TASK 1 – Analysis and Strategic Planning
Part 1 – Mission Statements
Review and compare the following mission statements from Microsoft and LPPL.
LPPL Mission Statement:
“To satisfy our customers’ desires for personal entertainment and information through total customer satisfaction”
Microsoft Mission Statement:
“At Microsoft, we work to help people and businesses throughout the world realize their full potential. This is our mission. Everything we do reflects this mission and the values that make it possible.”
Microsoft Values:
As a company, and as individuals, we value
- Integrity and honesty
- Passion for customers, for our partners, and for technology
- Openness and respectfulness
- Taking on big challenges and seeing them through
- Constructive self-criticism, self-improvement, and personal experience
- Accountability to customers, shareholders, partners, and employees for commitments, results and quality.
Compare the 2 mission statements and explain which one is better (1 paragraph)
Part 2 – Gather data on current information technology
Create a questionnaire that can be used to gather information about the organisation’s current IT systems. Remember that an IT system is made of many elements and your questions should reflect this.
You can use the question below as an example to help you create questions, but do not use the same questions.
Example:
Client Server
- Do you currently have any client / server computers?
- IF yes, what type and how many
Network
- What is the network topology and cable type?
- Do you have an ISP? If so, who and what is the connection type?
Data
- How is your data stored?
- How do you archive older data?
Peripheral
- Do you use printers or faxes? If so, what type and how many?
Create a questionnaire of at least 10 questions to understand a business’s current IT system.
Part 3 – Determine objectives
Review the tables below and for every objective and finding, suggest:
- Fill implications and recommendations for the tables below:
- Implications: what does this mean for the business?
- Recommendations: what should the business do about it?
| Objectives | Check the weather report to determine the temperature for today |
| Findings | The temperature will be 22 deg. C with the likelihood of rain in the afternoon |
| Implications | |
| Recommendations |
| Objectives | Evaluate customer feedback to determine the feasibility of introducing an e-commerce website for the organisation. The current brochure site employed by the organisation received many hits. Customers complain that the ordering process – either by phone, fax, email or in person – is confusing and long winded. There are often errors made in the ordering process due to information being recorded incorrectly |
| Findings | The organisation has appropriate equipment and support personnel required to conduct ordering on-line. Customers want the ordering of products to be easier. The current ordering process is costing the organisation money in lost sales as customers are going to competitors to purchase the same goods. Competitors use an e-commerce website to allow their customers to order goods on-line. |
| Implications | |
| Recommendations |
| Objectives | Evaluate whether the current system database performs the tasks required by users. |
| Findings | Information about current suppliers is not being recorded in the database. We do not keep adequate records of the items we purchase from each supplier. We are unable to predict the numbers of goods required from each supplier. A new supplier has approached us with supposedly cheaper prices and discounts. We are unable to compare suppliers with each other to see if we are getting the ‘best deal’ from each of them. |
| Implications | |
| Recommendations |
Part 4 – Reviewing action plans
Visit the three links listed below for action plans and review the similarities and differences between them.
Provide brief description for each of the action plans:
| Description | |
| Action Plan 1 | |
| Action Plan 2 | |
| Action Plan 3 |
| Similarities | Differences |
TASK 2 – Project
Read the case study provided on Canvas (ICTICT517 Task 2.pdf)
For the 10 critical issues listed in the task, fill up the Gap Analysis table:
- Currently in place: Strategic Analysis (from the Task document)
- Requirements: Strategic Objective (from the Task document)
- Gap: Y or N (should be Y)
- Items needed: what is needed to fill up the gap
| Currently in place | Requirements | Gap (Y/N) | Items needed |
For at least 3 of the critical issues, fill up 1 “Recommendation” template for each of the 3 issues
- Objective: Strategic Objective (from the Task document)
- Findings: Strategic Analysis (from the Task document)
- Implications: What does this mean for business?
- Recommendations: What should the business do about it?
Critical Issue:
| Objectives | |
| Findings | |
| Implications | |
| Recommendations |
Critical Issue:
| Objectives | |
| Findings | |
| Implications | |
| Recommendations |
Critical Issue:
| Objectives | |
| Findings | |
| Implications | |
| Recommendations | Create a web server |
For at least 1 of the recommendations, fill up the “Action Plan” template
- Option: The recommendation
- Activity: List of tasks (10 minimum)
- Responsible: Who is responsible for this task
- Resources: What is required to do this task (include people, equipment, software, etc.)
- Timeline: How long is needed for this task (include start date and end date of each task)
- Evidence of success: How will we know whether the objective has been achieved
- Evaluation Process: How will we review whether the solution is working (after implementation)
| Option | Create a web server | |||
| Activity | Responsible | Resources | Timeline | |
| Evidence of Success | ||||
| Evaluation Process | ||||
Write a short summary of the recommendations in a report format (0.5 – 1 page)
