The article that I chose for this week is about a project that the US government new C.I.O. Vivek Kundra has proposed in order to keep track of federal technology projects. According to Mr. Kundra there is a lot of money wasted every year on federal government technology projects that get abandoned for one reason or another. In his opinion, the Federal Government has been wasting time and resources trying to come up with a custom designed system for every problem instead of using what's already available commercially.
Mr. Kundra is now in charge of managing $76 billion that is spent yearly to maintain 10,000 government systems as well as 800 active projects to build new systems. His answer to managing all these projects and systems and avoiding failures lies in the use of dashboards. He is planning to start another federal web-site that will allow officials as well as public accessing information about all of the government technology projects, their purpose, schedule and budget. It will also show the name of the official responsible for the project, and it will also keep track of any changes that are done which sometimes may be a sign that the project may fail if the number of changes is significant, more than 10, according to Mr. Kundra. The dashboards will also be able to show if "the start date of the project was retroactively moved forward to make it look less late." Based on a number of key indicators, every project will be rated from 0 to 10. The data from these dashboards will be available for people who want to build their own applications for analizing federal technology projects. Applications will also be available for posting on social networks.
Mr. Kundra believes that these dashboards will be particularly useful because people looking at them will be able to make suggestions about the technology. He thinks this might prevent government technology projects from failure.
I personally found this article very interesting. It seems that this guy has some great ideas that might save a lot of tax dollars from going nowhere.
References:
1. "The Nation’s C.I.O.: Government Needs a Dashboard." Saul Hansell. June 15, 2009.
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/06/15/the-nations-co-government-needs-a-dashboard/
Monday, June 15, 2009
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Case Study: Nestle Tries for an All-for-One Global Strategy
Question 2.
Originally Nestle adopted the multinational business strategy. Ther headquarters were set up in Switzerland, but each local organization was given a lot of freedom to condct business as it saw fit and adjust products to local cultures. So the company was largely decentralized. The same can be said about their IT system. To support a lot of variation and diversity Nestle was using 80 different IT units. Over the years Nestle discovered that such strategy and corresponding IT was inefficient and was starting cost the company a lot of money affecting its bottom line.
Question 3.
There were several challenges that Nestle's management had to overcome to standardize its processes. First of all, the original deadline for converting most of the company's operations to GLOBE was underestimated, and it had to be postponed several times from December 2003 to 2006. Secondly, it was extremely difficult to convince managers of operations across the world to change to a unified system. The GLOBE project manager Chris JOhnson basically had to tell the managers that if they didn't back im up, he sould simply get fired, and the CEO would choose one of them to do the job. Another challenge was to identify and describe the main processes which had never been put on paper before and had been passed by word of mouth.
Question 4.
Nestle dealt with these challenges in several ways. The implementation deadline had to be postponed and instead of setting the goal of converting 70% of business to GLOBE by 2003, they decided to conver the majority of businesses to GLOBE by the end of 2005. To compile the Best Practices Library Chris Johnson made sure he chose the best of the best people he could find, people from different backgrounds with different experiences who knew exactly how the company was functioning. He used his leadership skills to convince the managers of different units to back him up. In my opinion, he was very successful with dealing with these complex issues.
Originally Nestle adopted the multinational business strategy. Ther headquarters were set up in Switzerland, but each local organization was given a lot of freedom to condct business as it saw fit and adjust products to local cultures. So the company was largely decentralized. The same can be said about their IT system. To support a lot of variation and diversity Nestle was using 80 different IT units. Over the years Nestle discovered that such strategy and corresponding IT was inefficient and was starting cost the company a lot of money affecting its bottom line.
Question 3.
There were several challenges that Nestle's management had to overcome to standardize its processes. First of all, the original deadline for converting most of the company's operations to GLOBE was underestimated, and it had to be postponed several times from December 2003 to 2006. Secondly, it was extremely difficult to convince managers of operations across the world to change to a unified system. The GLOBE project manager Chris JOhnson basically had to tell the managers that if they didn't back im up, he sould simply get fired, and the CEO would choose one of them to do the job. Another challenge was to identify and describe the main processes which had never been put on paper before and had been passed by word of mouth.
Question 4.
Nestle dealt with these challenges in several ways. The implementation deadline had to be postponed and instead of setting the goal of converting 70% of business to GLOBE by 2003, they decided to conver the majority of businesses to GLOBE by the end of 2005. To compile the Best Practices Library Chris Johnson made sure he chose the best of the best people he could find, people from different backgrounds with different experiences who knew exactly how the company was functioning. He used his leadership skills to convince the managers of different units to back him up. In my opinion, he was very successful with dealing with these complex issues.
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Article review: "The Bar Code Is Taking a Leap Forward"
This article is about a new bar coding technology that's finding its way into supermarkets across the country. It is called GS1 DataBars; they look slightly different than the traditional bar code and can be used for several applications. The new bar code can store a lot more data and can help supermarkets better monitor their inventory.
The GS1 DataBars is already helping a lot of supermarkets with their loose produce which always causes a bottleneck at the checkout. The DataBar is attached to the produce and instead of entering a 4 or 5 digit number a cashier scans a fruit or a vegetable just like a box of cereal. This technology also prevents cashiers from making mistakes when ringing up organic, more expensive produce at the prices for the conventional produce. The Data Bar also allows to scan variable weight products, like produce.
GS1 DataBars can also be used in the deli and meat department. The bar code can contain not only the price but the sell by date, so if a buyer picked an outdated package, the label will be able to alert the cashier.
The bar code can also be used on coupons that will combine offers on several products. It is also possible that in the future the coupons will be scanned off of customers cell phones. Coupons will be sent directly to the cell phone via a text message. The bar code is small enough to fit onto the screen. After the coupon is scanned it will be automatically deleted from the cell phone to avoid coupon fraud. Customers can register for coupons from their computers or ask the supermarket to text them available coupons.
I thought this was a pretty cool new technology that I would like to share with the class.
References:
1. The Bar Code Is Taking a Leap Forward. By Anne Eisenberg. June 6, 2009.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/07/business/07novel.html?th&emc=th
The GS1 DataBars is already helping a lot of supermarkets with their loose produce which always causes a bottleneck at the checkout. The DataBar is attached to the produce and instead of entering a 4 or 5 digit number a cashier scans a fruit or a vegetable just like a box of cereal. This technology also prevents cashiers from making mistakes when ringing up organic, more expensive produce at the prices for the conventional produce. The Data Bar also allows to scan variable weight products, like produce.
GS1 DataBars can also be used in the deli and meat department. The bar code can contain not only the price but the sell by date, so if a buyer picked an outdated package, the label will be able to alert the cashier.
The bar code can also be used on coupons that will combine offers on several products. It is also possible that in the future the coupons will be scanned off of customers cell phones. Coupons will be sent directly to the cell phone via a text message. The bar code is small enough to fit onto the screen. After the coupon is scanned it will be automatically deleted from the cell phone to avoid coupon fraud. Customers can register for coupons from their computers or ask the supermarket to text them available coupons.
I thought this was a pretty cool new technology that I would like to share with the class.
References:
1. The Bar Code Is Taking a Leap Forward. By Anne Eisenberg. June 6, 2009.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/07/business/07novel.html?th&emc=th
Case Study: Can the U.S. Army Pay Soldiers Correctly?
Question 1.
Over the years the Army has been using several separate systems that did not work well with each other, required a lot of manual data entry which resulted in a high percentage of errors. Before 2004 the Army was using the Defense Joint Military Pay System for about 40 years. However, this system needed information from the personnel system, the Regional Level Application Software system, and the two were not well integrated. Manual data entry was required to make any changes in the system which increased the chance of mistakes. It was very difficult to make changes to the system due to its obsolescence. The Army needed a comprehensive, integrated human resources and payroll system. Such a system was under construction since 1998 and its roll out was being constantly delayed. It was noted that the delay was caused by leadership turnover, inconsistent support from senior management as well as by a number of agencies trying to influence the project. The impact of all of these problems was tremendous. Thousands of soldiers were either underpaid or overpaid. Soldiers couldn't easily track mistakes either because their pay often varied due to different entitlements. The Army was wasting a lot of resources trying to fix the mistakes and recover overpayments. The requirements for the new system include complete integration of the payroll and personnel modules, maximum automation, automatic data uploads and user-friendliness.
Question 2.
The Forward Compatible Payroll system was a temporary solution while the Defense Integrated Military Human REsources System was under construction. The FCP was more automated than the previous sytem. Here is how the system worked: a pay administrator uses a Web browser to access the personnel system and review mobilization orders. The mobilization application requests info, such as dates of deployment before setting the pay rate and adding entitlements. After the pay rate is set, the unit commander has to sign off a hard copy of the mobilization order after which the data are transmitted to a Microsoft SQL Server database at the Reserve headquarters. Then the data are uploaded to the local server at a pay processing center where pay records were manually reviewed by staff. Then the data are trasmitted to the payroll system. The process had to be improved to avoid mistakes with adding entitlements and to make the system even more automated to avoid human errors.
Question 3.
When developing and implementing a new information system it is very important that end users and technical specialists work together.TEchnical specialists need to be there to listen to the users concerns . A lot of times this is a big problem. There often are communication difficulties between the users and IT staff. End users find IT people speaking a different language and not understanding each other. So the two parties need to find a way to communicate effectively.
Over the years the Army has been using several separate systems that did not work well with each other, required a lot of manual data entry which resulted in a high percentage of errors. Before 2004 the Army was using the Defense Joint Military Pay System for about 40 years. However, this system needed information from the personnel system, the Regional Level Application Software system, and the two were not well integrated. Manual data entry was required to make any changes in the system which increased the chance of mistakes. It was very difficult to make changes to the system due to its obsolescence. The Army needed a comprehensive, integrated human resources and payroll system. Such a system was under construction since 1998 and its roll out was being constantly delayed. It was noted that the delay was caused by leadership turnover, inconsistent support from senior management as well as by a number of agencies trying to influence the project. The impact of all of these problems was tremendous. Thousands of soldiers were either underpaid or overpaid. Soldiers couldn't easily track mistakes either because their pay often varied due to different entitlements. The Army was wasting a lot of resources trying to fix the mistakes and recover overpayments. The requirements for the new system include complete integration of the payroll and personnel modules, maximum automation, automatic data uploads and user-friendliness.
Question 2.
The Forward Compatible Payroll system was a temporary solution while the Defense Integrated Military Human REsources System was under construction. The FCP was more automated than the previous sytem. Here is how the system worked: a pay administrator uses a Web browser to access the personnel system and review mobilization orders. The mobilization application requests info, such as dates of deployment before setting the pay rate and adding entitlements. After the pay rate is set, the unit commander has to sign off a hard copy of the mobilization order after which the data are transmitted to a Microsoft SQL Server database at the Reserve headquarters. Then the data are uploaded to the local server at a pay processing center where pay records were manually reviewed by staff. Then the data are trasmitted to the payroll system. The process had to be improved to avoid mistakes with adding entitlements and to make the system even more automated to avoid human errors.
Question 3.
When developing and implementing a new information system it is very important that end users and technical specialists work together.TEchnical specialists need to be there to listen to the users concerns . A lot of times this is a big problem. There often are communication difficulties between the users and IT staff. End users find IT people speaking a different language and not understanding each other. So the two parties need to find a way to communicate effectively.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Article review: Put Ad on Web. Count Clicks. Revise.
The article that I chose is about online advertising and how advertisers can almost instantly change their ads based on the number of clicks that one ad received compared to another. According to Darren Herman, the president Varick Media Management, online advertising company, this can completely change the way advertising companies operate. Until the Internet advertising required heavy research and investment, and it was difficult to evaluate the effectiveness of those ads. Also, advertisers had to book TV spots months before the season began, and if the show wasn't successful, it was too late. So advertisers would spend months doing research, and then wait for months to find out whther the ad worked or not. With online advertising it is possible to get instant measurements of the ad's effectiveness and revise the ad quickly.
Thanks to various computer and Internet technologies it is possible to compare the number of clicks among different ads and figure out which one is more effective. Of course, a click doesn't necessarily result in a transaction, but it is obvious that the more clicks an ad generates, the more transactions will probably result. It is also possible for advertising companies, such as Varick, to look at the sites where the ads ran, when they ran and what kind of people responded to them. Varick can exploit massive amounts of data and adjust the ads almost instantly. Moreover, advertisers can try out their ideas online first before investing massive amounts of capital into traditional advertising campaigns on TV.
Varick's strategy is centered around systems called exchanges that help online publishers like Yahoo.com sell advertising space. And since ad agencies can now use different sources to gather specific demographic info on visitors, online publishers can sell random ad space that ad agencies weren't willing to buy before. Advertisers extensively use the cookie technology to gather information about vistors of different sites. These cookies are sold on the exchange, and companies like Varick, make bids on them. The combination of real-time data and ad exchanges has made previously throwaway online space profitable.
I think this article can be related to the topic of knowledge management discussed in chapter 11. This article shows how an advertising company use the data and knowledge it collects to customize their campaings almost instantly to the target audience.
References:
1. Put Ad on Web. Count Clicks. Revise. By Stephanie Clifford May 30, 2009.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/31/business/media/31ad.html?
pagewanted=1&th&emc=th
Thanks to various computer and Internet technologies it is possible to compare the number of clicks among different ads and figure out which one is more effective. Of course, a click doesn't necessarily result in a transaction, but it is obvious that the more clicks an ad generates, the more transactions will probably result. It is also possible for advertising companies, such as Varick, to look at the sites where the ads ran, when they ran and what kind of people responded to them. Varick can exploit massive amounts of data and adjust the ads almost instantly. Moreover, advertisers can try out their ideas online first before investing massive amounts of capital into traditional advertising campaigns on TV.
Varick's strategy is centered around systems called exchanges that help online publishers like Yahoo.com sell advertising space. And since ad agencies can now use different sources to gather specific demographic info on visitors, online publishers can sell random ad space that ad agencies weren't willing to buy before. Advertisers extensively use the cookie technology to gather information about vistors of different sites. These cookies are sold on the exchange, and companies like Varick, make bids on them. The combination of real-time data and ad exchanges has made previously throwaway online space profitable.
I think this article can be related to the topic of knowledge management discussed in chapter 11. This article shows how an advertising company use the data and knowledge it collects to customize their campaings almost instantly to the target audience.
References:
1. Put Ad on Web. Count Clicks. Revise. By Stephanie Clifford May 30, 2009.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/31/business/media/31ad.html?
pagewanted=1&th&emc=th
Case study: Can Knowledge Systems Help Boeing Trounce Airbus?
Question 2.
Up until 1990s Boeing didn't have much of a knowledge management system; everything was on paper which made designing and manufacturing processes very lengthy and inefficient. In the early 1990s, however, Boeing began switching to the "paperless design". This process computerized the design and manufacturing of airplanes. The paperless model matched Boeing's business strategy much better. Boeing's business strategy is to produce fuel efficient airplanes that would carry passengers non-stop between their destinations. For example, Boeing 777 uses lighter materials and can fly with 2 pilots and 2 engines cutting operating and fuel costs. Boeing used CATIA computer-aided design software to design and produce its 777 plane.
Question 3.
Boeing is using its new strategy in the implementation of the 787 "Dreamliner". Boeing decided to use a new production process by basically outsourcing design and construction of 80% of the plane to several hundred other companies. Knowledge management and sharing are very important for the new strategy to succeed. To enhance communication among designers Boeing and its suppliers are using software that allows designers around the world exchange information and collaborate which minimizes mistakes and improves communication between different departments. Boeing also purchased 5,000 more licenses of the Product Life Cycle Management software which allows more people to have access to the software when they need it. Boeing key suppliers also had to integrate their systems to work with Boeing. However, it seems that as the deadline for the 787 delivery was approaching, Boeing was faced with some technical and production problems. I think as long as Boeing is capable of overcoming these issues and is able to start delivering the plans to the customers, its strategy will be successful.
Question 4.
From the facts described in the case study it seems to me that Airbus has a long way to go in terms of its knowledge management systems. Airbus needs to be able to involve its suppliers into the design and production processes. It seems that delays in 380 delivery were caused in part by communication problems between engineering and production.
Up until 1990s Boeing didn't have much of a knowledge management system; everything was on paper which made designing and manufacturing processes very lengthy and inefficient. In the early 1990s, however, Boeing began switching to the "paperless design". This process computerized the design and manufacturing of airplanes. The paperless model matched Boeing's business strategy much better. Boeing's business strategy is to produce fuel efficient airplanes that would carry passengers non-stop between their destinations. For example, Boeing 777 uses lighter materials and can fly with 2 pilots and 2 engines cutting operating and fuel costs. Boeing used CATIA computer-aided design software to design and produce its 777 plane.
Question 3.
Boeing is using its new strategy in the implementation of the 787 "Dreamliner". Boeing decided to use a new production process by basically outsourcing design and construction of 80% of the plane to several hundred other companies. Knowledge management and sharing are very important for the new strategy to succeed. To enhance communication among designers Boeing and its suppliers are using software that allows designers around the world exchange information and collaborate which minimizes mistakes and improves communication between different departments. Boeing also purchased 5,000 more licenses of the Product Life Cycle Management software which allows more people to have access to the software when they need it. Boeing key suppliers also had to integrate their systems to work with Boeing. However, it seems that as the deadline for the 787 delivery was approaching, Boeing was faced with some technical and production problems. I think as long as Boeing is capable of overcoming these issues and is able to start delivering the plans to the customers, its strategy will be successful.
Question 4.
From the facts described in the case study it seems to me that Airbus has a long way to go in terms of its knowledge management systems. Airbus needs to be able to involve its suppliers into the design and production processes. It seems that delays in 380 delivery were caused in part by communication problems between engineering and production.
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Case study: Can E-Bay Continue Growing?
Question 1.
eBay.com is an online auction service that does not sell anything of its own. It brings buyers and sellers together to the online marketplace where sellers list items they are willing to sell, and buyers bid for the items they are willing to buy. eBay currently has operations in 32 countries, and it continues expanding. The company's strategy has been very successful. The earnings come from several different sources: first, sellers have to pay a fee of $.25 to $4.80 for listing their items on eBay. Secondly, eBay charges a fee for a sold item that starts at 5.25% of the selling price. eBay also collects revenue from direct advertising as well as from various service providers, such as PayPal.
eBay's growth strategy is focused on geographical expansion as well as introduction of new products and services. For example, eBay has been very successful in some European countries, such as France, England and Germany. eBay has also been able to launch eBay Motors, "Buy It Now" application and eBay Stores, all of which have been very successful.
Question 2.
One of the problems that eBay has encountered is maintaining its growth. While the company's growth is still outstanding internationally, it has been slowing down domestically. eBay also has some problems on the Asian market where Yahoo is trying to set up competing auction sites. On the other hand, laws differ greatly in different countries, and it may be challenging for eBay to monitor its compliance in so many different countries where it does business. For example, it may be difficult for eBay to make sure that prohibited items are not sold on its web-site, and the company may be liable if it fails to prevent illegal transactions. Another problem that eBay has faced is an increasing number of buyers who have been defrauded by sellers. And finally, eBay is having some problems with customer service. eBay has two types of customers, buyers and sellers, and what works for buyers does not necessarily works for sellers.
Question 3.
To solve the problem of slowing growth, eBay acquired Shopping.com which is an online shopping comparison site, as well as Skype. By purchasing Skype eBay hopes to get into high end markets, such as real estate and travel where buyers are more likely to need more information from sellers. However, I'm not sure if this was a sound decision because some analysts claim that a lot of sellers are not willing to add Skype to their business models because they hardly keep up with e-mails on eBay.
To handle competition, eBay entered into agreements with other players, such as Yahoo and Google by giving them exclusive rights to provide advertisements for eBay's sites domestically and internationally. In my opinion, this is a good idea to collaborate with the competitors although these companies still remain rivals.
In regards to increasing fraud, some users claim that eBay has not adequately addressed the issue. The company needs to provide a safe trade environment. However, when eBay gets complains about fraud, buyers often get an automated e-mail that encourages buyers and sellers to resolve disputes on their own. I do not think it is a solution to the problem. eBay needs to be more hands-on when it comes to identity theft and fraud problems.
eBay.com is an online auction service that does not sell anything of its own. It brings buyers and sellers together to the online marketplace where sellers list items they are willing to sell, and buyers bid for the items they are willing to buy. eBay currently has operations in 32 countries, and it continues expanding. The company's strategy has been very successful. The earnings come from several different sources: first, sellers have to pay a fee of $.25 to $4.80 for listing their items on eBay. Secondly, eBay charges a fee for a sold item that starts at 5.25% of the selling price. eBay also collects revenue from direct advertising as well as from various service providers, such as PayPal.
eBay's growth strategy is focused on geographical expansion as well as introduction of new products and services. For example, eBay has been very successful in some European countries, such as France, England and Germany. eBay has also been able to launch eBay Motors, "Buy It Now" application and eBay Stores, all of which have been very successful.
Question 2.
One of the problems that eBay has encountered is maintaining its growth. While the company's growth is still outstanding internationally, it has been slowing down domestically. eBay also has some problems on the Asian market where Yahoo is trying to set up competing auction sites. On the other hand, laws differ greatly in different countries, and it may be challenging for eBay to monitor its compliance in so many different countries where it does business. For example, it may be difficult for eBay to make sure that prohibited items are not sold on its web-site, and the company may be liable if it fails to prevent illegal transactions. Another problem that eBay has faced is an increasing number of buyers who have been defrauded by sellers. And finally, eBay is having some problems with customer service. eBay has two types of customers, buyers and sellers, and what works for buyers does not necessarily works for sellers.
Question 3.
To solve the problem of slowing growth, eBay acquired Shopping.com which is an online shopping comparison site, as well as Skype. By purchasing Skype eBay hopes to get into high end markets, such as real estate and travel where buyers are more likely to need more information from sellers. However, I'm not sure if this was a sound decision because some analysts claim that a lot of sellers are not willing to add Skype to their business models because they hardly keep up with e-mails on eBay.
To handle competition, eBay entered into agreements with other players, such as Yahoo and Google by giving them exclusive rights to provide advertisements for eBay's sites domestically and internationally. In my opinion, this is a good idea to collaborate with the competitors although these companies still remain rivals.
In regards to increasing fraud, some users claim that eBay has not adequately addressed the issue. The company needs to provide a safe trade environment. However, when eBay gets complains about fraud, buyers often get an automated e-mail that encourages buyers and sellers to resolve disputes on their own. I do not think it is a solution to the problem. eBay needs to be more hands-on when it comes to identity theft and fraud problems.
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