Reading Brief Guidelines
Day 13 – ITC eChoupal – brief guidelines
- Why was the supply chain for soybean so inefficient and how does eChoupal change it?
- What kind of information does eChoupal provide to farmers?
- What are the benefits of eChoupal to farmers and ITC?
Your brief may not cover page 11-16, but please DO NOT SKIP to read them.
Day 12 – IT Adventures Ch. 10 & 11 – brief guidelines
Read Chapter 10 and 11 of IT Adventures and summarize with the following focuses.
- What happened at IVK on Thursday, June 28?
- What are the issues with regard to disclosure?
- What are the three recovery plans? What is Mr. Barton’s recommendation and why did he recommend it? What is Mr. Williams decision?
Day 11 – Bharti Airtel – Reading Brief guidelines
- What are Bharti Airtel’s business areas and key business functions?
- What is the unique nature of the proposed outsourcing deal of Bharti?
- Why does Mr. Gupta propose this deal?
- What are the reactions to this deal from Bharti and the vendors?
Your brief does not need to cover “History and Background” and “Indian Market for Telecom,” but DO NOT skip to read them. Also, don’t forget to bring “Bharti Airtel – One Year Later” case to the class as well, but you don’t need to read it.
Day 10 – B&K Distributors – brief guidelines
- Who are B&K’s customers and how does it categorize them?
- What are the expected changes in the relationship with customers after implementation of the Web Portal?
- What are the cost components of the Web Portal?
IT Adventures Ch. 7 and 14 – brief guidelines
Chapter 7
- Why is the Infrastructure Replacement (IR) project failing?
Chapter 14
- What are the differences between three prospective vendors for the IR project?
- What are the differences between two contracting models that IVK is considering?
Your report does not need to include
- “Wednesday, April 28, 10:12 a.m.” (p. 107-109),
- the consultant’s report (p. 120-122),
- “the third major disagreement” (p. 226-228),
- “Monday, October 1, 11:00 a.m.” (p. 228-231), and
- vendor assessment matrices (p. 233).
But please DO NOT SKIP to read them.
Day 8 – IT Adventures Ch. 16 – brief guidelines
- What has made IVK IT systems so complex?
- Why is Mr. Barton considering to standardize IVK’s IT systems.
- What are his alternatives? What are the pros and cons of each option?
Day 7 – IT Adventures Chapter 9 – brief guidelines
- What does Mr. Barton want to tell to members of the IVK board of directors? What’s his message?
- How did his presentation go at the board meeting? Did the board make any decision regarding IT or Mr. Barton?
Don’t forget read the slides on pages 150-153. Your brief doesn’t need to cover “Thursday, June 14, 5:38 p.m” section (page 147-149), but please do not skip to read.
Day 6 – IT Adventures Chapter 8 – reading brief guidelines
- Why has Mr. John Cho’s request for IT security funding been being denied?
- Why had Mr. Davies, the former IVK CIO, had to set up a slush fund? How?
- By “one neck in the noose”, what does Maggie (Mr. Barton’s girlfriend) mean?
- What’s Mr. Barton’s decision regarding IT funding and what’s his rationale?
Reading Brief Guidelines for Day 5
Read IT Adventures Chapter 4 and 5 and write ONE reading brief (NOT two) up to 200 words that includes both chapters.
- What is the funding mechanism for IT at IVK? What is a chargeback? (Ch. 4)
- How have IT portfolio and spending at IVK evolved? (Ch. 4)
- Describe the concepts of “Competes vs. Qualifiers” and IT Strategic Grid (Ch. 5)
San Francisco Airport Case Brief guidelines
- Why is San Francisco Airport considering to upgrade its security system?
- What are the problems and risks in SFO’s current security infrastructure and processes?
- How does Ms. Dickie try to justify the investments into the new security system?
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.
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.