...COMPARING PERCEPTIONS OF THE SYSTEMS ANALYSIS AND DESIGN COURSE BRANDI N. GUIDRY University of Louisiana at Lafayette Lafayette, LA 70504 DAVID P. STEVENS University of Louisiana at Lafayette Lafayette, LA 70504 ABSTRACT Information Systems (IS) practitioners and educators have equal interest in the content of the Systems Analysis and Design Course (“SAD”). Previous research has examined instructors’ perceptions regarding the skills and topics that are most important in the teaching of the SAD course and the class time devoted to each. A similar assessment evaluated SAD course content from a practitioner perspective. Both studies used entropy calculations. A comparison of these studies is presented in this paper. For traditional topics, the group (either faculty or practitioner) with greater agreement believes the topic to be deserving of less class time. For structured and object-oriented topics, the group with the greater agreement also believes the topic to be of greater importance. This analysis demonstrates that practitioners and academics agree on approximately 40% of the SAD skills and knowledge areas. Keywords: Systems analysis and design, Structured analysis, Object-oriented analysis, Management Information Systems curricula, Entropy INTRODUCTION It is important that an education in Management Information Systems (MIS) is reflective of practices and techniques that are currently used in industry. Given the pace of technological innovation, there are ever-changing...
Words: 6702 - Pages: 27
...series analysis Growth indexes Composite indexes Benchmarking GIS mapping PEST / trends analysis Tools to help cities understand the structure of their local economy: Sector share analysis Value-added analysis Economic base analysis Location quotient Specialisation index Shift share analysis Input-output analysis Social accounting matrix Cluster mapping Value chain analysis Tools to look at local endowments: Asset mapping Tools to assess human capital: Skills audit Tools to analyse institutions: Stakeholder analysis / institutional mapping Analysing the Data Guide to Data Analysis Tools 8 This chapter discusses the tools that cities and city-regions can use to analyse data collected on their economies. All of these have been tried and tested in actual city development strategies (CDSs). A few other tools not yet widely applied in city planning environments have also been included. Time Series Analysis What Issues Are Addressed by Time Series Analysis? The following questions can be addressed by a time series analysis: How is a local economy performing over time? ● Population and other demographics (including education and labour force ● Income levels and distribution ● Employment and unemployment levels (total economy and by sector) ● Economic output and exports (total economy and by sector) Which growth patterns reflect shocks and cycles and which are long-term trends? 73 How Is Time Series Analysis Used? See table 4.1, page 36 Time series analysis is one...
Words: 19740 - Pages: 79
...at a valuation that we think is fair. The most common techniques used are: ➢ Comparable Publicly traded companies (“Public Comps”) – this analysis indicates how the stock markets are valuing companies that are similar to the target ➢ Precedent Comparable Transaction analysis (“Transaction Comps”) – this analysis indicates the valuations at which prior M&A transactions have been done in the same industry as that of the target. ➢ DCF analysis – is one of the most important valuation techniques ➢ Sum-of-the-parts analysis – If a target has more than one lines of business, the financial advisor will value each business separately. Therefore, each “part” might have its own Public Comps, Transaction comps and DCF (with different WACCs for each part). The total value is the sum of the parts ➢ Other –depending on the unique characteristics of the transaction, financial advisors will perform a number of other analyses to arrive at fair value like Leveraged Buyout (“LBO”) Analysis, Historical Exchange Ration analyses etc. Valuation M&A involves using more than one valuation technique to arrive at a valuation that we think is fair. The most common techniques used are: ➢ Comparable Publicly traded companies (“Public Comps”) – this analysis indicates how the stock markets are valuing companies that are similar to the target ➢ Precedent Comparable Transaction analysis (“Transaction Comps”) – this analysis indicates the valuations at which prior M&A...
Words: 343 - Pages: 2
...How to write a Good Value Chain Analysis The ability of a company to understand its own capabilities and the needs of the customers is crucial for a competitive strategy to be successful. The profitability of a firm depends to a large extent on how effectively it manages the various activities in the value chain, such that the price that the customer is willing to pay for the company’s products and services exceeds the relative costs of the value chain activities. It is important to bear in mind that while the value chain analysis may appear as simple in theory, it is quite time-consuming in practice. The logic and validity of the proven technique of value chain analysis has been rigorously tested, therefore, it does not require the user to have the same in-depth knowledge as the originator of the model (Macmillan et al, 2000). The first step in conducting the value chain analysis is to break down the key activities of the company according to the activities entailed in the framework. The next step is to assess the potential for adding value through the means of cost advantage or differentiation. Finally, it is imperative for the analyst to determine strategies that focus on those activities that would enable the company to attain sustainable competitive advantage. It is important for analysts to remember to use the value chain as a simple checklist to analyse each activity in the business with some depth (Pearson, 1999). The value chain should be analysed with the core competence...
Words: 3447 - Pages: 14
...business and its history is the greatest factor that most likely should be the central focus of the business itself. It can then be realized that the company’s value can be best assessed once it is determined that it has stayed in the industry for a long period of time. Introduction The business industry, above all else, is considerably one of the most complicated sectors of the economy. Nonetheless, businesses are, up to the extent, concentrated on providing the best to their customers and at the same time, on performing well in the market. So to say, the primary goal of any company is to become globally competent and successful in the industry. This objective is what mostly keeps the companies driven to continuously improve itself, its processes, its products and its services. In light with all of this, the value of companies is chiefly influenced by several factors. These factors somehow contribute to the outcomes of the financial performance of the company. More than that, these aspects are deemed to be the most important that every company in the business industry always put a high regard on. Literature Review In the process of measuring business valuation, there are four primary methods involved. Furthermore, these methods are considerably important most especially at the time that the head of the company decides to sell the business. The following methods are as follows: (1) Discounted cash flow (DCF) analysis;...
Words: 1628 - Pages: 7
...1. “Value chain analysis (VCA) is a process where a firm identifies its primary and support activities that add value to its final product and then analyze these activities to reduce costs or increase differentiation.” 2. “Value chain represents the internal activities a firm engages in when transforming inputs into outputs.” Understanding the tool VCA is a strategy tool used to analyze internal firm activities. Its goal is to recognize, which activities are the most valuable (i.e. are the source of cost or differentiation advantage) to the firm and which ones could be improved to provide competitive advantage. In other words, by looking into internal activities, the analysis reveals where a firm’s competitive advantages or disadvantages are. The firm that competes through differentiation advantage will try to perform its activities better than competitors would do. If it competes through cost advantage, it will try to perform internal activities at lower costs than competitors would do. When a company is capable of producing goods at lower costs than the market price or to provide superior products, it earns profits. M. Porter introduced the generic value chain model in 1985. Value chain represents all the internal activities a firm engages in to produce goods and services. VC is formed of primary activities that add value to the final product directly and support activities that add value indirectly. Below you can see the Porter’s VC model. Primary Activities | ...
Words: 5031 - Pages: 21
...they were wrong later on during their career. As most college aged students I immediately thought of a job title that I knew would make money and is seen as successful in society. During the course of this class I was forced to analyze my interest, skills, and personality in order to pin point what it was that I wanted to do with my one and precious life. Based on my research I have come to the conclusion that I am meant to lead people within the hospitality industry by working...
Words: 942 - Pages: 4
...The article focuses on the main aspects of Value chain analysis. The activities entailed in the framework are discussed in detail, with respect to competitive strategies and value to the customer. The article includes tips for students and analysts on how to write a good Value chain analysis for a firm. Moreover, sources of findings information for value chain analysis have been discussed. The limitations of Value Chain analysis as a model have also been discussed. Introduction The value chain approach was developed by Michael Porter in the 1980s in his book “Competitive Advantage: Creating and Sustaining Superior Performance” (Porter, 1985). The concept of value added, in the form of the value chain, can be utilised to develop an organisation’s sustainable competitive advantage in the business arena of the 21st C. All organisations consist of activities that link together to develop the value of the business, and together these activities form the organisation’s value chain. Such activities may include purchasing activities, manufacturing the products, distribution and marketing of the company’s products and activities (Lynch, 2003). The value chain framework has been used as a powerful analysis tool for the strategic planning of an organisation for nearly two decades. The aim of the value chain framework is to maximise value creation while minimising costs (www.wikipedia.org). Main aspects of Value Chain AnalysisValue chain analysis is a powerful tool for managers to identify...
Words: 3467 - Pages: 14
...Papers on Value chain analysis; Reports on Different Companies The article focuses on the main aspects of Value chain analysis. The activities entailed in the framework are discussed in detail, with respect to competitive strategies and value to the customer. The article includes tips for students and analysts on how to write a good Value chain analysis for a firm. Moreover, sources of findings information for value chain analysis have been discussed. The limitations of Value Chain analysis as a model have also been discussed. Introduction The value chain approach was developed by Michael Porter in the 1980s in his book “Competitive Advantage: Creating and Sustaining Superior Performance” (Porter, 1985). The concept of value added, in the form of the value chain, can be utilised to develop an organisation’s sustainable competitive advantage in the business arena of the 21st C. All organisations consist of activities that link together to develop the value of the business, and together these activities form the organisation’s value chain. Such activities may include purchasing activities, manufacturing the products, distribution and marketing of the company’s products and activities (Lynch, 2003). The value chain framework has been used as a powerful analysis tool for the strategic planning of an organisation for nearly two decades. The aim of the value chain framework is to maximise value creation while minimising costs (www.wikipedia.org). Main aspects of Value Chain Analysis ...
Words: 3471 - Pages: 14
...1) What does the term “risk” mean in the context of capital budgeting; to what extent can risk be quantified; and, when risk is quantified, is the quantification based primarily on statistical analysis of historical data or on subjective, judgmental estimates? The term “risk”, in the context of capital budgeting, means the uncertainty about the future profitability of the plan. We should understand if the taking on the project will rise both firm and stockholders’ risk. About the quantification, we should mainly use statistical analysis, but also historical data can be used and risk analysis in capital budgeting is usually focused on subjective judgments. 2) What are the three types of risk that are relevant in capital budgeting? How is each of these risk types measured, and how do they relate to one another? How is each type of risk used in the capital budgeting process? Three main kind of risk are present in capital budgeting: - Stand-alone risk - Corporate risk - Market risk. The first one (Stand-Alone Risk) concerns the project’s risk if it is the only asset in the firm and no shareholders are there. It passes over both firm and shareholders’ diversification and it is computed by Sigma or CV of NPV, IRR or MIRR. The second risk (that is Corporate Risk) concerns the project’s effect on corporate earnings stability. It also considers other activities of the firm (better knows as diversification within firm) and it depends on project’s sigma and the correlation (ρ) with...
Words: 1749 - Pages: 7
...Resource Based View A question summarizing RBV approach. Definition The resource-based view (RBV) is a model that sees resources as key to superior firm performance. If a resource exhibits VRIO attributes, the resource enables the firm to gain and sustain competitive advantage.[1] What is a resource based view? RBV is an approach to achievingcompetitive advantage that emerged in 1980s and 1990s, after the major works published by Wernerfelt, B. (“The Resource-Based View of the Firm”), Prahalad and Hamel (“The Core Competence of The Corporation”), Barney, J. (“Firm resources and sustained competitive advantage”) and others. The supporters of this view argue that organizations should look inside the company to find the sources of competitive advantage instead of looking at competitive environment for it. The following model explains RBV and emphasizes the key points of it. _ Improve your management style, hire a business speaker According to RBV proponents, it is much more feasible to exploit external opportunities using existing resources in a new way rather than trying to acquire new skills for each different opportunity. In RBV model, resources are given the major role in helping companies to achieve higher organizational performance. There are two types of resources: tangible and intangible. Tangible assets are physical things. Land, buildings, machinery, equipment and capital – all these assets are tangible. Physical resources can easily be bought in the market so...
Words: 13089 - Pages: 53
...THE PROCESS OF STRATEGIC PLANNING ARTICLE #1 OF 10 INTRODUCTION TO STRATEGIC PLANNING Strategic planning is to a business what a map is to a road rally driver. It is a tool that defines the routes that when taken will lead to the most likely probability of getting from where the business is to where the owners or stakeholders want it to go. And like a road rally, strategic plans meet detours and obstacles that call for adapting and adjusting as the plan is implemented. Strategic planning is a process that brings to life the mission and vision of the enterprise. A strategic plan, well crafted and of value, is driven from the top down; considers the internal and external environment around the business; is the work of the managers of the business; and is communicated to all the business stakeholders, both inside and outside of the company. As a company grows and as the business environment becomes more complex the need for strategic planning becomes greater. There is a need for all people in the corporation to understand the direction and mission of the business. Companies consistently applying a disciplined approach to strategic planning are better prepared to evolve as the market changes and as different market segments require different needs for the products or services of the company. The benefit of the discipline that develops from the process of strategic planning, leads to improved communication. It facilitates effective decision-making, better selection of tactical options...
Words: 8741 - Pages: 35
...Was fundamental analysis redundant in the period during the Global Financial Crisis (GFC)? 3/21/2014 ABC Was fundamental analysis redundant in the period during the Global Financial Crisis (GFC)? Fundamental analysis is the process of evaluating the value of any security and certificate by analyzing the real time factors, which are based on qualitative and quantitative factors. Economic and the social factors also effect while you are finding out the intrinsic value of any security or asset. Fundamental analysis when made for evaluating the value of security all the factors that can affect the security considered like macroeconomic factors, microeconomic factors and the company based factors. Not only have the external factors about the internal factors also affected the value of any asset (Bedford, 2008). You need to consider in fundamental analysis: * Market analysis * Company analysis * Industry analysis For an investor the fundamental analysis is very important to invest in any asset or security. The investor when found the intrinsic value of security with its current value than this make easy for them to invest or not. Global financial crises are the period, which is experienced by the society, and the marketers, a situation of great difficulty in the world where nothing is stable in any state of the world. The economic situation in the global crises become worst and the purchase power of the customer reduces, and this is a difficult time for the...
Words: 1859 - Pages: 8
...patents, trademarks and copyrights, are among the most difficult to quantify in terams of their value. It becomes further complicated to ascertain value when contemplating more obscure intangible assets, such as trade dress, trade sectets or software code. While difficult, the value of these assests can be accurately calculated via a number of industry accepted methodologies. The key to a successful analysis is to develop a comprehensive plan of action. The initial point to determine when attempting to value intellectual propery or intangible assests is the rationale for undertaking the analysis in the first place. Why do you need to know the value of the assets? The most obvious situations are those in which a third party has an interest in the asset values. For example, the internal revenue service and othe tax authorities want a detailed understanding about the basis for any value determination used when allocating portions of the purchase price associated with ethe acquisition of other companies. This issue has become even more important with the recent issuance of Statement of Financial Accounting Standard 142, Goodwill and Other intangible Assets, which changed the accounting treatment of certain intangibles acquired through business combinations. Instead of a more-or-less blanket treatment of acquired intangibles that featured a stated amortization period, many of these assets will now be carried on the balance sheet at fair value and subjected to periodic impairment testing...
Words: 4938 - Pages: 20
...MMAN4400 Report – Cool Moose Creamery Feasibility Analysis Group 11 MMAN4400 Engineering Management Cool Moose Creamery Feasibility Study Group 11 MMAN4400 Report – Cool Moose Creamery Feasibility Analysis Group 11 Contents Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 3 About Cool Moose Creamery .................................................................................................................. 3 Issue Analysis .......................................................................................................................................... 4 Key Factors of Success (KFS) ............................................................................................................... 4 Customer service ............................................................................................................................ 4 Local Brand...................................................................................................................................... 4 Efficient Business Structure ............................................................................................................ 4 Wide range of choice ...................................................................................................................... 4 S.W.O.T ..........................................................................
Words: 4248 - Pages: 17
