Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 11

Report - Essay Example wending duck is a side channel of the river Wensum in the United Kingdom, and the water comes from Chalk rocks. there is also east Dereham treatment works next to it. East Dereham treatment works releases water straight into wending duck (see figure 1).(booklet). 2-Biological sampling: by measuring the macroinvertebrate animal community over a period of time, and with this method water quality is assessed by two measurements: 1) Biological Monitoring Working Party (BMWP); this method measure the biological quality of the river using a different type of macroinvertebrates as indicators. (booklet). The principle of this method is different macroinvertebrate have different potential of pollution. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biological_monitoring_working_party. Tertiary treatment: this is the final step, ultra violet and a thin membrane are used to remove bacteria and virus from the treatment process, and this water made for another purpose than drinking such as washing clothes,irrigation and toilets.(https://learn.uea.ac.uk/bbcswebdav/pid-1226628-dt-content-rid-1544301_1/courses/INTO-PSE-JUN14_E/wastewater-web--2-.pdf). By using a measurement tape across the River to find out the width of the river that has been divided into four sections. After dividing the river, a meter stick was used to find out the depth of the river in each section. All of the results were recorded in the results section. Dissolved oxygen and temperature were measured by oxygen meter "Do2 meter." A rope of 5 meters was placed on the surface of the river to calculate the velocity of the stream. A stick was thrown into the river from the beginning of the 5 meters rope while the stopwatch was turned on to calculate the time when the stick was traveling next to the rope till the end of the 5 meters rope. This method have been done twice We used benthic kick sample to measure

Windows HPC Server 2008 Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Windows HPC Server 2008 - Research Paper Example This paper discusses the main aspects of Windows HPC Server. This paper will outline the windows HPC Server’s basic working structure, its advantages and disadvantages, its current uses and new features of this server technology. OVERVIEW OF WINDOWS HPC SERVER Microsoft Windows HPC Server (HPCS) is a modern technology based generation of HPC (extreme performance computing) that offers performance, enterprise-level services and extendibility for an extremely prolific HPC framework. Additionally, the HPCS offers a comprehensive and incorporated cluster arrangement encompassing the task or job scheduler, operating system, cluster management, message passing interface v2 (MPI2) support and scrutinizing elements. Moreover, the latest developed Windows Server ® 2008 64-bit, HPCS ranges to thousands of CPU processing cores and comprises a management console that facilitates practically maintenance and checking system strength and constancy. In this scenario, the job scheduling agil ity and interoperability facilitates incorporation in Windows-based HPC platforms maintains service-oriented architecture (SOA) or group workloads. Furthermore, Windows HPC Server 2008 offers a lot of facilities such as improved efficiency, simplicity of use and scalable performance that is why it is the most effective solution for Windows platforms (Microsoft, 2008) and (Microsoft Corporation., 2008). HOW IT WORKS This section presents an overview of the working and functioning method of Windows HPC Server. This section will discuss that how Windows HPC Server works? Basically, Windows HPC Server is designed on a group of servers that comprises a single head node and one or more compute nodes as stated in the below given Figure 1. In this scenario, the main head node that currently offers switching from fail component to backup component using Windows Server 2008 Enterprise accessibility services, SQL Server powers and clustering is responsible for managing all the rights to access the cluster resources as well as it is the particular position of operation, organization and job development in support of the compute cluster. Moreover, Windows HPC Server offers a lot of tools to manage accessible Active Directory, directory service-based arrangement for security, complete functions and handle account. One major example of these tools is System Center Operations Manager (Microsoft, 2008) and (Hand, 2010). Figure 1- Windows HPC Server Working Arrangement Image Source, (Microsoft, 2008) The installation process of Windows HPC Server encompasses mounting the OS on the main head node, combining it to an Active Directory domain, and afterward applying the HPC Pack 2008. In this scenario, there is a page named as â€Å"To Do List† which outlines the steps needed to finish the setting of our compute cluster. These steps encompass describing the network designing standard management, physical layout and incorporating compute nodes to the cluster. Moreover, Window s HPC Server offers Node model, which is a simple method to describe the preferred arrangement of the compute nodes, as well as a simple interface that helps improve the fundamental Windows Deployment Services of

John Kenneth Galbraith Biography

John Kenneth Galbraith Biography Archibald Galbraith, a Canadian schoolteacher, once climbed onto a platform atop a  steaming pile of manure to address a group of Liberal party voters before the coming Ontario  elections. â€Å"Before I begin,† he said, â€Å"I must apologize for speaking from the Tory platform.†Ã‚  Later on, his teenage son, John Kenneth, would congratulate him on the dig, to which he  [Archibald] would respond, â€Å"It was good. But it didn’t change any votes.† (Arthur Scheslinger,  1984, p. 7) So, from an early age, John Kenneth Galbraith was between the world of politics and  pragmatism.   John Kenneth Galbraith was born in 1908. His father’s involvement in politics had a  profound impact on the young John Kenneth, politicizing him at an early age. He originally  studied Agricultural Economics at the Ontario Agricultural College, but would eventually say  that he took his first â€Å"real† economics course at UC Berkeley, and that the economics instruction  in Canada was â€Å"very poor† (Dunn, 2002, p. 350). As a graduate student at UC Berkeley, he  continued his study of agricultural economics and worked as a research assistant for a â€Å"very zany  old man by the name of Edwin Voorhies† (Kreisler, 1986). He stated that it was his study of  agricultural economics that left him with a strong feeling that â€Å"social science should be tested by  its usefulness,† an idea inspired by Veblen’s dichotomy between exoteric knowledge (knowledge  that is valuable and applicable) and esoteric knowledge (knowledge tha t has no practical  application, but because of that, is considered more â€Å"prestigious†). Galbraith believed that social  sciences should be exoteric, not esoteric. In his book Economics and The Public Purpose,  Galbraith develops this idea further, saying, â€Å"The ultimate test of a set of economic ideas is  whether it illuminates the anxietes of the time† (Galbraith, 1973, p.198). In the 1930’s, while Galbraith was studying to receive his Ph. D, it was clear that  economic theory was not addressing the anxietes of the time. Economists were struggling to  explain how free markets had led the United States to economic ruin. One in four Americans  were jobless. Production had all but ground to a halt. Obviously, there were egregious errors in  the accepted dogma, which stated that free markets left to their own devices would bring about  efficiency and employment. Galbraith said that his method of coming to an understanding was to  Ã¢â‚¬Å"for years†¦start with [Alfred] Marshall, see the world as it is, and make the requisite  modifications† (Dunn, 2002, p. 351). Upon graduating, Galbraith traveled to Washington D.C.  and took a position assisting with the implementation of the Agricultural Adjustment Act, before  taking a position as a tutor at Harvard. At Harvard, he made speeches supporting the reelection of Roosevelt, cement ing his initial ties with the Democratic party. Not long after, he was offered  a fellowship at Cambridge, where the discussions centered around Keynes, who had just published his General Theory of Employment, Money, and Interest (Dunn, 2002, pp. 350-355).   Galbraith returned from England to his tutor position at Harvard a confirmed Keynesian. He spent a few more years tutoring at Harvard (where he met John F. Kennedy) and then took a  job as resident economist for the American Farm Bureau Federation in Washington. Galbraith’s  observation of the farm industry solidified his belief in the power of government to move  industries forward. In 1930, farm households accounted for a quarter of the population, whereas  today they account for only 1% of the population and yet on the whole, they now produce more  than they did in 1930. This is due to strong government support of the farming industry. That  national planning could â€Å"transform a weak, disorganized, and poverty prone sector of the  economy into America’s most spectacular productive success†¦preserved his political concerns†Ã‚  (Arthur Schlesinger, 1984, p. 8). Galbraith became head of the Office of Price Administration in  1941 during World War II, and at the same time began his long career as a ghostwriter, penning  spe eches for Samuel Rosenman and Robert Sherwood (Arthur Schlesinger, 1984, p. 8). Galbraith then became editor of Fortune magazine, where he worked directly for Harry  Luce, founder of Time Inc., whom he called â€Å"one of the most ruthless editors I have ever known,  or anyone has ever known† (Kreisler, 1986). Galbraith has credited Luce with dramatically  improving his writing via ruthless editing. Galbraith credited Fortune with giving him a  Ã¢â‚¬Å"marvelous introduction to the corporate mind,† because the focus of the magazine at the time  was â€Å"the anatomy of the big corporations† (Dunn, 2002, p. 353). The decision making processes  of major corporations would be a recurring phenomenon that he would write about in many of  his publications. Galbraith returned to Academia in 1948, having spent five years as editor of Fortune. He  was nominated to a position teaching economics at Harvard. However, members of Harvard’s  board of overseers regarded him as a â€Å"dangerous Keynesian,† and as a result, â€Å"took the step,  almost unprecedented in modern times, of blocking the appointment† (Dunn, 2002, p. 353). However, Galbraith had many political allies, and among them was Harvard’s president, James  B. Conant. Conant was such a fan of Galbraith that he threatened to resign unless the board of  overseers backed down. Eventually they did, and Galbraith became a tenured professor at  Harvard. It was then that he began work on his first major bestseller, American Capitalism: The  Concept of Countervailing Power. Galbraith begins his discussion of capitalism in America by pointing out the following  conundrum: Mainstream economic theory asserts that in the case of monopoly, prices will rise,  business will screw consumers, fail to innovate, and as a result, the economy will be in bad  shape. He then notes the work of Joan Robinson in developing the idea of monopolistic and  oligopolistic competition, noting that oligopolistic industries behave in the same way as  monopolies would, and through informal agreements can have the exact same effect. Then, using  the actual data collected by the American government, he shows that the majority of industries  are in fact oligopolistic. But he goes even further than that, saying that almost all industries will  eventually become oligopolistic for the following reasons: At the birth of an industry,  competetion is necessary and possible, as no firms have clear and significant advantages yet. But  over time, it will become increasingl y difficult to enter the industry because of the barriers to  entry created by high capital requirements and increasing returns to scale. At the same time that  increasing returns to scale start to set in (as they inevitably do), existing firms will also gain the  advantage of experience and prior organization. The convergence of these factors leads, in most  cases, to an industry with a few power players and a larger but still relatively small number of  hangers-on, who exist by filling niches that aren’t worth the time of the large firms. Galbraith poses a question in American Capitalism, and before getting to that question, it  is important to get a sense of the context in which he asks it. After World War II, America was  experiencing incredible prosperity. But underlying this prosperity was the fear of depression. The  Great Depression was still fresh in the collective consciousness, and the average man’s faith that  capitalism would bring about efficiency and full employment was shaken. And yet, as the years  after the war progressed, things were stable and employment was plentiful. It is also important to  note that the era of non-depression Keynesianism was beginning, and much to the chagrin of the  business community, government was becoming a much more participatory force in markets. The business community was reacting violently against this expansion of government, claiming  that it was a complete disaster, wasteful to the very extreme and bound to cripple growth. The  state of the American economy in the 1950’s then was that of big government, near-ubiquitous  monopoly or oligopoly, and an underlying fear of depression. Yet, by almost any measure, the  economy was a success. The problem, according to Galbraith, was that, â€Å"in principle, the economy pleased no  one; in practice it satisfied most. Social inefficiency [government spending], unrationalized  power [monopoly and oligopoly], intrusive government [regulation], and depression were all  matters for deep concern. But neither liberal nor conservatives, neither the rich nor all but the  very poor, found the consequences intolerable† (Galbraith, 1954, p. 85). What fascinated  Galbraith was how an economy which was so flawed in theory could work so well in practice. The question he asked was: Why are things so†¦well†¦good? Thus, he states that his aim in  American Capitalism is to â€Å"examine in turn the circumstances that have kept social inefficiency,  private power, government intervention, and unemployment from ruining us in the recent  present† (Galbraith, 1954, p. 85). The first answer that he gives is that oligopoly is much more conducive to techonological  innovation than classical competetion. â€Å"There is no more pleasant fiction than that technical  change is the product of the matchless ingenuity of the small man forced by competition to  employ his wits to better his neighbor. Unhappily, it is a fiction,† he says. â€Å"Technical  development has long since become the preserve of the scientist and engineer† (Galbraith, 1954,  p.86). His argument is that due to the costliness of development, it can only be undertaken by a  firm with considerable resources. In highly competitive industries, no one firm has considerable  resources. Moreover, because innovations can easily be imitated, it is not economical for a small  competitive firm to bear the research and development costs for an entire industry. Galbraith then turns his keen eye to the idea of inefficiency. He deals with this issue by  asserting that America’s relative opulence shields us and is moreover a cause of such  inefficiency. At the time that the classical economists were writing, an opulent economy had yet  to be observed. For Malthus and Ricardo, â€Å"inefficiency was, indeed, an evil thing. It denied  bread to the hungry and clothing to the naked† (Galbraith, 1954, p.102). The true power of  Galbraith’s insight is his ability to point out the obvious. He criticizes his fellow economists for  bringing the mentality of the nineteenth century, with all its poverty and degradation, to the  opulent twentieth century. Galbraith finds this error both amusing and absurd, saying, â€Å"He [the  mainstream economist] worries far too much about partially monopolized prices†¦for tobacco, liquor, automobiles, and soap, in a land which is already suffering from nicotine poisoning and   alcoholism, which is nutritionally gorged with sugar, which is filling its hospitals and cemeteries  with those who have been maimed or murdered on its highways, and which is dangerously  neurotic about body odors† (Galbraith, 1954, p.102). His point is that these inefficiencies are in  fact a sign of the wealth of America. They are the symptom of a wealthy economy, and thus we  ought not to worry so much about them. He also discredits the idea of intrusive government,  noting that, â€Å"alarm over pending action by government on economic matters, which frequently  reaches almost pathological proportions when the decision is pending, almost invariably  evaporates completely once the action is taken. One of the profound sources of American  strength has been the margin of error provided by our well-being† (Galbraith, 1954, p.106). But the most significant reason that monopoly has failed to capsize the American  economy, according to Galbraith is the exercise of what he calls countervailing power. The  assumption always made by economists, when they would consider the case of markets, was that  the check on an individual firm’s power wold come from the supply side of the industry. Galbraith disagrees. He admits that the existence of monopoly power in a competitive market  does in fact encourage the entry of more producers to appropriate some of that power for  themselves. â€Å"In other words,† he says. â€Å"Competition was regarded [and is] a self-generating  regulatory force† (Galbraith, 1954, p. 112). But in a market that is not competitive, the incentive for some economic agent to  approptiate that power still exists. But it need not come from the supply side. That power is, in  practice, usually appropriated by strong buyers or coalitions of buyers, who can sometimes take  even more than their share. Because of the tendency of power to be organized in response to  existing power, â€Å"countervailing power is also a self-generating force† (Galbraith, 1954, p. 113). According to Galbraith, it is the large retailers who, by way of their absolute power over  manufacturers, bargain for the consumer and protect the consumer from the high monopoly  prices that would otherwise result. Likewise, the considerable market power of large firms is  checked by trade unions for a simple reason, there is something to be bargained for Galbraith  notes that trade unions are most powerful in the least competitive industries. This is because the  surplus that a company derives from monopoly power acts as an incentive to unions. In the very  competitive industries, producers and workers are operating at bare minimum profit and the  incentives to organization insignificant. These are the basic ideas laid out in American Capitalism. The book in many ways lays  the framework and tone for the books he would publish in the sixties and seventies. But while  American Capitalism was Galbraith’s first major bestseller, it was The Affluent Society that  skyrocketed him to fame. The Affluent Society builds on many of the concepts introduced in his  first book, but with several key differences. Though Galbraith could not suppress his urge to  social commentary, The Affluent Society is a much more prescriptive book, growing out of his  chapter on technical development in American Capitalism. To his original analysis he adds a  significantly moral component. The Affluent Society concerns itself with the policies that ought  to be undertaken once the basic needs of the people have been met. Galbraith’s main argument is  that our ratio of private good (cars, televisions, automobiles) to public goods (schools, roads) is  inequitable an d ridiculous. The premise of his argument is that once our basic desires such as  food, clothing, and shelter have been satisfied, large corporations employ advertising to concoct  new demand for products. The traditional economic and utilitarian argument for goods qua  goods falls on its face if consumer demand is not sovereign. What is really necessary is the use  of society’s productive resources in the public realm in juxtaposition with growth in the private  realm. He calls this idea â€Å"social balance,† saying, â€Å"the problem of social balance is ubiquitous,  and frequently it is obtrusive. As noted, an increase in the consumption of automobiles requires a  facilitating supply of streets, highways, traffic control, and parking spaces† (Galbraith, 1958, p.  193). He also confronts the existence of poverty in an affluent society as being the result of  outdated nineteenth century attitudes. â€Å"A poor society,† he says,  "had to enforce the rule that  someone who did not work could not eat. An affluent society has no similar excuse for such  rigor† (Galbraith, 1958, p. 251). But he admits that, â€Å"nothing requires such a society to be  compassionate. But it no longer has a high philosophical justification for its callousness†Ã‚  (Galbraith, 1958, p. 251). In the 50’s, America was in the midst of the cold war and attempts at engineering a better  society were very suspect. Galbraith throughout The Affluent Society understands the inherent  and ideological opposition to big government and social policy, but he is adamant in stating,  Ã¢â‚¬Å"that cities’ residents should have a nontoxic supply of air suggests no revolutionary dalliance with socialism† (Galbraith, 1958, p. 191). In fact, Galbraith eventually finds socialism and central planning to be in many ways  similar to the kind of capitalism that developed in America in the latter half of the 20th century. 9 In The New Industral State, Galbraith focuses his effort on understanding what he calls the  Ã¢â‚¬Å"technostructure.† In an era when the division of intellectual labor is so overwhelming, the  management or even management team of a powerful corporation doesn’t actually make most of  the decisions. The decisions are instead made collectively by teams of experts. Galbraith coins  the term technostructure as, â€Å"embracing all who bring specialized knowledge, talent or  experience to group decision-making. This,† he says, â€Å"not the management, is the guiding  intelligence, the brain, of the enterprise† (Galbraith, 1967, p.71). Many of Galbraith’s ideas resonate to this day. Unfortunately, most do not. It would be  tempting to end this essay optimistically, expounding poetically on the way Galbraith’s ideas  continue to influence national policy. In reality, although he was a well-respected and powerful  man, many of his ideas continue to be ignored by mainstream economists and politicians. Rarely  does one hear a contemporary economist talk about countervailing power, or reference the  Ã¢â‚¬Å"technostructure.† While as a society we owe much to Galbraith and his ideas, the discipline of  economics has for all intents and purposes laid his practical ideas by the wayside. But whether or  not his continued influence on economics is felt by the mainstream, his contribution to the  discipline remains poignant and accessible for those who choose to seek it out on their own. Galbraith’s main contribution to economic thought was his tackling of the problem of  power. He was convinced that the most glaring, most significant, and most ignored problem in  the field of economics was the effect of power on economic activity. Understanding why  Galbraith was so affixed by this idea of power is actually quite simple; he was surrounded by it. Through his political work, Galbraith knew not only Kennedy, but several other presidents and  all the most powerful officials in the democratic party. Through his work at Fortune he became  acquainted with the heads of the largest and most powerful corporations in the world. He saw,  10 clearly, the extent to which the decisions of these men (and the technostructures supporting  them) affected the direction and performance of the economy of the whole. Given that he was an  astute man, for him to ignore the influence of power on economies, in order to advance a series  of aesthetically pleasing models and equations, would have been not only unthinkable but  dishonest. Galbraith wanted badly to be useful, to â€Å"change votes,† as his father would have said. To him, sitting in a room concocting theories did not qualify as usefulness. He longed to be in  the thick of policy-making. Later in life, he wanted badly to avoid what he called â€Å"Belmont Syndrome†1 Thus, his struggle to be relevant was not only ideological but moral. John Kenneth Galbraith died peacefully at home in 2006. He left behind not only an  extensive body of economic work, but two novels. His first novel, The Triumph, written in 1969,  was about U.S. foreign policy disasters in Latin America. His second novel, A Tenured  Professor, written in 1990, was about an eccentric Harvard professor, and lampooned the elite  institution. He lived ninety-seven years, almost all of them (excepting the first few) were  preoccupied with upending the â€Å"conventional wisdom.† He remains one of the most famous and  controversial economists of the twentieth century, and a fine novelist.

Understanding Diabetes Essay -- Disease Health Diabetes Essays Papers

Understanding Diabetes Millions of people throughout the United States are affected by diabetes. It is considered to be one of the leading causes of death. But what exactly is it? What are the symptoms and how do we prevent it? The goal of this essay is for you to understand the answers to these questions, and be able to apply your newly gained knowledge to your own life, hopefully decreasing your risk of developing diabetes. To understand what diabetes is, you must first have an understanding of the processes that your body goes through to maintain a healthy blood sugar level. After eating a meal glucose, or simple sugar, is released into you blood. Your blood sugar level rises, which alerts your pancreas to release a hormone called insulin. Insulin is what tells your cells to take the glucose and use it for either energy or convert it to glycogen. Glycogen is the stored form of glucose, which is later broken back down to glucose as your body needs energy. When the glucose is taken up by the cells for energy or converted into storage form, your blood sugar returns to a normal level called homeostasis. Now that we have a general idea of how our body regulates sugar intake we can discuss exactly what diabetes is. It is a disease in which your body is unable to use glucose for energy, resulting in elevated blood glucose levels. There are a few different types of diabetes. In some cases, a person’s body does not make insulin at all. Thus, there is no insulin to tell your cells to use the glucose for energy. This is called type 1 diabetes, or it was previously known as juvenile diabetes. Only 5 to 10% of diabetes cases are diagnosed as type 1 (Grosvenor & Smolin, 93). It is usually discovered before a pers... ...t is usually treatable, diabetes is a serious, scary disease. If it is not taken care of it can cause other serious complications such as heart disease, blindness, and kidney failure. Although the exact cause is unknown, you should realize that there are many things you can do to prevent yourself from developing diabetes. Diet and exercise is the key. Now it is time that you put your knowledge to use. Keep yourself healthy and at a lower risk of developing one of America’s leading causes of death. Works Cited â€Å"American Diabetes Association†. 14 Feb 2004 diabetes.jsp> Grosvenor, Mary B. and Lori A. Smolin. Nutrition: Science & Applications. 4th Edition. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2003. â€Å"National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse†. 15 Feb 2004

Second Foundation 4. Two Men and the Elders

The Elders of this particular region of Rossem were not exactly what one might have expected. They were not a mere extrapolation of the peasantry; older, more authoritative, less friendly. Not at all. The dignity that had marked them at first meeting had grown in impression till it had reached the mark of being their predominant characteristic. They sat about their oval table like so many grave and slow-moving thinkers. Most were a trifle past their physical prime, though the few who possessed beards wore them short and neatly arranged. Still, enough appeared younger than forty to make it quite obvious that â€Å"Elders† was a term of respect rather than entirely a literal description of age. The two from outer space were at the head of the table and in the solemn silence that accompanied a rather frugal meal that seemed ceremonious rather than nourishing, absorbed the new, contrasting atmosphere. After the meal and after one or two respectful remarks – too short and simple to be called speeches – had been made by those of the Elders apparently held most in esteem, an informality forced itself upon the assembly. It was as if the dignity of greeting foreign personages had finally given way to the amiable rustic qualities of curiosity and friendliness. They crowded around the two strangers and the flood of questions came. They asked if it were difficult to handle a spaceship, how many men were required for the job, if better motors could be made for their ground-cars, if it was true that it rarely snowed on other worlds as was said to be the case with Tazenda, how many people lived on their world, if it was as large as Tazenda, if it was far away, how their clothes were woven and what gave them the metallic shimmer, why they did not wear furs, if they shaved every day, what sort of stone that was in Pritcher's ring – The list stretched out. And almost always the questions were addressed to Pritcher as though, as the elder, they automatically invested him with the greater authority. Pritcher found himself forced to answer at greater and greater length. It was like an immersion in a crowd of children. Their questions were those of utter and disarming wonder. Their eagerness to know was completely irresistible and would not be denied. Pritcher explained that spaceships were not difficult to handle and that crews varied with the size, from one to many, that the motors of their ground-cars were unknown in detail to him but could doubtless be improved, that the climates of worlds varied almost infinitely, that many hundreds of millions lived on his world but that it was far smaller and more insignificant than the great empire of Tazenda, that their clothes were woven of silicone plastics in which metallic luster was artificially produced by proper orientation of the surface molecules, and that they could be artificially heated so that furs were unnecessary, that they shaved every day, that the stone in his ring was an amethyst. The list stretched out. He found himself thawing to these naive provincials against his will. And always as he answered there was a rapid chatter among the Elders, as though they debated the information gained. It was difficult to follow these inner discussions of theirs for they lapsed into their own accented version of the universal Galactic language that, through long separation from the currents of living speech, had become archaic. Almost, one might say, their curt comments among themselves hovered on the edge of understanding, but just managed to elude the clutching tendrils of comprehension. Until finally Channis interrupted to say, â€Å"Good sirs, you must answer us for a while, for we are strangers and would be very much interested to know all we can of Tazenda.† And what happened then was that a great silence fell and each of the hitherto voluble Elders grew silent. Their hands, which had been moving in such rapid and delicate accompaniment to their words as though to give them greater scope and varied shades of meaning, fell suddenly limp. They stared furtively at one another, apparently quite willing each to let the other have all the floor. Pritcher interposed quickly, â€Å"My companion asks this in friendliness, for the fame of Tazenda fills the Galaxy and we, of course, shall inform the governor of the loyalty and love of the Elders of Rossem.† No sigh of relief was heard but faces brightened. An Elder stroked his beard with thumb and forefinger, straightening its slight curl with a gentle pressure, and said: â€Å"We are faithful servants of the Lords of Tazenda.† Pritcher's annoyance at Channis' bald question subsided. It was apparent, at least, that the age that he had felt creeping over him of late had not yet deprived him of his own capacity for making smooth the blunders of others. He continued: â€Å"We do not know, in our far part of the universe, much of the past history of the Lords of Tazenda. We presume they have ruled benevolently here for a long time.† The same Elder who spoke before, answered. In a soft, automatic way he had become spokesman. He said: â€Å"Not the grandfather of the oldest can recall a time in which the Lords were absent.† â€Å"It has been a time of peace?† â€Å"It has been a time of peace!† He hesitated. â€Å"The governor is a strong and powerful Lord who would not hesitate to punish traitors. None of us are traitors, of course.† â€Å"He has punished some in the past, I imagine, as they deserve.† Again hesitation, â€Å"None here have ever been traitors, or our fathers or our fathers' fathers. But on other worlds, there have been such, and death followed for them quickly. It is not good to think of for we are humble men who are poor farmers and not concerned with matters of politics.† The anxiety in his voice, the universal concern in the eyes of all of them was obvious. Pritcher said smoothly: â€Å"Could you inform us as to how we can arrange an audience with your governor.† And instantly an element of sudden bewilderment entered the situation. For after a long moment, the elder said: â€Å"Why, did you not know? The governor will be here tomorrow. He has expected you. It has been a great honor for us. We†¦ we hope earnestly that you will report to him satisfactorily as to our loyalty to him.† Pritcher's smile scarcely twitched. â€Å"Expected us?† The Elder looked wonderingly from one to the other. â€Å"Why†¦ it is now a week since we have been waiting for you.† Their quarters were undoubtedly luxurious for the world. Pritcher had lived in worse. Channis showed nothing but indifference to externals. But there was an element of tension between them of a different nature than hitherto. Pritcher, felt the time approaching for a definite decision and yet there was still the desirability of additional waiting. To see the governor first would be to increase the gamble to dangerous dimensions and yet to win that gamble might multi-double the winnings. He felt a surge of anger at the slight crease between Channis' eyebrows, the delicate uncertainty with which the young man's lower lip presented itself to an upper tooth. He detested the useless play-acting and yearned for an end to it. He said: â€Å"We seem to be anticipated.† ‘Yes,† said Channis, simply. â€Å"Just that? You have no contribution of greater pith to make. We come here and find that the governor expects us. Presumably we shall find from the governor that Tazenda itself expects us. Of what value then is our entire mission?† Channis looked up, without endeavoring to conceal the weary note in his voice: â€Å"To expect us is one thing; to know who we are and what we came for, is another.† â€Å"Do you expect to conceal these things from men of the Second Foundation?† â€Å"Perhaps. Why not? Are you ready to throw your hand in? Suppose our ship was detected in space. Is it unusual for a realm to maintain frontier observation posts? Even if we were ordinary strangers, we would be of interest.† â€Å"Sufficient interest for a governor to come to us rather than the reverse?' Channis shrugged: â€Å"We'll have to meet that problem later. Let us see what this governor is like.† Pritcher bared his teeth in a bloodless kind of scowl. The situation was becoming ridiculous. Channis proceeded with an artificial animation: â€Å"At least we know one thing. Tazenda is the Second Foundation or a million shreds of evidence are unanimously pointing the wrong way. How do you interpret the obvious terror in which these natives hold Tazenda? I see no signs of political domination. Their groups of Elders apparently meet freely and without interference of any sort. The taxation they speak of doesn't seem at all extensive to me or efficiently carried through. The natives speak much of poverty but seem sturdy and well-fed. The houses are uncouth and their villages rude, but are obviously adequate for the purpose. â€Å"In fact, the world fascinates me. I have never seen a more forbidding one, yet I am convinced there is no suffering among the population and that their uncomplicated lives manage to contain a well-balanced happiness lacking in the sophisticated populations of the advanced centers.† â€Å"Are you an admirer of peasant virtues, then?† â€Å"The stars forbid.† Channis seemed amused at the idea. â€Å"I merely point out the significance of all this. Apparently, Tazenda is an efficient administrator – efficient in a sense far different from the efficiency of the old Empire or of the First Foundation, or even of our own Union. All these have brought mechanical efficiency to their subjects at the cost of more intangible values. Tazenda brings happiness and sufficiency. Don't you see that the whole orientation of their domination is different? It is not physical, but psychological.† â€Å"Really?† Pritcher, allowed himself irony. â€Å"And the terror with which the Elders spoke of the punishment of treason by these kind hearted psychologist administrators? How does that suit your thesis?† â€Å"Were they the objects of the punishment? They speak of punishment only of others. It is as if knowledge of punishment has been so well implanted in them that punishment itself need never be used. The proper mental attitudes are so inserted into their minds that I am certain that not a Tazendian soldier exists on the planet. Don't you see all this?† â€Å"I'll see perhaps,† said Pritcher, coldly, â€Å"when I see the governor. And what, by the way, if our mentalities are handled?† Channis replied with brutal contempt: â€Å"You should be accustomed to that.† Pritcher whitened perceptibly, and, with an effort, turned away. They spoke to one another no more that day. It was in the silent windlessness of the frigid night, as he listened to the soft, sleeping motions of the other, that Pritcher silently adjusted his wrist-transmitter to the ultrawave region for which Channis' was unadjustable and, with noiseless touches of his fingernail, contacted the ship. The answer came in little periods of noiseless vibration that barely lifted themselves above the sensory threshold. Twice Pritcher asked: â€Å"Any communications at all yet?† Twice the answer came: â€Å"None. We wait always.† He got out of bed. It was cold in the room and he pulled the furry blanket around him as he sat in the chair and stared out at the crowding stars so different in the brightness and complexity of their arrangement from the even fog of the Galactic Lens that dominated the night sky of his native Periphery. Somewhere there between the stars was the answer to the complications that overwhelmed him, and he felt the yearning for that solution to arrive and end things. For a moment he wondered again if the Mule were right – if Conversion had robbed him of the firm sharp edge of self-reliance. Or was it simply age and the fluctuations of these last years? He didn't really care. He was tired. *** The governor of Rossem arrived with minor ostentation. His only companion was the uniformed man at the controls of the ground-car. The ground-car itself was of lush design but to Pritcher it appeared inefficient. It turned clumsily; more than once it apparently balked at what might have been a too-rapid change of gears. It was obvious at once from its design that it ran on chemical, and not on atomic, fuel. The Tazendian governor stepped softly on to the thin layer of snow and advanced between two lines of respectful Elders. He did not look at them but entered quickly. They followed after him. From the quarters assigned to them, the two men of the Mule's Union watched. He – the governor – was thickset, rather stocky, short, unimpressive. But what of that? Pritcher cursed himself for a failure of nerve. His face, to be sure, remained icily calm. There was no humiliation before Channis – but he knew very well that his blood pressure had heightened and his throat had become dry. It was not a case of physical fear. He was not one of those dull-witted, unimaginative men of nerveless meat who were too stupid ever to be afraid – but physical fear he could account for and discount. But this was different. It was the other fear. He glanced quickly at Channis. The young man glanced idly at the nails of one hand and poked leisurely at some trifling unevenness. Something inside Pritcher became vastly indignant. What had Channis to fear of mental handling? Pritcher caught a mental breath and tried to think back. How had he been before the Mule had Converted him from the die-hard Democrat that he was. It was hard to remember. He could not place himself mentally. He could not break the clinging wires that bound him emotionally to the Mule. Intellectually, he could remember that he had once tried to assassinate the Mule but not for all the straining he could endure, could he remember his emotions at the time. That might be the self-defense of his own mind, however, for at the intuitive thought of what those emotions might have been – not realizing the details, but merely comprehending the drift of it – his stomach grew queasy. What if the governor tampered with his mind? What if the insubstantial mental tendrils of a Second Foundationer insinuated itself down the emotional crevices of his makeup and pulled them apart and rejoined them? There had been no sensation the first time. There had been no pain, no mental jar – not even a feeling of discontinuity. He had always loved the Mule. If there had ever been a time long before – as long before as five short years – when he had thought he hadn't loved him, that he had hated him – that was just a horrid illusion. The thought of that illusion embarrassed him. But there had been no pain. Would meeting the governor duplicate that? Would all that had gone before – all his service for the Mule – all his life's orientation – join the hazy, other-life dream that held the word, Democracy. The Mule also a dream, and only to Tazenda, his loyalty- Sharply, he turned away. There was that strong desire to retch. And then Channis' voice clashed on his ear, â€Å"I think this is it, general.† Pritcher turned again. An Elder had opened the door silently and stood with a dignified and calm respect upon the threshold. He said, â€Å"His Excellency, Governor of Rossem, in the name of the Lords of Tazenda, is pleased to present his permission for an audience and request your appearance before him.† â€Å"Sure thing,† and Channis tightened his belt with a jerk and adjusted a Rossemian hood over his head. Pritcher's jaw set. This was the beginning of the real gamble. The governor of Rossem was not of formidable appearance. For one thing, he was bareheaded, and his thinning hair, light brown, tending to gray, lent him mildness. His bony eye-ridges lowered at them, and his eyes, set in a fine network of surrounding wrinkles, seemed calculating, but his fresh-cropped chin was soft and small and, by the universal convention of followers of the pseudoscience of reading character by facial bony structure, seemed â€Å"weak.† Pritcher, avoided the eyes and watched the chin. He didn't know whether that would be effective – if anything would be. The governor's voice was high-pitched, indifferent: â€Å"Welcome to Tazenda. We greet you in peace. You have eaten?† His hand – long fingers, gnarled veins – waved almost regally at the U-shaped table. They bowed and sat down. The governor sat at the outer side of the base of the U, they on the inner; along both arms sat the double row of silent Elders. The governor spoke in short, abrupt sentences – praising the food as Tazendian importations – and it had indeed a quality different if, somehow, not so much better, than the rougher food of the Elders – disparaging Rossemian weather, referring with an attempt at casualness to the intricacies of space travel. Channis talked little. Pritcher not at all. Then it was over. The small, stewed fruits were finished; the napkins used and discarded, and the governor leaned back. His small eyes sparkled. â€Å"I have inquired as to your ship. Naturally, I would like to see that it receives due care and overhaul. I am told its whereabouts are unknown.† â€Å"True.† Channis replied lightly. â€Å"We have left it in space. It is a large ship, suitable for long journeys in sometimes hostile regions, and we felt that landing it here might give rise to doubts as to our peaceful intentions. We preferred to land alone, unarmed.† â€Å"A friendly act,† commented the governor, without conviction. â€Å"A large ship, you say?† â€Å"Not a vessel of war, excellency.† â€Å"Ha, hum. Where is it you come from?† â€Å"A small world of the Santanni sector, your excellency. It may be you are not aware of its existence for it lacks importance. We are interested in establishing trade relationships.† â€Å"Trade, eh? And what have you to sell?' â€Å"Machines of all sorts, excellency. In return, food, wood, ores.†*** â€Å"Ha, hum.† The governor seemed doubtful. â€Å"I know little of*** these matters. Perhaps mutual profit may be arranged. Perhaps, after I have examined your credentials at length – for much information will be required by my government before matters may proceed, you understand – and after I have looked over your ship, it would be advisable for you to proceed to Tazenda.† There was no answer to that, and the governor's attitude iced perceptibly. â€Å"It is necessary that I see your ship, however.† Channis said distantly: â€Å"The ship, unfortunately, is undergoing repairs at the moment. If your excellency would not object giving us forty-eight hours, it will be at your service.† â€Å"I am not accustomed to waiting.† For the first time, Pritcher met the glare of the other, eye to eye, and his breath exploded softly inside him. For a moment, he had the sensation of drowning, but then his eyes tore away. Channis did not waver. He said: â€Å"The ship cannot be landed for forty-eight hours, excellency. We are here and unarmed. Can you doubt our honest intentions?† There was a long silence, and then the governor said gruffly, â€Å"Tell me of the world from which you come.† That was all. It passed with that. There was no more unpleasantness. The governor, having fulfilled his official duty, apparently lost interest and the audience died a dull death. And when it was all over, Pritcher found himself back in their quarters and took stock of himself. Carefully – holding his breath – he â€Å"felt† his emotions. Certainly he seemed no different to himself, but would he feel any difference? Had he felt different after the Mule's Conversion? Had not everything seemed natural? As it should have been? He experimented. With cold purpose, he shouted inside the silent caverns of his mind, and the shout was, â€Å"The Second Foundation must be discovered and destroyed.† And the emotion that accompanied it was honest hate. There was not as much as a hesitation involved in it. And then it was in his mind to substitute the word â€Å"Mule† for the phrase â€Å"Second Foundation† and his breath caught at the mere emotion and his tongue clogged. So far, good. But had he been handled otherwise – more subtly? Had tiny changes been made? Changes that he couldn't detect because their very existence warped his judgment. There was no way to tell. But he still felt absolute loyalty to the Mule! If that were unchanged, nothing else really mattered. He turned his mind to action again. Channis was busy at his end of the room. Pritcher's thumbnail idled at his wrist communicator. And then at the response that came he felt a wave of relief surge over him and leave him weak. The quiet muscles of his face did not betray him, but inside he was shouting with joy – and when Channis turned to face him, he knew that the farce was about over.

Hardware Components Essay

There are several types of hardware storage devices invented and designed to facilitate encoded and retrieved data storage in computers. Some of the examples of these storage devices include the ff. : the hard disk, floppy disk, RAM, CD ROM, and tape. Furthermore, these storage devices together with hardware component of clock speed play their distinct roles to determine the speed and speed rate of a computer (MSD, 2006). Body First, introduced in 1956 and developed during 1973, by the IBM company, the hard disk, or â€Å"hard disk drive† as mentioned, is one example of a stable and reliable secondary hardware storage device that efficiently facilitates speed. It functions as some kind of an optimal and purposeful storeroom which saves accumulated and encoded numeric and digital data, and it is also appropriate for running application programs on spinning magnet-plated platters that is performed by execution and command by the user. Hard disk drives were created for personal computer usage. It has features like audio playing, video gaming, video recording, etc (MSD, 2006). Second, the role of hard disks in determining the speed of a computer is very significant because with the use of hard disk, it can makes the access of files easier and faster as it runs or rotates. The bigger the platters or dishes used by the hard disk to run, the faster its speed and the smaller the platters, the lower the capacity of the computer to run, work, or access files faster. The number of disks in a specific computer may vary at a minimum number of 3 disks to a maximum number of 5 running disks revolving 60 per second. Most hard disk drives make use of removable cartridges while some do not. Most people create back up from the files they saved from the disk since the recent hard disk is created with such a sensitive feature. It can store data from 20 M up to 40 M (MSD, 2006). Third, a floppy disk coming in two sizes: 5 ? and 3 ? inches, is a detachable or unfixed storage device which is already obsolete. It is secondary as compared to the huge capacity of hard disk when it comes to data storage memory. The uses of floppy disks though, become popular for it is much cheaper than the cost of a hard disk. Moreover, it is more convenient to carry floppy disks wherever you go and save data for the use of backup purposes. Moreover, floppy disks make use of the delicate, magnetic and bendable disk which is film-like in color and enclosed in a protective plastic shield or case. The roles of floppy disks portray no role in determining the speed of a computer—speed is determined by the Central Processing unit and its memory rather. For practical reasons, hard disks are favored over floppy disks especially when the cost of the first (hard disks) becomes more inexpensive than the latter. Further, floppy disks are really essentially slower and more sensitive than hard disk that is why it is more prone to damage (MSD, 2006). Fourth, random access memory (RAM) is the primarily appropriate for storage of data that occurs in the computer’s memory and is stored directly at the computer’s Central Processing Unit (CPU). The two types of RAM are the SRAM and the DRAM. SRAM stands for Static RAM and the latter meaning, Dynamic RAM (DRAM). With the use of RAM, user can program the CPU to read, write, and locate data. The role of RAM is to carry out and execute calculations at high speed which is made possible by the said feature of RAM or computer memory that operates random to locate items or applications in the computer system (MC, 2008). Fifth, with the use of compact disks, the CD-ROM operates and exemplifies the use of read-only memory for sharing and sending applications like music files, games, and other multimedia files and desktop applications. The capacity of CD-ROM when it comes to data storage is up to 650 M. Recently, CD-ROMs tend to be much cheaper than other storage devices. CD-ROM is appropriate for expansion of one’s personalized computer system. In addition, CD-ROM does not play a role in determining the speed of a computer. In fact, user retrieves data slower than any other available data computer storage device in the market if the computer is not supported by CD-ROM’s â€Å"data transfer speed (MSD, 2006). † Sixth, tape is a thin strip of plastic, magnetic coated device used mainly for recording and it is known to be appropriate for secondary data storage or backup. Moreover, this tape is most appropriate for the purpose of calculations or â€Å"personal computing. † There is a no role that a tape plays in order to determine speed in a particular computer; further, data access is slower than expected together with its inconvenience for the required retrieval of data in orderly and chronological manner (MSD, 2006). Lastly, clock speed—as measured in megahertz (MHz), is the â€Å"speed of the internal clock of microprocessor. † Clock speed is appropriate for functioning in operation in the internal processing of a computer. The clock speed plays an important role in determining the speed of a computer and it affects the overall performance of the computer (MSD, 2006). Conclusion Several types of hardware storage devices are invented for data storage in computers: the hard disk, floppy disk, RAM, CD ROM, and tape. All mediums except for the floppy disks, CD-ROM, and tape play a role in determining the speed of a computer. These devices except for the other three are hardware components that determine the speed and performance of a computer.

Evaluating the information system needs and requirement for golden fleece hotel and developing strategic information system plan The WritePass Journal

Evaluating the information system needs and requirement for golden fleece hotel and developing strategic information system plan Executive Summary Evaluating the information system needs and requirement for golden fleece hotel and developing strategic information system plan Executive SummaryIntroductionBackgroundReview of Problem EvaluationBenefits of IS Strategic PlanConclusionRecommendationsWhy SWOT Analysis?Why Critical Success Factor (CSF) Analysis?Recommendations on IT InfrastructureRelated Executive Summary This project is designed to get in detail from survey and past relevant literature the impacts of Information System(IS) adoption in sponsoring company and be able to produce a report that will help in advising the   management and the owner of Golden Fleece Hotel (GFH) on the feasibility of the IS in their business and proffer a recommendation on the adoption of the IS strategy. Currently, the sponsoring company has not employed any form of IS strategy in their business activities. They currently depend on the traditional (face-to-face) business means. However, the management have decided to take step forward in expanding their business, on that process this project has been requested by GFH owner and the manager with the aim of getting decision management support. The data gathering of this project will be through survey such as research of relevant academic literatures such as journals and books. Subsequently, the collected data will be analyse and produce a clear and relevant management supporting report which will help to solve the real life problem. Introduction In the history, the relationship between an organizations strategic plan and information systems (IS) was of little importance to the organizations management as information systems were seen as the same with data processing concerning corporate issues and it was systematical placed as a back-room operation for the running of everyday tasks. However, in current times, information systems has become an essential part for the management of organizations, thus there has been an increasing realization for the incorporation of information systems into the strategic planning of organizations. This is because, information systems and information technology (IT) enable organizations flourish – as it helps organizations grow in scope, offer improved services and innovative products. However, the development of a strategic IS plan concentrates on identifying the most appropriate IS for an organization and the implementation plan with its main objective to ensure the alignment of the current business strategy with a new IS strategy (Earl, 2003). Additionally, a strategic IS plan can be interpreted as a formal exercise, where successions of consistent steps are embarked on, which results in the definition of IS requirements as well as the identification of a lasting strategy.   This project will avail Golden Fleece Hotel (GFH) the case study of this project, with a framework focused on enhancing GFHs future and at the same time, provide GFH with technological infrastructures that will support the business to cope with business changes. Thus, the next chapter comprises of a review of certain aspects of this project, such as the sponsor’s details, overview of research chapter, the objective, scope and structure of the project. Background The project sponsor is Golden Fleece Hotel; a privately-owned Hotel (Medium Enterprise) that provides full hotel services such as reservation, restaurant and client services. The hotel was founded in the year 1999 in South Yorkshire and provides catering to customers in two basic group- business people and pleasure travelers that wanted a more personal hotel experience. The hotel’s top management team comprises of two (2) persons – the owner and the Manager. The hotel has four (4) main Units: Restaurant/Catering, Housekeeping, Reservation and Client Services.   Despite the size of the hotel, GFH still operates business in a traditional manner with poor information technology (IT) infrastructure for their business processes. The hotel does not have any form of electronic commerce (e-commerce) system like website and online transaction support system. However, they always fill a paper card any time they need to get their customers details as a means of making reservatio n and showing of their business services. In order to fit well in today’s dynamic information era, GFH plans to increase its business operations and services so as to respond to the needs of their customers and the changing situation of their business. Review of Problem Currently, GFH is not conducting business in modern way, they still work manually. This shows that majority of their business with customers are always carried out in person or through paper works. However, GFH have a substantial amount of customers that want to contact or make reservations with them in modern way (via internet), but GFH do not have the technological infrastructure to connect with its clients. They have a number of employees that are lacking significantly in IT and technical skills, for this reason this made GFH ability not to achieve its desired goals and objectives. Finally, GFH has no formal IS strategic plan to define its management activities that will enable the business achieve its business objective. Additionally, the research into the development of IS strategic plan will be evaluated and reviewed to allow the selection of the suitable methodology(s) for the development of the plan for GFH. However, the next chapter covers the evaluation of the project succe ss. Evaluation From the literature, different development methodologies have different foci and structure; hence leading to different planning or development methodologies for SISP. For instance, Porter’s Value Chain Analysis (VCA) and Critical Success Factors (CSF) methods; the VCA focuses on events that concern adding direct value to an organization while CSF ensures the concentration of the vital requirements concerning the IS need of an organization. Both methods have different structure and focus. However, as VCA focuses on adding direct value, it consequently puts IS straight into the domain of adding value to the organization instead of cutting cost. Practically, VCA simply offers organizations a model that covers advanced level information, but on the other hand, fails to tackle issues concerning the development and application of the plan. Nonetheless, Porter (2001) argued that in order to ensure success in the application of the plan, organizations need to formulate their business strategy in a way that integrates either cost leadership, market differentiation or focus in an appropriate way to attain a viable long-term competitive lead in their preferred market area. However, Kim and Mauborgne (2005) argued that Porter’s value chain model is not the only alternative for organization, as it concentrates solely on internal processes as an alternative to data, thus it does not properly outline the data structure required by the organization. They argued further that an alternate way to achieve the SISP implementation success with profits and high growth as well as gaining a competitive edge, is for organizations to create a Blue Ocean Strategy that goes beyond Porters model by concurrently pursuing both the low cost and differentiation strategy at once. For instance, DELL Computers had an initial strategy to sell directly to the customers at a lower price, thus making their service distinctive from other competitors. They also provided a toll-free telephone number and special (online) features or enhancement in their services as they allowed direct interaction with their clients which helped them understand their client requirements better. However, Pant and Hsu (1995) advised that it is essential for Porter’s VCA to be implemented in combination with selected methods that will tackle issues concerning the development and application of the plan as well as outline the right data structure. Similarly, the CSF is thought to be useful, as it enables the development of IS around the success factor and is a method extensively used (Seddon, et al. 2002), but conversely a comprehensive strategic IS plan cannot be performed with it – as there is no definition for the data architecture (Pant Hsu, 1995). Nonetheless, this is not to say that the CSF method cannot be used for SISP development, because in the case of GFH, it could serve its purpose as CSF analysis is easily performed as well as conducted with little resources. Similarly, the SWOT analysis requires little resources and typically reflects an individuals current position and perspective of the organization involved in the analysis. However, this perspective can be misrepresented to explain an earlier decided course of action instead of being used as a method to uncover new possibilities. Also, the threats from a SWOT analysis could be seen as opportunities, however, it depends on the persons or groups involved in the analysis. However, in the case of GFH, the synergy of strategies will not guarantee success for the organization, but in accordance with Mentzas (1997) viewpoint of SISP development, a multi-phase study of GFH business should be conducted before the implementation of a strategic IS plan – so that the synergy of strategies can enhance the organization. Basically, the multi-phase studies are considerations that concern the environment of an organization as well as the alignment that should accompany the configuration of GFHs environment with the business strategy of GFH. However, the stages of the multi-phase study suggested by Mentzas does not cover difficult organizational phenomena that are swayed by human factors; thus it scarcely covers the human aspects, underlying forces and contextual realities concerning the development of a strategic IS plan (Lindsay, 2003). Nevertheless, this is not to imply that the strategies/models in this literature cannot be used for the development process of a strategic IS plan. They can be used in an organized way that enables each strategy look after the lapses of the other strategies; just as Earl’s advocated the use of multiple methodologies for the development an information systems strategy; and in accordance with the findings from Meckel et al., (2004) survey, Small Medium Enterprises use a combination of methods/methodologies to develop their strategies for the enhancement of their business. Thus, developing an IS strategy for GFH may involve the use of multiple methodologies, with the aim of evolving IS into the products/services of GFH as well as creating new strategic opportunities through the use of IS. However, the level and type of strategy to implement is normally determined by the significance of information systems to the organization, the nature of the organization, and the organizationâ €™s current environment (Robson, 1997). Consequently, the formation of an IS strategy for GFH will involve essential factors for instance organizational structure, culture, the business strategy, technical infrastructure containing the availability of technical skills as well as the perceptions and prospects of employees; thus, highlighting the dynamic nature and requirements of an information systems strategy. However, the formation of an information systems strategy is subjected to continuous modification as the interest and perceptions of the main groups and actors involved in the development process changes (Walsham Waema, 1994). Nonetheless, the methodology(s) that will be used to develop a strategic IS plan for GFH will focus not only on being conceptual or managerial but on the environment and suitability of IS in GFH. Benefits of IS Strategic Plan Brown (2005) suggested that recognizing and understanding the importance of information systems for an organization is essential to ensure that information systems are implemented strategically. However, an important benefit of IS strategic plan for GFH will be novelty, because it will create value for the business. Fundamentally, introducing new technologies in an organization is simply associated with novelty (Power, 2006). Furthermore, Information System strategic plan will assist GFH to develop new standards for their business, increase the throughput of employees, reduce operations costs, and encourage collaboration within and outside the business plus improving customer satisfaction and services (Shore, 2006). Practically, integrating IS into GFH will bring benefits of effectual communication between them and their customers, because it will conquer the concerns of culture, time and distance. Furthermore, with the help of databases, the business associates of GFH will enhanced consistency and support in relation to collaboration. Essentially, the reason why most organizations adopt Information System is to move their business into the international space of competitiveness, since information systems helps and supports such ambitions (Ward Peppard, 2003; Applegate et al., 2008). Though, information systems benefits can be categorized as tactical, strategic and operational where measurements concerning tangible and intangible are classified under operational (Turban et al., 2005). But, the tangible benefits GFH will achieve from implementing IS strategic plan which comprise – the inventory reduction and improvement in productivity. Whereas the intangible benefits include innovative or enhanced processes and standardization in relation to systems integration (Turban et al., 2005). Nevertheless, GFH will also achieve some strategic benefits like there will be increased in growth; market share and leadership will improve competitive advantage. Conclusion The aim of this project was to develop a strategic IS plan for GFH. However, the SWOT and CSF analysis was used to critically evaluate both the internal and external environment of GFH. Additionally, in relations to the theories and processes of IS strategic plan discussed in the literature review, a good integration was developed to ensure that the literature review theories and processes were implemented in the practical elements of the project, as the processes and methodologies for developing a strategic IS plan was followed. Also, GFH’s business operations were evaluated and its business plan aligned with the recommended IS strategies by means of the CSF analysis. Moreover, the content of the literature review served as a guideline for the development of the entire strategic IS plan. Therefore, this goes to prove that the content in the literature review was comprehensively integrated into the project’s practical elements. Nonetheless, the information systems were basically recommended to completely support the business strategies of GFH, as detailed implementation plan was proposed. Nevertheless, the SWOT and CSF analysis was used to significantly evaluate both the internal and external environment of GFH and therefore, one can say that the product delivered to GFH satisfied the scope of GFH’s requirements. Recommendations Practically, todays’ operational effectiveness and efficiency in most organizations can be seen as a strategic plan. This means that it’s possible for an organizations strategic plan to arise from anywhere, anybody, or from comprehensive planning as well as from trial and error. However, strategic thinking is the best way of doing things as strategic planning and the synthesis involved are simply contributors of the entire strategic development phenomenon. Nevertheless, from the literature covered, selecting methodology for an organization like GFH is determined through the suitability of the methodology into the organizations situation. Additionally, the literature in this chapter has shown that it will be difficult for one methodology to completely support the full analysis, development and implementation of a strategic IS plan. Therefore, I will apply or use the strategy that allows the use of multiple SISP methodologies. In other words, I will choose a number of methodologies used by SMEs from the findings of Meckel et al., (2004) survey to formulate a strategic IS plan for GFH. Moreover, during the selection of methodology, it is important to think through the amount of resources made accessible for the development phase. Thus, a resource issue for the development phase of is the confinement of time and man power for the SISP development. As a result, the SWOT analysis will be used in the formation of an IS strategy for GFH, as it requires little man power and the time duration required for its development is minimal. In addition, the SWOT analysis is simpler and straightforward when compared with Porter’s Five Forces analysis. In addition, the CSF analysis will also be used for integrating the business-IS strategy and the identification of information systems requirements. This method will be used, as it focuses on the information necessity, which is required by GFH. Why SWOT Analysis? This methodology SWOT analysis was carefully chosen to enable the evaluation of GFH’s strength and weakness as well as their opportunities and threats. Basically, in relations to the strength and weakness, emphasis will be on the internal environment while for the opportunities and threats, emphasis will be on the external environment. However, the primary aim of the SWOT analysis is to attain continuous competitive advantages for GFH through the implementation of strategies that use the internal strengths of GFH, by reacting to the environmental opportunities, and simultaneously reducing the effect of external threat as well as circumventing the internal weakness of the company. Consequently, enabling SWOT analysis to produce a comprehensive plan, as the threats and weaknesses established in the SWOT analysis will be prevented. On the other hand, SWOT analysis can allow an organization to use a lazy course by looking for strengths that fit opportunities and overlook the oppo rtunities that they feel cannot be used to their advantage. However, in order to avoid this lazy approach, the SWOT analysis would be used to identify the best opportunities for GFH and then plans will be in place to stretch GFH to ensure that they meet these opportunities. Nonetheless, the assessment area in relation to SWOT analysis is greater than that of Porters Value Chain Analysis for the reason that SWOT concentrations on both the internal and external environment of an organization, whereas Porters Value Chain concentrates only on the internal environment; thus offering more advantages when compared with Porters Five Forces. Furthermore, the assessment area of SWOT concerning the internal environment of GFH will lead to the identification of certain areas that will lead to exceptional accomplishments as well as critical failure features in GFH. This analysis will aid GFH maximize the strong elements/factors they have and avoid areas of weakness during decision making. Also, the assessment area in relation to the external factor will provide GFH the ability to analyze the external openings and threats concerning their competitors as well as creating a better understanding of customers needs, thus allowing GFH to assert itself properly in the mar ketplace and encourage the exploration of prospective strategic options (Robert, 2004). However, to portray a perfect picture of the SWOT analysis, Robson (1997) developed the SWOT matrix together with four kinds of exposures for risk that are incorporated into the SWOT matrix. The matrix shows the kind of reactions that may well be suitable to cope with every risk. A sample SWOT matrix and likely reactions are presented in Figure 6. Practically, from figure 1, the use of the SWOT matrix makes SWOT analysis easier to decide which task should be prioritized when compared to Porters Value Chain analysis or Five Force. Basically, the SWOT matrix makes it possible to identify possible risks visible in information systems and recognize ways to reaction to the risk. Why Critical Success Factor (CSF) Analysis? This methodology, CSF analysis consists of a set of factors that include expertise and responsibilities that are considered as very important factors for the continuous success of an organization. Basically, CSFs are a small number of things that need to work aptly to make certain of an organization’s continued existence and success in the marketplace (Turban, et al., 2005). However, in the case of GFH, CSF analysis will help GFH enhance its business – as it will ensure information systems aid the business strategy of GFH by determining essential information requirement and activities that for the IS plan. According to Peffers and Gengler (2003), the CSF analysis of an organization centers on the fundamental scopes of anticipated performance of the organization. Hence, the CSF analysis will provide GFH with an improved understanding of the required strategic information for the future of the business. Practically, the CSF analysis of GFH will examine the business objectives and ascertain the necessary elements that are needed for every objective. Afterwards, the necessary IS required to help the CSFs sustain GFHs business growth and success is identified. Consequently, by achieving the CSF analysis, GFH will be able to position itself properly in the marketplace (Ward Peppard, 2003). Therefore, it is essential for GFH to constantly monitor all the CSF, to make certain their performance is up to standard. In addition, the CSF analysis will provides real support for the development of a strategic IS plan, as it focuses on key activities for business success as a result preventing any focus on trivial activities. Furthermore, it enables proper allocation of resources to key areas of the business during the development of a strategic IS plan (Avison Fitzgerald, 2003). Recommendations on IT Infrastructure The recommendations and design of the functional structure of the future information technology (IT) department and conceptual technical architecture of the future information technology (IT) department of GFH was proposed to help GFH overcome the difficulties they face. As stated in the case study, the main concern at the moment is incorporating networking functions into the business activities of GFH to lessen their manual processes. Basically, GFH will use the strategy of e-vision opportunities, e-marketing and e-operations. As implementing the e-vision opportunity will entail using innovative business ideas like changing their normal manual processes of manually booking from customers and keeping physical records of customers. They should be able to automate these processes by using a computerized system electronic booking processing system for booking accommodation. This way, GFH will be able to generate a method of understanding the needs of customers and it will also ensure t hat there is a surge in the effectiveness and efficiency of the processes at GFH. Similarly, GFH can also implement the e-marketing strategy by moving most of it business activities to the internet, so that they will be able to maximize customer interaction at GFH. This is achievable, since the automated systems in place. Practically, with the automated system, it will change certain functions at GFH and drive GFH towards web-based creativity; hence the e- marketing opportunity will be applied in the process as it’s connected to customer interaction that centers on the use of web-based creativity to change the strategic technique used to interact with customers. Lastly, the e-operation opportunity should be used to transform GFH strategy for business by using web technology to enhance the operations of GFH. In addition, GFH will be able to develop an electronic database for customer to amass details or information concerning their booking. Thus the recommendation for this aspect of the network an activity of GFH is that a new and dedicated server should be installed to sustain better and faster networking activities. The system should be able to monitor the speed of the network and the network usages as well as the number of users at any particular time. Furthermore, for security purposes, the installation of firewall is a must to ensure that the network packages are filtered. Also, a firewall will stop any outside virus from attacking the new network system. Furthermore, GFH will be saving or cutting operations cost by adopting a printer sharing strategy; where the printers will be programmed to run as network printers, therefore supporting any printing requirement from different departments within GFH. However, the future functional structure for the IT department will be designed to ensure that GFH is able to deliver reliable services on a regular basis to its customers. The new functional structure will allow GFH practice appropriate configuration management in supporting all of its IT applications/services. Evaluating the information system needs and requirement for golden fleece hotel and developing strategic information system plan Executive Summary Evaluating the information system needs and requirement for golden fleece hotel and developing strategic information system plan Executive SummaryIntroductionBackgroundReview of Problem EvaluationBenefits of IS Strategic PlanConclusionRecommendationsWhy SWOT Analysis?Why Critical Success Factor (CSF) Analysis?Recommendations on IT InfrastructureReferencesRelated Executive Summary This project is designed to get in detail from survey and past relevant literature the impacts of Information System(IS) adoption in sponsoring company and be able to produce a report that will help in advising the   management and the owner of Golden Fleece Hotel (GFH) on the feasibility of the IS in their business and proffer a recommendation on the adoption of the IS strategy. Currently, the sponsoring company has not employed any form of IS strategy in their business activities. They currently depend on the traditional (face-to-face) business means. However, the management have decided to take step forward in expanding their business, on that process this project has been requested by GFH owner and the manager with the aim of getting decision management support. The data gathering of this project will be through survey such as research of relevant academic literatures such as journals and books. Subsequently, the collected data will be analyse and produce a clear and relevant management supporting report which will help to solve the real life problem. Introduction In the history, the relationship between an organizations strategic plan and information systems (IS) was of little importance to the organizations management – as information systems were seen as the same with data processing concerning corporate issues and it was systematical placed as a back-room operation for the running of everyday tasks. However, in current times, information systems has become an essential part for the management of organizations, thus there has been an increasing realization for the incorporation of information systems into the strategic planning of organizations. This is because, information systems and information technology (IT) enable organizations flourish – as it helps organizations grow in scope, offer improved services and innovative products. However, the development of a strategic IS plan concentrates on identifying the most appropriate IS for an organization and the implementation plan – with its main objective to ensure the alignment of the current business strategy with a new IS strategy (Earl, 2003). Additionally, a strategic IS plan can be interpreted as a formal exercise, where successions of consistent steps are embarked on, which results in the definition of IS requirements as well as the identification of a lasting strategy.   This project will avail Golden Fleece Hotel (GFH) – the case study of this project, with a framework focused on enhancing GFHs future and at the same time, provide GFH with technological infrastructures that will support the business to cope with business changes. Thus, the next chapter comprises of a review of certain aspects of this project, such as the sponsor’s details, overview of research chapter, the objective, scope and structure of the project. Background The project sponsor is Golden Fleece Hotel; a privately-owned Hotel (Medium Enterprise) that provides full hotel services such as reservation, restaurant and client services. The hotel was founded in the year 1999 in South Yorkshire and provides catering to customers in two basic group- business people and pleasure travelers that wanted a more personal hotel experience. The hotel’s top management team comprises of two (2) persons – the owner and the Manager. The hotel has four (4) main Units: Restaurant/Catering, Housekeeping, Reservation and Client Services.   Despite the size of the hotel, GFH still operates business in a traditional manner with poor information technology (IT) infrastructure for their business processes. The hotel does not have any form of electronic commerce (e-commerce) system like website and online transaction support system. However, they always fill a paper card any time they need to get their customers details as a means of making reservatio n and showing of their business services. In order to fit well in today’s dynamic information era, GFH plans to increase its business operations and services so as to respond to the needs of their customers and the changing situation of their business. Review of Problem Currently, GFH is not conducting business in modern way, they still work manually. This shows that majority of their business with customers are always carried out in person or through paper works. However, GFH have a substantial amount of customers that want to contact or make reservations with them in modern way (via internet), but GFH do not have the technological infrastructure to connect with its clients. They have a number of employees that are lacking significantly in IT and technical skills, for this reason this made GFH ability not to achieve its desired goals and objectives. Finally, GFH has no formal IS strategic plan to define its management activities that will enable the business achieve its business objective. Additionally, the research into the development of IS strategic plan will be evaluated and reviewed to allow the selection of the suitable methodology(s) for the development of the plan for GFH. However, the next chapter covers the evaluation of the project succe ss. Evaluation From the literature, different development methodologies have different foci and structure; hence leading to different planning or development methodologies for SISP. For instance, Porter’s Value Chain Analysis (VCA) and Critical Success Factors (CSF) methods; the VCA focuses on events that concern adding direct value to an organization while CSF ensures the concentration of the vital requirements concerning the IS need of an organization. Both methods have different structure and focus. However, as VCA focuses on adding direct value, it consequently puts IS straight into the domain of adding value to the organization instead of cutting cost. Practically, VCA simply offers organizations a model that covers advanced level information, but on the other hand, fails to tackle issues concerning the development and application of the plan. Nonetheless, Porter (2001) argued that in order to ensure success in the application of the plan, organizations need to formulate their business strategy in a way that integrates either cost leadership, market differentiation or focus in an appropriate way to attain a viable long-term competitive lead in their preferred market area. However, Kim and Mauborgne (2005) argued that Porter’s value chain model is not the only alternative for organization, as it concentrates solely on internal processes as an alternative to data, thus it does not properly outline the data structure required by the organization. They argued further â€⠀œ that an alternate way to achieve the SISP implementation success with profits and high growth as well as gaining a competitive edge, is for organizations to create a Blue Ocean Strategy that goes beyond Porters model – by concurrently pursuing both the low cost and differentiation strategy at once. For instance, DELL Computers had an initial strategy to sell directly to the customers at a lower price, thus making their service distinctive from other competitors. They also provided a toll-free telephone number and special (online) features or enhancement in their services as they allowed direct interaction with their clients which helped them understand their client requirements better. However, Pant and Hsu (1995) advised that it is essential for Porter’s VCA to be implemented in combination with selected methods that will tackle issues concerning the development and application of the plan as well as outline the right data structure. Similarly, the CSF is thought to be useful, as it enables the development of IS around the success factor and is a method extensively used (Seddon, et al. 2002), but conversely a comprehensive strategic IS plan cannot be performed with it – as there is no definition for the data architecture (Pant Hsu, 1995). Nonetheless, this is not to say that the CSF method cannot be used for SISP development, because in the case of GFH, it could serve its purpose as CSF analysis is easily performed as well as conducted with little resources. Similarly, the SWOT analysis requires little resources and typically reflects an individual’s current position and perspective of the organization involved in the analysis. However, this perspective can be misrepresented to explain an earlier decided course of action instead of being used as a method to uncover new possibilities. Also, the threats from a SWOT analysis could be seen as opportunities, however, it depends on the persons or groups involved in the analysis. However, in the case of GFH, the synergy of strategies will not guarantee success for the organization, but in accordance with Mentzas (1997) viewpoint of SISP development, a multi-phase study of GFH business should be conducted before the implementation of a strategic IS plan – so that the synergy of strategies can enhance the organization. Basically, the multi-phase studies are considerations that concern the environment of an organization as well as the alignment that should accompany the configuration of GFHs environment with the business strategy of GFH. However, the stages of the multi-phase study suggested by Mentzas does not cover difficult organizational phenomena that are swayed by human factors; thus it scarcely covers the human aspects, underlying forces and contextual realities concerning the development of a strategic IS plan (Lindsay, 2003). Nevertheless, this is not to imply that the strategies/models in this literature cannot be used for the development process of a strategic IS plan. They can be used in an organized way that enables each strategy look after the lapses of the other strategies; just as Earl’s advocated the use of multiple methodologies for the development an information systems strategy; and in accordance with the findings from Meckel et al., (2004) survey, Small Medium Enterprises use a combination of methods/methodologies to develop their strategies for the enhancement of their business. Thus, developing an IS strategy for GFH may involve the use of multiple methodologies, with the aim of evolving IS into the products/services of GFH as well as creating new strategic opportunities through the use of IS. However, the level and type of strategy to implement is normally determined by the significance of information systems to the organization, the nature of the organization, and the organizationâ €™s current environment (Robson, 1997). Consequently, the formation of an IS strategy for GFH will involve essential factors – for instance organizational structure, culture, the business strategy, technical infrastructure containing the availability of technical skills as well as the perceptions and prospects of employees; thus, highlighting the dynamic nature and requirements of an information systems strategy. However, the formation of an information systems strategy is subjected to continuous modification – as the interest and perceptions of the main groups and actors involved in the development process changes (Walsham Waema, 1994). Nonetheless, the methodology(s) that will be used to develop a strategic IS plan for GFH will focus not only on being conceptual or managerial but on the environment and suitability of IS in GFH. Benefits of IS Strategic Plan Brown (2005) suggested that recognizing and understanding the importance of information systems for an organization is essential to ensure that information systems are implemented strategically. However, an important benefit of IS strategic plan for GFH will be novelty, because it will create value for the business. Fundamentally, introducing new technologies in an organization is simply associated with novelty (Power, 2006). Furthermore, Information System strategic plan will assist GFH to develop new standards for their business, increase the throughput of employees, reduce operations costs, and encourage collaboration within and outside the business plus improving customer satisfaction and services (Shore, 2006). Practically, integrating IS into GFH will bring benefits of effectual communication between them and their customers, because it will conquer the concerns of culture, time and distance. Furthermore, with the help of databases, the business associates of GFH will enhanced consistency and support in relation to collaboration. Essentially, the reason why most organizations adopt Information System is to move their business into the international space of competitiveness, since information systems helps and supports such ambitions (Ward Peppard, 2003; Applegate et al., 2008). Though, information systems benefits can be categorized as tactical, strategic and operational – where measurements concerning tangible and intangible are classified under operational (Turban et al., 2005). But, the tangible benefits GFH will achieve from implementing IS strategic plan which comprise – the inventory reduction and improvement in productivity. Whereas the intangible benefits include innovative or enhanced processes and standardization in relation to systems integration (Turban et al., 2005). Nevertheless, GFH will also achieve some strategic benefits like there will be increased in growth; market share and leadership will improve competitive advantage. Conclusion The aim of this project was to develop a strategic IS plan for GFH. However, the SWOT and CSF analysis was used to critically evaluate both the internal and external environment of GFH. Additionally, in relations to the theories and processes of IS strategic plan discussed in the literature review, a good integration was developed to ensure that the literature review theories and processes were implemented in the practical elements of the project, as the processes and methodologies for developing a strategic IS plan was followed. Also, GFH’s business operations were evaluated and its business plan aligned with the recommended IS strategies by means of the CSF analysis. Moreover, the content of the literature review served as a guideline for the development of the entire strategic IS plan. Therefore, this goes to prove that the content in the literature review was comprehensively integrated into the project’s practical elements. Nonetheless, the information systems were basically recommended to completely support the business strategies of GFH, as detailed implementation plan was proposed. Nevertheless, the SWOT and CSF analysis was used to significantly evaluate both the internal and external environment of GFH and therefore, one can say that the product delivered to GFH satisfied the scope of GFH’s requirements. Recommendations Practically, todays’ operational effectiveness and efficiency in most organizations can be seen as a strategic plan. This means that it’s possible for an organizations strategic plan to arise from anywhere, anybody, or from comprehensive planning as well as from trial and error. However, strategic thinking is the best way of doing things as strategic planning and the synthesis involved are simply contributors of the entire strategic development phenomenon. Nevertheless, from the literature covered, selecting methodology for an organization like GFH is determined through the suitability of the methodology into the organizations situation. Additionally, the literature in this chapter has shown that it will be difficult for one methodology to completely support the full analysis, development and implementation of a strategic IS plan. Therefore, I will apply or use the strategy that allows the use of multiple SISP methodologies. In other words, I will choose a number of methodologies used by SMEs from the findings of Meckel et al., (2004) survey to formulate a strategic IS plan for GFH. Moreover, during the selection of methodology, it is important to think through the amount of resources made accessible for the development phase. Thus, a resource issue for the development phase of is the confinement of time and man power for the SISP development. As a result, the SWOT analysis will be used in the formation of an IS strategy for GFH, as it requires little man power and the time duration required for its development is minimal. In addition, the SWOT analysis is simpler and straightforward when compared with Porter’s Five Forces analysis. In addition, the CSF analysis will also be used for integrating the business-IS strategy and the identification of information systems requirements. This method will be used, as it focuses on the information necessity, which is required by GFH. Why SWOT Analysis? This methodology – SWOT analysis was carefully chosen to enable the evaluation of GFH’s strength and weakness as well as their opportunities and threats. Basically, in relations to the strength and weakness, emphasis will be on the internal environment while for the opportunities and threats, emphasis will be on the external environment. However, the primary aim of the SWOT analysis is to attain continuous competitive advantages for GFH through the implementation of strategies that use the internal strengths of GFH, by reacting to the environmental opportunities, and simultaneously reducing the effect of external threat as well as circumventing the internal weakness of the company. Consequently, enabling SWOT analysis to produce a comprehensive plan, as the threats and weaknesses established in the SWOT analysis will be prevented. On the other hand, SWOT analysis can allow an organization to use a lazy course by looking for strengths that fit opportunities and overlook the opportunities that they feel cannot be used to their advantage. However, in order to avoid this lazy approach, the SWOT analysis would be used to identify the best opportunities for GFH and then plans will be in place to stretch GFH to ensure that they meet these opportunities. Nonetheless, the assessment area in relation to SWOT analysis is greater than that of Porters Value Chain Analysis – for the reason that SWOT concentrations on both the internal and external environment of an organization, whereas Porters Value Chain concentrates only on the internal environment; thus offering more advantages when compared with Porters Five Forces. Furthermore, the assessment area of SWOT concerning the internal environment of GFH will lead to the identification of certain areas that will lead to exceptional accomplishments as well as critical failure features in GFH. This analysis will aid GFH maximize the strong elements/factors they have and avoid areas of weakness during decision making. Also, the assessment area in relation to the external factor will provide GFH the ability to analyze the external openings and threats concerning their competitors as well as creating a better understanding of customers needs, thus allowing GFH to assert itself properly in the marketplace and encourage the exploration of prospective strategic options (Robert, 2004). However, to portray a perfect picture of the SWOT analysis, Robson (1997) developed the SWOT matrix together with four kinds of exposures for risk that are incorporated into the SWOT matrix. The matrix shows the kind of reactions that may well be suitable to cope with every risk. A sample SWOT matrix and likely reactions are presented in Figure 6. Practically, from figure 1, the use of the SWOT matrix makes SWOT analysis easier to decide which task should be prioritized when compared to Porters Value Chain analysis or Five Force. Basically, the SWOT matrix makes it possible to identify possible risks visible in information systems and recognize ways to reaction to the risk. Why Critical Success Factor (CSF) Analysis? This methodology, CSF analysis – consists of a set of factors that include expertise and responsibilities that are considered as very important factors for the continuous success of an organization. Basically, CSFs are a small number of things that need to work aptly to make certain of an organization’s continued existence and success in the marketplace (Turban, et al., 2005). However, in the case of GFH, CSF analysis will help GFH enhance its business – as it will ensure information systems aid the business strategy of GFH by determining essential information requirement and activities that for the IS plan. According to Peffers and Gengler (2003), the CSF analysis of an organization centers on the fundamental scopes of anticipated performance of the organization. Hence, the CSF analysis will provide GFH with an improved understanding of the required strategic information for the future of the business. Practically, the CSF analysis of GFH will examine the business objectives and ascertain the necessary elements that are needed for every objective. Afterwards, the necessary IS required to help the CSFs sustain GFHs business growth and success is identified. Consequently, by achieving the CSF analysis, GFH will be able to position itself properly in the marketplace (Ward Peppard, 2003). Therefore, it is essential for GFH to constantly monitor all the CSF, to make certain their performance is up to standard. In addition, the CSF analysis will provides real support for the development of a strategic IS plan, as it focuses on key activities for business success – as a result preventing any focus on trivial activities. Furthermore, it enables proper allocation of resources to key areas of the business during the development of a strategic IS plan (Avison Fitzgerald, 2003). Recommendations on IT Infrastructure The recommendations and design of the functional structure of the future information technology (IT) department and conceptual technical architecture of the future information technology (IT) department of GFH was proposed to help GFH overcome the difficulties they face. As stated in the case study, the main concern at the moment is incorporating networking functions into the business activities of GFH to lessen their manual processes. Basically, GFH will use the strategy of e-vision opportunities, e-marketing and e-operations. As implementing the e-vision opportunity will entail using innovative business ideas like changing their normal manual processes of manually booking from customers and keeping physical records of customers. They should be able to automate these processes by using a computerized system – electronic booking processing system for booking accommodation. This way, GFH will be able to generate a method of understanding the needs of customers and it will also ensure that there is a surge in the effectiveness and efficiency of the processes at GFH. Similarly, GFH can also implement the e-marketing strategy by moving most of it business activities to the internet, so that they will be able to maximize customer interaction at GFH. This is achievable, since the automated systems in place. Practically, with the automated system, it will change certain functions at GFH and drive GFH towards web-based creativity; hence the e- marketing opportunity will be applied in the process as it’s connected to customer interaction that centers on the use of web-based creativity to change the strategic technique used to interact with customers. Lastly, the e-operation opportunity should be used to transform GFH strategy for business by using web technology to enhance the operations of GFH. In addition, GFH will be able to develop an electronic database for customer to amass details or information concerning their booking. Thus the recommendation for this aspect of the network an activity of GFH is that a new and dedicated server should be installed to sustain better and faster networking activities. The system should be able to monitor the speed of the network and the network usages as well as the number of users at any particular time. Furthermore, for security purposes, the installation of firewall is a must to ensure that the network packages are filtered. Also, a firewall will stop any outside virus from attacking the new network system. Furthermore, GFH will be saving or cutting operations cost by adopting a printer sharing strategy; where the printers will be programmed to run as network printers, therefore supporting any printing requirement from different departments within GFH. However, the future functional structure for the IT department will be designed to ensure that GFH is able to deliver reliable services on a regular basis to its customers. The new functional structure will allow GFH practice appropriate configuration management in supporting all of its IT applications/services. References