IS223

Enterprise Wide IS

- integrated suite of business applications for virtually every business process, allowing comps to integrate information across operations on a comp-wide basis. Rather than storing info in separate places throughout the org, enterprise systems use an integrated database to provide a central repository common to all users. The central db alleviates the problems associated w/ multiple computing platforms by providing a single place where all info relevant to the comp can be stored and accessed. This, along w/ a common user interface, allows personnel to share info seamlessly, no matter where the user is located or who is using the app.

Systems Maintenance Phase

-Corrective maintenance-making changes to an IS to repair flaws in the design, coding, or implementation -Adaptive maintenance-Making changes to an IS to evolve its functionality, to accommodate changing business needs, or to migrate it to a different operating environment -Preventive maintenance-Making changes to a system to reduce the chance of future system failure. -Perfective maintenance-Making enhancements to improve processing performance or interface usability, or adding desired but not necessarily required business features. -Patch management systems-facilitate the different forms of systems maintenance for the user-use internet to check software vendor's web site for available patches and updates

Phase 2: Systems Analysis

-Designers gain an understanding of an org's current way of doing things in the area for which the new IS will be constructed -Collecting requirements-How well IS requirements are defined influences all subsequent activities-process of gathering and organizing info from users, managers, customers, business process, and documents to understand how a proposed IS should function. -Interviews-Analysts interview people informed about the operation and issues of current system. -Questionnaires-Survey to gather opinions from informed people -Observations-Observe system users at selected times to see how much data are handled and what info people need to do their job. -Document Analysis-Study business documents to discover issues, policies, and rules, as well as concrete examples of the use of data and info in the org -Joint Application Design-group meeting-users jointly define and agree on system requirements or designs. -Modeling Data-Data are facts that describe people, objects or events. -System analysts must understand what data the info system needs to accomplish intended tasks. -Modeling Processes and Logic-Model how data is being input, processed, and presented to users. -Data flows represent the movement of data through an org or within an IS. -Processing logic represents the way in which data are transformed. Processing logic is often expressed in pseudocode, which is a representation of the program's internal functioning, independent of actual programming language being used. -After all this, analysts develops designs for IS.

Native, Web App, or Hybrid: Which Should You Choose?

-Device features (native apps have access to the full paraphernalia of device-specific features, including GPS, camera, gestures, and notifications.) -Offline functioning (A native app is best if your app must work when there is no connectivity.) -Discoverability (Web apps win the prize on discoverability. Content is a lot more discoverable on the web than in an app: When people have a question or an information need, they go to a search engine, type in their query, and choose a page from the search results. They do not go to the app store, search for an app, download it, and then try to find their answer within the app. ) -Speed (Native App) -Installation (Installing a native or hybrid app is a hassle for users: They need to be really motivated to justify the interaction cost. "Installing" a web app involves creating a bookmark on the home screen; this process, while arguably simpler than downloading a new app from an app store, is less familiar to users, as people don't use bookmarks that much on mobile.) -Maintenance(Maintaining a native app can be complicated not only for users, but also for developers.Changes have to be packaged in a new version and placed in the app store. On the other hand, maintaining a web app or a hybrid app is as simple as maintaining a web page, and it can be done as often or as frequently as needed.) -Content restrictions, approval process, and fees. (Native and hybrid apps must pass approval processes and content restrictions imposed by app stores, whereas the web is free for all.) -Development cost (It's arguably cheaper to develop hybrid and web apps, as these require skills that build up on previous experience with the web. NN/g clients often find that going fully native is a lot more expensive, as it requires more specialized talent. ) -User Interface (Last but not least, if one of your priorities is providing a user experience that is consistent with the operating system and with the majority of the other apps available on that platform, then native apps are the way to go. That doesn't mean that you cannot provide a good mobile user experience with a web app or a hybrid app — it just means that the graphics and the visuals will not be exactly the same as those with which users may be already accustomed, and that it will be harder to take advantage of the mobile strengths and mitigate the mobile limitations.)

Benefits and Costs of ERP

-Enterprise systems cost millions and usually run over budget due to project expansion and unanticipated changed needed. -Benefits include-improved availability of info, interaction throughout org, lead times for manufacturing and reduced operating expenses. -Costs include-travel and training costs of personnel, ongoing customization and integration costs, business process studies.

Ways to present a business case

-Faith-Arguments based on faith can sometimes be most compelling despite lack of any hard data on system costs. Often hold that an IS must be implemented to achieve the org's strategy effectively and to gain or sustain a competitive advantage over rivals. Successful arguments based on faith should clearly describe the firm's mission and objectives, the strategy for achieving them, and they types of IS that are needed to enact the strategy. -Fear-Factor in competition and other elements of the industry in which the firm operates-ie. If the industry depends on being cutting edge or compliant w/ certain regulations. "If we do not implement this system, we run the risk of being sued or, worse, being thrown in jail" Nature of competition in industry also forces comps to adopt new systems since profit margins may be low -Fact- Many people want to see the business case for an IS based on convincing, quantitative analysis that proves beyond the shadow of a doubt that the benefits of a system will outweigh the costs. Provide a cost-benefit analysis of IS

Types of benefits

-Identifying benefits-Tangible benefits-ie increase in sales, reduction in order entry errors, reduction of employees needed-quantifiable results -Intangible benefits-improvements in customer service resulting from faster turnaround on fulfilling orders-hard to quantify (also improved perception of firm, strategic necessity)

Hybrid App

-If you need to download and use web pages -Like native apps, they live in an app store and can take advantage of the many device features available. Like web apps, they rely on HTML being rendered in a browser, with the caveat that the browser is embedded within the app. Often, companies build hybrid apps as wrappers for an existing web page; in that way, they hope to get a presence in the app store, without spending significant effort for developing a different app. Hybrid apps are also popular because they allow crossplatform development and thus significantly reduce development costs: that is, the same HTML code components can be reused on different mobile operating systems.

Web App

-In cloud -Must have always on connection -Cheaper to update and monitor -Same UI with same user experience will be had regardless of device -Never have to download, standard protocol Web apps are not real applications; they are really websites that, in many ways, look and feel like native applications, but are not implemented as such. They are run by a browser and typically written in HTML5. Users first access them as they would access any web page: they navigate to a special URL and then have the option of "installing" them on their home screen by creating a bookmark to that page.

Inbound logistics vs Outbound Logistics

-Inbound logistics-Involves the business activities associated w/ receiving and stocking raw materials, parts and products. -Outbound Logistics and Activities-The activities associated w/ outbound logistics mirror those of inbound logistics. Instead of involving the receipt of raw materials, parts, and products, outbound logistics focuses on the distribution of end products within the order-to-cash business process. -coordinates shipment to customer and invoice is created to be sent to customer.

Presenting the case

-Know the audience-People from different areas of the firm hold different view about what investments should be made. -Convert Benefits to Monetary Items-ie. Saying it will save comp $90,000 is better than saying it will save time. -Devise Proxy variables- In cases where it is not easy to quantify the impact of an investment, you can come up with proxy variables to help clarify what the impact on the firm will be. (ie alternative measures of outcomes) to help clarify what the impact on the firm will be. -can be used to measure changes in terms of their perceived value to the org. -Measure what is important to management-By focusing on what senior business managers believe to be important, you can make the business case for systems in a way that is more meaningful for those managers, which makes selling systems to decision makers easier.

Make to stock/Make to order

-Make-to-stock process , goods are purchased based on forecasts and are stocked in a warehouse; customers orders are then fulfilled from inventory. -Make-to-order , raw materials, sub components, and accessories are procured based on forecasts, but actual manufacturing does not start until an order is received. -Mass produced goods like tv sets or home appliances are produced under a make-to-stock approach-the org stocks the produced goods, pushing the products out to customers after orders are received. -In contrast, highly customizable or expensive low-volume goods are made under a make-to-order approach ie. Dell computers or commercial aircrafts, where the assembly starts only after a customer has placed an order.-The org waits for a customer to initiate an order, allowing it to start a pulling sequence to move the order through the production process. The processes associated w/ making products are comprised of processing customers' orders, procuring the inputs to the manufacturing process, scheduling production, quality control, packaging and stocking or shipping the product.

Native App

-Need to download -Works without wifi -Located in phone -live on the device and are accessed through icons on the device home screen. -Native apps are installed through an application store (such as Google Play or Apple's App Store). They are developed specifically for one platform, and can take full advantage of all the device features — they can use the camera, the GPS, the accelerometer, the compass, the list of contacts, and so on. They can also incorporate gestures (either standard operating-system gestures or new, app-defined gestures). -And native apps can use the device's notification system and can work offline.

Needs Analysis

-Needs analysis is the formal method for listening to users in the design process.Needs analysis might include focus groups, ethnographic observation of users, detailed time/motion studies, the creation of personas, and a variety of other tools. But needs analysis has glaring limitations that can lull designers into creating overly complex or rapidly outdated systems. It only works if users actually know what they want and users' preferences are relatively uniform and stable.The problem is that, in many cases, users don't know what they want. They might think they need all kinds of things that they don't really need.If we design systems to meet existing needs, we will always be a bit behind, as user needs change faster than we can build new solutions.

Types of costs

-Nonrecurring costs are one-time costs that are not expected to continue after the system is implemented (site preparation and technology purchases) -Recurring costs are ongoing costs that occur throughout the life of they system. (Salary of personnel assigned to maintain the system) Personnel costs are usually the largest recurring costs(Customer support, content management too) Tangible costs are easy to quantify, Intangible costs include losing customers that are not web-ready or losing customers if a web app is poorly made.

Phase 4: Systems Implementation and Operation

-One group of activities focuses on transforming the system design to a working IS. Activities include software programming and testing. Second group focuses on preparing the org for using the new IS. -Software Programming and testing-Programming is the process of transforming the system design to a working computer system. Both programming and testing should occur in parallel. -System Conversion, Documentation, Training, And Support -System conversion is the process of decommissioning the current way of doing things and installing the new system in the org. -Programmers develop documentation that details the inner workings of the system to ease future maintenance and to ensure reliability of the system. Second type of documentation is user-related documentation, which is typically written not by programmers or analysts but by user of professional technical writers. -Users may also need ongoing support to use a new system effectively. (ie. training, ongoing education and problem solving assistance)

Comprehensive CRM

-Operational CRM-Systems for automating the fundamental business processes-marketing, sales, and support-for interacting w/ the customer -Analytical CRM-Systems for analyzing customer behavior and perceptions (quality, price, and overall satisfaction) to provide business intelligence -Collaborative CRM-Systems for providing effective and efficient communication w/ the customer from the entire org

Packaged software vs Custom Software

-Packaged software is written by 3rd party vendors for the needs of many different users and orgs, supporting standardized, repetitive tasks, such as work processing, payroll processing etc. These programs can be quite cost effective since the vendor that builds the app can spread out development costs through selling to a large number of users. -For tasks unique to a business, develop custom software which is designed and developed exclusively for specific orgs and can accommodate their specific needs. However custom os expensive b/c the org has to bear the costs of development and apps need to be maintained when changes are needed. W/ packaged software the vendor makes the changes and distributes the updated version.

Develop successful CRM

-Policies and business processes-organizational policies and procedures need to reflect a customer-focused culture. -Customer service-Key metrics for managing the business need to reflect customer focused measures for quality and satisfaction as well as process changes to enhance the customer experience. -Employee Training-Employees from all areas-marketing, sales, and support-must have a consistent focus that values customer service and satisfaction -Data Collection, Analysis, and Sharing-All aspects of the customer experience-prospecting, sales, support-must be tracked, analyzed, and shared to optimize the benefits of CRM.

Procure to Pay

-Processes associated w/ procuring goods from external vendors are together referred to as the procure-to-pay process. Subprocess include price and terms negotiations, issuing of the purchase order, receiving the goods and receiving the paying invoice. -An ineffective process can increase error rates in purchase order and invoice processing; further it prohibits a comp from developing close relationships w/ vendors. This can increase the cost per transaction, leading to an increase in disputes to be resolved, and preventing the comp from obtaining its most favorable conditions from its vendors. -Effective process can help to obtain favorable conditions, reduce transaction costs and create customer goodwill as it helps to efficiently fulfill customer orders.

Phase 3

-Systems design-during this phase that proposed system is designed-details of the chosen approach are elaborated. Elements followed: Processing and logic, Databases and files, Human-computer interface =Designing Processing and Logic-Steps and procedures that transform raw data inputs into new or modified info. Not only specifies what is to be done, but also specific algorithms, which outline the steps, or set of rules, to be followed. Regardless of how the logic is represented, the process of converting pseudocode, structure charts, or decision trees into actual program code during system implementation is a straightforward process. -Designing databases and files-Systems analyst must have a thorough understanding of an org's data and informational needs. -Designing the human-computer interface-Human computer interface is the point of contact b/t a system and users. -In increasing a system's usability-whether the system is easy to use and aesthetically pleasing-can lower error rates, increase efficiency, or increase customer satisfaction. Thus, analysts also take great care in designing data entry forms and management reports.

Legacy Systems

-Systems that focus on the specific needs of individual departments are typically not designed to communicate w/ other systems in the org and are therefore referred to as standalone apps. Although such systems enable departments to conduct their daily business activities efficiently and effectively, these systems are often not helpful when people from one part of the firm need info from another part of the firm. -many standalone apps are fast approaching the end of their useful life within the org; such systems are referred to as legacy systems.

Order to Cash

-Together, the processes associated w/ selling a product or service are referred to as the order-to-cash process. -Can be broken down into subprocesses ie. creating a customer record, checking the customer's credit worthiness, creating an order, checking and allocating stock, picking , packing, and shipping, invoicing and collecting the payment. Depending on the nature of the transaction, the individual subprocesses and the time it takes to complete them can vary Purchase at a convenience store can take seconds while a purchase for airline tickets can take months to complete and may involve more steps. -Ineffective order-to-cash processes can have negative effects on an org such as the manual input of order info often causes errors -Errors can lead to a high rate of disputes that have to be resolved, ineffective collection processes, and ultimately defecting customers. -An effective order-to-cash process can create customer satisfaction, speed up the collection process, and serve to provide valuable inputs into business intelligence and customer relationship management apps.

SDLC

-Use if making large and expensive system Requirements analysis 1. Planning and selection (Decide to develop) 2. Analysis (Process modeling, BPM, ERD) Requirements collection (Joint App Design) 3. Design (code, design) 4. Implementation Benefits: Repeated documented process, reduce conflicts among users Cons: Often goes over time and over budget

Assessing performance of internet marketing

-click-through rate-reflecting the number of surfers who click on an ad divided by the number of times it was displayed -conversion rate, reflecting the percentage of visitors who actually perform the marketer's desired action. -Pay-per click model-firm running ads pay only when a web surfer clicks on an ad.

Analytical CRM

-focuses on analyzing customer behavior and perception to provide the business intelligence necessary to identify new opportunities and to provide superior customer service. Orgs that effectively utilize analytical CRM can easily customize marketing campaigns from the segment level to even the individual customer. -Analytical CRM systems are also used to spot sales trends by zip code, state, and region. Has marketing analysis to see what consumer preferences are w/ their ads, and there are tools focusing on customer acquisition and retention rates and it helps in pricing optimization by looking at customer demand. -Social CRM-(The use of social media for customer relationship management)Social media apps enable customers to share both positive and negative info. Monitoring such conversations can help orgs to better measure public perceptions and manage customer satisfaction. -Social media monitoring is the process of identifying and assessing the volume and sentiment of what is being said about a comp, individual, product, or brand.

Collaborative CRM

-refers to systems for providing effective and efficient communication w/ the customer from the entire org. -Collaborative CRM facilitates the sharing of info across the various departments of an org to increase customer satisfaction and loyalty. Sharing useful customer info on a company-wide basis helps improve info quality and can be used to identify products customers may be interested in. Collaborative CRM system supports customer communication and collaboration w/ the entire org -Collaborative CRM enhances communication in the following ways: Greater Customer Focus-Understanding customer history and current needs helps to focus the communication on issues important to the customer. Lower Communication Barriers-Customers are more likely to communicate w/ the organization when personnel have complete info and when they utilize the communication methods and preferences of the customer Increased Info Integration-All info about the customer as well as all prior and ongoing communication is given to all organizational personnel interacting w/ the customer, customers can get status updates from any organizational department.

ERP

-replace standalone apps by providing various modules based on a common database and similar app interfaces that serve the entire enterprise rather than portions of it. ERP apps make accessing info easier by providing a central info repository, giving personnel access to accurate, up-to-date info throughout the org. -Many ERP systems support business processes of globally operating orgs. ERP modules that access the database are designed to have the same look and feel regardless of the unique needs of a particular department.

Sharing economy

The sharing economy and websites like Uber and Airbnb, is based on the idea of a market creator building a digital platform where supply meets demand ie. spare auto capacity finds individuals who want transportation.

Two sided network has 4 network effects

A same-side effect for each side, i.e., preference regarding number of other users on own side A cross-side effect in each direction, i.e., preference regarding number of users on other side + same-side : Player-to-player contact in Xbox MMOG, end-user PDF sharing. - same-side : competing suppliers in Covisint auction, competing dates on Match.com + cross-side : merchants & consumers for Visa, developers & end-users for Windows - cross-side : advertising clutter to viewers

Network Effects

A specific type of software application whose purpose is to connect people to each other Facebook, LinkedIn Remember Metcalfe's Law?

ERP

ADV: Stores data in central repository which makes sharing data easier-people implementing should be from different departments

Affordances vs Constraints

Affordances are the things a user can do with particular technologies. Constraints are the things they can't.

All SEM is inbound marketing

Always better than Banner ads - why? Only 30% of consumers click in the paid ad area

Disintermediation

Another disruption enabled by the Web is the ability to sell products directly to the end customers, w/o the need for distributors or retailers. This phenomenon of cutting out the "middleman" and reaching customers more directly and efficiently is known as disintermediation. Disintermediation creates both opportunities and challenges. While disintermediation allows producers or service providers to offer products at lower prices, they also have to take on those activities previously performed by the middleman. Reintermediation refers to the design of business models that reintroduce middlemen to reduce the chaos brought on by disintermediation.

Needs Anticipation

Anticipating future needs is much harder than discovering existing needs. It involves identifying trends, imagining how they will evolve into new needs, and designing systems that adapt to meet those needs as they emerge. It means balancing what users think they need today with what designers imagine they will need tomorrow. Needs anticipation is as much about creating new needs as it is about fulfilling existing ones.

Open source software

As programs' source code is freely available for use/ and or modification, it is referred to as open source software. -owes success to inputs from a large user base, helping to fix problems or improve software. It is possible to combine the advantages of custom, open source, and off-the shelf systems. Companies can purchase off the shelf systems and add custom components.

Bullwhip Effect

Bullwhip effect-each business forecasting demand typically includes a safety buffer to prevent possible stockouts. However, forecast errors and safety stocks multiply when moving up the supply chain, such that a small fluctuation in demand for an end product can lead to tremendous fluctuation in demand for parts or raw materials farther up the supply chain. Like someone cracking a bullwhip, a tiny flick of the wrist will create a big movement at the other end of the whip.

Visitor Demographics

Click Path Analysis This data can help you make more logical streams of pages for visitors to use as they navigate your site, attempt to find information, or complete a task. Popular Pages Use this data to help improve low popularity pages and emulate highly trafficked ones. Page Views per Session This data can tell you how many pages each visitor to your site is viewing - another metric used to measure "stickiness." Recency This measures an interim goal of the amount of time since visitor last visited the site

Core Activities

Core activities include inbound logistics (receiving), operations and manufacturing, outbound logistics (shipping), marketing and sales, and customer service.

Search Engine Optimization

Google orders organic results of a user's search according to complex, proprietary formulas, and the ranking in the search results is largely outside the control of the site's owner. Thus, comps use search engine optimization (SEO) in an attempt to boost their ranking in the organic search engine results-having other links on your page, keeping content updated, and including key words will get sites a higher ranking SEO attempts to improve a page's ranking in search engines like Google.

Outbound logistics

How to ship to a customer

Why Outsource

Cost and quality concerns Problems in IS Performance Supplier Pressures Simplifying, Downsizing, and Reengineering Financial Factors Organizational Culture Internal Irritants

Legacy

Create problems with cross functional processes (Things do not get updated in system automatically-must be manual)

Custom Software

Custom software is developed to meet the specifications of an org. 2 primary advantages: Customizability-software tailored to meet unique requirements-requirements can reflect desire to achieve competitive advantage or better fit business operations, culture, or security requirements. Company or industry specific terms can be included too Problem Specificity-The comp pays only for the features specifically required for users

Digital Goods

Digital goods are goods that can be delivered over a digital network. Ie. music and movies. For the most part, digital goods are "intellectual property" which is defined as works of mind. Intellectual property is protected from misappropriation by copyright, patent, and trade secret laws. In general the marginal cost of producing another unit for digital goods is about zero but the cost of producing the first unit is relatively high-nearly the total cost of the product because there are few other costs of inventory and distribution. Digital markets are flexible and efficient b/c they operate w/ reduced search and transaction costs, lower menu costs (merchants' costs of changing prices), greater price discrimination, and the ability to change prices dynamically based on market conditions. In dynamic pricing, the price of a product varies depending on the demand characteristics of the customer or the supply situation of the seller. Ie. Amazon and Walmart change prices on products based on time of day, demand for product, and users' prior visits to sites. No need to purchase additional raw materials and components, no need for a factory, no need to pay people to put them together, no need to paint it, to test for quality, etc. etc. Information Products have a high fixed cost (first time set-up), but can be replicated at almost zero cost Unlike physical goodsWhat does the cost structure of digital goods allow digital- goods companies to do that physical goods companies can't? Give them away for free! Why? To expose you to the product (create awareness) To become the dominant standard To create a (closed) platform; To grow the Understanding To create switching costs

Operations and Manufacturing

Once the components have been stocked in inventory, operations and manufacturing activities transform the inputs into outputs. Can involve activities such as order processing and/or manufacturing or assembly processes that transform raw materials or component parts into end products.

Drawbacks of e-tailing

Direct Product Experience-For many products, customers desire not only info about product characteristics, but also sensory info, such as taste, smell, and feel. E-tailing eliminates the social aspects of the purchase-going to the mall w/ friends or interacting w/ a knowledgeable salesperson cannot be replicated online. Product Delivery and Returns-E-tailing requires additional time for physical products to be delivered. When purchasing goods offline, people can easily return the product to the store. In e-commerce transactions, customers will have to carefully follow the merchant's instructions to receive a replacement or refund, leading to uncertainties for the customer.

B2B, B2C, C2C, C2B

EC is not limited to transactions b/t businesses and consumers, which is known as business-to-consumer (B2C) EC. EC is also used by orgs to conduct business w/ business partners such as suppliers and intermediaries. This form of EC, not involving the end consumer, is commonly referred to as business-to-business (B2B) EC. Ebay would be consumer-to-consumer (C2C) EC. And also consumer-to-business (C2B) EC, where consumers offer products, labor, and services to comps.

ERP Extended Components

ERP extended components support the primary external activities of the org for dealing w/ suppliers and customers. Specifically, ERP extended components focus primarily on supply chain management and customer relationship management.

ERP Limitations

ERP systems often require organizations to change their business processes Once implemented, a company is locked in Difficult and costly to make future changes Modifications require extra and costly programming

CRM

Enables analysts to analyze demographics and other characteristics of customers but can only analyze current customers, hard to enter new markets (use to create customer loyalty, attract potential customers, portray positive image, marketing) (IBM)

Nomadic 2

FB saw opportunity in developing market with limited access to internet. They knew if they could get FB into users' hands, they could secure loyal users for life.In 2010, they launched Facebook Zero, a stripped-down version of Facebook designed to work on feature-limited phones that uses almost no data while maintaining all of the core features of regular Facebook. There's an activity feed, friends, messaging, likes, and status updates. Facebook worked closely with mobile carriers across the world and convinced them that Facebook Zero was such a powerful marketing tool that they should give it to users for free.

Leading cause of system failure and high cost

Faulty requirement analysis

Focus Groups

Focus Groups: A focus group also consists of a small group of users in a tightly controlled setting, but unlike usability testing, a focus group looks at what users want as opposed to what users do. Focus groups are especially useful in the very earliest stages of a design process when the team is trying to determine what problem they are trying to solve.

(Nomadic #2) 3 kinds of testing

Focus groups (Before you start to develop) Usability (Interface) Scenario testing (scale effects)-if you know you'll have millions of users (Social Media) A/B testing (web-only marketing) How website visually looks

Phase 1: Systems Planning and Selection

Goal of phase is to identify, plan, and select projects. Some orgs have a formal information systems planning process whereby a IS workers assess all possible systems development projects that the org could undertake. Project managers present the business case for the new system and it is rejected or accepted. Project that yields significant benefits are selected for development activities. During project planning, the analyst works w/ the customers, the potential users of the system, to collect a broad range of info to gain an understanding of the project size, potential benefits and costs, and other relevant factors. After collecting and analyzing this info, the analyst builds the business case that can be reviewed and compared w/ other possible projects. If the org accepts project-systems analysis begins.

Costs of Online Advertising

Impression: sometimes called a view or an ad view, is a term that refers to the point in which an ad is viewed once by a visitor, or displayed once on a web page. The number of impressions of a particular advertisement is determined by the number of times the particular page is located and loaded. Cost per thousand (CPM): Advertiser pays for impressions in 1,000 unit lots Cost per click (CPC):Simply count the number of times the link is clicked Cost per action (CPA): Pre-negotiated amount only when user performs a specific action Hybrid: Two or more models used togetherClicks - Simply count the number of times the link is clicked Conversions - people who make a purchase Spend - how much money they spend on a purchase CTR - % of impressions that turn into clicks Conversion Rate - % of clicks that turn into conversions CPC - Average cost per click = total marketing cost/total clicks CPA - Cost per action = total marketing cost/total Conversions

Inbound vs Outbound Marketing

Inbound marketing refers to marketing activities that bring visitors in, rather than marketers having to go out to get prospect's attention. Inbound marketing earns the attention of customers, makes the company easy to be found and draws customers to the website by producing interesting content. Outbound marketing: You create ads that bring your products or services to the customer.

Enterprise

Integrates information across departments

Reasons to acquire IS externally

Limited IS Staff IS Staff has limited skill set IS staff is overworked Problems w/ performance of IS Staff

Switching Costs

Many of these are examples of companies creating high customer switching costs (or "lock-in") Once you get used to a certain mobile app, it's a pain to learn how another works

Marketing and Sales

Marketing and sales activities are associated primarily w/ the presales activities of the comp. These activities include the creation of marketing literature, communication w/ potential and existing customers, and pricing of goods and services. Most comps support the business activity of marketing and sales by creating e-brochures, building pages on FB, or communicating on other social media such as Twitter.

The key to Yates' argument is comparing sales results vs campaign cost

MedNet looses on cost per click Cost per impression using Marvel is $0 and only $.54/click Cost per impression using MedNet is $100/CPM which translates to $3.33 per click! MedNet = health conscious community of practice Marvel = a general audience The key is that MedNet provides better qualified leads which should result in a higher conversion rate and a higher average sale (contribution) per person!

Off the shelf

Off-the shelf software-used to support common business processes that do not require any specific tailoring. Less costly, faster to procure, less risky.

Paid Search

Paid search-The results presented by Google are typically separated into organic result and sponsored results. A way to ensure that your comp's page appears on the first page users see when searching for a specific term is search advertising. Google is paid on a pay-per-click basis but AdWords ensures high quality as the ads are presented only to users actually searching for a specific key word.

Implementation

Parallel (Run 2 systems at same time-old and new systems are used at the same time) Pilot (Have multiple locations and you pilot some but not all) Phase (Do whole system in phases, slowly integrate different modules like Payroll, A/p, A/r. Parts of the new system are implemented over time) Direct (Old system is discontinued on one day, and the new is used on the next)

Analytical CRM

Price, Quality, and analyze competitors, and satisfaction of customers-compare with customers -Customer demand modeling

Systems analysis and design

Process of designing, building, and maintaining IS

Benefits of e-tailing

Product-Websites can offer a virtually unlimited number and variety of products b/c e-tailing is not limited by physical store and shelf space restrictions. For comparison shoppers, they have an easier time on the web due to comparison shopping sites which can force sellers to focus on relatively low prices to be successful. Place-Ad comp storefronts can exist on every computer that is connected to the web, e-tailers can compete more effectively for customers, giving e-tailers an advantage. Whereas traditional retailers are bound to physical store locations and open hours, e-tailers can conduct business anywhere at any time. Consumers can now look for goods globally too. Price-E-tailers can also compete on price effectively since they can turn their inventory more often b/c of the sheer volume of products and customers who purchase them. Comps can sell more products, reducing prices for consumers while at the same time enhancing profits for the comp. Further, virtual comps have no need to rent expensive retail space or employ sales clerks, allowing them to further reduce prices.

B2B

Purpose of supplier and customer portals is to enable interaction b/t a single comp and its many suppliers or customers. Transactions conducted b/t businesses in a supply network, not involving end consumer

A/B Test

Rather than making informed guesses about the best way to drive a particular user behavior on a site, you actually make entirely different versions of the site (An "A" version and a "B" version), expose the different versions to groups of real users, and then measure which variable works best. At its best, A/B testing removes guesswork, hunches, and HIPPO bias from decision-making processes.

Inbound logistics

Receiving and stocking raw materials and products

3 types of enterprise systems

Runs whole business ERP-Integrated depository (Anyone with access can have updated information) CRM-Keep track of customers SCM

Business Processes

Same system to do all Order to cash (Customer orders from you ie. Check credit, create order, check stock) Procure to pay (Procure raw materials, negotiate with suppliers) Make to stock (Manufacturing commodity)/ Order (Custom)

One-sided network effects

Same-sided networks Face-book is a one-sided network It is the only thing you need to join that network It is also a platform, since the other people using it must also have that same application, so people that don't have it are locked out Like Skype, or the telephone Positive same-sided network effects: The more users Facebook has, the more that people who are not on Facebook see it as valuable and so want to join Facebook

Scenario Planning

Scenario Planning: For more advanced systems testing, scenario planning can be a great way to see how a system responds to crises and strains. In scenario planning, the design team subjects the system to a series of simulated emergencies or extreme cases to see what breaks. This is especially critical for systems that need to scale to handle millions of users in high-stress situations.

Search Engines Overview

Search engine optimization: SEO Things you can do get your organization found (i.e. appear on the first page of search results) by people that are looking for it Free; also called ORGANIC search Search engine marketing: SEM Using Google Adwords to pay to get your business to appear in response to a search as a "sponsored link" Uses complex algorithms and page ranking techniques to locate results Internet marketing (not using search engines) Paying to using banner ads, pop ups, etc.; not search engines

How do you jumpstart a platform?

Subsidize one side Start small in a niche marketSubsidize consumer side when Highly price sensitive Acrobat Reader, streaming audio, streaming video Presence is the stronger attractant Ad markets, credit cards, auctions Subsidize developer side when Critical for adding value Applications development, operating systems, computer games Stronger attractant or gatekeeper Trend setters, textbooks

MedNet Case

The comp, a website delivering health info free to consumers, generated its income through advertising, mostly from pharmaceutical comps. Windham Pharmaceuticals, MedNet's biggest advertiser, had asked to change the rules by which it had done business for the past 4 years. Baker, Windham's CMO, told Yates it was seriously considering shifting its MedNet ad dollars to Marvel, a competing website with which Windham did some business. Yates had to convince Windham to stay by proving their set-up was worth their ad dollars. MedNet launched its website with 3 goals: to provide scientifically based medical info to a nonprofessional consumer audience; to provide this info for free; and to generate profits from advertising sales. The accessibly written, easy to navigate and vividly presented content was developed by 24 trained journalists, doctors, designers, and administrators. Additional materials came from the faculty of a prominent medical school, news agencies, a photography service, and an active community of visitors that used social media tools such as blogs, community chat and virtual reality to communicate medical info. (Visitor generated media was reviewed by medically trained journalists). The award winning site was considered the best health website for trusted, evidence based, consumer health info. In deciding how best to generate revenue from advertisers, MedNet chose traditional banner advertising, charging pharmaceutical advertisers such as Windham Pharmaceuticals on a cost per thousand impressions (CPM) basis. (One advertising impression meant that one visitor requested from a web server a page that had a specific advertisement on it) Measuring impressions was the closest way to estimate the number of people who actually saw an online advertisement. By pursuing an impression business model, MedNet was fully monetizing its available inventory of eyeballs (site visitors). An independent auditor verified the comp's impression counts each month. Marvel was a large search engine that had decided to follow the alternative advertising model: contextual, or pay per click, banner advertising. Under these terms, advertisers paid website owners only when visitors actually clicked on an advertisement to learn more about an advertised product. The key metric to measuring this kind of online advertising campaign was the click-through rate (CTR), measured as the number of clicks divided by the number of ad impressions delivered. Advertisers considered website click-throughs to be the equivalent of customers interested in potentially making a purchase. In 2006, MedNet could still command a $100 CPM contract from its advertisers-10 to 20 what general interest websites might chargeMarvel declared it would provide impressions for free and charge advertisers only for click throughs. B/c Marvel had a vast audience, charging for even a small percentage of click throughs would pay off handsomely. If the site sold advertisements in enough categories, including the pharmaceutical market, Marvel could bring in huge revenues. By late 2006, some advertisers began to ask other sites to charge only for click-through "sales leads" like Marvel did. Baker said she gets all impressions for free and pays 0.54 for each click through at Marvel. At MedNet, they pay for every impression, and pay 0.33 per click through.Windham produced Vesselia, a prescription medication that reduced cholesterol and plaque in a patient's veins w/ fewer side effects than competitors' offerings. What about cholesterol.com? Options -Take a more prescriptive, diagnostic posture toward site visitors-treating them, as Cholesterol.com did, almost as patients. They they could charge for content and be less dependent on advertising revenues. But would the board allow a more aggressive approach to dispensing medical info? -Bring alternative health info to the site, starting conservatively and slowly becoming more liberal. But would this help the problem of flattening advertising revenues from pharmaceutical firms like Windham? -Build on their greatest strength-their integrity and trustworthiness-as well as their web business expertise, to evolve into a developer and manager of employer websites. But would employers let them introduce pharmaceutical ads? If not, wouldn't they still lose in the long run?

Long tail

The long tail- Benefits of e-tailing enabled a form of business model centered on long tails which refers to the catering of niche markets in addition to purely selling mainstream products. The distribution of consumers' needs and wants can be compared to a statistical normal distribution; the center reflects the "mass market", characterized by relatively similar "mainstream" needs and wants shared by many people; the tails are the niche markets, catering to very diverse needs and wants. Of the mainstream customers in the center of the distribution. Many e-tailers can focus on the longtails, that is, on products outside the mainstream tastes.

Customer Relationship Management

To assist in deploying an organization wide strategy for managing these increasingly complex customer relationships, orgs are deploying customer relationship management (CRM) systems. CRM is a corporate level strategy to create and maintain, through the intro of reliable systems, processes, and procedures, lasting relationships w/ customers by concentrating on downstream info flows. Apps focusing on downstream info flows have 3 main objectives: to attract potential customers, to create customer loyalty, and to portray a positive corporate image.

Google Sponsored Links

To have your ad appear in Google sponsored links, you enter an auction to show your ad if it's relevant to a user's search query. This is called pay-per-click marketing, because advertisers pay Google for clicks on their ads. How do you "win" this auction so your ad appears in a top position for the query you're bidding on in AdWords? Build a high Quality Score. The higher your Quality Score, the better your ad positioning. The following factors (among others) affect your Quality Score: The relevance of your ad to the search query The relevance of your ad to its landing page The historical click-through rate (CTR) of the ad and its ad group Overall historical account performance

Trulia

Trulia would be an aggregator, pulling agents' listings into a searchable interface, but the actual process of buying and selling would take place off line. Trulia has remained a purely digital business. Their aim is to enable the traditional real estate system, rather than disrupt it. They no longer rely on scouring agents' sites because the agents, keen to attract as many eyeballs as possible, send their listings directly to the site. Trulia boasts apps tailored to each of its user groups (real estate, rentals, agents, and mortgage seekers) and offers hyper-local information about neighborhoods, including school, crime, and commute statistics. Their nimble, online-only structure has attracted users and investors; today, they're a publicly traded company regularly posting profits.

Two-sided network effects

Two-sided networks Usually consist of content provider on one side and the technology needed to consume that content on the other MS Xbox needs many available games to be a competitive product The developers that make the games mostly don't work for MS But MS wants game developers to be making games for them, not PlayStation or Nintendo (its a big commitment for a developer to choose) Positive two-sided network effects: The more games there are for the Xbox, the more people will buy Xboxes; The more people that own Xboxes, the more likely it will be that developers will choose to develop games for the Xbox and not PlayStation or Nintendo

Usability testing

Usability Testing: A usability test focuses on a very small group of users and test for User Experience and User Interface problems. In a famous paper, developer Jakob Nielsen demonstrated that the optimal group size for a usability test is almost always five users. During the test, the team closely observes the minute actions of users as they move through the prototype.

Request For Proposal

User company sends user and business requirements to prospective vendors -Document used to tell vendors what your requirements are and to invite them to provide info about how they might be able to meet those requirements. A summary of existing systems and applications Requirements for system performance and features Reliability, backup, and service requirements The criteria that will be used to evaluate proposals Timetable and budget constraints (how much you can spend)The RFP needs to include enough information that vendors can submit an informed proposal that will meet the company's needs. This includes the current situation, all the requirements for the new system, how the new system will be evaluated, and any constraints on the proposal.

Customer Service Activities

Whereas marketing and sales focus on presales activities, customer service focuses on postsales activities. Customers may have questions and need help from a customer service representative. IS is crucial for this b/c it allows customers to download info related to the products they have purchased or the purchase itself. IS allows people to not call a customer service representative but it also helps representatives quickly locate info too.

Operational CRM

includes the systems used to enable customer interaction and service. -Able to provide personalized and highly efficient customer service. Customer-focused personnel are provided complete customer info-history, pending sales, and service requests-to optimize interaction and service. All departments can see all prior and current interactions w/ the customer regardless of where it occurred in the org Sales Force Automation-First component of operational CRM is sales force automation -refers to modules that support the day-to-day sales activities of an org. -Customer Service and Support- second component of CRM and it refers to modules that automate service requests, complaints, product returns, and info requests. Customer Engagement Center- using multiple communication channels to support the communication preferences of customers, such as Web, FB page, industry blogs. The CEC utilizes a variety of communication technology for optimizing customer communications w/ the org. The goal of CSS is to provide great customer service. -Enterprise Marketing Management-Third component of operational CRM, improves management of promotional campaigns. -Makes sure the right messages are being sent to the right people through the right channels. So people who opted out of messages aren't getting them and that people are getting personalized ads.

Pay per click is almost always

better than CPM, unless just trying to raise awareness, or For a very targeted site, since even impressions are likely to get clicked on If click-thru rates are prohibitively expensive Pay-per-click is better than broadcast email, unless the email is to existing customers already in the database (which does nothing for awareness)

cost-benefit analysis

contrasts the total expected tangible costs versus the tangible benefits.

Weighted multi criteria analysis

do not have to weigh requirements and constraints equally; possible to make requirements more or less important than constraints. Weights tend to be subjective and should be arrived at in discussions revealing underlying assumptions, followed by an attempt to reach consensus among stakeholders. Each requirement and constraint is rated on a scale from 1-5. 1-means the alternative does not meet requirement or violates constraint. Ratings are even more subjective than weights and should also be discussed. For each requirement and constraint, a score is calculated by multiplying the rating for each requirement and each constraint by its weight. The added step is to add up the weighted the scores for each alternative. What may appear to be the best choice for a systems development project may not always be the one that ends up being developed or acquired.

Freemium

firms offer basic services or content for free, while charging a premium for advanced or special features. Ie. Pandora offers premium w/ no ads and unlimited play time. Idea is to attract very large audiences w/ free services, and then convert some of this audience to pay a subscription for premium services.

Supply Chain Management

improve the coordination of suppliers, product or service production, and distribution. When executed successfully, SCM helps in not only reducing inventory costs, but also enhancing revenue through improved customer service. SCM is often integrated with ERP to leverage internal and external info to better collaborate w/ suppliers. SCM is adopted primarily by large orgs w/ a large and complex supplier network-orgs need to extend the SCM system to include all trading partners regardless of size, providing a central location for information integration and common processes so that all partners benefit. Challenges w/ using an SCM strategy include getting people to use the system b/c it won't be effective if not everyone is inputting data into it, overcome distrust among partners since people may be scared to show their cards to other members, also fear of intellectual property theft

Redfin

map-based search engine and hired his own brokers, whose role was to provide a modicum of help to consumers at a fraction of the traditional brokers' price. Unlike commission-based real estate agents, Redfin brokers earned a salary and their bonuses were tied to customer reviews. Eraken believed that by putting the whole process into the hands of the consumer, Redfin would address consumers' need for more control and lower prices in their real estate transactions --In part because of the costs of hiring agents, they are slow to roll out into new markets. And, while they have yet to turn a profit, they boast 20% more agent-listed properties than any other site.

RFID tags

replacing the standard bar codes you find on every product. RFID uses electromagnetic energy to transmit info b/t a reader and a processing device, or RFID tag. RFID tags can be used anywhere a unique identification system might be needed, such as on clothing, pets, cars, keys, missiles, or manufactured parts. RFID is better than barcodes b/c it eliminates the need for line-of-sight reading. It also does not need time-consuming hand scanning, and info is readable regardless if tag is plainly visible. They also contain more infor than bar codes and the scanning can be done at greater distances . Passive tags are small and relatively inexpensive and typically have a range of up to several feet. Active tags cost about $5, include a battery, and can transmit hundreds of feet.

ERP implementation

tend to do phase because they're huge software maintenance-upgrading to current version (Preventive)

Prototyping

trial-and-error approach for discovering how a system should operate.

ERP Core components

upport the important internal activities of the org for producing its products and services. These components support internal operations such as: 1. Financial management-components to support accounting, financial reporting, performance management, and corporate governance. 2. Operations Management-components to simplify, standardize, and automate business processes related to inbound and outbound logistics, product development, manufacturing, and sales and service. 3. HR Management-Components to support employee recruitment, assignment tracking, performance reviews, payroll, and regulatory requirements.

Productivity Paradox

why have organizations not been able to show larger productivity gains from technology investments? -Measurement Problems-Benefits of IS are difficult to pinpoint because firms may be measuring the wrong things. Often the biggest increases in productivity result from increased effectiveness (ie the extent to which goals and tasks are accomplished well). Unfortunately, many business metrics focus on efficiency (ie the extent to which goals are accomplished faster, at lower cost, or w/ relatively little time and effort). -Time Lags-Significant time lag may occur when a comp makes the investment until that investment is translated into improvement in the bottom line. -Redistribution-A new type of system may be beneficial for individual firms but not for a particular industry or economy as a whole. In competitive situations, new innovations may be used to redistribute the pieces of the pie rather than making the whole pie bigger. The result for the industry or economy as a whole is a wash-the same number of products are being sold, and the same number of dollars are being spread across all the firms. -MIS Management-New system has not been implemented and managed well. Rather than increasing outputs or profits, IS investments might merely be a temporary bandage and may serve to mask or increase organizational inefficiency. Bad business models can't be overcome by good IS.