Marks and Spencer: An Analysis of IT's Impact on Business Operations

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BABS FoundationUOSIIT Assignment
Assignment 2
IMPACT OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY ON BUSINESS OPERATIONS OF
MARKS AND SPENCER
Student ID:<Your Student ID>
BA in Business Studies(Foundation Year)
University of Suffolk
Date of Submission:<Date of Submission>
I declare that this assignment is all my own work and that I have acknowledged all materials
used from the published or unpublished works of other people. All references have been duly
cited.
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BABS FoundationUOSIIT Assignment
Executive Summary or Abstract
Information Technology and the various applications of it in the modern business context
have become integral components for the survival and success of businesses. In almost every
aspect of modern life, IT plays a crucial role. It may be said in this context that through the
application of IT, businesses are able to enhance their productivity and save effort, time, as
well as, money. With that in mind, the current assignment aims to analyse and elaborate the
impact of IT on the business operations of M&S. In doing so, this assignment identifies the
role of IT in the success or failure of M&S. It aims to find the ethical and social issues that
pertain to running business using technology. It aims to identify and differentiate between
different types of networking technologies. It aims to discuss the importance of Intranet and
Internet in the context of the chosen organisation. Furthermore, this assignment also aims to
list and elaboration the distinct stages of system development life cycle.
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BABS FoundationUOSIIT Assignment
Table of Contents
1.Introduction 4
1.1 Purpose 4
1.2 Background 4
2. Literature Review 4
2.1 Information Technology and its role in retail business 4
2.2 Networking Technology 5
2.3 Ethics and Social Issues of using technology 5
2.4 The importance of Intranet and Internet in business 6
3. Analysis and Discussion 6
3.1 Role of Information Technology in M&S 6
3.1.1 Types of different Information Systems that are used in M&S 7
3.2 Types of Networking Technologies that are used in M&S 7
3.3 Ethics and social issues in M&S 7
3.4 The importance of Intranet and Internet in M&S 7
3.5 List and explain the different stages of system development life cycle 7
4. Conclusions 7
5. References 8
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BABS FoundationUOSIIT Assignment
1.Introduction
1.1 Purpose
Information Technology and the various applications of it in the modern business context
have become integral components for the survival and success of businesses. In almost every
aspect of modern life, IT plays a crucial role. It may be said in this context that through the
application of IT, businesses are able to enhance their productivity and save effort, time, as
well as, money (Schwalbe, 2015). With that in mind, the current assignment aims to analyse
and elaborate the impact of IT on the business operations of M&S.
1.2 Background
The term “IT” was coined by the Harvard Business Review. The purpose behind naming the
term IT was to develop a clear differentiation among general-purpose computing machines
which could be programmed for accomplishing different tasks and purposively-built
machines developed to carry out a restricted range of functions. In general, IT refers to the
utilisation of any physical devices such as storage, networks and computer along with
infrastructure and procedures which facilitate the creation, processing, storing, securing and
exchanging almost every form of electronic data.
2. Literature Review
2.1 Information Technology and its role in retail business
Given the increased globalisation and increasing complexity of retail operations, from the
point-of-supply to the point-of-sale, the overall retail sector is increasingly spending on IT.
The application of different IT systems have enabled the retail sector in terms of managing
the complex operations. A key to gaining competitive advantage in the retail industry is
acquiring sufficient market knowledge along with having superior control of information and
data. With the expansion of markets, they are also becoming more complex. Thereby,
advanced retail information systems are being deployed in the industry to successfully
manage all the complicated transactions (Avgerou and Walsham, 2017). The transformation
of the IT capabilities have enabled retail businesses to enhance their response ability to
respond to critical situations more rapidly and flexibly. Additionally, retail firms are also able
to enhance their differentiation abilities to gather and analyse consumer information.
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BABS FoundationUOSIIT Assignment
Furthermore, the use of IT has also enabled retail stores to have a single work system which
enables them to use stocks most effectively which enhance business processes.
2.2 Networking Technology
Networking technology enables the users to exchange information among small and large
information systems (Schnoll, 2015). Networking technologies are primarily used by
educational institutions and businesses. The networking systems enable the end-users to
transmit data, messages, as well as, files via several channels such as emails. Additionally, on
the basis of the requirements of a firm, they are also able to share information through
intranet or internet connections. The different types of networking technologies that are used
by businesses in general include LAN (Local Area Network), WLAN (Wireless Local Area
Network), WAN (Wide Area Network) and SAN (Storage/Server/System Area Network).
The WAN and LAN are basically the fundamental specifications of area-based networks. The
other types of area networks have been emerged with the advancement of technology.
2.3 Ethics and Social Issues of using technology
A total of five key moral dimensions tie together the social, as well as, the ethical issues in
the context of the information society. These dimensions include quality of life,
accountability and control, information rights and obligations, system quality, as well as,
property rights and obligations. On the existing social laws and arrangements, three key
technological trends have put the maximum amount of ethical pressure. Firstly, due to the
rapidly increasing affordability and usability of information systems, more and more
businesses are resorting to deploy several IT functions within their business operations. This
increasing reliability on the critical systems implies an increased vulnerability in terms of
poor quality of data and system errors (Alimudin et al. 2018). The advancements in the
context of data storage techniques have allowed the multiplication of databases on individuals
that are maintained both by public and private firms. This paves the way for more effectively
and cheaply violating individual privacy. Lastly, the advancements in the context of data
analysis techniques have allowed governments and private agencies to profile individuals to
identify their tastes and habits to develop dossiers of thorough information about the users.
This is an area of increasing concern as both the government and private institutions can have
access to sensitive data about the users and the data may be violated by other individuals
(Royakkers et al. 2018).
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BABS FoundationUOSIIT Assignment
2.4 The importance of Intranet and Internet in business
In the context of the retail sector, the digital communication needs of the organisation are
served by the presence of Intranet. The presence of Intranet allows businesses to securely
store, access and develop electronic materials. In terms of efficiency, replacing obsolete
business solutions with Intranet can provide massive benefits by eliminating errors from
business processes and speeding up the flow of work (Yang et al. 2017). On the other hand,
the Internet is mainly used by companies to gather data pertaining to the market and interact
with the clients, government, consumers, other players within the sectors which increases
their awareness of the market. In modern businesses, the internet has become a major source
of marketing and selling products and services to customers, transforming potential
customers into actual customers and gathering feedback from the consumers to resolve their
queries and doubts.
3. Analysis and Discussion
3.1 Role of Information Technology in M&S
In the context of M&S, Information Technology plays a critical role. The first role is point-
of-sale. Due to the application of different IT systems, M&S has successfully been able to
eliminate the need for customers to stand in long queues. Additionally, M&S has successfully
implemented different contactless payment systems involving NFC or RFID technology
which have allowed the customers to buy services and products from anywhere, anytime. The
second role is customer services. Through the implementation of IT systems, M&S has been
able to provide the customers with a more personalised shopping experience. Additionally, it
has also enabled the company to interact with the customers more closely and understand
their demands and wants. IT systems have also allowed the organisation to effectively
manage their inventory. The inventory management system of M&S involves keeping track
of the inventory through checking the purchase cycle which has provided significant
assistance to the management by offering real-time data pertaining to the products
(Ramanathan et al. 2017). This has also enabled the company in terms of effectively reducing
the massive costs and time that needed to be invested in inventory management previously.
Lastly, price auditing has always been a costly and time-consuming business operation. The
use of IT systems in M&S stores have allowed the staff members to more accurately,
efficiency and reliably check the prices of the products automatically by scanning the
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BABS FoundationUOSIIT Assignment
products which have significantly reduced the cost and time involvement and increased the
credibility of the company from the perspectives of the consumers.
3.1.1 Types of different Information Systems that are used in M&S
Several IT systems are used in M&S including the Management Information System,
Inventory Tracking and Management System, Barcode Scanner System, Contactless Payment
System and Automated Receipt System among others. Furthermore, the company also uses
networking technologies for both extrinsic and intrinsic digital communication and
information gathering.
3.2 Types of Networking Technologies that are used in M&S
Three key types of networking technologies are used within Marks and Spencer. These
networking technologies include WAN, WLAN and SAN. As a retailer that serves several
nations across different continents, the WAN or Wide Area Network allows M&S to maintain
telecommunications across its different outlets and offices. The WAN network used by M&S
is private to the interlinked parts of the business. The Wireless LAN network allows M&S to
maintain a connectivity among the devices in its stores and facilitates wireless
communication. In this context, it may be said that the organisation strives to achieve a
positive technological transformation which would allow the organisation to deliver digital-
first retailing to the consumers, colleagues and shareholders across their offices and stores.
The SAN or the System/Server/Storage Area Network, on the other hand, is a local network
that is designed with the intention of allowing interconnectivity of high speed within cluster
environments which include storage to storage, processor to processor and server to server.
3.3 Ethics and social issues in M&S
M&S uses IT systems in order to store, access and use information of customers as inputs.
The several IT systems that are used by the organisation allow it to store information
regarding the names, locations and visiting patterns of the consumers, their credit or debit
card information among others. Having such types of sensitive data stored about the
customers contributes to the development of significant ethical and social issues. In case the
security frameworks of the organisation renders ineffective, the data regarding the customers
may be breached, subjected to theft and misuse by hackers or cybercriminals (Mason, 2017).
This is a significant violation of the private information of the consumers. Furthermore, there
is always a chance that an organisation would sell data to third parties in exchange for money
which would be a significant violation of the users trust and reliance on the company.
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BABS FoundationUOSIIT Assignment
3.4 The importance of Intranet and Internet in M&S
The use of the Internet and Intranet are vital for M&S in terms of maintaining interaction
among the staff members of the organisation, the clients, consumers and other concerned
parties and gathering data associated with the market to develop market awareness. Intranet
allows M&S to maintain an excellent level of digital interaction among the organisational
staff members which facilitate business processes through the enhancement of the decision-
making abilities. Furthermore, the staffs are also able to serve the customers more effectively
as through being digitally connected at all times, they are able to resolve the queries and
doubts of the consumers more satisfactorily (Dijkman et al. 2015). As a retail organisation,
the success of M&S solely depends on the demands and necessities of the customers.
Through gathering data pertaining the the purchasing behaviours and intentions of the
customers, and by interacting with potential consumers, they are able to closely analyse the
market demands and assess the necessities of the customers to be met. They are also able to
communicate with an extended potential consumer base through enhanced reach that is
facilitated by the presence of internet connectivity.
3.5 List and explain the different stages of system development life cycle
The System Development Life Cycle or SDLC involves seven key phases. In this context, it
may firstly be mentioned that SDLC allows the users to translate a newly-conceptualised
venture into a functional one. The seven stages of SDLC model include planning, system
analysis and requirements, system design, development, integration and testing,
implementation and operations and maintenance. Planning is the first step which determines
the scope of the issue and the relevant solutions in addition to the necessary resources and
potential benefits to be achieved (Shortell, 2015). The second phase allows the R&D teams to
determine the functional requisites associated with the solution. This phase also involves
system analysis which facilitates the assessment of the necessities of the end-users. The third
stage is associated with the description of the needed specifications, operations, as well as,
features in detail which would fulfil the operational requisites. The fourth phase is
development which involves the commencement of the production and the installation of the
system (Isaias and Issa, 2015). The fifth phase allows the teams to integrate the systems and
test the systems to ensure their quality in terms of meeting the pre-developed objectives. The
sixth phase is associated with moving the components and the data from the tested system to
a new system through a cutover that is direct. The last step, or the operations and
maintenance phase allows the end-users to be able to fine-tune the developed system.
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BABS FoundationUOSIIT Assignment
4. Conclusions
This assignment has clarified the role of IT in the context of the retail industry. Through
analysing the different types of systems used in the context of the chosen organisation, it has
been possible for the researcher to evaluate the key benefits and advantages that have been
obtained by the organisation through the application of the IT systems. In addition to that, the
assignment has also revealed several ethical and social issues that have risen in the context of
the chosen organisation due to the utilisation of different information technology systems. As
a concluding thought, it may be said that IT plays a vital role in the development, expansion
and successful execution of business activities and operations.
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BABS FoundationUOSIIT Assignment
5. References
Alimudin, A., Fallani, A.Z., Setiawan, M.I., Sukoco, A., Mudjanarko, S.W. and Abdullah, D.,
2018, November. The Role of Information Technology in Developing Competitive Strategies
for Retail Businesses. In Journal of Physics: Conference Series (Vol. 1114, No. 1, p.
012064). IOP Publishing.
Avgerou, C. and Walsham, G. eds., 2017. Information technology in context: Studies from the
perspective of developing countries: Studies from the perspective of developing countries.
Routledge.
Dijkman, R.M., Sprenkels, B., Peeters, T. and Janssen, A., 2015. Business models for the
Internet of Things. International Journal of Information Management, 35(6), pp.672-678.
Isaias, P. and Issa, T., 2015. Information system development life cycle models. In High
Level Models and Methodologies for Information Systems (pp. 21-40). Springer, New York,
NY.
Mason, R.O., 2017. Four ethical issues of the information age. In Computer Ethics (pp. 41-
48). Routledge.
Ramanathan, U., Subramanian, N. and Parrott, G., 2017. Role of social media in retail
network operations and marketing to enhance customer satisfaction. International Journal of
Operations & Production Management, 37(1), pp.105-123.
Royakkers, L., Timmer, J., Kool, L. and van Est, R., 2018. Societal and ethical issues of
digitization. Ethics and Information Technology, 20(2), pp.127-142.
Schnoll, H.J., 2015. E-Government: Information, Technology, and Transformation:
Information, Technology, and Transformation. Routledge.
Schwalbe, K., 2015. Information technology project management. Cengage Learning.
Shortell, T.M. ed., 2015. INCOSE Systems Engineering Handbook: A Guide for System Life
Cycle Processes and Activities. John Wiley & Sons.
Yang, K.P., Dejean, R., Clapp, C., Banks, R., Raygadas, D. and Bendanas, I., 2017. Network
Security Practical Concepts, Importance, and Potential Implications. Network Security, 4(10).
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