CASE 1

ECOURIER, CALBECOM, AND BRYAN CAVE: DELIVERING

CASE STUDY QUESTIONS:

Question-01:
How do information technologies contribute to the business success of the companies depicted in
the case? Provide an example from each company explaining how the technology implemented
let to improved performance.

Answer: Information technologies are imperative to businesses and organizations that want to be
successful. In this case, there were three companies that demonstrated how information technologies
helped their business. The first company was eCourier. eCourier delivers packages
Around London and wanted to “keep real time tabs on customer satisfaction".
eCourier used See Why software to help give them customer data faster. This software allowed
eCourier to see when client’s accounts were going dormant or if there were changes in the bookings.
With this new data, eCourier saved money by not having to add extra staff to monitor who was happy
with service and who was not. The second company was Cablecom. Cablecom was also interested
customer satisfaction. They used statistical software to look through customer data and filter out
trouble. They also found that using survey research in combination with statistical software gave a
more accurate look at customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction. These two information technologies
allowed Cablecom to see which customers were unhappy and helped them retain those customers.
Finally, the third company was a law firm called Bryan Cave. Bryan Cave needed an alternative to the
hourly fee normally charged by law firms. Clients wanted “fixed pricing and pricing that was adjusted
during a project”. The law firm had spreadsheets to help breakdown the collection of fees and how
much profit was being made but these spread sheets were difficult and confusing. The company used
business intelligent tools to help lawyers track budgets in real time so that they could quickly make
adjustments. The use of
this technology led to improved profitability for the law firm and also improvement in hours worked
by fee earners in the law firm.

Question-02
In the case of law firm Bryan Cave discussed above, the use of BI technology to improve the
availability, access, and presentation of existing information allowed them to provide tailored
and innovative services to their customers. What other professions could benefit from a similar
use of these technologies, and how? Develop two different possibilities.
Answer: Many professions can use business intelligence tools just like in the case of Bryan Cave law
firm. The banking industry can use BI tools to stay competitive. With competition nature and
increasing due regulatory legislation surrounding financial institutions, it is imperative that financial
institutions monitor customer's behaviors related to consumption of banking products in an effort to
retain the customers. Business intelligence tools are being developed and marketed to banks to help
monitor, analyze accounts, and determine customer profitability. This type of business intelligence tool
would help the banks market to current customers based on their propensity to purchase products
based on transaction behavior and other products the customers currently utilize. Additionally, a
business intelligence tool that performs an analysis of the current fee structure charged for existing
products in relation to the competition in the marketplace would help the bank determine if their
pricing structure is competitive and in line with the competition. This technology would also help
financial institutions identify which customers are profitable and whether or not fees should be
increased or reduced.
Currently chemical Bank has implemented a business intelligence tool that commercial lenders will
utilize by cross referencing their loan portfolio and any prospect against to determine the profitability
of the customer in relation to the company's return on equity. The business intelligence tool will help
the commercial lenders determined if the loan rate is in line given certain parameters such as the
market, financial statements, and the customer's business plan. Additionally, the tool will help
determine if packaging a suite of products would benefit the customer if more products and services of
the bank were utilized. Finally, Chemical Bank is investigating an innovative business intelligence tool
called data cube is being considered for implementation. The data cubes would be developed from
different reports for regional sales managers allowing them to manipulate the data to be more useful
strategic planning and determining staffing solutions.
BS&A Software Company could benefit from business intelligence tools. BS& A provides tax
software and assessing software to many Michigan townships and cities. Each platform communicates
with any of the other BS& A platforms. From personal experience it is a wonderful program. To help
retain current clients BS& A could use survey research to see what needs to be enhanced for each
client or what needs to be simplified for each client. This would allow the company to then tailor its
software to fit each customer’s needs.
At the township I work, we needed a way to enter credit card payments into our tax program from BS
& A. The only payments accepted in the software were checks and cash. By filling out the survey and
sending it back via internet I was
Immediately contacted and the program writers made the necessary changes that allowed me to enter
when a client of the township paid with a credit card. I was very satisfied with the results and BS & A
retained my township as one of their clients.

Question-03
Cablecom developed a prediction model to better identify those customers at risk of switching to
other company in the near future. In addition to those noted in the case, what other actions could
be taken if that information were available? Give some examples of these. Would you consider
letting some customers leave anyway? Why?

Answer: In addition to identifying at-risk customers, these tools might also help identify problem
products, services, personnel, and processes. Once identified, Cablecom could make the appropriate
adjustments and thereby reduce the number of complaints. For example, if customers on a particular
service route are more prone to complain, managers may wish to review, retrain, or terminate
employees responsible for that route.
BI systems identify chronic complainers. These customers serve not only as a material financial drain,
but they also sap the energy of valuable employees. So yes, an organization could benefit from
identifying these trouble customers and let them go. On the other hand, managers must be careful not
to shift blame onto customers when the fault really lies elsewhere. Doing so not only alienates
valuable customers, but it also delays identifying and correcting the true

Real World Activities

1. Search the Internet to help you evaluate the business performance of Sew What? Inc. and its
competitors at the present time. What conclusions can you draw from your research about Sew
What?'s prospects for the future? Report your findings and recommendations for Sew What?'s
continued business success to the class.

Marketplace:
Sew What? operates in a highly competitive market. Competitors include:
 Showbiz Enterprises, Inc.
 Rose Brand2
 Universal Stars Incorporated
 Gerriets International

Findings:
Sew What?'s competitors offer a spectrum of products far broader than just curtains. If customers
prefer a one-stop solution for their staging needs, then they would not consider Sew What? as a
potential vendor. Therefore, Duckett should consider expanding her company's product line.

1. Small businesses have been slower to integrate information technology into their operations than
larger companies. Break into small groups with your classmates to discuss the reasons for this
state of affairs, identifying several possible IT solutions and their business benefits that could
help small businesses be more successful.

Reasons:
 Most small companies are focused on their survival and don't have time to plan for the long
term.
 Smaller companies have proportionally smaller IT budgets.
 Many information technology solutions require considerable startup costs, steep learning
curves, and long payback periods.
Solutions:
 ASP application suites reduce start-up costs because the software is leased rather than
purchased.
 Small businesses should ensure they hire people who are IT literate. These people would
require less training when the business get around to implementing new technology, and
the best of them may even be able to take a leadership role in training other users and in
helping acquire appropriate systems.
 Ensure IT purchases are scalable. For example, Salesforce.com provides an automated
upgrade path. Other vendors charge per user and feature rather than tiered fees.