CHANDIGARH ENGINEERING COLLEGE,LANDRAN

EXPERIMENT NO.1
AIM: CASE STUDY OF MIS AND ITS FUNCTIONAL SUBSYSTEM THEORY:
A management information system (MIS) provides information which is needed to manage organizations efficiently and effectively. Management information systems involve three primary resources: people, technology, and information or decision making. Management information systems are distinct from other information systems in that they are used to analyze operational activities in the organization. Academically, the term is commonly used to refer to the group of information management methods tied to the automation or support of human decision making, e.g. decision support systems, expert systems, and executive information systems. It is combination of three words:(a)Management: It means to manage information in a organize manner to make information useful. (b)Information: Information refers to collected, organized and meaningful data. (c)System: A system means co-related components which work together for a small goal.

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CHARACTERSTICS OF MIS: Uses internal data stored in the computer system. End users can develop custom reports. Requires formal requests from users. Provides reports with fixed and standard formats.

ADVANTAGES OF MIS: The following are some of the benefits that can be attained for different types of management information systems:

Companies are able to highlight their strengths and weaknesses due to the presence of revenue reports, employees' performance record etc. The identification of these aspects can help the company improve their business processes and operations.

Giving an overall picture of the company and acting as a communication and planning tool. The availability of the customer data and feedback can help the company to align their business processes according to the needs of the customers. The effective management of customer data can help the company to perform direct marketing and promotion activities. Information is considered to be an important asset for any company in the modern competitive world. The consumer buying trends and behaviors can be predicted by the analysis of sales and revenue reports from each operating region of the company.

COMPONENTS OF MIS: (a)Input: For input in a system there is need to collect the data. For collection of data there is a need of raw material, energy and data. (b)Processing: The process include manufacturing process, human ability process but the data should be proposed as follows: 1.Modify and organized the data. 2.Entry and transforming the data. 3.Store the all data in secure form. (c)Output: The third component of a system is output. The output of a data is to be vary to work or to give information.
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SUBSYSTEM OF MIS: Most management information systems specialize in particular commercial and industrial sectors, aspects of the enterprise, or management substructure.

Financial MIS: It provides financial information to all financial managers within organization. Input to Financial MIS: 1.Strategic plan or corporate policies. 2.Transaction processing system(TPS) Output to financial MIS: 1.Profit/Loss and cost systems. 2.Auditing

an

Decision Support System (DSS): are computer program applications used by middle management to compile information from a wide range of sources to support problem solving and decision making.

Marketing Information systems :are MIS designed specifically for managing the marketing aspects of the business. It supports managerial activities in product development, pricing decisions and promotional effectiveness. Input to Market MIS: 1.Strategic plan and corporate policies. 2.The external sources-Competition and market Output to Market MIS: 1.Marketing Research 2.Product Development 3.Promotion and advertising

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Office Automation System (OAS) support communication and productivity in the enterprise by automating work flow and eliminating bottlenecks. OAS may be implemented at any and all levels of management.

Manufacturing MIS: It provides manufacturing information to manufacturing department. Input to Manufacturing MIS: 1.TPS order processing 2.Inventory Data 3.Receiving and inspecting data Output to Manufacturing MIS: 1.Design and engineering 2.Master production and scheduling 3.Inventory control

Human MIS: It is concerned with all of the activities related to employees and potential of the organization. Input to Human MIS: 1.Payroll data 2.Order processing data 3.Personnel data Output to Human MIS: 1.Human resource planning 2.personnel selection and recruiting 3.Training and skills inventory

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EXPERIMENT NO.2
AIM: CASE STUDY OF PHYSICAL AND CONCEPTUAL STRUCTURE OF MIS THEORY:
The MIS structure has been described in terms of support for decision making, management activity and organizational function. There are two approaches that will synthesized into a MIS structure. These are: (a)Physical structure (b)Conceptual structure PHYSICAL STRUCTURE: A management information system (MIS) is an organized combination of people, hardware, communication networks and data sources that collects, transforms and distributes information in an organization. An MIS helps decision making by providing timely, relevant and accurate information to managers. The physical components of an MIS include hardware, software, database, personnel and procedures. (a)Hardware:
o

All physical components of a computer system compose the computer hardware. Important components include the central processing unit, input/output devices, storage units and communication devices. Communication can be over fiber-optic cables or wireless networks.

(b)Software:
o

Software provides the interface between users and the information system. Software can be divided into two generic types: system software and applications. The system software comprises of the operating system, utility programs and special purpose programs. Applications are developed to accomplish a specific task. For users of MIS it is much more important to understand the software than the hardware. Software maintenance can take 50 to 70 percent of all personnel activity in the MIS function. When the organization moves to implement an advanced information system the hardware and software environment becomes more complex.

(c)Database:
o

A database is a centrally controlled collection of organized data. Central control reduces redundancy and duplication of data. Data is stored in an organized and structured way to facilitate sharing and improve availability to those who need it. The database improves
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efficiency of storage by elimination of redundant files and improves efficiency of processing by providing all required data in a single file rather than separate files. This also improves efficiency of information retrieval. (d)Procedures:
o

Three types of procedures are required for an MIS to operate effectively: user instructions, instructions for input preparation and operating instructions for MIS personnel who maintain the MIS.

(e)Personnel:
o

The personnel in the MIS function include computer operators, programmers, systems analysts and managers. Human resource requirements should be assessed by considering both the present system needs and the future system growth. The quality of MIS personnel is a key factor in its effectiveness. An MIS manager needs a combination of both managerial and technical skills

CONCEPTUAL STRUCTURE: Conceptual Structure of Management Information System Business environment contains copious amounts of information, both internal and external to a company's operations. Businesses often look to capture this information for making decisions and improving operations based on different factors gleaned from data. (a)Identification:
o

Management information systems represent classic concepts for gathering information from a variety of business processes for the purpose of management review. The structure and scope of this theory relates that some information or data exists that can improve business decisions.

(b)Features:
o

Companies often attempt to design and implement an information gathering system that will encompass their organization's entire operations. While small business owners will not need such a system, owners and directors in large companies cannot be at the forefront of operations, giving rise to the need for an information system.

(c)Considerations:
o

For maximum effectiveness, management information systems should not be static. Companies will often need a system that will expand or adjust to changes in operations. This allows business owners and managers access to the most up-to-date information .

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CONCEPTUAL STRUCTURE OF MIS

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EXPERIMENT NO.3
AIM : CASE STUDY OF DSS ITS USERS AND CHARACTERISTICS DEFINITION: - It is set of well indicated user friendly computer based tools that combined
data with various decision making models to solve semi structured and unstructured problems.

ITS USERS:-The ultimate user of DSS is decision maker in the INFOSYS. However he or she may
not actually run the system. There are four distinct usage patterns .

DSS USED IN INFOYS MAINLY ARE:- APOLLO ,DELTA. Subscription mode: - receives reports that are generated automatically on the regular basis. Terminal mode: - decision maker is the direct user of the system by making online access. Clerk mode: - In this decision maker uses the system directly but offline. Intermediary mode: - the decision maker uses the system with intermediaries who perform the analysis and gives the report of the result.

CHARACTERISTICS:1. It facilitates semi structured and unstructured decision making by bringing together data. 2. It provides decision support for several independent decisions. 3. It supports a wide variety of decision making processes and styles. 4. It tells the decision maker to make decision under dynamic business conditions. 5. It helps the decision maker to address ad hoc queries.

Basically in this company DSS helps in problem situations.

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Problem 1:- In database system of Infosys , problem in storing structured and unstructured data posed many problems transactional consistency between structural and unstrucural data, managing backup and data.

Solution: -A new feature called Filestream was introduced to store the unstructed data.

Problem 2:- Limited interoperability between core utility information technology and operational technology systems for Smart Grid.

Solution: -Infosys Smart Integrator solution provides a standards-based integration framework which can facilitate seamless information exchange between the IT and OT systems

Problem 3:- Latency in decision making process due to limited predictive analytics

Solution: - Infosys Smart Integrator provides predictive analytics framework allows for efficient near real-time decision making process-based event correlation and situational analysis

Problem 4:- Unable to efficiently and effectively manage the growing data volume in the AMI / Smart Grid ecosystem

Solution:- Infosys Smart Integrator provides an intelligent integration framework that uses powerful event-centric building blocks to generate, predict, deliver, integrate, query and visualize information across core IT and OT systems.

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EXPERIMENT NO.4
AIM: CASE STUDY OF INFORMATION SYSTEM AND ITS SUBTYPES THEORY:
DEFINATION: Information systems are implemented within an organization for the purpose of improving the effectiveness and efficiency of that organization. Capabilities of the information system and characteristics of the organization, its work systems, its people, and its development and implementation methodologies together determine the extent to which that purpose is achieved. DISCIPLINE OF INFORMATION SYSTEM: The nature and foundations of Information Systems which has its roots in other reference disciplines such as Computer Science, Engineering, Mathematics, Management Science and others. Information systems also can be define as a collection of hardware, software, data, people and procedures that work together to produce quality information. INFORMATION SYATEM CAREER PATH: Information Systems have a number of different areas of work:

Information systems strategy Information systems management Information systems development Information systems security Information systems iteration Information system organization

TYPES OF INFORMATION SYSTEMS: 1.OFFICE INFORMATION SYSTEM: (a)An Office information system, or OIS, is an information system that uses hardware, software and networks to enhance work flow and facilitate communications among employees. In an office information system, also described as office automation; employees perform tasks electronically using computers and other electronic devices, instead of manually. With an office information system. (b)An office information system supports a range of business office activities such as creating and distributing graphics and/or documents, sending messages, scheduling, and accounting. All levels of users from executive management to non management employees utilize and benefit from the features of an OIS.

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(c)The software an office information system uses to support these activities include word processing, spreadsheets, databases, presentation graphics, e-mail, Web browsers, Web page authoring, personal information management, and groupware. Office information systems use communications technology such as voice mail, facsimile (fax), videoconferencing, and electronic data interchange (EDI) for the electronic exchange of text, graphics, audio, and video. An office information system also uses a variety of hardware, including computers equipped with modems, video cameras, speakers, and microphones; scanners; and fax machines. 2. TRANSACTION PROCESSING SYSTEM: (a)A Transaction processing system (TPS) is an information system that captures and processes data generated during an organizations day-to-day transactions. A transaction is a business activity such as a deposit, payment, order or reservation. (b)Clerical staff typically perform the activities associated with transaction processing, which include the following 1. Recording a business activity such as a students registration, a customers order, an employees timecard or a clients payment. 2. Confirming an action or triggering a response, such as printing a students schedule, sending a thank-you note to a customer, generating an employees paycheck or issuing a receipt to a client. 3. Maintaining data, which involves adding new data, changing existing data, or removing unwanted data. (c)Today, most transaction processing systems use online transaction processing. Some routine processing tasks such as calculating paychecks or printing invoices, however, are performed more effectively on a batch basis. For these activities, many organizations still use batch processing techniques. 3..MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEM: (a)A Management information system, or MIS is an information system that generates accurate, timely and organized information so managers and other users can make decisions, solve problems, supervise activities, and track progress. Because it generates reports on a regular basis, a management information system sometimes is called a management reporting system (MRS). (b)Management information systems often are integrated with transaction processing systems. To process a sales order, for example, the transaction processing system records the sale, updates the customers account balance, and makes a deduction from inventory. Using this information, the related management information system can produce reports that recap daily sales activities; list customers with past due account balances; graph slow or fast selling products; and highlight inventory items that need reordering. A management information system focuses on generating information that management and other users need to perform their jobs.

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(c)An MIS generates three basic types of information: detailed, summary and exception. Detailed information typically confirms transaction processing activities. A Detailed Order Report is an example of a detail report. Summary information consolidates data into a format that an individual can review quickly and easily. To help synopsize information, a summary report typically contains totals, tables, or graphs. An Inventory Summary Report is an example of a summary report. Exception information filters data to report information that is outside of a normal condition. These conditions, called the exception criteria, define the range of what is considered normal activity or status. 4. DECISION SUPPORT SYSTEM: (a)A Decision support system (DSS) is an information system designed to help users reach a decision when a decision-making situation arises. A variety of DSSs exist to help with a range of decisions. (b)A decision support system uses data from internal and/or external sources. Internal sources of data might include sales, manufacturing, inventory, or financial data from an organizations database. External sources could include interest rates, population trends, and costs of new housing construction or raw material pricing. Users of a DSS, often managers, can manipulate the data used in the DSS to help with decisions. (c)Some decision support systems include query language, statistical analysis capabilities, spreadsheets, and graphics that help you extract data and evaluate the results. Some decision support systems also include capabilities that allow you to create a model of the factors affecting a decision (d)To store all the necessary decision-making data, DSSs or EISs often use extremely large databases, called data warehouses. A data warehouse stores and manages the data required to analyze historical and current business circumstances. 5. EXPERT SYSTEM: (a)An Expert system is an information system that captures and stores the knowledge of human experts and then imitates human reasoning and decision-making processes for those who have less expertise. Expert systems are composed of two main components: a knowledge base and inference rules. A knowledge base is the combined subject knowledge and experiences of the human experts. The inference rules are a set of logical judgments applied to the knowledge base each time a user describes a situation to the expert system. (b)Although expert systems can help decision-making at any level in an organization, non management employees are the primary users who utilize them to help with job-related decisions. Expert systems also successfully have resolved such diverse problems as diagnosing illnesses, searching for oil and making soup.

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(c)Expert systems are one part of an exciting branch of computer science called artificial intelligence. Artificial intelligence (AI) is the application of human intelligence to computers. AI technology can sense your actions and, based on logical assumptions and prior experience, will take the appropriate action to complete the task. AI has a variety of capabilities, including speech recognition, logical reasoning, and creative responses.

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EXPERIMENT NO.5
AIM : CASE STUDY OF GDSS AND ITS POSSIBLE CONFIGURATIONS DEFINITION: - It is an interactive computer based system to facilitate the solution of
unstructured problems by a set of decision makers working in a group. It improved the quality and effectiveness of meetings. The GDSS includes the following in to its configuration:1. 2. 3. 4. The top management Middle management Employees Workers

In G-DSS there is a committee which is generally made for higher level decisions. In top management there is Company Manager. In middle management there is Plant manager. In lower level there are Employees. At the last stage there are Workers.

A problem arises due to heavy pollution near by residential areas in air due to silt. So the company G-DSS committee decides to solve this problem and solution is to protect the manufacturing surroundings with plants. Exhaust pipes length increased. TEAMDEC gdss is used in INFOSYS. TEAMDEC is a Group Decision Support System (GDSS). The development of a GDSS is supported by a broad spectrum of theories and techniques. Two major aspects of GDSS development were considered in TEAMDEC design: HCI and decision-making assistance. These two aspects interact to promote an interactive group decision support system with high quality. CHARTERSTICS OF TEAMDEC 1.platform independent 2.multimedia technologies

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3.video conferencing 4.network messaging 5.ease of use

User interface of TEAMDEC

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Explanation facility of TEAMDEC

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EXPERIMENT NO.6

AIM : CASE STUDY OF ERP MARKETING. Enterprise Resource Planning

Infosys improves the performance of your organization through Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solutions based on the Global Delivery Model. With its rich experience in ERP implementation, our ERP packages offer solutions that meet the needs. Association with strategic software vendors enables you to be at the forefront of application technology. Infosys understand the significance of balancing the quality of packaged ERP solutions with the flexibility that the ERP implementation ensures. Its proprietary methods are based on the evaluation and implementation of ERP applications provide predictability through faster and risk-free execution. Infosys ERP solutions help streamline and align your key business processes. Infosys have enhanced the productivity of Fortune 500 clients with industry-best ERP packages such as: SAP Oracle For mid-market and large companies, Infosys provide services on Microsoft Dynamics packages including: Microsoft Dynamics GP Microsoft Dynamics AX Microsoft Dynamics NAV Microsoft Dynamics CRM Infosys offer services in all ERP functional areas including Financials, Projects, Sales and Distribution, HRMS and Manufacturing.

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Infosys' SAP implementation approach is highly specialized and in lockstep with industry best practices. Compliance is assured during every phase of the implementation or upgrade, providing enterprises with ample opportunity to review or re-align internal controls to enable better business practices. The end result of this collaborative approach is a reduced year-overyear compliance cost and improved control mechanisms."

Benefits of ERP
In todays world, administration & management of organizations, particularly educational institutions, has become a tedious and complex task. The administrators of the Institute are often faced with multiple challenges to ensure day to day smooth running of institutions irrespective of whether they are small or large, private/govt., professional, research institutions, multi-disciplinary College systems. It requires careful planning, systematic approach and accurate control of administrative processes to attract the best students, produce best results and project the best image. Coupled with tight competition from the industry, these institutions are increasingly seeking the help of information technology to improvise their facilities and maintain a competitive edge to their educational business. Having been associated with education sector for over a decade, we started thinking of automating the process of resource planning, decision making and delivering better leaning at educational institution. Infosys continuous understanding of institute processes and dedicated consultation with institutional administrators, department heads, faculty members, admin staff, students and parents and rigorous R&D brought the fruit as Chancellor, our comprehensive integrated software solution that efficiently simplifies even the seemingly most arduous administrative processes in the Institutes. Welcome to the extremely efficient, systematic, sophisticated yet user friendly automated Institute Management Solution-Chancellor. Capable of undertaking millions of daily transactions while providing real-time operational visibility across departments and multiple campuses, Chancellor is not only user-friendly and futuristic but also versatile and fully customizable to individual campus-specific requirements. Chancellor allows the users to store modify and retrieve information with access using the pull down menus masters, admission, Academic and Courses, examination, promotion, fee management, financial accounting, time table scheduler, hr & payroll, library management, inventory, transport and other utilities. The data flows seamlessly between the modules. Each Modules has sub modules within it. All the modules are integrated and the information flows from the student and the staff administration module. The Institute Management Software an integrated solution takes care of the various activities of an educational institution like institution management, student management, administrative functions, etc. The solution is available as a basic integrated application upgradeable to an Intranet / Internet system. The
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application is readily smart card enabled which acts as a multi-purpose card as identity card, epurse, exam hall card, secure access & transaction in various sections which stores valuable student information retrievable at non networked location for authenticity. Further more features can be built in to meet specific client requirements. Change is always difficult for any human being, but change is the law of nature. ChancellorIMS helps you to easily transit from manual to computerized system. It minimizes hand written manual work from admission to alumni formation; academic to non-academic activities. It reduces drastically the repeated works in various departments/sections of the Institute and automates the complete processes of your Institute. Time Table scheduler saves your precious time of creating time table efficiently and planning for the coming academic session. It is a huge time saver and increases efficiency, communication, and brings transparency in the working. Accurate flow of relevant Data provides real-time information available to students, staff, parents and data synthesis facilitates the management to take speedy decisions

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EXPERIMENT NO -7 AIM : CASE STUDY OF INFORMATION PARAMETERS QUALITY, AGE AND VALUE
Service Offerings Exponential growth of information, complexity from disparate information sources, unstructured formats, and poor quality of data pose challenges to Information Management. Infosys enables organizations to address these challenges and ensure Return on Information using an integrated Enterprise Information Management (EIM) approach. This discipline spans the information lifecycle, from information strategy and architecture to compliance and governance, using our C3 framework

Consolidate information Conserve information Convey information Business Delivery Platform Infosys' Business Delivery Platform (BDP) is a comprehensive, cost-effective and scalable suite of solutions that addresses information management from multiple dimensions - functionality, technology and business processes. We offer a consolidated platform covering areas such as content management, search, e-discovery, etc. to address your needs quickly and costeffectively. Business Intelligence and Data Warehousing Infosys has extensive experience in providing business intelligence and data warehousing solutions on a global platform. We help architect and implement end-to-end solutions that ensure return on information. Enterprise Content Management With Infosys' Enterprise Content Management solution, you can leverage enterprise knowledge assets for competitive advantage by structuring the information for easy access and retrieval. We help you manage the entire lifecycle of content and implement comprehensive solutions. Enterprise Information Portal Proliferation of disparate IT applications is a challenge for organizations. Infosys' Enterprise Information Portal services help you implement portal solutions to create a single point to access information, manage user expectations, handle governance issues, while bringing order
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and

predictability

into

your

enterprise

portal

evolution.

Enterprise Search Infosys' Enterprise Search services help your organization access information, gain insights into your business and leverage them to gain a competitive edge. Identity Management Managing and securing information is central to organizational success. Infosys' comprehensive Identity Management framework covers the identity lifecycle (creating, managing and decommissioning stakeholder identities).

Quality Quality is ensured across all our processes, interfaces and outputs in management, core and support processes. It helps us deliver long-term excellence, and ultimately, predictability of returns, through the Global Delivery Model (GDM), to all stakeholders. We improve "Execution Excellence" through continuous productivity improvement. We have continuously benchmarked our processes against world-class standards and models such as ISO 9001-TickIT, SEI-CMM / CMMI, ISO 20000, ISO 27000, AS 9100, TL 9000 and ISO 14001. Regular and rigorous assessments are conducted by reputed external assessors. Our process performance has emerged as better than that of our peers. Infosys has embarked on several strategic improvement initiatives:

Baldrige-based assessment of units for business excellence Organization-wide reuse and tools initiatives for productivity improvement Patent application filed for PROSO, our project scheduling model Program management framework to enable execution of large deals Proactive risk assessment model and approach to mitigate execution risks eSCM Level 4 certification of Infosys BPO by the IT Services Qualification Center (ITSqc) at Carnegie Mellon University Internal quality certification to equip our team members with required skill sets quickly

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Age of information:Although founded in 1981, Infosyss explosive growth began in earnest with the liberalisation of the Indian economy in 1991. That year, its revenues were $2 million. In the financial year ending March 2008, they were $4.2 billion, roughly a quarter of which was net profit. That the company has packed what would be for most companies a lifetimes achievement into less than two decades is demonstrated in its Heritage Centre, a building at the centre of its Bangalore headquarters site that is fondly spoken of in nostalgic terms. It was erected in 1994. But this rapid success does not mean Infosys has an inflated sense of its own achievement. Globally, we are still a small company, and a lucky company, admits Aditya Nath Jha, worldwide head of branding. Nor does it assume that this success will necessarily continue for ever. Our challenge today, says Jha is to try and build a company that lasts for 200 years. In this regard, Infosys is typical of the top-tier Indian outsourcers. The industry has seen phenomenal expansion in the past decade. But after the rush by Western companies to leverage Indias huge pool of low-cost IT skills over this period, the success of Indian companies over the next decade will depend on how well they move up the engagement ladder.

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Innovators dilemma Each of the many thousands of young graduates that join the ranks of Infosys each year represents the company in microcosm. They are hardworking, diligent, technically adept and highly enthusiastic for many, the job represents an opportunity for a far more prosperous life than that of their parents. And there is plenty of work for these young software engineers to do. However, the company has a pressing strategic need for a new kind of employee businesssavvy consultants who can speak to their clients decision-makers, not just their IT departments.

Whether these young graduates have it in them to fill that role on the vast scale that Infosys requires is the key question for the company right now. As competition from lower-cost outsourcing destinations such as the Philippines and Vietnam intensifies, the Indian outsourcers are in danger of having to take their own medicine. To avoid being undercut, they believe, they must provide higher-value services. Not only is this an opportunity to charge more money, it is also a way to improve the value for money they can offer and the depth of the partnership with clients. In many ways, Infosys suffers a classic case of the innovators dilemma in this regard. In order to build an organisation with the scale to meet global demand in such a small amount of time, the company has developed recruiting and training processes that are positively industrial. The company receives around 1.5 million job applications each year. In 2007, it hired 15,200 people net. Each graduate entrant is assigned to one of Infosyss six vertical industry business units (IBUs) and enrolled on a training programme that continues throughout their employment. Infosys cannot slow these processes down it is still competing on staff numbers and price. And as Nandita Gurjar, Infosyss head of human resources, explains, Staff attrition is the biggest problem facing India today. But those processes were not designed to produce consultants of the calibre Infosys now needs if it is to move to the next level of IT services partnership.
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For NR Narayana Murthy, the patriarchal co-founder of Infosys and guru of globalisation, the solution lies in fostering a culture of leadership within the organisation. Our biggest challenge is making sure that the tired minds that go home at the end of the day return the next morning invigorated and passionate about their work, he says. A good leader has the power to raise the aspirations of their workers. In his new role as chief mentor, the former CEO sits at the top of a mentoring programme designed to cultivate leadership. Like many other aspects of the Infosys corporate culture, the scheme quite deliberately resembles university life. However, there are only 585 individuals currently being groomed for leadership out of a total workforce of almost 100,000. This reveals just how bottom-heavy the company is, as does the average employee age of 25.

Value of Information :Information has a great impact on decision making, and hence its value is closely tied to the decisions that result from its use. Information does not have an absolute universal value. Its value is related to those who use it, when it is used, and in what situation it is used. In this sense, information is similar to other commodities. The exponential growth of information, heterogeneous silos, unstructured formats and poor data quality pose challenges in information management. They prevent businesses from utilizing information effectively. Infosys offers end-to-end BI and DW services - Reporting and Analytics, Maintenance and Support. Our services cover Business Intelligence road map, Data Warehousing Implementation, Analytics, Data Mining, Data Quality and Master Data Management. Our business result-oriented approach ensures return on information. Infosys' offerings include:

BI strategy development BI and DW governance consulting BI and DW architecture development Strategic audit Taxonomy implementation consulting Migration strategy and planning, cross-platform migration and version upgrades BI services in a SaaS Model
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EXPERIMENT NO -8

AIM : STUDY OF ERP MARKETING AND IMPLEMENTATION Business Applications Case Study: How Cisco IT Migrated to an ERP Technical Support Module
Companywide migration to standard tools for services management and configuration enable enterprise integration, full support for solutions, and smooth path for future upgrades.

How Cisco IT Migrated to an ERP Technical Support Module The mission-critical Cisco technical support organization delivers a variety of revenuegenerating customer services. Most support services contract customers, and customers covered by new product warranties, depend on the efficient and timely logging, tracking, and managing of customer service requests. Customers can request assistance from Cisco.com by sending e-mail to the technical support organization, or by phoning the customer call center. Two key application packages supported service delivery operations. The CARE system, based on Clarify application foundation technology, was used for tracking service requests. The Metrix system served as the foundation for all service logistics, including spare parts inventory management, accounting, returns/repair management, and order management. Both of these purchased applications had been in use for approximately a decade. Heavily customized by IT engineers, vendor-provided software upgrades and support were no longer available. CARE and Metrix were in end-of-support (EOS) status; neither package had been upgraded for several years. A third software package, a product configuration tool based upon EOS Calico foundation technology, was used to configure and order replacement hardware. This Calico-based tool was considered part of the foundation systems architecture as well. While the technical support engineering and service logistics organizations were deeply engaged in processes that heavily relied on these applications, the executive team was concerned. The technical support organization of more than 3000 engineering and logistics personnel was doing business on a burning platform, says Joe Mastropolo, the Cisco IT manager assigned to address the situation. The software environment could not be upgraded, and support was becoming a real challenge. Key applications were in various states of disrepair, and the risk of affecting business had become very real. The executive team could not accept
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the increasing risk of a customer-impacting support process breakdown, so a decision was made to take action. CHALLENGE The technical support systems replacement project exceeded our expectationsand purposeful focus on the user perspectives made all the difference. This complex project was vital to this large revenue-generating organization, and teamwork, meticulous planning, and comprehensive user preparedness have put us on solid ground for the future. David Murray Director for Release Management, Oracle Projects, Cisco IT Within the IT world, engineers are considered the most challenging user base when it comes to technology change. Years of customizations had resulted in a complex platform, but one that was familiar and comfortable for its resident users. CARE, Metrix, and Calico, while out of date and in danger of imminent failure, were getting the job done for the engineers. The biggest challenges associated with this project were user-focused. Convincing the hundreds of engineers that replacement software was vital to the success of the company was the first hurdle, and introducing the selected solutions would require unprecedented user preparation. A sense of urgency drove the selection process forward. David Murray, the director of release management for the Oracle 11i initiative, described the challenge: By operating with end-oflife software, the service organization was at great risk. The replacement project was crucial and time-sensitive. With the tech support organization, we had to carefully assess the impact of the change and manage user expectations. There was great attachment to the customized software and a brute-force replacement would doom our chances of successful user adoption. A detailed vendor package evaluation and proof of concept were required to ensure ultimate acceptance by the user base. With thorough evaluation criteria defined up front, the project team was able to objectively evaluate and score five vendors of relevant application packages. The choices were narrowed down to two vendors, each providing a solution demonstration as the final step in the selection process. The Oracle 11i application suite was selected as the best choice for customer call management and service logistics. For the product configurator, Selectica technology was chosen. This meant an implementation of many new modules for Cisco, as well as the use of relatively new technology from Oracle. While the Oracle 11i suite introduced risk, the team agreed it was the best solution overall.

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In parallel with the technical support project, Cisco manufacturing and finance teams were upgrading to the Oracle 11i platform. The new corporate data foundation provided additional incentive for the adoption of Oracle 11i technical support solutions, but also introduced additional challenges since the new technical support tools would be integrated with a relatively new enterprise architecture (see the related Cisco IT case study, ERP Manufacturing and Finance" . SOLUTION With the selection made, the project team prepared to implement the proof-of-concept phase. A sandbox or practice environment was established, and a sample set of users (engineers) was chosen to participate. These engineers were given extensive training - four to six weeks each - in preparation for the three-month evaluation phase. The efforts contributed to the overall solution implementation plan:

Actual users were able to test out the new applications. They were able to assess the software limits and capabilities in reality, not just by evaluating documentation and product specifications. The lessons learned formed the foundation for a solid concept commit definition. Concept commitments were articulated based on factual observations and data, rather than best guesses. Precise implementation plans were formulated. In particular, the proof-of-concept team recommended the avoidance of any all-at-once implementation. The optimal plan included a phased approach to minimize risks, and to provide enough time for exhaustive data management (e.g., product configurator rule definitions) to be accomplished well in advance of actual deployment. Phase One In June 2003, the project team was ready for the first phase - setting up a production environment and configuration of the Oracle 11i application suite in preparation for the eventual transaction volume. This first minor release provided a good foundation for the replacements, and would serve as the reference environment for all subsequent test cycles. In parallel with the establishment of the production environment, the team began the process of replacing Calico with Selectica technology. Meeting the business needs would entail many months of defining data management rules, and this up-front work could only be done using the production environment. Phase Two

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By December, the foundation was ready for the next minor release - the loading of service data. Massive amounts of information residing on external systems - such as the service and sales marketing systemrequired months to load. With the data loaded, the project implementation team would be ready to use the new software. Phase Three The beginning of 2004 marked a major release and the first actual business transactions in the new production environment. Functions were phased in using a metered approach, with increasing amounts released each week over a four-week period. Initially, customer-facing functions were moved from the old CARE system to the new Oracle applications. Ciscos call center traffic was gradually redirected, with e-mail requests being the first to be serviced by the new platform. E-mail requests represent the lower-priority requests, requiring responses in terms of days, not hours. Two weeks later, phone requests went live on the new platform. By this point, approximately one third of all service requests were being directed by the new solution. In the fourth week, the team activated the tool for handling Web-initiated requests, which represented the majority of all requests and the remainder of the transaction volume from the previous platform. As new functions were introduced, the implementation team used previously defined criteria to evaluate them. The criteria were defined to mitigate risks and ensure that the new system was stable before continuing. By the end of this phase, CARE was decommissioned. The team proceeded to phase in some back-office service logistics as well, relating to the service logistics system. Inventory management, spare parts planning, repair operations, finance, and other service-related functions were phased in gradually. Phase Four The next minor release focused on business intelligence. In May 2004, this minor release addressed reporting and business objects-related functions. Phase Five During a major release in December 2004, the final project steps were taken and Metrix was officially decommissioned. Customer-facing functions, including order entry, order management, and returns management, had also moved to the Oracle platform. RESULTS
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The staggered release plan, spread over an 18-month period, proved to be critical to the success of the project. With careful up-front planning and solid release management, risks were effectively mitigated. The main goal - avoiding incidents that would put the business at risk was essentially met, although the program did encounter some minor challenges. Both of the major releases (March and December 2004) experienced some post-production stability issues. In each case, the project team was able to fully stabilize the platform within a couple of months without major impact to operations. The resulting architectural changes have offered the technical support organization many benefits:

Enterprise-class platform - Poorly implemented foundational software that evolved without any architectural direction has been replaced with integrated enterprise-class applications. The technical support solutions are in line with the corporate Oracle 11i initiative, and provide a single platform for product and service teams, optimizing cross-functional efficiencies and information sharing. Supportability and reliability - The new Oracle foundation gives the support organization the benefits of a three-tier design. Desktops require only a Web browser, with the applications themselves located on servers for simplified, centralized upgrades and maintenance. Back-end servers were previously configured in an activepassive configuration, with the backup server unused except during failover mode. The new architecture configures servers in active-active pairs, yielding much more compute power to the enterprise and providing hot-standby capabilities in the event of any server failures. Table 1 provides a before and after comparison of overall reliability, availability, and scalability (RAS) features. The standard software replaces highly customized software, providing a more stable foundation for future growth and enhancements, and introduces secure access capabilities to external partners where none was realistically available. Disaster recovery - Redundancy is built in at many levels. The mai corporate database engine is hosted in a San Jose, California data center, using two servers in an activeactive configuration. A second site in North Carolina acts as a disaster recovery site in the event of a site failure at the main data center. Stable platform for users - The chance of disruptions to users has been greatly minimized, and users can do their jobs with tools that provide stability and productivity. Achieving this stability required adopting standard products and giving up some previously customized alternatives, but the long-term benefits greatly outweigh the short-term inconveniences.

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Table 1. Upgrade Reliability, Availability, and Scalability. RAS Features Network Local Directors Application Server Before Upgrade After Upgrade

Redundant Switches Redundant Switches None Redundant Local Directors

Single Node with fail- Multiple Nodes with Load Balancing. Scalable over Architecture None Apache, Forms and Reports Load balanced using Local Directors - Oracle 8i Parallel Server - Redo logs multiplexing - Archive Log mode

Application Load Balancing Database

- Oracle 8i Parallel Server - Archive Log mode

LESSONS LEARNED In hindsight, says Mastropolo, we understand that the Oracle CRM modules and DBMS version were somewhat new and relatively immature when we adopted them. Subsequent releases and patches eliminated many of the bug and stability issues that we encountered during our implementation. Our experience emphasized the benefit of being prepared for the unexpected. Anyone tackling a project of this magnitude needs to develop an implementation plan that mitigates business risk, and includes contingency plans. Beyond the lessons that the IT team learned about early release software, the users themselves point to lessons learned about teamwork and the setting of expectations. From the beginnings of the Oracle 11i initiative, the executive team recognized the need to involve representatives from every business team. This increased emphasis on communications with and training of end users has become a success factor for projects throughout Cisco. For the Oracle 11i initiative, a multilevel team was established to minimize risks, optimally prepare for the move to the new foundation and applications, and ensure successful adoption by all affected users. The team included:

Executive team - This team met quarterly to define goals, allocate resources, assess progress, and adjust plans as needed. Steering committee - This multifunctional team met monthly to provide governance and guidance for the program management team, and to proactively address program risks and resource issues.
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Program management organization (PMO) - IT provided dedicated, full-time staff to

Business flow team - This team was made up of representatives from the affected groups in each of six critical Oracle-supported business flows, and served as the voice for business requirements combined with user perspectives during the move to Oracle 11i. Mahesh Bhumralkar of the Cisco technical support team served as senior manager of the business flow team that represented the technical support business for the Oracle 11i deployment. By involving users from every affected business area, the company made sure each business team was given a voice, says Bhumralkar. We were trained and prepared for critical business impacts in advance, and we had a way to raise our concerns and adjust the process to avoid pitfalls that our engineers could foresee. manage the development and deployment work. This team also provided day-to-day management of the release management and business flow teams. Release management team - This group coordinated the process of planning and implementing rehearsals and go-live events. Changes of this magnitude will always cause some pain and be met with resistance, added Bhumralkar. But our organization adoption process helped to manage this resistance and increase user buy-in, even knowing that the changes would not all be positive for our users. By communicating the long-term benefits as well as the short-term sacrifices, such as losing some of our customized tools, we were able to more effectively manage the transition and the business impacts. End-user communications ultimately came from within individual organizations. The designation of inside advocates lessened the resistance, and ensured that users were given realistic information about the new solutions. The anticipated challenges were openly described. After the go-live events for the major releases, a network of ambassadors provided additional frontline end-user support. Each of the worldwide user constituents groups - more than 12 in all, for the technical support organization - had an identified onsite point of contact for any Oracle 11i issues. These ambassadors were kept up to date, and provided direct-line dissemination of status to the users. Preparations for change were also necessary for customers, since some of the new software was customer-facing. Changes were inevitably introduced to the service request processes. While the service flows were changed for the better - matching best-in-class industry practices some resistance to change was expected. The team learned the value of being prepared for

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customer feedback, both positive and negative, realizing that some negative feedback was inevitable and would require effective resolutions. With the replacement accomplished, the technical support organization continues to address user concerns as they arise. The corporate goals for supportability and minimizing total cost of ownership have resulted in new attitudes regarding software customizations. To ease support and upgrades, Cisco relies on strong vendor relationships. User requests are fed back as enhancement requests, and the user base continues to adjust processes and workflow to maximize efficiencies. Murray summarizes, The technical support systems replacement project exceeded our expectations - and purposeful focus on the user perspectives made all the difference. This complex project was vital to this large revenue-generating organization, and teamwork, meticulous planning, and comprehensive user preparedness have put us on solid ground for the future.

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