Chapter 3: Achieving competitive advantages with Information Systems

Question 1

How to use IT systems for cost-leadership?

Answer 1

Use information systems to get the lowest operational costs and prices. Efficient customer response system links customer behaviour to distribution, production and supply chains.

Question 2

How can you use information system for a differentiation strategy?

Answer 2

Use information systems by creating new products and services or by enhancing customer convenience.

Question 3

What is mass customization?

Answer 3

Mass customization refers to offering individually tailored products using the same resources as mass production.

Question 4

What is customer experience management?

Answer 4

It refers to managing the experience of buying the product.

Question 5

What are smart products?

Answer 5

products that are part of a larger set of information services sold by a firm

Question 6

What is benchmarking?

Answer 6

Comparing efficiency and effectiveness of your business process against standards and measuring performance

Question 7

What are best practices?

Answer 7

This is the most succesful solutions for achieving a business objective

Question 8

What is a value web?

Answer 8

This is a collection of independent firms that use IT to coordinate value chains to produce goods for a market collectively

Question 9

When are synergies created?

Answer 9

Synergies are created when outputs of one process can be used as input for other process, or when expertise is shared that create lower costs

Question 10

What are core competencies?

Answer 10

These are activities in which a firm is an industry leader. Firms should use information systems to build out and strenghten these core competencies.

Question 11

What are virtual companies?

Answer 11

These are companies that use networks to link people, assets and ideas to ally with other companies to crate goods without being limited by physical boundaries.

Question 12

What are business ecosystems?

Answer 12

Business ecosystems are interdependent networks of suppliers, distributors etc/ Information systems are crucial for communication and collaboration

Question 13

What are disruptive technologies?

Answer 13

Innovations that change a business environment

Question 14

What is a domestic exporter strategy?

Answer 14

This strategy means that there is a centralization of corporate activities in a company’s home country

Question 15

What is a multinational strategy?

Answer 15

This is a strategy where financial management is in home country, and major business functions are decentralized in other countries

Question 16

What is a franchise strategy?

Answer 16

This is a strategy where product creation happens in home country but production is done by foreign personnel in branches of the company.

Question 17

Wat is a transnational strategy?

Answer 17

This is a strategy where there are many regional headquarters. Supply and demand where they appear and taking advantage of any local competitive advantages

Question 18

What are the four types of systems in global systems configuration?

Answer 18

1. Centralized systems
2. Decentralized systems
3. Duplicated systems
4. Networked systems

Question 19

What are centralized systems?

Answer 19

systems are developed at central domestic home base. This fits with an exporter strategy

Question 20

What is a duplicated system?

Answer 20

This is a system that is developed at home base but the operations are handed to autonomous units abroad. This fits with a franchiser strategy

Question 21

What are decentralized systems?

Answer 21

These are systems where each foreign unit designs their own systems. This fits with an exporter and multinational strategy

Question 22

What is a networked system?

Answer 22

This is a system where development occurs in an integrated way across all units. This fits a multinational (financial reporting) and transnational strategy

Question 23

What is quality?

Answer 23

For the producer: spec comformance

For customer: durability, ease, comfort etc.

Question 24

What is total quality management?

Answer 24

This is a philosophy stating that quality is the responsibilty of all people and functions within an organization

Question 25

What is six sigma?

Answer 25

This is a specific measure of quality represented by 3.4 defects per million opportunities

Question 26

Name 5 ways to use information systems to improve quality

Answer 26

1. Reduce cycle time
2. Benchmarking to competitors
3. Improving quality of customer service
4. Improve design quality and precision
5. Improve production precision and tighten production tolerances

Question 27

What is cycle time?

Answer 27

Refers to time between beginning and end of a process

Question 28

What are computer-aided-design systems (CAD-systems)

Answer 28

These systems automate creation of designs using software

Question 29

What is business process management?

Answer 29

Business approach aiming to continuously improve business processes.

Question 30

What are the steps of business process management?

Answer 30

1. Identify processes for change
2. Analyze existing processes (BPMN-model)
3. Design the new process
4. Implement new process
5. Continuous improvement

Question 31

What is business process reengineering?

Answer 31

This is a radical rethinking and redesign of business processes, which can lead to productivity and efficiency gains.