Chapter 9: Social Commerce Creates New Customer Relationships

QUESTION 1

Assess the people, organization, and technology issues for using social media to engage with customers.

Firstly, people normally use social media to engage with their friends, to keep in touch with friends and to let them know what they are doing. Next, for the organization social media have become powerful tools for engaging customers. In addition, some companies have opportunity to shape the perception of their brands and to solidify relationships with their customers.  Moreover, assess of technology media social has help to track their location to loyal followers and fans.  Besides that, appointment based businesses can easily tweet or post cancellations and unexpected openings. Larger companies run sweepstake and promotions.

QUESTION 2

What are the advantages and disadvantages of using social media for advertising, brand building, market research, and customer service?

Advantage	Disadvantage
1.      Bring people together. ·         Facilitate to open communication and enhancing information discovery and delivery. ·         Everyone can find new people, meet their friends and communicate to their love ones all over the world. ·         Examples Levi’s was the first national brands to use Facebook and Twitter to allow consumers to socialize and share their purchases with friends.	1.      Understanding on how it works ·         You need to understand how social media works, when and how to use it and which channels to focus on depending on your end goal of using social media in order to get its full effects.
2.      Breadth of knowledge ·         People can experience the broadness of knowledge and connectedness through social media use. ·         It is easier for them to know or find out different information or something about almost anything in the world through a connected media. ·         For examples, Best Buy used    “ Twelp Force” to answer questions and respond to complaints. ·         Moreover, they generate feedback on social network and related sites, the company uses text mining to gather these data and convert them to useful information.	2.       Commits illegal crime ·         Social media may open possibility for hackers to commit illegal crime such as fraud, spam and virus attacks. People falling prey to online scan may also increase, resulting in data or identity theft.
3.      Technology Literacy ·         Help to develop some sorts of simple skills. ·         Mostly, relies on advanced information and communication technologies that work to build and support technological literacy for people. ·         For example, many Facebook ads feature the ability to “Like” a brand, send a virtual gift, answer a poll question, or instantly stream information to your news feed.	3.       Viral social disadvantage ·         This may damage one’s reputation. The wrong online brand strategy could put you on this.
4.      Opportunity to widen business ·         It could always be a fun and creative method of doing your business because it not just allows employees to discuss and share ideas, ask questions, post news and share links but it minimize the use of advertising to businesses and improves business reputation. ·         It also creates a more competent and reliable business. ·         For examples, Starbucks run contests on twitter regularly and uses the service to spread free product samples.	4.       Negative effects on worker productivity ·         Results in lost productivity and employees may use social media to attack the company’s reputation. ·         Instead of working in their time of work, they can waste such valuable time using social media channels such as Twitter and Facebook. ·         This may result in negative comments from employees about the company or potential legal consequences if employees use these sites to view objectionable, illicit or offensive material.
5.      Attracts attention ·        Aside from building loyalty and long-term relations to your audience, social media can attract attention to your site, product or services. ·        For example, Rosetta Stone has used Facebook’s targeting capabilities to determine which types of people respond to various ads it has created. ·        Rosetta Stone designed a series of advertisements for its language- learning products with Webtrends, Inc., and launched the ads on Facebook.	5.      Distraction ·         Most people who suffer from this are students. ·          Instead of doing their homework they tend to fail their academic endeavors because of using social media in the wrong way.

QUESTION 3

Should all companies use Facebook and Twitter for customer service and advertising? Why or why not? What kinds of companies best suited to use these platforms?

No, because there are companies which cannot carries out an online business. Hence, some companies only who expert and suitable for the online business. Here is the  list of companies that suitable for the media social business.

            Firstly, Martell Home Builders is an Atlantic Canadian custom homebuilder. In the past, Martell relied heavily on realtors to keep their business moving forward. However, once they embraced social media, they were able to create a direct-to-consumer model where they were no longer reliant on an middleman to bring them business.

            Secondly, Zappos is an online retailer that sells shoes, clothing and accessories. They’re known for the enormous emphasis they put on creating real relationships with their fans and customers.

            Thirdly, Giantnerd is a company that sells outdoor equipment for outdoor activities like hiking, biking and snowboarding. This company represents one of the best examples of social media integration seen online today. Their emphasis is on giving their customers the most value possible while becoming friends with them in the process.

            Next, Ford has brought the social experience to the forefront of their marketing efforts. Each time they add a new blog post, they pull in the image, headline of the post and the comments from readers onto the front page of their website. Those new to the site or those browsing for a new car get to experience the company and its culture from a social viewpoint right from the start.

            Convince & Convert is a social media strategy firm with clients across North America. Its founder, Jay Baer, is a social media expert and co-author of the new book titled The Now Revolution.

            Moreover, Cree is a business-to-business company that sells energy-efficient, environmentally friendly, industrial LED lighting. When you think of social media marketing, you wouldn’t think that an industrial lighting company that sells LEDs to grocery stores would be shining; however, Cree is extremely social-savvy.

            Emmy’s Closet is an online store that sells accessories for children. They’re a great example of infusing social media with ecommerce. Emmy’s Closet is an extension of the popular arts and crafts ecommerce site, Etsy.com. On the site they use an application created by Etsy that allows you to browse and purchase directly through Facebook

            Besides that, San Chez Bistro is a tapas bistro and restaurant in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Just like Martell Home Builders, they’ve taken social media and infused it with the needs and preferences of their local audience. San Chez encourages their patrons to use Twitter to reserve a seat at their restaurant. They call it “Tweet-Ahead Seating” and it’s a great use of social media local marketing. Once you tweet your interest in a reservation, the online hostess tweets you back with a message similar to this: “Great, you’re on the list. See you in a little while.”

            Lastly, Cranium, a game by Hasbro, takes board games to the next level by including fun activities like drawing, singing, acting and trivia questions.To make their experience more social, Cranium does a great job of using content from the game to engage with their fans. They often post factoids that can be found in their game, such as the one about Einstein’s theory below. They know their audience well and therefore know that these fun factoids will attract them.

Chapter 8: Customer Relationship Management Heads to the Cloud

          

            1)      What types of companies are most likely to adopt cloud-based CRM software services?

                   Why? What companies might not be well-suited for this type of software? 

Types of companies that may want to adopt cloud may be any company wanting to consolidate multiple services or applications into one, mainly to reduce electricity, personal or operating costs. Companies that need a Service level agreement or sense of data security would not want to invest into a cloud system. Companies who struggling with a lot of data to be store also prefer to use this. Cutting cost companies are also recommended to use this system.

Cloud-based CRM would help these companies to achieve operational excellent and customer intimacy and released from fixed and operational cost. Not only that, it also allow them to subscribe and cancel without losing large up-front software license and hardware investment.

Some companies are not suit with this software services. Those companies made large investment on solutions that already work, concern about security issues and control of their data are the examples not encourage to use such software. Companies which might independent on their provider also not prefer to do so.  

            2)      What are the advantages and disadvantages of using cloud-based enterprise applications

                        Advantages:

      1.  Easy Implementation Cloud hosting allows businesses to retain the same applications and business processes without having to deal with the backend technicalities. Readily manageable by the Internet, a cloud infrastructure can be accessed by enterprises easily and quickly. Another advantage is a lesser cost for in-house IT infrastructure maintenance. While some providers may say cloud hosting allows companies to save money by taking away the need for an IT support and management team, the opposite is true. We at Stratosphere Networks believe redundancy is key. While a backup can be an extra cost, it can be worth it in the event of a technical failure within the cloud.

      

       2.      Accessibility Access your data anywhere, anytime. An internet cloud infrastructure maximizes enterprise productivity and efficiency by ensuring your application is accessible from any place anytime, allowing collaboration and sharing among users in multiple locations.

     

       3.      No Hardware Required A physical storage center is no longer needed as it is hosted in the cloud. Again, a backup could be worth looking into in the event of a disaster that could leave your company's productivity stagnant.

       4.      Cost Per Head Overhead technology costs are kept at a minimum with cloud hosting services, enabling businesses to use the extra time and resources for improving the company infrastructure.

        5.      Troubleshooting, installation and configuring Cloud hosting provides easy, optimal utilization and management. In addition to 24x7x365 monitoring, Stratosphere Networks will install, troubleshoot and configure your cloud software and handle any customization and upgrades your enterprise may need.

       

        6.      Flexibility for Growth Easily scalable so companies can add or subtract resources based on their own needs. As companies grow, the need to expand their cloud infrastructure will also grow.

       7.      Efficient Recovery Cloud computing delivers faster and more accurate retrieval of applications and data. With less downtime, it is the most efficient recovery plan.

   

  

                 

c                      Disadvantages

    

      1.      You are no longer in control When moving services to the cloud, you are handing over your data and information. For companies who have an in-house IT staff, they are unable to handle issues on their own by logging onto a server. Instead they have to open a ticket like any end user. This may be hard for clients to understand, especially an IT staff that is used to handling tickets and internal technical issues internally. Stratosphere Networks guarantees our 24/7 live help desk will rectify any problems immediately - we are just one phone call away.

       2.      You may not get all the features Not all cloud services are the same. Your cloud provider may not provide every feature or customization you want as some tend to offer limited versions and enable the most popular features. Before installation, make sure you know what your cloud service provider offers before signing up.

        3.      Just because clouds require no hardwire, doesn't mean you should do away with your servers Yes, you may have fewer servers to handle which means less for your IT staff to handle, but in no way does that mean you can let go of all your servers and your staff. While it may seem costly to have datacenters and a cloud infrastructure, redundancy is key for backup and recovery. 

         4.      No redundancy A cloud server is essentially not redundant nor is it backed up. As technology may fail here and there, avoid getting burned by purchasing a redundancy plan. Although it is an extra cost, in most cases it is well worth it. 

         5.      Bandwidth issues For ideal performance, clients have to plan accordingly and do not pack large amounts of servers and storage devices into a small set of data centers. 

                    3)      What people, organization, technology issues should be addressed in deciding whether to use a                      conventional CRM system versus a cloud-based version?

      Difficult to understand for ill-trained users, attempting to contain a large and complex group of data.  Poor usability and low usage rates lead many companies to indicate that it was difficult to justify investment in the software without the potential for more tangible gains. Large investment to build and maintain a customer database which requires computer hardware, database software, analytical programme, communication links and skill personnel. There was a risk assessment to the users because the using of this cloud-based software server is not the owner of infrastructure privacy. Dependability should be consider during the decision due to the issues of storing data, difficult to export data, and dependent of provider.

Chapter 7: Information security threats and policies in Europe

     

     

           1. What is a botnet?

A bot is an autonomously operating software agent which may be controlled by a remote operator to perform malicious tasks typically installed onto a victim’s computer without the owner’s consent or knowledge. Malware that exploits the vulnerabilities of the web servers, operating systems, or applications is installed and created to take control of the infected computers           

      2.   Describe some of the main points of the Digital Agenda for Europe?

Digital Agenda Europe used to define the key role that information and communication technologies will play in 2020. It is to open the digital market in European. Hence, broadband speeds of 30Mbps will be available to all European citizens by 2020, and implementation of measures to protect privacy and the establishment of a well-functioning network of CERT to prevent cybercrime and respond effectively to cyber attacks.

                         3.   Explain how the cyber attack can be carried out.

 There are 3 basic parts to a cyber-attack. First of all, Access, a method to get inside or gain access to a network or system. Secondly, Vulnerability, some part of the system that the attacker can take advantage of or manipulate. Last but not least, Payload, the purpose of the attack, namely, what exactly is the target and how significant will the damage be

4           4.    Describe some of the weakness exploited by malware.

There are some weakness exploited by malware, one of it is the security defects in software. Malware exploits defects in the sign of the operating system, in applications or in browser pluggin such as Java and Adobe Flash Player. Most systems contain bugs, or loopholes which may exploited by malware.Not only that, insecure design or user error also one of the weakness exploited by malware. Originally, PC had to be booted from floopy disks. Until recently, it was common for a computer to boot from an external boot device by default. This meant that computer would, by default, boot from a floopy disk, USB flash drive, or CD and malicious boot code could be used to install malware or boot into a modified operating system. Autorun or autoplay features may allow code to be automatically executed from external disk drive without permissions.Besides, over-privilleged users and over-privilleged code cause malware allowed to modify internal structures of the system and subvert the system.

Chapter 6: Case Study: Google, Apple, and Microsoft Battle for Your Internet Experience

1. Define and compare the business models and areas of strength of Apple, Google, and Microsoft.

Apple: Its business model focuses on centralized control of almost all aspects of its hardware and software. It believes smartphones and tablets should have proprietary standards and be tightly controlled. It only allows apps from its App store, that have been vetted by the company, to be loaded to its products. Apple has a very loyal user base that has steadily grown and most likely will stay with Apple products in the future.

Google: Its business model has always focused on the Internet and the Web. It began as one of many search engines. It quickly ran away from the pack with its copyrighted PageRank search algorithm which returns superior search results for Web users. It also has developed extensive online advertising services for businesses of all sizes. Google provides value to the user by using an inexpensive, flexible infrastructure to speed up Web searches and provide its users with a vast array of Web-based services and software tools.

Microsoft: Its business model originally focused on the desktop computer running the Windows operating system and Office desktop productivity applications. The company and its products are staples for businesses and consumers looking to improve their productivity with computer-based tasks. While it is trying to expand its presence on the Internet, it still must try to keep customers bound to the desktop computer.

2. Why is mobile computing so important to these three firms? Evaluate the mobile platform offerings of each firm.

This case demonstrates the fundamental paradigm shift from primarily desktop PC computing to mobile computing devices accessing services through the Internet that is currently taking place. This environment is projected to be a $400 billion e-commerce marketplace where the major access device will be a mobile smartphone or tablet computer. Each company is vying for the lead in a world of ubiquitous computing based on Internet access. The leader stands to make untold profits from advertising but in order to do that, the leader needs to claim the largest user base.

Apps greatly enrich the experience of using a mobile device. Whoever creates the most appealing set of devices and applications will derive a significant competitive advantage over rival companies.

Apple: by far the current leader in the number of apps users can download – over 250,000. Apple takes a 30% cut of every app purchased.  They use a closed proprietary system and apps that only provide “one way in.”

Google: aggressively following the eyeballs. It has introduced the Android mobile operating system for a host of non-Apple devices. The Droid system adds features that Apple devices don’t have – the ability to run multiple apps at the same time. They use an open non-proprietary system that allows users to grab apps from any source.

Microsoft: trying to partner with Apple and make Bing the default search engine on both the iPhone and Apple’s Web browser. That would provide Microsoft with a much needed boost to its fledgling search service. Otherwise, Microsoft doesn’t bring much to the table in mobile computing.


3.What is the significance of applications and app stores to the success or failure of mobile computing?

Apps greatly enrich the experience of using a mobile device, and without them, the predictions for the future of mobile Internet would not be nearly as bright. Whoever creates the most appealing set of devices and applications will derive a significant competitive advantage over rival companies.

Apple makes money on each app sold through its App store. That’s worth billions of dollars to the company. Even if an app is free, Apple still has an advantage because users must visit Apple’s App Store and the company is betting consumers will buy something else, other apps or entertainment services, while visiting the store. However, app developers have complained that making money is too difficult. Apple has blocked some apps from its mobile devices, namely Google’s voice mail management program, Google Voice. Apple claimed it violated user privacy.

Apps for the Android system used on non-Apple devices are available from many different sources. Google has worked very hard to increase the number of apps available for Droid-based mobile devices by encouraging developers to increase the number of apps. Google also makes money by embedding advertising in some of the apps used on Droid-based devices.

4.Which company and business model do you believe will prevail in this epic struggle? Explain your answer.

The mobile computing market has started to look like a galactic war of epic proportions where no clear winner can be stated till date. Although the market is still relatively young the first mover advantage is still not with a single competitor. To predict a clear winner in such a scenario is difficult however there are certain qualities in one of the players that can make it a winner in this battle of equals.

Google:  The search engine giant has a lot of positives going for it rather than the negatives. The clear positives that can make it a winner are:

1. A well-established name is something which not a lot of players can boast of but Google is one of them, although Apple and Microsoft have chartered territories of their own but Google can fight them out both as an equal if not better.
2. The Company has entered into all the three basic markets of mobile computing including hardware, operating system and the application stores. Their hardware is something which a few competitors can best , however the Android operating system has taken the market by storm and the app store which comes with it is a mean bully in itself (Android 2012)
3. Google has also bet on of the most time relevant feature of the mobile computing market, the App store, and this is the biggest advantage which the Google business model gives it and makes it the prime contender for the number one position. With hundreds of applications already online and hundreds more in the development stage Google has started to take a sort of lead on the other players in the race to be number one. And this may not be decisive right now but with Google’s recent acquisition of application developers and their heavy R&D expenditure on the same, it is just a matter of time before it will take out companies like Apple and Microsoft. (Android 2012)

Although the Google bandwagon is on its way there are certain roadblocks that it can face that can halt its march and some of them are:

1. The Google brand is big but it still lacks the appeal of an Apple product and this many say is one of the most major difference between the two.
2. The Android system although perfected to a large extent still has a few errors in the new versions that can hamper the growth of the operating system and this where a competitor like Microsoft can prevail over the Company
3. Lastly it can be said that Google’s move towards a common mobile application platform can itself backfire and could increase competition from local app players which can affect the overall profitability from this step.

Thus it can be said that Google does have a lot of positives that can help it in the market and if it can take care of the negatives and maybe tweak the one platform stance, it can just pull ahead of Apple and Microsoft in this battle of the behemoths

5. What difference would it make to you as a manager or individual consumer if Apple, Google, or Microsoft dominated the Internet experience? Explain your answer.

Right now Apple leads Google in the number of apps available to users. That gap is closing quickly thanks to Google’s improvements of the Android operating system and its encouragement to app developers. Open, non-proprietary systems historically have beat closed, proprietary systems because developers and users have a wider range of choices. Business managers must try to forecast which platform will provide the right choices for employees. Consumers must choose which platform will best fulfill their personal needs for the next two to three years. Switching costs play into both scenarios, not just in terms of phone purchases but the price of apps. Once a user purchases and adjusts to using a certain platform it’s difficult and expensive to switch to a whole different system.

Chapter 5: Asking the Customer by Asking the Database

Question 1 :

Why would a customer database be so useful for a company such as forbes or kodak ? what would happen if these companies had not kept their customer data in database ?

 This very useful for company forbes such as in learn details about each if its individual readers by examining forbes`s entire reader population. By this way they can easily understand each individual who interacts with its brand. These details help forbes advertisers target their campaigns more precisely and also help forbes publication increase their circulation. As for kodak company, its help to consulate the data on all of its marketing activities’, including customers target, campaign plans, budgets, lists, and result. Beside that, its help kodak to able to target each type of customer more preciously  with its retail packaging  product description, and advertising placements. It also useful for kodak by easy measure the actual effect of promotional offers, customer segmentations, and messaging across all of its channel.

 If the both forbes and kodak company not kept their customer data in database will cause forbes unable to analyze their customer data and very difficulty to find out subsets of the readers population as a way of learning about the entire readership. As for kodak company, they unable to maintain such a huge customers data from direct purchase and registration on kodak kodak's web site and photo sharing site and interaction from social networks so that they unable to target each type of precious customer and can result in cannot measure they actual effect promotional offer.

Question 2 :

List and describe two entities and several of their attributes that might be found in Kodak’s marketing database.

     There are two entities found in Kodak’s marketing database which is supplier and part. Oracle customer database and third-party database vendors is the example of supplier who is collect the Kodak’s customer database and transfer it to the Kodak’s as a output. However, part is Kodak’s which receive the database from the supplier and they have to pay money for the supplier to analyzing the customer database. Besides that, they have several attributes that might be found in Kodak’s marketing database. First and foremost, Oracle customer database, which maintain data on 50 million customers compiled from direct purchases and registrations on Kodak’s Web site and photo sharing site,customer-service interaction, product registrations from retail store purchases, and interactions from social networks. This situation will help Kodak’s understanding their customer trend and they are able to do renovate for their products and services. In addition, third-party database vendors will supply customer data with demographic and psychographic information, so that Kodak’s  can know the customer wants and try their best to satisfying the customer preferences. Furthermore, the Kodak’s company has consolidated data on all of its marketing activities, including customer targets, campaign plans, budgets , list, and results. On the other hand, Kodak’s has been able to replace its crude customer “personas” with detailed in depth profiles of customer groups and buying patterns based on the actual data. Armed with that information, Kodak is able to target each type of customer more precisely with its retail packaging, product descriptions , and advertising placements. Lastly, Kodak can measure the actual effect of promotional offers, customer segmentations, and messaging across all of its channels with the customer database.

Question 3

How did better data management improve each company’s business performance? Give examples of two decisions that were improved by mining these customer databases.

    Data management can improve each company’s business performance by analyzing customer database , supplier database and other business partnership database. From the customer database, the company can finding out about their customer’s purchasing habits, opinions and preferences. Armed with these information, company is able to capture the customer need and continuously update their product and service to fulfill the customer wants. Besides that, they can also create new products and services to stimulate the existing market. Moreover, profiling individual customers and groups of customer to market more effectively and to increase sales. The company can do segmentation market, thus they will more easier to manage the data record. With the precise database the company are able to set a target market, so that they can maximize the profit. Nevertheless, customer database will changing the way the company run  their business to improve customer service. The company will according to the situation of the customer survey to renew the business operation to convenience the customer.

In addition, supplier database also important for improving company business performance. Understanding more about your supply chain will help you establish priorities for working more closely with customers and suppliers.Businesses that get closer to their suppliers are more likely to get better performance out of them. There are technological and logistical

steps that can be taken, which we will review shortly – but at the heart of getting closer to a key supplier is the need to understand how that supplier works and who its key personnel are, and then build a two-way trust between the two firms. A small firm that will sack a supplier instantly upon being offered a marginal cut in prices is not likely to get the best out of its new

supplier – who will (inevitably) reason that it inturn faces being sacked as soon as a better price comes around the corner. Therefore, data management have to make a choice to choose the right suppliers. There are few benefit that choose the right suppliers will getting control of stock and production. A critical factor in company supply chain is capacity to hold stock of purchased goods or raw materials. If company cannot hold much stock,then they will need suppliers that are able to deliver new stock in small quantities at short notice. On the other hand, if company are able to bear the cost of holding significant stocks, this may enable the company to save money by buying in bulk, or to take advantage of price fluctuations in the marketplace. However, how the company handle stock can have a massive impact on their customer service and profit margins. Many businesses are now concentrating more on efficient stock management to cut warehousing costs while still being able to meet customer demand. To be able to manage company stock more effectively, the company will need to gather accurate information about the volume of orders that company business deals with. This will enable the company to assess how much stock to hold, how much to keep in reserve, how often to replenish etc. Besides that, for many businesses, there is a lot of scope to smooth and simplify production processes to save time, cut unnecessary costs and become more competitive as a result. Automating the links between company various production processes means that information can flow more quickly. Once company were identified logjams and established what is causing delays, you can then remove unnecessary obstacles and streamline processes.

Lastly, at its simplest, a successful business partnership can mean that company start to win

business that company would not have won without the partnership. Thus, data management play a vital role to keep partnership record and continuous coordinate with each other. Each partner can offer the other partner access to or an introduction to new markets. Therefore, the company can access to a new market to introduce their product so that they can also increase the market share. Besides that, one partner is able to add value to a product or service that the other partner can then use to create new business. The partnership can share their technologies and knowledge to each other to improve every level of department, so that they can work more efficiency and effectiveness.

Furthermore,data mining derives its name from the similarities between searching for valuable business information in a large database and mining a mountain for a vein of valuable ore. There can divide into two: Automatic prediction of trends and behaviors and Automatic discovery of previously unknown patterns. In the Automatic prediction of trends and behaviors,data mining automates the process of finding predictive information in large databases. Questions that traditionally required extensive hands-on analysis can now be answered quickly and directly from the data. A typical example of a predictive problem is targeted marketing. Data mining uses data on past promotional mailings to identify the targets most likely to maximize return on investment in future mailings. Other predictive problems include forecasting bankruptcy and other forms of default, and identifying segments of a population likely to respond similarly to given events.

However, within Automatic discovery of previously unknown patterns, data mining tools sweep through databases and identify previously hidden patterns. An example of pattern discovery is the analysis of retail sales data to identify seemingly unrelated products that are often purchased together. Other pattern discovery problems include detecting fraudulent credit card transactions and identifying anomalous data that could represent data entry keying errors. In the short word, mining customer database can improve the sales market and predict the customer need and wants in the future, so that the company can forecast the potential market to maximize profit.

Chapter 4: Interactive Session : Technology UPS Competes Globally with Information Technology

Question 1

What are the inputs, processing and outputs of UPS’s package tracking system?

Answer

Inputs of UPS’s package tracking system is scan bar-coded label attached to a package which contains detailed information about the sender, the destination and when the package should arrive.

The processing of UPS’s package tracking system is before the package is picked up, information from the “smart” label is transmitted to one of UPS computer centers in Mahwah, New Jersey or Alpharetta, Georgia and sent to the distribution center nearest its final destination.

The output of UPS’s package tracking system is customers download and print their own labels using special software provided by UPS or by accessing the UPS Web site.

Question 2

What technologies are used by UPS? How are these technologies related to UPS’s business strategy?

Answer

UPS has used the dispatchers in computer center to download the label data and use special software to create the most efficient delivery route for each driver that consider traffic, weather condition and the location of each step. By using the software, UPS estimate it save 3 million fewer gallon of fuel of every year. This technology related to UPS’s business strategy which is best services and lowest rates.

Moreover, to accomplish business strategy which UPS want to increase cost savings and safety, UPS are train driver to use “340 Methods” to optimize the performance of every task from lifting and loading boxes to selecting a package from a shelf in the truck.

UPS has also used handheld computer called Delivery Information Acquisition Device (DIAD) which can access wireless cell phone network. Drivers can know their task by handheld, the DIAD has a function which is automatically captures customers signatures.

Question 3 

What strategic business objective do UPS information system address?

Answer

The strategic busin

ess objective that UPS information system address were provided best customer services to the customers. Every year UPS spend more than $1 billion to maintain high level of customer services.

UPS also focus on improve the efficiency of the performance. UPS invest and use a lot of systems or software to increase the company performance. For example, Package Tracking System, UPS using this system to monitor and re-route package throughout the delivery process. The UPS can always improve operational efficiency.

The others strategic business objective is lower cost. UPS was keeping costs low to compete with competitors like FedEx. By using information system in UPS, it can reduce cost of operation.

Question 4

What would happen if UPS’s information systems were not available?

Answer

If UPS’s information systems were not available, UPS will face some problems. The process of providing information to customer will become slow. The customer cannot receive the information rapidly.

The operation of UPS will also become slow. Because UPS is using technology and information to monitor and control the operation when information system does not available, it will effect to the operation of the organization.

Moreover, UPS need to spend more on cost. The cost to deliver the product and monitor the performance of driver will increase when information system does not occur.