E-Business Projects: Statements and Suppliers, Exams of Effective Business Communication

Download E-Business Projects: Statements and Suppliers and more Exams Effective Business Communication in PDF only on Docsity! Question Paper E-Business (MB3H1IT): October 2008 Section A : Basic Concepts (30 Marks)  This section consists of questions with serial number 1 - 30.  Answer all questions.  Each question carries one mark.  Maximum time for answering Section A is 30 Minutes. 1. Which of the following statements is/are true about e-business projects? I. Breakthrough projects are also called improvement projects. II. Incremental projects are also called radical projects. III. Platform projects lead to the creation of a new structural foundation that can be used by all business entities. (a) Only (III) above (b) Both (I) and (II) above (c) Both (I) and (III) above (d) Both (II) and (III) above (e) All (I), (II) and (III) above. <Answer > 2. Active participation of executives from all the business units in the organization is important for developing a good e-business case. Which of the following executives provide insights on business processes and possible improvements? (a) Chief Information Officer (b) Chief Financial Officer (c) Chief Executive Officer (d) Operating Vice presidents (e) Facilitators. <Answer > 3. Die-hard skeptic companies are those (a) That are not bothered about the changes in technology (b) That are not ready to accept changes happening around them (c) Who notice the changes happening in the market and will take action only if they feel that changes are long term (d) Who anticipates the changes and are first movers in technological innovations (e) Who achieve competitive advantage by exploiting new technological innovations. <Answer > 4. Which of the following is an online exchange that links buyers and sellers and makes available extensive market information to buyers, enabling them to make an informed purchasing decision? (a) Employee connectivity (b) Vertical procurement portal (c) Suppliers connectivity (d) Back end systems connectivity (e) E-procurement. <Answer > 5. Marketing Mix includes four Ps product, place, price and promotion. Database marketing supplements the four Ps with four Ts. Which of the following is not one of the Ts? (a) Targeting (b) Tailoring (c) Tying (d) Tracking (e) Tapping. <Answer > 6. In e-business, an organization cannot maintain the same kind of relationship with all its suppliers. It has to formulate a strategy depending on contribution of each supplier to the success of a company. Suppliers can be classified into many categories depending upon the type of components they supply. So, which of the following supplier’s products and services are essential for business but are not crucial for success? (a) Suppliers of scarce products (b) Suppliers of strategic products (c) Suppliers of non-strategic products (d) Suppliers of commodity products (e) Suppliers of service. <Answer > 7. Scalability and availability are two important criteria for evaluating the success of an e-business project. Which of the following statements is/are true? I. Scalability refers to the time period for which the user has been able to fully utilize the system. II. Availability refers to the ability of a system to increase its capacity to handle more data and information with the increase in number of clients. III. Scalability is enhanced, using nTier architecture. (a) Only (III) above (b) Both (I) and (II) above (c) Both (I) and (III) above (d) Both (II) and (III) above (e) All (I), (II) and (III) above. <Answer > 8. Which of the following statements is/are true about middleware? I. Object based middleware is more scalable than event based middleware. II. Event based middleware depends on reply-request method of communication. III. OMG’s CORBA and Microsoft’s Distributed COM are object based middleware. (a) Only (III) above (b) Both (I) and (II) above (c) Both (I) and (III) above (d) Both (II) and (III) above (e) All (I), (II) and (III) above. <Answer > 9. Bhoomi is an e-governance project undertaken by which state in India? (a) Andhra Pradesh (b) Karnataka (c) Bihar (d) West Bengal (e) Madhya Pradesh. <Answer > 10 . The property of a receiver being able to prove that the sender of some data did in fact send the data even though the sender might later deny ever having sent it is called (a) Authentication (b) Non-repudiation (c) Confidentiality (d) Integrity (e) Audit trail. <Answer > 11 . For encrypting plain text, the cryptographic algorithm works with a key. The ‘Key’ is in the form of (a) Word only (b) Number only (c) Either a word or a number (d) Either a word , a number or a phrase (e) Either a word, a number, a phrase or sentence. <Answer > 12 . CORBA uses a common architecture to standardize distributed object systems. CORBA stands for (a) Common Object Request Broker Architecture (b) Common Operating Request Broker Architecture (c) Common Object Remote Broker Architecture (d) Common Operating Remote Broker Architecture (e) Common Operating Remote Business Architecture. <Answer > 23 . Built-to-order is one of the models in supply chain management. Which of the following characteristics is/are exhibited by the built-to-order model? I. Mass customization. II. Flexibility in procurement process. III. Managing large stocks. (a) Only (I) above (b) Both (I) and (II) above (c) Both (I) and (III) above (d) Both (II) and (III) above (e) All (I), (II) and (III) above. <Answer > 24 . An ERP system makes the process of tracking the lead times of all materials of the company easier. Identify the correct sequence of steps for tracking lead times using ERP. I. Heads of Various Departments. II. Determination of the route and mode of transport. III. ERP system checks order. IV. Customer order. V. Bill of material. VI. Production schedule. VII. Purchasing orders. (a) IV-I-VI-III-V-VII-II (b) IV-I-VI-III-II-V-VII (c) IV-I-VI-V-III-VII-II (d) IV-I-III-V-VI-VII-II (e) IV-VI-I- III-V-VII-II. <Answer > 25 . Which of the following statements are false with regard to the phased approach implementation? I. Higher demand for organizational resources. II. Higher level of commitment. III. One stage of implementation at one time. IV. Higher resistance by employees. (a) Both (I) and (II) above (b) Both (I) and (III) above (c) Both (I) and (IV) above (d) (I), (II) and (IV) above (e) (I), (III) and (IV) above. <Answer > 26 . Organizations generally classify their suppliers into various categories. The most critical components are procured from (a) Certified suppliers (b) Approved suppliers (c) Probationary suppliers (d) Both (a) and (b) above (e) Both (b) and (c) above. <Answer > 27 . To develop an ERP solution, certain elements have to be considered. From the options given below, which of the following statements is/are true about the elements that will support development of an effective ERP solution? I. Configuration of an ERP solution should be static and rigid. II. The implementation of an ERP system should be a long drawn-out process. III. Components of ERP system should be well-integrated with third-party service providers. (a) Only (III) above (b) Both (I) and (II) above (c) Both (I) and (III) above (d) Both (II) and (III) above (e) All (I), (II) and (III) above. <Answer > 28 . The complexity of the ERP system increases as the number of modules/applications that it needs to integrate increases. The maintenance of a system is more difficult than deployment. Therefore, organizations are seeking end-to-end management tools to manage complex ERP systems. Which of the following statements is/are true about system administration tool? I. It manages the network and systems for ERP. II. It schedules jobs, monitors events, data output, backup and recovery. III. These tools need to be powerful as they have to analyze thousands of transactions that occur simultaneously in an ERP system. (a) Only (I) above (b) Both (I) and (II) above (c) Both (I) and (III) above (d) Both (II) and (III) above (e) All (I), (II) and (III) above. <Answer > 29 . Which of the following statements are true with regard to e-CRM tools? I. Inference-based software is used for cross-selling. II. Rules-based software keeps track of products/services that the online visitor has browsed. III. Tracking of customer behavior and grouping customers exhibiting similar behavior is possible through rules-based software. IV. Rules-based software is used for personalization of all products. (a) Both (I) and (II) above (b) Both (I) and (III) above (c) Both (II) and (III) above (d) (I), (II) and (III) above (e) (I), (III) and (IV) above. <Answer > 30 . Which of the following options is/are not the fundamental element(s) of E-CRM infrastructure? I. Customer data computing architecture. II. Attracting new customers. III. Business rules for coordinating interactions. (a) Only (I) above (b) Only (II) above (c) Only (III) above (d) Both (I) and (II) above (e) Both (II) and (III) above. <Answer > END OF SECTION A Section B : Caselet (50 Marks)  This section consists of questions with serial number 1 – 5.  Answer all questions.  Marks are indicated against each question.  Detailed explanation should form part of your answer.  Do not spend more than 110 - 120 minutes on Section B. Caselet Read the caselet carefully and answer the following questions: 1. Call centers handle customer service integration. In this perspective, explain the challenges confronted by call centers other than those mentioned in the caselet. ( 6 marks) <Answer> 2. Explain the practical ways of identifying information to ensure that updating the call center knowledge base is a part of the ‘sign off’ requirements. (10 marks) <Answer> 3. Many call centers now respond to online e-mail queries. Discuss the benefits that SR InfoTech can enjoy through the use of e-mails. ( 8 marks) <Answer> 4. If you are a member of Board of Directors to SR InfoTech, what steps would you suggest for developing a Knowledge Management framework? Explain. (14 marks) <Answer> 5. Briefly explain the various types of Knowledge Management applications. (12 marks) <Answer> Knowledge Management at Call Centers: SR InfoTech incorporated in early1997, started its operations in late 1997. In the year 2000 they wanted to diversify its operations to call center business, for which they took Knowledge Management (KM) factors into consideration because KM is a concept in which an enterprise consciously and comprehensively gathers, organizes, analyzes and shares its knowledge in terms of resources, documents and people skills. Specific KM activities help focus the organization on acquiring, storing and utilizing knowledge for such things as problem solving, dynamic learning, strategic planning and decision making. By any measure, call centers are a growing business, with many organizations looking to them as the primary means of interacting with their customers. Call centers provide many business advantages, including improved efficiency, increased hours of operation, reduced costs and greater flexibility. Perhaps the greatest challenge of running a call center, however, is ensuring that customers are provided with the right information in a timely fashion. Knowledge Management has a number of practical tools and strategies for meeting this challenge. A call center is confronted with a number of challenges:  Potentially wide range of customer enquiries.  Legal accountability for the information provided to customers.  Customer’s expectations of instant answers to their questions.  High stress work environment for its operations.  High staff turnover.  Large and complex body of knowledge to be learned by the new staff.  Constant pressures to reduce call handling times.  Continuous tracking and assessment of efficiency measures. In meeting these challenges, Knowledge Management (KM) has the potential to deliver some (or all) of these benefits:  Reduced training time and cost for new staff.  Improved call handling and response times.  Increased staff satisfaction and morale.  Greater consistency and accuracy of information provided to customers.  Greater flexibility in handling changing business processes, products, and information.  Fewer calls to second-level support or the help desk. Applying KM to Call Centers: There are two aspects to Knowledge Management that must be covered in a call center. An efficient process must be put in a place to ensure that the right knowledge is captured, managed, and kept up-to-date and Knowledge Management systems must be established to support this process. These Information Technology (IT) systems are the core of a KM-based call center. Meeting both these requirements will ensure that one has the resources in place to support front line staff, and the process to maximize their value. One has to identify the information that one’s frontline staff and customers require, and gather them together. Once the raw information is in place, it has to be shaped into a structural and usable knowledge repository. Only then one will be in a position to deliver a complete KM solution. Identifying Required Information: There are a number of practical ways of identifying information needs:  Talk to both experienced and novice staff, to find out their requirements first- hand.  Conduct an information review of the resources currently available (both on line and on paper). 13. A DAS do not have much dependence on network bandwidth. DAS does not have centralized data storage. DAS does not support remote storage connectivity. < TOP > 14. B Contact management refers to capturing, sharing, and storing of customer information through electronic means and making it accessible to the entire organization. < TOP > 15. B Loyalists are of three types, they are emotional, inert and deliberate loyalists. Emotional loyalists have an emotional attachment with the brand. Customers who are not willing to take pains to shift to new products are called as Inert Loyalists. Deliberate loyalists are those who select the best products. Whereas Non-deliberate loyalists and Non-inert loyalists do not relate to the types of loyalists. < TOP > 16. C PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) has identified four distinct phase of e-business. The first phase is marked by the implementation of a website that will enable the concerned organization to buy and sell online. The second phase, involves putting supply chain management processes online by linking suppliers with the enterprise, using extranets and intranets. In the third phase, the organization forms alliances with other online players indicating the adoption of e-business as a commercial tool. In the fourth phase, there is a convergence that will lead to innovative products and services. < TOP > 17. D Short customer life cycles and rapid pace of business growth make speed and agility key factors in the e-business environment. The four factors that will ensure e-business agility are avoid lengthy analysis, flatten the hierarchy, expect occasional sub-optimal results and test everything & test all the time. < TOP > 18. A Business-to-Business (B2B) is the most popular e-business model dealing with B2B transactions. B2B marketplaces evolved with the goal of matching buyers and sellers, enabling the exchange of goods and services. B2B websites help streamline operations between organizations and their business partners. The Business-to- Consumer (B2C) business model deals with B2C transactions. The e-businesses that adopt B2C model sell their products and services directly to individual consumers. Consumer-to-Consumer (C2C) websites enable the sale and purchase of products and services between individual customers. Individual customers frequently buy and sell products like automobiles, furniture, and real estate from each other. < TOP > 19. E The process of eliminating the number of intermediaries between the manufacturer and customer is called disintermediation. < TOP > 20. E Only statement (I) is true. Remaining statements are false. Alternative suppliers for non-commodity items are not easily available. They are critical for production processes and suppliers engaged in these commodities are few in number. < TOP > 21. C Operating plans are developed in the distribution planning functions module of supply chain planning. Whereas, last two options belong to the supply chain execution modules. < TOP > 22. D First three statements are correct characteristics of integrated make-to-stock model of supply chain management. The unique characteristic of the make-to-stock model is that companies do not wait for the customers to place orders. So Fourth statement is not a correct characteristic of integrated make-to-stock model of supply chain management. < TOP > 23. B First two are characteristics exhibited by the built-to-order model. Large stocks are not maintained as they may become outdated over time. So, companies try to be more flexible in their procurement processes. < TOP > 24. D Once an order is placed by a customer, the details reach the desktop of the heads of the concerned departments. The ERP system checks if the required number of machines with the required specifications is available in the finished goods inventory. Bill of material specifies all the materials required in the production and delivery of each product made by the company and the lead-time required for each material. The production department identifies the number of products to be manufactured and prepares the production schedule. The materials management department prepares purchase orders for all components to be procured. The logistics department finally decides the route and mode of transport depending on the destination so that the costs are minimized and speed of delivery maximized. < TOP > 25. D The phased approach breaks down the ERP project into certain stages. Each stage is taken one at a time for implementation and is finished completely before moving to the next stage. Remaining statements are false about phased approach. These stages belong to Big-bang approach. < TOP > 26. A Organizations, generally classify their suppliers into categories  certified, approved and probationary. Most critical components are procured from certified suppliers while less critical and strategic materials are procured from approved and probationary suppliers. < TOP > 27. A Configuration of an ERP solution should not be static and rigid. The implementation of an ERP system should not be a long drawn-out process. It should enable the organization to progress steadily from one phase to another, rather than waiting for a long period to have the whole project installed. Traditional ERP systems focus only on automating and integrating specified business processes. Components of ERP system should be well-integrated with third-party service providers. < TOP > 28. A Use-management tool: It schedules jobs, monitors events, data output, backup and recovery. It manages the applications when they are being accessed by users. Service management tools: These help the management monitor the performance of various ERP applications. These tools need to be powerful as they have to analyze thousands of transactions that occur simultaneously in an ERP system. System administration tool: It manages the network and systems for ERP. It manages inventory and assets, configures software, modifies applications when needed, and distributes software. < TOP > 29. A First two statements are true with regard to e-CRM tools. Remaining statements are false. Tracking of customer behavior and grouping customers exhibiting similar behavior is possible through inference-based software. Rules-based software is used for personalization in case of specific products and services only. < TOP > 30. B Customer data computing architecture; Business rules for coordinating interactions; Systems and processes that facilitate integration of legacy, analytic and operational CRM systems are the fundamental elements of E-CRM infrastructure. Whereas, attracting new customers is one of the important functions of CRM. < TOP > Section B: Caselets 1. Call centre is confronted with a number of challenges:  Eliminating ineffective processes during inbound/outbound calls.  Avoiding call backs.  High training costs.  Tracking absenteeism.  Ensuring safety and security of employees. < TOP > 2. Call centers handle customer service integration supported by communication via telephone or web. There are a number of practical ways of identifying information needs which are as under: Talk to both experienced and novice staff, to find out their requirements first-hand. Conduct an information review of the resources currently available (both on-line and on paper.) Survey both call centre staff and customers. Talk to business and product representatives, to identify the areas they would like highlighted to customers. Examine the daily activities of frontline staff to identify key information needs. Analyze call logs and other statistics to find out areas of customer interest or confusion. Identify the typical questions and problems addressed by the help desk or second-level support. Evaluate whether sufficient documentation exists for frontline IT systems. As the operators may have as little as 30 seconds to find the answers, one must ensure that the information is accurate and up-to-date. To ensure information accuracy, a permanent team < TOP > should be there to create and update content. 3. E-mail has emerged as the largest source of information on changing customer behavior in recent years. The foremost advantage of using the internet is the speed of information exchange. The information exchange may range from gossip to confidential business information. The speed of the Internet is fascinating for many business owners and customers, drawing them to use it. E-mail is a supplement rather than a complete replacement for traditional communication devices like telephones and fax. E-mails save paper and postal charges and also facilitate quick response. It is easy to use and supports for two-way communication anytime. This makes customer interaction very simple. The benefits that SR InfoTech can enjoy through the use of e-mails are:  Faster response, quicker problem solving and swift change incorporation  Provision of product updates to customers  Display of new products and their features to elicit suggestions and opinions  Sending product literature and press releases  Communicating price changes. E-mails offer customers a convenient and flexible shopping experience. Customer loyalty can be built through good customer service. And good customer service entails prompt reply to queries and quick problem solving. < TOP > 4. If I am a member of board of directors to SR InfoTech, I would suggest the following steps in developing a Knowledge Management framework. Identify the goals of the Knowledge Management (KM) project: While formulating goals, companies should ensure that these goals can be translated into action. These goals should also facilitate the use of newly discovered knowledge. Determine where knowledge resides in the company: Knowledge is present everywhere, but it is difficult to identify and capture hidden knowledge. Tacit knowledge resides in the minds of the employees or in their relationship with external entities. When the knowledge is not tacit, it resides in the databases and lies unused. This happens because knowledge in the database is either hidden or undervalued. Determine what information the company needs to capture: Identifying is finding the information that is relevant to the organization. Knowledge analysts can help employees understand information needs. They can also help apply existing knowledge to processes and provide advice on how to improve business processes. Collect, clean and prepare data: Companies must assimilate data from internal and external data sources and follow a standard structure for storing the data. Ratios and rolled up summaries can be generated using conversions. This step is very significant since it makes up for more than 70% of the total efforts required for knowledge management implementation. It will be relatively easier for companies to collect, clean and integrate data if they have a data warehouse in place. Balance outward and inward data: Most often businesses focus on internal business processes. However, this is less relevant in today's changing business scenario. To function effectively companies should be alert in grasping information from external sources. The challenge is to collect and organize external data. Develop new approaches to categorizing information: The latest trend in KM is categorizing information across business applications. This categorization should be relevant to the business operations. For example, IMS Health, a health care data provider, reorganized its intranet based on activities like recruiting, skill enhancements etc. This is a meaningful exercise as compared to revamping the organizational structure. Learn how to mine data: This step entails building a model for selecting the data mining tool, transforming data, generating samples and testing and validating the model. Validate the model: An independent data set should be used to test the model for data accuracy. Companies should run a pilot test to assess the sensitivity and usability of the model. Deploy the model: The model should be used to predict and alter organizational behavior. Deployment may involve the installation of computers to capture data and generate real time predictions. Monitor the model: Companies should monitor the model regularly so that it can be changed < TOP > them to strict quality control tests from time to time so that their supplies need not be tested before assembling the product. At the back end, the data mining system tracks the customers' history, records their preferences (regarding packaging, destination, delivery schedules, etc) estimates delivery time and evaluates the performance of suppliers and partners. This enables the company to take steps to further improve the efficiency of its supply chain. The make-to-order strategy is similar to the assemble-to-order strategy in many respects, but the former is generally adopted in a highly volatile environment where customers' preferences change drastically and rapidly. In assemble-to-order, a tentative estimate of the requirements is prepared and- the inventory of components and subassemblies is maintained accordingly. But in make-to-order, since the demand is highly volatile, such estimates cannot be prepared. The supplier has to constantly change the design of the components according to the specifications of the customer order received by the company. This process requires tight integration between the supplier and the company so that non-value adding and time- consuming activities can be eliminated and the desired product can be delivered to the customer at the earliest. E-business redefines the way production and demand can be managed by businesses. The complexity of production operations increases, as the companies scale up their activities to meet global requirements. Traditional order management and production systems used by companies cannot be used to track global inventory requirements. E-supply chains enable companies to obtain information about the inventory levels, production plans and schedules of their production units across the globe. Managers can communicate with production units and warehouses across the globe and suggest any last minute changes in plans and schedules. Some of the e-supply chain applications integrate with existing ERP systems, and help optimize procurement, inventory management and scheduling. This improves the quality of decision making in organizations and helps them minimize inventory, streamline production processes, reduce operating costs and obtain greater control over the business. Collaborative planning Collaborative planning enables organizations to coordinate product flows across their business units, optimize resource utilization and optimize inventory levels through integration of operations across the suppliers and partners in the value chain. The mutual trust and reliability of the partners determine the efficiency of the e-supply chain. The e-supply chain enables a company to provide the suppliers of key components with real- time access to demand information. The company's headquarters forecasts the demand, and the statistics are made available to all the partners and suppliers across the globe. The production schedules and customer order information are also shared with partners and suppliers and they are updated on any subsequent changes in the information so that the activities are synchronized. Therefore, the e-supply chain achieves complete integration of partners and suppliers, and enhances the speed of information sharing eliminating production delays. It enables the company to be more receptive to changes in the preferences of customers and to deliver the desired product to them at the desired time. Collaborative product development This component of the e-supply chain deals with the design and implementation of product development process within the organization and across partners and suppliers in the supply chain. It also seeks to observe the impact of the change in processes on the organization. If e- business technology is properly used in product development, the product development cycle time can be reduced significantly. By launching technologically advanced and innovative products ahead of its competitors? The company can reach the market faster, win market share and obtain profits. Product development costs can be brought down by integrating and streamlining communication channels properly. A major problem faced by large companies in product development is the coordination of activities of staff working in different locations. Knowledge is crucial. In product designing if there is continuous knowledge sharing between the engineers, marketers and designers working in different locations, products can be designed better and launched faster. With the help of the e-business technology, organizations can design products at one location while taking inputs from engineers and designers at diverse locations. The technology also enables various parts of the product to be designed at different locations and integrated later to form a complete product. However, the major obstacle that prevents organizations from leveraging technology is the difficulty in coordinating teams and ensuring that each team understands its assignments accurately. The problem of communication increases with the size of an organization. Large organizations have many divisions such as marketing, finance, production and R&D. Each division has individual reporting and reward systems and goals, but all the divisions need to work together for success. E-business technology increases the need for integration and coordination among the departments. E- Procurement E-procurement refers to the streamlining of the procurement process across business partners in the supply chain using e-business technology. Earlier, designers had to search several catalogs to identify parts with the functionality required for their new product designs. The process of selection was through trial and error; they often found that parts were not compatible with others and they had to restart the search. Today, electronic search mechanisms help designers find components quickly. Using software and electronic modeling, engineers and designers can instantly determine the suitability of a part or component for the overall design. Decision-making is speeded up because most online catalogs allow three- dimensional views of the parts. The engineers can also find out the long-term benefits and problems with, the parts. Therefore, companies can ensure that they procure the right parts in the first instance and avoid redesigning products. On-line procurement reduces processing costs. Companies can compare online catalogs of multiple suppliers efficiently and can locate the best supplier and procure quality products at reasonable prices. Online purchase orders streamline the delivery process. E-Logistics E-logistics is concerned with the redesigning of warehousing and product distribution using e- business technology. E-logistics enables companies to optimize the routing of products and allows customers to track the real-time shipping status of the product. Companies can even extend e-logistics to the retail unit level. They can track the inventory movement in retail stores through vendor-managed inventory systems and use the information to improve product distribution to the stores as well as to enhance < TOP OF THE DOCUMENT >