week 8 and week 9 status reports due

The CEO’s Challenge

CIS 500: Information Systems for Decision-Making

Dr. James Manning

Raheem D. Dow

January 28th 2018

Memorandum

To: CEO, Trader Joe’s Grocery Company

From: Raheem, IT Specialists Trader Joe’s Grocery Company

Date: January 28, 2018

Subject: Adoption of Enterprise Resource Planning

In the light of arising problems in information integration and planning in our organization, there is a need to adopt a new system to solve the situation. This forms the rationale for the writing of this memo since it a vital subject that will significantly change our company.

Aligning business with stakeholder needs is a critical business function that can be achieved through improved information systems. Integrating business processes enables a company to create a seamless operations process, which allows better sales, improved customer satisfaction, and an improved working environment (Laudon & Laudon, 2016). Business processes can become integrated with the help of business information systems. Trader Joe’s has been able to expand its operations throughout the United States with the company having more than 400 stores currently. It is essential that the company creates enterprise information systems that will help to integrate the operations of these stores. Also allowing the company to develop a standardized quality of service ensuring satisfaction of customers in all of the shops. Therefore, the recommended IT project that will improve the company’s performance is an enterprise information system, specifically enterprise resource planning.

The Main Functions of the Proposed Information System and its Importance to the Business

The main function of the enterprise resource planning is the integration and coordination of the company’s business processes. The system will help to create a robust foundation for the company connecting all of its branches under one technology system (Leon, 2014). Thus making it easier for employees to standardize the quality of services they provide to customers in all company branches to increase the rate of customer satisfaction in all locations. Additionally, the enterprise information system will perform the function of supply chain management to automate the company’s business processes. It is crucial that the flow of goods and services in all of the company’s branches is well coordinated so that customers from all over the country can receive the best possible products and services. Having this function managed under one system will enable the comfortability within solving of issues in the supply chains of specific stores. This will prevent the possibility of poor customer experiences in particular stores. In general, this system will help to improve customer relationships which are an essential factor contributing to the success of the company.

Types of Data the Information System will hold and how Data Quality will be ensured

An enterprise resource planning system contains data on all the processes that make up the business operations. The system will provide all the vital company data such as its finances, human resources, and inventory management (Leon, 2014). Since this is significant data on the business, there are specific measures to be taken to ensure that all data in the system remains protected.

The first step that will be to guard the systems against cyber-attacks. Cyber attackers pose the most risk to the company’s operations. They might attack the networks to get essential company details or to drop viruses (Singer & Friedman, 2014). As a method of prevention, the system will have an active firewall to limit access to the systems. The employees will also have limited data access to make it easier to monitor the access of data in the database. The data must be encrypted so that a limited amount of people can have access to the company’s systems. To prevent any security issues, it is crucial that the company’s IT department be vigilant about threats and occasionally changes passwords to strengthen the security.

How the old information system handles the functions mentioned, the problems that occur, and why this information system will handle things better

The current Trader Joe’s information systems are not integrated. Each of the company’s information systems is operated individually at the respective store locations. The main problem that occurs when such a system is in action is that poor coordination of the company’s processes. For instance, issues such as lack of supply of some of the company’s best sellers in some stores have been experienced because the processes are not integrated. Additionally, the quality of customer service delivery has been different across the stores. Customers in some parts of the country are satisfied while others have had some negative reviews about their experiences with the company.

This information system will help to deal with the problems mentioned above by creating an integrated business enterprise system that connects the processes of each of the stores; thus, ensuring standardization of activities.

Evidence of Feasibility

Enterprise information systems, particularly enterprise resource planning, have been implemented successfully by various companies across the United States. Most success stories show that this technology has helped to improve the operations of the companies and offered a high return on investment. An example of a company that has successfully implemented ERP software in its business is Precision Defense Services in Pennsylvania. The company manufactures flight parts for military and commercial customers. Since the implementation of ERP, the company has reduced safety issues in its products thus reducing the resources used for repairs. The systems have been very beneficial for the company as they have increased the quality of products and sales made.

Conclusion

Based on the nature of the Trader Joe’s business, it is essential that the $5 million IT project investment is used to sponsor the development of an enterprise resource planning system. The system will be beneficial because of its ability to coordinate all the business processes; thus, making it easy for the company to combine its business processes with the customers’ and other stakeholders’ needs. The implementation of the ERP system may cost the company a considerable investment, but the benefits outweigh the costs of this project.

Sincerely yours,

Raheem Dow

References

Laudon, K. C., & Laudon, J. P. (2016). Management information system. Pearson Education India.

Leon, A. (2014). Enterprise resource planning. McGraw-Hill Education.

Singer, P. W., & Friedman, A. (2014). Cybersecurity: What everyone needs to know. Oxford University Press.