The Role of Marketing Information Systems on Business Firms Competitiveness: Integrated Review Paper from Business Perspective

This review paper point out the role of management information Systems in businesses firms competitive advantage from business perspective. Currently, information systems and technologies are a imperative components of successful and competitive businesses. Information technologies consists of Internet-based information systems are playing a vital and expanding role in enhancing firms economic growth.The experience of organizations' managers needs to be provided with the necessary information to reduce risks and make the most appropriate decisions. Thus, firms turn to information systems for the provision of information as firms asset which supplements decision making and performance of business.For the last three decades, different types of information systems are emerged for different intention, depending on the need of the business firms. In today’s very competitive business world, there are various information systems are emerged such as transaction processing systems (TPS), office automation systems (OAS), managerial information systems (MIS), decision support systems (DSS), and executive information systems (EIS), Expert System (ES) and others that supports decision making at different levels of management. In addition to this, there are several functional business systems which enables functional areas managers to make right decision and support business operation in functional areas of business (marketing, manufacturing and production, human resource, accounting) and cross functional business information livelihood information-processing and decision-making needs of several departments such as Supply chain management systems (SCM), customer relationship management systems (CRM), enterprise resource planning systems (ERP). Each information systems, functional and cross functional systems plays a different role in organizational hierarchy and management operations. To purpose of this review, reviewer collected different information related with marketing/management information system that supports business decision making and enhances firms competitiveness. This review paper study endeavors to explain the role information systems in business organizations competitiveness. Keywords: Business Organ0i0 zation, Competitiveness, Strategic advantage, Information Systems. DOI: 10.7176/JMCR/72-01 Publication date:October 31st 202

A Study of Value Addition by Information Systems to a Service Providing Business at the Meteorological Services Department in Zimbabwe

 Many companies are using only a portion of what is needed in terms of Information Technologies (IT) and this has caused the researcher to study how best MSD can effectively utilize Management Information Systems (MIS). The objective that directed the study was to investigate value addition by information systems to a service providing business with specific reference to the weather station in Zimbabwe (Meteorological Services Department). Knowing the value added by MIS to one’s business and working environment is key to cope with the ever increasing challenges such as the volume of information resources, nature and quality of information, user needs and expectations, information and communication technology competencies and infrastructure, inflated cost of information resources and staffing needs.  The researcher studied how information systems add value to the daily business of Meteorological Services Department (MSD) in the following areas of the organisation processes: products, quality, management, problem solving and decision of the organisation. The study on value addition by management information systems will assist in the improvement of the MSD in Zimbabwe.The study used a multistage sampling process for drawing sample from the target population. Secondary and primary data collection methods were used for data collection purposes. The source for primary data was questionnaire. Five different types of Management Information Systems that add value to the MSD were identified;  Management Information Systems, Office Automation Systems, Executive Support Systems, Expert Systems, Decision Support System and Transaction Processing System. From the findings it was concluded that management information systems add value by allowing valid decisions which provide accurate and up-to-date information and performing analytic functions.This study demonstrated the importance of information systems in an organisation and outlined the fundamental roles of Information Systems (IS) which are to support business processes and operation, support decision making by employees and managers and support strategies for competitive advantage.  

Supply Chain Performance and Challenges (A Casestudy in Anbessa Shoe Share Company: Ethiopia)

Supply chain management is the streamlining of a business' supply-side activities to maximize customer value and to gain a competitive advantage in the marketplace. It represents an effort by suppliers to develop and implement supply chains that are as efficient and economical as possible and cover everything from production, to product development, to the information systems needed to direct these undertakings. The aim of this research was to study the supply chain management performance and challenges of Anbessa shoe manufacturing company. As it has been revealed in the study major challenges mentioned by the respondents in the supply chain management system were low customer service quality, cost controlling problems, poor planning and risk management, supplier/partner relationship management, lack of skilled labor /expert and technology. Furthermore, shortage of raw materials, frequent machinery breakage, shortage of spare parts, lack of accessibility to market,   lack of working capital and other management and management- related  problems were the major   bottlenecks for not working at full capacity .The study also showed that the study firm are operating at low total performance and are faced with many performance problems, mainly with shortage of inputs, poor production planning and control, low productivity, high manufacturing cost and lack of marketing strategy. Keywords: Supply chain, Supply chain management and Supply chain performanc

Intranet and Knowledge Management: Putting the Cart Before the Horse?

This paper explores the use of intranet-technology to support knowledge intensive decision-making in a technical service delivery process of a major oilfield services company. Our findings show that creating, mobilizing, and exchanging knowledge through an intranet-technology based system delivers forms of benefits to both the organization and its clients, and understanding what organizational knowledge is to be managed and the process of managing it define the role of technology that enables knowledge management

A decision support methodology to enhance the competitiveness of the Turkish automotive industry

This is the post-print (final draft post-refereeing) version of the article. Copyright @ 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.Three levels of competitiveness affect the success of business enterprises in a globally competitive environment: the competitiveness of the company, the competitiveness of the industry in which the company operates and the competitiveness of the country where the business is located. This study analyses the competitiveness of the automotive industry in association with the national competitiveness perspective using a methodology based on Bayesian Causal Networks. First, we structure the competitiveness problem of the automotive industry through a synthesis of expert knowledge in the light of the World Economic Forum’s competitiveness indicators. Second, we model the relationships among the variables identified in the problem structuring stage and analyse these relationships using a Bayesian Causal Network. Third, we develop policy suggestions under various scenarios to enhance the national competitive advantages of the automotive industry. We present an analysis of the Turkish automotive industry as a case study. It is possible to generalise the policy suggestions developed for the case of Turkish automotive industry to the automotive industries in other developing countries where country and industry competitiveness levels are similar to those of Turkey

Providing value to a business using a lightweight design system to support knowledge reuse by designers

This paper describes an alternative approach to knowledge based systems in engineering than traditional geometry or explicit knowledge focused systems. Past systems have supported product optimisation rather than creative solutions and provide little benefit to businesses for bespoke and low volume products or products which do not benefit from optimisation. The approach here addresses this by supporting the creativity of designers through codified tacit knowledge and encouraging knowledge reuse for bespoke product development, in particular for small to medium sized enterprises. The implementation and evaluation of the approach is described within a company producing bespoke fixtures and tooling in shorter than average lead times. The active support of knowledge management in the company is intended to add value to the business by further reducing the lead times of the designs and creating a positive impact to business processes. The evaluation demonstrates a viable alternative framework to the traditional management of knowledge in engineering, which could be implemented by other small to medium enterprises

Knowledge Management Practice at a Bulgarian Bank: A Case Study

This paper reports on knowledge management (KM) practices in the customer service and lending departments of one of Bulgaria's top retail banks and investigates how KM processes can be further improved. The Bank's KM activities have been studied using observations, interviews and informal discussions for data collection. Findings were compared and contrasted with existing literature in similar contexts. Although rudiments of knowledge sharing are evident from the KM activities in different departments of the bank, the limitations such as resistance to change of the implemented KM systems are impeding the effectiveness of the knowledge management process. More training and incentives are needed to increase knowledge creation and sharing. Moreover, a clearly articulated KM strategy along with success criteria and commitment and support from senior management is needed. There is a severe lack of knowledge management studies in Bulgarian context in general and Bulgarian banking sector in particular. The authors' findings will potentially help in improving knowledge sharing practice as well as provide a valuable insight into knowledge management related issues in the Bulgarian context. The findings from this research can be useful to companies from Eastern Europe and other regions in improving their knowledge sharing practice

Towards 2000: A Tougher Future for Australian Business?

The paper reports on the future business environment expected by top level Australian executives. It forecasts environmental changes to the year 2000 and updates projections reported in an earlier study. Specifically, top managers from 171 of Australia\u27s largest 500 corporations provide their views concerning world ecology, the economy, technology and political-social developments. Their perceptions are then linked to specific competitive strategies that are evoked by the long-range forecast which they expect

The construction of global management consulting - a study of consultancies’ web presentations

Management consulting increasingly appears as a global endeavour as reflected in the increasing dominance of a few large, global management-consulting firms. However, features of the consulting service (e.g. its immaterial and interactional character) as well as aspects of management (e.g. its cultural anchoredness) highlight the locality of management consulting. In this paper we approach this tension between the global and the local by seeing consulting as involving the creation of generalised myths. More specifically, we ask the question: How do global consulting companies construct the viability and desirability of their services? Based on a view of management consultants as mythmakers, we study the argumentation on corporate web sites of four leading global consultancies in five different countries. Applying a framework based on the sociology of translation, we analyze the translation strategies used in making the service of global consultancies both viable and indispensable. We find that the need for consultants is to a large extent constructed through defining management as an expert activity, thus creating a need for external advisors possessing globally applicable expert knowledge. In this effort, the consultants ally with three widely spread rationalized managerial myths – the rationality myth, the globalization myth and the universality myth. We conclude, that global consulting firms are actively involved in creating and reinforcing the very same institutions, which are the prerequisites for their future success.management consulting; globalization; myth making

Human Resource Information Systems for Competitive Advantage: Interviews with Ten Leaders

[Excerpt] Increasingly, today\u27s organizations use computer technology to manage human resources (HR). Surveys confirm this trend (Richards-Carpenter, 1989; Grossman and Magnus, 1988; Human Resource Systems Professionals 1988; KPMGPeat Marwick, 1988). HR professionals and managers routinely have Personnel Computers (PCs) or computer terminals on their desks or in their departments. HR computer applications, once confined to payroll and benefit domains, now encompass incentive compensation, staffing, succession planning, and training. Five years ago, we had but a handful of PC-based software applications for HR management. Today, we find a burgeoning market of products spanning a broad spectrum of price, sophistication, and quality (Personnel Journal, 1990). Top universities now consider computer literacy a basic requirement for students of HR, and many consulting firms and universities offer classes designed to help seasoned HR professionals use computers in their work (Boudreau, 1990). Changes in computer technology offer expanding potential for HR management (Business Week, 1990; Laudon and Laudon, 1988)