Functional Components of the Business and the Information Needs of Bright Systems Limited - Case Study Example

Running head: IS Information System Executive Summary The purpose of the paper would be to identify the functional components of the business and the information needs of the enterprise. This would involve a large examination of the business and deep acknowledgment of the business processes. The various types of information system that might be suitable for the enterprise is explored extensively for the generation of the various outcomes for the paper. The current trends of the various applications are also explored so that a conclusion is reached. The various information processing methods for the organization are explored in deep to arrive at a conclusion for fetching better methods for the enterprise to integrate its processes. Table of Contents Executive Summary 2 Table of Contents 3 Introduction 5 Organization – Purpose and Objectives 6 1.Functional areas: 6 2.Application of Key Systems Theory Concepts: 6 a.Inputs: 7 b.Process: 8 c.Output: 9 3.Analysis of Information flow throughout the departments: 10 Information systems Comparison: 13 a.Final selection 15 Examination stage: 15 a.A Discussion of the Use of Different Levels of Systems in Different Organisational Departments: 16 b.Discussion of the Interaction between Systems: 18 c.Shop floor data collection system: 21 Conclusion 23 References/ Bibliography 24 Self Evaluation: 26 Introduction The primary section is focused on describing the organization and the various functional components it possesses. The various identifications entail better knowledge of the organization by principal and would engage the information flow among them. The second section enables identification of the various information systems that can be exercised in practice so that better systems can be developed to encompass the organization. The comparison of current trends in using applications exposes better methods for facilitating business processes and enveloping business standards. The final section relates to the various tools required to solve the problem and embrace the strategies which must be used for system analysis and design purpose. Organization – Purpose and Objectives Bright Systems Limited (BLL) has revolutionized in its business operations as a manufacturing giant of LED and involves a huge engineering business of its own. They require an information system to envelope their business processes and needs. 1. Functional areas: BLL has several suppliers such as producers of electronic components, glass, transistors and many others. The company purchases raw materials from these suppliers are integrate them to make a deliverable product. The final product is sold to a number of local, national and international wholesalers and retailers. The involvements of the departments are quite evident in the process of transition from materials procurement to final delivery. The primary functional areas are engineering, manufacturing, logistics, sales, distribution, supplier network and many others. 2. Application of Key Systems Theory Concepts: The entire process of input->process->output is quite evident in the process of rendering customers with products and services. The inputs are in the form of customer request. Primarily the development of products would be done based on the previous goods sold and the feedback received. The type of products namely light bulbs and fluorescents are manufactured by the organization and sold to the retailers and wholesalers nationwide and internationally. Figure 1: System diagram of the Organization process a. Inputs: The nature of inputs is in the form of customers’ orders and feedbacks. They are also in the form of raw materials procured from the suppliers which ultimately are processed to form finished goods. Once the customer places the orders, according to the dimension of the order, it is taken up for compliance. The right amount of raw materials is ordered from the suppliers and it passes through the design process. The final product after the quality check is delivered to the customer in time. The process of selling might be over at this stage but marketing group takes over to get the feedback and improve their service conditions and product quality for greater satisfaction. So at this stage the customers’ order and feedback both act as inputs to the organization. The raw materials purchased from the suppliers also act as inputs for the finished products. b. Process: There are a number of processes which are present in the organization that directly and indirectly influence the working of the organization and in shaping various forms of output. The most crucial process is the ordering of raw materials after an order is placed. This process is quite essential for the further processing of the order, its quality factors, timely delivery and customer satisfaction. The next process would be the combination of the raw materials so that the correct blend enables to produce quality goods for gaining customer satisfaction. Another process would be to collect the feedback from the customer which happens to be a lengthy process. It would require patience on the part of the organization to collect after sales data for further processing to create a better process chain and innovate the look and feel of products to cater better audience. The HRM process would enable findings of the worker output, taking care of the human resources in the organization and training them for newer business objectives and process innovation. There are several small processes such as logistics and despatch which would handle the management of the products namely bulbs and fluorescents. It would function for warehousing, inventory management and delivery of the products to the customer. c. Output: There are quite a number of forms of output which helps the organization to take care of customer needs and render greater satisfaction of service. One is the finished goods which serve the customers either entirely or through the means of wholesalers and retailers. The feedback of the customers forms a greater source of output for after sales service and to make their product better. Another form of output is the worker productivity and resource utilization so that the turnover can be assessed after eliminating the wastage of resources. The other form of feedback is from the customer for after sales feedback and for product innovation. 3. Analysis of Information flow throughout the departments: The major decision making is done and propagated by the managing director to the marketing, human resources and electrical engineering and design departments. Once they have a clear and planned mind set of the aims they are able to work on the targets required to be met. The communication is downward in case for higher management and lateral for the middle and lower management (Boddy, 2005). Figure 2: Organizational information flow The outputs and feedbacks are to be propagated back to the higher management in a bottom up manner and should be capitalised to capture greater customer base. The data flow diagram would communicate the flow of the information in the organisation and would clearly depict the involvement of the departments. Figure 3: Data Flow Diagram It propagates the systems thinking process where the inputs are the present state of the organization the processes are the various organizational processes which are also known as business functions and the future of the organization is the outputs the organization is to look forward to. Information systems Comparison: The various types of information system which for the organization is as follows: A web solution which entails better framework of the enterprise over the internet so that it can be accessed ate very juncture. It would be a great solution for the enterprise and an additional benefit for the sales personnel to record sales at the go. The web applications ensure a better handling and accessibility for all departments at all times. The availability is the prime advantage of the web applications and it requires to be kept in mind for it. A consideration for a supply chain system which would successfully organize the various departments and the various data flow among them. The flow of information among the departments needs a system which would enable better processing of data and ensuring swift communication for cutting costs. The SCM would integrate the primary operations of the business which entail manufacturing process, distribution, warehousing, selling and logistics. This portion of the business needs a tight integration and control so that all decisions are swift which would reduce discrepancies and cut on costs. An ERP system would be a great idea to mange the entire organization and integrate all the departments and enforce greater control on the various resources. It would be quite appropriate to ensure better control on the resources and ensure better configuration of the business processes. The primary advantage would be to ensure various efficient data transfer process and cut on costs and effort. Figure 4: A Potential System a. Final selection It was decided that various organizational phases require a separate system and would embrace all system advantages and functionalities to ensure smoother operations. The primary advantage would be to envelope all types of system functionality for modelling the system requirements. ERP system would be the most suitable form for the organization with penetration of SCM and a web solution for reaping the benefits of all types of information system. The cost is certainly an issue for the implementation of the ERP solution, however the long term gains is the primary focus for BLL. The solution would not only optimise costs but also facilitate better data access and control. Examination stage: The use of different IS systems by different departments is essential as no one system is able to encompass the needs of others nor it must include the complexities of all the systems. The diversification of the various systems must be operated by the appropriate departments so that they can get their job well with the use of such systems. a. A Discussion of the Use of Different Levels of Systems in Different Organisational Departments: The elaborate discussion of such systems are detailed below would be used in practice. Figure 5: The Organization chart and the Level of IS to be implemented The despatch department, warehousing, logistics and the sales department can implement the Knowledge Work System. It would be better for capturing the process of raw material procurement to delivery and despatch of finished products. Figure 6: Knowledge Work system Managing the feedback process is a challenging process and can be handled effectively by the Decision support system. Figure 7: Decision support system. The accounting department must implement a transaction processing system to handle the accounting related jobs. Figure 8: Transaction processing system and its interaction with MIS b. Discussion of the Interaction between Systems: The interaction of the various systems must be done so that they are able to share data and information for further processing of the business processes and to manage and track the flow of business functions. Figure 9: Interaction of various IS system in BLL The knowledge of the shop floor data collection is essential so that there is enough information about the nature of competitiveness of the workers and to measure the output of the workers. The quality of the goods sold and the amount of resource utilisation and wastage can also be analysed. The internet has brought an entire world to ones lap. Information is easily accessible and could be retrieved without much trouble. BLL can exploit internet so that all the departments can access it. It can be made to access the portal through which the employees would be able to access information related to them. The complex processes of E-commerce could be also incorporated with the idea that the B2B. The order for the products can be done using the internet portal and the suppliers can also be give access so that they are able to track the orders and deliver in time. This will keep the order process in synchronisation and can be adhered quite timely. The entire customer interface phase can be made online so that customers get an option to order online which can be tracked and made good. The process flow from manufacturing of the goods to the warehousing department and finally the despatch of the goods can be well maintained in the online tracking system. Contrasting with the traditional system it was all of paperwork and hand in hand selling to retailers and wholesalers who would be a middlemen in selling finally to the customers (Hoffer, 2002). There was no direct interface with the end customers or consumers. The involvement of the middle men also involved the extra costs, transportation and proper delivery of goods that were associated with the product and thereby increased the cost of the products itself. The propagation of the product features and information about the products were also unknown to the end consumer and would make the product communication very difficult in some cases. Over the internet the customer is able to view the product details and also compare them in the light of other competitive products. Figure 10: Process of working in an E-Commerce environment c. Shop floor data collection system: The system must be such that it is able to take all details about the on goings of the organization and the amounts of time spend by each worker in the process of manufacturing, selling, logistics, warehousing and despatch of final products. The amount of goods sold and despatched in right condition is also analysed by the system. It updates the inventory stock and updates costing. It also recalculates the balance at run time to assess the quantity of products. It would automatically update the master production scheduling module. It would help BLL to optimise operations and achieve supply chain visibility to improve accuracy, material availability, decision making and correct reporting of warehouse operations. It furthermore improves the management of the inventory thereby accelerating turnover and reduced errors. The return on investment can be improved greatly with improved labour and equipment efficiency. Worker output can be greatly increased by inputting the system with their working hours, expenditure, no of products despatched without error and average cost incurred in selling the products. Conclusion The client organization BLL is explored in depth for discovering the various business processes required for embracing an information system. The primary discussion also stretches to the very evaluation of the business and the mapping of the various data flows among the departments. This not only helps us to understand the enterprise better but to gain a deep insight of the critical data exchange and communication problems pertaining to it. The information system variants discussed in practice surfaces various techniques which can be enforced for the organization for smoothening communication across departments and cutting on costs for the enterprise. It also replaces the existing legacy system in place and transform into an updated system. The various tools used for the organization is the ERP system which envelops the entire various department and their needs. It also integrates a SCM and a web related system for some of its departments. The secondary systems in place bind the entire organization to meet its needs. References/ Bibliography Boddy, David, Boonstra, Albert, Graham Kennedy (2005). “Managing Information Systems: Strategy and Organization”, 3rd edition. Benson S and Standing C (2002), Information Systems: A Business Approach, Wiley and Sons. Elliott G (2004), Global Business Information Technology, Addison Wesley. Forouzan, A. Behrouz (2003). TCP/IP Protocol Suite, second edition. Tata McGraw Hill. Hoffer A. Jeffrey (2002). Modern systems analysis and design, Pearson Education. Martsolf Kurt (2002). New Business Models and the Internet. Pressman G. Roger (2003). Software Engineering, MH. Rajaraman (2002). Analysis, Design of Information system, Pearson Education. Self Evaluation: Several aspects of personal and professional learning opportunities were encountered in the execution of the paper on information systems. Professionally, the prime goal was to understand the manner to deeply study the organization. An organization of such dimension was taken up to learn information system modelling. The very understanding to act as a functional consultant for understanding the organizational processes is encountered at first. The roles and responsibilities for the system to be developed are understood at first. Secondly the technical consultant role is assumed by me for understanding the technological framework most suitable for the organization. The interfacing of the functional and technical systems has enhanced my learning and understanding of the various parts of the information system modelling and management. The deep exploration of the various information systems and its examination process to be made suitable for the organization has enhanced my skill and knowledge to enhance my confidence in future analysing and building information systems for organizations. Read More