Evaluation of Information Systems Investments †MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the Evaluation of Information Systems Investments. Answer: Introduction: Presenting a substantial contribution to the body of concept on Strategic Information Systems. The author observed that these systems are developed in response to corporate business initiatives; these systems are developed so as to provide the business a position of competitive advantage. It has been considered as a salient feature n the sector of information technology. This systems aids the business corporations in categorizing the processes related to stores and also transformation of data is also done which has been created and received. According to MCArthur, T, (2014) it has been observed that Wesfarmers has adopted the conglomerate structure for the organization. On the basis of this organizational structure, it has been described that the structure is the amalgamation of the of two or more business entities in a single corporate structure. This forms a group of companies that usually involves a single parent company and different subsidiaries. However, in a conglomerate, diversification of the business in the companies is normal practice, and usually these companies depict a multi-industry corporate structure. These corporate structures are often multinational. As Wesfarmers has been astute holding up calmly to buy quality organizations at engaging costs throughout the years and in the process making a stone strong aggregate structure. This structure has made the business entity in minimizing the investments risks and also a capital market will be created within the organization so as to enhance the growth. Moreover, it has also been noted by the author, that the above mentioned organizational structure is also becoming a reason for number of operational issues which has been discussed further. As the size of the group or the corporation is expected to increases, there will be an increase in the expenses incurred in the managerial operations and activities (Galliers Leidner, 2014). Also there are number of issues related to accounting, for instance, there will be complexity in the consolidation and group disclosures. Inertia has made a decline in the innovation and creativity among the employees and which has also been considered as one of the operational issue. System acquisition method ERP can be considered as the most likely system acquisition method. Enterprise resource planning (ERP) is a system which has been described as the business management software (Peppard Ward, 2016). This will enable Wesfarmers in utilizing a mechanism of integrated applications for the management the business operations and also this system will allow the business corporations in automating a number of back office function which are associated with technology, services and human resources. The below presented flow chart is dictating the sales procedure which has been followed by Wesfarmers for executing the sales and making the goods available for the consumers. The process has been segmented in the following steps. The first step involves prospecting .i.e. finding the customers, analyzing the needs and the requirements and after that presentation of the order sheet which contains the details about the products which is essential for the customers while placing the order (Cassidy, 2016). The next is the approach which is to be made by the company towards the customers. A good approach will determine the success path of the sales process. The salesperson should have a good knowledge about the products which re to be sold. The assessment should be scheduled in order to determine the needs of the consumers. This will aid the salesperson in directing the efforts which are to be made so as to sell the products to the targeted consumer. After that the products are required to be presented in-front of the consumers. This will aid in developing the will to buy the product (Willcocks, 2013). A strong and attractive presentation will ensure a positive response of the buyer towards the product. Most of the sales process fails as the sales person fails to close the process effectively. This has been considered as advancing the process towards getting an ultimate order. The last step in the process of taking the follow up, a good follow-up wills double the success of closing ratio. The below mentioned are some of the control problems which can be faced during the process: The warehousing managers and the supervisors are expected to update the inventory subsidiary ledger and accounts. The manager determines what should be ordered (Aversa, Cabantous Haefliger, 2017). The following are the frauds which can occur in this system: Since the warehouse manager selects the supplier and the order is placed, the inventory can be ordered which is not needed or is expensive as compared to the market price from a dealer with whom he has a personal fraudulent setting. In against of this the dealer is expected to pay a kick back to the warehouse manager. Vendor fraud can also take place in this scenario, where the manager authorizes order and receives the goods. The manager can present himself as a process and execute fraudulent transactions. Development and adoption of accounting software According to Realitysoftware, (2017), accounting software are considered as the computer applications which are utilized for recording and processing the accounting transactions and operations are executed as accounting information system. This system comprises of the varied range of modules such as accounts receivable, accounts payable payroll and trial balance. Moreover, the following are the benefits which were noted by the author. A good planning and implementation of the accounting systems will aid mostly all the aspects. This system is developed by combining the various models the dealing with some specific areas of accounting such as, Accounts payable- where the billing and payment of the due is done by the business corporation Accounts receivable- In this system Wesfarmers will be entering money owed to it Billing: In this the entity produces bills (Rainer et al., 2013) General ledger: These are the companys books Payroll: The firm keeps a record of the salary, wage and associated taxes Current market size On the basis of the research executed from au.finance.yahoo, (2017) it has been concluded that Wesfarmers is one of the multinational brand name in its own sector and has been enjoying a top position. According to raszkiewkz, (2017), the key takeaways are presented by the author as follows: Revenue was seen to have a hike of 4.3% to $34.9 billion Whereas, the Profit 13.2% to $1.6 billion A half year fully franked dividend of $1.03 was declared, up 13.2% The sector of supermarket has been dominated by a selected association of retail corporations, of which Wesfarmers (Coles) and Woolworths are Australias largest. Both the business corporations have experienced substantial developments over the last four decades; more than doubling their combined market share to over 70 per cent of the countrys supermarket/grocery sector. On the basis of the survey executed by the author it has been noted that the current market share of the business entity is 35%. Leaders in the market competitive advantage As executed from the survey the author states that, Richard Goyder is the current chief executive officer of the Wesfarmers Limited and prior to this he was appointed in this organization as the Managing Director in 1993 and in 2005; he was promoted to the highest authority of the organization. Richards leadership style is unique and effective and his promotion is the evidence of his effective leadership techniques and styles (Bernus, Mertins Schmidt, 2013). Along with Richard Goyder, Rob Scott, current Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the Wesfarmers Limited. Apart from these two officers, there are many more leaders preset in the Wesfarmers limited. Leadership strategies adopted by these personalities have helped the Wesfarmers Limited to establish their effective position in the global market. It is noticed that basically modern trait theory of leadership and behavioral theory of leadership is being practiced in the workplace of Wesfarmers limited. As these styles are the results oriented styles. Woolworths is the primary competitorof Wesfarmers and both of these organizations are expanded in foreign countries. Their headquarters is situated in Australia only (Cecez-Kecmanovic et al., 2014). The most appropriate and reliable technique used by Richard Goyder is retaining talent and key employees. Retention of key employees is the biggest opportunity for every organization because they understand the situation of the organization and the working methods are familiar with them (Roberts, 2016). Appointment of any new employee rather being talented and experience, he would require some time to settle down in the new business environment. Appointment ofnewemployeeonthe place of any experienced employee does not guaranty for positive results but retention of key and experienced employee is the guaranty that organization does not needs to suffer from losses or from uncertain situations (Harun Hashim, 2017). Current gaps and challenges in accounting softwares Implementation of ERP system in the organization is not an easy task and all the processes performed in the organization doesgetsaffected from the implementation of ERP system (Iiis 2017). The first challenge would bechallengeto use the new and advanced technique for its users. Wesfarmers limited needs to appoint an engineer or an expert who could guide the employees and the other members of the organization so that appropriate results could be obtained for which ERP system was implemented (Sarker, Xiao Beaulieu, 2013). Other big challengewould be leakage of secret and confidential information of customers. This is due to lack of awareness in relevance with the using advanced technologies which were implemented with a view toincreasethe efficiency of the organization (Morecroft, 2015). Implementation of ERP system could alsoleadsto the retrenchment of those employees whodoesnot have enough information regarding the techniques. In the limelight of the above executed analysis it has been concluded that Wesfarmers is one of the multinational brand name in Western Australia,and its diverse business operations comprises of, supermarkets, liquor, convenience stores and hotels; improvement; office supplies; department stores; and an industrials division with businesses in chemicals, energy and fertilizers, industrial and safety products and coal. The review includes the current organizational structure adopted by the business corporation .i.e. conglomerate structure which has been proven beneficial for the entity. The further analysis concludes the operational issues and the accounting software packages which are required to be adopted by the business entity for the execution of the accounting and other associated activities. Moreover, the sales procedure followed by the business entity and also the current market share of the firm has been presented. References au.finance.yahoo, (2017), Yahoo finance, Assessed on 25th August 2017, https://au.finance.yahoo.com/quote/WES.AX/analysts?p=WES.AX. Aversa, P., Cabantous, L., Haefliger, S. (2017). WHEN DECISION SUPPORT SYSTEMS FAIL: INSIGHTS FOR STRATEGIC INFORMATION SYSTEMS FROM FORMULA. Bernus, P., Mertins, K., Schmidt, G. J. (Eds.). (2013).Handbook on architectures of information systems. Springer Science Business Media. Cassidy, A. (2016).A practical guide to information systems strategic planning. CRC press. Cecez-Kecmanovic, D., Galliers, R. D., Henfridsson, O., Newell, S., Vidgen, R. (2014). 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John Wiley Sons. Rainer, R. K., Cegielski, C. G., Splettstoesser-Hogeterp, I., Sanchez-Rodriguez, C. (2013).Introduction to information systems. John Wiley Sons. Realitysoftware, (2017), Accounting software development, Assessed on 25th August 2017, https://www.realitysoftware.ca/services/software-development/accounting/. Roberts, M. (2016).Strategic Information Systems: Their Contribution to Organizational Performance(Doctoral dissertation, University of Portsmouth). Sarker, S., Xiao, X., Beaulieu, T. (2013). Qualitative studies in information systems: a critical review and some guiding principles.MIS quarterly,37(4), iii-xviii. Willcocks, L. (2013).Information management: the evaluation of information systems investments. Springer.