IT and Electronic Commerce Project Methodology - Case Study Example

Project Management Executive Summary This paper presents a business case for a Lima-based restaurant called Dona Bocanod that is currently incurring losses introduced by its inability to efficiently serve customers based on given physical constraints. One of the alternatives that the organization is thinking of to alleviate this state is to develop a fully functional website. The strategic goal of this measure is to heighten Dona Bocanods financial profits plus margins in addition to increasing online visibility and winning more virtual customers. The projects measurable organization values include providing a blog for customers to air their views, supporting online transactions and increasing the restaurants visibility online. Tracking customer views will allow the restaurant to provide well-timed responses to customers concerns. Support for online transactions will increase revenue considering that it will increase the number of clients that can be served within a day. Finally, increased online visibility will let Dona Bocanod to increase its customer base and stay at the competitive edge. Of the three alternatives (website development, landline phones and maintaining status quo), the project recommends website development because it offers functionalities that support the restaurants strategic goals. Introduction Background Dona Bocanod is a small restaurant based in Lima, Peru, and offering a variety of dishes that makes it one of the favorite places to dine out. Current Situation Of recent, the restaurant has started witnessing losses that are mainly attributed to the physical constraints that prevent it from offering effective services to its customers. Problem/Opportunity Description Dona Bocanod only features 20 tables that cannot effectively meet the customers needs so customers are forced to wait outside, and others are forced to walk away. Additionally, it does not have a landline phone, so the owner is forced to use her personal phone in handling customer issues. This has also introduced intensified usage of her calling plan consequently introducing additional expenses. The Projects Measurable Organizational Values The measurable organizational values of this project include: Making the business visible over the worldwide web and attracting more virtual customers. Enhancing the routine services by allowing online transactions Providing a platform for customers to air their views Importance of Attaining the MOV Increased visibility over the web gives the meaning that Dona Bocadon will have a broader customer base thus increasing its chances of raising more revenue. Support for online transactions introduces accuracies in the day-to-day operations in addition to reducing the amount of the labor force needed to handle the sales issues. Finally, allowing customers to air their views will enable Dona Bocadon to stay at a competitive edge mainly because it will be able to respond to customer needs in a well-timed manner. Objectives of Writing Business Case To provide a basis for writing the business requirement document To help the restaurant explore all feasible methods pertaining to the existing problem thus enabling the software project to adopt an approach that saves effort, money and time. To allow the business owner to make an informed choice about the IT project adventure Alternatives Alternative 1 The restaurant could hire a team of developers to work on a fully operational website. The web utility will allow visitors to browse the restaurant menu plus pictures, and will be inclusive of a blog that that will allow customers post comments, support for online platform for placing then paying for orders, after which the transaction will reflect in a back-end database system based within the restaurant. Alternative 2 The restaurant could maintain status quo and stick to the routine operations. If this be the case, the business risks being pushed out of the business for the reason that a number of the competing restaurants such as Cebicheria La Mar and Maido have already invested in the web-based facilities to improve their operations. Alternative 3 Finally, Mrs. Diaz will have the option of using the traditional phone line to manage customers. One challenge that accompanies this kind of approach is that it is likely to heighten the billing costs. Analysis of Alternatives Data Collection Methods Fully Functional Website Phone Maintaining Status Quo The development crew will arrange for personal interviews and focus group discussions with the staff and customers at Don Bocadon. The management at Don Bocadon will designate a team of qualified staff to search for business cases of restaurants that have succeeded in using the conventional cell phone in managing customers. The management can plan for design of questionnaires that target clients who come visiting the premise of the restaurants. Metrics Used The metrics used in this project will return on investment (ROI), cost and time. Other their ability to deliver value to Don Bocadon, the aforementioned metrics can be agreed upon and are verifiable hence the usefulness in this project. Presentation of Results Fully Functional Website Phone Status Quo Metrics Cost will be based on the development cost; time will be based on the outcome of the developers schedule; ROI will be based on the difference in revenue following the implementation of the website Cost will be determined by the cost of installing and maintaining the landlines; time will be a summation of the time needed to study and analyze the business cases; ROI will be based on the difference in revenue after the sales team begins using cell phones in tracking clients orders. Cost: will be founded on the impact of losses likely to befall Don Bocadon in maintaining status quo; ROI will be based on the difference between the presented revenue and the revenue level in case it maintains a status quo. Risks Use of online tools to sustain business operations could cease being a state-of-the-art approach soon after the development of the application is done. The business requirements risk being misinterpreted leading to a product that does not deliver values that motivated the project endeavor. The cost of sustaining the phone services could introduce cost overheads and affect the financial status of the restaurant. The business risks being faced out or rendered irrelevant especially if the competing restaurants have already leveraged or planning to take advantage of the online utilities. Assumptions The clients, employees, and the owner of the restaurant are all willing to engage in online transactions. The customer engagement team managing the phone calls will not leave any order untracked The move by Mrs. Diaz to maintain the status quo will not in any way influence the decision of the competitor enterprises to embrace web technology. Sensitive Analysis Using ROI as a metric for the project worth, a fully functional website and landline phones will be acceptable on financial grounds if their deployment will have a positive impact on the operation of the restaurant. The implementation costs associated with the two are relatively certain. However, no cost can be ascertained of maintaining a status quo because no cost is incurred in the first place. Using time as another metric for project worth, a website and a landline phone will be acceptable only if the two ensure deliveries within time frames that can allow the restaurant to catch up with the current customer-related concerns. The time needed to develop the website can be ascertained using the project schedule that the developers will issue to the restaurant. However, the time needed for acquisition of landline phones cannot be ascertained given that the process could by the devices running out of stock in the supplier shops. Finally, using cost as a metric for the project worth, any approach chosen needs to be capable of introducing benefits that can justify the implementation cost. This metric is irrelevant in case the restaurant resorts to maintenance of the status quo. On the other hand, the cost of website development or landline phone acquisition can be ascertained in case the procurement process complies with the original budget. An otherwise can introduce cost overheads that the anticipated improvement in revenue might not cover. Proposed Recommendations It will not be good to maintain the status quo for the restaurants survival in the technology-oriented business environment of the 21st century. In essence, the curiosity that surrounds IT technologies could in itself suffice in making customers shift their preference in favor of tech conscious restaurants. Even though landline phones will be better in terms of introducing effective measures to manage different transactions like order placement and customer management, there is no guarantee that the customers service team tracking the phone calls will efficiently associate every phone call with given customer needs without confusing customer-placed orders and requests or disregarding certain phone calls. The website is seemingly the way to go for the following reasons. First, transactions will be error free given that they will be based on web sessions. Second, the management will have a time-saving avenue to access up-to-date transaction details. Third, the site will increase the restaurants online visibility thus broadening its customer base. Finally, support for online services means that transactions will be free of interactions thus increasing efficiency. References Lee, I. (2012). Electronic commerce management for business activities and global enterprises: Competitive advantages. Hershey, PA: Business Science Reference. Read More