The company deals with the collection and analysis of data to generate information for companies to undertake sound marketing strategies. The chief executive officer wants to expand the infrastructure of premises and information technology to meet the increasing needs and operations of the company. Therefore, the purpose of the project plan inception is to highlight the current state of the company by examining the background information, type of business, outsourcing and offshoring activities, skilled personnel, forms of data, and information systems.
Background Information
Since its inception in the past two years, the company has experienced gradual and promising growth in the field of information technology. The goal of the company is to provide market analysis solutions to local and international companies using updated tools and techniques. The company focuses on data collection and analytics to generate valid and accurate information for its customers to apply in expanding and growing their operations. The extent of data collection and analysis indicate that the company is worth $25 million with a massive potential of opportunities in the local market. So far, the company has managed to penetrate the local market and helped companies to carry out an accurate market analysis of their products and consumer preferences.
Currently, the company is experiencing exponential progress because the projection shows that it will grow by 60% in the next 18 months. The growth compels the chief executive officer to make appropriate changes in the company, which include an extension of premises and advancement of information technology. Due to its growth, the company wants to expand its offices to three floors from the current one floor in the next six months. Besides, the company seeks to upgrade and configure its technology infrastructure to support the rising needs of its operations and customers. The chief executive officer requires configuration of software and hardware aspects of the information technology to serve the needs of the company. Therefore, the company requires a comprehensive project plan of information systems necessary to cater for the impending growth and development in the company.
Type of Business
The nature of the business that the company deals with is the collection and analysis of data to generate valuable information to consumers. In the modern world business, information is the driver of operations, activities, and decisions (Sibanda & Ramrathan, 2017). In essence, companies require valid and accurate information for them to make informed strategic decisions in favor of their businesses. The company collects data from its customers and performs a comprehensive analysis to come up with meaningful information and practical recommendations. To keep abreast with information technology, the company uses web analytics in the collection, processing, analysis, and presentation of information about web usage among target consumers. Web analytics is a sophisticated method of processing data because it entails the use of statistics, mathematical models, network science, machine learning, and expert knowledge to derive actionable information. According to Delen and Ram (2018), web analytics aids companies to gain market intelligence and consumer behavior for them to design effective marketing plans and make strategic decisions. By using web analytics, the company can generate meaningful information required to predict and optimize the performance of companies in various markets.
Outsourcing and Offshoring Activities
Given that the company deals with the collection and analysis of data, it outsources powerful software with the ability to handle big data obtained from diverse companies. Depending on the nature of the analysis, the company has to outsource data analysis software from various companies. Since activities of the company entail collection and storage of data, it requires website, domain, and database. In this view, the company outsources web-hosting and database services from respective providers. To meet the increasing needs of an upcoming business with much data to process and analyze, the company outsources cloud computing solutions from Amazon Web Service.
The company also outsources and offshores the activities of web analytics. The market of web analytics is very competitive because it requires the application of sophisticated tools in the collection, process, analysis, and presentation of actionable information (Power, Heavin, McDermott, & Daly, 2018). When the company gets international clients, it offshores its activities to reputable organizations with the ability to handle web analytics. Additionally, the company employs an offshore strategy to reduce costs associated with web analytics because of the availability of resources. For instance, countries in Asia such as, India, China, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan provide cheap technology and labor, which is lucrative for web analytics. In dealing with sensitive and confidential information from customers and providers, the company outsources legal services.
Skilled Personnel and Responsibilities
The company has adequate skilled personnel with the capacity to undertake their various responsibilities in the management of information systems and technologies. A chief executive officer (CEO), software engineers, a database administrator, data analysts, a chief information officer (CIO), a project manager, and a marketing manager comprise skilled personnel of the company. The CEO makes strategic decisions, directs managers, and mobilizes resources needed for successful completion of projects. The company has three software engineers who develop programs and maintain outsourced software, as well as recommend the nature of services requiring outsourcing and offshoring.
The database administrator ensures integrity in the utilization of data through effective entry, storage, and retrieval processes. Furthermore, the database administrator secures data by preventing unauthorized access to the database system. Data analysts perform data analysis and presentation of information in a meaningful way for the clients to consume and utilize in their strategic decisions. The CIO advises the CEO and formulates strategic goals for the company to streamline its operations in line the requirements of the information technology. The project manager supervises projects and liaises with clients who represent their companies. To penetrate and expand its markets, the company has the marketing manager who understands information technology for an efficient promotion of diverse products to potential clients.
Types of Data
Through web analytics and survey tools, the company collects diverse types of data from websites. Web analytics focuses on data that provides information about visitors because it helps to understand consumer behaviors and preferences in the market. The data of Internet Protocol (IP) address provides the geographical location of users in terms of country, region, city, and local levels. The company determines consumer behavior by collecting data types, such as the number of hits, visiting time, number of clicks, page view, bounce rates, and sessions. Since consumers have preferences of sites and products, the company collects data relating to the browsing trend, repeat visits, page view duration, and frequency of clicks. Customer feedbacks is also a type of data that the company collects because it assists companies to improve the quality of their products in the market.
Information Systems
Operational Systems and Databases
A critical analysis of the information systems owned by the company shows that it has a proper technology infrastructure to support its business of web analytics. The company operates its computers with three operating systems, namely, Microsoft Windows, Linux, and MacOS. These operating systems allow the company to run its information systems in a compatibility mode for effective interaction with diverse clients who use varied operating systems. Similarly, the company operates its databases in the platforms of Oracle, MySQL, and Microsoft SQL for compatibility purposes.
Analytics and Interfaces
Owing to the dominance of Google’s search engine on the Internet, the company uses Google Analytics as an interface of collecting, processing, and analyzing information from users. The interfaces of web analytics used are compatible with both computers and smartphones to allow accessibility to a broader target population.
Infrastructure and Security
The hardware infrastructure comprises of powerful computers with Intel core-i7 processes, 32GB random access memory, and 3.6GHz. These features enhance computers to install and run multiple processes necessary in the analysis of big data obtained from web analytics. The software infrastructure comprises of operating systems, as well as data analysis tools, such as Minitab, NVivo, Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS), Statistical Analysis System (SAS), and Stata, which accelerates the analysis of data and production of meaningful information. In the management of the database, the company uses PHP to integrate MySQL and Oracle with the website. To guarantee security, the company encrypts its database, provides authorized access to the database, and employs biometrics in physical access.
Conclusion
The analysis of the current state of the company indicates that it has sufficient resources and tools to undertake its principal business of web analytics. By outsourcing and offshoring data analysis software, web analytics, cloud computing solutions, and legal services, the company boosts its capacity to handle diverse clients. The CEO, software engineers, the database administrator, data analysts, the CIO, the project manager, and the marketing manager are skilled personnel of the company. The nature of data collected comprises geographical location, user behavior, consumer preference, and clients’ feedbacks. The analysis of infrastructure shows that the company requires powerful computers with major operating systems integrated with Oracle and MySQL databases. The company uses encryption, authorization, and biometrics in protecting confidential information in the database.
References
Delen, D., & Ram, S. (2018). Research challenges and opportunities in business analytics. Journal of Business Analytics, 1(1), 1-12. Web.
Power, D. J., Heavin, C., McDermott, J., & Daly, M. (2018). Defining business analytics: An empirical approach. Journal of Business Analytics, 1(1), 40-53. Web.
Sibanda, M., & Ramrathan, D. (2017). Influence of information technology on organization strategy. Foundation of Management, 9(1), 191-202. Web.