Week Four Questions

1. What is an IP Address? What is its main function?

IP stands for internet protocol, an IP address is basically a network address; a unique number assigned to every computer in the world. It is a numerical number attached to a computer device (that can connect to the internet) which allows providers to uniquely identify a device on the network and allow for the computer to talk to other devices. It has two main functions 1) it allows messages to be transported from one computer to another i.e. location addressing and 2) to allow networks to be identified over the internet- through identifying the IP address one can look up sites visited and by which computer.

2. What is Web 2.0, how does it differ from 1.0?

Web 2.0 is the current generation of internet and is also known as the ‘live web’. Economic, social and technology trends form the basis of the next generation of internet which refers more to how the web designers and end users use the World Wide Web as a platform. Whist 1.0 was more about one way information i.e. servers feeding users the information, Web 2.0 is an addition to this allowing more interactive information sharing between servers and its users.

Web 2.0 allows users to submit and collaborate information online whereas web 1.0 was about one way information. A great example that shows the d
ifferences between Web 1.0 and Web 2.0 is the two sites Britannica online and Wikipedia. Britannica online is more about information being distributed one way (web 1.0) where as Wikipedia allows users to post information hence being more interactive with them (web 2.0).

Other examples of 2.0 include networking sites such as facebook and twitter, blogging, podcast/vodcasts etc. Each of these sites allows for heavy interaction with their users and other people online and it also allows for fast and easy information to be transported

Web 2.0 has allowed companies to do business online in an new and efficient way, web 2.0 essentially is about ‘linking people’ (Baltzan and Phillips et al 2010 pp 110) where as web 1.0 was more about ‘linking information (Baltzan and Phillips et al 2010 pp 110). Companies can seek to gain competitive advantage in the market place if they make the move from web 1.0 and 2.0. 2.0 allow businesses to allow access to critical business applications online.

Twitter and Facebook- examples of web 2.0 (click photo to be taken to site)

3. What is Web 3.0?

Web 3.0 is again another addition to web 1.0 and web 2.0. There is not one definte definition about 3.0 however; this new addition focuses more on software agents interacting with each other. Essentially this is a new concept that is turning the internet into a data base using meta-data (that is data about data) e.g. tags in a photo. Web 3.0 allows people to search for information or products through different meangs e.g. amazon suggesting products that other people have purchased and searching for photos using a photo.

Below is a video that sums up web 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0 and identifies where they differ.

4. Describe the different methods an organisation can use to access information

There are four main ways an organisation can access information: intranet, extranet,

portal and Kiosk.

1)Intranet: internalised portion of the internet. Intranet is protected from ourside access

and allows organisations to proceed information and software to only their employees. It

is a private computer network that uses IPs to ensure privacy when sharing organisations

information across the company.

2) Extranet: An extranet is similar to an intranet however the extranet allows for strategic allies i.e. customers, suppliers, partners etc) to gain access the this private information.

3) Portal: A portal is technology that provides access to information. They are sites that offer a immense amount of services and information e.g. email and search engines. There are two types of portals; general (including things such as Google or yahoo) and niche portals (such as

4) Kisosk: a kiosk is a publicly accessible computer that allows for interactive information browsing. Kiosks usually run specific programs/ software systems that provide simple information and navigation through the program. A great example of a kiosk is the self-check in kiosks at airports. These are simple programs with little navigation to allow customers to electronically check in for their flights.

5. What is eBusiness, how does it differ from eCommerce?

E-commerce is the buying and selling of goods and services over the internet where e-business is the conduction of business over the internet; this includes buying and selling, but also the serving of customers over the internet and work with business partners. The main difference between e-business and e-commerce is that e-business refers to online exchanges of information where E-commerce refers only to online transactions. E-business is more about online business as a whole whilst ecommerce focuses purely on the transactions in process. E.g. facebook is still classified as ebusiness because although no transactions are being placed through the site, business is still being conducted through bogs, advertisements and networking.

6. List and describe the various eBusiness models? (Hint: B2B)

1) Business to Business (B2B)- This is a business buying and selling goods and services to

other businesses.

2) Business to Consumer (B2C) A common model found in society too where a business sells their goods or services to a consumer.

3) Consumer to consumer (C2C) consumers interact with each other selling goods and

services . This can include sites such as ‘ebay’ ad ‘gumtree’

4) Consumer to Business (C2B) The consumer sells goods or services to businesses. E.g a web master offering advertising services on amazon

7. List 3 metrics would you use if you were hired to assess the effectiveness and the efficiency of an eBusiness web site?

1- You can measure how long people spend on your site

2- You can determine the types of people who visit your site- demographic information

3- You can assess the process of buying products on your site- is it easy for consumers, are consumers buying

8. Outline 2 opportunities and 2 challenges faced by companies doing business online?

Opportunities:

• The operation is 24/7. Business is not limited to 9-5 on a business day, through online businesses the business is continuous and constantly accessible for consumers
• Improved information about the product. Online businesses allow for people to research their product better- getting the best price for it and also able to leave comments about the product and find out what other people think of it.

Challenges:

• A major challenge is the security of consumers
• There are a lot of people doing business online so a major challenge faced by a company would be making sure your company and goods are found by consumers easily. When someone searches for your business you want it to come up first and be readily available for them.

Week Three Questions

1. Define TPS & DSS, and explain how an organisation can use these systems to make decisions and gain competitive advantages

An informed decision can be made when all aspects are looked at and when all information is presented and analyzed. IT has helped improve the decisions –making process by providing relevant information so efficiently however; it has also made it harder these days with the amount of information being produced so rapidly.

An Organisation will use various information technology systems such as ‘Transaction processing systems’ (TPS) and ‘Decision support systems’ (DSS) in order to sort through this information and make the best informed decision for their company based on the information.

TPS is an information system that involves gathering, recording and analysing the different transactions of a company for example sales of product, analysing daily sales reports, inventory etc. ‘It is the basic business system that serves the operational level in an Organisation.’(Baltzan, Phillips, Lynch, Blakey 2010 pp 58)

TPS is part of Analytical information a company gathers and has a primary purpose of supporting the performing of daily operations. The systems generate information about sales of products, cash withdrawals and purchasing shares. This information allows for managers to understand their market and business and be able to make various decisions about it e.g. whether or not to opening a new store, hiring a new person or entering a new market etc.

E.g TPS can be used when analysing sales of a product- through analysing the sales of a product the business can determine how much stock to carry allowing for the product to be readily available for consumers.

Through using TPS within an organisation the company can keep a competitive edge in their industry. Having this business intelligence allows them to know trends within the company, sales records etc; this can then be evaluated and fixed if needed. TPS can identify issues and help improve the efficiency of the company- keeping their competitive edge.

E.g. the bank records how many ATM transactions occur in the day- they will analyse whether or not their system can handle it and if it can’t, how can they fix it?

Knowing various transactions about a company allows the business to know their strengths and weaknesses and able to fix and market them. Industries have set benchmarks for various things and TPS’ can allow businesses to know where they stand in the industry. If the bench mark for a an online transaction is 2.5 seconds through TPS analysis a company can find out their transaction process is 1.5 seconds- this can be marketed and competitive advantage is found.

DSS is a group of information systems that support managers when making decisions. There are three quantitative models that are typically used by DSS they are: Sensitivity analysis, what-if analysis and goal seeking analysis. This system takes the transaction information from TPS and summaries them and combines them to help assist with decision-making. It allows managers to predict future outcomes of a particular part of the business and this allows them to keep a competitive edge on their competitors.

Through knowing information provided by DSS businesses can understand their organisation more and understanding their environment. DSS allows companies to analyse process models within their organisation and make changes accordingly. The sensitivity analysis allows an Organisation to make slight changes within the business in order to improve it.

The ‘what if analysis’ allows for managers to create scenarios that may affect the business ensuring that they are able significantly lower any harm these situations may have towards the business. This keeps a competitive edge for the company as they have foreseen the future and developed plans and strategies if these scenarios pan out.

Finally the goal setting analysis allows for targets to be set and met within a business. This keeps focus on the business and keeps them constantly developing their processes. With technology constantly changing, through setting goals companies can continue to move forward, develop innovative products and keep their competitive edge.

(Picture) IT Systems in an organisation

2. Describe the three quantitative models typically used by decision support systems.

1. Sensitivity analysis- is when an Organisation changes one or more aspect of the model and analysing what happens to it.

e.g. what will happen if we add three more lanes to the check out process.

2. What-if analysis- This is where you analyse the impact of situations on your business. Foreseeing future situations that may occur affecting business- the situations range from best case to worst case scenarios

e.g. what impact will petrol increase have on our taxi business.

3.goal-seeking analysis- is where managers set goals and targets for their business and tweaks other variables in order to get there.

e.g. We want to increase the sales of our bike how will we do that.

3. Describe a business processes and their importance to an organisation.

Business processes are the different activities a company does to reach their goals and objective. Business processes are standard activities that meet certain tasks. A business stays competitive in the industry when they minimize the cost of things and make their business process more effective and efficient. Business processes are so important to a company because it outlines the way it should work. These processes make the operation of the business more effective and efficient if carried out appropriately.

An example of a business process is the distribution of products from an online source. If the business does not meet their 7 working day delivery they have not met the customers needs and the customers can seek to go elsewhere. It is so important that this process works effectively in a company so the customer can be satisfied and continue to buy your products.

Business processes are also so important because they help with efficiency within the business. Examining business processes helps an organisation to anticipate bottlenecks, eliminate duplicate activities, combine related activities and identify smooth-running processes’ (Baltzan and Phillips 2010 pp 70) These processes allow for a smooth running business which can increase profits and benefit the company greatly. A business process should be regularly monitored and assessed for improvments.

4. Compare business process improvement and business process re-engineering.

Business process improvement, seeks to understand the current processes of the company evaluate it and make changes and improvements to it where needed. This is so important for a business to constantly do so they are able to improve their organisation and stay competitive. Because of technology customers have a range of products to choose from so if they are not happy with your service then they can easily go elsewhere, this is why business process improvements are extremely important.

Whilst business process improvement is the improving of current models within the business, business process re-engineering is about analysing the current model and reworking, re-designing it to meet the needs. Before undertaking BPR the organisation must think if the model doesn’t work any more of will this new model work. The world is constantly changing so a company must frequently conduct BPR in order to stay competitive in the market and meet their customer’s needs. It not only helps the company serve customers better but it also sets benchmarks for the industry; evolving it over time.

A model can only be improved to a certain degree, when times change and competitive advantage is needed reengineering of a model may be required.

5. Describe the importance of business process modelling (or mapping) and business process models.

Business process modelling (or mapping) is the creation of a flow chart outlining work process, inputs, activities and tasks in sequential way. Business process models are the actual graphic description of this process, showing the sequence of tasks from a specific viewpoint.

Through mapping out the business processes a company is able to do a sensitivity analysis and tweak various aspects of it improving their processes and models. Mapping also allows for various aspects of the business it can help managers understand complex aspects of projects and allows for analysis and decisions about various points and variables. It is important for accuracy, analysis and details. It allows for focused attention of the process model interfaces and it lays out processes in an easy to understand manner.

Business process models are important because it outlines how the process will be achieved. It in a way gives direction to the business process models. There are both ‘As-is process’ models, which show the current state of the operation that has been mapped out with no specific improvements or changes. There is also a ‘To-Be process’ model, which shows the impact of applying change and improvements to the ‘as-is’ model. The results from this ensure that all details of the process are understood before all the final details are decided on.

They are both so important in the planning of new or improved processes as it gives direction to decision makers and outlines the plan in a clear and effective way.

Below the video explains how to effctivley manage business processes and improve your business that way. It also explains business process management (BPM)

Reference List:

Baltzan, P. Phillips, A. Lynch, K. & Blakey, P. , 2010, 'Business Driven Information Systems', 1st edt, Mc Graw Hill, North Ryde, Australia

Week Two Questions

Explain information technology’s role in business and describe how you measure success?

Information technology (IT) plays a significant role in the running and success of a business.

IT above all effects the operations of a company and hence is an important factor in business. Baltzan, Phillips, Lynch and Blakey in their book ‘Business Driven Information Systems’ suggest that IT not only effects business, but also has the ability to ‘transform it’. (Baltzan, Phillips, Lynch and Blakey 2010 pp 8)

Technology, if used effectively, can help strengthen the company and allow for managers to prosper in the business world. Technology gives companies the edge on competitors, facilitates communication between employees, helps reduces costs, improve productivity and make trading for the company easier. IT helps provide ‘efficiency and effectiveness’ (Baltzan and Phillips et al pp 10) across the company.

An important role of IT is the fact that it can increase business intelligence. Increased business intelligence means companies can receive information and data about their business enabling them to effectively evaluate the success of their company and help them make decisions to do with the business regarding productivity, new business adventures, competitors, improving customer service, industry environments etc.

IT can also help with the communication both internally and externally. Through the development of technologies such as computers and mobile phones organisations can develop stronger communication skills within the company with employees. This enables fast paced communication between the various functional areas of the business resulting in increased productivity and efficiency within the business.

IT has also helped with effective communication between companies and their suppliers, partners or clients. IT has enabled businesses to effectively communicate various issues to these stakeholders and keep them up to date with what is happening in the Organisation.

It is very important for the IT people in an organisation to understand the business so they can effectively provide information about new processing systems that can contribute to the company and solve any issues that have presented themselves.

IT Success:

The success of IT within a business is not an easy thing to measure, as the return of investment is not easily determined. An effective way a manager can determine the success of IT is through different measures of KPI’s, efficiency and effectiveness metrics and benchmarking.

KPI’s are Key Performance Indicators. KPI’S are set up to analyse how successful particular areas of a business are.

Within retail examples of KPI’s could be ‘sales vs. budget’ or ‘the conversion ratio’ (how many people enter the store over how many actually buy products) - each analysing the success of the team and company within the industry.

This is similar with IT. To measure how successful the IT has been on our company, we need to analyse the key measure of their performance. Some suggestions for KPI’s within a companies IT department could be the amount of viruses the company had over the year, the amount of technical support people needed throughout the year or even the number of support calls they received. Each of these KPI’s determines how successful the IT team has been over the year.

Efficiency and effectiveness metrics: is another way a business can measure the success of IT.

Efficiency metrics measures how efficient the IT system was itself. It measures the speed and availability of IT. This can be measured through the amount of times the computers crashed or how fast the system was over the year. Efficiency wants to analyse how well the organisation is using the resources it has.

Effectiveness metrics: Effectiveness metrics is about how the IT has helped improve the company. It looks at customer satisfaction.

Effectiveness metrics and efficiency metrics can’t be separated from each other- they are co-dependent. Efficient does not always equal effective therefore when analysing an organisation you must look at the companies goals and objectives as well as the strategy they are using and see if they are achieving it.

Benchmarking: this is another effective way to analyse the IT of a business. A benchmark is a ‘baseline of values that the system seeks to attain’ (Baltzan and Phillips et al 2010 pp 21) Benchmarking entails analysing an organisations results compared to the baseline of values the organisation has set. If these goals have not been met the company must understand why and re evaluate their system. This is a great way of analysing the success of IT in a business as it gives a realistic way of measuring both the effectiveness and efficiency of IT.

List and describe each of the forces in Porter’s Five Forces Model?

The five forces model was developed by Potter and is ‘ a useful tool to aid in understanding competition and its implications for business strategy’ (Baltzan and Phillips et al 2010 pp 26). The five forces help establish how a company is measuring up within the industry they are in, establish various opportunities, threats and understand various competitors which intern effect their strategy.

The Five forces in the model are:

Buyer power: This is the power consumers have to change and influence the price they will pay for a product. Buyer power is high when consumers have many products to choose from and low when there are fewer brands and products. By reducing the buyer power you are creating competitive advantage. You want to make the product look the most attractive to your consumers and make them want to buy it more than your competitor

E.g. competitive advantage may include the company offering a ‘buy one get one free’ promotion

Supplier power: Supplier power is high when a supplier has higher influence and power within their industry. When a supplier has this they are able to have higher prices for goods or limit quality. When it is high consumers loose have very little choice in products and their prices. Suppliers want their power to be high so they can have control over their prices and products.

Threat of substitute products or services: this is high when there are many competitors in the industry and alternatives of products available for consumers. An ideal market for a company would be having little replacement for products available to consumers (little competing products) It is low when there are few alternatives in the industry.

Threat of new entrants: This is when a new competitor enters your market. It is high when it is easy for a new competitor to enter the market and low when the competition is tougher and there are ‘entry barriers’ (Baltzan and Phillips et al 2010 pp28) that must be met in order to survive in the industry.

E.g. an entry barrier for an airline would be online booking. Customers expect this in the industry and if a new entrant cannot provide this it can’t survive within the industry.

Rivalry among existing competitors: This is high when competitors are aggressive or intense within the industry and low when competition is not. There are multiple ways to reduce rivalry one being competitive advantage. If a company differentiates themselves to the other products on the market then the rivalry is reduced. Another ways is to use switching costs. This is when a customer doesn’t want to buy the alternative to your product on the market.

Porters Five Forces Model (Baltzan and Phillips et al 2010 pp 27)

For further information visit: http://www.quickmba.com/strategy/porter.shtml

Describe the relationship between business processes and value chains?

Both the value chain and business process play a fundamental role in the execution of strategy. Business processes are a set of specific activities used to meet a certain task

The value chain (see below image) is a theory by Porter that suggests a business is made up of processes that add value to the product/service

Value creation is the result of an effective business process. Through effective analysing of the value chain within an organisation the business can identify the most important activities that need to be accomplished to meet the consumers needs adding value to the customer. The company must work with the IT department to find appropriate operating systems that maintain these activities.

An organisation uses the value chain to analyse the success of their activities and strategies in the Organisation. The value chains analyse the effectiveness of the business processes within the organisation and how they can improve them too. An organisation can create value by performing certain tasks through the value chain and through re evaluating business strategy.

Compare Porter’s three generic strategies?

The three generic strategies are:

1.Broad cost leadership- this targets a large market in the industry, it appeals to a large audience

2.Broad differentiation- this focuses on a unique selling point for a company

3.Focused strategy- target a specific market. Focused strategies usually focus on either cost leadership or differentiation

Both broad cost leadership and broad differentiation have a broader market than focused strategy. Differentiation has a higher cost than cost leadership, which aims to get the best prices for the product. The focused strategy is more about a focused market, which is very narrow.

Porter suggests organisations adopt only one of these strategies as they enter the market. Adopting more than one can lead to confusion with your business strategy.

Reference list:

Baltzan, P. Phillips, A. Lynch, K. & Blakey, P. , 2010, 'Business Driven Information Systems', 1st edt, Mc Graw Hill, North Ryde, Australia