When it comes to information systems strategies, a company can have a great variety of goals or priorities
reply#1:
When it comes to information systems strategies, a company can have a great variety of goals or priorities, especially given the fact that most companies moved to remote work as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, a reliable information systems strategy can help a company go through this difficult time. There are four competitive strategies enabled by information systems I want to talk about today:
First, focusing on security. The security of information system is key to any companies that use computers, aka, basically all companies. Security does not mean a company must invest a whole bunch of money in complicated equipment. A company can do something as simple as enforcing a basic policy or requiring employees to lock their screens after work.
Second, investing more in privacy protection. A bad example of privacy protection is that some tech companies collect user data and sell the data to third parties. The good thing is more companies start to realize the importance of protecting customer data, and regulators are pressuring companies to introduce a stricter privacy protection plan. Better privacy protection means more trust.
Third, getting a disaster recovery plan ready ahead of time. Last year, a server of Wells Fargo was down, and millions of customers were severely impacted. Having a good disaster recovery plan means great reliability from customers.
Fourth, enhancing system resilience. A very recent high-profile example is SolarWinds. SolarWinds was hacked and was able to recover quickly from this disruption because of outstanding system resilience. The ability to recover from anything outside of a company’s original plan is system resilience.
Reference:
Devanadham Henry, Jose Emmanuel Ramirez-Marquez (2012). Generic metrics and quantitative approaches for system resilience as a function of time. Reliability Engineering & System Safety, Volume 99, March 2012, Pages 114
reply#2:
Strategies enabled by information systems that firms can pursue are as follows:
(1)Lowering cost.: Now companies can easily find ways to use new information technology to reduce production costs, and use supply chain management to control supply chain costs. According to Porter and Millar (1985), Canon built a low-cost copier assembly process around an automated parts-selection and materials-handling system. Assembly workers have bins containing all the parts needed for the particular copier. Canon’s success with this system derives from the software that controls parts inventory and selection.
(2)Enhancing differentiation: The new information technology has enabled companies to reform and differentiate themselves in product design or service from other competitors. According to Porter and Millar (1985), Digital Equipment’s artificial intelligence system, XCON, uses decision rules to develop custom computer configurations. This dramatically reduces the time required to fill orders and increases accuracy—which enhances Digital’s image as a quality provider.
(3)Changing competitive scope: According to Porter and Millar (1985), information technology can alter the relationship between competitive scope and competitive advantage. Dow Jones, the publisher of the Wall Street Journal, pioneered the page transmission technology that links its 17 U.S. printing plants to produce a truly national newspaper. Such advances in communication plants have also made it possible to move toward a global strategy.
(4) Strengthen customer and supplier intimacy: Laudon(1991) pointed out, the use of information systems can tighten linkages with suppliers and develop intimacy with customers. Chrysler Corporation uses information systems to facilitate direct access from suppliers to production schedules and even permits suppliers to decide how and when to ship suppliers to Chrysler factories. This allows suppliers more lead time in producing goods.
References:
Porter, & Millar. (2014, August 1). How Information Gives You Competitive Advantage. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/1985/07/how-information-gives-you-competitive-advantage (Links to an external site.)
Laudon, K., & Laudon, J. (2020). Management Information Systems: Managing the Digital Firm (16th ed.). Pearson.
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