AF302 FINAL EXAM SOLUTIONS: SEMESTER 1, 2009
Question 1 – Multiple Choice (25 marks)
1. A
2. A
3. B
4. C
5. B
6. C
7. A
8. C
9. A
10. C
11. C
12. A
13. B
14. A
15. A
16. B
17. D
18. C
19. C
20. B
21. C
22. B
23. D
24. C
25. A
Question 2 – Short answer questions
A.
With the increasing popularity and availability of Wi-Fi, this statement could be quite
true. However, as systems advance and technologies change, including the recent
improvement to both mobile phones and bandwidth, Wi-Fi will probably be left behind
by people desiring smaller, more compact hand-held devices. The major benefits of WiFi are its low costs and its ability for high-speed Internet access, allowing laptop users
easy access. Wi-Fi technologies have made a big push to equip hotels with connectivity
as an added benefit to the business traveler and to put connections in chain restaurants,
coffee shops, airports, and many other public forums. With this increased access for
laptops, with complete application functionality, as well as with the ability to view the
Internet graphically, Wi-Fi is negatively affecting cell phone use in regards to mcommerce. Text-based cell phone access, often limited, is still expensive for the user.
B)
Describe Moore’s Law.
In 1965, Gordon Moore stated that the number of transistors per square inch on integrated
circuits had doubled every year since the integrated circuit was invented and that data
density has doubled approximately every 18 months, and hypothesized that it will
continue to do so for the next two decades.
Productivity Paradox.
The discrepancy between measures of investment in information technology and
measures of output at the national level. It is very hard to demonstrate at the level of a
national economy, that the IT investments really have increased productivity.
(C)
Information systems can rarely provide a sustainable competitive advantage on its own
because the technology involved is frequently duplicated by competitors in a matter of a
few months or even days and because new technological innovations can make older
systems quickly obsolete. When information systems are combined with structural or
strategic changes in an organization, then they are more likely to support and sustain a
competitive advantage.
The investment involved in creating an SIS is frequently high, and the risks can be
equally high if new concepts are involved. The business environment, particularly where
IT is concerned, is subject to rapid change, which may make the new system obsolete
before it is operational. Systems can fail if planning is not adequate, if competitive
advantage cannot be gained or is lost, or if there are ethical issues that can act against the
firm.
Tools & methodologies
The business systems planning (BSP) model, developed by IBM, deals with two main
building blocks which become the basis of an information architecture.
 Business processes & Data classes
Stages Of IT Growth Model, indicates that organizations go through six stages of IT
growth:
 Initiation, expansion, control, integration, Data administration and
maturity.
 Critical success factors (CSFs)
Scenario planning is a methodology in which planners first create several scenarios,
then a team compile possible future events that may influence the outcome of each
scenario.
D)
A feasibility study assesses feasibility in five areas: technical, operational, economic, and
schedule feasibility. To conduct the technical feasibility, ElectroHut should determine
the kind of inventory management software systems that are available in the market. For
example, some companies are now using Radio Frequency Identification systems (RFID).
These newer technology systems are the kind of inventory systems that ElectroHut
should investigate during the technical feasibility study. The company should try to
determine the latest technology in tracking inventory system. That is, what does current
technology allow the company to achieve in tracking inventory. They could also
consider whether the could build an inventory system internally, but this is not a likely
option.
To examine operational feasibility, ElectroHut should compare its current system
hardware and personnel to the system hardware and personnel needed to operate the new
inventory systems identified in the technical feasibility study. ElectroHut will find that
some systems are more likely to be the type that the company could operate given the
hardware and personnel available to them. Of course, some new hardware could be
purchased and new personnel hired, but the more of this activity is required for a
particular system, the less feasible it is from an operational standpoint.
An examination of economic feasibility is a cost-benefit analysis. To conduct economic
feasibility, ElectroHut should compare cost estimates for each potential system to the
monetary benefits expected for each system. Usually, the monetary benefits are cost
savings that result from efficiencies of the new system. ElectroHut would need to
estimate the costs of new systems and the cost savings of those systems. Those potential
systems in which benefits are greater than costs are more feasible.
To assess schedule feasibility, ElectroHut must try to estimate the amount of time require
to implement each of the potential systems. As the length of time to implementation
increases, a system becomes less feasible. A very long implementation period may mean
that the system will take too long to begin recognizing benefits and it may also mean that
the hardware and software could be out of date by the time it is implemented.
QUESTION 3 CASE STUDY 1
1. In what ways might IT strategy and alignment differ for small businesses as
opposed to that of larger organizations?
The goal of IT strategy and alignment is to insure that IS priorities, decisions, and
projects are consistent with business needs. Since the needs of small businesses differ
from the needs of larger ones, their IT strategies will differ. In small firms, managers and
employees perform multiple duties or a broader range of duties, which reduces the need
for IT to support coordination. Activities and decisions may be more informal. And
small businesses may lack the infrastructure needed to provide services.
2. What are some of the major challenges for aligning IT in a small organization?
Typically, small businesses do not have resources to pay employees who are not directly
involved in revenue-producing activities.
Cost can be more critical to small businesses. IT strategy for small businesses will be
focused on accounting and payroll. Other services such as HR, time-and-attendance, and
expense reporting. Small businesses may rely on other companies to provide the IT
services that larger companies would have in place.
3. Describe the IT strategic planning process.
Figure 12.2 shows the IT strategic planning process. The entire planning process
begins with the creation of a strategic business plan. The long-range IT plan,
sometimes referred to as the strategic IT plan, is then based on the strategic
business plan. The IT strategic plan starts with the IT vision and strategy, which
defines the future concept of what IT should do to achieve the goals, objectives,
and strategic position of the firm and how this will be achieved. The overall
direction, requirements, and sourcing—either outsourcing or insourcing—of
resources, such as infrastructure, application services, data services, security
services, IT governance, and management architecture; budget; activities; and
timeframes are set for three to five years into the future. The planning process
continues by addressing lower-level activities with a shorter time frame.
The next level down is a medium-term IT plan, which identifies general project
plans in terms of the specific requirements and sourcing of resources as well as
the project portfolio. The project portfolio lists major resource projects,
including infrastructure, application services, data services, and security services
that are consistent with the long-range plan. Some companies may define their
portfolio in terms of applications. The applications portfolio is a list of major,
approved information system projects that are also consistent with the long-range
plan. Expectations for sourcing of resources in the project or applications
portfolio should be driven by the business strategy. Since some of these projects
will take more than a year to complete, and others will not start in the current
year, this plan extends over several years.
The third level is a tactical plan, which details budgets and schedules for currentyear projects and activities. In reality, because of the rapid pace of change in
technology and the environment, short-term plans may include major items not
anticipated in the other plans.
The planning process just described is currently practiced by many organizations.
Specifics of the IT planning process, of course, vary among organizations. For
example, not all organizations have a high-level IT steering committee. Project
priorities may be determined by the IT director, by his or her superior, by
company politics, or even on a first-come, first-served basis.
The deliverables from the IT planning process should include the following: an
evaluation of the strategic goals and directions of the organization and how IT is
aligned; a new or revised IT vision and assessment of the state of the IT division;
a statement of the strategies, objectives, and policies for the IT division; and the
overall direction, requirements, and sourcing of resources.
Figure12.2 IT strategic planning process
4. Assume you are a member of a project team working on a project with a six-month
timeline. The materials your team needs to complete their first set of tasks will arrive
three days later than their promised delivery date. The delay has a 10 percent chance of
delaying completion of the project. You know that no one will tell the project manager of
the delayed delivery because it is the first month of the project so it does not seem
important enough to report. Would you inform the project manager of the delay? Explain
your decision. Now assume you did not report the delay and such delays happened in
each month afterward. What would you do and when? In your opinion, should the entire
team present these problems? Explain your decisions.
Yes. Any delay has the potential to delay the project. At a minimum, it will delay the
schedule in the early part of the project and has a chance (10%) of delaying project
completion. If the project manager knows early, the project tasks may be able to be
adjusted accordingly to keep the project on schedule.
If not reported initially, and the delays happened again, they should be reported as soon
as possible.
Answers may vary. Depending on the team, either a team presentation or a spokesperson
could work. Most times, it is better if the team presented as a whole, even with a
spokesperson, in order to be certain that the issues are presented accurately, to help with
team cohesion, and to ensure that blame is not improperly assigned.
QUESTION 4 CASE STUDY 2
Required:
1. Steve Jobs shows the importance of people skills. Explain Jobs’ way of motivating
people. For example, did he try to get everyone to like him? Did he try to get
everyone to get along with each other?
Answers may vary. Jobs used a shared vision, accountability, and communication. He
gave public feedback – praise or criticism – motivating people to do their best or leave.
Not everyone liked him or his style. He got to know everyone on the team and actively
inspired them.
2. Why did Jobs’ approach to project management work so well for him?
Answers may vary. It fit his personality and the culture he developed at Apple. He
stressed accountability and did not let anyone slide on that principle. He was well known
for giving employees feedback. He was blunt, which infuriated some but motivated
others. He communicated, with demonstrated understanding on both sides.
3. What lessons can project managers learn from Jobs?
Answers may vary. Give feedback, public praise and critique (maybe not so public or
blunt!), keep projects moving by communicating with demonstrated understanding, and
get all to share in the vision of the company.
4. What are the triple constraints of any project and what leads to a runaway
project?
The triple constraint refers to the three attributes that must be managed effectively for
successful completion and closure of any project:
1. Scope. The project scope is the definition of what the project is supposed to
accomplish—its outcomes or deliverables. Scope is measured in terms of the
project size, goals, and requirements.
2. Time. A project is made up of tasks. Each task has a start date and an end date.
The duration of a project extends from the start date of the first task to the finish
date of the last task. Time needed to produce the deliverables is naturally related
to the scope and availability of resources allocated to the project.
3. Cost. This is the estimation of the amount of money that will be required to
complete the project. Cost itself encompasses various things, such as resources,
labor rates for contractors, risk estimates, and bills of materials, et cetera. All
aspects of the project that have a monetary component are made part of the
overall cost structure. Projects are approved subject to their costs.
These constraints are interrelated so they must be managed together for the project to be
completed on time, within budget, and to specification.
Runaway project - Answers may vary. No controls on change requests causes expensive
scope creep resulting in system development projects that are so far over budget and past
deadline that they must be abandoned, typically with large monetary loss; the very
definition of a runaway project.
5. What are the benefits of a project postmortem? Why would a project not have a
postmortem?
It is during the postmortem that people learn what contributed to success or what did not.
Not learning from past projects and repeating avoidable mistakes have consistently been
major hurdles to improving IT project management.
Too often the postmortem is skipped to save time and effort.