Strategic Management and Information System- myassignmenthelp

Question: Discuss about theStrategic Management and Information System forBilliton. Answer: Ordered flowchart of the processes involved in sales is as follows: Introduction In the modern world of business, it is important for the firms to manage their business process in a smarter way. For doing so it is essential for the firms to make use of Information and technology systems. There are many software packages that are available for the company which they can utilize for their different business processes (Swayne, Duncan and Ginter, 2012). BHP Billiton Limited is the mining, metal and petroleum public limited problem. This report highlights the ways operational errors are removed by the use of IT software. It also describes the system that is designed for solving many kinds of problems. The current position of the company is also described in this report. Current organizational structure According to the views, Hitt, Ireland and Hoskisson, (2012) Organisational structure is described as the hierarchy that is followed by the organization. It represents the levels of the different workers of the company. This company operates under a dual listed firm structure with two parent firms (BHP limited and BHP Billiton Plc). It is operated as a single economic entity, which they refer to as BHP. They are running a unified management and Board. The Board committee members consist of the chairman of nomination and governance committee. They have the board of members at the top, and then they have executives below them like Managing Directors and Chief Executive Officer. Below them, there are Advisory members. Below them line managers at the workplace and then staff members at the lower place. Operational problems that organization faces due to this structure As per the views Heras?Saizarbitoria and Boiral, (2013), there are several kinds of operational problems that are faced by the BHP Billiton due to its organizational structure. Due to its dual-listed structure, the decision-making process gets complicated. Since there is a large amount of members that are involved in the process of decision making and providing feedback hence the process gets weaker. Some of the operational processes like human resource management is being maintained by the executives and hence they are unable to understand the organizational needs in various sections of the firm. The leadership has not involved lower-level staffs members in important processes within an organization. This is a matter of problem in terms of employee confidence. They must have to involve people from different levels of the company. It will increase the chances of taking decisions that are not favorable to the government. Since both companies in the collaborations have a different kind of business statements and culture of working and hence the collaboration makes it difficult to work with same productivity. This poses a question mark on the efficiency of the firm working process. Strategic decision-making process is the highly complex process. Most likely system acquisition model There are many kinds of system acquisition model that has been used various companies. Customised software is highly helpful in making the processes of the firm easier since they are designed as per the need of BHP Billiton but they do not satisfy the needs of people that can be very effective when concerned with the organization of such scale. The most difficulty with such type of model is that various software is made for different works which may not be capable to work with each other. Since this company is in many fields then the system acquisition model that is used is ERP. The acquisition process based on a rational or normative decision-making process. It is an approach embedded within the ERP system life cycle. An ERP system suppliers are today striving to penetrate the segment of the market. Enterprise Resource planning typically drives all the options right through the use of a system. The Priem, Li and Carr, (2012) state that ERP acquisition model is used for managing the technological needs of the company. This model understands the needs of the company and changes can be made easily. This kind of changes is made according to the evaluation that is made after monitoring. Since it is an integrated management of major business processes more likely in real time and medicated by technology with the help of software (Hill, Jones Schilling, 2014). This system model helps in the wide range of business processes starting from product planning to the time when it is sold in the market. It helps in financial management as well as the accounting of different functional units. Preparing a system flowchart of procedures involved in sales for BHP Billiton Ordered flowchart of the processes involved in sales is as follows: Control problem related to the system and possible frauds According to Trovo et. al., (2013) these systems have some kinds of control problems. This control problem raises the issues of the firm when concerned with increasing the efficiency of the people. If there is any discrepancy in the control system then the result that is obtained from the system can be repetitive and may have faults in it. One of the biggest problem related to the system is the communication. It is always difficult to maintain the communication standards while using such a large system. Apart from this, there are many risks that are associated with the system. Data can be taken by external people by hacking the system. Since in ERP financial and operational task s also managed hence if the control is loosed then it may lead to long-term loses for the company ultimately resulting in business failure. It is difficult for the system administrators to manage the fraud that can be done to the system. The Lpez-Nicols and Meroo-Cerdn, (2011) States that in the technology advances, fraud is becoming increasingly complicated and difficult to detect, especially when individuals collide. Surveys show that the median loss from the collude fraud is much greater than the fraud perpetrated by individuals (Hahn Powers. 2010). Despite its prevalence and potentially devastating effects internal auditors often fail to consider collusion in their fraud assessment and detection efforts. There are several techniques that are used for detecting such kind of frauds. Transaction mining is one of the most used methods. It is important for the firm to detect such kind of frauds as it helps in managing data and keeping it safe which is extremely crucial in the case of bigger firms like BHP Billiton. Development and adoption of accounting software packages As per the views Aspara et. al., (2011) it is important for the firms to choose its accounting software packages. It can be developed or can be adopted from the available software. Some of the companies use their own customised software. In present times cloud-based accounting software in Australia is highest. Connecting accounting software with internet empowered organizations in managing its accounting data. The two major benefit associated with such kind of adoption software is automation and integration of accounting functions. Both helps to provide firm with a competitive edge over other rivals. Features such as invoicing, fast bank reconciliation, accessibility through mobile-based apps, faster inventory management, integrated payrolls, dashboard, smart reports, expenses claiming and bill payments makes this accounting software more user-friendly. The design of accounting software hugely varies based on complexity and cost (Grey, Emer Sheng, 2014). It also assists in the finan cial management of the company and hence used in managerial decision making. One of the biggest problems with the modern day accounting software is related to the incompatible formats as well as duplication. Xero accounting software is one of the most widely used software that can be used inside BHP Billiton. It uses the system model known as Software as a service (SaaS). Using SaaS with internet helps a company with an application that can be operated with simple web browsers. It can be changed from time to time as per the demand of people. Since there is lack of security standards that are present in cloud hence use of firewalls is necessary. Identify management measures can be beneficial for providing authentication to service. The current market size of BHP Billiton According to the Barney, (2012) this company is one of the biggest firms that is operating in Australia. The market size refers to the market share this company is having in which it is operating. This company is having the turnover of around 207,556,649 dollars. Apart from this, it has a market capitalization of around 87936 dollars (Fleisher Bensoussan, 2015). The company revenue is around 60 billion US dollars. Its size can be understood by the fact that it is the second largest mining firm in the whole world. It has made a profit of around 6.2billion US dollars. It is the largest firm inside Australia in terms of market capitalization. It has a primary listing in that London Stock Exchange and its also the constituent of FTSE 100 index. This company is operational in around 25 countries all around the world. It is employing around 41000 people. It is having four primary operational units. It is dealing in the business of Coal, Copper, Iron ore, Petroleum as well as in potash. In the year 2015, it has produced an around 256 million barrels of oil equivalent, 1.7 million tonnes of copper, 233 Mt of iron ore, 43 Mt of metallurgical coal and 41 Mt of energy coal. Underlining all these data, it can be said that it is the largest diversified natural resources firm. Identifying leaders in market and things that make competitive advantage In the views of Stead and Stead, (2013) there are many market leaders in the industry in which BHP Billiton is operating. Competitors are increasing day by day and it has risen to cutthroat level. Some of the biggest competitors is Arconic Inc, RIO TINTO Ltd. Both these companies use various kinds of strategies for leading in the market. To attract number of customers towards its business all competitor company is using aggressive marketing which is dangerous for the business of BHP Billiton. For achieving competitive advantage over other there are following strategies that have been used: Making use of technologies that reduces the operational cost which helps in increasing the profit margin of the firm. Taking use of customised or ERP software is helping a company in making their working process easier as well as taking decision according to it. Managing data that is produced in the daily operations which is a difficult process is resolved through the use of cloud computing software. For gaining competitive advantage they are providing training to their employees which helps them n adding value to their products. Current gaps or challenges encountered by consumers of accounting software As per the views of Ward, (2012) there are many kinds of gaps or challenges that is encountered by customers of accounting software. Xero is one of that largest company in providing accounting software used by users. Some of the biggest challenges that are faced by the users are: Lack of security (Anwar, 2016). Weak reporting service Lack of efficiency Out-dated and lack of accuracy It is not user-friendly as well as customisation is difficult Some kinds of features are missing as well as it is expensive Poor customer relationship management There is some kind of software compatibility problems. No 24*7 technical support The poor speed of access (Anderson, Narus Narayandas, 2009). Some of the recommendations that can be given in this regard are as follows: Use of firewalls can protect them from increasing hijacks. Cloud-based accounting software can help users in accessing it at the faster rate. Take use of technical experts can reduce software compatibility problem. Conclusion From the above-based report, BHP Billiton is one of the best biggest mining and petroleum firm in the world. It is important for the firm to manage its processes by making use of various kinds of software. Enterprise resource planning is one of the best software that can be utilized by the firm so as to make many kinds of planning. The customised software can also be used by the firms. Since there are many kinds of accounting software that is used by the firm for managing their financial resource. There are several kinds of gaps and challenges that are present in the accounting software and all these can be reduced by the use of other software. There are many bigger firms that are working in the same industry. They are using different kinds of technological software for gaining competitive advantage. References Anderson, J. C., Narus, J. 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