Networking Elements
1. Network categories
2. Network providers
3. Network access technologies
4. Network protocols
5. Network convergence
Network Categories
1. LAN - local area network: connects a group of computers in close proximity
2. WAN- wide are network: spans a large geographic area such as a state, province or country
3. MAN- large computer network ex. colleges, large companies
Attenuation
Loss of a network signal strength measured in decibels because radio interference or obstructions
Repeater
Receives and repeats a signal to reduce its attenuation and extend its range
National Service Providers (NSPs)
Private companies that own and maintain the worldwide backbone that supports the Internet
ex. Sprint & Verizon
Ultimate goal of any computer
performance
Bandwidth
Maximum amount of data that can pass from one point to another in a unit of time
-speed of transmission is determined by speed of smallest bandwidth
Bit
Smallest element of data and has a value of either 0 or 1
Bit rate
bandwidth is measure in the number of bits transferred or received per unit of time
Modem
A device that enables a computer to transmit and receive data
Broadband
High-speed Internet connection that is always connected
-bandwidth greater than 2 Mbps
Domain name systems (DNS)
converts IP addresses into domains, or identifying labels that use a variety of recognizable naming conventions
Network convergence
Efficient coexistence of telephone, video, and data communication within a single network offering convenience and flexibility not possible with separate infrastructures
Unified communications
Integrates communication channels, allowing participants to communicate using a method that is most convenient to them
Voice over (VoIP)
Allows users to call anyone with a telephone number whether local, long distance, or international
ex. Skype
Benefits of a connected world
� Sharing resources
� Providing opportunities
� Reducing travel
� Information availability
Intranet
Restricted network that provide a central location for all kinds of company-related information such as benefits, schedules and strategic decisions
Extranet
Extension of an intranet available only to authorized outsides such as customers, partners, and suppliers
Virtual Private Network (VPN)
Companies can establish direct private network links among themselves or create private, secure
Internet access, in effect a private tunnel within the Internet
Challenges of a connected world
1) Security
2) Social, ethical, and political issues
Secure sockets layer (SSL)
standard security technology for establishing an encrypted link between a web server and browser, ensuring all data passed between them remain private
SSL certificate
electronic document that confirms the identity of a website or server and verifies that a public key belongs to a trustworthy individual or company
Network Access Points (NAPs)
Traffic exchange points in the routing hierarchy of the Internet that connects NSPs
Regional Service Providers (RSPs)
Offer Internet service by connecting to NSPs, but they also can connect directly to each other
Protocol
A standard that specifies the format of
data as well as the rules to be followed during
transmission
Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol
(TCP/IP)
Provides the technical foundation for the
public Internet as well as for large numbers of
private networks
Secure Hypertext Transfer Protocol
(SHTTP or HTTPS)
- A combination of HTTP and SSL to provide encryption (of the message) as well as secure
identification of the Internet server
Digital divide
A worldwide gap providing advantages to those with access to technology
Benefits of Business Mobility
IoT (Internet of Things)
A world where interconnected, Internet-enabled devices or "things" can collect and share data
without human intervention
ex. Enchanted objects
What are the five elements that are needed to create a connected world or a network?
Select one:
a. categories, programs, alternatives, people, and core philosophy
b. program, providers, access, mechanics, and teachers
c. categories, providers, access tec
c. categories, providers, access technologies, protocols, and convergence
What measures bandwidth in terms of numbers transferred or received per unit of time?
Select one:
a. bit rate
b. broadband
c. connection time
d. protocol
a. bit rate
What is the efficient coexistence of telephone, video, and data communication within a single network, offering convenience and flexibility not possible with separate infrastructures?
Select one:
a. network protocol
b. networking category
c. network conve
c. network convergence
What is a VPN?
Select one:
a. A direct network provider using a company server.
b. A direct private network that creates a "private tunnel" within the Internet to connect to the corporate server.
c. A direct URL that creates a private tunnel for a company
b. A direct private network that creates a "private tunnel" within the Internet to connect to the corporate server.
What is the digital divide?
Select one:
a. A data interruption in the Internet connection.
b. A deficiency in school-aged children with computer knowledge.
c. A divide between the economies of third world countries.
d. A worldwide gap giving advantage to
d. A worldwide gap giving advantage to those with access to technology.
Why would a manager be concerned with bandwidth? How is bandwidth measured?
Without proper bandwidth the systems using networks will be unable to function quickly or effectively. Bandwidth is measured in terms of kilobits, megabits, and gigabits.
How have networks contributed to the digital divide?
Networks have decreased the digital divide as it connects the entire globe allowing information to flow to remote locations.
What are the different levels of service providers that supply the interconnections to the Internet?
Internet service providers, national service providers, and regional service providers all provide connectivity services linking the Internet around the globe.
What is network convergence and why is it important to a business?
Network convergence is the efficient coexistence of telephone, video, and data communication within a single network, offering convenience and flexibility not possible with separate infrastructures.
How do SSL and SHTTP provide security for networks?
Secure sockets layer (SSL) is a standard security technology for establishing an encrypted link between a web server and a browser, ensuring that all data passed between them remain private. Secure hypertext transfer protocol (SHTTP or HTTPS) is a combina
Integration
Allows separate systems to
communicate directly with each other, eliminating
the need for manual entry into multiple systems
� Application integration
� Data integration
� Forward integration
� Backward integration
Application integration
Integration of a company's existing management IS
Data integration
Integration of data from multiple sources
Forward integration
Sends information entered into a given system automatically to all downstream systems and processes
Backward integration
Sends information entered into a given system automatically to all upstream systems and processes
Three primary enterprise systems
1. Supply Chain Management
2. Customer Relationship Management
3. Enterprise Resource Planning
Five basic supply chain activities
Supply Chain Management:
(SCM) The management of
information flows between and
among activities in a supply chain
to maximize total supply chain
effectiveness and profitability
SCM involves three main business linkages
1. Materials flow from suppliers and their "upstream" suppliers at all levels
2. Transformation of materials into products (production processes)
3. Distribution of products to retailers and their "downstream" customers
Supply chain visibility
The ability to view all areas up and down the supply chain in real time
Effective SCM
1. Decrease the power of its buyers
2. Increase its own supplier power
3. Increase switching costs to reduce the threat of
substitute products or services
4. Create entry barriers thereby reducing the threat of new entrants
5. Increase efficiencies while
Common supply chain metrics
1) Back order- unfilled customer order for a product that is out of stock
2) Inventory cycle time- the time it takes to manufacture a product and deliver it to the retailer
3) Customer order cycle time- the agreed time between the purchase of the product
Bullwhip effect
distorted product-demand information ripples from one partner to the next throughout the supple chain
Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
Involves managing all aspects of a customer's relationship with an organization to increase customer loyalty and retention and the organization's profitability
Benefits of CRM
Organizations can find their most valuable
customers through "RFM" - Recency, Frequency,
and Monetary value
� How recently a customer purchased
� How frequently a customer purchased
� The monetary value of each customer purchase
Evolution of CRM
1. Reporting - what happened
2. Analyzing - why it happened
3. Predicting - what will happen
Operational CRM
supports traditional transactional processing for day-to-day front-office operations or systems that deal directly with the customers
Analytical CRM
supports back-office operations and strategic analysis that do not deal directly with the customer
Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)
Integrates all departments and functions
throughout an organization into a single IT
system (or integrated set of IT systems)
This enables employees to make decisions by viewing enterprise-wide information on all business operations.
Core ERP components
1) Accounting and finance
2) Production and materials management
3) Human resources
Extended ERP components
1) Business Intelligence
2) CRM
3) SCM
4) Ebusiness
ERP Goal
Integrate all organizational systems into one fully-functioning, high performance
system - capable of meeting all business needs & user requirements.
Which of the following is not an example of a primary enterprise system?
Select one:
a. supply chain management
b. customer relationship management
c. enterprise revenue forecasting
d. enterprise resource planning
c. enterprise revenue forecasting
Who are primary users of SCM systems?
Select one:
a. sales, marketing, customer service
b. suppliers, manufacturers, distributors, retailers and customers
c. accounting, finance, logistics, and production
d. All of these are correct
b. suppliers, manufacturers, distributors, retailers and customers
Which of the following is not one of the three phases in the evolution of CRM?
Select one:
a. analyzing
b. processing
c. predicting
d. reporting
b. processing
Which question best represents a CRM predicting technology question?
Select one:
a. Why did sales not meet forecasts?
b. What is the total revenue by customer?
c. Which customers are at risk of leaving?
d. All of these are correct.
c. Which customers are at risk of leaving?
What is enterprise resource planning (ERP)?
Select one:
a. The analysis and redesign of workflow within and between enterprises.
b. A standardized set of activities that accomplish as specific task, such as processing a customer's order.
c. Management inv
d. The integration of all departments and functions throughout an organization into a single IT system so that employees can make decisions by viewing enterprise wide information on all business operations.
Which of the following is not one of the three most common core ERP components focusing on internal (core) operations?
Select one:
a. business intelligence
b. accounting and finance
c. production and materials management
d. human resources
a. business intelligence
1. How do integrations connect a corporation?
Integrations allow separate systems to communicate directly with each other, eliminating the need for manual entry into multiple systems. Building integrations allows the sharing of information across databases, and therefore dramatically increases the qu
3. What are the five primary activities in a supply chain?
Plan, source, make, deliver, and return are the primary activities in a supply chain.
4. What is the bullwhip effect and how can it impact a supply chain and a firm's profitability?
The bullwhip effect means that distorted product-demand information ripples from one partner to the next throughout the supply chain. The misinformation regarding a slight rise in demand for a product could cause different members in the supply chain to s
5. Why are customer relationships important to an organization? Do you agree that every business needs to focus on customers to survive in the information age?
Without customers you will not have an organization. CRM is critical to ensure customers are happy, or taken care of when they're upset or disgruntled.
6. What is the difference between operational and analytical CRM?
Operational CRM focuses on business operations such as sales and marketing while analytical CRM provides business intelligence to identify patterns in product sales and customer behaviors.
10. What is an enterprise resource planning system?
Enterprise resource planning (ERP) integrates all departments and functions throughout an organization into a single IT system (or integrated set of IT systems) so employees can make decisions by viewing enterprise-wide information about all business oper
11. What are the components in a core ERP system?
Core ERP components are the traditional components included in most ERP systems and primarily focus on internal operations. The three most common core ERP components (focusing on internal operations) are accounting and finance, production and materials ma
12. What are the components in an extended ERP system?
The four most common extended ERP components are: business intelligence, customer relationship management, supply chain management, and ebusiness.
Systems Development
Life Cycle (SDLC)
The overall process for developing
information systems (system applications)
from planning and analysis through
implementation and maintenance
The Systems Development Life Cycle
Why is it important?
As an organization's reliance on software grows,
the business-related consequences of software
success or failure grows as well:
� Increase/decrease revenue
� Repair/damage to brand reputation
� Prevent/incur liabilities
� Increase/decrease productivity
SDLC PHASES
1. Planning
2. Analysis
3. Design
4. Development
5. Testing
6. Implementation
7. Maintenance
Planning phase
Establish a high-level plan of the intended
project and determine project goals
Analysis phase
Analyze end-user business requirements
and refine project goals into defined functions and operations of the intended system
Design phase
Establish descriptions of the desired features and operations of the system including screen layouts,
business rules, process diagrams, pseudo code, and other documentation
Development phase
Take all of the detailed design documents (from the design phase) and transform them into
the actual system
Testing phase
Bring all the project pieces together into special test environments to find and eliminate errors
and bugs, and verify that the system meets all of the business requirements defined in the analysis phase
Implementation phase -
Placing the system into production so users can
begin to perform actual business operations with it
Maintenance phase
Performing changes, corrections, additions, and upgrades to ensure the system continues to meet its business goals
SDLC testing
1. Alpha
2. Systems
3. Development
4. User Acceptance Testing
5. Integration
6. Unit
Waterfall methodology
A sequence of phases in which the output of
each phase becomes the input for the next
phase
Agile methodology
Aims for customer satisfaction through early
and continuous delivery of useful software
components developed by an iterative process
using the bare minimum requirements
-rapid feedback
SCRUM
Small teams produce small pieces of
deliverable software using sprints, or 30-day intervals, to achieve an appointed goal
In-sourcing (in-house-development)
Uses the professional expertise within
an organization to develop and
maintain its information technology
systems
Outsourcing
An arrangement by which one organization provides a service or services for another organization that chooses not to perform them in-house
Factors driving outsourcing growth include
� Core competencies
� Financial savings
� Rapid growth
� The Internet and globalization
Outsourcing benefits include
1. Increased quality and efficiency of business processes
2. Reduced operating expenses for head count and exposure to risk for large capital investments
� Much cheaper (and to some extent, available) labor!
3. Access to outsourcing service provider's exp
Outsourcing challenges include
1. Length of contract
� Difficulties in getting out of a contract
� Problems in foreseeing future needs
� Problems in reforming an internal IT department
after the contract is finished
2. Threat to competitive advantage
3. Loss of confidentiality
4. Emplo
Project management
The application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to project activities to meet project requirements
Project plan
A formal, approved document
that manages and controls project execution
SMART
- Specific
- Measurable
- Agreed upon
- Realistic
- Time Frame
What is the overall process for developing information systems from planning and analysis through implementation and maintenance?
Select one:
a. agile project life cycle
b. project management
c. systems development life cycle
d. systems management
c. systems development life cycle
What is a project plan?
Select one:
a. An illustration of the movement of information between external entities and the processes and data stores within the system.
b. A formal, approved document that manages and controls the entire project.
c. Software s
b. A formal, approved document that manages and controls the entire project.
Which of the following does a project manager perform?
Select one:
a. defines and develops the project plan
b. tracks the plan to ensure all key project milestones are completed on time
c. serves as the expert in project planning and management
d. All of
d. All of these are correct.
Which methodology begins or ends each day with a stand-up meeting to monitor and control the development effort?
Select one:
a. Scrum
b. Agile
c. SDLC
d. None of these.
a. Scrum
What are the three primary variables (or triple constraints) in any project?
Select one:
a. time, cost, expense
b. time, expense, requirements
c. time, cost, scope
d. time, cost, quality
c. time, cost, scope
All of the following are challenges of outsourcing, except:
Select one:
a. contract length
b. less time to market for new products
c. loss of confidentiality
d. threat to competitive edge
b. less time to market for new products
1. What role does project management play in the systems development effort?
Any systems development effort needs to be properly project managed. Each step in the systems development life cycle needs to be measured, managed, and reviewed to ensure completion within budget and in scope.
2. What role does the project manager play in determining a project's success?
The success of a project completely depends on the ability of the project manager to execute the project successfully. The project manager is an individual who is an expert in project planning and management, defines and develops the project plan, and tra
8. If you started on a new software development project and the project plan was using the waterfall methodology, would you remain on the project? What could you do to better prepare your project for success?
Any project using the waterfall approach is doomed for failure and you should exit the project if possible. If you stay on the project you would want to recommend switching to one of the agile methodologies to ensure the project's success.
10. Why should end users be involved in the systems development effort?
End users should be heavily involved in every phase of the systems development life cycle to ensure the project is complete to their expectations. No matter how good a system is developed if it does not meet the end users' needs or approval it will become
13. What are the different types of outsourcing available for a project?
Onshore outsourcing �engaging another company within the same country for services. Nearshore outsourcing �contracting an outsourcing arrangement with a company in a nearby country. Often this country will share a border with the native country. Offshore
14. What are the risks associated with outsourcing?
Length of contract, threat to competitive advantage, and loss of confidentiality are all challenges of outsourcing.
1. A domain name system (DNS) converts IP addresses into domains, or identifying labels that use a
variety of recognizable naming conventions.
A. True
B. False
A. True
2. Companies can establish direct private network links among themselves or create private, secure
Internet access, in effect a private tunnel within the Internet, called a virtual private network (VPN).
A. True
B. False
A. True
3. Core ERP components are the traditional components included in most ERP systems and primarily
focus on internal operations.
A. True
B. False
A. True
4. The critical path is the path passing through all project tasks that take the shortest amount of time.
A. True
B. False
B. False
5. The Scrum methodology uses small teams to produce small pieces of software using a series of
sprints, in relatively short intervals, to achieve an appointed goal.
A. True
B. False
A. True
6. Nearshore outsourcing occurs when engaging another company within the same country for services.
A. True
B. False
B. False
7. What is the Internet of Things?
A. A method to extract information from data to predict future trends and identify behavioral
patterns.
B. A special network where devices connect directly to other devices.
C. A world where interconnected, Internet-enab
C. A world where interconnected, Internet-enabled devices or "things" can collect and share data without human intervention
8. What is it called when distorted product-demand information ripples from one partner to the next
throughout the supply chain?
A. bullwhip effect
B. demand planning systems
C. supply chain planning systems
D. supply chain execution systems
A. bullwhip effect
9. Which application's primary business benefits include sales forecasts, sales strategies, and marketing
campaigns?
A. CRM
B. ERP
C. SCM
D. all of these are correct
A. CRM
10. What is at the heart of any ERP system?
A. traffic flow
B. employees
C. change management
D. a central database
d. a central database
11. Which phase of the SDLC gathers business requirements?
A. plan
B. analysis
C. test
D. design
b. analysis
12. What is the main difference between the traditional "Waterfall" development methodology and the
Agile approach?
A. Traditional waterfall works more closely with the customers
B. Agile methods require more up-front, extensive requirements
C. Traditiona
C. Traditional waterfall freezes designs as early as possible, and Agile freezes designs as late as
possible
13. Which of the following can be a benefit of a successful project?
A. decreased response time for customer issues
B. improved goodwill
C. improved decision making
D. all of the above
D. all of the above
14. All of the following are challenges of outsourcing, except
A. contract length
B. threat to competitive advantage
C. increased products to market
D. confidentiality
C. increased products to market