The Role of Information Technology in HSBC's Business Operations

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of the role of Information Technology (IT) in modern business, using HSBC as a case study. It begins with an abstract and introduction highlighting the significance of IT in enhancing business operations and facilitating globalization. A literature review establishes the foundation for the analysis. The report then delves into the impact of IT on market research, customer satisfaction, resource management, and daily operations. It identifies and discusses ethical and social issues such as security, privacy, identity theft, and online banking threats faced by HSBC. Furthermore, the report differentiates between various networking technologies, including LAN, MAN, and WAN, and explores the importance of social media in understanding market trends, identifying potential customers, and discovering influencers. Finally, the report outlines the stages of the system development life cycle, from planning to operations and management, and concludes with a summary of the key findings and their implications for HSBC's business success.

Individual report
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ABSTRACT
Information technology pays a vital role in modern era. It not only makes individual's life
easy but also make functions of business easier. It helps firm in decision making, effective
customer satisfaction and brings globalisation (Rad, Nilashi and Dahlan, 2018). But there are
several issues which banks like HSBC face like ethical and social problems which affect running
of business. Ethical complexities may include security and privacy concerns while social issues
include identity theft, hacking, etc. There are many network technologies that connect different
devices together to send or receive data. These network technology includes LAN, WAN and
MAN. Social media has a distinct and important role in working of the business as it may help in
analysing competition, discovering social media influencers, market research, etc. The system
development cycle is used to develop a quality system that manages decision making process. It
has seven phases like planning, analysing, designing, development, integration and testing,
implementation and at the end is operations and management.
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Contents
ABSTRACT.....................................................................................................................................2
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................4
LITERATURE REVIEW................................................................................................................4
ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION...................................................................................................5
Role of information technology in success of business.............................................................5
Ethical and social issues that pertain to running business...........................................................6
Identify and differentiate between different networking technologies.......................................7
Discussimportance of social media in HSBC Plc.......................................................................8
List and explain different stage of system development life cycle............................................9
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................10
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................12
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INTRODUCTION
Information Technology plays a prevalent role in everyone's life. This is an technical era
where people find ways to do work in short span of time and this is possible only by
development of IT (Melián-González and Bulchand-Gidumal, 2017). Internet plays an ample
role in business world where it allows companies to function more efficiently and actively with
instant storage of date, computer driven devices, maintenance of privacy and many more. One of
the well-known organisation chosen for discuss is HSBC Holdings PLC, which is a multinational
investment bank company and situated in London, UK. This report deals with role of IT in
business world together with social and ethical issues pertaining to it and importance of social
media in business. Further it provides types of networking technologies and different stages of
system development life cycle.
LITERATURE REVIEW
According to Adib. (2015),“information technology is only approach which provides
opportunity for business enterprises to analyse specific data and suitable plans for growth of
business. It also provides different tools to solve complex problems and plans which helps in
future growth of business”.
As per the views of Oster. (2019), “It is a responsibility of business entities to develop
ethics and code of conduct, so that each and every organisational member should abide and
execute. Fundamental ethical issues for company incorporates promoting integrity based
conducts whilecomplex issues include empathetic decision-making, accommodating diversity,
compliance and governance consistence with core values of a company”.
On the authority of Singh. (2020),”IT considered as a computer network with which
different computers are connected via a transmission medium like wire, cable etc.” there are 3
major types of networks named as LAN, MAN and VAN.
It is says by Ahuja. (2020) that,” Volume of consumers of banking sector on broader
platform of social media are too huge to disregard that makes social media a wide platform for
interesting and impressive marketing of banking sector products and services”. Social media
helps banks in identifying potential customers and social media influencers, analysing
competitors, identifying growth opportunities for business, understanding market needs etc.
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As stated by Alwan.(2015),” System development life cycle is acombination of six
phases that develop a hardware system or a software system or both to meet needs or
expectations of customers. ”
ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION
Role of information technology in the success of business
Today, in this modern era which is also digital age, innovation is a great way to success
in business. A wave of information technology has changed the perspective and style of working
for business where optimum level of technology is important to be used for long term business
growth. Investing in technology helps banking sector in making the work easier and faster with
storing large number of data in computers or software (Brooks and Pomerantz 2017). HSBC is
a reputed investment bank with hoding in different locations of countries use software which
helps in sorting their work and focuses on providing quick service to its customers which
results in increased market share and better financial figures of business.
IT plays a pervasive role in success of business, which are as follows-1. Market research- For making a right decision, a critical market research is necessary. IT
plays an important role in market research where it can be easily done through online
surveys, blogs, forum, etc. which not only saves time and effort of business personnel but
also brings speed and accuracy in making right decision through market research. A right
decision can lead to right growth of HSBC bank where technology helps in taking right
decision. HSBC researches on various investment opportunities for its customers so that
there is no lacuna in effective working of the bank.2. Customer satisfaction and support- Effective communication channel between banks
and account holders is necessary to understand their problems and finding quick solutions
for it. The use of emails, webinar, social media, websites, etc. helps in contacting with
them to understand their demands and services. This gives customer satisfaction and
business runs effectively with continuous growth and profit (Ehrenfeld 2017). The
services like online banking, mobile banking, use of ATM, interest on fixed deposits, etc.
results in better customer satisfaction.3. Resource management and Globalisation- Top level management cannot manage its
resources like financial, Human resource, etc. without the use of technology as it involves
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complex process when using it manually. A user friendly solutions like cloud
technology and internet virtually help top level management to monitor their
organisation through the use of laptops, computers, etc. This helps management to take
decisions in favour of success of business and helps in organisational growth. The Human
Resource Information Technology has helped the companies in effective working as it
allows user friendly techniques to operate the other levels of management.
4. More efficient daily operations- A good centralized company database or a business
software makes work easier and quicker for HSBC bank. A banking business requires
regular update of data and this can be done through the use of technology as it helps in
doing daily operations of banks efficiently.
Ethical and social issues that pertain to running business
HSBC Holdings use technologies like cloud softwares, compurters etc. to achieve their
goals and objectives more easily. But there can be infringement of rights by use of technology
which can lead to certain ethical and social problems. These issues are hurdles in functioning of
business and affect the working of it.
Ethical issues – These are internal matters which may be faced by HSBC Holdings which affect
its working for short or long time. Some of ethical issues are as follows- Security- Banks store all personal information of their employees and customers in the
name of security. When there is excessive spying or observation on any employee, it
leads to ethical issue because a company cannot track any customer's usage and if it does
so, it becomes liable to justify its level of surveillance. Surveillance on customers must
be in low level so that it becomes ethically acceptable.
 Privacy- individual privacy is a major concern nowadays. Every banking business
provides mobile banking which makes work easier for both banks and customers. Mobile
banking may track the personal movement of people like internet usage, contact list etc.
and misuses them, then it becomes unethical and thereby leads to ethical issue for
running of business (Xiang 2018).
Social issues – It arises from external factors which may affect business socially. Some of the
social issues faced by HSBC Holdings are as follows- Identity Theft- When personal information of any customer or employee is used by
third party by fraud for bitter purpose it is identity theft. Banks need to be very careful
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in storing data of its employees so that it cannot be used for malicious purpose. This is
one of the major social issue which banks faces nowadays.
 Online banking- Online banking may not be safe sometimes as mobile phone or
system used by any person may be hacked by unauthorised person which may lead to
theft of money and personal information. This is also a major social issue faced by
banks which affects their smooth running (Vanpoucke and et. Al 2017).
Identify and differentiate between different networking technologies
Networking technologies helps in transmission of data digitally with the help of systems.
These can be used by institutions and organisations for exchanging informations. It requires
installation, configuration and troubleshooting of technology.
Network technologies can be classified on the basis of transmission and scale. On basis of
transmission, there are point to point and multi points network technology and on basis of scale,
there are mainly WAN, LAN and MAN.
LAN (Local Area Network)- Devices like computer, laptops and mobiles are used in this
technology that are connected in small range from 100m to 10km.
MAN (Metropolitan Area Network)- When many LANs are connected together through a
network device, it is called bridge and it is MAN. Its range is from 10km- 100km.
WAN (Wide Area Network)- When many networks are connected together through network
device, it is known as route and is called WAN. Its range is up to 100,000km. (Hendon, Powell
and Wimmer, 2017).
BASIS LAN MAN WAN
Meaning It connects group of
computers in small
area.
It connects large
regions like cities.
It connects large
localities like
countries.
Ownership LANs ownership is
private
Its ownership can be
both private or public
Its ownership can
also be both public
or private.
Design and
maintenance
Its design and
maintenance is easy
Its design and
maintenance is difficult
Its design and
maintenance is
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BASIS LAN MAN WAN
difficult.
Propagation delay Its propagation delay is
short.
Its propagation delay is
moderate.
Its propagation
delay is long.
Speed It provides high speed.
(Benitez, Llorens, and
Braojos, 2018)
It provides moderate
speed.
It provides low
speed as compared
to LAN and WAN.
Used by It is mainly used by
schools, colleges, etc.
It is used by cities or
towns.
It is used by
countries.
Allows For communication, It
allows single pair of
device
It allows multiple
devices to connect
together.
It allows huge group
of computers to
communicate at the
same time.
Fault tolerance LAN has more fault
tolerance.
MAN has less fault
tolerance.
WAN also has less
fault tolerance.
Congestion It has less congestion It has more congestion
than LAN
It has more
congestion than
MAN.
Discuss importance of social media in HSBC Plc.
Social media is computer based technology which establishes facility of exchange of
ideas, thoughts and information easy and quick through development of a network (Brink and et.
al., 2017). Social media plays significant role in success of a business entity by sharing
information and services on a broad platform. Importance of social media in HSBC Plc are
discussed with following points:
 Understanding market :- Understanding needs and expectations of market is important
task for any enterprise. Social media helps HSBC Plc in identifying and analysing
preferences of market and customers (Howell, Beers and Doorn, 2018). This leads to
development of new products and services and modification in existing products and
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services to meet expectations. Social media also helps HEBS Plc in categorisation of
separate target groups.
 Searching potential customers:- In today's environment customers are more technology
and time savvy. Social media helps HSBC Plc in identifying potential customers who
needs their products and services. Company can also get help from online discussions on
social media forums. For example someone is chatting about which bank is best for
taking education loan needed to submit fee of institution. Thus, social media help HSBC
Plc in discovering potential customers.
 Discovering social media influencers :- Social media influencers are people who
regularly active and have huge list of followers (Liu and et. al., 2016). Review from these
helps to promote products and services of HSBC Plc on social media without investing
huge money on advertisement. Social media helps company in finding out influencers
who promoting business on a global platform.
 Eyes on customer feedback :- Knowing what customer thinks about products and
services is necessary for the growth of business of HSBC Plc and for which company
conducted customer surveys timely. Customer shares reviews and opinions about product
and services on social media. Thus, social media plays important role in keeping regular
eyes on feedbacks of customers.
 Analysing competition :- Social media helps HSBC Plc in identifying competition
within industry. Every company uses social media platform to promote their product and
services. This shows all information about their products & services and also opinions &
feedback of customers about them (Mauerhoefer, Strese and Brettel, 2017). Thus, social
media plays important role in analysing strengths and weaknesses of competitors of
HSBC Plc. This helps in making business strategies differ from competitors. For instance
using social media helps the company through customer feedbacks. This help in knowing
services demanded by people and it also shows the position of competitors. Thus,
identifying the customer need and competitors stability helps in offering better services
and gain a competitive advantages.
List and explain different stage of system development life cycle.
A system development life cycle is an interactive process which provides a framework
for technical and non-technical activities to develop a quality system that manages decision-
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making progress and meet expectations of business (Navío-Marco and et. al., 2018) There are 7
phases of a system development life cycle can be introduced as follows :
1. Planning :- It is first and most crucial phase of a system development cycle, which is
mire emphasised on identifying problem, analysing objectives and resources.
Afterwards, develop a plan for achievement of objectives of business. All essential
elements such as- time, cost, resources and benefits are involved in this phase.2. Analysis of system and requirement:- Second stage of system development life cycle is
to work on resources. In this phase possible solutions are made and identify which one is
best suited for end objectives (Singh and Teng, 2016). Need of consumer is analysed in
this stage to check new system can meet their requirements.3. Designing system :- Next stage in system development life cycle process is system
design. In this phase plans are delivered to systems architect for working on system
design. Essential components such as- hardware, software and network capabilities are
considered in this stage of SDLC.4. Development :- The actual development of software starts from this stage of SDLC.
Blue print of system is moves towards active development of system in this phase
(Vysotska, Chyrun and Chyrun, 2016). This system is developed and installed and
training is given to end users of system.5. Integration and testing :- Next phase in SDLC is integration and testing of system.
Testing is done to find out errors in system until end user finds it comfortable and
acceptable. Verifications and validations helps in ensuring successful completion of
system or program.6. Implementation :- System is actually installed in this stage. In this stage codes of
program are written by software developers where people can use it. This is a lengthy
phase of overall process. The
7. Operations and maintenance :- Last phase in process of SDLC is considered time to
time maintenance and up-gradation of software in respect to feedback of customers.
CONCLUSION
It is summarised from entire report that information technology plays important role in
banking industry. It helps in marketing research, customer satisfaction, allocation of resources
etc. It is advised to considered essential ethical and social values in their policies and procedures
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for long sustainability of business. Three major networks (LAN, MAN, WAN) shows effective
and smooth functioning of HSBC Plc. Social media plays important role in achievement of
business objectives of company. Development system life cycle also plays significant role in
successful development of quality system that manages decision-making and meets the
expectations of HSBC Plc.
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REFERENCES
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Brink and et. al., 2017. Bits and bytes: uture of radiology lies in informatics and information
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Brooks, D.C. and Pomerantz, J., 2017. ECAR Study of Undergraduate Students and Information
Technology. 2017. EDUCAUSE.
Ehrenfeld, J.M., 2017. Wannacry, cybersecurity and health information technology: A time to
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Hendon, M., Powell, L. and Wimmer, H., 2017. Emotional intelligence and communication
levels in information technology professionals. Computers in Human Behavior.71.
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Howell, R., van Beers, C. and Doorn, N., 2018. Value capture and value creation: Role of
information technology in business models for frugal innovations in Africa.
Technological Forecasting and Social Change. 131. pp.227-239.
Liu and et. al., 2016. Configuration between supply chain integration and information
technology competency: A resource orchestration perspective. Journal of Operations
Management. 44. pp.13-29.
Mauerhoefer, T., Strese, S. and Brettel, M., 2017. Impact of information technology on new
product development performance. Journal of Product Innovation Management. 34(6).
pp.719-738.
Melián-González, S. and Bulchand-Gidumal, J., 2016. A model that connects information
technology and hotel performance. Tourism Management. 53. pp.30-37.
Navío-Marco and et. al., 2018. Progress in information technology and tourism management: 30
years on and 20 years after internet-Revisiting Buhalis & Law's landmark study about
eTourism. Tourism management. 69. pp.460-470.
Rad, M.S., Nilashi, M. and Dahlan, H.M., 2018. Information technology adoption: a review of
literature and classification. Universal Access in Information Society. 17(2). pp.361-
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Singh, A. and Teng, J.T., 2016. Enhancing supply chain outcomes through Information
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Vanpoucke and et. al 2017. Leveraging impact of supply chain integration through information
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