BDX Company Description - Research Paper Example

BDX Organizational Information Technology Summary Company a. Industry and Company Goals And Objectives BDX operates in the exploration and production of oil and natural gas industry. The objective of the company is to sell oil and natural gas for significantly more than the cost incurred in finding, developing, and producing it. The vision of the company is to become the leading supplier and producer of oil and natural gas. The company also seeks to create subsidiaries in other nations and expand its businesses. b. Work System Snapshot Customers Products and Services Oil and natural gas distributors Government institutions Private institutions Domestic consumers Natural gas Oil Geology services Work Practices (Major Activities or Processes) The four partners head all the activities in the company. The engineer is responsible for all the engineering activities. The accountant is responsible for all financial matters. The network administrator is responsible for all the activities related to technology and network. The network administrator connects all individuals in the company through a network. All the activities in the company are contained and controlled in an information system managed by the network administrator. The management team manages the sell and distribution of the oil and natural gas products. Participants Information Technologies Oil and natural gas distributors Government institutions Private institutions Domestic consumers Suppliers The management team Geologists Engineer The information systems used Distribution points for the natural gas and oil products The various oil and natural gas products sold and distributed Geological services Information management systems Database management systems Website Internet Videoconferencing Information Resource Management a. CIO Title and Reports To Whom BDX is a small group composed of four partners. One partner is an engineer and the rest (three) of the partners are geologists. There is one fulltime accountant, one part-time accountant, and one network administrator. In addition to the small group, there is a larger group of contract personnel and consultants, who do not use the company’s network. The following are the names of the key personnel in BDX: 1. Kerry Stein – Geologist and BDX Partner 2. Bill Holman – Geologist and BDX Partner 3. Gary Blackie – Geologist and BDX Partner 4. Greg Martin – Reservoir Engineer and BDX Partner 5. Vera Fitzgerald – Accounting 6. Deb Jones – Part-time Accountant 7. Toni McEntire – Network Administrator b. IT Department Title, Number and Allocation of Staff The title of the IT department is Computer Lab, and the number of staff in this department is three. Each staff is allocated various responsibilities, which range from software installation to information technology systems maintenance. c. Percent of the IT Budget of the Total Budget The IT department is allocated 30 percent of the total budget. The budget includes employee’s remunerations, purchase, and development of relevant information technology systems. The budget also includes maintenance fees for the various information technology systems in the company. d. Analyst Resident And Reporting To User Department The analyst resident reports to the IT Department (also known as the Computer Lab). In this case, the user department is the IT department. e. Are Users Project Leaders At Your Organization? There are users project leaders at the organization. These project leaders are concerned with research and development activities of the organization. They have the responsibility of ensuring that the organization is up-to-date with technology and making use of technology to enhance functions of the organizations. f. Is There A Web Team? A web team exists which is led by Toni McEntire. Toni is the Network Administrator and he creates and maintains the BDX webpage. Two other employees assist Toni and they ensure that all technology-related items run smoothly; they include web updating and maintenance. g. What Is The Web Team Called And Where Does It Report? The web team name is Fast Technology Innovators and it reports directly to the Network Administrator. The name is based on the mean age of the web team and the present situation in the technological world. h. Outsource Any Functions The company has outsourced most of the functions such as help desk, stationaries, office equipment, and infrastructure materials. The move is to ensure that the company is not overwhelmed by the many functions. This also ensures that everyone in the company runs smoothly and as expected. i. Number Of New Hires Last Year And Number Of These Who Were Entry Level There were no new hires last year and this is because of the fact that the company is still in its early development stages. Also, there are a few things to be done in the company, which do not necessitate the employment of other workers. The company has not yet expanded its operations and once that is achieved, it will be able to contract more employees that are new. j. Average Time People Stay Or Turnover Statistic The company is still too small and young for the turnover statistic to be very meaningful. Gary Blackie, Greg Martin, Bill Holman, Vera Fitzgerald, and Kerry Stein have been in the company since its inception 3.5 years ago. The only turnover in the company has been Sandy Bench and the eventual contracting with Deb (in accounting). k. Number Of IT Layoffs In Last Budget Year And At What Level There were no IT layoffs in the last budget year and this attributed to the fact the company had set clear goals on what was to be done and when. This avoided unnecessary issues related to on what role each individual should play in the organization. Systems Development Life Cycle a. Methodologies Used To Develop Systems The methodologies used to develop the systems include the prototyping lifecycle and the RAD (Rapid Application Development) lifecycle. The prototyping lifecycle method is used to develop software prototypes to clarify the user’s requirements for functioning software. The RAD lifecycle method utilizes the approach in which the developers work with the evolving prototype (Schwalbe, 2010). b. Percentage Of Purchased Packages Vs. In-House Development The percentage of purchased packages is 65 percent while the other 35 percent of the packages are developed in-house. The in-house developed packages are based on the RAD lifecycle model. Some of the prototypes are bought from well-known developers and used to develop new systems in the company. c. Project Team Assignment The users are both project leaders and the other workers in the company. For a system to function well, feedback from other users apart from the project leaders must be obtained. d. Lessons From An Ongoing Or Recently Completed Development Effort It is important for the company to allocate enough funds for the project in the budget. Time is a big constraint for most projects in the company. Another lesson learned is that there is need to have sufficient personnel in the team; this is instigated by the fact that most projects were completed as anticipated because the few personnel had numerous activities to do. e. Capability Maturity Model Rating The Capability Maturity Model (CMM) is a technique used to evaluate and measure the maturity processes in the company. BDX Company can be rated at level 4 (managed level). This is because the management has taken accurate measurement criterion to manage the processes and recognize ways of adjusting the results (Cannon, 2008). f. Offshore Software Development Projects, Vendors, Onsite Activity The company has not outsourced any of its activities overseas. The company is still growing and offshore activities have not yet featured in its activities. Hierarchy of Information Systems a. AI Applications The AI application in use in the company is the monitoring and surveillance agent. It monitors all the activities of the computer networks and has the capability of detecting computer defects such as a crash. b. DSS Applications Some of the DSS applications used in this company include the Payment Application Data Security Standard to deal with issues related to payments. c. MIS Reports One of the most important information systems in BDX is the financial MIS (Management Information System) report. The report includes IT spending, communication with the supply chain, sales channel, and the systems environment. d. TPS The TPS (Testing Procedure Specification) system defines the testing processes and testing methods for the applications. Hardware a. Number And Types Of Platforms The mainframe computer is one, minicomputers are three, workstations are ten, and personal computers (PCs) are ten. b. Critical Input/output Devices The critical input/output devices for the company are scanners, photocopiers, web-cam, keyboard, mouse, display monitors, printer, speakers, and graphic adapters. Software a. Type Of Operating System For Each Platform Each platform uses the Linux operating system. This is because the system is easy to operate and modify to suit the needs of the organizations. Other operating systems also in use include Windows and Macintosh. b. Programming Languages Used For Legacy And New Development Programming languages used include Java, C, Ruby, Visual Basic, Oracle, Pascal, PHP, and Python. c. Collaborative Software Collaborative software used in the company include the IBM Lotus Software which enables individuals in the company to collaborate, innovate, and connect while improving the way they perform their functions (IBM, 2012). d. Office Automation Software And Policies The company uses Oracle Policy Automation software to automate and deploy business policies in the company’s various applications. Database Management Systems (DBMS) a. DBMS Used Across The Platforms There are two DBMS used across the platforms, hierarchical and network databases. Both databases are used on mainframe computers. b. Critical Application Databases Critical application database used by BDX Company is the Microsoft SQL Server, which enables the company to manage its critical applications and databases. c. Database Administrator On Staff The database administrator is concerned with maintenance and optimization of the company databases. Telecommunications a. Number Of LANs & WANs The number of LANs is 2 and the number of WANs is 2. The computers are connected to the LANs and WANs through the router from the Wi-Fi network and fibre cables. b. Internet Service Providers There are two internet service providers offering internet services to the company. The first internet service provider offers Wi-Fi services and the second internet service provider offers high-speed internet services through fibre cables. c. Intranet All the computers in the company use Internet Protocol technology to communicate and share operational systems and important information. d. Extranet The company is still growing and it is in the process of creating an extranet. e. Use Of Wireless Wireless is used in the company and the form wireless communication used is Wi-Fi. It is mostly used in PCs in the company. f. EDI With Supplies The company is still in the process of initiating EDI (electronic data interchange) with supplies with a number of clients in the region. The company is implementing TrueCommerce EDI Solutions to optimize these services. g. E-Commerce Activity The commerce activities with the suppliers and consumers are done on a platform that ensures both the security of the company, consumer, and the suppliers. h. Videoconferencing With the help of web-cams and high-speed internet connectivity, individuals in the company communicate through videoconferencing with other colleagues, and with potential customers and suppliers. i. Global Transmission And Issues With Foreign Countries And Cultures There are issues with foreign cultures and countries. As the company seeks to venture its businesses overseas, it has faced issues such as language barrier and understanding other people’s cultures. Communication has also been an issue when dealing with foreign businesses. Management Perspective (SWOT Analysis) a. Strengths And Weaknesses Of The System The system infrastructure is supported by software that is tamper proof and have proved to be reliable. The management staff is very supportive and innovative; this can be ascertained by the tremendous growth of the company within a very short time. Turnover is absent and this is an indication that the employees are satisfied with the company. However, there is one weakness with the system. The number of staff is wanting compared to the amount needed to be done. This has created some loopholes in the system and they seem to drag the company behind. b. Threats And Opportunities Facing The System There are many opportunities for the company both locally and internationally. Few companies in the region have ventured into oil and natural gas business. The demand for oil and natural gas products is increasing and this is an opportunity for the company to expand its business. All the software and hardware adopted by the company can be upgraded without the need to incur extra cost or change the management team. The main threat facing the company is the stiff competition among the few businesses that do the same business as BDX Company. Some of these companies have been in existence for a long period and continue to enjoy customer loyalty. c. Issues And Implications For The Organization There are issues and implications for the organization. The current organizational structure cannot contain the increasing demand from consumers and its objective for expanding the business. Thus, there is need to find ways of expanding the business without affecting the current employees and systems in place. References Cannon, D. L. (2008). Certified information systems auditor study guide. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. IBM. (2012). Lotus software. Retrieved from http://www-01.ibm.com/software/lotus/ Schwalbe, K. (2010). Information technology project management. 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