Club_It_Is_Doc.

Club IT Part Three Laido Romero University of Phoenix Online Introduction In this paper, we will discuss the Club IT; the customers that visit often and how to increase that clientele. We will examine the short and long-term goals and the information systems that can aid Club IT in ways that meet those businesses goals. This includes a development strategy to guarantee that the staff of Club IT receives the training necessary to take every advantage of the new systems they chose. An examination of the telecommunications services, hardware and software that will be necessary to meet Club IT goals. The need to assess the funds available to implement the systems and the training required to operate them will be determined. We will anticipate the clubs needs concerning meeting the goals of the business. Also provided is a list of the current hardware, software and telecommunications systems in use at the Club IT. Description of Business and Clientele The Club IT owned and operated by Ruben Keys and Lisa Tejada, both worked nightclubs in college as musicians. The knowledge they gleaned from that experience, and the degrees in Business Administration that both earned has given them insights in the nightclub industry that has proved valuable. The staff consists of one assistant manager, four bartenders, six wait staff, two stewards, two short-order cooks and four security personnel; all are high energy, congenial, and hardworking. Included are a DJ Tuesdays through Thursdays, with live music on Fridays and Saturdays. The clientele that Club IT attracts are generally young, active, and professional. Their customers are comfortable using mobile devices like PDAs, Blackberries, camera phones, and are active online shoppers. All these factors contribute to the Club IT being a high-energy, high- impact destination for affluent young professionals. Goals and Strategy The short-term goals of Club IT are to get useful and timely numbers on operations; setup a website that allows customers to buy concert tickets anytime, streamline the ordering process through business-to-business (B2B) commerce and earn more profits. The long-term goals are to identify e-commerce technology and applications to increase clientele, make the business process more profitable, and open a second Club IT. An information system at Club IT will provide reliable, available, and secure information to all company data. According to a 2008 survey of 192 business executives from companies around the world by the Economist Intelligence Unit, businesses that have information systems 91% claim that their ability to access critical business information is good or very good, compared to only 58% of those companies that do not have formal information systems operating in their businesses (World software, 2008). The easy access to current business information Club IT will have creates efficiency and that in turn will improve all segments of the business. By organizing the business information functional systems (FAIS) areas of Club IT and with the integration of a transaction processing system along with other systems such as an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system and customer relationship management (CRM) systems (Rainer &Turban, 2009). By organizing data, using these systems the Club IT will attain the short-term and long-term goals that they have set. Professional Development The next step in the process is to make these systems understandable and functional to the staff at Club IT. I have recommended the agile development method because one of the biggest selling points is the availability of training that is included in most of the software offered. I recommend that Lisa and Ruben be the first to decide who undergoes training and when the training takes place. Bobby Lee is the assistant manager and is responsible for the day-to-day operations; that is a good place to start since he needs to be the most involved when it concerns the new information system. We will begin the process of integrating the new system with a team of consultants provided in the cost of the agile system (Newswire, 2010). The agile process will provide small changes in the system as it develops, in that staff members will absorb the technology relevant to their position at Club IT. Assessment of Needs Club IT is currently using a dial-up internet connection. This is slow and tedious; limiting what services are available. The data for ordering, sales, and budget is isolated and there is no consistency in vender accessibility. The methods used to market music and merchandise are incomplete and do not make use of the current technology, including using mobile devices to sell tickets and merchandise. Retail business is excited about expanded mobile shopping with improved interfaces, wider selections, and more secure payment choices (Sharma & Vascellaro, 2007). We propose the purchase and installation of a platform consisting of a computer based information system that includes hardware, software, databases, procedures, and telecommunication networks that in combination will process information to produce the infrastructure of Club IT. The hardware purchased will be the additional components needed to enhance current hardware to meet systems performance requirements. The database management system will consist of the FAIS that will generate reports and provides information from the many activities in each area including accounting and finance, marketing and sales, production/operations and logistics and human resources management (Rainer &Turban, 2009). The database will include the transaction processing system (TPS) this monitors, stores, collects, and processes data produced by all business transactions. The ERP system will integrate the businesses functional areas. Included with these systems will be a customer relationship management (CRM) system. This will enable Club IT to focus on taking care of customers through the many services available on the World Wide Web. Selected web services involving business-to-business, (B2B) business to customer, (B2C) business to employee, (B2E) and other e-commerce complete the system. The software used will be determined in the development process. With these improvements, Club IT will realize their short and long-term goals. I recommend the agile development method for implementing the services and systems at Club IT. The systems major tenet is user interaction. Along with a team of collaborative experts, each phase of the system can be tested and improved or adjusted to meet specific needs (Larson, 2009). There is already software available to support agile development. This software allows development teams to collaborate more effectively, improve productivity, and produce higher-quality software (Business Dateline, 2010). In 2008, Rally Software launched a website and online tool kit to calculate the cost saving benefits of agile development. This in an effort to show the use of agile systems cuts costs in the short term; it also enables businesses to grow faster at lower cost in the future (Business Wire, 2008). With this method, we can implement systems and services in the shortest time with the flexibility to continue business as usual. The Budget The size of the budget available is contingent on what expenses can be reduced or diverted to fund the implementation of the new system. This will include some profit taking to reinvest in the business. The other budget requirements may be available through the reduction of administrative, marketing and operating expenses. The implementation of the new system will be more efficient and should reduce the operating expenses. A portion of marketing expenses would go towards supporting E-commerce as it pertains to merchandise and concert promotion in particular. The streamlining of the system will also reduce time and effort spent on administration. The savings that will result should increase profits available to fund the system. The agile development method is conducive to the tight budget that Club IT will have to purchase, maintain and develop the hardware and software needed to achieve their goals. The ability to continue operating Club IT while developing the system is why the agile method is perfect for the business; implementing the system in small steps requiring a modest initial investment. I recommend that the first investment be agile software that comes with support, training, reference material and consulting services to ensure success of the organization (Newswire, 2010). Then based on the business model and system needs additional hardware, software and services undergo testing to insure system improvement. Evaluation The evaluation will progress along with additions to the system in small increments that is part of the agile method. This allows adjustments to the system as it grows. The support system is highly interactive with end-users along with consultation and training that is included along with the software (Newswire, 2010). The evaluation occurs as the end-users and consultants review and refine additions to the system; this process continues until the systems are all in place. Inventory The current hardware in use at the Club IT is a dial-up internet connection to a computer in a back office and possibly an MP3 player. The software used for the club accounting is a spreadsheet with three separate pages accessed one at a time. The portals to pages containing merchandise, club staff, dining and menus, club layout, music, about Club IT and the employee portal are on the home page and none has any interactive applications. The telecommunication services are the dial-up internet connection and electronic links to some of their vendors. Conclusion Club IT has a solid customer base that is loyal and technologically savvy. Using Ruben and Lisa’s knowledge and experience in the nightclub industry that along with an information system that provides data governance will give them a clear advantage over the competition. Organizing the FAIS industry TPS & ERP systems will streamline the business making it more efficient and therefore more profitable. With the addition of new information management capabilities the Club IT will be able to meet all of their goals of streamlining the ordering process, websites for ticket sales, earn more profits, increase clientele and open a second Club IT. References Larson, D. (2009, October). BI Principles for Agile Development: Keeping Focused. Business Intelligence Journal, 14(4), 36-41.  Retrieved March 14, 2010, from ABI/INFORM Global. (Document ID: 1929508621). Rainer, R. K., Jr., & Turban, E. (2009). Introduction to information systems: Supporting and transforming business (2nd ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley. Rally Software Provides Online Toolkit to Calculate the Cost-Cutting Benefits of Agile Development Practices. (11 December). Business Wire, Retrieved March 14, 2010, from Business Dateline. (Document ID: 1610723181). Rally Software Launches New Team and Pro Editions for Agile Software Life Cycle Management. (13  February). PR Newswire,1.  Retrieved April 4, 2010, from Business Dateline. (Document ID: 985860831). Seapine Software Tames Agile Beast with ALM 2010.1 Release. (2 March). Business Wire Retrieved March 14, 2010, from Business Dateline. (Document ID: 1973986121). Vascellaro J.E., & Sharma, A.( 2007). Beyond Ringtones and Games; Shopping on Your Cellphone Is Getting Easier as Choices Expand, Security Improves Wall Street Journal. (EasternEdition). New York, N.Y.:Sep 13, 2007. p. D.1