Ashford Courses

INF 620 Week 1 DQ 1 Information Technology

Information Technology. How can information technology support a company’s business processes and decision making and give it a competitive advantage? Give examples to illustrate your answer. Name one to three information technology systems used at your current (or past) employer. How did these systems serve your organization? Respond to at least two of your classmates’ posts.

INF 620 Week 1 DQ 2 Uses of Information Technology

Uses of Information Technology. How could a business use information technology to increase switching costs and lock in its customers and suppliers? How could a business integrate flexible and rigid solutions? Use business examples to support your answer. Respond to at least two of your classmates’ posts.

INF 620 Week 1 Skydive Chicago

Skydive Chicago. In an APA formatted paper, complete Analysis Exercise #3 (p. 39) Skydive Chicago: Efficiency and Feedback Digital Data. Answer parts a, b, and c, integrating concepts and vocabulary from the reading. Be sure that you prepare your Information Systems Model in a program that can be read in your Word document. You may want to access Word drawing tool bar or for Word 2003, as you may want to access Insert, shapes, clip art/smart art, etc. The systems model should take the form of Figure 1.19 (p. 29). Clearly drawn illustrations that are scanned and submitted in .pdf are acceptable along with a Word document explaining parts a and b. Be sure to label your files clearly.

INF 620 Week 2 DQ 1 Computer Capabilities

Computer Capabilities. What processor, memory, magnetic disk storage, and video display capabilities would you require for a personal computer that you would use for business purposes? Explain your choices. Respond to at least two of your classmates’ posts.

INF 620 Week 2 DQ 2 Scripts and Languages

Scripts and Languages. How are HTML, XML, and Java affecting business applications on the Web? Give examples. What other scripts and languages (i.e. Visual C++) do you use in your current (or previous) work situation? Respond to at least two of your classmates’ posts.

INF 620 Week 2 Simple Databases

Simple Databases. Complete Analysis Exercise #4 (p.171): Matching Training to Software Use – 3D Graphing. You may use Access, SQL, or even MS Excel for this assignment. Answer parts a, b, and c.

INF 620 Week 3 DQ 1 Relational Database Model

Relational Database Model. What are the benefits and limitations of the relational database model for business applications today? Respond to at least two of your classmates’ posts.

INF 620 Week 3 DQ 2 Web-based Networks

Web-based Networks. How have the Internet, intranets, and extranets affected the types and uses of data resources available to business professionals? What other database trends are also affecting data resource management in business? What types of databases and web-based networks have you used in your business experience (current or past)? Respond to at least two of your classmates’ posts.

INF 620 Week 3 Cogent Communications

Cogent Communications. Complete Real World Case #3: Cogent Communications, Intel, and Others: Mergers Go More Smoothly When Your Data Are Ready on page 213-214. In a 4-5 page, APA style paper answer the case study questions (1-3).

INF 620 Week 4 DQ 1 Open Systems

Open Systems. How is the trend toward open systems, connectivity, and interoperability related to business use of the Internet, intranets, and extranets? Give an example. Respond to at least two of your classmates’ posts.

INF 620 Week 4 DQ 2 Extranets

Extranets. What strategic competitive benefits do you see in a company’s use of extranets? Explain your position and provide concrete examples. Provide an example from your experience. Respond to at least two of your classmates’ posts.

INF 620 Week 4 Network Schematics

Network Schematics. Create a network schematic for a business you would like to start (a new venture) and two other information technology schematics for the business. Prepare a 2-4 page, APA style paper that explains your schematics and answers the following questions:
a. Include a short summary of your business.

b. How would you handle the telecommunications needs of your company at the beginning?
c. After your business had grown substantially a few years later? Explain the reasons for your choices.
d. Include a table similar to fig. 6.4 on page 216 that clearly outlines the strategic capabilities, the business example, and the business value.
e. The schematics can be created using Office software or clearly drawn, scanned, and included as a .pdf with your paper.
Be sure to integrate vocabulary. Refer to the Real World Case on Metric & Multistandard Component Corp. (p.266-267) in the chapter for general information. (Your assignment is not based on the case.)

INF 620 Week 5 DQ 1 Change Management

Change Management. How can a company use change management to minimize resistance and maximize the acceptance of change in business and technology? Give several examples, you may use personal experiences. Respond to at least two of your classmates’ postings.

INF 620 Week 5 DQ 2 E-Business

E-Business. What are several e-business and e-commerce strategies and applications that should be developed and implemented by many companies today? Explain your reasoning. What is your favorite store to order from online? Why? Respond to at least two of your classmates’ postings

INF 620 Week 5 Computerization

Computerization. In a 2-4 page, APA style paper, analyze a business task you would like to computerize. How could you use the steps of the information systems development life cycle as illustrated in Figure 12.3 to help you? Include examples to illustrate your answer. Include a schematic of fig. 12.3 as it applies to your business. Also include operational feasibility, technical feasibility and legal/political feasibility (Fig. 12.4) as it applies to your business and a process of project management outline as depicted in Fig. 12.20 (initiating/defining, planning, executing, controlling, closing) as it applies to your business along with your supporting rationale. Schematics can be prepared using Office software or clearly diagrammed and scanned as .pdf

INF 620 Week 6 DQ 1 Business and IT Strategies

Business and IT Strategies. Think about a company you know as a customer, employee or investor. How do their business and IT strategies seem to match? Does it look like their product and service offerings are well supported by IT? Provide several examples. Respond to at least two of your classmates’ postings

INF 620 Week 6 DQ 2 Company PCs

Company PCs. Complete Analysis Exercise #2: Your Internet Job Rights (p.573). Fully answer parts a, b, and c. Respond to at least two of your classmates’ posts.

INF 620 Week 6 Final Paper

Answer the following questions:

Analysis

What kinds of questions might McGraw-Hill have asked as part of determining the feasibility of the Primis

idea? Be sure to address the needs of the organization, end users (sales reps., faculty, students), IT specialists,

and the groups involved in producing the finished custom books.

How well did the systems approach work for the initial stages of the Primis system?

What could the team have done differently in the preliminary stages? How might this have affected the end

result?

Would you have implemented the system, armed with the information the team had at the time? Why or why

not?

Design

“Process engineering” is the design of business processes to achieve competitive advantage in cost, quality, speed, and service. Which of these advantages were driving the development of the Primis system for McGraw-Hill?

What types of systems design tools do you think McGraw-Hill used to develop the system’s functional requirements and technical specifications?

Business customers must perceive products/services are solutions to their problems. How did the Primis system design keep this objective in mind?

The Primis team knew that technology would change in the short and long run, affecting the design of the system. How did the team deal with the knowledge of this inevitable change and uncertainty?

System Development
9. Would prototyping have helped the Primis team? Why or why not?
10. What role should end users have played in the development of the system? 11. What change management techniques did McGraw-Hill use to increase the chances of success for the system? 12. Why was it important to consider the relationship of Primis to back-end systems at McGraw-Hill?

13. If you were the project manager for Primis, what would you have done differently? Explain your response.

Maintenance

If you were a professor considering adoption of a custom textbook for your students, which form would you

choose: black and white print, or color eBook? Support your answer.

Part of system maintenance is managing the growing volume of content in the Primis database. If you were

managing this content, what criteria might you use for determining what gets added? Since many print textbooks are revised every few years, how would this process affect contents in the Primis database?