Role of IT in Business Success and Failure

This document provides an overview of the role of information technology (IT) in the success or failure of a business. It discusses the ethical and social issues associated with running businesses, different types of networking technologies, the importance of social media in business, and the different stages of the software development life cycle. The document also includes a case study of Savoy hotel to illustrate the practical application of IT in a business setting.

Introduction to Information
Technology

Abstract
Information technology is the use of electronic technologies such as computers and other
devices for communications, safeguarding of data and also to help the employees in trouble
shooting their problems. The main objective of adopting information technology is to increase
the efficiency and effectively of the organization and improving the security and systems of the
organization. Savoy hotel has been taken as the organization to prepare the report and
information technology has played a very important role in the success of the hotel. Also the
hotel has faced certain social and ethical issues and also found out ways to overcome the same.
The network technology been used by the Savoy hotel is also determined in the report and the
importance of social media to the hotel. It can be said that there are both benefits and drawbacks
of investing into information technology to the Savoy hotels.

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................4
MAIN BODY..................................................................................................................................4
Role of IT in the success or failure of a business........................................................................4
Ethical and social issues associated with running businesses.....................................................5
Differentiate between different types of networking technologies.............................................6
Importance of social media in a business....................................................................................7
Different stages of software development life cycle...................................................................7
Analysis and discussion ..............................................................................................................8
CONCLUSION.............................................................................................................................11
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................12

INTRODUCTION
Information technology is the use of electronic media or computers for operating a
business which makes their work easy and efficient. It helps to store, retrieve or transmit the data
in an electronic medium (Bessen, 2017). It is communication system which has hardware and
soft wares and other equipment and it is necessary in the modern world for survival of the
businesses. Savoy hotel is a UK based luxury hotel and known for its innovation as it was the
first hotel to introduce the electric lights and lifts into their buildings. They are known for quality
services in terms of elegant dining and other luxuries. In the further report light will be put upon
the role of IT in success and failure of business and ethical and social issues will be found out.
Also, the difference between different types of networking technologies will be found out. Lastly
the importance of social media in business and different stages of software development life
cycle was explained.
MAIN BODY
Role of IT in the success or failure of a business
According to Kitsios. and Kamariotou, (2019) information technology plays very
important role in the success and failure of any business and it is also very important to adopt IT
into the operations of the business as it is digital age and everything is just a click away. If the
right technology is chosen and used by the businesses then it will contribute in the success of the
business. IT helps the business in taking better and fast decisions as taking fast and effective
decisions is the heart of any business. As per the views of Ismailov ( 2019), before taking any
decisions the businesses do market research. By doing the market research they get an idea about
the market through online surveys, blogs and world wide web. There are certain tools like Big
data, Google Analytics etc. by which they can get very useful information.
Through IT the businesses can improve their visibility and image in the minds of
customers. However, Timonen. and Vuori (2018) stated that reviews are very important aspect
that impacts the working of the businesses. As the customer reviews both the good and bad
experiences. If the customer puts bad experience, then it will contribute in the failure of the hotel
and if he is satisfied or is happy then it will give a positive image to the hotel. But, the
businesses can generate leads through IT as the software captures the enquiry or the search done
by the customers. By doing this the businesses can convert their enquiry and traffic into leads.

Waititu (2020) stated that IT made the communication within the businesses and with the
outside world easier which helped them to engage with the customers, suppliers and other
stakeholders and also information technology has enhanced the marketing by suing the online
platforms and using social media channels which are the most used platforms now-a-days. IT
helps the businesses to expand internationally and also to expand its brand name. The businesses
can alter their website as per the need and requirement of the country or region where the
businesses are planning to operate.
IN contrast to this, Rainer, Prince. and Watson (2017) stated that data is very important
for any kind of business and it enables the businesses to track their sales, performance and
expenditures. Also, it helps in tracking the profits and losses done by the businesses.
Management information system is the most effective tool for undertaking all these activities.
Therefore, IT stores the data and protect it so that it can be used for the future purpose. Using the
IT by the businesses gives them a competitive edge. As businesses that are present online has a
great impact on the minds of customers. Their presence on the online platforms helps them to
connect with the people and this gives people more confidence and make the brand more
relatable to them.
Ethical and social issues associated with running businesses.
Fitzgerald. and Cortina, (2018) stated that when a business is operating in the society and
there are people working in the organization which comes from different backgrounds there are
chances that issues arises at the workplace. There are various types of ethical issues that the
businesses faces such as:
Sexual Harassment is one of the ethical issues associated with running a business. The
employees in the organization are from both the gender. Some people take advantage of their
position or people with confidential information and harass the other person. For overcoming
this issue organization can train their staff and also make a committee that looks into this matter
at the hotel.
Diversity & Discrimination is treating the people unfairly or making difference among
people based on certain factors like age, disability, equal pay, religion etc. As per La Noue,
(2020) it is also one of the ethical issues that impacts the working in the organization. The

organization to resolve this issue can adopt anti-discrimination policies and laws into their
system.
Health & Safety is another issue as employees are the asset of the organization and their
health and safety are utmost priority of the organization. There are many health and safety issues
and it must be protected from various hazards such as fall, scaffolding, electric and wiring
equipments. It can be overcome by giving proper training of handling the complex equipments
and providing them with personal protective equipments.
Data Privacy is also an issue as data is the most important aspect of organization
therefore it must be kept securely and safely. As per Nimri. and et.al. (2021) now-a-days the data
of the organizations are saved digitally and there are higher chances of getting hacked.
Therefore, the organization must take initiative and make their employees aware about the data
protection policies of the organizations and the laws.
Differentiate between different types of networking technologies.
There are various types of networking technologies such as:
LAN or local area network is a group of computers with low voltage devices linked
together over a small distance. The connection of the computers are spread over a limited space
which have a well-defined and confined geographic area such as an office or a commercial
space.
MAN or a metropolitan area network is a network of computers that covers larger areas
such a town or a city. It is larger than local area network (LAN) but on the contrary Evseeva,
Obukhova. and Tanova, (2017) MAN covers area smaller than the area which is covered by
WAN. The ownership of this type of network is handled wither by a single person or it can be
handled by a company as a whole.
Chen, Huang. and Cai, (2017) stated that a wide area network (WAN) is a network that
exists over a larger geographical area. A WAN connects different smaller networks, including
local area networks and metro area networks. This ensures that computers and users in one
location can communicate with computers and users in other locations. WAN implementation
can be done either with the help of the public transmission system or a private.
PAN or Personal Area Network consists of a wireless modem and is one of the simplest and easy
network technology in which a computer or two, phones, printers, tablets, etc., and revolves

around one person in one building. These types of networks are generally found in small offices
or residences, and are managed by one person or organization from a single device.
Importance of social media in a business
Social media is one of the most emerging media for marketing the products and services
and growing the businesses online. According to Moro. and Rita, (2018) It is very important for
all the businesses to have a digital presence on social media platforms. The following are the
importance of social media:
Increasing the visibility and awareness is the first importance of social media to businesses.
When a business comes on the social media platforms it increases their visibility and awareness
among people. Tajvidi. and Karami,( 2017) stated that it is a fact that if the customer have seen a
brand somewhere there are higher chances that they will purchase from that brand.
Another importance of social media is to increase their reach. As social media is a form of
information technology which does not have any physical boundaries. Through social media
platforms the businesses can reach to a large part of audience which are located globally.
Cost effectiveness is another importance of social media for the businesses as the cost for putting
the ad is lower and on the contrary the return on investment is much higher.
Different stages of software development life cycle.
Frijns, Bierwolf. and Zijderhand, (2018) stated that software development life cycle helps
the businesses to reduce the wastage and increase the efficiency. Software development life
cycle have the following stages:
Requirement gathering and analysis is the first stage of Software development life cycle. During
this phase, all the required and relevant information is gathered from the customers which are
relevant for designing the product. At this stage it will be clear about the expectations of the
customers.
Design is the second stage and in this phase the information gathered is used as an input and
software architecture which can be used for implementing system development is derived.
Testing is the third stage which starts once the coding is done and the modules are discharged for
doing the testing. At this testing stage the developed software is tested exhaustively and in case

of defects it is again assigned to developers so that they can fix it. The team conducts the process
of testing to check the functioning of entire system and verification is provided after this.
The next stage is the implementation stage and it is also called the coding stage this stage
starts after the developer gets the document of the design. The Software which is designed is
translated into source code. All the elements of the software are implemented and coded in this
second stage.
After all the testing and implementation when the system is errors free then the final step
is taken which is deployment. It is also called installation and after taking the feedback from the
project manager the system is approved and installed.
The last stage of software development life cycle is maintenance and at this point, the
development cycle is almost coming to an end. This stage in which operation and maintenance is
done is quite important as users finds out bugs that were not been able to find during testing. In
case any errors or defects occurs then it must be resolved as soon as possible so that new
development cycles be started.
Analysis and discussion
Role of IT in the success or failure of a business
Decision making
By using the information technology if Savoy hotel can get relevant information, and
they can take right decision then it will contribute in the success of the hotel. The information
technology has made the decision-making process very effective and efficient for both the Savoy
hotel and the customers. Through the information technology, Savoy can track the engagement
of the customers and also they can track the tasks and performance of their staff and according to
this they can make effective decisions regarding hiring and training.
Reviews through IT
Through information technology Savoy hotel can publish their good reviews which are given by
the customers which adds on to the success of the hotel but on the contrary if the reviews are
negative then it can contribute in the failure of the hotels. Therefore, Savoy hotels can get
success and failure both by this review system.

Communication and Collaboration
Information technology has made the communication within the Savoy hotel very
effective as the attendance and the performance of the staff can be kept in a software and can
also be analysed. Effective communication with the customers, suppliers and other stakeholders
through the information technology can contribute in the success of the hotel. In contrast to this
if not done properly then it can also lead to miscommunications and failure for the hotel.
Data protection
Data is the most important aspect of the hotels as important information related to staff
and the customers are therefore it must be kept safe and secure and to do this information
technology plays an important role. Savoy hotel can install cybersecurity for protecting their data
from hacking and this contributes in the success of the hotel and if not protected then it can leak
the confidential information which will lead to failure of the hotel.
Ethical and social issues associated with running businesses
Sexual harassment – In the Savoy hotels the staff which is hired consist of both males
and females therefore there are chances that harassment can exist. The Savoy hotels to overcome
this can set up a committee in their hotel to deal with this issue and also the hotel management
can implement zero tolerance policy for sexual harassment in the hotel.
Diversity & Discrimination – As Savoy hotels have staff which comes from different
backgrounds and have different behaviours therefore discrimination and diversity can exist in the
hotel. Therefore, Savoy hotels to curb the discrimination, they can educate the staff and also tell
them their rights while working in the hotel so that the staff are not exploited.
Health & Safety – Providing health and safety to the staff is the duty of the Savoy hotel
as their human resource are most important for the success and growth. The Savoy hotels to
overcome the issue of health and safety can train their staff about handling the complex
equipments. Also the management of Savoy hotel can provide clean drinking facilities to their
staff. And after the Covid-19 the Savoy hotel is keeping all the more precautions than before in
terms of sanitization.

Data protection – As in the modern format all the data of Savoy hotel is kept digitally in
software. There are higher chances of hacking or leaking therefore to resolve the issue faced by
Savoy hotel can implement cybersecurity and firewalls into their systems (Du. and et.al., 2018).
Networking technologies.
The network technology used in Savoy hotel is small cell network. It is one of the most
advanced network technology which is been installed by Savoy hotel. The network technology
used by Savoy Hotel is wireless and is among the finest and fast technologies. The objective
behind incorporating this network technology is to cover full mobile coverage throughout the
hotel also their aim was to improve the capacity because the hotel has to meet the high
expectations regarding the multi device usage. The small cell network technology was also used
to achieve satisfaction on the part of guests.
Different stages of software development life cycle.
As hotels are all using the information technology for their operations such as for
booking purpose, know the timings and date of check in and check out. Savoy hotels uses
software for different purposes (Kinyua, 2020). The software development life cycle is used to
design and develop a good quality software which helps in mapping different activities
performed on a software product which starts with inception and ends on retirement.
Firstly, a detailed analysis of the software is done and it is performed by the senior
members of the team and the main aim of this step for Savoy hotel is to identification of risk
associated with the project and to ensure quality assurance.
The next thing done for Savoy hotel is to architect the design of the project. At this step
certain standards are set to remove the flaws if any.
The third stage involves testing to find out the errors and faults in the project and the same is
removed. The defects in the project are tracked, reported and fixed at this stage.
Now the implementation is done to ensure that the software developed, is as per the
expectations and gives satisfaction.
And lastly maintenance of the software is done in which it is upgraded from time to time.
The up gradation is done to adapt to the changing environment.
Benefits and drawbacks of investing into Information technology

Information technology plays an important role in the operation of the hotels and
investing into this can both benefit the hotel and can also play as a con for the hotel. Information
technology in Savoy Hotel can improve the communication, reservation system and other
systems and it benefits both the customers and the hotel by investing into the IT.
As adopting the information technology the hotel can get a competitive edge over other
competitors in the market as Savoy hotel is providing an extra service and convenience to the
customers and also to its staff by investing into information technology (Chae, Koh. and Park,
2018).
By implementing information technology into the systems of Savoy hotels they can enhance the
customer experience.
The drawbacks of investing into information technology is that the data stored into the
system have a chance of getting hacked. Data is very crucial for Savoy hotel as it contains the
confidential information about the guests and customers. In short information technology suffers
from data privacy and security issues.
CONCLUSION
It can be concluded that the role of information technology is very important in the
success and failure of the Savoy hotel. Though IT Savoy hotels can take effective decisions, can
protect data of the staff and customers, communication within the hotel and their collaborations
is also enhanced through IT which determined the success and failure of the hotel to a greater
extent. The ethical and social issues associated with running the business are sexual harassment,
diversity and discrimination, health and safety and data protection. The networking technologies
consist of local area network, metropolitan area network, wide area network, personal area
network. There are various importance of social media to businesses which are increasing the
visibility and awareness, increasing their reach and it is cost effective. Lastly the stage of
software development life cycle was explained and it has stages which started from requirement
gathering and analysis, design Implementation testing, deployment, maintenance.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Bessen, J., 2017. Information technology and industry concentration.
Chae, H.C., Koh, C.E. and Park, K.O., 2018. Information technology capability and firm
performance: Role of industry. Information & Management. 55(5). pp.525-546.
Chen, S.C., Huang, C.C. and Cai, W.S., 2017. Integration of a low-profile, long-term
evolution/wireless wide area network monopole antenna into the metal frame of tablet
computers. IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation. 65(7). pp.3726-3731.
Du, M. and et.al., 2018. Big data privacy preserving in multi-access edge computing for
heterogeneous Internet of Things. IEEE Communications Magazine. 56(8). pp.62-67.
Evseeva, L.I., Obukhova, Y.O. and Tanova, A.G., 2017. Network technologies and the new
perception of communication. In 4th INTERNATIONAL MULTIDISCIPLINARY
SCIENTIFIC CONFERENCE ON SOCIAL SCIENCES & ARTS SGEM 2017 (pp. 57-
64).
Fitzgerald, L.F. and Cortina, L.M., 2018. Sexual harassment in work organizations: A view from
the 21st century.
Frijns, P., Bierwolf, R. and Zijderhand, T., 2018, November. Reframing security in
contemporary software development life cycle. In 2018 IEEE International Conference
on Technology Management, Operations and Decisions (ICTMOD) (pp. 230-236).
IEEE.
Ismailov, K.M., 2019. ICT BRING SUCCESS TO COMPANY'S ACTIVITY. In Современная
мировая экономика: проблемы и перспективы в эпоху развития цифровых
технологий и биотехнологии (pp. 54-56).
Kinyua, J., 2020. Cybersecurity in the Software Development Life Cycle. Cybersecurity for
Information Professionals: Concepts and Applications, p.1.
Kitsios, F. and Kamariotou, M., 2019, September. Digital business strategy and information
systems planning: determinants of success. In International Conference on Innovation
and Entrepreneurship (pp. 514-XX). Academic Conferences International Limited.
La Noue, G.R., 2020. Seeking Diversity, Selecting Discrimination. Academic Questions, pp.1-4.
Moro, S. and Rita, P., 2018. Brand strategies in social media in hospitality and
tourism. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management.
Nimri, R. and et.al., 2021. Management perceptions of sexual harassment of hotel room
attendants. Current Issues in Tourism. 24(3). pp.354-366.
Rainer, K., Prince, B. and Watson, H., 2017. Management Information Systems: moving
business forward. John Wiley & Sons.
Tajvidi, R. and Karami, A., 2017. The effect of social media on firm performance. Computers in
Human Behavior. p.105174.
Timonen, H. and Vuori, J., 2018, January. Visibility of work: how digitalization changes the
workplace. In Proceedings of the 51st Hawaii International Conference on System
Sciences.
Waititu, P., 2020. Adopting Online Internal Communication within Organisations. Jurnal
Pengajian Media Malaysia.22(2). pp.61-75.