Xtranet Communications Limited Business & Information System - Research Proposal Example

BUSINESS PROPOSAL Student Name: Student ID: Lecturer: Course: Assignment: Date of Submission: Proposal Template Table of Contents Statement of Confidentiality & Non-Disclosure 3 Executive Summary 4 1.1 Gennera Tasmidia Background Information. 5 1.2 Gennero Needs 5 1.2 Additional Requirements 7 1.3 Assumptions 7 1.4 The Opportunity 7 2. Proposed Business Strategy 9 2.1 Objectives 9 2.2 Strategy 9 2.2.1 Deliverables 9 3. Why Adopt This Business Proposal / Pitch 10 3.1 BENEFIT of Our Proposed Plan 10 3.2 Competitive Advantages 10 4. Implementation Plan / Schedule 11 4.1 Methodology 11 4.2 Scheduling / Statement of Work 12 4.3 Testing & Evaluation 12 5. Project Management Plan / Staffing Plan 13 6. Budget 14 5.1 Cost Breakdown 14 7. Conclusion 16 Statement of Confidentiality & Non-Disclosure This document contains proprietary and confidential information. All data submitted to Xtranet Communications Limited is provided in reliance upon its consent not to use or disclose any information contained herein except in the context of its business dealings with Gennera . The recipient of this document agrees to inform present and future employees of [Gennera] who view or have access to its content of a confidential nature. The recipient agrees to instruct each employee that they must not disclose any information concerning this document to others except to the extent that such matter are generally known to, and are available for use by, the public. The recipient also agrees not to duplicate or distribute or permit others to duplicate or distribute any material contained herein without Xtranet Communication’s express written consent. Xtranet Communication retains all title, ownership and intellectual property rights to the material and trademarks contained herein, including all supporting documentation, files, marketing material, and multimedia. BY ACCEPTANCE OF THIS DOCUMENT, THE RECIPIENT AGREES TO BE BOUND BY THE AFOREMENTIONED STATEMENT. Executive Summary Xtranet Communications is pleased to present Gennera Tasmadia with this Business Proposal for the Information Systems Upgrade project. We understand the dynamics of the Hospitality market that Gennera faces and recognize the unique opportunity to offer you a tailor made Information System Management Solution that will see your organization maintain the management of the records, robust information processing of orders, operation of billing materials and customer relationship management. We believe that the hospitality market is in its growth stage and that we are uniquely positioned to successfully take you to your limits. After analyzing your situation, we are confident that our proposed services will effectively address your needs. Our goal is to provide you with stop shop for all the IT solutions. By using our services, Gennera Tasmadia will: Have a billing system that can tracked by Xtranet Communications system Be able to manage all the inventory, maintenance and planning processes much easier but more effectively. Have an automated system for proficient customer management and relationship building and reporting. We look forward to a mutually profitable working relationship with Gennera Tasmadia Thanking you in advance, Yours faithfully, For Xtranet Communication. 1. Identification of Needs & Opportunity 1.1 Gennera Tasmidia Background Information. Gennaro’s Italian Delicacies is a famous producer of the range of premium Tasmanian preserves and artisan specialty foods. The company offers traditional Mediterranean style of products with the unique features of figs, quinces and olives along with other items. This is a small business, which does not have a big market, but the demand of its products is very high as it provides delicious as well as good quality products. The business has a big brand in the local area and there are many lovers of its products who often come from other cities also. The owners of the business want to expand the market because they find that if their products have a demand, they should supply their products and expand the market and be a bigger brand. The company has a single distributor and a single retailer in the city and it also spends a lot on the labelling of its products. To expand its market, the company needs to have a direct contact with its customers and retailers. 1.2 Gennero Needs Xtranet Communications understands the needs of Gennero Tasmidia to be as such: General Requirements: Want to build the business up so we could sell it off. Want to sell spoon sweets and then jams, into the mainland market. Possibly take on a mentoring role as part of a social enterprise strategy (Jenny's personal strategy). Have direct contact with the customers and retailers Open new retail stores Technical Requirements: Need to have an online presence Have a direct contact with both the retailers and the customers. Automate their billing system. Quality Requirements Cost effective branding and packaging Improve the quality of the products. Timeline / Deadline Requirements: Proposal Submittal Supplier Selection Project Start Initial Review Project Completion 15/05/2011 25/05/2011 01/06/2011 10/06/2011 30/06/2011 Cost Requirements: 1.2 Additional Requirements Xtranet Communications has identified the following requirements that should be met in order to successfully complete this project: You provide us with access to you premise Allow us a test period of 10 days. 1.3 Assumptions The following assumptions were made when preparing this proposal: That your organization is lacking an effective system information management. That you are currently operating below you capacity More business will open once this new system is implemented. 1.4 The Opportunity Gennero Tasmidia has the opportunity to grow and expand its market base. If successfully accomplished, our strategy can yield record revenue turnover keeping in mind that all the accounts records will now be automated and with online presence will be able to reach out to potential clients. Industry trends, notably stiff competition, high risks and commercialisations, have shaped our proposed strategy as described in section 3.2. Xtranet Communications will be instrumental in helping Gennero Tasmidia reach a new market, address its clients' needs and stave off the threat of our products. 2. Proposed Business Strategy 2.1 Objectives We have analyzed your present market situation and believe the following objectives can be achieved: Automated billing system Online blogs and portal System Information management and maintainace. 2.2 Strategy We at Xtranet Communications have specialised in offering tailor made IT solutions to our customers depending on their needs. We strongly believe that our XtraSys will be a solution to you requirements. With this application, you are able to have a fully automated inventory system where nothing else is done manually. This will save time and the cost of production. Because the accounts books will be done fast and effectively and with one person management hence reducing the errors making your organization more productive. The software is a dual carriage where will create an online portal account for your organization where you can interact directly with your customers and get their feedbacks through blogs. In this way even tourists who want to come will see your products and make informed choices and also the best way to educate you clients. 2.2.1 Deliverables In the course of this project, we will deliver the following: Our xtraSys softwares Configuration materials 3. Why Adopt This Business Proposal / Pitch This is a one stop shop where everything will be centrally managed by us. This will be more organized and cost effective. 3.1 BENEFIT of Our Proposed Plan When comparing our capabilities to that of competitors, the benefits of adopting this Business Proposal are: .Improvement in business model, monthly cost savings, short time to completion, service reliability, lower implementation cost good support excellent customer service 3.2 Competitive Advantages The following are competitive advantages that differentiate Xtranet Communications from other providers: Company Recognition We are a leading provider of IT Solutions and partners of leading world Software developers such Dell and commanding huge chunk of the market share. We are ISO Certified and has been in operations for more than 20 years Expertise & Stability We have highly skilled and experienced technical personnel and are a powerhouse solution. Our technical staffs are dedicated professions who discharge their duties with high standards and zeal. Technology Our products are thoroughly researched and tested and are flexible on the needs of every customer. We operate globally and our products are reliable and we guarantee 99% SLA. History of successThrough the provision of unique tailor made services we have been able to win customers trust and they remain loyal to our services. We concrete on accounts not sales and this has made us grow our market through referral business. We adopt the latest technology in our business processes. Customer Service Our customer service desk and support id open 24/7 365 to respond to your quires and in fact we have a system to monitor your uptime from our office and we are able to give advice in advance. We also have a toll free line 50000444. 4. Implementation Plan / Schedule Once approved, the implementation should hence kick off, immediately. 4.1 Methodology We have the opportunity to follow the demonstration, testing and implementation methods of work in this project. The deliverables shall be provided according to the following methodology because of to cut cost and save your time. There will be staffing training on how to use and trouble shoot the software, during the installation and configuration there will be downtime of about 6 hours but the data will be auto saved. 4.2 Scheduling / Statement of Work In order to initiate this plan, we first need to know the number of machines to run. It will then be possible to proceed with the installation and configuration which will allow us to plan for the downtime. We expect to complete this project in 3 days. A proposed schedule is summarized in the table below. Activity Duration Start Date End Date Software Installations 6 hours 20/06/2011 20/6/2011 Configuration of computers 10 hours 21/02/2011 21/06/2011 Training on the software application 6 hours 22/06/2011 22/06/2011 Table 2. Proposed Schedule for implementation 4.3 Testing & Evaluation Testing phases should start when the installation and configuration has been completed. Evaluation will take place on a monthly basis. Evaluation will be used to evaluate the uptime functionality. The following reports will be produced on a monthly basis: 5. Project Management Plan / Staffing Plan 5.1 PROJECT MANAGEMENT APPROACH Phase I: Secure agreement with Gennero Tasmida Phase II: Software Installation Phase III: Configurations and Testing Phase IV: Staff training on the software application Phase V: Implementation of the project. 5.2 STAFFING PLAN / ROLE REQURIEMENTS The following is a detailed breakdown of the roles required to execute the project. It includes: the project role, the project responsibility of the role, skills required, number of staff required to fulfill the role, the estimated start date and the expected duration the staff resource will be needed on the project. Example roles, responsibilities / skills requirements, staff required and expected dates Role Project Responsibility Skills Required Number of Staff Required Estimated Start Date Duration Required FY05-06 Project Team (examples) Project Manager Lead team, report status Project Management 1 20/06/2011 1month Core Team Technical support Product knowledge ,and 3 20/06/2011 5 days Content Developer Systems Engineer Website developer and maintenance 2 20/06/2011 10days 6. Budget 5.1 Cost Breakdown Based on our analysis of your needs and the nature our proposed plan, the total funds required is estimated at: $ 6,500 the cost breakdown is detailed in the table below. Total estimated project duration: 10 days [THE FOLLOWING ARE EXAMPLES OF COSTS, ALL MAY NOT APPLY TO YOUR SITUATION] Cost Element Amount $ Production & Overhead 3,000 IT Infrastructure and system implementation (Hardware/Software) (this section can broken into sub-sections) 2,000 350 Labor Project Manager General Managers Team Maintenance Labor Payroll Taxes 250 150 300 500 350 Intellectual Property (e.g. trademarks, domain names, patents) Permits & licenses 350 Order processing & billing 150 Third Party Services Training 250 Annual/Monthly Maintenance Fee 350 Utilities (e.g. long distance communications, fax, internet connection) 350 Total $6,500.00 Table 3. Cost Breakdown for [PROJECT TITLE] 7. Conclusion Xtranet Communications can be confident that our proposed Information System Management strategy will offer a solution to your needs that include automating your accounting and inventory portfolio, creating a website and an online portal with blog for direct contact with customers and also gives you the opportunity to market you products online and educate your customers about your services. We sincerely hope that Gennero Tasmidia will consider us as a long-term partner and allow us to enter into a mutually beneficial relationship. We are available to answer any questions you may have and look forward to discussing this opportunity further. After reviewing this document, the following steps should be performed in order to come to a final agreement. - Submission of questions/suggestions - Counter proposal or approval by Gennero Tasmidia - Negotiation of fees, terms, clauses and conditions We declare this offer to be binding and free of errors or omissions. Due diligence has been performed in order to ensure compliance with your requirements and particular situation. We agree to hold our proposal open for acceptance until 15/06/2011 Thank you for your interest. Yours sincerely, For: Xtranet Communications Ltd. References: 1. Harrington, 2005. Business Process Improving. Tata McGraw-Hill Education. 2. Henderson, J & Venkatraman, N 1999, ‘Strategic Alignment: Leveraging Information 3. Lucey, T 1997, Management Information Systems, Letts Educational, London. Oz, E, 2008. Management information System 4. Technology for Transforming Organizations,’ IBM Systems Journal. vol. 38 no. 2, pp. 102 – 128. 5. Watson et al 2006, ‘Real-Time Business Intelligence: Best Practices at Continental Airlines,’ Information Systems Management. Winter. 6. Wesky, M, 2007. Business Process Management: Concept, Language, Architectures, Spring. Read More