Executive Summary
Executive Summary
The number of students enrolling each year is much higher than the previous years. The number of foreign students has also increased over the past years. It is reported that the number of foreign students has increased by 10% from 2014 to 2015 . Overall, around 20.2 million students have attended college or university in 2015 . From the noted stats, the increase in a number of students is noted, and it is also observed from the past trend that the number of students tends to increase every year. From the provided facts, it is considered to be a wise idea to develop the information system in the ongoing business of online bookstore.
Before discussing the requirements of the development of the online bookstore, the current status of the business must be briefed. Currently, the business has a fair market share with an ever increasing number of customers (students). The company has currently earned a yearly revenue of $5 million. The entire team that is associated with the business constitutes of 10 employees. It is a very small business with few numbers of employees but still manages to generate some millions.
As always the scope of the company was to target the students whose number is increasing every year. The main plan of the business is to provide students with textbooks at a low rate. The textbooks are expensive and necessary and therefore, the students always look for a cheaper solution to it. The company provides the students with an opportunity to rent and purchase textbooks at a low price. The student can also sell their books through this platform. The company not only provides regular textbooks but also deals in online books. The main business of the company is to provide college textbooks whose demand is increasing at a rapid rate. The company plans to expand it products and services by providing course material for other educational curriculums like online tests, research materials, and student discussion forms.
The most important element of the plan is a database of the company. The database is helpful for the company as it covers important functions of the business. The company requires a Database system for Human Resource (HR) Department. The database will help the HR in tracking resumes and review the performance of the employees. In addition to it, the process of payroll can also be dealt with the database system. The database system that the company plans to adopt does not only controls and make the HR work efficient, but it also helps in improving the sales order and inventory system of the company .
These are the tasks that are to be completed with the help of a database and for the completion of such tasks, a mid-range database will be required. The mid-range database comprises of five factors that are Oracle Database Enterprise Edition with Partitioning, Server Costs (mid-range, Intel Xeon-based), Primary Storage (Disk Array with 10TB usable capacity, operating system, and server. The database will be created by a developer and it is expected that it will be made in two days. After the database is created, it will take three days for the developer to import data into it. Once the required data is imported into the database, the testers will test it for a week. On the completion of testing, the design will be completed.
The project plan also includes the system analysis which configures the management system of all the hardware, software and network changes that take place. The system analysis will help the company to maintain and monitor all the systems. It will also help in reporting the systems like uptime, etc. The system analysis will also help the company to analyze the monitor capacity utilization. Moreover, the utilization of the resources for the internal system is monitored and analyzed through system analysis .
Another part of the plan is to establish a strong security system in order to protect the data. For the purpose of protection of internal system from an external system, the firewall will be installed. The management of user access can be done through redundant authentication systems. The users’ access and tracking of approvals can be done with the help of redundant audit systems. The security system that the company plans to adopt includes a VPN, which allows access for remote staff .
A part of the project plan includes some new work related to networking so that the company can improve its services. The domain name for the company and a high-speed internet connection is required by the company so that it can enhance its services. To improve the services of the company and to make the work more efficient within the company, a 100MB internal LAN and Wi-Fi is required. Moreover, a LAN, WAN, and DMZ are for partners will be required to improve communication. The development of computer infrastructure is also required to complete the plan of the project.
The hardware also known as critical servers must be completely backed with the power supply, local hard drive, and network cards. It helps in storing data and making the operating activities more efficient. The company to load the order processing data, which is helpful for the storage, uses sAN.
For the purpose of improvement of the computer infrastructure, testing of hardware, software, interoperability, performance, and integration will be done. Furthermore, the company will adopt the ticketing system which will help in managing the different issues of the infrastructure. The IT infrastructure which is a part of computer infrastructure will be developed by a developer and it will take 15 days for its implementation .
The new plan is not just related to further development but is also inclined towards improvement. The improvements made in the business will be done through enhancing the existing software or by purchasing new ones. To accomplish this purpose of the plan, human-computer interaction is necessary. It will require a search engine to locate books.
The company also plans to develop an entry payment system that is more secure. To improve the service quality of the company, a section for comment and review will be made. The feedback of the customers is very important to find about the quality of services of the company and it also identifies the area of improvement. As adopted by almost every online shopping store, the company will also provide its customers with a shopping cart for rentals as well as purchases.
The company has a new policy through which the customer can buy back programs for used books. The appearance of the company’s web page is also important so that it looks pleasant to the customers. The different web services for the customers like the status of the order, refund, etc. will be managed through the web. The customers need to share their credit card details that are the duty of the company to protect it.
The web design of the company will be in such a format that it will provide a secure network for the processing of the payments. The work of the company can be more efficient with an interaction of order processing with order entering system. The website analytics will also help the company to track the usage pattern of the customers. It is important to track the customers’ usage pattern so that the website can automatically recommend the customers with about the products in which they are interested. It makes it easier for the customers to search for the products at the website .
The brief discussion about the project plan gives an idea about the plan of the company which needs approval for its commencement. After the analysis of the market, the plan is created which is believed to have the potential to increase the market share and revenue of the company to a great extent. To attain approval, finance activities are discussed below .
The following costs will be incurred to implement the new provided plan. Although these costs are estimated by taking into consideration the available information, there could be changes in their values once the project goes into progress.
The two important part of the Oracle database and primary storage. These two tools are most important and expensive. The other tools that are a part of the database are a server and operating system. The company has planned to equip itself with Linux system as it is a part of the package of the database and is effective in running different software. The maintenance of the database is a part of their plans and will cost the company $21,500. The maintenance of the database is a contract of three years which makes an annual amount around $7.168.
A collective price for the security system is provided that is $20,000. The security system of the company includes firewall, VPN, and encryption system. The plan of networking that the company wants to implement consist of the domain name, high-speed internet connection and LAN, WAN, and DMZ. To improve that computer infrastructure of the company, the company also purchased SAN, which will help in storing a large amount of data.
The total cost of the computer infrastructure is $3,000 that also includes the charges of the tester along with that of SAN. The web design plan of the company includes different processes and usage patterns. The total cost required for this is$2,000. Other than the tools that are required for implementation of the up gradation of an online bookstore $1,000 will be paid to the testers that will check different thing whereas, $2,000 will be paid to the analysts who will simultaneously analyze the different stages of the project plan.
Now on analyzing the cost of the project plan while keeping in view market, it is claimed that the investment will be beneficial. Such claim is made because the market of this business is increasing rapidly and a more than 5% increase in the number of students is observed. In addition to it, the plan of the company is to provide books for other course material which will significantly increase the annual sales of the company. As the number of sales will increase the company will earn more profit, and this investment will be very beneficial for the company in the long run.
It is important to shed light on the strengths and weaknesses of the company while comparing the project plan with other companies in the industry. The biggest strength the company has it that of its existence in the market. The company has a strong position in the industry and it could help the business to achieve better results as compared to other companies that are planning to enter the market. The owner as well as the current employees are aware of the business and can smoothly complete different tasks of the business. It is much easier to make improvement in the ongoing business rather than starting a new business. Another strength is that the company has a market share, and several customers are aware of the company.
The improvements made are likely to attract more customers, and the company would also have to spend less on the marketing activities. While focusing on the strengths of the company it is also important to note the weaknesses that the company currently has so that such weaknesses can be reduced to a great extent or car eliminated. The main weakness of the company is the limited number of course material. The company should not only focus on the course material but must also seek its entrance in all kinds’ books to increase its market share significantly .
Another opportunity available for the company is to provide a variety of books and make it available to the general public. If the company want to grab a large share of the market, then it needs to focus on these opportunities and make strategies according to them. The company also faces some threat in the market that should be analyzed to make strategies to overcome them.
The biggest threat is that of the competitors. There are several competitors of the company, and there are few websites that provide the books for free. It can affect the business of the company as students will prefer free books over those for which they have to pay .
Now from the analysis of the market and determining the strengths and weaknesses of the company it can be claimed that the project plan will be beneficial for the company. The project plan can avail the opportunities and increase its market share while most of the weaknesses of the company will also be eliminated after the implementation of the plan. From the financial point of view, the plan is beneficial as the investment is of around $185,000 and the expected returns in two years are $30 million.
References
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National Center for Education Statistics. (2016). Fast Facts. Retrieved from nces.ed: http://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=372
Panneerselvam, R. (2011). Database Management Systems. New Delhi: PHI Learning Pvt. Ltd.
Ross, K. M. (2015). Study: U.S. Sees Increase in Number of Students From Latin America. Retrieved from usnews: http://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/articles/2015/11/16/study-us-sees-increase-in-number-of-students-from-latin-america
Staples, L. (2010). Project Management: A Technician's Guide. New York: ISA.
