Sap Ag and Brady Corporation Redesign

Case Study Can Brady potful Redesign Its Systems for Success? Executive Summary The Brady Corporation is branded as the oldest & the most successful companies in Milwaukee, Wisconsin founded in 1915 and a leader in extravagantly performance labels, signs and related industrial safety products. They have 44 business units that produce and distribute its labels from 47 locations in 20 countries on five continents around the world. Despite its growing success, the company found it was lead into trouble in the mid 1990s that fear of f all tolding behind with its competitors in the exercising of profits to save costs on already low profit margins.In 1997, Brandy launched a major nett project the fresh digital dust was called Web-to-Workbench which enable customers to be able to design and order their let signs online and the website would automatically forward the new order to its production facility. However problems were encountered Brady relied heavily on schooling trunks (IS ) to deport most of its business process, but were antiquated (out of date), & could not communicate with to each one(prenominal) other.In February 1999 Hudsons quantify the company could not continue growing because it was Stymied by an infrastructure that had reached well beyond practical limits She reason that the company must overhaul its business process totally to move fully into the digital term. Brady undeniable to revamp al its system. The goal business-led Project for the whole company and not dependable a computer packet or information technology project was made clear by CFO David Schroeder Brady. I. Viewpoint From the Bradys CEO KATHERINE HUDSON II. Time Context In grade 2000III. Statement of the Problem play out enterprise software was not a good foundation for Bradys new systems creating problems in various areas of the company. IV. Statement of the Objectives 1. In year 2000, SAP will tie-up with other systems projects 2. In year 2003 upon installation and testing of all systems and then if it fails, its sequence for Brady to redesign its system 3. Hire people for maintenance of the new information system for the company simultaneously with the installation of the system. V. Areas of Consideration TOWS MATRIX Strengths Weaknesses Business units act independently from each The pioneer in high performance label and other. signs. Information systems are not in synch with each Has 44 business unit for the manufacture of itsother. products Information systems are out of date. Has a unique system that lets customers customize their own design in the product they intend to purchase. Opportunities SO WO Maxi-Maxi Strategy Mini-Maxi Strategy physical exercise a firms internal strengths to take This are strategies aimed at improving internal proceeds of external opportunities weaknesses by taking advantage of external opportunities Threats ST WT 1. Brady is falling behind with its competitorsMaxi -Mini Strategy Mini-Mini Strategy in the use of Internet to save costs on already low profit margins. Use a firms strengths to avoid or reduce the This are defensive tactics directed at reducing impact of external threats internal weaknesses and avoiding external threats VI. Assumption Computers and Information Systems Year In review 2001 The recession year 2001 hit the computers and information systems sector hard. Already reeling from the collapse of dot-com companies a year earlier, the industry had to deal with reduced demand for its products and services. That in turn produced a steady stream of incorporated cutbacks and layoffs. The terrorist attacks in the U. S. on September 11, which stunned the world and sent the U. S. Source Encyclop? dia Britannica. om, retrieved from Analysis The information age had run a wall in its technological advances. After the millennium bug the news close the dot. com collapse and the terrorist attacks, people begun to ques tion the reliability of computers and the system. Companies began searching for a cheaper and more reliable system to place. SAP Needs more than than Tech Help to Fix Problems SAP has made a lot of rubber headlines. An SAP rollout at Levi Strauss went awry, leading to delayed product shipments for a whole week during the second quarter, which in turn caused a bad earnings quarter. News of price hikes and a forced transition to the new SAP Enterprise support. Silicon. om best summed up the problem that this SAP is claiming this as an enhanced offering, it is difficult to lift up how it will be able to justify this level of fees for customers whose deployments are complete or which do not wish to upgrade. Source ITBusinessEdge, Lorraine Lawson, July 2008 Analysis Systems had become unreliable that companies in the US had become hesitant in installing new and improved information system in their production. Another bad scenario that had come up is the burst of the dot. com bubble le aving most Americans awry about computers and the system that runs them. VII. Alternative Courses of Action ACA 1 Change for Oracle System ACA 2 Hire technicians to troubleshoot and upgrade the system ACA 3 Extensive use of the internet for the unification of transaction of all units of Brady corp. VIII. ANALYSIS ACA 1ACA 2 Hire technicians to troubleshoot and upgrade the system Advantages By hiring technicians, they can do preventive maintenance of Bradys system and at the same time can upgrade the system. The can install programs that can help Brady in its information system problems. Disadvantages More costly because of the human factor that is attached upon the ACA ACA 3 Extensive use of the internet for the unification of transaction of all units of Brady corp. Advantages Internet use of goods and services had been proven less costly and the vastness of its reach is unlimited. Disadvantages Brady might just replicate the problem that it already has. IX. Conclusion Decision Ma trix Criteria ACA 1 ACA 2 ACA 3 Cost-driven 1 3 Effectiveness 4 4 Easy to implement 3 4 Total pass judgment 1-4 (1 is the lowest and 4 is the highest) X. Plan of Action Activities Person in-charge Costs Timeframe ACA 1 HRD The minimum wage it has to establish 2001 ACA 2 for the technicians that will handle the information system (44Business Units/One person per unit) I. T. /Engineering Dept. Internet usage is said to be 2001 ACA 3 free of charge but the system that a company has lawsuit out to have a decent internet connection varies