The Current State of IT in Your Organization: A Snapshot - Assignment Example

? The Current of IT at Aramex: A Snapshot THE CURRENT OF IT AT ARAMEX: A SNAPSHOT Introduction Aramex International was established, in 1982, to provide logistics and transportation solutions (Aramex International, 2013: p1). Since then, the company has evolved from its relatively humble beginnings as an express operator to an internationally renowned brand name. After becoming the first Arab-based firm to be enlisted at the NASDAQ, the company went into private ownership again. Using their experience as traders and through forming international alliances, the company has retained their competitive edge by improving their brand recognition. The company’s major objective is to be a global facilitator of trade commerce, as well as be the best transportation and logistics provider. Aramex is also a pioneer member of the Global Distribution Alliance and currently chairs it. With over 12,000 offices, 66,000 employees, 33,000 trucks, and operations in over 240 countries, (Aramex International, 2013: p1), Aramex requires an efficient and effective management information system. One strategy that Aramex employs towards this aim is knowledge management, which is aimed at allowing the different managers develop activities aimed at sharing, exchanging, using, and updating knowledge. In different interviews with Mr. Hussein Hachem and Mr. Iyad Kamal, CEO and COO at Aramex respectively, it became clear that MIS and KM have heavy roles in their plans in gaining competitive advantage. Information Systems at Aramex Ethical Issues Related to Data Management and Communication A code of ethics refers to the manner in which organizations ensure that knowledge will only be used for the benefit of the society. Aramex, according to COO Iyad Kamal, handles client information that ranges from personal addresses to confidential financial information, which makes the management of this knowledge ethically essential (personal communication, July 07, 2013). This requires a code of ethics, which give guidelines on how to assist the management and employees to make decisions. Some of the ethical decisions they have to take are of a legal nature. For example, when making a decision, they have to consider if there will be legal repercussions to activity or inactivity on their part. This is especially considerate of repercussions for a decision that is illegal. Another ethical concern arises in the business environment with regards to profit motive and Aramex’s goals. These environmental influences have a strong bearing on the consequences of the employee’s decisions. With the advancement of technology at Aramex, the implications of their integrity, accuracy, confidentiality, and privacy have far reaching consequences on the clients’ willingness to entrust sensitive information with them (Davis & Patterson, 2012: p14). This necessitates a strict adherence to ethical standards of information handling, which, in turn, will lead to a competitive edge. Information management is faced with several ethical threats as technology advances. This is true at many organizations, as it is at Aramex, where their advanced information systems have raised scrutiny with regards to information accessibility, accuracy, privacy, and respect of property rights (Davis & Patterson, 2012: p16). With regards to privacy, Aramex ensures that only essential and relevant information is revealed to other people, as well as the conditions under which it is allowed and with safeguards. For clients to entrust their information with Aramex, helping it gain more market share and a competitive edge, they must ensure that the most sensitive information is not shown to others. The information systems must also be accurate as far as fidelity and authenticity are concerned. The COO at Aramex is responsible for this, and he is responsible for errors in the information, as well as the consequences of these errors. He is also responsible for ensuring the company is not sued for property rights infringements, as well as deciding on what information the organization is entitled to, the conditions, and safeguards (personal communication, July 07, 2013). Encoded Knowledge at Aramex Aramex requires specific financial and personal details in order to deliver and facilitate movement of products. For many international organizations; for example, in Aramex, these transactions are governed by the agreements that they make with clients. The current nature of information exchange is such that the societal preference is for encoded over narrative knowledge (Cox, 2007: p7). Offering this information is the best way to ensure that these transactions are completed safely and accurately. In order to protect the information that Aramex gets from the clients, their information systems use a 128-bit encryption system. This system encodes sensitive information that can only be read by the computer. According to Mr. Hachem, this is the safest method for encoding that is available while also stressing that this important for a company such as Aramex, especially because their credibility, and competitive edge, as a logistics company is dependent on how safe clients feel when entrusting them with the information (personal communication, July 08, 2013). Financial and personal details are encoded in order to protect them from being accessed by both internal and external intruders. This is to protect the confidential information that they enter when they are in session or details and information that is transmitted during e-mail sessions. Aramex’s encryption system is a world-renowned system for data encoding that ensures the information on the transmissions and exchanges is safe. When used correctly and their use restricted, these financial details can then be used to improve performance of the IT department (Bhatt & Grover, 2005: p255). Aramex is committed to the protection of credit card numbers and account numbers. It is important to ensure that financial and personal information received by the host server and transmitted to internal information systems are protected. Protection is important against any fraudulent activity that comes from security breaches, especially for which the client has no responsibility (Bhatt & Grover, 2005: p240). Aramex also encourages clients to guard passwords and prevent any unauthorized use. Passwords or PIN numbers are another way of deterring any one getting hold of the customer’s financial information and Aramex sends annual newsletters that, among other things, encourage regular clients to change passwords often. Therefore, according to Mr. Hachem, client financial and personal information needs to be handled as discretely as possible (personal communication, July 08, 2013). Knowledge Management and Sharing Across Business Units As Aramex expands to offices across the globe and employ more workers to run their organizations efficiently, the description of Aramex as a unique entity becomes more difficult. According to Mr. Kamal, the answer lies in making all employees aware of the organization’s mission and vision and equipping them with technology that eases their duties, as well as increases effectiveness of service to the client (personal communication, July 07, 2013). The advancements that have gone on IT have necessitated increased focus on management of the vast knowledge in their information systems, for the benefit of the client and the organization (Mohamed, Stankosky, & Murray, 2006: p106). The KM team is a vital core at Aramex, which bridges the divide between teams within the organization and enhances their ability to exchange or share knowledge. Since the locations of various client bases are globally spread, it is important for employees and managers to have knowledge sharing ability so as to understand the customer’s requirements, as well as execute these requirements, as perfectly as possible. This is especially important in creating a brand name that clients will trust, which is enhances competitive advantage (Mohamed et al, 2006). In the interview with Mr. Kamal, he said that KM at his organization focuses on two key aspects; process and employees (personal communication, July 07, 2013). KM and sharing are essential because the information the organization possesses is useless if the employees have no idea it exists (Mohamed et al, 2006: p107). Aramex holds immense information gained from its global operations, which is spread across various employees in different geographical locations. Being a company that aims at gaining competitive advantage on a global market, exchange and sharing of knowledge among these different business units is important. Mr. Hachem contends that one of the first thing he did as CEO was to ensure that employees in different locations knew employees on other teams, as well as had a developed sense of the work other teams did (personal communication, July 08, 2013). KM and sharing allow employees to get to know each other and their roles. This aids the employees to identify how to contact their colleagues for essential information in order to serve the clients correctly. Process is also important in managing and sharing knowledge among business units. This is because different units follow different processes. Therefore, knowledge on the processes must be shared, among the teams, to implement best techniques and practices and improve organizational process (Mohamed et al, 2006: p109). Employees from these teams could improve cost factor and quality of service through an adaptation of the benchmark process. Impact of Database and Knowledge Management on Competitive Advantage Aramex could achieve competitive advantage by effectively managing knowledge and information. To start with, KM will significantly reduce the cost. The reason why teams across some organizations have to keep re-inventing the wheel is that they do not have information of a similar operation by the same organization. In addition, they do not know how to access it. This is ultimately costly and is inefficient to the organization and the client, which could lead to a loss of competitive advantage. This is especially so if a rival company already has the knowledge to carry out the same operation. Re-use of knowledge ensures improved service efficiency and cost benefits. Information sharing forms a collaborative activity where the individual, team members spin ideas off each other (Cox, 2007: p3). Knowledge and data management also significantly increases the ability of a team to respond because of better access to knowledge and information, as well as its application (Cox, 2007: p7). There is decreased tendency to repeat mistakes, which could be costly in terms of client retention, and it significantly improves service quality. According to Mr. Kamal, better knowledge of client, employee, and industry needs has a significant effect on management of relationships in the company (personal communication, July 08, 2013). For this reason, it is clear why effective management of information and knowledge contributes greatly to improvement of service delivery. For instance, it improves the ability to respond faster, improve on delivery of service, provide the organization with room for further growth, and reduce costs dramatically, all that will gain Aramex a competitive advantage. As Mr. Kamal stated, knowledge underpins this current strategy at Aramex (personal communication, July 8, 2013). However, management of knowledge and information, especially increased creation of knowledge, is also a driver for innovation (Cox, 2007: p10). At Aramex, their services are smarter, and are based on knowledge. Aramex’s ability of collaborating better in virtual and physical teams, which work in knowledge, is the driver of new knowledge creation. Their ideas can result in innovative services because of KM. As an organization, it is learning faster and developing competencies using effective data and KM (Cox, 2007:p10). Mr. Hachem’s final thoughts on the matter are that it is not possible for Aramex not to embody, embed, and mainstream principles, processes, policies, and strategies of data and knowledge management into their employees, teams, and the company (personal communication, July 08, 2013). Aramex’s E-commerce Strategy International companies require an e-commerce strategy that enables them in effectively handling their clients’ needs over the internet (Cullen & Webster, 2007: p206). As a company that conducts most of their business online, Aramex cannot afford to miss the opportunity for reducing inefficiency in business dealings, especially as this will impact negatively on client relations and, thus, competitive advantage. This is especially true because their major competitors will not miss this opportunity. An e-commerce strategy that seeks to expand their strategic advantage should offer a means for Aramex to create a new range of services to aspirational consumers. However, getting an e-commerce strategy that will do this is difficult enough for a company that is still transitioning from a brick and mortar company, although in quite an advanced phase. It could create a division with clients and among employees who prefer inter-personal relations. Being able to do so without a KM team with the technical knowledge that is needed to provide almost flawless service to the client is difficult, especially if the company does not want to outsource (Cullen & Webster, 2007: p209). Aramex has been an e-commerce champion for a long time through their Shop and Ship product, which recently opened up in the United States and the United Kingdom for clients in the Middle East. In addition, they also have the Souq.com and Sukar solutions, as well as the RED solution that seeks to aid their clients in the provision of efficient online transactions. The RED solution is one that seeks to enable Aramex to provide efficient online services by allowing them to move different global locations update and create their information bases, receive payments, and process orders. An organization needs to structure their ground operations and the client tools in order to enable efficient e-commerce strategies (Subramani & Walden, 2001: p142). Aramex should pursue this to empower teams to begin sharing information online using as little effort and time as possible to effect these actions. Using the Mart-jack program, their online operations are simplified, and it has features that aim to promote their services. Aramex as suggested by Subramani and Walden (2001: p149) should also seek to integrate all their existing systems with supply chain solutions, fulfillment services, and all time technical support. Conclusion In today’s world, technology has become an essential component of operations, and this is no different at Aramex. Processes that have been manual for a long time have now become automated, with high levels of electronic communications now being integrated into their various bases. Business practices have been transformed completely. As Information Systems (IS) evolve, they also offer more possibilities for improvement of operations. IS has become a tool at Aramex whose values is highly dependent on how the organization decides to use it. From interviews with the CEO and COO at Aramex, it is clear that the organization values the power of technology and understands that it can benefit the company in finding a competitive edge on its competitors. When an organization realizes strategic knowledge, there is endless potential in innovation and cost reduction. However, there is a danger in simply installing these systems, and it is important to understand the ways that the knowledge and data they process can be used to increase the value. For Aramex, it is essential that they think of management information systems, not as a commodity, but as a way to achieve competitive advantage on their rivals. References Aramex.org. (2010). About Aramex. Retrieved July 4, 2013, from www.aramex.org/public/english.aspx?page_id=10 Bhatt, G. & Grover, V. (2005). Types of information technology capabilities and their role in competitive advantage: an empirical study. Journal of Management Information Systems, 22(2), 253-277. Cox, A. (2007). Reproducing knowledge: Xerox and the story of knowledge management. Knowledge Management Research & Practice, 5(1), 3–12. Davis, Kord & Patterson, Doug . (2012). Ethics of big data. Sebastopol : O'Reilly. Cullen, A. J. & Webster, M. (2007). A model of B2B e-commerce, based on connectivity and purpose. International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 27(2), 205 - 225. Mohamed, M. Stankosky, M. & Murray, A. (2006). Knowledge management and information technology: Can they work in perfect harmony? Journal of Knowledge Management, 10(3), 103-116. Subramani, M. & Walden, E. (2001). The impact of e-commerce announcements on the market value of firms. Information Systems Research, 12(2), 135-154 . Read More