Information Systems

Assignment #1

The objective of this assignment is to get you familiar with the concept of a supply chain using an everyday product. Pick any product you are familiar with, such as your cell phone or jeans. Please follow these steps in completing this assignment:

1) Identify the product and its brand. Identify where the company’s home office is.

2) Find out what company made the product and where it is located. This is probably not the same location as the company’s home office.

3) Identify three components of your product (for example, the SIM chip of a cell phone or the denim fabric in a pair of jeans). Identify possible suppliers of these components and where their manufacturing plants (not home offices) are located. If there are multiple suppliers, just identify one of them and where their manufacturing locations are. These are tier one suppliers to the manufacturer. Please note: A company cannot be listed as a supplier to itself. For example, a car manufacturer that makes its own transmissions or engines at its manufacturing plant where the car is made is not its own supplier. However, if the company owns a subsidiary that supplies its manufacturing plant then you can list that subsidiary.

4) Identify one material (for example, copper wire or denim fabric) that went into each of the three components (a total of three different materials- one for each of the three components). Identify possible suppliers of these materials and where their manufacturing plants (not home offices) are located. If there are multiple suppliers, just identify one of them and where their manufacturing locations are. These are tier two suppliers to the manufacturer.

5) Identify one material (for example, copper or cotton) that went into each of the three components (a total of three different materials- one for each of the three components). Identify possible suppliers of these materials and where their manufacturing plants, mining operations, or other sources (not home offices) are located. If there are multiple suppliers, just identify one of them and where their manufacturing locations are. These are tier three suppliers to the manufacturer.

6) Identify the company that sold you the product (for example, Best Buy or Gap). We will call this the tier one customer of the manufacturer.

7) Identify yourself as the tier two customer if the product does not go through a wholesaler or distributor. If it does, the wholesaler or distributor are tier two, and you are tier three.

8) After you have written parts 1-7, construct a figure in Excel or some other type of drawing tool that shows the supply chain for your product. The figures in the first set of Power Points that give examples of a manufacturing supply chain are a good format to use. Identify each component under the tier one, two, or three suppliers they apply to, the product under the focal company, the retailer under tier one customer, and you as the tier two customer. Copy it into the Word file. Identify each tier and the companies within each tier. Place yourself at the end of the supply chain. You can also hand draw the figure and send me a picture or pdf file of the drawing.

Assignment #2

Develop an RFP (Request for Proposal) for a real-world project such as landscaping the grounds surrounding a nearby business office, building a deck for your house, or holding a big graduation celebration. Be creative in specifying your needs. Feel free to come up with unique ideas for the RFP.

Write the RFP and submit. Be sure to include project specifics, dates for project completion, date for RFP submission. 

Additional Information. 

https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/rfp-template

Assignment #3

Perform a Web search for sample proposals (RFP), using your favorite search engine.

Based on the results of your search, find a sample proposal that has been posted on the Web. What company or organization developed the proposal, and what objective was it trying to accomplish?

List at least three changes that you would suggest to imporve the RFP.