Strategic Decision Making in a Store Chain

The assignment requires analyzing the strategic decisions made by top managerial levels in a store chain to increase sales. It involves discussing the importance of security and information protection, as well as the need for project management information systems within the organization. The assignment also touches on the theme of gaining a competitive edge over other stores by providing better promotional offers and innovative products.

Running head: USE OF IT SYSTEMS IN BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS
Use of IT Systems in Business Organizations
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author’s note:

USE OF IT SYSTEMS IN BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS1
Executive Summary
This report focusses on the reports of the business of different supermarkets. They are trying
to implement IT systems within the business processes. The IT systems would be able to help
in the business processes of the sector. The IT systems would be able to contribute to
improving the operations of the business in the retail industry. This report would help in
evaluating the IT systems and thus covers a wide range of problems in the sector.

USE OF IT SYSTEMS IN BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS2
Table of Contents
Report 1 Scenario.......................................................................................................................3
Introduction................................................................................................................................3
Task 1: Discussion on Tesco Supermarket and its Functional Areas....................................3
1.1) P1....................................................................................................................................3
Uses of IT system to Analyze Tesco Supermarket in its Different Mentioned
Functionalities:.......................................................................................................................3
1.2) P2....................................................................................................................................5
Features of Database Management system to achieve the below-mentioned objectives in
Tesco Supermarket.................................................................................................................5
Task 2: The Ways in which IT Systems help the Tesco Supermarket...................................7
Report 2 Scenario.....................................................................................................................10
Task 3: Main features of Database Management System (DBMS) to improve the Business
Operations, Performance and Sustainability of a Store Chain.............................................10
Task 4: Different IT solutions to overcome various business problems experienced in
workplace.............................................................................................................................11
References................................................................................................................................13

USE OF IT SYSTEMS IN BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS3
Report 1 Scenario
Introduction
Tesco Supermarket is one of the leading retail sectors in the United Kingdom. The
supermarket helps in serving their customers through their retail stores and also through the
online market. The Tesco supermarket was founded in the year 1919 by Jack Cohen as a
group of market stalls. The supermarket business has expanded over the years and has
covered several areas such as clothing, electronics, petrol, software and books. The
operations of the supermarket business are the largest in the area, and they are planning to
introduce IT systems within their business operations. With the rise in globalization in the
retail sector, it has been seen that IT plays a significant role in the activities of the
supermarket business. The use of information technology could be helpful in speeding the
business processes and would help in delivering several benefits of saving the cost of the
company.
Task 1: Discussion on Tesco Supermarket and its Functional Areas
1.1) P1
Uses of IT system to Analyze Tesco Supermarket in its Different Mentioned
Functionalities:
The Tesco supermarket should implement IT systems within the different functional
areas of their business such as sales, marketing, finance and distribution. A proper
information system within the supermarket business chain would be helpful in supporting the
operation of the business, storage of the business records, payroll system, preparing and
storing the documents and many other functions. The implementation of the information
systems within the Tesco supermarket would also contribute to controlling and monitoring
the various activities within the business sector. The proper use of IT systems within the

USE OF IT SYSTEMS IN BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS4
Tesco supermarket could be helpful in making appropriate decisions for the benefit of the
business within the supermarket (Beynon-Davies 2013).
The introduction of the IT systems within the Tesco supermarket would have a
significant impact on the business strategies. These could also help in the management of the
finance, sales, distribution and marketing of the daily figure of sales within the supermarket.
Tesco supermarket has the potential to implement several strategies and measures within their
areas of business.
Use of IT Systems for Operation in Business: The information systems, which could
support the Tesco supermarket are known as transaction processing systems (TPSs). These
are meant to automate the activities of recurring and hence ensure that the operations are
performed accurately and speedily. At the operational level within the Tesco supermarket,
Tesco makes use of electronic data interchange (EDI) to manage the daily control of their
stocks, cash bills and sales amount per region. The purpose of EDI systems within the
supermarket business would also help to reorder their stock of items automatically from their
suppliers. They acquire their supplies from over 1200 different kinds of suppliers (Van Der
Aalst, La Rosa and Santoro 2016).
The main concerns of the Tesco supermarket at the operational level of business are
transaction processing and inventory management. The systems of inventory management
can assist the executive managers of Tesco with every aspect of the control of their stock. A
new kind of technology, which is known as Radio Frequency Identification (RFID)
technology would be able to keep an accurate count of the quantities of each product. Other
systems confirm that the shelves of the supermarket should be kept stocked.
The speedy checkout systems within the Tesco supermarket along with the self-
checkout scanners ensure the efficient processing of transactions. With the implementation of

USE OF IT SYSTEMS IN BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS5
IT systems within the Tesco supermarket, they can keep track of the number of customers in
the store at a particular time (Sekaran and Bougie 2016).
Use of IT Systems for the Analysis of Data: Based on the IT systems, which would
be installed in the Tesco supermarket business, they would be able to keep track of the
purchasing choices of an individual. The IT systems, which are connected at the time of
checkout of the items help in deciding and analyses the data collected. They keep track of the
sales of the supermarket. The finance of the company is also analyzed with the proper
management of the IT systems. The IT systems should be efficient enough to keep a record of
all the activities within the supermarket business chain (Tang and Zhang 2013).
Use of IT systems for Decision Making: The managerial levels of the Tesco
supermarket deals with the decision making processes and activities of the business. The
operations performed in the market are considered to be semi-structured. Repeatable patterns
and some established methods also categorise them. The focus of the supermarket business
chain is on the tactical making of decisions. The primary objective of the decision making
process is to improve the effectiveness of the business of the organization. At the managerial
level, the resolution supporting systems would help the managers of the company to monitor,
control and assist in the activities of decision making (Power, Sharda and Burstein 2015).
1.2) P2
Features of Database Management system to achieve the below-mentioned objectives in
Tesco Supermarket
Increase Profitability using DBMS – The used database management systems
within the Tesco supermarket would help Tesco to deliver strong margins of profit for the
supermarket. The managers at Tesco supermarket make use of essential IT systems to
manage, access and to run their business efficiently. The database systems would help in

USE OF IT SYSTEMS IN BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS6
providing the records of the past, present and future stock of materials. With the help of this
system, it can keep a record of the monthly statements of the expenses and the profits gained
by the organization. Based on the sales figure of the store, they would keep knowing about
the sales figure of the store (Rainer et al. 2013).
Improve Productivity using DBMS – A proper database management systems
within the Tesco supermarket would keep a hold of the details and quantities of the stock of
their products. The database management systems would replace the manual methods of the
inventory control, and this would reduce the cost, time and efforts of the supermarket.
In the previous methods, staff used to keep track of the quantities of the store. With
the introduction of database management systems, the stock levels would be automatically
updated in real time. The improved levels of the stock help in ensuring that there are adequate
amounts of products in the supermarket whenever a customer would be purchasing. The
increase in the productivity would help in serving customers and also increase the customer
satisfaction (Chang 2016).
Improve Efficiency using DBMS – The database systems within the Tesco
supermarket would be helpful in controlling the efficiency and profitability of the business
performance. The database provides the supermarket business with an updated and accurate,
updated idea of the levels of stock to meet the demand of the customers for each product.
This would ensure that there are enough stocks and there would be no problem of
overstocking of products (Pearlson, Saunders and Galletta 2016).
Saving Time/ Resources/ Money using DBMS – With the induction of database
systems within Tesco supermarket, it would be helpful in avoiding the time of delivery of
products. As the database systems would mostly manage everything within the business,
hence the use of human resources would be lessened to a certain level. Therefore the money,

USE OF IT SYSTEMS IN BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS7
which would have been spent on the workforce resource, would be saved to a certain degree.
This money would be spent on the maintenance of the hardware and software of the IT
systems within the supermarket (Bralia and Frosolini 2014).
Excellent Customer Service using DBMS – Developing a good relationship with
their customers is a significant area of focus for the Tesco supermarket business chain. With
the help of database systems, customers would not have to wait in long queues at the time of
paying their bills. The list of the purchased items by an individual would be stored in their
database systems, which would ensure calculation of the prices quickly and thus the customer
would receive the number of their bills. This would help in providing faster checkout of the
payment systems and therefore develop a good relationship with their customers.
Effective Marketing using DBMS – With the help of database systems within the
Tesco supermarket, there is a high possibility of effectiveness in the marketing sector. The
data would be collected and stored in the database systems. The data collected, which would
be analysed, could be used to determine a series of purposes. Based on the parsing of the
data, the knowledge within the database would be helpful in shaping the strategy of the
business of the organisation (Coronel and Morris 2016).
Task 2: The Ways in which IT Systems help the Tesco Supermarket
2.1 Features of Transaction Processing System (TPS), Knowledge-based Management
System (KBS) and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems:
The main features of the TPS, KBS and CRM systems within the Tesco supermarket
are described as:
 The TPS within the Tesco supermarket helps in the processing of different kinds of
information for all the business transactions. This system involves the collection of
the information about the products of the store, modification of the product related

USE OF IT SYSTEMS IN BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS8
information and the recovery of the operations of the data. The TPS systems ensure
reliability, performance and consistency.
 The KBS systems help in the generating various business related information in the
Tesco supermarket. The system would assist in increasing the staff performance,
client satisfaction and quality of the service.
 The CRM systems within the Tesco supermarket would help in developing better
relationships with their customers. The IT systems within the supermarket would
assist in gaining proper feedback from the customers. This would help them in
deciding the areas in which they are lacking, and thus they would improve their
business productivity (Khodakarami and Chan 2014).
2.2 Different Methods of Data Processing related to Tesco Supermarket
There are different methods of data processing within the Tesco supermarket. The
data is captured within the business systems. With the implementation of the IT systems
within the supermarket, different methods have been developed to process the data. The
single click is an Optical Character Recognition (OCR) tool, which is implemented within the
Tesco supermarket. The OCR technology helps in capturing consistent machine processed
data. Bar Code Recognition method of data processing is also a valuable tool, which is used
for trading of the stocks within the Tesco supermarket. The barcodes would be a proof of the
delivery notes, gift cards and many other products.
2.3 Ensuring data security and data transfer security in Tesco supermarket using IT
system
The concept of data security deals with ensuring that the data would not be subjected
to unauthorized alteration. The safety of the data in the Tesco supermarket is highly essential.
This would be highly useful as the data of the customers have to highly confidential.
Customers rely on the supermarket IT systems for their privacy of the data. Hence the Tesco

USE OF IT SYSTEMS IN BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS9
supermarket would have to ensure the proper security of the data of the customers. Any leak
of the private information of the customer's data would prove fatal to the reputation of the
supermarket.
2.4 Ensuring data protection in Tesco Supermarket using IT system
Tesco supermarket should keep the security systems at their priority as with the
introduction of the IT systems. They ensure the protection of the data with a wide variety of
tools and techniques. The IT systems within the Tesco supermarkets provide email alerts,
anti-phishing strategy, monitoring of the accounts. Cloud based security experts are also
being hired to provide better security systems for the business-related transactions within the
IT systems of the Tesco supermarket.
2.5 Ways to ensure accurate data collection and validation in Tesco Supermarket
With the introduction of database systems and IT systems within the Tesco
supermarket, the methods to collect the data have been improved gradually. The IT systems
validate the data obtained from the different products, which are purchased by the customers.
This ensures that the products are provided to the customers in a hassle-free manner.

USE OF IT SYSTEMS IN BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS10
Report 2 Scenario
Task 3: Main features of Database Management System (DBMS) to improve the
Business Operations, Performance and Sustainability of a Store Chain
The Advantages are described as follows:
 With the help of DBMS, the store chain could diagnose and create advantages based
on cost and differentiation.
 The DBMS could help in keeping a track record of the list of the items that are
arriving at the store, their prices, the stock of those products that are put in the trays
and many others (Ross 2016).
 The DBMS could also increase the efficiency of the business. All the data on the
purchases of the products of the store chain would be recorded whenever a customer
purchases the products. With the help of this, the store would also keep a record
whether a particular product is available at the store at that specific point in time.
 The DBMS in the store chain would keep a real time check of the products, which are
held on display at the store. They would help in tracking the products as when the
product is purchased by a customer, the stock of that particular product, the expiry
date of the product and various other kinds of information of other products (Laudon
and Laudon 2016).
The Disadvantages are described as follows:
 The IT systems though would keep track of each product could prove to be fatal at
times when the systems are subjugated to security risks.
 If the DBMS systems fail, there would be a massive problem of keeping a proper
track of the products.

USE OF IT SYSTEMS IN BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS11
 The track of the purchased items from the store chain would also be affected, and thus
this would affect the profitability of the store chain.
 If the DBMS fails for a prolonged period, then this would profoundly affect the
business of the store chain. They would not be able to track the activities of the store
chain (Musa, Gunasekaran and Yusuf 2014).
Task 4: Different IT solutions to overcome various business problems experienced in
the workplace
There are various suggestions and recommendations, which should be considered by
the business workplace to cover a range of problems:
 Storing and Managing a Large Volume of Data – The data of the different
customers, product related details and the records of the sales of the business are the
significant areas of concern for the business workplace. There should be proper
scheduling of the items, which are in stock. Web-based management systems such as
online tracking of each product should be taken into consideration (Sagiroglu and
Sinanc 2013).
 Communication and Sharing of Information – There are different kinds of
information, which are related to the details of the customers, the products in a
particular store chain and the aspects of the sales of the store within a specific period.
These details should be shared with the top managerial levels. Based on the shared
information, they would decide about taking proper steps to increase the sales of the
organization.
 Security and Information Protection – This is one of the critical aspect related to a
store chain. The details of various products of the store and also the customer details
is a significant area of concern for the business. They would not take any risk of
letting their data to leak from within the organization. Hence, maintenance of high

USE OF IT SYSTEMS IN BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS12
level of security such as proper IT security experts and anti-virus software for the
organization is a significant prospect.
 The Gain of a Competitive Edge over other stores - Based on the data collected by
the business within the store chain, the managerial levels would be able to take
necessary steps to implement various strategic moves for the betterment of the
industry of the store chain. They would try to provide better promotional offers to
their customers, which might be helpful in attracting the customers to their store. The
top-level managers within the store chain should also consider the different products
of the store. New and innovative products with better offers would be attracting
customers to purchase them. This would be a significant step in gaining a competitive
edge as compared to the other store chain (Christopher 2016).

USE OF IT SYSTEMS IN BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS13
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