Technology Upgrades

Technology Upgrades for Dirt Bikes Craig Lowrie Axia College of University of Phoenix

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Introduction
The management at Dirt Bikes is concerned about the amount of money expended on communication within, and outside of the organization. Management also would like to address the amount of money spent on developments in the motorcycle industry and the global economy. I will address the companys current use of technology and how upgrading the current technology could increase productivity and save Dirt Bikes money at the same time. I will show the benefits of an intranet system, wireless technology, and compare the cost of a wireless versus wired networks. This will provide the organization with the information to make proper decisions based on the needs of the company to lower cost and show the benefits of using an up to date technological system. This will produce a more efficient, streamlined, and profitable Dirt Bikes organization ready to become an industry leader.

Technology Upgrades

Internet Tools at Dirt Bikes

Recommendations
Upon completing my evaluation of the Dirt Bikes organization, I recommend the use of the following solutions. First, since the organization already provides employees with desktops with internet access, it would be simple and very beneficial to create a private network using the existing infrastructure paired with Internet connectivity standards and software developed for the World Wide Web (www). According to Laudon and Laudon (2009), Internet networking standards and web technology used to create private networks called intranets. An intranet is a private and secure and is protected by a firewall which prevents unauthorized individuals from entering the network. Intranet software technology and that of the World Wide Web are the same.

Intranet Benefits
The ability to access the accurate information is vital to a sales and marketing department. These two departments are responsible for driving company revenues. These departments would benefit from an intranet by being able to access sales reports, product information, marketing analysis, and research on other competitors all from the convenience of their desktop computers. Creating one source and ease of access to information would save time and make these departments more effective. This would also allow for databases to grow with increased input, so in time more and more data will be accumulated to further help maintain customer relationships, and keep track of the competition.

Technology Upgrades The human resources department could take advantage of an internet system by eliminating massive amounts of paperwork. This department could create electronic employee handbooks, benefit information, job listings and applications, newsletters, and interactive training programs. All this information could be uploaded or emailed to the proper employee. The savings by eliminating the cost of printing all of this information on paper and manually distributing would be a tremendous savings. The speed at which information could be provided to employees would make the human resources department much more efficient.

The manufacturing and production departments would benefit from using an intranet to coordinate, maintain, and publish production schedules. The intranet would also allow for better management of inventory and parts. The intranet could also be upgraded to an Extranet which could allow access to customers and suppliers. This access could allow the consumers to place orders and suppliers to forecast and ship necessary supplies automatically. The increased communication between these departments and their suppliers could cut cost and lower inventory levels resulting in greater profits.

Helpful Internet Tools

The internet provides many tools that would help reduce cost and benefit Dirt Bikes employees. One recommendation would be to consider popular platform for voice transmission and corporate networking called Voice over IP or VOIP. This system allows desktop computers equipped with microphones and speakers to make and receive calls. VOIP telephones are also available to employees or areas that do not have access to a computer. The VOIP phone systems

Technology Upgrades can reduce communications by 20 to 30 percent (Laudon & Laudon, 2009). Using one infrastructure to handle telecommunications and computer services will reduce long distance charges and eliminate private phone line cost.

The second recommendation For the Dirt Bikes organization would be the use of a Virtual Private Network or VPN. A VPN is a secure, private network that has the ability to encrypt data for secure transmission. This network would make sure that any information shared among departments cannot be compromised from outside organizations including direct competitors. Maintaining high security levels is important to keep a competitive advantage over the competition.

Wireless Networks
The installation of a wireless networking technology would provide employees with voice and data communication capabilities, and wireless Internet access. This would provide access to information from anywhere in the companys building with the use of cell phones, PDAs, tablets, or laptop computers. This would give employees the ability to connect with other computers, printers, and many other hardware devices freeing them from only being productive at their desks. .

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Wireless vs. Wired Networks

According to ISA (2009), On a point per point comparison of wired vs. wireless, an 80% savings is realized (para.1). Figure 1 illustrates the large difference in costs. A wireless network has many advantages over a traditional wired network, it cost less, allows for a more mobile workforce, and more access points to the organizations network. The disadvantage can be a loss of transmission speeds over the network compared to a traditional wired network. I think the initial savings makes up for this decrease, and allows for upgrades to the system later. Even with the cost of these upgrade factored in there is still significant savings in a wireless system.

$800,000.00 $700,000.00 $600,000.00 $500,000.00 $400,000.00 $300,000.00 $200,000.00 $100,000.00 $0.00

Wireless Network Wired N etwork

Wireless vs. Wireless

Figure 1

Installation cost comparison between Wireless and Wired Network in an organization.

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Conclusion
I have made recommendations in technology upgrades that I feel would greatly benefit the Dirt Bikes organization. These recommendations are just a few of the many benefits a proper information technology system would increase productivity, streamline the flow of information, and reduce the cost for the organization. The implementation of an intranet system would benefit all the departments at Dirt Bikes. The speed and ease of access would increase the ability to share information throughout the organization. The use of a VOIP communication system would reduce company cost on communications. A VPN network would provide secure communications between all employees. Dirt Bikes would also benefit from the installation of a wireless network increasing access and mobility of its employees. The cost of these systems initially would require a large investment. The return on this investment would be seen almost immediately with greater productivity, lower cost, and greater efficiency. Investments like this are required by todays companies to stay competitive and maintain advantage over their competition. A company with inefficient and insufficient technology will not last long in todays global economy.

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References
ISA. (2009). Power plant wireless economics 101. Retrieved February 16, 2012, from http://www.isa.org/InTechTemplate.cfm? Section=Article_Index1&template=/ContentManagement/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentI D=73003 Laudon, Kenneth C., & Laudon, Jane P. (2009 by Pearson Education, Inc.). Essentials of Management Information Systems (8th Ed). Prentice Hall.