Wk 1, MIS6020

Part I
Discussion Questions

• Companies not only need a product that sells but also need a strategy to conduct business. In some cases, strategies are dictated by a person’s inexperience. In other cases, detailed study goes into designing and implementing a successful plan. Do you believe business strategies should be based on strategic thinking? Why? Explain by providing a scenario to illustrate your answer.
• The speed at which companies are expected to operate in the business world sometimes puts strain on the operations of the companies. In order to remain competitive, companies are required to constantly adopt newer technologies, upgrade infrastructure, and train employees. Providing examples, discuss why keeping up with technology while balancing management of operations and business processes can become difficult in terms of corporate decision making.

Part II

Project Scenario

Along with several other sub-contractors, you have been given a six-week timeframe to evaluate and analyze the strategic needs of Enterprise X and present a plan to propel the company into a strategic shift for global presence and interconnectivity centered participation in the Information Systems marketplace. The current profile of the company and the vision of the owners and executives will guide you through this process. Ultimately, your knowledge and experience in Corporate Information Systems Management will guide your decision-making process as you study the project and prepare your proposal for a new corporate strategy. If successful, you will be hired to lead the company in its evolution toward your strategic plans.

Enterprise X

Enterprise X has been in the business of providing Information Systems and Information Technology (IS/IT) services as well as an array of software applications to small corporations for under-market fees. The company was started before the turn of the century when many small corporations began to understand the benefits that the power of computing could provide them with, and when small to mid-range computing was becoming affordable to small businesses. A decade later, the introduction of Web-based operations helped the company achieve national prominence, but the corporate strategy remained conservative and risk-averse. However, competition is forcing this now medium-sized company to contemplate global presence and even consider the possibility of an IPO.

Enterprise X is ready for a major strategic shift. The company has sub-contracted a team of corporate strategy experts to come up with an objective and technically sound new corporate strategy. You are among those selected to compete for the job of leading the company into the future. If successful, your strategy will put you on the radar screen of Corporate Strategy experts worldwide; and you will receive a sizable signing bonus.

Project Deliverables

Use the information provided, make assumptions, and conduct research to address the challenges of the project as if you were presented with a real-world business challenge. Each week you will meet with the corporate team assigned to work with you to discuss aspects of a new corporate strategy that you will be working on that week. At the end of each week, you will present the corporate team with a position paper (completed as part of the research component of the assignment) describing your findings, suggestions, and recommendations for the aspects of the strategy that you are presented with. You will also prepare a PowerPoint presentation summarizing those aspects of the new corporate strategy under development. At the end of the five-week process, you will present your strategic plan for Enterprise X to the corporate team and the rest of the sub-contractors competing with you for the key position of Corporate Information Systems Manager.

Good luck with the project and may the best candidate win!

Part A. Research Component: Corporate Strategy Model

With respect to the Course Project scenario, consider what it will take to make the needed changes to the corporate business strategy for Enterprise X. In order to do so, you plan to propose strategic shifts in order to increase profits and minimize expenses while migrating to a global position and putting the company on the path to (IPO) going public.

Based on what you have learned so far about Enterprise X’s operations, analyze the strategic needs of the company and offer preliminary suggestions for how to improve the current hybrid business strategy by examining each of the four key approaches—enhance, expand, extend, and exit—as they relate to the products and services that the company offers, as well as the projected opportunities that internetwork and globalization will offer. Justify your ideas with references from the literature and the Web and if possible refer to case studies.

To submit your assignment:

• Use Microsoft Word to write a 750- to 1000-word position paper that describes your findings and recommendations.
• You may include diagrams and illustrations to enhance and/or clarify your position on the technical issues addressed.
• Follow APA guidelines to write the report and cite your sources as appropriate.