Download CPS 603 Sample Exam 1 (Chapters 1 – 7)

CPS 603 Sample Exam 2 (Chapters 8 – 12)
The exam will consist of 10 short-answer questions. These questions will be taken from, or motivated by the following problems. Sample solutions appear below.
1) Discuss supply chain strategy.
decision-making? How do you think the organization as a whole can benefit from
this? Support your position.
2) How can DSS be used in customer relationship management?
15) How might a company go about building an expert system?
3) Describe MIS and DSS and differentiate between them.
16) Briefly describe the three major developments that have shaped contemporary
digital telecommunications systems.
4) What are the benefits of ESS? What do you think would be required to make
them more helpful to today's senior management?
17) Identify and briefly describe three major enterprise applications.
5) Discuss the concept of virtual reality, especially with regard to VRML and its
applications in the business arena.
18) What is an information appliance? Identify five client platforms.
6) Discuss the management challenges involved in digitally-enabling existing firms.
19) Briefly describe the two main wireless standards for accessing the Web.
7) What is TCP/IP? Identify its layers.
20) List the five problems associated with managing the new information
technology infrastructure.
8) What are at least five considerations management must examine to establish the
telecommunications needs of a company?
21) Distinguish between EDI and ATM.
9) Distinguish between the two types of ISDN services and the two types of DSL
services.
22) What is knowledge management? Briefly outline the knowledge management
chain.
10) What is a metric? Identify five metrics for measuring supply chain performance.
23) Distinguish between an analog signal and a digital signal.
11) List and describe the three forms of wired transmission used in the
telecommunications industry, and give one advantage and one disadvantage for each.
24) What is an enterprise system? What is enterprise software?
25) How does the concept of "modeling" apply in using DSS capabilities?
12) List and describe the three major LAN topologies. What are the advantages and
disadvantages of each?
13) Identify five benefits of customer relationship management systems.
26) How can DSS help in supply chain management?
27) In what ways are expert systems fallible or problematic?
14) What are at least three ways in which DSS, ESS, and GDSS can support
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28) Identify two aspects of customer relationships management.
42) Differentiate between each of the following pairs of words: neural networks and
expert systems, fuzzy logic and genetic algorithms, hybrid AI systems and intelligent
agents.
29) What is SCOR? Identify its five major processes.
43) List and describe at least five of the major Internet services currently available.
30) What are the principle methods for locating information on the Web. Provide
example of each.
44) What are the goals of customer tracking and personalization tools?
31) Identify the three major types of knowledge management systems. Provide two
examples of each.
45) Identify three specific requirements of knowledge work systems.
32) Identify three types of knowledge. What type of enterprise knowledge
management system is needed to support each type?
46) Why are knowledge workers so important to the digital firm? Which of the
functions they perform do you feel is most critical to the success of the firm? Why?
33) Identify two supply chain models. Which is better?
47) Briefly discuss Wi-Fi.
34) What are the two major management challenges facing those who are
responsible for designing support systems for the digital firm?
48) What are the components of a DSS?
49) List at least five ways in which specific types of organizations have used DSS.
35) Describe a CDSS and how it might be used on the Web.
36) How do the NGI and Internet2 differ from the Internet as we now know it? What
do you think are the business needs that might be met by these new technologies?
50) Identify two classifications for supply chain software. For each classification,
identify five capabilities.
37) What is electronic commerce server software? What six essential functions
should the software provide?
38) Define "wireless transmission" and list at least two advantages and two
disadvantages to its use.
39) What are the benefits of enterprise systems? What are the challenges of
enterprise systems?
40) What is knowledge? Identify the four dimensions of knowledge.
41) Describe the four strategies organizations must use to meet the challenges posed
by the new information technology infrastructure.
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CPS 603 Sample Exam 2 -- Solutions
1) When developing a strategy, an organization should identify those supply chain processes most in need of improvement. Also, the strategy should examine the nature of
demand for the product. For instance, Marshall Fisher suggests that products can be classified as either functional or innovative. Functional products have a predictable demand,
long product lifecycles, and often low profit margins. In contrast, innovative products have more unpredictable demand, shorter product lifecycles, and can provide higher profit
margins. Supply chains for functional products should coordinate activities to meet predictable demand with minimal inventories at the lowest cost. Supply chains for innovative
products should have a greater inventory buffer stock deployed strategically to minimize order lead time and maximize order fill rate.
2) DSS for customer relationship management use datamining to guide decisions about pricing, customer retention, market share, and new revenue streams. These systems
typically consolidate customer information from a variety of systems into massive data warehouses and use various analytical tools to slice it into tiny segments for one-to-one
marketing.
3) MIS provide information on the firm's performance to help managers monitor and control the business. They typically produce hard copy, fixed, regularly scheduled reports
based on data extracted and summarized from the organization's underlying transaction processing systems. DSS provide new sets of capabilities for nonroutine decisions and user
control. MIS accents reports based on routine flows of data and assists in the general control of the organization. DSS emphasizes change, flexibility, and rapid response to
unstructured problems.
4) ESS can be used to help senior executives monitor firm performance, spot problems, identify opportunities, and forecast trends. These systems can filter out extraneous details
for high-level overviews, or they can drill down to provide senior managers with detailed transaction data if required. ESS are starting to take advantage of firm-wide data provided
by enterprise systems. ESS can help senior managers analyze, compare, and highlight trends so that they may more easily monitor organizational performance or identify strategic
problems and opportunities. They are very useful for environmental scanning, providing business intelligence to help management detect signals of strategic threats or
opportunities from the organization's environment. ESS can increase the span of control of senior management, allowing them to oversee more people with fewer resources.
5) Virtual reality systems use interactive graphics software and hardware to create the illusion of reality in cyberspace. The original applications were in gaming, but new uses in
education, science, and business are being developed and have great promise. Virtual reality applications are being developed for the Web using a standard called Virtual Reality
Modeling Language (VRML), which can organize multiple media types to put users in a simulated real-world environment. VRML is platform independent, operates over a
desktop computer, and requires little bandwidth. DuPont's HyperPlant is an example of a business application. HyperPlant allows users to go through three-dimensional models as
if they were physically walking through a plant, which reduces errors during the construction of manufacturing structures.
6) There are two primary challenges that have application in all areas of the firm. The first is the necessity to take a broader perspective of infrastructure development; the second
is to select the suitable technologies for the firm's use.
Electronic commerce and electronic business require an IT infrastructure that can coordinate commerce-related transactions and operational activities across business processes
and perhaps link the firm to others in its industry. This new IT infrastructure connects the whole enterprise and links with other infrastructures, including those of other
organizations and the public Internet. Management can no longer think in terms of isolated networks and applications or technologies confined to organizational boundaries.
Internet technology, XML, and Java can only provide limited connectivity and application integration. Many firms have major applications where disparate hardware, software,
and network components must be coordinated through other means. Networks based on one standard may not be able to be linked to those based on another standard without
additional equipment, expense, and management overhead. Integrating business applications requires software tools that can support the firm's business processes and data
structures, and these may not always provide the level of application integration desired. Networks that meet today's requirements may lack the connectivity for domestic or global
expansion in the future. Managers may have trouble choosing the right set of technologies for the firm's information technology infrastructure.
7) TCP/IP is the connectivity model used by the Internet; it provides a universally agreed-on method for breaking up digital messages into packets, routing them to the proper
addresses, and then reassembling them into coherent messages. The TCP/IP layers are application, transport, internet, and network interface.
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8) Management should consider the following:
1. Distance-are the needs of the company local or long-distance?
2. Services-what range of services will be needed (e-mail, EDI, voice mail, videoconferencing, graphics transmission)? Do they need to be integrated?
3. Points of access-how many different locations and users in the organization require access to the communications services and capabilities?
4. Utilization-what frequency and volume of communications does your firm anticipate?
5. Cost-how much can you spend and on what?
6. Security-what level of security and reliability must be maintained?
7. Connectivity-how much time, money, and effort will be required to make sure all the components of the network or multiple networks can communicate with each
other?
9) ISDN-stands for Integrated Services Digital Network, and is an international standard for dial-up network access that integrates voice, data, image, and video services in a
single link. Basic rate ISDN can transmit data at a rate of 128 kilobits per second on an existing local telephone line. Primary rate ISDN offers transmission capacities in the
megabit range and is designed for large users of telecommunications services.
DSL-stands for Digital Subscriber Line, and also carry e-mail, data, image, and video services in a single link over regular copper phone lines, but they have higher transmission
capacities than ISDN. ADSL (asymmetric digital subscriber line) supports 1.5 to 9 megabits per second when receiving data and up to 640 kilobits per second when sending data.
SDSL (symmetric digital subscriber line) supports the same transmission rate and can receive data at up to 3 megabits per second.
10) A metric is a standard measurement of performance. Ten metrics were identified in the textbook, including fill rate, on-time deliveries, average time from order to delivery,
total supply chain costs, number of days of supply in inventory, asset turns, supply chain response time, forecast accuracy, source/make cycle time, and cash-to-cycle time.
11) Twisted wire refers to strands of copper wire twisted in pairs. Most standard telephone lines are twisted pairs and have been for many years. Twisted pairs can be used for
digital transmission as well as analog. Its main advantages are low cost and it is already in place. Disadvantages include relatively slow for transmitting data, and the problem of
"crosstalk" in which the signal "bleeds" from one wire to another during high-speed transmission. Coaxial cable is thickly insulated copper wire, which can transmit a larger
volume of data than twisted wire. Advantages include its speed and having less interference. Disadvantages include the cable is thick and heavy, and it is hard to install in many
buildings. Also, it cannot support analog phone conversations. Fiber-optic cable consists of thousands of very thin strands of clear glass fiber, bound into a cable. Data are
transmitted over each strand by pulses of light, which are sent by laser at very high speed. Fiber optic advantages include faster, lighter, more durable, and the ability to transfer
large volumes of data quickly. Its disadvantages are that it is difficult to work with, expensive, and harder to install.
12) Star, bus, and ring are the three major LAN topologies. The star topology consists of a central host computer connected to a number of smaller computers or terminals. It is
useful for applications where some processing must be centralized and some can be performed locally. All communications between points in the network must pass through the
central computer. One problem with this topology is that everyone in the network goes down if the central computer fails for any reason. The bus topology links a number of
computers by a single circuit made of twisted wire, coaxial cable, or fiber-optic cable. All signals are broadcast in both directions to the entire network, with special software to
identify which components receive each message. There is no central computer controlling the network. If one of the computers fails, none of the others are affected, and work can
continue. However, since the channel can handle only one message at a time, performance can degrade if there is a high volume of network traffic. The ring topology like the bus
network does not rely on a central host and will not necessarily break down if one of the component computers malfunctions. Each computer in the network can communicate
directly with any other computer, and each processes its own applications independently. However, in a ring topology, the connecting wire forms a closed loop, and all data flows
in one direction around the loop.
13) Benefits include increased customer satisfaction, reduced direct marketing costs, more effective marketing, lower costs for customer acquisition and retention, and increased
sales revenue. Table 10-6 in the textbook identifies additional benefits.
14)
1.
2.
3.
They can automate certain decision procedures.
They can provide information about the different aspects of the decision situation and the decision process.
They can stimulate innovation in decision making by helping managers question existing decision procedures or explore different solution designs.
15) An AI development team is chosen, composed of one or more experts, who have a thorough command of the knowledge base, and one or more knowledge engineers, who can
translate the knowledge described by the expert into a set of rules or frames. The team members select a problem appropriate for the expert system. The project will balance
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potential savings from the proposed system against the cost. The team members develop a prototype system to test assumptions. Next, they develop the full-scale system, focusing
mainly on the addition of a very large number of rules. The complexity of the system grows with the number of rules, so comprehensibility may be threatened. The system is then
edited and pruned to achieve simplicity, elegance, and power. The system is tested against the performance criteria established earlier. Once tested and accepted, the system is then
integrated into the data flow and work patterns of the organization.
16) The textbook mentions client/server computing, packet switching, and TCP/IP as the three major developments. Client/server computing is a model of computing that divides
the processing between client computers and servers on a network. The tasks are assigned to the machine most able to perform the tasks. Packet switching breaks messages into
small, fixed bundles of data and routes them in the most economical way through any available communications channel. Packet switching enables packets to be transmitted
independently through various communications channels. TCP/IP is the connectivity model of the Internet, providing a universally agreed-on method for breaking up digital
messages into packets, routing them to the proper addresses, and then reassembling them into coherent messages.
17) Enterprise systems, customer relationship management, and supply chain management are three enterprise applications. Enterprise systems are based on a suite of integrated
software modules and a common central database. Enterprise systems utilize enterprise software to support financial and accounting, human resources, manufacturing and
production, and sales and marketing processes. Enterprise systems provide many benefits including an enterprise-enabled organization, improved management reporting and
decision making, a unified information systems technology platform, and more efficient operations and customer-driven business processes.
Supply chain management systems help an organization better manage its supply chain, including planning, sourcing, making, delivering, and returning items. Supply chain
management software can be categorized as a supply chain planning system or as a supply chain execution system. A supply chain planning system enables a firm to generate
demand forecasts for a product and to develop sourcing and manufacturing plans for that product. A supply chain execution system manages the flow of products through
distribution centers and warehouses to ensure that products are delivered to the right locations in the most efficient manner. Supply chain management benefits include improved
customer service and responsiveness, cost reduction, and cash utilization.
Customer relationship management systems help firms maximize the benefits of their customer assets. These systems capture and consolidate data from all over the organization
and then distribute the results to various systems and customer touch points across the enterprise. Customer relationship management systems can be classified as operational or as
analytical. Operational CRM refers to customer-facing applications, such as sales force automation, call center and customer service support, and marketing automation. Analytical
CRM refers to customer relationship management applications dealing with the analysis of customer data to provide information for improving business performance. Benefits
include increased customer satisfaction, reduced direct marketing costs, more effective marketing, and lower costs for customer acquisition and retention.
18) An information appliance is a device that has been customized to perform a few specialized computing tasks well with minimal user effort. Table 9-1 in the textbook identifies
seven platforms, including PC, Net PC, smart phone, video game console, PDA, and wireless e-mail handheld, and TV Internet receiver.
19) Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) and I-mode are two wireless standards for accessing the web. WAP is a system of protocols and technologies that lets cell phones and
other wireless devices access Web-based information and services. WAP uses WML and is optimized for tiny displays. I-mode is a standard developed by Japan's NTT DoCoMo
mobile phone network for enabling cell phones to receive Web-based content and services. I-mode uses compact HTML and packet switching. I-mode allows users to be
constantly connected to the network, and it can handle color graphics.
20) The five problems are loss of management control, connectivity and application integration challenges, organizational change requirements, hidden costs of enterprise
computing, and scalability, reliability, and security.
21) ATM is "asynchronous transfer mode" and is capable of seamlessly switching voice, data, images, and video between users using computers from different vendors. EDI is the
computer-to-computer exchange between two organizations of standard transaction documents such as invoices, bills of lading, and purchase orders.
22) Knowledge management is the set of processes developed in an organization to create, gather, store, disseminate, and apply the firm's knowledge. The five steps in the
knowledge management chain include acquisition, storage, dissemination, application, and management and organizational activities.
23) An analog signal is a continuous waveform passing through a communications medium. Analog signals handle voice communications and reflect variations in pitch. A digital
signal is a discrete, rather than a continuous waveform, using only two states, 1-bits and 0-bits representing either/or conditions or on-off electrical pulses.
Standard telephone lines speak analog; computers speak digital. To communicate, the digital signal either 1) must be changed to an analog signal as it travels the medium, then
changed back to a digital signal for the computer at the other end, or 2) sent in digital pulses over a medium that is also digital.
24) Enterprise systems focus on integrating the key internal business processes of the firm. Enterprise software is used by enterprise systems and is a set of integrated software
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modules for finance and accounting, human resources, manufacturing and production, and sales and marketing that allows data to be used by multiple functions and business
processes.
25) A model is an abstract representation that illustrates the components or relationships of a phenomenon. It can be physical, mathematical, or verbal. Each DSS is built for a
specific set of purposes and will make different collections of models available depending on those purposes. Common models are libraries of statistical models, forecasting
models, and sensitivity analysis models.
26) Supply chain decisions involve determining who, what, where, and when for all the aspects of company behavior and production. DSS can help managers examine this
complex chain comprehensively and search among a huge number of alternatives for the combinations that are most efficient and cost-effective. The prime management goal
might be to reduce overall costs while increasing the speed and accuracy of filling customer orders.
27) Their knowledge bases are very limited, and they cannot change over time. In a fast-moving field, the ability to add new knowledge is critical, and it may not be possible to
update the system fast enough to keep it useful. Many domains cannot be expressed in the IF-THEN language required by expert systems, and they cannot express causal models
or temporal trends, or knowledge that is intuitive.
28) Operational CRM and analytical CRM are two aspects. Operational CRM refers to customer-facing applications, such as sales force automation, call center and customer
service support, and marketing automation. Analytical CRM refers to customer relationship management applications dealing with the analysis of customer data to provide
information for improving business performance.
29) The Supply Chain Operations Reference Model (SCOR) was developed by the Supply Chain Council. This cross-industry process reference model defines a common set of
supply chain processes to help businesses better understand supply chain management issues and set goals for supply chain improvement. The five major processes include plan,
source, make, deliver, and return. The planning process consists of processes that balance aggregate demand and supply to develop a course of action to meet sourcing, production,
and delivery requirements. The sourcing process consists of processes that procure goods and services needed to create a specific product or service. The make process consists of
processes that transform a product into a finished state to meet planned or actual demand. The delivery process consists of processes that provide finished goods and services to
meet actual or planned demand, including order management, transportation management, and distribution management. The return process consists of processes associated with
returning products or receiving returned products, including postdelivery customer support.
30) The principle methods are Web site directories, search engines, intelligent agents, and push technology. Yahoo! is an example of a Web site directory; Google is an example
of a search engine; MySimon is an example of a shopping bot (a type of intelligent software agent). LATimes.com's NewsDirect is an example of push technology.
31) The major types of knowledge management systems are enterprise knowledge management systems, knowledge work systems, and intelligent techniques. Structured
knowledge systems and knowledge networks are types of enterprise knowledge management systems. Computer aided design and virtual reality are two types of knowledge work
systems. Datamining and neural networks are types of intelligent techniques. Figure 11-3 in the textbook provides additional examples.
32) Structured, semistructured, and network are three types of knowledge. Structured knowledge is found in the form of structured documents and reports. A structured knowledge
system can be used for organizing such knowledge in a repository. Semistructured knowledge is information in the form of less structured objects and can benefit from a
semistructured knowledge system. The semistructured knowledge system organizes and stores less structured information, including e-mail, voice mail, videos, and graphics.
Network knowledge includes the expertise of individuals and can be supported by knowledge networks. A knowledge network is an online directory for locating corporate experts
in well-defined knowledge domains.
33) Push-based and pull-based models were discussed in the textbook. Push-based refers to a supply chain driven by production master schedules based on forecasts or best
guesses of demand for products. Pull-based refers to a supply chain driven by actual customer orders or purchases so that members of the supply chain produce and deliver only
what customers have ordered. Pull-based models are better.
34) The two major management challenges are building information systems that can actually fulfill executive information requirements and creating meaningful reporting and
management decision-making processes.
35) A customer decision-support system supports the decision-making process of an existing or potential customer. People interested in purchasing a product or service can use
Internet search engines, intelligent agents, online catalogs, Web directories, newsgroup discussions, e-mail, and other tools to help them locate the information they need to help
with their decisions. Information brokers are sources of summarized, structured information for specific products or industries and may provide models for evaluating the
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information. Companies also have developed specific customer Web sites where all the information, models, or other analytical tools for evaluating alternatives are concentrated in
one location. Web-based DSS have become especially popular in the financial services area because so many people are trying to manage their own assets and retirement savings.
36) The Next Generation Internet and Internet2 are consortia representing a number of universities, private businesses, and government agencies working on a new, more powerful
version of the Internet. Though in retrospect it seems shortsighted, no one expected the Internet to develop with the speed and power it has shown. The Internet was not designed to
handle the massive quantities of information and data now flowing through the networks of the world, and it is in danger of slowing as it becomes clogged by traffic. The Internet2
infrastructure is based on a series of interconnected gigapops, which are regional high-speed points-of-presence that serve as aggregation points for traffic from participating
institutions. These gigapops are in turn connected to backbone networks with very high bandwidths.
Work is also being done in testing a more advanced version of the IP and finding new ways to broadcast messages, among these a protocol for permitting different quality-ofservice levels.
37) Electronic commerce server software provides functions essential for running B2C e-commerce Web sites. Essential features include (1) setting up electronic storefronts and
electronic catalogs to display product and pricing information; (2) designing electronic shopping carts so customers can collect the items they wish to purchase; (3) making and
tracking shipping arrangements; (4) linking to electronic payment processing systems; (5) displaying product availability; and (6) connecting to back-office systems where
necessary.
38) Wireless transmission sends signals (using the electromagnetic spectrum) through air or space without any physical tether. Common technologies for wireless transmission
include microwave transmission, communication satellites, pagers, cell phones, personal communication services, smart phones, personal digital assistants, and mobile data
networks. Advantages include no limitation on where communications may take place, since the signal can be bounced off satellites to line-of-sight towers and no limitation of the
movement of the persons communicating, because no wires are involved. Disadvantages include being more expensive, slower, and more error prone than wired networks.
Security and privacy are difficult because wireless transmissions are easily intercepted. Different wireless networks cannot transmit data seamlessly if they use incompatible
standards or different frequencies.
39) Benefits include creating an enterprise-enabled organization, providing firmwide knowledge-based management processes, providing a unified information system technology
platform and environment, and enabling more efficient operations and customer-driven business processes. Challenges include a daunting implementation process, surviving a
cost-benefit analysis, inflexibility, and realizing strategic value.
40) Knowledge refers to the concepts, experience, and insight that provide a framework for creating, evaluating, and using information. Knowledge has asset, different form,
location, and context dimensions.
41)
1.
2.
3.
4.
Managing the change by planning for the reengineering of the infrastructure. Management must address the organizational issues that arise from shifts in staffing,
function, power, and organizational culture.
Education and training to help end users overcome problems resulting from lack of management support and understanding of networked computing; training for
technical specialists.
Organizations must systematically identify where their data are located, which group is responsible for maintaining each piece of data, and which individuals and
groups are allowed to access and use that data. They need to develop specific policies and procedures to ensure data accuracy, availability to authorized users, and
backup.
Senior management must take a long-term view of the firm's IT infrastructure and information architecture, making sure they can support the level of process and
information integration for current and future needs. The firm will also need to establish enterprise-wide standards for other systems and applications than those
connected to the Internet, to ensure connectivity and continuing efficiency.
42) A neural network attempts to emulate the processing patterns of the biological brain. It results in a program that can "learn" by comparing solutions to known problems to sets
of data presented to it. An expert system works by a system of IF-THEN rules against a knowledge base. By answering a series of yes/no questions, the program arrives at a
"diagnosis" or "conclusion".
Fuzzy logic uses nonspecific terms called "membership functions" to solve problems by comparing the ranges into which various specifications fall and reaching a conclusion
based on rules covering the various relationships. Genetic algorithms are problem-solving methods that use the model of living organisms adapting to their environment. Possible
solutions are evaluated, the "best" choices are made, then more possible solutions are created by combining the factors involved in those first "best" choices, and choosing again.
The process continues until an optimum solution is reached.
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Hybrid AI systems use multiple AI technologies in a single application, taking advantage of the best features of each. This is a new field, and has great promise for business
applications. Intelligent agents are software programs that use a built-in or a learned knowledge base to carry out specific, repetitive, and predictable tasks for a user, business
process, or software application.
43) Table 9-2 of the text identifies e-mail, Usenet newsgroups, LISTSERVs, chatting and instant messaging, Telnet, FTP, and the World Wide Web. E-mail is person-to-person
messaging and document sharing. Usenet newsgroups are discussion groups on electronic bulletin boards. LISTSERVs are discussion groups using e-mailing list servers. Chatting
involves interactive conversations. Telnet allows a user to log on to one computer and do work on another. FTP allows a user to transfer files from computer to computer. The
World Wide Web enables users to retrieve, format, and display information (including text, audio, graphic, and video) using hypertext links.
44) Customer tracking and personalization tools collect and store data on the behavior of online customers, and combine that data with data already stored in the company's backoffice systems. They analyze the data in order to better understand the behavior of online customers, and they identify customer preferences and trends.
45) Knowledge work systems must give knowledge workers the specialized tools they need, such as powerful graphics, analytical tools, and communications and documentmanagement tools. Knowledge work systems must provide a user-friendly interface to the KWS. These user-friendly interfaces save time by allowing the user to perform needed
tasks and get to required information without having to spend a lot of time learning to use the computer. Knowledge work systems must be carefully designed to optimize the
performance of the specific tasks of the pertinent knowledge worker.
46) Knowledge workers create new products or find ways to improve existing ones. Without them, the firm would stagnate and become less competitive in an environment that is
always changing and is increasingly more competitive. In the modern economy, knowledge is truly power. The three major functions of knowledge workers are: keeping the
organization up-to-date in knowledge as it develops in the external world, serving as internal consultants regarding their areas of knowledge and its opportunities, and acting as
change agents as they evaluate, initiate, and promote new projects.
47) Wi-Fi is the emerging standard for wireless LANs. The 802.a standard transmits up to 54 Mbps in the unlicensed 5-Ghz frequency range and has an effective distance up to 30
meters. The 802.11b standard transmits up to 11 Mbps in the unlicensed 2.4 GHz band and has an effective distance up to 50 meters. The 802.11g standard transmits up to 54
Mbps in the 2.4 GHz range. Wi-Fi systems can operate either in infrastructure or ad-hoc mode. When operating in infrastructure mode, wireless devices communicate with a LAN
through access points. In ad-hoc mode, wireless devices communicate directly and do not use access points.
48) They include a database of data used for query and analysis, a software system with models, datamining, and other analytical tools and a user interface.
49) Table 12-2 in the textbook provides several examples including:
General Accident Insurance-customer buying patterns and fraud detection.
Bank of America-customer profiles.
Frito-Lay, Inc.-price, advertising, and promotion selection.
Burlington Coat Factory-store location and inventory mix.
KeyCorp.-targeting direct mail marketing customers.
National Gypsum-corporate planning and forecasting.
Southern Railway-train dispatching and routing.
The Gap-inventory stocking and merchandising.
Texas Oil and Gas Corporation-evaluation of potential drilling sites.
United Airlines-flight scheduling, passenger demand forecasting.
U.S. Department of Defense-defense contract analysis.
50) Supply chain planning systems and supply chain execution systems are two classifications for supply chain software. Supply chain planning systems enable a firm to generate
demand forecasts for a product and develop sourcing and manufacturing plans for that product. Capabilities include order planning, advanced scheduling and manufacturing
planning, demand planning, distribution planning, and transportation planning. Supply chain execution systems manage the flow of products through distribution centers and
warehouses to ensure that products are delivered to the right locations. Capabilities include order commitments, final production, replenishment, distribution management, and
reverse distribution.
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