Monthly Archives: September 2014
Day 2 Otis case brief grading completed
Day 3 Wyndham International Case Brief Guideline
Next week, in reading Wyndham case, focus on the two following topics.
- At which area does Wyndham choose to excel and how?
- How does the ByRequest program support this goal?
- How is ByRequest different from other guest-royalty or frequent mileage programs?
It might be hard to understand “Wyndham’s Background” and “The Lodging Industry” section (page 2-5). It’s okay not to include these part in your brief, but be sure to read them before the class.
Executive Report #1 – due by Friday, Sep 26
MIS 3534 Fall 2014 – Exec Report #1.pdf
Attached is the announcement for Executive Report #1, which is due by Friday, September 26. A draft for feedback (optional) is due by Sep. 19. Submissions for a draft and a final report should be through Blackboard.
For Topic #3, you will need to download the following article.
Here are a sample executive report and best reports from a previous semester.
- MIS 3534 – Sample Exec Report.pdf
- Best Executive Reports – Hyun Jeong You.pdf
- Best Executive Reports – Joshua Stansfield.pdf
For some CIO magazine articles, you will need to register at http://www.cio.com/learn-about-insider.
Sign up for presentation on Sep 15
Next class on Sep 15, we need two volunteers to present one of these articles
- HBS Case – “Wyndham International: Fostering High-Touch with High-Tech”
- Harvard Business Review – “The Core Competence of the Corporation” by C.K. Prahalad and G. Hamel
As always, a waiver for one reading brief and participation points will be awarded. Leave a comment to sign up.
FOX IT Career Fair – Register by Friday, Sep 12!
http://ibit.temple.edu/careerfair/
Unless your father is Warren Buffett or Bill Gates, you should register for the FOX IT Career Fair on Wednesday, Sep 24. The registration deadline is by Friday, Sep 12. This year, we have the largest number of employers.
Day 02 – online discussion questions
Let’s keep the discussion on-going!
- What are the examples of “switching costs” that reduce the bargaining power of buyers?
- In the presence of fierce rivalry among competitors, what should you do in order to better compete with them and achieve high profitability?
- Why is an elevator service business more profitable than a manufacturing, based on the five forces?
- Why do companies sell bundle?
- The case states on Page 8 that “The next step in our evolution will be the management of information flows between all the participants.” What does it mean by information management? Why is it important?
- The case states on Page 8 that “To achieve continuous transformation, the e*Logistics program makes sure the business process change sticks. … With the e*Logistics program, best practices from SIP are baked into the organization and institutionalized to achieve that continuous transformation.” What does it mean by “stick” and “baked”?
- Would the change from manufacturing to a service company at Otis be easy? Who would be unhappy with this change?
Day 02 – IT and Competitive Strategy (I) – class slides
Harvard Business Case Coursepack – Price Corrected!
It has come to my attention that some of you had to pay a lot more than I expected for the Harvard Business coursepack. It was supposed to be $45.89, but it appeared as $97.4. (I thank Sung Sik for letting me know this.)
I have contacted the publishers, and they corrected the price to $45.89. Please see the message from them below. If you have already purchased the package, you will receive a refund through your credit card.
Keep in mind that Otis case, which is a required reading for next Monday’s class, is included in the coursepack.
https://cb.hbsp.harvard.edu/cbmp/access/27952567
———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Hertzenberg, David <david.hertzenberg@harvardbusiness.org>
Date: 2014-09-03 9:19 GMT-04:00
Subject: RE: Case Coursepack question
To: Min-Seok Pang <minspang@temple.edu>
Cc: “Phaneuf, Autumn” <autumn.phaneuf@harvardbusiness.org>
Hi Dr. Pang,
Our service team has responded to me and said that there was an issue with our website and the wrong pricing was occurring in some coursepacks, yours included. The problem has been resolved and your students should now see the correct pricing in your coursepack. Please let me know if your students do not see the correct pricing at $3.95 per case.
So far, 5 students have registered for the coursepack and overpaid by credit card. We will credit these 5 students the difference amount ASAP, and they should see that credit come through on their credit card accounts soon.
So the issue has been resolved and once your students receive their credit on their accounts, we should be all set. Apologies on behalf of HBP for the technical issue here. Please let me know if any further issues occur here.
Best,
Dave
Day 02 – Sign up for presentation
For next week’s class, we need two volunteers to present the following articles (5 minutes each). Please leave a comment below to sign up.
- HBS Case – “Otis Elevator: Accelerating Business Transformation with IT”
- Harvard Business Review – “The Five Forces That Shape Strategy” by M.E. Porter
Presenters will be given both participation points and a waiver for one reading brief. Please leave a reply below. I’ll let you know how to download the 2nd one.
Day 02 – In-class Discussion Questions
For those who are eager to participate but not comfortable with speaking up in a crowd, I’m sharing some of the questions that we’ll be discussing next Monday. Like I said, preparation can be a pill to your shyness.
- In Porter’s Five Forces model, when do buyers have a strong bargaining powers?
- Why is elevator service business more profitable than elevator manufacturing?
- The case says “The service market attracted many participants because of its steady demand, low barriers of entry, and high profitability.” (p. 3) Doesn’t it mean that the service market is not profitable for Otis?
- Can you think of an example of bundle around us?
- For Otis to successfully transform itself to a service provider as it wants, what kind of actions or changes are imperative?
- How were things going before and after OtisLine?
Be advised that these questions are not for online discussions.
Blackboard site (only for assignment submission) is now open.
The Blackboard site for MIS 3534 is now open. Keep in mind that Blackboard will be used only for assignment submission. All other information and announcements will be posted on this site.
Day 02 – Reading Brief (Otis Elevator) Guidelines
Read the Otis Elevator case from the Harvard Business coursepack and explain the following three points in your brief.
- What’s the direction of Otis’s strategic move?
- Why is Otis trying to shift its strategic focus?
- How do Otis’s IT projects (OtisLine, e*Lostistics) support such a move?
Instructions
- Up to 200 words.
- Due by 5:30pm on Sep 8. A late submission will not be graded.
- For your brief to be considered for a best brief with extra credits, you need to submit by noon on Sep 8.
- DO NOT COPY AND PASTE from the case. Use your own words. Plagiarized work will be graded at 0.