Improvement in Operational Efficiency Due free essay sample

IT Investments ply chain integration; and euro conversion. Many IT landmarks have been achieved during this period: more than 4 billion Web pages on the Internet; creation of software to combat cyber worms, viruses, and warfare; millions of distributed databases; and widespread utilization of data warehouses and data mining for decision support systems. To support these IT initiatives and to achieve these landmarks, IT budgets of most companies during this decade Copyright  © 2006, Idea Group Inc. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of Idea Group Inc. is prohibited. Information Resources Management Journal, 19(2), 18-36, April-June 2006 19 increased substantially (Seewald, 2002). There is, however, a growing criticism of escalating IT investments (Mears Dubie, 2002) and their lack of justification (Krochmel, 1999). ERP systems are software systems to support and to automate the business processes, providing timely and accurate enterprise-wide information for decision making. ERP systems have a long history of evolution. The production scheduling, material ordering, and product shipment systems evolved from manual reorder point systems for material procurement to computerized Materials Requirement Planning (MRP) to Manufacturing Resource Planning (MRP-II) systems that integrated MRP and capacity requirements planning to Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES) that further integrated MRP-II and shop floor and device control systems, and finally to ERP systems. We will write a custom essay sample on Improvement in Operational Efficiency Due or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Much of the streamlining of materials procurement process was achieved by MRP and MRP-II. By the late 1980s, tens of thousands of firms were using MRP-II systems (Rondeau Litteral, 2001). The SAP R/3 modules and submodules consisting of sales and distribution, materials management, warehouse management, quality management, production planning for process industries, financial accounting, controlling, project system, and office communication were expected to reduce inventories, improve cash management, and cut down operating expenses. Kalling (2003) recently provided a theoretical framework in which resource-based views (RBV) are advanced to understand how ERP can provide sustainable competitive advantage. The RBV is not universally accepted as a final explanation of competitive advantage. Some believe that dynamic capabilities, not resources, are the source of competitive advantage. It is possible that ERP provides both unique resources as well as dynamic capabilities in the form of improved information and decision making to improve competitive advantage. Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Systems To avoid struggling with integrating myriad IT applications, many companies implemented ERP systems that required substantial investment of time, internal resources, and capital, resulting in significant organizational change (Dorien Wolf, 2002). Often, ERP system implementation is accompanied by other improvements and enhancements in existing legacy systems. Due to many simultaneous changes that accompany ERP system implementation, it is hard to attribute any performance changes after ERP system installation solely to ERP systems. However, ERP system implementation is, by far, the most criticized aspect of IT investments. ERP systems require outlays ranging from a few million dollars to several hundred million dollars (Mabert et al. , 2001). Despite high expenditures, ERP implementations have resulted in problems. Rushed software installations and inadequate training are blamed for well-publicized troubles with ERP. In 1999, soon after the rollout of its ERP system, Hershey Food Corp. , in the third quarter of that year, lost $60. 4 million due to problems in customer service, warehousing, order processing, and timely shipments to retailers. ERP implementation problems of Whirlpool Corporation and W. L. Gore Associates Inc. also have received considerable attention (Collett, 1999). The bankruptcy of FoxMeyer (a drug distribution company) in 1996 is directly attributed by many to flawed implementation of ERP systems. www. igi-global. com/article/improvement-operational-efficiency-due-erp/1289 www. igi-global. com/chapter/tutor/13373 www. igi-global. com/chapter/object-database-benchmarks/14575

Bolshevism essays

Bolshevism essays In an attempt to create system in which everyone is equal and enjoys equal distribution of wealth, where there is no private ownership of any enterprise or property, Karl Marx generated the Communist Manifesto. By reinterpreting the works of Marx, Lenin modified the communist ideal to his convenience. Some examples of Lenins contribution to communism were an elite government, elimination of oppositional parties, and suppression of free press and many other civil liberties. Although barbaric at face value, Lenins domination of the Soviet government was very organized. With Trotsky as his vehicle, Lenin was a dreamy politician with high ambitions and elaborate ideas drawn from his attitude that the end justifies the means. There is a difference between civil war and revolution. These are two completely separate elements in society. So what happens when the two come together? The long anticipated collapse of the tsarist regime in 1917 ended a system that had been in place since the fourteenth century. Surely there were many major contributing factors to its demise historically but the immediate agitators were more significant. Most obvious was a unanimous rejection towards the poor coordination of the war effort against Germany who proved to be very consistent in defeating Russian forces, forcing Russia to cede catastrophic portions of territory, literally ripping chunks out of its geographic constituency including valuable prizes such as Poland. Shortages of food and fuel along with inflation rapidly brought the people of Russia to disparity. Politicians, well anticipating governmental failure encouraged citizens to rally, thus further instigating revolution. This helped Russias bureaucratic system dissolve quickly when Nicholas II lost power on March 2, that year. Without any civil order or political structure, Russia ascended into a state of chaos, yielding to the ambi ...