In the final project for this course, you will imagine that you are an IT business analyst intern at Sharpe Style in the scenario provided and have been asked by the owner to research options for improving the business's performance through the use of technology.
Specifically, the owner wants to expand the business's retail presence into online sales and ensure a positive customer experience by incorporating intelligent systems into the website. You will create a business report for business owner Mary Sharpe that analyzes the business's stated and anticipated technology and information system requirements, compares and contrasts different technology solutions available, and provides suggestions on technology opportunities that would support the business venture. You should explain in detail how the different options could help grow the business and/or improve operational efficiency and client satisfaction, using real-world examples and references to support the suggestions. You should also keep in mind that the business owner is not a technology specialist. Consequently, you should use nontechnical language in crafting the business report and remember that the owner may not always know what technology is needed to carry out a particular option or how much it costs.
For each one of these aspects, assess what the company needs and research two options to propose to Mary the business owner.
1. Features: What features might the business owner want the new website to include? Think about what features an online shopper would need to see on a website. Also think about Mary's goal to implement intelligent marketing. Support your answer with examples of what other consumer companies are doing. Remember to cite your sources appropriately.
2. Mobile Computing: What challenges and needs might the owner face in terms of supporting mobile computing? As you assess these challenges, fill out the Requirements Document in Appendix A of the Final Project Template.
3. Security: Analyze the security challenges arising from adding e-commerce to the website, including both internal and external security concerns. Identify a minimum of two options for the business owner to consider. Compare and contrast these available IT security solutions to address the needs you identified. What are the advantages and disadvantages to each? To illustrate your point(s), research examples of what has or has not worked for other companies.
Specifically, the following critical elements must be addressed:
III. Website Needs and Options: In this section, you should analyze the business's website needs with respect to the proposed expansion into online sales and lay out possible solutions for meeting the needs you identified. Be sure to address the following:
A. What features might the business owner want the new website to include? To support your answer, use examples of what other companies in the industry are doing. For example, should the owner consider incorporating intelligent features such as links to product descriptions, product availability, or complementary items for purchase? Should the system automatically post new products to social media? What do most similar businesses do?
B. What challenges and needs might the owner face in terms of supporting mobile computing? Include a requirements document as an appendix to help support your discussion, using the template provided, and offer real-world examples to illustrate your points. You may also want to consider whether the business needs different solutions to accommodate mobile devices versus a desktop computer.
C. Analyze the security challenges arising from adding e-commerce to the website, including both internal and external security concerns. Explain your response. For example, what types of systems will the company need to ensure that customer data is secure and that the site is not abused? You may want to consider the security of both data transmission and data storage.
D. Compare and contrast available IT security solutions to address the needs you identified. What are the advantages and disadvantages to each in terms of supporting the business owner's objectives?
E. Compare and contrast web and mobile software packages and services available for addressing the owner's online needs. What are the advantages and disadvantages to each with respect to business process engineering? To illustrate your point(s), you may want to include realworld examples of what has or has not worked for other companies.