Module 3 Case - Santa
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School
Auburn University *
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Course
2150
Subject
Information Systems
Date
Apr 3, 2024
Type
docx
Pages
5
Uploaded by elisabrittonnn
Case 1
Module 3: Team Case Analysis
Santa’s Dilemma: Responding to Shifts in Demand
Case Synopsis: The operations at North Pole Works are in a quandary. Production is in high gear, and
the elves are on overtime in the sprint toward Christmas. But an unexpected spike in demand for one toy may leave children around the world disappointed on Christmas morning, whether they've been naughty or nice. At the same time, another toy's popularity threatens to plummet, leaving Santa and his elves faced with the prospect of millions of unloved playthings left in the warehouse. This is the third time in three years that Santa's elves have been caught off guard by a toy's sudden surge in popularity. Earlier in the season, even just a month ago, it would have been possible to find capacity, but now every line is running full tilt. Your job – help Santa save the day!
Instructions a.
Finish watching the course videos through Module 3-2.
b.
Be up to date on the readings through Module 3. c.
Read the case a couple of times. It is fairly brief. d. Your team has been hired as consultants by NPW to get them back on track. Your task is to conduct an initial supply chain assessment and solution development proposal for them to address three major supply chain
problems that you identify in the reading. 1.
Describe the problem and its likely root causes
2.
Propose relevant solutions that will help NPW this year and/or future years. 3.
Determine the anticipated outcomes of your solutions. e.
Use the templates on Pages 2-5 of this document to post your answers. It will streamline my review and
evaluation process.
f.
Upload your analysis (.pdf or .doc file) to Canvas on or before March 24
. Submit your completed via upload to Canvas. Suggestions: 1.
Focus on what you feel are the MAJOR issues IN THIS SCENARIO (not what some AI bot tells
you). Don’t get caught up in symptoms of real problems or rely too much on individual opinions of the characters. 2.
You will address topics covered thus far – technology, demand planning, and production. 3.
Use external resources beyond the assigned class readings to support your recommendations.
Remember to provide proper citations. 4.
I encourage you to be creative while getting NPW back on track.
5.
Remember that the assignment is worth 100 points. Give the assignment the time and effort needed. Questions? Shoot me an email.
Case 1
Describe the primary technology problem to fix for NPW. What are the issues and the root causes?
The primary technology issue is with the ERP system having no direct link between letters received from the children and the procurement and manufacturing systems. The issues consist of not having a well-planned and properly linked supply chain information system, lacking agility as well as differentiation, and needing a more advanced software to be able to plan, manufacture, and keep up with all the different Christmas lists, SKU’s, naughty and nice percentages, and toy trends across different ages, genders, and countries. The root cause of all these issues is the amount of guessing and assuming the elves must do. They look at samples and extrapolate
demand and they work in the field predicting
how cultural trends may change. They don’t have access to current data and too much can get lost in the web of supply chain management they have come up with.
Discuss your solution to the technology problem. What strategies, actions, and/or changes do you recommend?
One of the solutions I would recommend would be implementing Business intelligence tools such as SAP Business Objects
and MicroStrategy. SAP Business Objectives is a software that focuses on CRM (which they wanted to upgrade to tag gift requests with all available data points), digital supply chain, and ERP which happens to be the main technology issues NPW is having. This platform has a dashboard and is role based so each group of elves, plus Santa, can have access to the things they need to individually be aware of. MicroStrategy is a tool that will help the elves that are in the field access and input cultural trends across the world that will make it easier for those in the warehouse to access and have on hand, which will make it easier for them to keep up with demand and increase their productivity in the necessary ways. To keep up with the millions of SKU’s that Santa can’t remember, I would suggest implementing some sort of Warehouse Management Software such as ZOHO. This will keep track of all the SKU’s and help the elves communicate what inventory is in each warehouse. This software also focuses on sales and purchases which the elves won’t need, but they would have on hand devices that they can connect with their other software’s to have everything accessible in one or two places. I also think Counterwaite’s idea to have a system that is multilingual will be helpful that way any single elf can easily read and identify trends and gift lists, and luckily ZOHO is a multilingual software. Hajie Erin, “Top 15 Business Intelligence Tools in 2022: An Overview,” mopinion.com. 06 April 2022. https://mopinion.com/business-intelligence-bi-tools-overview/
Case 1
Describe the primary forecasting problem to fix for NPW. What is the issue and what is the likely root cause?
Discuss your solution to the forecasting problem. What strategies, actions, and/or changes do you recommend?
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Case 1
Describe the primary manufacturing problem to fix for NPW. What is the issue and what is the likely root cause?
Discuss your solution to the manufacturing problem. What strategies, actions, and/or changes do you recommend?
Case 1
Discuss the outcomes that you expect to achieve through each of your solutions. Technology solution outcomes and benefits: Forecasting solution outcomes and benefits: Production solution outcomes and benefits: