Enterprises Limited proposes its first shop to be set up in Miami, and later on in other locales as the business grows. The Great World Enterprises Limited will deal with electronics of major brands in mobile devices like Blackberry, Microsoft, Apple, LG, Motorola, and Samsung. Besides mobile devices, the Great World Enterprises Limited also plans to be selling other electronics from the same brands and other leading brands. These electronics will include electronic kitchenware like microwaves, cookers, and fridges; households electronics such as TVs, home theaters, and air conditioners.
The location of theGreat World Enterprises Limited business is very vital, and that is why for its first six months of operation it will be located in Miami. The reason for the Great World Enterprises Limited choosing this location is that the studies and research done on several other places only placed Miami on the top. Miami has of recently received numerous praise in the effort of transforming herself into a business hub. The area is now a tech hub, and the Great World Enterprises Limited will perfectly fit in with customers traveling from other cities to shop in Miami as they believe it has the best to offer regarding technology as its now considered a tech hub. The location is also rich with skilled labor needed for the Great World Enterprises Limited’s repair services. The company proposing to take a lion share in the quality market end will need the best skill it can get.
The Great World Enterprises Limited is proposed to set up retailer shop outlets in Miami. The shops will run for six months when other shops like service centers will be introduced. In the third year of business, the strategic plan of the Great World Enterprises Limited will be revised to incorporate other cities like Manhattan New York and Los Angeles. The success of the Great World Enterprises Limited in the three years will determine how many branches will be under consideration of opening in the mentioned cities. Under the current proposed strategic plan, the Great World Enterprises Limited seeks to bring into board some other brands into a business partnership.
In the Great World Enterprises Limited overall mission and vision of the Great World Enterprises Limited aims at bridging the gap between top quality products and consumers that seek the best in the market. Through the services at the Great World Enterprises Limited customers will be introduced to only the best brands in the technology world while providing them with after sale services such as repair services and interactive forums. The Great World Enterprises Limited will also be giving back to the community that host its outlet shops by making sure that at least 30% of its workforce are members of that community. The Great World Enterprises Limited will as well train interns from this community who can later join the Great World Enterprises Limited team.
Mission Vission and Core Values
The Great World Enterprises Limited’s mission is to be the leading supplier of quality products and services. The Great World Enterprises Limited envisions bringing the technology closer to the people by bridging the gap between the producers and the end consumer through their services. The core values of the company are integrity, teamwork, honesty, and quality.
Overview and Structure of the Business
Given that the company is aimed at trading both products and services, there is a need for a big team and an organized structure that will assist the smooth operations of the business. The main sections in the company will be sales, after sale service/repair, and advertisement.
Management Information Systems
The Great World Enterprises Limited is planned to have a hierarchical organization where the management follows the layout of a pyramid, which seems fitting given the nature of its operation. Furthermore, with this system, employess can recognize defined levels of leadership, which will help strengthen the core values of teamwork and integrity. With the different departments, this management system may help build up skills as a result of employee specialization under the respective department (Awan & Soomro, 2012).
Infrastructure and Information Systems Needs
As the plan of the Great World Enterprises Limited is to grow from a small business to a conglomerate, it is vital to consider information technology from day one of business. The company plans to employ the information technology in some areas which include accounting, communication, inventory management, and security (Nedelko, 2009)
Accounting
With a plan to grow, the company will need the accounting of finances. A software accounting system can help keep track of one’s income, expenses, tax liabilities, receivables, and other pertinent financial information.
Communication
Communication is important for the company, both for its workers as well as for the clients. The common form of communication such as phone calls and face-to-face engagement will be used.
Inventory Management and Security
Given that the business is based on the sale of high-end gadgets, the company rightly plans to install the latest technology for anti-theft as well as for the management of inventory.
Your Company’s Management of Data and Knowledge
The IT section will handle all the data for quick access to any kind of data, especially finance related information.
Your Company’s Use of the Internet
The Internet will be utilized mostly for communication and advertisement. Pages on social media platforms will be used to push products to a wider customer base. The online advertising is also targeted at people who have not heard about the company. The Great World Enterprises expects to utilize flexible venture frameworks in its business forms keeping in mind the end goal to limit the human part of dealing with the organization’s data resources. Endeavor application frameworks had the value of enhancing the nature of operations and increasing the operational proficiency of the organization through the use of Customer Relationship Management (CRM), Supply Chain Management (SCM), Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), and Email Marketing System (EMS) (Westford School of Management 2016). They were utilized to incorporate the autonomous organizational forms along these lines to increase the simplicity of primary leadership and effectiveness of operations (Asemi, 2011).
Company’s IT Planning and Analysis Processes
The Great World Enterprises Limited will outsource the IT capacity to focus on its primary business of distribution. The choice to outsource was driven by the benefits of outsourcing, which involved diminished IT cost control as this cost component was to be dealt with as a variable cost in the business instead of settled cost. Additionally, outsourcing gave the company time to focus on its core business along these lines, profiting enough time assets to the administration to drive the organization achievement (Namani, 2010). What’s more, it was conceivable to expand the team productivity, and intensity as the cost assets required for IT research and improvements were not brought about; in this way the cost sharing was to be exchanged to the clients through value decrease.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the business is a promising one given the research that has been conducted earlier. The location for the first shop is a good one with most of its population being youths. The information technology can be used by the company for financial security and inventory purposes. Overall the business is promising.
References:
Asemi, A., & Safari, A. (2011). The role of Management Information system(MIS) and
Decision Support System (DSS) for Managers Decision Making Process. Research
Gate, p. 164-175.
Awan, A., & Soomro, T. (2012). Challenges and future of enterprise application
integration. International Journal of Computer Applications, p. 42-45.
Namani, M. (2010). The Role of information systems in management decision making a theoretical approach. Journal of Information Management, p. 109-117.
Nedelko, Z. (2009). Management Information Systems and information needs of managers in the frame of managerial decision making. 20th Central European Conference on Information and Intelligent Systems, p. 219-225.
Westford School of Management. (2016). Types of nterprise systems in business. Westford School of Management. Retrieved from www.mywestford.com/types-of-enterprise- systems-in-business/
Week 1:
Before answering questions 1-5, please note the following: the weekly forum assignments will guide you through the writing of your research paper, to allow you to begin working through the sections of your paper and receive feedback on it. This semester you are all going to be entrepreneurs. Pretend that you are planning to open your own business within the next year, and that you are writing your business plan. For your research paper, you will analyse the IT requirements for your proposed business and write a proposal for how you plan to meet the IT needs of your new company. Each week on the discussion board, you will have an activity related to your research paper. This is an opportunity for you to begin formulating ideas for your research paper and for you to receive constructive feedback from your peers and your instructor, as you develop your ideas.
For this week’s discussion, I would like everyone to decide what type of business you would like to open (the possibilities are endless, as long as it is legal, ethical, and non-offensive!) and tell us about your proposed business. You can choose any type of business, but you must have a minimum of 20 employees. After giving us a short description of your proposed business, you will begin analyzing the IT requirements of your business in light of what you have learned in your textbook readings this week, and you will begin to explore the role that IT will play in your business.
1) Write a short description of your proposed business. What is the nature of your business? What type of product(s) or service(s) will your business offer? Be sure to give your business a name, so that I can list it in the list of approved topics! 🙂
2) In what ways will the information technology needs be different for upper management, middle management, operational management, and lower level employees (such as production and service workers, and data workers)?
3) Identify the main business processes in your business. What types of business information systems will you need to efficiently run the various business processes of your business?
4) What kinds of enterprise applications will your business require in order to coordinate and integrate the various business processes?
5) How will you organize the information systems function of your business? Will you have one IT expert on staff, will you have an information systems department, or will you outsource the IT function? What will be the primary responsibilities of your IT expert or department?
Paper:
BUSINESS OVERVIEW:
The proposed business name, in this case, was the Great World Enterprises Limited. This was expected to be incorporated in the US and to be listed on the NASDAQ as at 1st January 2018. The company was to be operating in the Consumer Durables industry on the market whereby, it was to be engaged in the distribution and servicing of high-quality electronic devices, smartphones, tablets, and TVs. The business model entailed obtaining a franchise from Apple Inc.,Blackberry Inc, Motorola Inc, Microsoft Corp, Samsung, and LG to act as their distributor in the City of Miami. Its portfolio was to include iPhones, iPad, tvOs, Blackberry phones, all Microsoft phones, all Samsung Galaxy Series phones, Samsung digital TVs, and all LG TVs and phones series.
The business nature of the Great World Enterprises Limited entailed selling, advertising, distribution, repair, and after-sales services of the identified portfolio from the six manufacturers. It was designed to adopt both online, and Brick &Mortar store model with an aim of reaping from both models benefits in a midst of dynamic business environments. It was targeting a niche market, of the Miami growing middle-income population as its customer base, based on scientific market research which was done by market players which identified Miami as a growing market for high-end electronic devices in the US. Its business strategy entailed providing high-quality electronic devices and offer exemplary customer service to residents of Miami at competitive prices. The business main strength was to be leveraged on its high caliber employees who were the key assets of the business.
BUSINESS IT NEEDS AND ORGANIZATION STRUCTURE:
Management information Systems (MIS) represent a key asset in organizations in the modern business world. This was because MIS provided the much-needed information, which was accurate and timely, for decision making at different levels of management in an organization(Asemi & Safari, 2011).In the case of the Great World Enterprises,identification of information needs of the four managerial levels, namely, upper management, middle management, operational management and lower management were a key aspect of developing an objective IT system for the company. This was due to the fact that, different managers in organizations have varying information needs based on the nature of their work in the company. The key roles in the indented Great World Enterprises IT system was to support business operations,decision making and strategy formulation (Nedelko, 2009).
In this case, the Upper Management of the Great World Enterprises was tasked with the formulation of the business vision, mission, goals, and strategy. In this level of management decision making entailed making unstructured decisions which were strategic in nature. This nature of decision making employed information which was ad-hoc,summarized, futuristic,unscheduled and which was wide in scope to make the unstructured, non-routine decisions. On the other hand, the company middle-level management was tasked with implementing the overall company goals and objectives which were set by the top management. Also, they formulated goals and strategies of the business units which they headed in the company. In such levels, the nature of decision-making process was semi-structured and tactical.
To support decision-making process by the middle-level management, the information had a moderate dependency on computer information systems, highly depended on internally generated information, moderately depended on external sources,was highly futuristic, historically moderate and highly employed scenario analysis. The operational level management of the company was tasked with running the functional departments such as the HR, sales & marketing, finance &accounting, and production departments. In this level, the nature of decision making was structured and required information which was predetermined, scheduled, frequent, historical, internal and with a narrow focus, to make operational decisions in the company.The information needs and features in the company lower level management, which entails supervision of the departmental operations, was equally the same as the operational management level.
BUSINESS PROCESSES AND THEIR RESPECTIVE INFORMATION SYSTEMS:
The Great World Enterprises Limited had the following functional areas; sales & marketing, finance & accounting, Human Resource, and Supply Chain Management. In these functional departments, the mainbusiness processes which were running entailed, marketing, customer care, servicing, selling, order processing,billing, payroll, accounts receivable, accounts payables, stock management,customer retention, and loyalty management. The company was requiring “enablers functions” such as the IT department, and network/domain hostage partners to attain the desired operational efficiencies (Namani, 2010).
Based on the company’s business processes, the following types of information systems were employed at different decision-making levels. On the strategic management level, the company employed Executive Support System (ESS) to make non-routine decisions relating to long-termdemand forecast, profit planning and long-term operating plan for the company. On the middle management level, the Great World Enterprises were using Management Information System (MIS) to perform tasks such as contract costing analysis, inventory control, and formulation of annual budgets, perform profitability analysis, sales trend analysis, and carry out sales management among other tasks. Furthermore, both operational and lower management levels of the company employed Transaction Processing System (TPS) to carry out their routine business processes such as payroll processing, billing, invoicing, payments, entering journal entries, placing customers’ orders among other functions.
ENTERPRISE APPLICATIONS:
The Great World Enterprises needed to employ suitable enterprise systems in its business processes in order to minimize the human aspect of managing the company information assets, which was highly characterized by inefficiencies and errors.Enterprise application systems had the merit of improving the quality of operations and increase operational efficiency of the company. In this case, four types of systems, namely Customer Relationship Management(CRM), Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Supply Chain Management system (SCM),and Email Marketing System (EMS),were employed to integrate the independent company processes thus increase the ease of decision making and efficiency of operations (Westford School of Management, 2016).
As a distributor company tasked with driving product sales, CRM was a core system needed to drive the company sales. This was because CRM was a smart application which had the capacity to analyze and accurately forecasts, customer demand, manage customer needs and can accurately show future demand prospects of products based on customer behavior (Awan & Soomro, 2012). The ERP, conversely, was a great software which had the capacity to integrate the purchasing, accounting, finance, human resource, and inventory management functions of the company into one efficient system. SCM was also a good software in a distribution business as it had the capacity to manage the ordering of products from vendors and could effectively perform logistics management activities in the company.EMS was an efficient software to attract and maintain customers through sending emails at low cost, to the customer list, pertaining to new product information.
ORGANIZATION OF INFORMATION SYSTEM IN THE BUSINESS:
The Great World Enterprises Limited will outsource the IT function to concentrate on its core business of distribution. The decision to outsource was driven by the merits of outsourcing, which entailed reducing IT cost control as this cost element was to be treated as a variable cost in the business rather than a fixed cost (Laudon & Laudon, 2015).Also, outsourcing gave the business time to concentrate on its core business, thus availing enough time resources to the management to drive the company success. In addition, it was possible to increase the company efficiency and competitiveness as the costly resources needed for IT research and developments were not incurred, thus the cost saving was to be transferred to the customers through price reduction.
The IT department was tasked with the planning of the overall IT strategy of the business to support attainment of the company objectives. Also, it acts as a support department for business processes, thus increases the overall business operating efficiency. In addition, the IT department was tasked with providing security to company’s information assets. It played a key role of data management through the aspect of the databasewhere voluminous data of an organization are efficiently stored.
Thanks
References:
Asemi, A., & Safari, A. (2011). The Role of Management Information system(MIS) and Decision Support System (DSS) for Managers Decision Making Process. ResearchGate, 164-175.
Awan, A., & Soomro, T. (2012). Challenges and Future of Enterprise Application Integration. International Journal of Computer Applications, 42-45.
Laudon, Kenneth C., & Laudon, Jane P. (2015). Managing Information Systems: Managing the Digital Firm, 14th ed. Prentice Hall.
Namani, M. (2010). The Role of Information Systems In management decision making a Theoretical Approach. Journal of Information Management, 109-117.
Nedelko, Z. (2009). Management Information Systems and Information Needs of Managers In the Frame of Managerial Decision Making. 20th Central European Conference on Information and Intelligent Systems, 219-225.
WestfordSchoolof Management. (2016). Types of Enterprise Systems in Business. Westford School of Management. Retrieved from www.mywestford.com/types-of-enterprise-systems-in-business/
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