Bossard is a hardware international conglomerate that specializes in the development of fastening technology and devices. It also uses a wide variety of smart and sensor technology to achieve a competitive advantage. It plans to utilize “smart factory” logistics and verge into various new sectors or initiatives where their innovative approach may be useful. Bossard Company’s Business Model Originally, Bossard was founded as a family-owned hardware store in Switzerland. It sold various small hardware and fastening products which consist of bolts, screws, rivets, and nuts. It then expanded to a regional, national, and international level in the $72 billion global fastening industry. It has continued to expand and experience profit with a 15% increase in sales year over year. It has over 70 service locations, 35 logistics centers, and 10 applications engineering laboratories. Bossard went from serving local individual consumers and regional businesses to cooperation with international industrial companies. It Continue reading
Business Information Systems
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Software – Background, Benefits, and Limitations
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is a common buzzword in today’s business circles. Some researchers define it as an interactive tool for managing a company’s relationship with its customers, or clients, while others perceive it as a set of processes and activities for organisations to communicate with internal and external shareholders. CRM strives to do three main things – create precise marketing campaigns, create a coherent view of customers, and create an effective consumer database. Precision marketing predominantly focuses on creating products and services that appeal to customer needs (to increase sales). The database creation is part of wider trend created by CRM to increase investments in data warehouses. Companies adopt CRM by buying appropriate software. CRM software applies to key service areas of an organisation, such as marketing, customer service, and technical support. Its functions include providing a central database where customer related information is stored, retrieves and display that information Continue reading
Modern Block Cipher Algorithms in Cryptography
Cryptography signifies that which is concealed or hidden. It is writing or a description in a brief manner that secretly conveys a particular intelligence or words that we may wish to communicate. Cryptography may be used as a form of clandestine communication. The art of cryptography is a legitimate form of communication that is acknowledged in the world. Encryption is a process that uses an encryption algorithm to convert a message from plaintext into ciphertext, making the message unreadable to a third party. Block ciphers operate by breaking a message into fixed block sized messages which are encrypted using the same key. The advantage with block ciphers is that a smaller block can be created from a large message. DES (Data Encryption Standard) Data Encryption Standard is basically a symmetric-key algorithm used in the encryption of data of electronic nature. The algorithm was developed in the 1970s by IBM as Continue reading
A Beginner’s Guide to Data Mining
Data Mining in the simplest terms, is a process of simplifying large data to generate valuable information or decluttering large amount of data to only extract useful information. Though the word “Data Mining” was not uttered until in 1980’s, when the term was trademarked by HNC to protect their product “DataBase Mining Workstation”, the concept of data mining was already established by Thomas Bayes in 1763. When Bayes published a theorem called Bayes theorem of looking at relationship between the current and prior probabilities. With the invention of computers, the theorem became a step stone to data mining as it allowed to understand reality based on the probabilities that are estimated. 1980’s was also the era which used algorithms to learn about relationships and what they mean by studying the data. Data Mining is a process that involves three elements, studying the relationship of the data, using machine to mimic Continue reading
Case Study: IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL) Adoption by Disney
The Walt Disney Company is an internationally famous corporation that operates in the domains of media and entertainment. Having grown from a small cartoon studio, the company now operates in more than 40 countries around the world and includes such major departments as studios, parks, and experiences, and consumer products. The division of Theme Parks and Resorts is one of the busiest branches of the corporation, with 13 parks, over 40 resorts, and more than 118 million visitors each year. To succeed in such an environment, the Disney company adopted the best practices of IT service management as outlined in the Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL). Informational Technology Infrastructure Library or ITIL is a group of practices designed to align IT services with the goals and vision of the business. It was originally developed in the 1980s and since then received regular revisions to suit the changes in technology and Continue reading
The Impact of Technological Changes in Organizations
The impact of technology on organisational procedures and performance has become very crucial. Many organisations have realized that technological advancements shape performance levels in workers employed by the organisation. The management personnel in the organisation need to ensure that the technological changes that are introduced are managed effectively. Technological change in a company can only be successful if the existing organisational culture allows for it. All the participants in the organisation need to be aware of the benefits of technological change and their role in contributing to technological change. Many organisations have introduced newer technological processes, which have significant impacts on their users. Technological changes help in improving efficiency and performance levels in the organisation. Employees need to know how they can use these technologies and the results that are likely to be obtained from them. It has become vital for organisations to manage the changes in work procedures that are Continue reading