Nice-Fit is a (fictional) small business producing outfits for costume parties and specialoccasions. Custom designs can be tailored to a customer’s request. Tom and Ann are theowners of the company and source all the fabric, design the outfits and make the costumesthemselves. Tom and Ann keep spreadsheets with information on the material purchased andcostumes made, but they find it difficult to keep track of their products, raw materials, andsales. The raw materials are supplied from a fabric company in India, and the production takesplace in a manufacturing company in China. The clothing is sold at local weekend markets,sold, or rented through costume hire shops, and sold at their physical store. Tom and Annreceive a small percentage of the sales and rentals of their costumes from the hire shops.They have no information on customers other than those who request custom designsdirectly from them. In 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic had a major impact on global economies,businesses and how we work. Managing business through this situation continues to bechallenging, however, the business is very profitable and worth investing in. Accordingly, Tomand Ann have decided to expand their business and work on a national and global scale. Tomand Ann decided to invest large capital in the retail industry. They have bought the supplier’scompany in India (fabric supplier) and the manufacturing company in China. In addition totheir current outfit in WA, they will open two new branches in the eastern states, and a headoffice in WA to manage all operations from centrally. They also have plans to expand theircustomers’ database and reach wider customers in different markets. Tom and Ann are stillmanaging their business using excel sheets and some off-the-shelf simple software and theyhave hired five administrative staff only to help in managing and coordinating differentoperations even after they have expanded their business. However, they are facing manyproblems and the current situation prevent them from managing their business efficiently.Tom and Ann decided to hire you as the company’s CIO and asked you to develop a solutionto integrate all branches and manufacturing companies, and to solve all problems associatedwith their business. PART 1TASK 1 [Max. of 1000 words]Discuss the possible challenges and problems that the Nice-Fit company is currentlyexperiencing due to the lack of proper information systems. Your discussion should cover awide range of problems due to the lack of proper information systems that are related tomanagement and decision making, operations, employees, customers, partners, technicalchallenges, etc.Support your discussion using evidence from research. References can include refereed journals,books, case studies, newspapers, magazines and electronic references.
Nice-Fit is a (fictional) small business producing outfits for costume parties and special
occasions. Custom designs can be tailored to a customer’s request. Tom and Ann are the
owners of the company and source all the fabric, design the outfits and make the costumes
themselves. Tom and Ann keep spreadsheets with information on the material purchased and
costumes made, but they find it difficult to keep track of their products, raw materials, and
sales. The raw materials are supplied from a fabric company in India, and the production takes
place in a manufacturing company in China. The clothing is sold at local weekend markets,
sold, or rented through costume hire shops, and sold at their physical store. Tom and Ann
receive a small percentage of the sales and rentals of their costumes from the hire shops.
They have no information on customers other than those who request custom designs
directly from them. In 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic had a major impact on global economies,
businesses and how we work. Managing business through this situation continues to be
challenging, however, the business is very profitable and worth investing in. Accordingly, Tom
and Ann have decided to expand their business and work on a national and global scale. Tom
and Ann decided to invest large capital in the retail industry. They have bought the supplier’s
company in India (fabric supplier) and the manufacturing company in China. In addition to
their current outfit in WA, they will open two new branches in the eastern states, and a head
office in WA to manage all operations from centrally. They also have plans to expand their
customers’ database and reach wider customers in different markets. Tom and Ann are still
managing their business using excel sheets and some off-the-shelf simple software and they
have hired five administrative staff only to help in managing and coordinating different
operations even after they have expanded their business. However, they are facing many
problems and the current situation prevent them from managing their business efficiently.
Tom and Ann decided to hire you as the company’s CIO and asked you to develop a solution
to integrate all branches and manufacturing companies, and to solve all problems associated
with their business.
PART 1
TASK 1 [Max. of 1000 words]
Discuss the possible challenges and problems that the Nice-Fit company is currently
experiencing due to the lack of proper information systems. Your discussion should cover a
wide range of problems due to the lack of proper information systems that are related to
management and decision making, operations, employees, customers, partners, technical
challenges, etc.
Support your discussion using evidence from research. References can include refereed journals,
books, case studies, newspapers, magazines and electronic references.
Information technology is drastically changing the business perspective. Although organizational cultures and business strategies shape Information Technology in organizations, the impact is often strong in other ways.
IT significantly affects strategic choices and establishes opportunities and problems that managers need to address in many aspects of their business. Future technology will come with the knowledge requirements for business managers.
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