Accounting Software Packages: A Case Study of Woolworths

Assignment 1 (Literature Review)
HI5019 Strategic Information System
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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Literature Review............................................................................................................................4
PART 1........................................................................................................................................4
1. The current organizational structure........................................................................................4
2. What operational problems (e.g., inefficiency, errors) do you think the organisation could
experience because of this structure?..........................................................................................6
3. What is the most likely system acquisition method— commercial software, custom
software, or ERP?........................................................................................................................8
4. Describes and prepare a system flowchart of the sales procedures for the chosen
organisation (company)...............................................................................................................9
5. Identify any control problems in the system and what sorts of fraud are possible in this
system?......................................................................................................................................11
PART 2......................................................................................................................................12
1. Development and adoption of the accounting software packages.........................................12
2. The current market size.........................................................................................................14
3. Identify the leaders in the market and what gives them the competitive advantage.............16
4. Identify the current gaps or challenges encountered by users or customers of accounting
software/packages and make relevant suggestions or recommendations..................................18
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................19
References......................................................................................................................................20
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Introduction
The report will provide with deep insight and detailed analysis of the accounting software
applied by Woolworths, a supermarket chain in Australia. The report will provide with a
discussion towards identifying the market leaders in the same industry sector. It will develop an
understanding of the sales flowchart procedure adopted by the organization. It will further
provide with a detailed analysis of operational problems for the organization and current gaps
identified in the accounting software adopted by the Woolworths.
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Literature Review
PART 1
1. The current organizational structure
According to the thoughts and views of Frias (2014), the organizational structure of an
organization refers to the format or alignment of the human resources and other functions of an
organization are placed. This formation of structures and alignments enables an organization to
achieve the desired goals and objectives. Organizational structures involve the activities like
coordination, controlling, supervision, a division of authority and responsibility between
different functions and human resources in an organization. The organizational structure enables
to determine the activities and enhances the performance of the organization. Organization
undertaken in this literature review is Woolworths. The company operates a supermarket chain
established in Australia. It is one of the most successful and large scaled organizations of
Australia (Frias, 2014).
Woolworths functions under the division of a functional organisational structure. A functional
organizational structure divides the organization into various functions and segments. The
functional organizational structure enables to divide the organization into various diversified
segments according to the tasks and activities are undertaken in the nature of the organization
(Woolworths, 2015). A functional organizational structure also focuses towards task allocation
according to the ability and responsibility levels of the human resources. It emphasises towards
the notations of tasks specialization and effective communication in an organization. At
Woolworths vertical and horizontal communication is practised across all the functions and
divisions. The organizational structure of Woolworths is depicted as below:
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(Source: Woolworths, 2015)
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2. What operational problems (e.g., inefficiency, errors) do you think the organisation
could experience because of this structure?
As per the research and guidance of Dos Santos, et. al., (2013), the functional organization
structure is an effective structure for an organization to incorporate into its systems and
functions. A functional organizational structure also restricts the performance of an organization
to certain areas. Such as at the Woolworths it has been recognised that functional organizational
structure has established rigid systems and policies fostering restricted communication in the
organization. This organizational structure forces horizontal communication into the
organizational structure. It lays emphasis on the horizontal flow of information and
communication between the various functions of the organization. This restricts the
communication only between the divisions or functional and ineffective lateral communication is
observed. As it has been observed in the case scenarios of Woolworth functional organizational
structure had more focus towards the functional goals and objectives as compared to the
organizational aims and desires. The decreased level of integration between the functional and
organizational goals leads towards inefficiency and decreased performance for the supermarket
chain (Dos Santos, et. al., 2013).
(Source: Woolworths, 2015)
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