Chapter 4

Organizations and Information Technology: Reengineering and Total Quality Management

Chapter 4 details the need to reengineer business processes and the manner in which the reengineering is done. Furthermore, the chapter compares and contrasts this approach with total quality management, a complementary management strategy of incremental improvement used by organizations to counter business pressures.

[ Update | Exercises | IT@Work ]

Update

At last... Real Virtuality!

Virtual organizations: maybe you’ve read about them in the popular business press or heard about them in the classrooms and halls of today’s business schools, but where are they? "Virtually nonexistent," some might say. Others may demand to see some "real world" examples. Well, believe it or not, they do exist, and here’s one example:

Oticon Holding A/S is a Danish hearing aid manufacturer that has revolutionized the way it does business. Under the leadership of CEO Lars Kolind, Oticon has created a model for 21st century organizations. Fast Company’s Polly Labarre describes this most-unusual yet highly successful company in This Organization is Dis-Organization. Take a walk through Oticon in their company presentation or visit the site for Oticon’s U.S headquarters.

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Exercises

  1. Surf the Internet to find out what banks are doing to overcome some of the problems discussed in this chapter.
  2. Enter the Web site of Bank of America. Find some information about their home banking program. Download the demo they provide. Will you use home banking? Why or why not?
  3. There is an increased use of the Internet/Intranet to enable employees to make travel arrangements on their own. Several Internet travel companies provide opportunities for companies to reengineer their travel processes. Surf the Internet and find some vendors that provide such services. Also check what the airlines are doing (e.g., electronic ticketing). Prepare a report that will summarize all the various activities. Also, discuss the impact on the travel agency industry.
  4. Explain the role that the Intranet can play in lessening the stovepipe problem.
  5. Surf the Internet to find some recent material on the role that IT plays in supporting BPR. Search for products and vendors and download an available demo.
  6. Identify some newsgroups that are interested in BPR. Initiate a discussion on the role of IT in BPR.

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IT@Work

Boise Cascade

National Housing Board of Singapore

Singapore Properties Advertisement Center

SINGAPORE PROPERTY INFORMATION CENTER

Boston Market

 

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