Case
Study, Stage 2: Business Process Analysis and Technology Solution Proposal
Before you begin this assignment, be
sure you have read the “ Haircuts Case Study”, “ Haircuts Stage 1”
Project and the “Walmart Example.” You
will use the strategic business area and process that you selected in Stage 1; review
the feedback you received for any recommended changes to your Stage 1 project prior
to starting this assignment and be sure you have an appropriate “process”
identified.
Purpose of this Assignment
This assignment gives you the
opportunity to apply your analysis skills to model a business process. Modeling the process as it exists (and as it
will exist) will aid in the analysis, design, development and implementation of
the technology solution. This assignment also gives you the opportunity to
apply your knowledge of technology solutions to improve a business process.
This assignment specifically addresses the following course outcomes to enable
you to:
- analyze internal and external business processes to
identify information systems requirements. - identify and plan IT solutions that meet business
objectives.
Business Process Analysis for the UR Healthy Fitness
Center
In order to apply technology to a
process, the process must be thoroughly understood and models are used for this
purpose. The model also supports
business process analysis and redesign when the process is deemed to be
inefficient or ineffective. In addition,
models are used to design the “to-be” process that describes the desired end
state after the technology solution is developed.
For your
Stage 1 Project for the Case Study, you identified a strategic business area
for improvement of the Haircuts business, and youidentified a process that could be improved with the use of
technology. In this stage, you will
create a model of that process that will define in detail the steps in the
process as it is done today to aid in the analysis of the problem, and you will
create a model of the proposed new, improved process, and explain your proposed
IT solution to support that improved process.
The
proposed information technology solution should address the revised business
process and should be appropriate to Haircuts. The solution will be briefly described, and
an explanation given for why and how this proposed solution will improve the
business process. Be sure to read the
instructions for the remaining projects in this Case Study (Stages 3-5) to get
an understanding of the future projects that build on the proposed solution and
to help you in deciding upon your solution.
You want to propose a solution that can be used in the assignments that
follow this one, so be selective and choose an appropriate solution.
Assignment
For this assignment you will use the
process identified for improvement in your Stage 1 Project. There are 2 parts to this assignment.
Part 1: Business
Process Analysis – Models of the AS IS Process and the TO BE Process. The various course resources provided for
Week 2 illustrate several different methods of modeling business
processes. You may use any of the models
shown(or
follow the example provided in the Walmart Example), to analyze the process you identified for improvement,breaking it down into sequential
steps and modeling it. You may use
Microsoft Word, Excel or Power Point (or compatible software) or clearly
and professionally hand-draw your model and scan it into an electronic file format. Which model format you choose to use is not
as important as making sure you have included all the major steps in the
process and appropriately sequenced them. The process that you model must
be the one you identified in your Stage 1 Project(or the
one suggested by the instructor) and it needs to be appropriate to Haircuts. First, you will model the process as it is
currently performed at the shop; this is the AS IS Process. Then you will model the way that you expect
the new process to function after your proposed technology solution is
implemented; this is the TO BE Process.
Note: See Stage 1 for the
definition of a process and examples of processes at Haircuts.
Tools for
Creating the Models
The
following website has a more detailed description of Flow Charting and its uses:
http://web.archive.org/web/20130718234318/http://www.hci.com.au/Hcisite2/toolkit/flowchar.htm
To create a flow chart or process map in
Excel:
§ http://web.archive.org/web/20130619031235/http://www.breezetree.com/articles/how-to-flow-chart-in-excel.htm
§ http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/templates/flowchart-simple-layout-TC001018440.aspx
§ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=exFFCCr66LI [cc is ok, demo is self-explanatory]
To create
a flow chart in Word:
§ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hNGkxoM_ak
[closed
captions and transcripts are not
helpful, but demos are self-explanatory]
§ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RkN0dekcsmw
[closed
captions are in German, but demo is helpful]
To create a flow
chart in PowerPoint:
§ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XRplZxP6RFg
[closed
caption, but demo is self-explanatory]
Business Process Example: If
a grocery store had a need to reduce expenses and improve customer
satisfaction, a process needing improvement might be improving the inventory
process to ensure availability of products for customers as well as to reduce
cost related to spoiled inventory. The
model could include the steps necessary to record inventory information, update
inventory when merchandise is sold, place orders for additional inventory from
suppliers, etc.
Part 2: Technology
Solution Proposal. Using at
least one external resource(a source other than those provided in this
class), write a short paper 1-2 pages in length, not including References page
and cover sheet, responding to the bulleted items below. Remember to correctly cite and reference your sources using APA format. Use the Grading Rubric to be sure you have covered
everything.
Create a document that includes
the following:
- At
the end of your Stage 1 assignment, you listed the strategy, business area
and process selected. These should
be provided at the beginning of this paper to set the stage. Be sure to incorporate any recommended
changes, and show:
GENERIC STRATEGY:
STRATEGIC BUSINESS AREA:
PROCESS TO BE IMPROVED:
- Briefly explain the business process identified in
Stage 1 and why it could benefit from a technology solution. - Propose a specific information technology
solution, describing it in a few sentences. Note: It’s tempting to propose integrating
lots of new technology but focus on a single solution that would improve
the process you identified and modeled. - Next, briefly describe (in one to
three sentences each) the components of the IT infrastructure required for
your proposed IT solution, as they would be implemented at Haircuts. The components of the IT infrastructure
are described and explained in the Course Module 2, Solution
Building. They are:
§ services –the people or
organizations that run, support, and manage the other infrastructure
components; can be internal staff or external contractors or service providers. You should include who will run, support and
manage the infrastructure components for your proposed solution.
§ hardware –devices that perform
the input, storage, processing, and output functions. Include the major, important hardware components
needed to implement your proposed solution.
§ software –identify the type of
application software to be used; if you are proposing to use a software
package, provide the name of it.
§ telecommunications –identifywhat kind of telecommunications will
be needed for the solution, including local connectivity and internet access,
if appropriate, and whether it will be used for data, voice and/or video.
§ facilities –what facilities will
be needed to house the equipment and support staff; state whether the hardware
be housed at Haircuts or at another facility.
5. Explain
how the proposed technology solution will improve the process.
- Explain how the proposed
technology solution will support the selected Generic Strategy and the
selected Strategic Business Area.
|
Technology Solution Example: If a grocery store wanted to improve its inventory |
Submit your Part
1 and Part 2 paper with your last name included in the filename(s). If possible combine Part 1 and Part 2 into
one file; otherwise be sure each file is clearly labeled identifying the Part
of Stage 2 it represents.
Note: Your models will be evaluated
on whether they are applicable to the process identified, all major steps in
the AS-IS and TO-BE processes are included and correctly modeled, and they are
appropriate to the Haircuts business.
Your paper will be
evaluated on whether or not you correctly incorporated the course concepts and
addressed all parts of the questions. You need to do some external research on at least one
aspect of the assignment – your choice – and incorporate it and cite (and
reference) it in APA format in your response. What, exactly, you propose
as a technology solution will be evaluated as to whether it is appropriate for
Haircuts and could actually improve the process identified, and whether it
is fully thought-out and supported with application of course concepts and
research. Remember, this is an
information systems management course, and your solution must be an information
technology solution. Use the Rubric
below to be sure you have covered all aspects.
