MIS 500 Management Information System Assignment Sample

MIS 500 Management Information System Assigment Sample

Introduction

This is a report that will focus on finding out the drawbacks in the assessment one. There were some issues identified in the management of Laturae. In the previous assignment, data were found as primary and secondary information and all the information was collected by the organization of primary and secondary activities. This is the report that will present the links between all the information and all the linkages. After the analysis of all the issues in the organization, probable solutions will be provided to the issues and challenges found in the organization. Agile methodologies will be used in the report to resolve all the challenges. Value chain model will be used to describe the probable solutions to the issues faced by Laturae.

Problem identification

There are various issues that are encountered by Laturae and it is very important that all the issues are resolved as soon as possible. The first issue that is identified in the organization is poor forecasting of capacity. There are issues in the manufacturing processes and also in the inventory management of the company (Ghezzi&Cavallo, 2018). This issue can create a lot of other problems in the company as the company can have a lack of inventory and the production of the organization can also be hindered. Another issue that is identified by the activities is associated with the poor management of the operations and activities of the business. The company is facing real challenges in quality control management and production control. There are quality issues in the products of the company which is leading to downsizing of the market. The management of the company is also not able to have effective production planning which is a major drawback for the company. As it is known by everyone that employees are an integral part of any organization, it is very important for the company to manage the human resources in the organization. But the case is alternate in Laturae. The employees of the company are not at all satisfied with the policies and operations of the company and because of this, the employee turnover rate in the company is rising (Levy, et. al., 2015).

The company has outdated technology and lack of technical expertise. It is essential for an organization to have technological up gradations in the business operations so that the company is able to fight the tough market competition. The company needs to upgrade the technology level and also employ technical experts in the company to handle the technology. There are certain issues relating to the sales and sales team of the company. Effective communication is a very important part or process of an organization. Effective communication is needed to present all the relevant business information to all the important stakeholders of a firm. There are some communication blockages which lead to big problems in the company. The company is also not able to build strong relationships with the customers as the company cannot have direct feedback from the customers. This problem needs to be resolved by the management of the firm as all the products and services are produced as per the feedbacks and demands of the customers (Al-Ali &Phaal, 2019).

Solutions and recommendations for the problems

As the first issue identified is related with the poor capacity planning of the company, it is recommended to the organization to make effective utilization of enterprise resource planning solutions which is also known as the ERP system. It will help the firm in time-scheduling and also assist the company so that the operations of the business are aligned with the supplies and inventory. The next issue is the poor operation management and for the resolution of the problem, it is advised to the company to use the agile business operations management (Bider&Jalali, 2016). By the efficient use of the system, the company will have the capability to cope with the rapid changes and the altering scope of the company. It is very important that the company has effective human resource management so that the employee turnover rate is decreased and the employees feel motivated while working in the organization (Heydari et.al, 2015). This can be done through the agile human resource management which will assist the company in increasing the collaboration and build a team-based culture in the company so that the employees of the organization work in teams and are encouraged to perform to their full capabilities.

Outdated technology is a loophole for the company so it is essential for Laturae to improve the technology level of the company. For this, the company can make effective utilization of agile supply chain management. The cost of processes of the company will be reduced and there will be the development of modular processes in the company. The issues related with the sales cycles of the business, the company can employ the agile sales team so that the team can collect the relevant information of the customers and then steps can be taken to improve the situation. The agile sales methods can also help in suggesting suitable marketing techniques for the company (Heydari et.al, 2015). As communication is an important part of a business the issue of lack of communication can be resolved by the business by the implementation of the agile communication approaches (Ghobakhloo&Azar, 2018). The company will then be able to gather valuable feedback from the customers. The feedback can be collected through various channels and then the company can design and tailor the products and services according to the needs and demands of the customers.

Value Chain Primary Activities Sub-Activities

The main purpose of identifying or deconstructing the value chain model is to determine all the primary activities and sub-activities carried out by Laureate. These activities are useful in achieving a competitive edge. The activities are significant for gaining profits for the firm by creating the products and services and making them available in the market (LevyShort&Measey, 2015). The primary activities of the company comprise inbound and outbound logistics, operational activities, marketing and sales, distribution, research, and development.  

• In inbound logistics, the manager is focused on making relationships with the suppliers of the raw material.
• In outbound logistics, the sub-activity is the distribution of final services and products in the market or to the outlets.
• In marketing and sales, the sub-activities are related to promotion, marketing, advertisement, etc.
• In Research & Development, the sub-activities comprise the study of consumer choice and preference and marketing performance of a product (Williams, 2012).

Table 1: Value Chain Activities Matrix

Recommendations from Assessment 1

• For managing the logistics related issues, the organisation should make use of agile practices. By implementing such practices, the management can be able to pinpoint the overall challenges occurring in the logistics. It is recommended that by making use of an Enterprise Resource Planning system (ERP), the organisation can be able to manage the inventory (Kramerand Pfitzer, 2016).
• In addition to this, the lean mechanism can also affect the time-scheduling of various processes carried out within the organisation. It also assists in a realignment of the processes in accordance with inventory supply (Kramerand Pfitzer, 2016).
• Furthermore, it was recommended that an organisation should get the ISO Certification in order to standardise its operations for quality improvement. This would increase the value to the company (Wieland& Marcus, 2012).
• In addition to this, the company is advised to make use of smart technology. This would be very significant for improving the efficiency of Latureae. While implementing the process and innovating machines, the initial cost may increase but in the long run, the solution may contribute to large benefits.
• In order to increase revenue, Latureae has to improve its supply of resources for improving the delivery of services to the customers. Therefore, it is required to plan for the demand of services and forecast is required to be to correctly done. The company should be able to attend real-time demand (Kramerand Pfitzer, 2016).
• It is advised that the company should improve its HR system for managing the manpower and another essential requirement. This would improve responsiveness, productivity, and efficiency.

Recommended Technology System to Support Activities

For improvement of the current operation and practices followed by Latureae, two technology systems can be used together. One is an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system and other is Customer Relationship Management (CRM). The former system would help in improving the flow of resource, providing clarity to the employees in different departments for carrying out work assigned to them in a better way (LevyShort&Measey, 2015). In addition to this, ERP would also help in facilitating the information flow within the firm, thereby assisting in the logistic operations. The software will be helping the fleet operators tremendously in the distribution of medical healthcare services and products. Furthermore, ERP is capable enough to handle the valuable data of the company related to its supply chain. The software is able to optimise the inventory management of the company (Heydari et.al, 2015). With the personalised dashboard, the sales executives and delivery partners can be managed from anywhere. It facilitates better decision-making. Researchers have supported the use of ERP for improving the pace of carrying out business operations. In addition to this, it can also facilitate the analysis of real-time data for calculating or projecting future sales and revenue growth by assessing the real-time demand-supply data (Kramerand Pfitzer, 2016). For a more advanced version, a cloud-based ERP system can provide advanced security to the company's data and also provide multi-system access to the data. It can also back up the information related contracts, payrolls, attendance records, delivery address, etc.

Talking about the Customer Relationship Management System (CRM), this would help Latureae in improving relationships with clients, business partners, and customers. All the information regarding customer preference, demand, and behavioural pattern can be stored and managed by CRM and would build a strong relationship with them (Kuusinen&Väänänen-Vainio-Mattila, 2012). In addition to this, Latureae can improve cross-sell. With all the information stored in the CRM, the company can be able to provide the solutions for the expected future problem, thereby increasing customer satisfaction (Kramerand Pfitzer, 2016). In addition to this, this would result in a reduction of client attrition. CRM helps in managing the client relationship like never before and would definitely minimises the risk of client attrition tremendously (Williams, 2012).

There are some system specifications that are to be considered while implementing the proposed systems. The first and foremost is the end-user i.e., customer information in the design process. Furthermore, the organisation is required to have a comprehensive view of a unique interface of client information (Williams, 2012). Furthermore, the software should be compatible with multiple platforms, such as Android, Windows, and iOS. Once the system is implemented successfully, the training strategy is required to be formulated for the successful working of the proposed system.

Conclusion

This report gave a solution plan that shrouded the provisos in the evaluation of two techniques. In the past assessment, the essential and auxiliary exercises were recognized and connected. In this appraisal, the gap in similar linkages was utilized to write the solution plan. The report utilized standards of agile methodologies so as to give proposals and framework outline to the Latureae management.

References

• Al-Ali, A. G., &Phaal, R. (2019). Design Sprints for Roadmapping an Agile Digital Transformation. In  2019 IEEE International Conference on Engineering, Technology and Innovation (ICE/ITMC)(pp. 1-6). IEEE.
• Bider, I., &Jalali, A. (2016). Agile business process development: why, how and when—applying Nonaka’s theory of knowledge transformation to business process development.  Information Systems and e-Business Management,  14(4), 693-731.
• Ghezzi, A., &Cavallo, A. (2018). Agile business model innovation in digital entrepreneurship: Lean Startup approaches.  Journal of business research.
• Ghobakhloo, M., &Azar, A. (2018). Business excellence via advanced manufacturing technology and lean-agile manufacturing.  Journal of Manufacturing Technology Management,  29(1), 2-24.
• Levy, R., Short, M., &Measey, P. (2015). Agile foundations: principles, practices, and frameworks. BCS.
• Heydari, M., Haghigh, E.M. and Danai, H., (2015). Value Added Production in the Company's Electrical Panel Builders West Based on Michael Porter's Value Chain.
• Kramer, M.R. and Pfitzer, M.W., (2016). The ecosystem of shared value.  Harvard business review,  94(10), pp.80-89.
• Kuusinen, K., &Väänänen-Vainio-Mattila, K. (2012, October). How to make agile UX work more efficient: management and sales perspectives. In  Proceedings of the 7th Nordic Conference on Human-Computer Interaction: Making Sense Through Design(pp. 139-148). ACM.
• Wieland, A., & Marcus Wallenburg, C. (2012). Dealing with supply chain risks: Linking risk management practices and strategies for performance. International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management,  42(10), 887-905.
• Williams, L. (2012). What agile teams think of agile principles.  Communications of the ACM,  55(4), 71-76.