The Influence of Network Technology to the Business - Assignment Example

The Influence of Network Technology to the Business Name of Student: Name of Course: Name of Instructor: Date of Submission The Influence of Network Technology to the Business Introduction The internet has grown to one of the most powerful communication and business tools of the modern age. The limit to the use of internet technologies in modern day life is unlimited. Taking a look at major markets in the world, for instance the US Ecommerce retail market that is expected to hit the $453 million dollar mark by 2017, it can be acknowledged that the power of internet technology is unfathomed. With the increase in the number of people who have access to high speed internet via various gadgets such as tablets, smart phones and laptops, it is expected that the technologies will continue to revolutionise how business is done. The following essay will discuss why all aspects of business processes are impacted on by technological changes, list and discuss and provide real life examples of the benefits of large organisations adopting cloud computing, explain how mobile technologies provide organisations with a competitive edge and lastly discuss the role and responsibilities of an accountant in today’s organisation that adopts technological change. a) Do you agree that all aspects of business processes are impacted on by technological change? Discuss. All aspects of business are impacted on by technology change (Brynjolfsson & Hitt, 2000). So as to provide a detailed discussion of this topic, it is important it analyse the value chain of an organisation and identify ways in which technology impacts on all business processes. The following figure presents the value chain as described by (Porter, 1985). Value Chain Analysis (Porter. 1985) The value chain represents all the functions in an organisation that are involved in the transformation of inputs to outputs. It is made up of primary and support activities (David & Stan, 2008). Inbound logistics function is concerned with the sourcing of inputs to an organisation (David & Stan, 2008). It is involved with creating relationships with suppliers, receiving and storing inputs. The application of technology in this function is advanced. There are technology systems that are used by business organisations to choose the best suppliers and consequently manage the interactions between businesses and suppliers. The use of internet technology in searching for information on the various suppliers and their business terms is unlimited. Additionally, inventory management systems that alert businesses when they need to reorder and consequently aid them in making decisions on the economic ordering quantities are extensively used so as to ensure that an organisation is well supplied with inputs. The operations function is concerned with the actual transformation of inputs to outputs. It includes manufacturing processes in products and service delivery in the service industry. Technology is extensively used to plan operations, manufacturing schedules, monitor quality and increase the speed of operations. It is also used to monitor operations remotely. In the service industry, it is used to create a good interface between customers and the people serving them for instance in ecommerce. It also aids service delivery such as its extensive use in the banking industry for instance in banking halls. Outbound logistics are involved with the delivery of products to the market (David & Stan, 2008). The use of technology is extensively used in areas such as supply and distribution chains. Its use is also advanced in dispatch operations. In the marketing and sale business function, technology is used in activities such as advertising, product promotion and sales. Systems such as sale support systems are a critical part of modern sales departments. The use of internet in business such as in e-commerce and marketing is highly advanced and is a major factor influencing the competitiveness of an organisation. The use of social media is also highly used in modern marketing and sales activities. Lastly, technology is use is the service function that is focussed on maintaining goof product performance after sale (David & Stan, 2008). Organizations are using technology to collect data from the market and develop their products in addition to communicating with their customers on support services. On the support services of an organisation, technology is highly used in human resource management in processes such as recruitment and selection, reward management and other employee management processes (David & Stan, 2008). It is also used in procurement, infrastructure and technology development. From the above argument, it can be acknowledged that technology has an impact on all processes in an organisation; hence changes in technology have an impact on the whole organisation. b) List and discuss the benefits and constraints of large organisations adopting Cloud Computing. Provide real world examples for each benefit and constraint you have listed. Benefits There are numerous benefits associated with cloud computing. One of the benefits associated with its reduced costs. The low costs are a as result of the fact that organisations make savings on the purchase of both hardware and software. One of the organisation that has made cost savings from cloud computing is Intercontinental Group of Hotels that has enjoyed centralised use of the cloud server in all its hotels (Babcook, 2011). It is also associated with high flexibility. It is possible for the authorised people to access the cloud server from anywhere in the world. Additionally, business gain access to a high number of applications and additional services on cloud servers. Etsy, an online market place for handmade products has benefited from market analysis tools provided on cloud servers (McKendrick, 2012). Cloud computing is also associated with high business scalability that enables business to align themselves with the market situations. Netfox, a company that offers subscriptions for TV shows and movies, it is able to maintain efficient business during high peaks and low periods courtesy of cloud computing (McKendrick, 2012). Clouds computing also provide companies with intelligent assistants that help them in managing business processes. An example of such a company is Apple that has intelligent assistants on iPhones that perform tasks on behalf of users (McKendrick, 2012). Constraints Organisations are normally faced with major challenges when cloud servers fail and also during the downtime. This means loss of valuable time. An example of a downtime is in the retail industry where Amazon suffered a 1 hour downtime on 31st January 2013 (CRN, 2013). Concerns about the safety of data stored in online servers are also a major challenge to big corporations. Unauthorised access of such data can be detrimental to organisations. An example of this is the recent claims that NASA has unauthorised access to Yahoo and Google (Rushe, Acketrman & Ball, 2013). c) Explain how mobile technologies provide organisations with a competitive edge over their competitors. Provide real world examples of mobile technologies (via the cloud) being used by organisations. Mobile technologies are all technologies that can be easily moved from one location to another. Mobile technologies are a major source of competitive advantage for companies. One of the benefits of this is that companies are able to get a wide pool of professionals and experts to work for them since they have access to the global labour market. With remote working, companies are able increase their performance. An example of such a company is Odesk, which is one of the leading online outsourcing companies in the world. Mobile technologies also enable companies to coordinate their activities in various parts of the world (Guy, 2008). Its high flexibility is a source of competitiveness for companies. Google’s remote working policy is one of the factors that can be associated with its success. The company has a policy on remote working that enables its employees in various parts of the world to contribute to the improvements of services offered. Mobile technologies also enable companies to conduct marketing and sales campaigns via the internet (Guy, 2008). Via the use of social media, websites and applications, companies are able to reach out to their market. An example of a company using this is Walmart that has applications for various mobile systems, an efficient e-commerce platform and extensive use of the internet in marketing and sales. Lastly, mobile technologies increase the efficiency with which organisations optimise their business processes. Mobile payment services are a growing trend in the modern business world. It has made significant positive impacts on business. A good example of this is M-Pesa, a mobile money transfer service in Kenya that has revolutionised the manner in which business is done (Mbogo, 2010). d) Discuss the role and responsibilities of an accountant in today’s organisation that adopts technological change Technology has made significant impacts on the accounting field. This has transformed the role of modern day accountants in firms that have embraced technological changes. The main role and responsibility of accountants in technologically advanced companies is inputting data into the accounting and business support information technology systems. Sophisticated calculations and analysis that were previously done by accountants are now done by accounting systems (Ghasemi, Shafeiepour, Aslani & Barvayeh, 2011). Therefore, the main responsibility of accountants is to feed the systems with the accurate data. Accountants are also responsible for getting outputs from the accounting systems and making appropriate inferences from the results (Ghasemi, Shafeiepour, Aslani & Barvayeh, 2011). The accounting systems give output in form of data that has to be interpreted into meaningful information by accountants. Therefore, they are responsible of giving financial advice to their organisations. Conclusion In conclusion, it can be acknowledge that technology has a significant impact on modern business. This essay has identified that technology changes have impacts on every business process. The essay discussed the influence of technological changes on elements of organisation’s value chain. It was also identified that there are various benefits and constraints associated with cloud computing. Additionally, it was seen that mobile technologies have an impact of increasing the competitive advantage of business organisation. Lastly, it was seen that technology has made significant impacts on the accounting field that has influenced the role and responsibilities of accountants in the modern business organisations. References Brynjolfsson, E., & Hitt, L. M. (2000). Beyond computation: Information technology, organizational transformation and business performance. The Journal of Economic Perspectives, 23-48. Babcook, C., (2011). 4 Companies Getting Real Results From Cloud Computing, Informationweek, Retrieved on 8th July 2013 from http://www.informationweek.com/4-companies-getting-real-results-from-cloud-computing/d/d-id/1095455 CRN, (2013). The 10 Biggest Cloud Outages of 2013 (So Far), CRN, Retrieved on 8th July 2013 from http://sbinfocanada.about.com/gi/o.htm?zi=1/XJ&zTi=1&sdn=sbinfocanada&cdn=money&tm=26&f=10&su=p284.13.342.ip_&tt=65&bt=1&bts=1&zu=http%3A//www.crn.com/slide-shows/cloud/240158298/the-10-biggest-cloud-outages-of-2013-so-far.htm David, C., & Stan, A., (2008). Using Value-Chain Analysis to Discover Customers' Strategic Needs, Strategy & Leadership, 36(4); 29 – 39 Ghasemi, M., Shafeiepour, B., Aslani, M., & Barvayeh, E., (2011). The Impact Of Information Technology (IT) On Modern Accounting Systems, Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 28 (1); 112-116 Guy, M., (2008). A Desk Too Far?: The Case for Remote Working, Ariadne, Retrieved on 8th July 2013 from http://www.ariadne.ac.uk/issue56/guy Mbogo, M. (2010). The impact of mobile payments on the success and growth of micro-business: The case of m-pesa in Kenya. Journal of Language, Technology & Entrepreneurship in Africa, 2(1), 182-203. Mc Kendrick J., (2012). 6 Shining Examples of Cloud Computing in Action, Forbes, Retrieved on 8th July 2013 from http://www.forbes.com/sites/joemckendrick/2012/02/22/6-shining-examples-of-cloud-computing-in-action/ Rushe, D., Acketrman, S., & Ball, J., (2013). Reports That NSA Taps into Google and Yahoo Data Hubs Infuriate Tech Giants, Retrieved on 8th July 2013 from http://sbinfocanada.about.com/gi/o.htm?zi=1/XJ&zTi=1&sdn=sbinfocanada&cdn=money&tm=35&f=10&su=p284.13.342.ip_&tt=65&bt=1&bts=1&zu=http%3A//www.theguardian.com/technology/2013/oct/30/google-reports-nsa-secretly-intercepts-data-links Read More