Case Study 9 Social Commerce Creates New Customer Relationships

Case Study 9

Social Commerce Creates New Customer Relationships

Question 1

Assess the people, organization, and technology issues for using social media to engage with customers.

Answer

To most of the people used facebook and twitter to keep touch with friend and to let them learn and know what there are doing. Social media like Facebook and Twitter have transformed the way some businesses think about advertising. For all type of companies, facebook and twitter has become powerful tool for engaging customers. Companies can use facebook and twitter to make trade off, promotion, and services to make a business without spend significant cost. For service, location based on business such as gourmet food trucks can tweet their current location to loyal followers and fans. Appointment-based businesses can easily tweet or post cancellations and unexpected openings. Larger companies of all sizes have an opportunity run sweepstakes and promotions and other all size of companies have an opportunity to shape the perception of their brands and to solidify relationships with their customers. Companies have running out that capitalize on the social media feature if Facebook to achieve greater visibility. For example, facebook have feature the ability to like a brand, send a virtual gift, answer a pool question, and instantly stream information to your news feed. Twitter has developed many new offering like promoted tweets and promoted trend. These features give advertisers the ability to have their tweets displayed more prominently when twitter users search for certain keyword. 

Question 2

What are the advantage and disadvantage of using social media for advertising, brand building, market research and customer service?

Answer

Advantage/disadvantage:

The advantage of advertising in social media marketing is cost-related. The majority of social media web sites are free to access, create a profile and post information. The advantage of reaching your targeted market was little or no cash investment wanted, and the audience wanting your information was voluntarily joins and follows you. The viral nature of social media means that each person who reads your posts has the capability to spread the news wide within his own network, so information can reach a large number of people in a short time.

That result shows just how highly CMOs (chief marketing officer) rate the brand building advantage of social media. Chief marketing officer (CMO) is a corporate executive responsible for marketing activities in an organization. Considering the size of the potential market on social media channels like Facebook and Twitter, it’s an obvious brand opportunity. Brand building was the original reason for businesses to join social media. The math was basic but they produce favorable results 900 million people on Facebook, even accessing 0.001% of that would provide a huge opportunity. Even though businesses have identified other advantages of social media, brand building is still a key part of the plan. The research provided further evidence of this as over 80% of CMOs agree that social marketing can have a measurable impact on brand awareness and brand loyalty. For example, Levi’s was one of the first national brands to use Facebook and twitter to allow customer to socialize and share their purchases with friend. The Levi’s Facebook page have 500,000 ‘like’ message posted by friends sharing their favorite jeans.

The disadvantage of in social media marketing is updating the social media accounts take time and effort. A senior person with knowledge about the company and products should handle your social media presence, and the cost in time means the media is not completely free. It is ongoing work to find new angles about your products continually and to post and re-post information. The information is only visible for a short time before newer posts replace it. In addition, publishing obvious advertising copy is unacceptable in the social media world, therefore you must present the information in the form of conversation or you will lose followers.

Question 3

Should all companies use facebook and twitter for customer service and advertising? Why or why not? What kinds of companies are best suited to use this platform?

Answer

In my opinion, all type or size company should use facebook and twitter for customer service and advertising. The company can use social media to provide good customer service through e mail, special message, and private password, web access to special areas for top customers to their customer.  Why? Because now a day most of the companies make business in sell its products or services to customers over the internet from facebook and twitter. The results show that which companies use social media was increase their sale and gain more profit. Companies using facebook and twitter to advertising and provide customer service to engage customers. These critically help their companies to gain profit. For example levi’s, within the first week of its share campaign, levi’s received 4,000 ‘like’. The company began using twitter in 2010 by creating a ‘levi’s guy’ to interest customers. He has over 6,000 followers and is responsible for responding to queries and engaging in conversations about the levi’s brand on twitter. In 2011, the company creates a personalized friend store where shoppers can see what their friends ‘like’ and brought. These not only show that the people who ‘like’ the page, it is clearly show that the levi’s company demand was increase drastically. When the demand increase the company was advantage in gain high profit.  Even the facebook and twitter posting was always get complain but advertiser may still benefit.

Case Study 8 Achieving Operation Excellence and Customer Intimacy: Enterprise Applications

Case Study 8

Achieving Operation Excellence and Customer Intimacy: Enterprise Applications

Question 1

What types of companies are most likely to adopt cloud-based CRM software services? Why? What companies might not be well-suited for this type of software?

Answer

Types of companies that may want to adopt cloud may be any company wanting to consolidate multiple services or applications into one, mainly to reduce electricity, personal or operating costs. Companies that need a Service level agreement or sense of data security would not want to invest into a cloud system. Companies who struggling with a lot of data to be store also prefer to use this. Cutting cost companies are also recommended to use this system.

Cloud-based CRM would help these companies to achieve operational excellent and customer intimacy and released from fixed and operational cost. Not only that, it also allow them to subscribe and cancel without losing large up-front software license and hardware investment.

Some companies are not suit with this software services. Those companies made large investment on solutions that already work, concern about security issues and control of their data are the examples not encourage to use such software. Companies which might independent on their provider also not prefer to do so.  

Question 2

What are the advantages and disadvantages of using cloud-based enterprise applications?

Answer

There are some advantages of using cloud-based enterprise applications. First is automates customer service. This system including order confirmations, follow-up customer satisfaction surveys, and shipping notifications. Customer satisfaction and productivity have sored. Not only that, the system now tracks field activities for more than 10000 accounts, with automated reports and dash boards monitoring key performance indicators, sales calls, and sales volume. Besides, this system able to combine multiple services into one single service such as e-mail, customer records and contact management.

Unfortunately, there are also some disadvantages in this system. Low data security is one of the bugs. Lack of service level agreements and guarantees also considered as the disadvantages of this system.

Question 3

What people, organization, technology issues should be addressed in deciding whether to use a conventional CRM system versus a cloud-based version?

Difficult to understand for ill-trained users, attempting to contain a large and complex group of data.  Poor usability and low usage rates lead many companies to indicate that it was difficult to justify investment in the software without the potential for more tangible gains. Large investment to build and maintain a customer database which requires computer hardware, database software, analytical programme, communication links and skill personnel. There was a risk assessment to the users because the using of this cloud-based software server is not the owner of infrastructure privacy. Dependability should be consider during the decision due to the issues of storing data, difficult to export data, and dependent of provider.

Case Study 12 Interactive Session: Technology (LIFE ON THE GRID : iPhone Become iTrack)

Case Study 12

Interactive Session: Technology (LIFE ON THE GRID : iPhone Become   iTrack)

Question 1

Why do cell phone manufacturers (Apple, Google, and BlackBerry) want to track where their customers go?

Answer

The cell phone manufacturers (Apple, Google, and BlackBerry) want to track where their customers go because they collect this data for advertising and marketing purposes. And the mobile technologies based on the Smartphone make it possible to locate people through out of the day, to report this information to cooperate data sell it to advertisers and others.A number of firms have adopted business models based on the ability of smart phones to report on the whereabouts. Most of the popular apps report the locations.

Question 2

Do you think cell phone customers should be able to turn tracking off ? Should customers be informed when they are being tracked? Why or why not?

Answer

Yes I think that there should be a feature to turn such features off because the. Customers should be informed even though most apps do display that GPS and network access is a requirement for the application. Because the cell phone by using the phone companies technology to triangulate positions relative to cell phone towers. This location capability has been increased significantly in recent years as more phones come equipped with GPS chips to more precisely position the user. Access to location has been very limited beyond emergency responders, due to legal and privacy concerns.

Question 3

Do you think cell phone tracking is a violation of a person’s privacy?

Answer

Many privacy groups are calling for legislation to gain user consent as a condition of cell phone tracking. Go to the Internet to find out one of the privacy groups and summarize its stand and viewpoint. We must support this group in its call for federal regulation cell phone tracking. Because the Cell phone manufacturers (Apple, Google and Blackberry) tracking is indeed an invasion of privacy. A privacy group is Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC).The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) was founded in 1993 and focuses public attention to emerging civil liberties and to protect privacy, the first amendment, and constitutional values. EPIC does not lobby for, consult, or advice companies, nor do we endorse specific products or services. This list merely serves as a sampling of available privacy-enhancing tools. I do support its calls for federal regulation because it does need to be regulated, as this type of tracking is a breach of privacy. Google and Apples position of cell phone tracking is to help improve apps and service. Limitations of cell phone tracking can be specified in the settings from accurate to city locations.

Case Study 11 (DST Systems Scores with Scrum and Application Lifecycle Management)

Case Study 11

DST Systems Scores with Scrum and Application Lifecycle Management

Question 1

What were some of the problems with DST Systems’ old software development environment?

Answer

DST Systems is a software development company whose flagship product, Automated Work Distributor, increases back – office efficiency and help offices become paperless. DST was founded in1969 and its headquarters are in Kansas City, Missouri. The company has approximately ten thousand employees, 1200 of whom are software developers.

Some of the problem is DST Systems’ used a mixture of tools, processes, and sourced code control system, different group within the organization used very different tools for software development for example like Eclipse.  This makes managers hard to unable to easily determine how resources were being allocated, which of their employees were working on certain project, and the status of specific assets. Other than that, the previous method that is “waterfall” method which is used for designing, coding, testing and integrating its product. In the waterfall model of software development, progression flows sequentially from one step to next like a waterfall, with each step unable to start until the previous step has been completed.

Question 2

How did Scrum development help solve some of those problems?

Answer

Scrum is a framework for agile software development in which project progress via a series of iteration called sprints. Scrum projects make progress in a series of sprints, which are time boxed iterations no more than a month long. Scrum development help solve some of those problem by relies on self- organizing, cross- functional teams supported by a Scrum Master and a product owner. The Scrum Master acts as a coach for the team, while the product owner represents the business, customers or users in guiding the team toward building the right product. DST tried Scrum with its existing software development tools and experienced strong results. The company accelerated its software development cycle from 24 to 6 month and developer productivity increased 20 present. 

Question 3

What other adjustments did DST make to be able to use Scrum more effectively in its software projects? What management, organization and technology issues had to be addressed?

Answer

The other adjustments DST was able to make to use Scrum more effectively in its software projects were by setting up a project evaluation team to identify the right development environment. DST wanted the ability to use the new software without significant training and software they could quickly adopt without jeopardizing AWD’s development cycle. After considering, DST settled on CollabNet’s offerings.

CollabNet specializes in software designed to work well with agile software development methods such as Scrum. Its core product is TeamForge, it used to centralize management of users, projects, processes and assets. DST adopted Collabnet's subversion product to help with the management control of changes to project documents, programs, and other information stored as computer files. DST’s adoption of CollabNet’s products was fast, just requiring 10 weeks. Besides, the adjustment allowed DST to complete all of their work within the ALM platform.

For the part of management, organization and technology issues had to be addressed, Jerry Tubbs, the systems development manager at DST systems, says DST was successful in attempts to revamp the software group because some factors.

1.  Looked for simplicity rather than complicated

2.  Much cheaper than some of the alternatives

3. Involved developers in the decision making process to ensure that change to be greeted enthusiastically

4. Allow for the developers to adopt ALM software on their own.

The company was successful because they selected the right development framework as well as the right software to make that change a reality and skillfully managed the change process.

Case Study 10 (Albassami's Job Is Not Feasible Without IT)

Case Study 10

Albassami's Job Is Not Feasible Without IT

Question 1

What systems are described here? What valuable information do they provide?

Answer

The system needed the facility to serve specific sectors in the organization, in addition to providing information throughout the group. The system is based on clustered Dell servers running Windows 2003 and connected to over 270 Window XP clients. The database management system, used as the backbone of the system, is Sybase Adaptive server, whereas clients use SQL Anywhere. There is replication between the server at headquarters and the client’s branches. Throughout the replication, branches’s data is sent to the server and aggregated to create the most updated database version, and the sent back to the branches. This means every branch has the most recent version of the client list, truscks’ availability, and new shipping contracts so that any customer is able to deal with any branch at any time.

Entreprise-wide knowledge management systems are firmwide efforts to collect, store, distribute, and apply digital content and knowledge. Enterprise content management system provide databases and tools for organizing and storing structured documents and tools for organizing and storing semistructured knowledge, such as e-mail or rich media. Knowledge network systems provide directories and tools for locating firm employees with special expertise who are important sources of tacit knowledge. Often these systems include group collaboration tools, portals to simplify information access, search tools, and tools for classifying information based on a taxonomy that is appropriate for the organization. Enterprise-wide knowledge management systems can provide considerable value if they are well designed and enable employees to locate, share, and use knowledge more efficiently.

From the study, digital form is the company had to establish several infrastructural components such as the computer network, backup system and security policy this enabled the implementation of various systems including time and attendance systems this has saved a lot of lost working hours and has been linked to the ERP. Next, website having an attractive and informative website has become a major need .the website helps many functional departments including marketing HR, sales, and customers services.

Lastly, Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) is the company has picked Oracle E-business Suite after meeting planning what would really fit their needs. The modules chosen to help automate the business processes were: Oracle financials, inventory management, manufacturing sales and marketing, order management and procurement. CEO and it consultant involvement   in the project steering committee and adequate training and change management.

Question 2

What value did the IT/IS investments add to Albassami?

Answer

Since the system is based on clustered Dell servers running Windows 2003 and connected to over 270 Window XP clients. The database management system, used as the backbone of the system, is Sybase Adaptive server, whereas clients use SQL Anywhere. There is replication between the server at headquarters and the client’s branches. Throughout the replication, branches’s data is sent to the server and aggregated to create the most updated database version, and the sent back to the branches.The IT/IS investments add to Albassami achieving some strategic business objectives which are operational excellence, new products, customer and supplier intimacy, improved decision making and competitive advantage.

Question 3

How did implementing the Shipping Information System address the business needs and information requirements of Albassami?

Answer

The shipping information system used at Albassami maintains all the sender information such as the sent car, the truck number, the sender and receiving branches, and it also send an SMS to the client acknowledging the arrival of the car. The system also records the client’s data, and holds maintenance information. Linking the data of vehicle maintenance centers with the transportation service helps to enhance company performance and achieve better customer service. The system also enables standard reports to be provided to top management and head sectors about the productivity of each branch, resulting in accurate identification of needs for different regions and thus proper budget allocation. In addition, the system allowed a better audit on all drivers’ tracking information.

Case Study 4 Interative Session : Technology (UPS Competes Globally with Information Technology)

Case Study 4

Interative Session : Technology

UPS Competes Globally with Information Technology

Question 1

What are the inputs, processing and outputs of UPS’s package tracking system?

Answer

Inputs of UPS’s package tracking system is scan bar-coded label attached to a package which contains detailed information about the sender, the destination and when the package should arrive.

The processing of UPS’s package tracking system is before the package is picked up, information from the “smart” label is transmitted to one of UPS computer centers in Mahwah, New Jersey or Alpharetta, Georgia and sent to the distribution center nearest its final destination.

The output of UPS’s package tracking system is customers download and print their own labels using special software provided by UPS or by accessing the UPS Web site.

Question 2

What technologies are used by UPS? How are these technologies related to UPS’s business strategy?

Answer

UPS has used the dispatchers in computer center to download the label data and use special software to create the most efficient delivery route for each driver that consider traffic, weather condition and the location of each step. By using the software, UPS estimate it save 3 million fewer gallon of fuel of every year. This technology related to UPS’s business strategy which is best services and lowest rates.

Moreover, to accomplish business strategy which UPS want to increase cost savings and safety, UPS are train driver to use “340 Methods” to optimize the performance of every task from lifting and loading boxes to selecting a package from a shelf in the truck.

UPS has also used handheld computer called Delivery Information Acquisition Device (DIAD) which can access wireless cell phone network. Drivers can know their task by handheld, the DIAD has a function which is automatically captures customers signatures.

Question 3 

What strategic business objective do UPS information system address?

Answer

The strategic business objective that UPS information system address were provided best customer services to the customers. Every year UPS spend more than $1 billion to maintain high level of customer services.

UPS also focus on improve the efficiency of the performance. UPS invest and use a lot of systems or software to increase the company performance. For example, Package Tracking System, UPS using this system to monitor and re-route package throughout the delivery process. The UPS can always improve operational efficiency.

The others strategic business objective is lower cost. UPS was keeping costs low to compete with competitors like FedEx. By using information system in UPS, it can reduce cost of operation.

Question 4

What would happen if UPS’s information systems were not available?

Answer

If UPS’s information systems were not available, UPS will face some problems. The process of providing information to customer will become slow. The customer cannot receive the information rapidly.

The operation of UPS will also become slow. Because UPS is using technology and information to monitor and control the operation when information system does not available, it will effect to the operation of the organization.

Moreover, UPS need to spend more on cost. The cost to deliver the product and monitor the performance of driver will increase when information system does not occur.

Power Slide Presentation [Lecture 11 Building Information System] (Group New Generation)