BML302-Assessment 2
Introduction
Regis cakes is a newly listed UK company with a strong in-house team and world leading suppliers of raw materials. Current turnover is £10m per annum with an annual post-tax profit margin of 7%. Unfortunately, these figures are below the company's original expectations. The company's executives believe that the company can improve its margins. Increasing its turnover by 50% over the next six years and increasing margins by 2% per annum. Early research has shown that for Regis Cakes to grow it needs to manage its customer interface more effectively. However, the company's internal it/is system was inadequate and flawed. Re-engineering was needed to facilitate this expansion. This essay will outline the information strategy which is to support the company's business strategy to achieve the company's goals. This includes the required it infrastructure and is organization. Also outlines the key activities required to implement the strategy.
Alignment with business strategy
The operational objectives and key targets focus on improving the financial position of the company's operations. Success factors centered on increasing orders and
reducing costs. Currently the business does not appear to have a more sophisticated
inventory tracking system and order management system, there is no accurate analysis
of pending customer orders, and cake stock, reducing operational efficiency so there is no timeliness between production and sales. IT can help achieve these goals
through lowering costs, returning time to the designers, increasing the business
capacity and increasing visibility. I believe IT can add the most value by increasing capacity utilization via an ERP/MRP system. (Ignatio Madanhirea, 2016).
The erp/mr system can utilize historical sales data, market trends and seasonal factors to forecast future demand for Regis cake products. This helps Regis Cakes to
accurately plan production schedules and reduce inventory backlogs or stock-outs.
Based on the demand forecast, the erp/mrp system can create detailed production
plans, use advanced demand forecasting algorithms to improve the accuracy of the
forecasts, and update the demand forecasts on a regular basis. the erp/mrp system
tracks inventory levels in realtime to ensure that materials are available in a timely
manner to avoid production interruptions. The system optimizes supplier management and evaluates supplier performance to select the most suitable suppliers.
Analysis of current IS environment
The business currently has decentralized it systems running financials and customer relationship management, with just two it strengths identified in the swot analysis, the CAD suite and the SAGE system.
The current information systems environment is analyzed and it has five main opportunities to support the current objectives of the Regis cake business.
l E-commerce growth: Expand your e-commerce business with a powerful online sales platform. Regis cakes can expand its business and increase its sales
channels by displaying and describing its products on e-commerce platforms to attract more customers.
l Order management optimization: Regis cakes can analyses the link between the customer and the product by upgrading and optimizing the order management system and improving the efficiency of order processing, thus enhancing the
customer's consumer experience.
l Production and inventory optimization: Regis cakes optimizes production
planning and inventory management through the use of information technology to ensure just-in-time supply and avoid overcapacity.
l Online marketing and social media: Regis cakes has strengthened its online
marketing strategy to increase its market share by promoting its brand and
products through social media. Regis cakes can be marketed through content
marketing e.g., creation of engaging blog posts, recipes, videos on baking
techniques etc. Thus to attract consumers. Use social platforms such as tiktok or Instagram for paid advertising. tiktok and Instagram are two of the largest social platforms in the world and are used by a much higher number of people than
other platforms, with a rich consumer base. regis cakes can showcase visually appealing products or production techniques on the platforms. regis cakes can also co-organize online events by partnering with video bloggers or web personalities.
l Training and development of it skills: Regis cake invests in internal staff training
to improve their it skills in order to be better prepared for future technological challenges.
l Customer data analytics: Regis cakes uses customer data analytics to better
understand consumer buying power behaviors and preferences. With data from its CRM system, Regis cakes can analyze open customer data to identify consumer preferences and purchasing power behaviors, which in turn provides beneficial
information for targeted marketing strategies and personalized customer experiences.
l Enhanced customer relationship management: Strengthening customer
relationships through advanced CRM functionality, Regis cakes maximizes the
potential of its existing CRM system, which can increase customer engagement
and enhance service delivery. Regis cakes is a cake company that can increase the company's consumer retention and consumer self-worth by implementing a
loyalty program.
Strategic statement of intent for IS
According to the analyses, Regis cakes' current it situation does not support the proposed business strategy. Its systems and infrastructure are not fit for purpose. We must make improvements.
The strategy aims to capitalise on the key opportunities offered by Regis cakes to improve its business. Implementing this scalable strategy may also protect the
business from buying competitors. There are some changes Regis cakes should make to better ensure viability.
Currently all it support for Regis cakes except sage is provided by the design team, which is not feasible in an organisation and is costly. a cost-effective solution for Regis cakes is to bring in dedicated it staff to form a professional it team. The team will be responsible for managing all it hardware, software and infrastructure. Technology integration, the it team is responsible for the integration of different systems and technologies to ensure that they can work together to improve overall efficiency.
Improve website to allow order tracking & amendment
Regis cakes can enhance customer experience and satisfaction by improving the functionality of their website to allow customers to make order tracking and changes. The order tracking feature allows customers to know the status of their order in real
time, with a clear view of every step of the process, starting from the order placement
to the shipment and delivery. Integrate a backend system that can automatically update the status of an order, e.g., processing, shipped, pending receipt, etc. In case of changes in the order, the consumer needs to be informed via email, SMS, phone call. Since Regis cakes is a cake company, consumers will have more requirements for orders. For delivery orders, the integrated map tracking feature allows the customer to view the exact location of the product and the estimated delivery time. In order to make it more convenient for consumers to make changes after the order is submitted Regis cakes can add the order modification function on the website through the it technology department. Set a window of time to allow modification of orders within five minutes after the order is submitted. Add options for modifications on the customer account page, such as address, delivery time, products added or subtracted, etc. regis cakes has to optimize the user page to ensure that these features are easy to use and access to enhance the user experience. Provide multi-channel service support to customers to help them resolve issues that arise with their orders. Regis cakes has an online customer feature on its website or in its physical stores. Consumers, whether they are buying online or offline in its physical stores, ensures that consumers can communicate with customer service in real time to resolve issues related to their orders. This will bring many benefits to the business. Increased consumer satisfaction. Implement integrated ERP system
As highlighted in the process map there are a number of areas which could be improved with IT/IS involvement. Functions are operating semi autonomously, passing information to each other only in the form of the physical order documents
and are operating at an Industry 2.0 standard. By implementing an integrated ERM
system featuring MRP 2, CRM, Finance and SRM functions, the business can begin to work at an Industry 3.0 standard while laying the groundwork for Industry 4.0. (Drath & Horch, 2014)
Discussion of key components required
According to the analysis above, the current it infrastructure and internal knowledge can work properly in business operations. the core of the solution proposed by Regis cakes is the ERP system, which has several offerings that can help Regis cakes to streamline and automate processes.
Manufacturing resource planning (MRP II) is the process of creating an MRP system that allows manufacturers to account for the raw materials and human resources needed for their manufacturing process. MRP II touches on operational and financial planning but also explores contingency planning that creates additional paths forward when issues arise(Ryan B 2021)
The system should analyse upcoming orders, work out how much material it will require to complete the orders
and when it will require it, and raise purchase orders for said materials so that they
needed. As it currently operates a Just in Case (JIC) model the business has issues
with over-stocking on materials to avoid shortages as they currently have no real way of telling when their stock levels are low. Excess stock ca cause issues such as high obsolescence cost, cash flow, etc.
CRM (Customer Relationship Management System) is an important digital tool for CRM strategy, which uses hardware, software, and related network technologies to create an information system that integrates customer information management, data analysis, and automated workflows. Regis cakes uses the CRM system to gain a fuller understanding of its customers, so it can deliver a personalized customer experience and resolve issues quickly. Many organizations have their own CRM systems, but because many of them don't use them correctly, they don't get good results. Regis cakes has implemented a system that allows it to manage customer relationships more effectively, improve sales and service levels, and achieve higher levels of customer satisfaction.
distribution, warehousing and control) being unlinked and in depended of one another, only communicating when
required. In stage 2, the aforementioned functions are integrated under a single system.
Stage 3 is an extension of stage 2 featuring vertical integration with suppliers and
customers. (Pennsylvania State University, 2008).
SCM (Supply Chain Management) and SRM (Supplier Relationship Management) are both key business strategies in Regis cakes. sCM helps Regis cakes to optimise its logistics, ensure the flow of raw materials and products, and reduce transportation and inventory costs. It assists the company in achieving efficient inventory control, ensuring that sufficient raw materials are always available, which greatly avoids product surpluses and shortages.SCM provides visibility into the supply chain, allowing Regis cakes to track the entire supply chain and respond to potential problems and risks.
Regis cakes can use the SRM system to evaluate the performance, reliability and reputation of its suppliers to help select suppliers and ensure a stable relationship with high-quality suppliers. When dealing with risk management, SRM helps to identify and manage the risks associated with supplier relationships, such as supply disruptions, quality, and so on.
By integrating SCM/SRM system, Regis cakes helps to share different information in different processes, which also greatly improves the overall efficiency, reduces the cost and increases the reliability of product delivery.
According to the above, improving the website to enable order tracking and modification is better achievable oms. the OMS system can automate order processing realizes the automation of the order processing process, reduces manual operations, and reduces perceived errors. This improves the accuracy of order processing and
increases the speed of order processing, which reduces delivery time and improves
customer satisfaction. Regis Cakes better implementation of oms system, need to understand the company's existing order management process, identify the need to improve the link and specific needs. According to the company's needs and budget to choose the right oms system provider, if Regis cakes has a strong it technology department can do their own oms system. Integrate the oms system with the company's existing erp, crm and other systems, so as to ensure the smoothness of the data. Implementing oms system Regis cakes company can improve inventory management, more accurate forecasting demand optimization replenishment. oms system enhances customer service, consumers through the oms system can check the status of the order in real time, improve customer experience and satisfaction, management personnel are also able to quickly access to the order information, improve efficiency. oms system reduces the cost of labor and reduces the cost of inventory. The automated process reduces manual operations, thus reducing labor costs. By optimizing inventory management, it reduces the capital consumption and savings costs associated with the emergence of inventory. Enhance operational efficiency and customer satisfaction at Regis cakes by implementing oms system. Thus increasing the business and competitive advantage of the company.
IT service management system
The business will also require some kind of IT service management system for the IT support team to use.” IT service management (ITSM) is the practice of planning,
implementing, managing and optimizing information technology services to meet the needs of end users and help organizations achieve their business goals” (website IBM). The it service management system (ITSM) helps Regis cakes set up and manage a service desk to handle technical support requests between employees and customers. When dealing with it systems ITSM can quickly track problems with it systems and resolve them in a timely manner, improving the efficiency of problem solving through a systematic approach. Thus, Regis cakes can better organize and manage its it services through ITSM, improve service levels and reduce risks to support the company's goals and improve overall performance.
Infrastructure in Regis cakes is an important part of supporting business operations, which includes hardware, software, networks, etc. A strong it department needs to have good infrastructure, servers, storage is to provide a solid foundation for the business systems.Regis cakes can make use of cloud computing services, facilities strong security infrastructure such as firewalls, anti-virus software, anti-intrusion detection systems, etc. to ensure that the company's data and systems are secure. Through comprehensive management and continuous optimisation of the infrastructure Regis cakes can improve the stability, reliability and security of the business and ensure that the infrastructure is able to support business growth and
The architecture of Regis cakes takes into account the different levels of architecture, including information technology, business process architecture, etc. The business system architecture of Regis cakes includes an order management system, a CRM, an inventory management system, etc. to ensure the efficiency of the process and the excellence of the customer experience. the hardware infrastructure and software architecture of Regis cakes are part of the total architecture of Regis cakes. The hardware infrastructure and software architecture of Regis cakes are part of its overall architecture to ensure the overall stability and maintainability of the system. By analysing the architecture, it is possible to gain a better understanding of the foundation of Regis cakes' IT and business operations, providing scientific guidance for efficiency and future growth.
IS organization, management & processes
Typically a medium-sized company has a ratio of 1:8 to 1:34 employees to IT employees. Since Regis cakes wants to
create a larger it department, Regis cakes aims to have 30 lt
employees within 3 years. The diagram on the left shows the it employees' suggestions for the layout of the it department. The entire it department has a chief technology officer (CTO)
as the overall leader. An it director has two lt department managers working for him.
One will act as support manager for the three support gangs as well as being
responsible for any existing it help and maintenance. The remaining one is the systems manager who will have two team members who will be responsible for system changes such as new systems or upgrading existing systems.
Establishing the correct business relationship and governance model at all levels is crucial for strategic success. It is essential to establish a project board to manage the Information Strategy. The aim of project management is to deliver the specified requirements at the necessary quality and within the designated time and budget. The project board should be led by both business and IT. A project manager is essential, and specific IT roles must be in place for this to occur. Regis cakes should consider using ITIL. ITIL provides “best practice” guidelines and architectures to ensure that IT processes are closely aligned to business processes and that IT delivers the correct and appropriate business solutions. One of the main objectives of ITIL is to assist IT service provider organizations in order to improve IT efficiency and effectiveness whilst improving the overall quality of service to the business within imposed cost constraints.
Prioritised high-level plan of activity
The proposed total length of the project is three years, and these new systems will
help the business achieve its goal of growing profitability by 2 per cent per year. The
company's senior management has decided that the it team will be recruited within
seven months, taking into account the advertising as well as the interview process. Within the next two months the it team will introduce the systems they need, e.g., financials, order tracking system, etc. One month to investigate and define the underlying operational processes, once this is done it will be handed over to the it support team who will have 160 days to facility the SOE, build and roll out the new hardware. At this point the change team start to develop the ERP environment, they will start the basic environment from 30 days, MRP, SCM will take 130 days to complete, this should be similar to the it support team completing the SOE facility. The support team starts introducing the MRP system and at the same time the change team is developing the CRM, once the CRM is complete they will start the new website which is estimated to take two months to complete, this should probably be completed similar to the MRP and SCM facilities. The change team and support team will spend nearly four months implementing the SCM/SRM system and CRM, once completed the new website with order tracking functionality will be added.
Organizational change refers broadly to the actions a business takes to change or adjust a significant component of its organization. This may include company culture, internal processes, underlying technology or infrastructure, corporate hierarchy, or another critical aspect. (Kelsey M 2020)
There will always be an element of risk in a project and it is important to consider these risks as well as risk avoidance. Investment appraisal should be done in such a way as to provide a realistic assessment of costs, benefits and risks.
l Technical challenges in completing a project can lead to delays or quality problems. Regis cakes To hedge against the risk one should allow sufficient buffer time in the project plan, especially if new technologies are involved. Conduct technical assessments and prototyping before the project begins to identify and resolve potential problems in a timely manner.
l Project takes longer than anticipated. A detailed project plan (Gantt chart) should be produced. This needs to be monitored by the project team. Any concerns should be discussed with action taken.
l Increased resource costs due to inaccurate cost estimates may result in project budget overruns. The risk is avoided by. Develop a detailed budget plan, including it R&D costs, resource costs, etc., and conduct regular cost audits to ensure the economic viability of the project.
Manufacturing companies spend an average of 1.4%-3.2% of their revenue on IT. since regis cakes is a business that is going to have a huge it department, we will take the bigger figure and say that their IT budget should be £300,000 at the moment,
increasing to £600,000 if they hit their revenue target of £25m. If the Regis cakes
follows the proposed solution, the initial investment would be £51,005 (with an annual running cost of £384,418. Obviously this is more than the recommended IT budget for the first year, but the costs for subsequent years should be within budget!
In conclusion, it is clear that Regis cakes will have to overhaul their IT if they want to be successful. Their current strategy. However, the business must ensure that they will gain the knowledge to do this before they attempt it. It is also important that the business ensures that they control this effectively, if the change is rejected by the
employees, the business will struggle to achieve the goals it has set out to achieve.
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