Week 5- Ethics and Security

1. Explain the ethical issues surrounding information technology.

Intellectual property- Intellectual property represents the property of your mind or intellect. It can be an invention, trademark, original design or the practical application of a good idea. In business terms, this means your proprietary knowledge – a key component of success in business today. It is often the edge that sets successful companies apart and as world markets become increasingly competitive, protecting your intellectual property becomes essential.

Copyright- The right to copy or duplicate materials can be granted only by the owners of the information. Many documents on the Internet contain a statement that asserts the document is copyrighted and gives permission for distributing the document in an electronic form, provided it isn't sold or made part of some commercial venture.

Fair use doctrine- The copyright principle of fair use allows the public to copy works without having to ask permission or pay licensing fees to copyright holders.

Pirated software- An illegal copy of a software package. Many companies use this as it is easy to get a hold of and they usually get the best software available for which stands as a disadvantage to other companies. 

2. Describe a situation involving technology that is ethical but illegal.

A credit card company sells its customers’ mailing address to other competitors. This situation is illegal as this is confidential information but it may be ethical in different people's eyes as there was an intention of making money.

3. Describe and explain one of the computer use policies that a company might employ

Ethical computer use policy- contains general principles to guide computer user behaviour.

A company will use this policy to guide them in the right direction and to make sure thst they are doing the right thing.

4. What are the 5 main technology security risks?

Human Error-

This can malicious by the human or not by the human.

Natural Disasters-

Floods, earthquakes, terrorist attacks.

Technical Failures- 

Software bugs, hardware crashes.

Deliberate Acts- 

Sabotage, white collar crime.

Management Failure- 

Lack of procedure, documentation, training.

5. Outline one way to reduce each risk.

Human Error- make sure your passwords are unique and can be remembered by you only, change passwords regularly.

Natural Disasters- all firms should have a comprehensive disaster recovery plan which includes such things as

• Communication plan
• Alternative sites - hot or warm sites
• Business continuity
• Location of backup data

Technical Failures- have a backup stored on a USB or any other storage device

Deliberate Acts- encrypt all data to make it secure, prevent peer to peer sharing

Management Failure- make sure efficient training is provided, document and save all important information and records.

6. What is a disaster recovery plan, what strategies might a firm employ?

A disaster recovery plan is designed to ensure the continuation of vital business processes in the event that a disaster occurs. 

The term “disaster” is relative because disasters can occur in varying degrees. So, this Plan has considered this issue and incorporates management procedures as well as technical procedures to insure provable recovery capability.

A firm needs to employ strategies as they have to be prepared for anything to happen. The following strategies are key to implementing a comprehensive Disaster Recovery Program:

- Critical Application 
- Assessment 

- Back-Up Procedures 

- Recovery Procedures 

- Implementation Procedures 

- Test Procedures

- Plan Maintenance

The most successful Disaster Recovery Strategy is one that will never be implemented; therefore, risk avoidance is a critical element in the disaster recovery process.

Another important strategy a firm may implement is to relocate critical Information Systems processing to an alternate computer-processing centre. This will restore and continue business process thus assisting the firm to move on with its operations. 

Week 4- eBusiness

1. Why has the web grown so dramatically?

The World Wide Web enables us to acces a wide range of information at a fast speed making it much more efficient to use. In this modern society, people have less time to do things and thus the web enables them to complete activities in a short amount of time. 

2. How could a web 2.0 technology be used in business?

Web 2.0 technology has become increasingly popular in the business world as it provides a more efficient and effective way of getting things done in a faster amount of time. Web 2.0 technologies are strategic as they give businesses the chance to use modern and innovative programs which will in turn give them a competitive advantage over others. Web 2.0 is also easier to implement and more flexible than traditional top-down approaches as there are more ways of doing things with new and up to date technology.

The success of Goggle Apps and the entry of many major software suppliers into the web-based application market - including Microsoft with its Live platform and SAP with its hosted AS1 enterprise resource planning tool - points to the potential for much greater penetration of Web 2.0 technologies into enterprises.

There has been an increase of CEO’s using blog site to enhance communication, build trust amongst collegues, supplement press releases and talk from the heart. A content rich blog can also work to a businesses advantage as it will enhance the positive image of the company and reputation.

3. What is eBusiness, how does it differ from eCommerce?

ECommerce is the buying and selling of goods and services over the internet.

EBusiness differs from eCommerce as it deals with conducting of business on the internet including, not only buying and selling, but also serving customers and collaborating with business partners.

There is much more to eBusiness than there is to eCommerce.Ebusiness goes far beyond ecommerce or buying and selling over the Internet, and deep into the processes and cultures of an enterprise. It is the powerful business environment that is created when you connect critical business systems directly to customers, employees, vendors, and business partners, using Intranets, Extranets, eCommerce technologies, collaborative applications, and the Web.

4. What is pure and partial eCommerce?

Pure eCommerce concerns business whose transactions are largely carried out on the internet. 

Partial eCommerce concerns business in which a large part of the transaction takes place in the off-line real world. Amazon, for example, will sell bokks online, but these must be stored in large warehouses and physically delivered through the post. 

The difference between pure and partial eCommerce is that the product, process and delivery agent can be physical or digital.

5. List and describe the various eBusiness models?

Business-to-business (b2b): Applies to businesses buying from and selling to each other over the internet.

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This includes business that are involved in trading products. They both operate on the internat and complete transaction solely using the internet.

Business-to-consumer (b2c): Applies to any business that sells its products or services to consumers over the internet.

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An example of a B2C transaction would be a person buying a pair of shoes from a retailer. The transactions that led to the shoes being available for purchase, that is the purchase of the leather, laces, rubber, etc. However, the sale of the shoe from the shoemaker to the retailer would be considered a B2B transaction.

Consumer-to-business (c2b): Applies to any consumer that sells a product or service to a business over the internet.

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Using blogs and internet forums as an example, an author offers a link back to an online business facilitating the purchase of some product (like a book), and the author might receive affiliate revenue from a successful sale.

Consumer-to-consumer (c2c): Applies to sites primarily offering goods and services to assist consumers interacting with each other over the internet.

- An example of this type of model is an online auction, where a consumer posts an item for sale and the other consumers bid to purchase it. The third party generally charges a flat fee or commission. The sites are only intermediaries and are just there to match consumers. They do not have to check the quality of the products being offered.

6. List and describe the major B2B models?

Sell-Side B2B: Sell-side transactions occur when there are many buyers and one seller. Sell-Side e-marketplace delivers to business customers a web-based private sales channel, frequently over an extranet. Both individual consumers and business buyers may use the same sell-side marketplace or they may use different ones. 

There are three major pricing methods involved in sell-side transactions. These include:

1. Electronic catalogues- customized for large business buyers.

2. Forward auctions

3. One-to-one selling- negotiated long term contracts. 

Buy-Side B2B: This type of transaction occurs when there are many sellers and one buyer. It involves a corporate-based acquisition site that uses reverse auctions, negotiations, group purchasing or any other e-procurement method.

Electronic Exchange: These are sites on the Internet where buyers and sellers can come together to exchange information and buy and sell products and services. There are three structures that are involved in electronic exchange:

1. Public Exchange- A third party market operates the electronic market, displays information, and provides the tools necessary to conduct e-business. Independent exchanges may be vertical or horizontal.
2. Consortia-backed Exchange- These are e-markets created by consortia of traditional firms within an industry who band together to create a common forum for business-to-business transactions of goods and services.
3. Private Exchange- These exchanges are structured around the needs of a specific sponsoring business and its trading partners and can be joined by invitation only.

Collaborative Commerce: Focuses on all the activities from the initial design and manufacture of the product, through the connection with the customer up to the purchase transaction, and then beyond the transaction.

Key dimensions of e-business collaboration as follows:

• Information and Knowledge Sharing connects people with the information they need to do their jobs. This includes access to back-end ERP data, as well as personalized content delivery so that each person gets only the information that is relevant to them.

• Business Interactions occur within an enterprise and across enterprises whenever people collaborate in direct support of a business goal. Examples include contract negotiations, responses to request for proposal (RFP), new product design, and project planning.

• Community Building occurs whenever people interact to ask questions, share ideas, or resolve issues. Examples include online meetings, online training seminars, discussion forums, and live "chat" sessions.

• B2B e-commerce solutions must offer secure and reliable Business Transactions, which include financial transactions and the resulting updates to back-end systems for order management, billing, and inventory management.

7. Outline 2 opportunities and 2 challenges faced by companies doing business online

Opportunities

Worldwide Presence: This is the biggest advantage of conducting business online. A firm engaging in eBusiness can have a nationwide or a worldwide presence. Worldwide presence is ensured if companies rethink their business in terms of the Internet. This will grow the reputation of the business and thus make it successful.

Cost Effective Marketing and Promotions: Using the web to market products guarantees worldwide reach at a nominal price. Advertising techniques like pay per click advertising ensure that the advertiser only pays for the advertisements that are actually viewed. Affiliate marketing, where customers are directed to a business portal because of the efforts of the affiliate who in turn receive a compensation for their efforts meeting with success, has emerged on account of eBusiness. Affiliate marketing has helped both the business and the affiliates. Firms engaging in eBusiness 

have managed to use cost effective online advertising strategies to their advantage.

Save Money: Online business has a lesser start-up cost as opposed to other types of business that you will have to rent a space and buy different equipment and materials before you can actually begin selling. It will make you save from having to hire a number of employees since internet business only requires maintenance and enhancement of the site and the products that you offer.

Challenges

Copy Ideas: Because the site is open to the public, there is a tendency that web visitors or even customers will copy the concepts and marketing strategy of the business. If people will realize that they can also do exactly what another eBusiness is doing to gain profits, then they will compete with the business. They won't mind if they make a duplicate with every inch of detail of what the business has conceptualized, so long as they know that they can soon be earning from this.

No Trust: Online business can give the feeling of being isolated both for the entrepreneur and the clients. Sometimes, it is hard to build a good and trusting relationship when you do not see the people you deal with. Since there is a limited close acquaintance between you and your client, the chance for them to be a return visitor is indeed slim. Therefore, you will definitely need a lot of extra effort to establish trust with your potential customers to make them buy what you are offering and keep them coming back for more.

Fraud: There has been numerous reports of credit card fraud which makes customers reluctant to purchase online. With the increasing cases of fraudulent events, people are so afraid to even give the details of their bank account number allowing them to opt for shopping in the marketplace. 

Week 3- Strategic Decision Making

1. Define TPS & DSS, and explain how an organisation can use these systems to make decisions and gain competitive advantages

A Transaction Processing System (TPS) is a type of information system that collects, stores, modifies and retrieves the data transactions of an enterprise. A transaction is any event that passes the ACID test in which data is generated or modified before storage in an information system.

Transaction processing systems offer enterprises the means to rapidly process transactions to ensure the smooth flow of data and the progression of processes throughout the enterprise. Typically, a TPS will exhibit the following characteristics:

Rapid Processing: The rapid processing of transactions is vital to the success of any enterprise in the face of advancing technology and customer demand for immediate action. TPS systems are designed to process transactions instantly to ensure that customer data is available to the processes that require it.

Reliability: TPS systems must be designed to ensure that not only do transactions never slip past the net, but that the systems themselves remain operational permanently. TPS systems are therefore designed to incorporate comprehensive safeguards and disaster recovery systems which assist in competitive advantage.

Standardisation: Transactions must be processed in the same way each time to maximise efficiency. To ensure this, TPS interfaces are designed to acquire identical data for each transaction, regardless of the customer. 

Since TPS systems can be such a powerful business tool, access must be restricted to only those employees who require their use. Restricted access to the system ensures that employees who lack the skills and ability to control it cannot influence the transaction process.

Decison Support Systems (DSS) are interactive computer-based systems and subsystems intended to help decision makers use communications technologies, data, documents, knowledge and/or models to complete decision process tasks.

A decision support system may present information graphically and may include an expert system or artificial intelligence (AI). It may be aimed at business executives or some other group of knowledge workers.Typical information that a decision support application might gather and present would be, 

1. Accessing all information assets, including legacy and relational data sources
2. Comparative data figures; 
3. Projected figures based on new data or assumptions; 
4. Consequences of different decision alternatives, given past experience in a specific context.

DSS’s can be categorized into five types:

Communication-driven DSS: Most communications-driven DSSs are targeted at internal teams, including partners. Its purpose are to help conduct a meeting, or for users to collaborate. The most common technology used to deploy the DSS is a web or client server. Examples: chats and instant messaging softwares, online collaboration and net-meeting systems.

Data-driven DSS: Most data-driven DSSs are targeted at managers, staff and also product/service suppliers. It is used to query a database or data warehouse to seek specific answers for specific purposes. It is deployed via a main frame system, client/server link, or via the web. Examples: computer-based databases that have a query system to check (including the incorporation of data to add value to existing databases.

Document-driven DSS: Document-driven DSSs are more common, targeted at a broad base of user groups. The purpose of such a DSS is to search web pages and find documents on a specific set of keywords or search terms. The usual technology used to set up such DSSs are via the web or a client/server system.

Knowledge-driven DSS: Knowledge-driven DSSs or 'knowledgebase' are they are known, are a catch-all category covering a broad range of systems covering users within the organization seting it up, but may also include others interacting with the organization - for example, consumers of a business. It is essentially used to provide management advice or to choose products/services. The typical deployment technology used to set up such systems could be slient/server systems, the web, or software runnung on stand-alone PCs.

Model-driven DSS: Model-driven DSSs are complex systems that help analyse decisions or choose between different options. These are used by managers and staff members of a business, or people who interact with the organization, for a number of purposes depending on how the model is set up - scheduling, decision analyses etc. These DSSs can be deployed via software/hardware in stand-alone PCs, client/server systems, or the web

2. Describe the three quantitative models typically used by decision support systems.

The three quantitative models used by DSSs include:

Sensitivity analysis - the study of the impact that changes in one (or more) parts of the model have on other parts of the model. For example, change in the expenses again and again or increase/decrease the tax rate.

What-if analysis - checks the impact of a change in an assumption on the proposed solution.

Goal-seeking analysis - finds the inputs necessary to achieve a goal.

3. Describe a business process and its importance to an organisation.

A business process is a standard set of activities that accomplish a specific task, such as processing a customer order or enrolling a student.

There are 3 types of business process which are: Behavioural, Organisational and Informational.

Behavoural process is when activities are performed with sequencing, feedback looks, iteration, decision making, triggering conditions. 

The more efficient and effective the business process is, the more profits the business will make. Their will be lower costs for the business as things would run smoother.

In order for a business to make money and to remain effective over time, leadership must continually plan and oversee the organization from the top-down.  If businesses have a clear understanding of their day-to-day operations and processes, they stand a better chance of long-term success.  A crucial component in understanding, solidifying and enhancing operations is a practice known as business process improvement.

4. Compare business process improvement and business process re-engineering.

Business process improvement is defined as a systematic approach that allows companies to optimize their core processes in order to obtain the most efficient results.

Business Process Re-engineering assumes the current process is irrelevant, does not work, or is broken and must be overhauled from scratch.

Such a clean slate enables business process designers to disassociate themselves from today’s process and focus on a new process.

It is like the designers projecting themselves into the future and asking: What should the process look like? What do customers want it to look like? What do other employees want it to look like? 

5. Describe the importance of business process modelling (or mapping) and business process models.

Businesses need to map out each process in order to visualise an organisation’s operation to assist in identifying problems or new opportunities.

Technology makes business process invisible. Drawing it out on a flow chart 

Business Process Modelling is the activity of making detailed flowchart or process map of a work processes, it aims to;

- Show process details in a gradual and controlled manner

- Encourage consciousness and accuracy in describing the process model

- Focus attention on the process model interfaces 

- Provide a powerful process analysis and consistent design vocabulary

There are two main different types of Business Process Models:

the 'as is' or baseline model (the current situation)

• and the 'to be' model (the intended new situation)

which are used to analyse, test, implement and improve the process.

The outcomes of a business process modelling project are essentially:

- value for the customer, and 

- reduced costs for the company, 

leading to increased profits.

Business Process Modelling is a powerful methodology when directed towards operations which can benefit from improvement, and when people involved are on-board and supportive.

Week 2- Information Systems in Business

1. Explain information technology’s role in business and describe how you measure success?

Information technology can transform a business. It gives a wider depth into global markets which help expand and grow a business thus making it successfull. It is used across organisations as it reduces costs, improves productivity and generates growth.

I believe that measuring success through a business is done through analysing and past performance grids to see where you are and what you need to do to improve. Financial statements should be looked at to see what money is coming in and going out of the business .

2. List and describe each of the forces in Porter’s Five Forces Model?

Buyer power – high when buyers have many choices of whom to buy from and low when their choices are few

Supplier power – high when buyers have few choices of whom to buy from and low when their choices are many

Threat of substitute products or services – high when there are many alternatives to a product or service and low when there are few alternatives from which to choose

Threat of new entrants – high when it is easy for new competitors to enter a market and low when there are significant entry barriers to entering a market

Rivalry among existing competitors – high when competition is fierce in a market and low when competition is more complacent

3. Describe the relationship between business processes and value chains?

A business process is a standardised set of activities that accomplish a specific task, such as processing a customer’s order.  The value chain approach views an organisation as a chain, or series, of processes, each of which adds value to the product or service for each customer.  The value chain helps an organisation determine the “value” of its business processes for its customers.

4. Compare Porter’s three generic strategies?

1. Broad cost leadership- this generic strategy calls for being the low cost producer in an industry for a given level of quality.

2. Broad differentiation- the development of a product or service that offers unique attributes that are valued by customers and that customers perceive to be better than or different from the products of the competition.

3. Focused strategy- concentrates on a narrow segment and within that segment attempts to achieve either a cost advantage or differentiation.

Broad strategies reach a large market segment. Focused strategies target a niche market. Focused strategies concentrate on either cost leadership or differentiation.