CAP. 3 Flashcards
Introduction
Defining an adequate digital technology infrastructure is vital to all start-ups and existing companies making the transformation to digital business. The infrastructure and support of different types of digital platform directly affect the quality of service experienced by users of the systems in terms of speed and responsiveness. The range of digital services provided also determines the capability of an organisation to compete through differentiating in the marketplace.
Digital business infrastructure
combination of hardware such as servers and client desktop computers and mobile devices, the network used to link this hardware and the software applications used to deliver services to workers within the business and also to its partners and customers. Infrastructure also includes the architecture of the networks, hardware and software and where it’s located. Infrastructure can also be considered to include the methods for publishing data and documents accessed through applications. A key decision is which elements are located within the company and which are managed externally.
Through being aware of potential infrastructure problems, managers can work with their partners to ensure that a good level of service is delivered to everyone (internal and external) who is using the digital business infrastructure
Supporting the growing range of digital business technology platforms
The desktop and laptop have been dominant for years and remain very important, but mobile access has exceeded desktop use since late 2016. Combining with these hardware platforms, there are also different software platforms that marketers can use to reach and interact with their audience through content marketing or adv:
- Desktop, laptop, and notebook platforms:
1. Desktop browser-based platform.
2. Desktop apps.
3. Email platforms.
4. Feed-based and API data exchange platforms.
5. Video-marketing platforms.
Social networks exist across all of these technology platforms so haven’t been identified separately.
Mini Case Study 3.1: Location-based marketing
- Mobile phone and tablet platforms. Since they can be used in different locations, there are many new opportunities to engage consumers through mobile marketing and location-based marketing.
The main mobile platforms are:
6. Mobile operating system and browser.
7. Mobile-based apps.
It’s important to assess whether companies are gaining similar or greater levels of business from consumers using mobile platforms as they did from desktop platforms.
The benefits that mobile connections offer to their users are:
* ubiquity
* reachability
* convenience
* security
* instant access or being always on.
There are considerable advantages in comparison to PC-based Internet access, but it’s still somewhat restricted by the display limitations.
- Desktop, laptop, and notebook platforms
- Desktop browser-based platform.
- Desktop apps.
- Email platforms.
- Feed-based and API data exchange platforms.
- Video-marketing platforms.
Social networks exist across all of these technology platforms so haven’t been identified separately.
- Mobile phone and tablet platforms
- Mobile operating system and browser.
- Mobile-based apps.
It’s important to assess whether companies are gaining similar or greater levels of business from consumers using mobile platforms as they did from desktop platforms.
The benefits that mobile connections offer to their users are:
* ubiquity
* reachability
* convenience
* security
* instant access or being always on.
Other hardware platforms
There are also other platforms through which communicate with customers, for example:
1. Gaming platforms.
2. Indoor and outdoor kiosk-type apps.
3. Interactive signage.
Box 3.1: Taking the mobile app vs mobile site decision
Augmented reality
Augmented reality (AR) is an exciting concept that can help companies improve their customer experience.
Mini Case Study 3.2: Amazon opens a real grocery shop
Digital business infrastructure components
The different components of digital business architecture can be conceived of as layers, with defined interfaces between each layer. The different layers can be best understood in relation to a typical task performed by a user of a digital business system.
Kampas (2000) describes an alternative five-level infrastructure model of what he refers to as the information system function chain:
1. Storage/physical. Memory and hard disk hardware components (Level IV).
2. Processing. Computation and logic provided by the process (processing occurs at Levels I and II).
3. Infrastructure. Human and external interfaces and also the network, referred to as extra-structure (Level III).
4. Application/content. Data processed by the application into information (Level V).
5. Intelligence. Additional computer-based logic that transforms information to knowledge (Level I).
Each of these elements of infrastructure presents separate management issues.
Kampas (2000) information system function chain:
- Storage/physical. Memory and hard disk hardware components (Level IV).
- Processing. Computation and logic provided by the process (processing occurs at Levels I and II).
- Infrastructure. Human and external interfaces and also the network, referred to as extra-structure (Level III).
- Application/content. Data processed by the application into information (Level V).
- Intelligence. Additional computer-based logic that transforms information to knowledge (Level I).
A short introduction to digital technology
The Internet enables communication between millions of connected computers worldwide, but how does the seamless transfer of data happen? Requests for information are transmitted from client computers and mobile devices whose users request services from server computers that hold information and host business applications that deliver the services in response to requests. Thus, the Internet is a large-scale client-server system.
The client computers are connected to the Internet via local Internet service providers (ISPs), which, in turn, are linked to larger ISPs connection to the major national and international infrastructure or backbones that are managed by commercial organisations.
Domain name selection
Companies typically have many digital services located on different domains, particularly for companies with different domains for different countries. The domain name refers to the address of the web server and is usually selected to be the same as the name of the company, and the extension will indicate its type. The extension is commonly known as the generic top-level domain (gTLD). Common gTLDs are:
i. .com: international or American company.
ii. .org: not-for-profit organisations.
iii. .mobi: sites configured for mobile phones.
iv. .net: network provider.
v. .edu: academic institution in the US
There are also specific country-code top-level domains (ccTLDs):
vi. .co.uk: company based in the UK (it’s an anomaly).
vii. .au, .ca, .de, .es, .fi: other countries.
viii. .ac.uk: UK-based university or higher education institution.
ix. .org.uk: not-for-profit organisation focusing on a single country.
The “filename.html” part of the web address refers to an individual web page.
The list of new types of gTLDs has grown rapidly in the last few years to cover all manner of business types or specific products. These new gTLD types also include support for non-Latin characters such as Arabic or Chinese.
It’s important that companies define a URL strategy that will help customers or partners find relevant parts of the site containing references to specific products or campaigns when printed in offline communications such ad adverts or brochures.
Uniform resource locators (URLs).
The technical name for a web address is uniform (or universal) resource locator (URL). URLs can be thought of as a standard method of addressing that make it straightforward to find the name of a domain or a document on the domain.
In larger businesses it’s important to develop a URL strategy so that there’s a consistent way of labelling online services and resources.
There’s further terminology associated with a URL that will often be required when discussing site implementation or digital marketing campaigns.
Box 3.2: What’s in a URL?
Domain name registration
Most companies own several domains, for different product lines or countries or for specific marketing campaigns. Domain name disputes can arise when an individual or company has registered a domain name that another company claims they have the right to. This is sometimes referred to as cybersquatting.
Managers or agencies responsible for websites need to check that domain names are automatically renewed by the hosting company. Companies that don’t manage this process risk losing their domain name since another can register it if the domain name lapsed.
Mini Case Study 3.3: Is a domain name worth the money?
Managing hardware and systems software infrastructure
Management of the technology infrastructure requires decisions on Layers II, III and IV.
- Layer II – systems software
A key management decision is whether to standardise throughout the organisation. Standardisation leads to reduced numbers of contacts for support and maintenance and can reduce purchase prices through multi-user licences. Systems software choices occur for the client, server and network. On client computers, the decision will be which browser software to standardise on. Standardised plug-ins should be installed across the organisation. The systems software for the client will also be decided on. When considering systems software for the server, it should be remembered that there may be many servers in the global organisation, both for the Internet and intranets. Using standardised web-server software (es: Apache) will help maintenance. Networking software will also be decided on.
Managing digital business applications infrastructure. Management of digital business applications infrastructure concerns delivering the right applications to all users of digital business services. The issue involved has long been a concern of IS managers, namely to deliver access to integrated applications and data available across the company. Traditionally businesses have developed applications silos or islands of information. These silos may develop at three different levels:
1) There may be different technology architectures used in different functional areas;
2) There will also be different applications and separate databases in different areas;
3) Processes or activities followed in the different functional areas may also be different.
Applications silos are often a result of decentralisation or poorly controlled investment in information systems, with different departmental managers selecting different systems from different vendors. This is inefficient in that it will often cost more to purchase applications from separate vendors, and also will be more costly to support and upgrade. Such a fragmented approach stifles decision-making and leads to isolation between functional units. Problems can also occur at tactical and strategic levels. To calculate customer lifetime values (CLV), some info about customers’ purchases may be stored in a marketing information system, while the payment data will be stored in a separate system within the finance department. It may prove difficult or impossible to reconcile these different data sets.
To avoid the problems of a fragmented applications infrastructure, companies attempted throughout the 1990s to achieve the more integrated position. Many companies turned to enterprise resource planning (ERP) vendors, such as SAP, Baan, PeopleSoft and Oracle.
The approach of integrating different applications through ERP is entirely consistent with the principle of digital business, since digital business applications must facilitate the integration of the whole supply chain and value chain. Many of the ERP vendors have repositioned as suppliers of digital business solutions. The difficulty for those managing digital business infrastructure is that there’s not a single solution of components from a single supplier. Manager are faced with a precarious balancing act between standardisation or core product and integrating innovative systems where applicable.
ERP systems were originally focused on achieving integration at the operational level of an organisation. Solutions for other applications such as business intelligence in the form of data warehousing and data mining tended to focus on tactical decision-making based on accessing the operational data from ERP systems. Knowledge management software also tends to cut across different levels of management.
The development of customer experiences and digital services
Web services or Software as a Service (SaaS) refer to a highly significant model for managing software and data within the digital business age. The web services model involves managing and performing all types of business processes and activities through accessing web-based services rather than running a traditional executable application on the processor of your local computer.
Benefits of web services or SaaS
SaaS are usually paid for on a subscription basis. The main business benefit is that installation and maintenance costs are outsourced. Cost savings are made on both the server and client sides, since the server software and databases are hosted externally, and client applications software is usually delivered through a web browser or a simple application downloaded by web.
- Application programming interfaces (APIs)
Organisations have sought to keep proprietary info within their firewalls for security reasons and to protect their intellectual property. But in the Internet era, this strategy may limit opportunities to add value to their services or share info via other online companies and their web services to increase their potential reach.
Challenges of deploying SaaS
Disadvantages of the SaaS: it will have less capability for tailoring to exact business needs than a bespoke system.
The most obvious disadvantages of using SaaS id dependence on a third party to deliver services over the web, which has potential problems:
* Downtime or poor availability if the network connection or server hosting the application or server fails.
* Lower performance than a local database.
* Reduced data security since data would be backed up locally by in-house IT staff. Companies using SaaS need to be clear how back-up and restores are managed and the support available for handling problems.
* Data protection: since customer data may be stored in a different location it’s essential that it’s sufficiently secure and consistent with new data protection and privacy laws.
These potential problems need to be evaluated on a case-by-case basis when selecting SaaS providers. Disaster recovery procedures are particularly important. Managers need to question service levels as services often are delivered to multiple customers from a single server in a multi-tenancy arrangement rather than a single-tenancy one.
A related concept to web services is utility computing, which involves treating all aspects of IT as a commodity service, where payment is according to usage. A subscription is usually charged per month according to the number of features, users, volume of data storage or bandwidth consumed. Discounts will be given for longer-term contracts. This includes not only software, but also using hardware. An earlier term is application service providers (ASPs).
Box 3.3: Is my SaaS single-tenancy or multi-tenancy?
Cloud computing
Cloud computing: the cloud referred to is the combination of networking and data storage hardware and software hosted externally to a company, typically shared between many separate or distributed servers accessed via the Internet. The access can be from any location. But there are issues to consider about data stored and served from the clod: is it secure, backed up, always available?
From the POV of managing IT infrastructure, these changes are dramatic, since traditionally companies have employed their own information systems support staff to manage different types of business applications such as email. Costs associated with upgrading and configuring new software on users’ client computers and servers are dramatically decreased.
Many smaller business and start-ups use cloud computing services to provide web-based services at low cost with the flexibility to meet short-term or longer-term growth in demand for their services.
Mini Case Study 3.4: How a business benefits from the cloud
Mini Case Study 3.5: Businesses that sit on Amazon’s AWS
Mini Case Study 3.6: Do you really need to come to work? Virtual businesses
- Virtualisation
Virtualisation is another approach to managing IT resources more effectively. It is mainly deployed within an organisation.
Virtualisation essentially lets one computer do the job of multiple computers, by sharing the resources of a single computer across multiple environments. Virtual servers and virtual desktops allow to host multiple operating systems and multiple applications. So, virtualisation has benefits:
* The ability to run many operating systems on a single machine;
* Splits individual system resources between many virtual machines;
* Stops faults and security breaches at the hardware level;
* Maintains system performance;
* One can save the current state of a virtual machine for later use;
* Virtual machines can be moved and reused as easily as moving and copying files;
* Any virtual machine ca be moved to a real server.