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Information Technology for ManagementOn-Demand Strategies for Performance, Growth and SustainabilityEleventh Edition

Eleventh EditionInformation Technology for ManagementOn-Demand Strategies for Performance, Growth and SustainabilityEFRAIM TURBANCAROL POLLARDAppalachian State UniversityGREGORY WOODCanisius College
VP AND EDITORIAL DIRECTORMike McDonaldEXECUTIVE EDITORLise JohnsonEDITORIAL ASSISTANTEthan LipsonEDITORIAL MANAGERJudy HowarthCONTENT MANAGEMENT DIRECTORLisa WojcikCONTENT MANAGERNichole UrbanSENIOR CONTENT SPECIALISTNicole RepaskyPRODUCTION EDITORLoganathan KandanPHOTO RESEARCHERBilly RayCOVER PHOTO CREDIT© Ditty_about_summer/ShutterstockThis book was set in 9.5/12.5 pt Source Sans Pro by SPi Global and printed and bound by Strategic Content Imaging.Founded in 1807, John Wiley & Sons, Inc. has been a valued source of knowledge and understanding for more than 200 years, helping people around the world meet their needs and fulfill their aspira-tions. Our company is built on a foundation of principles that include responsibility to the communi-ties we serve and where we live and work. In 2008, we launched a Corporate Citizenship Initiative, a global effort to address the environmental, social, economic, and ethical challenges we face in our business. Among the issues we are addressing are carbon impact, paper specifications and procure-ment, ethical conduct within our business and among our vendors, and community and charitable support. For more information, please visit our website: www.wiley.com/go/citizenship.Copyright © 2018, 2015, 2013, 2011, 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except as per-mitted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, Inc., 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923 (Web site: www.copyright.com). Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774, (201) 748-6011, fax (201) 748-6008, or online at: www.wiley.com/go/permissions.Evaluation copies are provided to qualified academics and professionals for review purposes only, for use in their courses during the next academic year. These copies are licensed and may not be sold or transferred to a third party. Upon completion of the review period, please return the evaluation copy to Wiley. Return instructions and a free of charge return shipping label are available at: www.wiley.com/go/returnlabel. If you have chosen to adopt this textbook for use in your course, please accept this book as your complimentary desk copy. Outside of the United States, please contact your local sales representative.ISBN: 978-1-118-89079-0 (PBK)ISBN: 978-1-119-39783-0 (EVALC)Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data:Names: Turban, Efraim, author. | Pollard, Carol (Carol E.), author. | Wood, Gregory R., author.Title: Information technology for management : on-demand strategies for performance, growth and sustainability / Efraim Turban, Carol Pollard, Gregory R. Wood.Description: 11th edition. | Hoboken, NJ : John Wiley & Sons, 2018. | Includes bibliographical references and index. |Identifiers: LCCN 2017037711 (print) | LCCN 2017046158 (ebook) | ISBN 9781118890868 (epub) | ISBN 9781119172390 (pdf) | ISBN 9781118890790 (pbk.)Subjects: LCSH: Management information systems.Classification: LCC T58.6 (ebook) | LCC T58.6 .T765 2017 (print) | DDC 658.4/038011Ñdc23LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017037711The inside back cover will contain printing identification and country of origin if omitted from this page. In addition, if the ISBN on the back cover differs from the ISBN on this page, the one on the back cover is correct.
vBrief ContentsPREFACE xiiiACKNOWLEDGMENTS xviiiPART 1 Reshaping Enterprises and Consumers in the On-Demand Economy 1 Disruptive IT Impacts Companies, Competition, and Careers 1 2 Information Systems, IT Architecture, Data Governance, and Cloud Computing 25 3 Data Management, Data Analytics, and Business Intelligence 65 4 Networks, Collaborative Technology, and the Internet of Things 101 5 Cybersecurity and Risk Management Technology 127PART 2 Winning, Engaging, and Retaining Consumers for Growth 6 Search, Semantic, and Recommendation Technology 165 7 Web 2.0 and Social Technology 199 8 Retail, E-commerce, and Mobile Commerce Technology 240PART 3 Optimizing Performance, Processes, and Productivity 9 Functional Business Systems 269 10 Enterprise Systems 300 11 Data Visualization and Geographic Information Systems 331PART 4 Managing Business Relationships, Projects, and Ethical Responsibilities 12 IT Strategy, Sourcing, and Strategic Technology Trends 354 13 Systems Development and Project Management 385 14 IT Ethics, Privacy, and Sustainability 417GLOSSARY 443ORGANIZATION INDEX 448NAME INDEX 450SUBJECT INDEX 451
viPREFACE xiiiACKNOWLEDGMENTS xviiiPART 1 Reshaping Enterprises and Consumers in the On-Demand Economy 1 Disruptive IT Impacts Companies, Competition, and Careers 1Case 1.1 Opening Case: Uber and Airbnb Revolutionize Business Models in the On-Demand Economy 3 1.1 Doing Business in the On-Demand Economy 4Growth of the On-Demand Economy 5Digital Business Models 6ITÕs Role in the On-Demand Economy 7IT Business Objectives 8 1.2 Business Process Improvement and Competitive Advantage 8What Is a Business Process? 9Improving Business Processes 9DonÕt Automate, Obliterate! 10Gaining a Competitive Advantage 11Software Support for BPM 13 1.3 IT Innovation and Disruption 13SocialÐMobileÐAnalyticsÐCloud (SMAC) Model 13Technology Mega Trends 14Lessons Learned from Companies Using Disruptive Technologies 16 1.4 IT and You 17On-Demand Workers 17IT Adds Value to Your Performance and Career 19Becoming an Informed IT User 21Case 1.2 Business Case: The Internet of Things Comes to the NFL 23Case 1.3 Video Case: Knowing More and Doing More 24 2 Information Systems, IT Architecture, Data Governance, and Cloud Computing 25Case 2.1 Opening Case: Detoxing Location-Based Advertising Data at MEDIATA 27 2.1 IS Concepts and Classification 28Components of an IS 29Data, Information, Knowledge, and Wisdom 30Types of ISs 31Transaction Processing System (TPS) 32Management Information System (MIS) 33Decision Support System (DSS) 34Executive Information System (EIS) 35ISS Exist within Corporate Culture 36 2.2 IT Infrastructure, IT Architecture, and Enterprise Architecture 37EA Helps to Maintain Sustainability 38Developing an Enterprise Architecture (EA) 41 2.3 Information Management and Data Governance 42Information Management Harnesses Scattered Data 43Reasons for Information Deficiencies 43Factors Driving the Shift from Silos to Sharing and Collaboration 45Business Benefits of Information Management 45Data Governance: Maintaining Data Quality and Cost Control 46 2.4 Data Centers and Cloud Computing 48Data Centers 48Integrating Data to Combat Data Chaos 50Cloud Computing 52Selecting a Cloud Vendor 52Cloud Infrastructure 54Issues in Moving Workloads from the Enterprise to the Cloud 54 2.5 Cloud Services and Virtualization 55Anything as a Service (XAAS) Models 55Going Cloud 58Virtualization and Virtual Machines 58Case 2.2 Business Case: Data Chaos Creates Risk 62Case 2.3 Video Case: Cloud Computing at Coca-Cola Is Changing Everything 63 3 Data Management, Data Analytics, and Business Intelligence 65Case 3.1 Opening Case: Coca-Cola Strategically Manages Data to Retain Customers and Reduce Costs 66 3.1 Data Management and Database Technologies 69Database Management Systems and SQL 69DBMS and Data Warehousing Vendors Respond to Latest Data Demands 72Contents
CONTENTS vii 3.2 Centralized and Distributed Database Architectures 73Garbage In, Garbage Out 75Data Ownership and Organizational Politics 76Data Life Cycle and Data Principles 77Master Data and Master Data Management 78 3.3 Data Warehouses 79Procedures to Prepare EDW Data for Analytics 80Building a Data Warehouse 80Real-Time Support from an Active Data Warehouse 81 3.4 Big Data Analytics and Data Discovery 83Human Expertise and Judgment are Needed 85Data and Text Mining 88Creating Business Value 88Text Analytics Procedure 90Analytics Vendor Rankings 90 3.5 Business Intelligence and Electronic Records Management 91Business Benefits of BI 92Common Challenges: Data Selection and Quality 92Aligning BI Strategy with Business Strategy 92BI Architecture and Analytics 93Electronic Records Management 94Legal Duty to Retain Business Records 94ERM Best Practices 94ERM Benefits 95ERM for Disaster Recovery, Business Continuity, and Compliance 95Case 3.2 Business Case: Big Data Analytics is the ÒSecret SauceÓ for Revitalizing McDonaldÕs 98Case 3.3 Video Case: Verizon Improves Its Customer Experience with Data Driven Decision-Making 99 4 Networks, Collaborative Technology, and the Internet of Things 101Case 4.1 Opening Case: Sony Builds an IPv6 Network to Fortify Competitive Edge 102 4.1 Network Fundamentals 104Network Types 104Intranets, Extranets, and Virtual Private Networks 105Network Terminology 105Functions Supported by Business Networks 106Quality of Service 107 4.2 Internet Protocols (IP), APIs, and Network Capabilities 109Comparing 3G, 4G, 4G LTE, and 5G Network Standards 110Circuit versus Packet Switching 111Application Program Interfaces and Operating Systems 111 4.3 Mobile Networks and Near-Field Communication 113Increase in Mobile Network Traffic and Users 114Higher Demand for High-Capacity Mobile Networks 115Mobile Infrastructure 115Two Components of Wireless Infrastructure 116Business Use of Near-Field Communication 117Choosing Mobile Network Solutions 118 4.4 Collaborative Technologies and the Internet of Things 119Virtual Collaboration 120Group Work and Decision Processes 120The Internet of Things (IoT) 121IoT Sensors, Smart Meters, and the Smart Grid 121Case 4.2 Business Case: Google Maps API for Business 125Case 4.3 Video Case: Small Island Telecom Company Goes Global 126 5 Cybersecurity and Risk Management Technology 127Case 5.1 Opening Case: Yahoo Wins the Gold and Silver Medal for the Worst Hacks in History! 129 5.1 The Face and Future of Cyberthreats 130Intentional Threats 132Unintentional Threats 132Hacking 133Cyber Social Engineering and Other Related Web-Based Threats 134Denial-of-Service 137Insider and Privilege Misuse 137Physical Theft or Loss 138Miscellaneous Errors 138New Attack Vectors 138 5.2 Cyberattack Targets and Consequences 139ÒHigh-ProfileÓ and ÒUnder-the-RadarÓ Attacks 139Critical Infrastructure Attacks 140Theft of Intellectual Property 141Identity Theft 142Bring Your Own Device 142Social Media Attacks 144 5.3 Cyber Risk Management 146IT Defenses 146Business Continuity Planning 149Government Regulations 149
viii CONTENTS 5.4 Defending Against Fraud 150Occupational Fraud Prevention and Detection 151General Controls 152Internal Controls 153Cyber Defense Strategies 153Auditing Information Systems 155 5.5 Frameworks, Standards, and Models 155Risk Management and IT Governance Frameworks 155Industry Standards 157IT Security Defense-In-Depth Model 157Case 5.2 Business Case: Lax Security at LinkedIn Exposed 161Case 5.3 Video Case: Botnets, Malware Security, and Capturing Cybercriminals 163PART 2 Winning, Engaging, and Retaining Consumers for Growth 6 Search, Semantic, and Recommendation Technology 165Case 6.1 Opening Case: Mint.com Uses Search Technology to Rank Above Established Competitors 166 6.1 Using Search Technology for Business Success 168How Search Engines Work 168Web Directories 168How Crawler Search Engines Work 169Why Search Is Important for Business 172 6.2 Organic Search and Search Engine Optimization 178Strategies for Search Engine Optimization 178Content and Inbound Marketing 180Black Hat versus White Hat SEO: Ethical Issues in Search Engine Optimization 181 6.3 Pay-Per-Click and Paid Search Strategies 182Creating a PPC Advertising Campaign 182Metrics for Paid Search Advertising 184 6.4 A Search for MeaningÑSemantic Technology 184What Is the Semantic Web? 185The Language(s) of Web 3.0 185Semantic Web and Semantic Search 186Semantic Web for Business 187 6.5 Recommendation Engines 188Recommendation Filters 189Case 6.2 Business Case: Deciding What to WatchÑVideo Recommendations at Netflix 195Case 6.3 Video Case: Power Searching with Google 196 7 Web 2.0 and Social Technology 199Case 7.1 Opening Case: Social Customer Service Takes Off at KLM 200 7.1 Web 2.0ÑThe Social Web 201The Constantly Changing Web 201Invention of the World Wide Web 202A Platform for Services and Social Interaction 202Emergence of Social Applications, Networks, and Services 203Why Managers Should Understand Web Technology 205Communicating on the Web 206Social Media Applications and Services 207Social Media Is More than Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter 207With Web 2.0, Markets are Conversations 209 7.2 Social Networking Services and Communities 210The Power of the Crowd 212Crowdfunding 212Social Networking Services 213Facebook Dominates Social Networking 214Google Takes on Facebook with G+ 216Be in the Now with Snapchat 217And Now for Something Different: Second Life 218Private Social Networks 219Future of Social Networking Systems 220 7.3 Engaging Consumers with Blogs and Microblogs 220What Is the Purpose of a Blog? 220Blogging and Public Relations 222Reading and Subscribing to Blogs 222Blogging Platforms 222Microblogs 223Twitter 223Tumblr Blogs 225 7.4 Mashups, Social Metrics, and Monitoring Tools 226What Makes a Mashup Social 226RSS Technology 227Social Monitoring Services 227 7.5 Enterprise 2.0: Workplace Collaboration and Knowledge Sharing 229Tools for Meetings and Discussions 230Social Tools for Information Retrieval and Knowledge Sharing 230Social Bookmarking Tools 231Content Creation and Sharing 232Case 7.2 Business Case: Facebook Helps Songkick Rock the Ticket Sales Industry 236Case 7.3 Business Case: AT&TÕs ÒIt Can WaitÓ Campaign against Distracted Driving 237
CONTENTS ix 8 Retail, E-commerce, and Mobile Commerce Technology 240Case 8.1 Opening Case: MacyÕs Races Ahead with Mobile Retail Strategies 241 8.1 Retailing Technology 243Keeping Up with Consumer Demands and Behavior 243The Omni-Channel Retailing Concept 244 8.2 Business-to-Consumer (B2C) E-commerce 246Online Banking 246International and Multiple-Currency Banking 246Online Recruiting 246Issues in Online Retailing 250Online Business and Marketing Planning 250 8.3 Business-to-Business (B2B) E-commerce and E-procurement 251Sell-Side Marketplaces 251E-Sourcing 252E-Procurement 252Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) Systems 253Public and Private Exchanges 253 8.4 Mobile Commerce 253Information: Competitive Advantage in Mobile Commerce 255Mobile Entertainment 258Hotel Services and Travel Go Wireless 259Mobile Social Networking 259 8.5 Mobile Transactions and Financial Services 260Mobile Payment Systems 260Mobile Banking and Financial Services 262Short Codes 263Security Issues 263Case 8.2 Business Case: CheggÕs Mobile Strategy 266Case 8.3 Video Case: Searching with Pictures Using MVS 267PART 3 Optimizing Performance, Processes, and Productivity 9 Functional Business Systems 269Case 9.1 Opening Case: Ducati Redesigns Its Operations 271 9.1 Business Management Systems and Functional Business Systems 272Business Management Systems (BMSs) 273Management Levels 273Business Functions vs. Cross-Functional Business Processes 274Transaction Processing Systems 275 9.2 Production and Operations Management Systems 277Transportation Management Systems 278Logistics Management 278Inventory Control Systems 279Computer-Integrated Manufacturing and Manufacturing Execution Systems 281 9.3 Sales and Marketing Systems 282Data-Driven Marketing 284Sales and Distribution Channels 284Social Media Customer Service 284Marketing Management 285 9.4 Accounting, Finance, and Regulatory Systems 286Financial Disclosure: Reporting and Compliance 286Fraud Prevention and Detection 289Auditing Information Systems 291Financial Planning and Budgeting 291 9.5 Human Resource Systems, Compliance, and Ethics 293HR Information Systems 293Management and Employee Development 295HR Planning, Control, and Management 295Case 9.2 Business Case: HSBC Combats Fraud in Split-second Decisions 297Case 9.3 Video Case: United Rentals Optimizes Its Workforce with Human Capital Management 298 10 Enterprise Systems 300Case 10.1 Opening Case: 3D Printing Drives the ÒAlways-OnÓ Supply Chain 301 10.1 Enterprise Systems 303Implementation Challenges of Enterprise Systems 305Investing in Enterprise Systems 305Implementation of Best Practices 306Enterprise Systems Insights 307 10.2 Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) 307Brief History of ERP 308Technology Perspective 308Achieving ERP Success 311 10.3 Supply Chain Management Systems 313Managing the Flow of Materials, Data, and Money 315Order Fulfillment and Logistics 315Steps in the Order Fulfillment Process 315Innovations Driving Supply Chain Strategic Priorities 316 10.4 Customer Relationship Management Systems 319How are CRM Apps Different from ERP? Why are they Different? 319CRM Technology Perspective 320
x CONTENTSCustomer Acquisition and Retention 320CRM for a Competitive Edge 320Common CRM Mistakes: How to Avoid Them 321Justifying CRM 322 10.5 Enterprise Social Platforms 323Growth of Enterprise Social Investments and Markets 323Sharepoint 324OracleÕs Social Network 326Jive 326Chatter 326Case 10.2 Business Case: LoweÕs Fresh Approach to Supply Chain Management 328Case 10.3 Video Case: Procter & Gamble: Creating Conversations in the Cloud with 4.8 Billion Consumers 329 11 Data Visualization and Geographic Information Systems 331Case 11.1 Opening Case: Safeway and PepsiCo Collaborate to Reduce Stock Outages using Data Visualization 332 11.1 Data Visualization and Learning 334Learning, Exploration, and Discovery with Visualization 336Data Discovery Market Separates from the BI Market 336How Is Data Visualization Used in Business? 340Data Visualization Tools 341 11.2 Enterprise Data Mashups 342Mashup Architecture 343Why Do Business Users Need Data Mashup Technology? 344Enterprise Mashup Technology 344 11.3 Digital Dashboards 345Dashboards are Real Time 347How Operational and Strategic Dashboards Work 348Benefits of Digital Dashboards 348 11.4 Geographic Information Systems and Geospatial Data 349Geocoding 350GIS Is Not Your GrandfatherÕs Map 350Infrastructure and Location-Aware Collection of Geospatial Data 350Applying GIS in Business 351Case 11.2 Visualization Case: Are You Ready for Football? 353Case 11.3 Video Case: The Beauty of Data VisualizationÑData Detective 353PART 4 Managing Business Relationships, Projects, and Ethical Responsibilities 12 IT Strategy, Sourcing, and Strategic Technology Trends 354Case 12.1 Opening Case: Intel Reaps Rewards from Sustainable IT Strategy 355 12.1 IT Strategic Planning 357Value Drivers 358IT Strategic Plan Objectives 358IT and Business Disconnects 359Corporate and IT Governance 359Reactive Approach to IT Investments Will Fail 359IT Strategic Planning Process 359 12.2 Aligning IT with Business Objectives 362Achieving and Sustaining a Competitive Advantage 364 12.3 IT Sourcing Strategies 367Sourcing and Cloud Services 368Factors Driving Outsourcing 369Outsourcing Risks and Hidden Costs 370Offshoring 370Outsourcing Life Cycle 371Managing IT Vendor Relationships 373Contracts: Get Everything in Writing 373 12.4 Balanced Scorecard 374The Balanced Scorecard 374Using the Balance Scorecard 375Applying the BSC 377 12.5 Strategic Technology Trends 378Strategic Technology Scanning 380Finding Strategic Technologies 380Case 12.2 Business Case: Cisco IT Improves Strategic Vendor Management 382Case 12.3 Data Analysis: Third-Party versus Company-Owned Offshoring 383 13 Systems Development and Project Management 385Case 13.1 Opening Case: Denver International Airport Learns from Mistakes Made in Failed Baggage-Handling System Project 386 13.1 System Development Life Cycle 388Stages of the SDLC 388 13.2 Systems Development Methodologies 391Waterfall Model 391Object-Oriented Analysis and Design 392Agile Methodology 392
CONTENTS xiThe DevOps Approach to Systems Development 394 13.3 Project Management Fundamentals 395What Is a Project? 396Choosing Projects 396The Triple Constraint 397The Project Management Framework 397 13.4 Initiating, Planning, and Executing Projects 399Project Initiation 400Project Planning 400Project Execution 403 13.5 Monitoring/Controlling and Closing Projects 404Project Monitoring and Controlling 404Project Closing or Post Mortem 407Why Projects Fail 408IT Project Management Mistakes 410Case 13.2 Business Case: Steve JobsÕ Shared Vision Project Management Style 412Case 13.3 Demo Case: Mavenlink Project Management and Planning Software 413 14 IT Ethics, Privacy, and Sustainability 417Case 14.1 Opening Case: Lessons Learned: How Google Glass Raised Risk and Privacy Challenges 418 14.1 IT Ethics 420Ethical versus Unethical Behavior 420Competing Responsibilities 423 14.2 Privacy and Civil Rights 424Privacy and the New Privacy Paradox 424Social Media Recruiting 425Legal Note: Civil Rights 426Competing Legal Concerns 427Financial Organizations Must Comply with Social Media Guidelines 428 14.3 Technology Addictions and Focus Management 430Digital Distractions and Loss of Focus 430Focus Management 430 14.4 ICT and Sustainable Development 432Global Temperature Rising Too Much Too Fast 432IT and Global Warming 433Technology to Transform Business and Society 436Next Wave of Disruption Will Be More Disruptive 438Case 14.2 Business Case: Android Auto and CarPlay Keep Drivers Safe, Legal, and Productive 439Case 14.3 Video Case: IT Ethics in the Workplace 440GLOSSARY 443ORGANIZATION INDEX 448NAME INDEX 450SUBJECT INDEX 451

xiiiInformation Technology for Management discusses a variety of business strategies and explains how they rely on data, digital technology, and mobile devices to support them in the on-demand economy. Our goal is to provide students from any business discipline with a strong foundation for understand-ing the critical role that digital technology plays in enhancing business sustainability, profitability, and growth and excel in their careers. Enabling technologies discussed in this textbook include the following: ¥ Performance Combining the latest capabilities in big data analytics, reporting, collaboration, search, and digital com-munication helps enterprises be more agile and cuts costs to optimize business performance and profitability.¥ Growth Strategic technologies enable business to create new core competencies, expand their markets, and move into new markets to experience exponential growth in the on-demand economy.¥ Sustainability Cloud services are fundamental to sus-taining business profitability and growth in todayÕs on-demand economy. They play a critical role in managing projects and sourcing agreements, respecting personal pri-vacy, encouraging social responsibility, and attracting and engaging customers across multimedia channels to promote sustainable business performance and growth.In this 11th edition, students learn, explore, and understand the importance of ITÕs role in supporting the three essential components of business performance improvement: technology, business processes, and people.WhatÕs New in the 11th Edition?In the 11th edition of IT for Management, we present and dis-cuss concepts in a comprehensive yet easy-to-understand for-mat by actively engaging students through a wide selection of case studies, interactive figures, video animations, tech notes, concept check questions, online and interactive exercises, and critical thinking questions. We have enhanced the 11th edition in the following ways:New Author Dr. Carol Pollard, Professor of Computer Infor-mation Systems at the Walker College of Business and former Executive Director of the Center for Applied Research in Emerg-ing Technologies (CARET) at Appalachian State University in North Carolina, has taken the helm for the 11th edition. Carol has applied her innovative teaching and learning techniques to create a stronger pedagogical focus and more engaging format for the text.Diverse Audience IT for Management is directed toward undergraduate, introductory MBA courses, and Executive Educa-tion courses in Management Information Systems and General Business programs. Concepts are explained in a straightforward way, and interactive elements, tools, and techniques provide tangible resources that appeal to all levels of students.Strong Pedagogical Approach To encourage improved learn-ing outcomes, we employed a blended learning approach, in which different types of delivery and learning methods, enabled and supported by technology, are blended with traditional learning methods. For example, case study and theoretical content are presented visually, textually, and/or interactively to enable different groups of students to use different learning strategies in different combinations to fit their individual learn-ing style and enhance their learning. Throughout the book, content has been reorganized to improve development of the topics and improve understanding and readability. A large number of images that did not enhance understanding have been removed and replaced with informative and interactive figures and tables that better convey critical concepts.Leading-Edge Content Prior to and during the writing pro-cess, we consulted with a number of vendors, IT professionals, and managers who are hands-on users of leading technologies, to learn about their IT/business successes, challenges, experi-ences, and recommendations. To integrate the feedback of these business and IT professionals, new or updated chapter opening and closing cases have been added to many of the chapters along with the addition of relevant, leading-edge content in the body of the chapters.New Technologies and Expanded Topics New to this edition are the IT framework, business process reengineering, geoco-ding, systems developments methodologies, including Water-fall, object-oriented analysis, Agile and DevOps, advances in Search Technology, the growth of Mobile Commerce and Mobile Payment Systems, the Always-On Supply Chain, and the Project Management framework. In addition, with more purchases and transactions starting online and attention being a scarce resource, students learn how search, semantic, and recommendation technologies function to improve revenue. Table P-1 provides a detailed list of new and expanded topics.Useful Tools and Techniques New to this edition is a feature we call the ÒIT Toolbox.Ó This involves the provision of a set of useful tools or techniques relevant to chapter content. Collec-tively, these tools and techniques equip readers with a suite of IT tools that will be useful in their university classes, workplace, and personal life.Preface
xiv PREFACEChapterNew and Expanded IT and Business TopicsInnovative Enterprises1. Disruptive IT Impacts Companies, Competition, and Careers¥ ITÕs role in the on-demand economy¥ Business process improvement¥ Business process re-engineering¥ SMAC model¥ Nature of on-demand work¥ Becoming an informed IT user¥ Technology mega trends¥ Uber¥ Airbnb¥ FitBit¥ NFL¥ Teradata2. Information Systems, IT Archi-tecture, Data Governance, and Cloud Computing¥ IS concepts and framework¥ Information, knowledge, wisdom model¥ Software-defined data center¥ Mediata¥ National Climatic Data center¥ U.S. National Security Agency¥ Apple¥ Uber¥ WhatsApp¥ Slack¥ Vanderbilt University Medical Center¥ Coca-Cola TABLE P-1 Overview of New and Expanded Topics and Innovative Enterprises Discussed in the ChaptersEngaging Students to Assure LearningThe 11th edition of Information Technology for Management engages students with up-to-date coverage of the most impor-tant IT trends today. Over the years, this IT textbook has dis-tinguished itself with an emphasis on illustrating the use of cutting-edge business technologies for supporting and achiev-ing managerial goals and objectives. The 11th edition contin-ues this tradition with more interactive activities and analyses.Real-World Case Studies Each chapter contains numerous real-world examples illustrating how businesses use IT to increase productivity, improve efficiency, enhance communication and collaboration, and gain a competitive edge. Faculty will appreciate a variety of options for reinforcing student learning that include three different types of Case Studies (opening case, video case, and business case), along with interactive figures and whiteboard animations that provide a multimedia overview of each chapter.Interactive Figures and Whiteboard Animations The unique presentation of interactive figures and whiteboard anima-tions facilitates reflection on the textual content of the book and provides a clear path to understanding key concepts. The whiteboard animations fit particularly well with the Òflipping the classroomÓ model and complement additional functional-ity and assets offered throughout the 11th edition. The interac-tive figures actively engage the students in their own learning to effectively reinforce concepts.Learning Aids Each chapter contains various learning aids, which include the following:¥ Learning Objectives are listed at the beginning of each chapter to help students focus their efforts and alert them to the important concepts that will be discussed.¥ IT at Work boxes spotlight real-world cases and innova-tive uses of IT.¥ Definitions of Key Terms appear in the margins throughout the book.¥ Tech Note boxes explore topics such as ÒKey Performance IndicatorsÓ and ÒSix Basic Systems Development Guidelines.Ó¥ Career Insight boxes highlight different jobs in the IT for management field.End-of-Chapter Activities At the end of each chapter, features designed to assure student learning include the following:¥ Critical Thinking Questions are designed to facilitate student discussion.¥ Online and Interactive Exercises encourage students to explore additional topics.¥ Analyze and Decide questions help students apply IT concepts to business decisions.¥ Concept Questions test studentsÕ comprehension of each learning objective at the end of each chapter to ensure that the students are clear on the concepts. Students are provided with immediate feedback on their performance.Details of New and Enhanced Features of the 11th EditionThe textbook consists of 14 chapters organized into four mod-ules. All chapters have new or updated sections, as shown in Table P-1.
PREFACE xvChapterNew and Expanded IT and Business TopicsInnovative Enterprises3. Data Management, Data Analytics, and Business Intelligence¥ Dirty data costs and consequences¥ Data life cycle¥ Genomics and big data¥ Aligning business intelligence with business strategy¥ Coca-Cola¥ Capitol One¥ Travelocity¥ First Wind¥ Argo Corporation¥ Walmart¥ Infinity Insurance¥ DoD and Homeland Security¥ CarMax¥ McDonaldÕs¥ Verizon4. Networks, Collaborative Technology, and the Internet of Things¥ IPv6 protocol¥ Types of networks¥ Network terminology¥ Quality of service¥ Net neutrality¥ Mobile networks and near-field communication¥ Internet of Things¥ Sony¥ AT & T¥ Time-Warner¥ Amazon¥ Warner Music¥ Proctor & Gamble¥ Walmart¥ Ford¥ Asda¥ Unilever¥ Caterpillar¥ Santander¥ Google¥ Isle of Man5. Cybersecurity and Risk Management Technology¥ Data breaches¥ Major sources of cyberthreats¥ Classes of hackers¥ Spear phishing¥ Crimeware categories¥ Denial of service¥ KPMG data loss barometer¥ Enterprise risk management framework¥ Yahoo¥ Global Payments, Inc.¥ Government of China¥ Google¥ U.S. Chamber of Commerce¥ Brookings Institution¥ LinkedIn¥ Damballa6. Search, Semantic, and Recom-mendation Technology¥ Social search technologies¥ Personal assistant and voice search¥ Mobile search and mobile SEO¥ On-page and off-page SEO factors¥ Updates to GoogleÕs ranking algorithm¥ Semantic search technologies¥ Mint.com¥ Google¥ Microsoft¥ Yahoo¥ Netflix¥ Apple¥ Amazon¥ Diigo¥ World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) TABLE P-1 Overview of New and Expanded Topics and Innovative Enterprises Discussed in the Chapters (continued)(continued)
xvi PREFACEChapterNew and Expanded IT and Business TopicsInnovative Enterprises7. Web 2.0 and Social Technology¥ Snapchat, the #2 social platform¥ Social bookmarking¥ Social customer service moves from optional to essential¥ Role of APIs in development of new Web applications and functionality¥ The dominance of Facebook and the demise of Google+¥ Emerging virtual-world technology¥ KLM Royal Dutch Airlines¥ Facebook, Inc.¥ Myntra¥ Snap, Inc.¥ Kickstarter.com¥ GoFundMe.com¥ Oculus VR¥ High Fidelity¥ Twitter¥ Social Mention¥ Diigo¥ Clipix¥ Dropbox8. Retail, E-commerce, and Mobile Commerce Technology¥ Direct and marketplace B2B ecommerce¥ In-store retail technology¥ Omni-channel retailing¥ Growth of mobile commerce¥ Growth of the mobile gaming market¥ Mobile payment methods¥ Mobile visual search¥ Macys Department Stores¥ Amazon.com¥ Ally Bank¥ LinkedIn.com¥ Alibaba.com¥ Dell, Inc.¥ The Walt Disney Company¥ PayPal, Inc.¥ Chegg.com9. Functional Business Systems¥ Business management systems¥ Cross-functional coordination and integration of systems¥ Systems that support supply-chain management¥ Social customer service¥ eXtensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL)¥ Ducati Motor Holding S.p.A.¥ Office Depot¥ Schurman Fine Papers¥ BAE Systems¥ Adweek¥ Salesforce.com¥ LinkedIn¥ HSBC Bank¥ United Rentals10. Enterprise Systems¥ 3D printing impact on supply chain¥ Selecting an ERP vendor¥ Factors for ERP success¥ Order fulfillment¥ Always-on supply chain¥ Enterprise social platforms¥ Organovo¥ Ferrari¥ GE¥ Siemens¥ Organic Valley Family of Farms¥ Boers & Co.¥ Peters Ice Cream¥ ScanSource¥ Avanade¥ Dillards¥ FoxMeyer Drugs¥ Joint Munitions Command¥ Flower.com¥ Red Robin¥ LoweÕs¥ Procter & Gamble TABLE P-1 Overview of New and Expanded Topics and Innovative Enterprises Discussed in the Chapters (continued)
PREFACE xviiSupplemental MaterialsAn extensive package of instructional materials is available to support this 11th edition. These materials are accessible from the book companion website at www.wiley.com/college/ turban.¥ InstructorÕs Manual The InstructorÕs Manual presents objectives from the text with additional information to make them more appropriate and useful for the instructor. The manual also includes practical applications of concepts, case-study elaboration, answers to end-of-chapter ques-tions, questions for review, questions for discussion, and Internet exercises.¥ Test Bank The test bank contains over 1,000 ques-tions and problems (about 75 per chapter) consisting of multiple-choice, short answer, fill-ins, and critical thinking/essay questions.¥ PowerPoint Presentation A series of slides designed around the content of the text incorporates key points from the text and illustrations where appropriate.¥ Chapter Summary Whiteboard Animations A series of video animations that summarize the content of each chapter in an entertaining way to engage the students in grasping the subject matter.ChapterNew and Expanded IT and Business TopicsInnovative Enterprises11. Data Visualization and Geographic Information Systems¥ Increasing reliance on data discovery¥ Data visualization tools¥ Enterprise data mashups¥ Geocoding¥ Safeway¥ PepsiCo¥ IBM¥ ADP Corp.¥ Department of Veterans Affairs¥ General Motors12. IT Strategy, Sourcing, and Strategic Technology Trends¥ BusinessÐIT alignment¥ IT strategic planning¥ PorterÕs competitive forces model¥ PorterÕs value chain model¥ Five-phase outsourcing life cycle¥ IT sourcing strategies¥ Strategic technology trends¥ Technology scanning¥ Intel¥ Nestle Nespresso¥ LinkedIn¥ ESSA Academy¥ Cisco¥ Citigroup13. Systems Development and Project Management¥ SDLC stages¥ Systems development methodologies¥ DevOps¥ Project management framework¥ PM core and support knowledge areas¥ Responsibility matrix¥ Denver International Airport¥ U.S. Census Bureau¥ Apple¥ Mavenlink14. IT Ethics, Privacy, and Sustainability¥ Ethical vs. unethical behavior¥ Privacy paradox¥ Climate change¥ Technology addiction¥ ÒPeople-firstÓ approach to technology¥ Disruptive technologies¥ Google¥ Target¥ Facebook¥ SnapChat¥ NASA¥ Apple TABLE P-1 Overview of New and Expanded Topics and Innovative Enterprises Discussed in the Chapters (continued)
xviii PREFACEAcknowledgmentsNo book is produced through the sole efforts of its authors, and this book is no exception. Many people contributed to its crea-tion, both directly and indirectly, and we wish to acknowledge their contributions.Special thanks go to the team at John Wiley, particularly Darren Lalonde, Emma Townsend-Merino, Ethan Lipson, and Loganathan Kandan for their ongoing and encouraging edito-rial expertise and leadership. Their guidance, patience, humor, and support during the development and production of this most recent version of the textbook made the process much easier. We couldnÕt have done it without you!Our sincere thanks also go to the following reviewers of the 11th edition. Their feedback, insights, and suggestions were invaluable in ensuring the accuracy and readability of the book: Joni Adkins, Northwest Missouri State UniversityAhmad Al-Omari, Dakota State UniversityRigoberto Chinchilla, Eastern Illinois UniversityMichael Donahue, Towson UniversitySamuel Elko, Seton Hill UniversityRobert Goble, Dallas Baptist UniversityEileen Griffin, Canisius CollegeBinshan Lin, Louisiana State University in ShreveportThomas MacMullen, Eastern Illinois UniversityJames Moore, Canisius CollegeBeverly S. Motich, Messiah CollegeBarin Nag, Towson UniversityLuis A. Otero, Inter-American University of Puerto Rico, Metropolitan CampusJohn Pearson, Southern Illinois UniversityDaniel Riding, Florida Institute of TechnologyJosie Schneider, Columbia Southern UniversityDerek Sedlack, South UniversityEric Weinstein, The University of La VernePatricia White, Columbia Southern UniversityGene A. Wright, University of WisconsinÐMilwaukeeMany thanks also go to our dedicated graphic designers, Kevin Hawley and Nathan Sherrill, without whose help we would not have been able to create the innovative Whiteboard Animations, and to Senior Photo Editor, Billy Ray, whose exten-sive and expert research into the images used in the textbook greatly enhanced the overall ÒlookÓ of this 11th edition.Extra special thanks go to our families, friends, and col-leagues for the enormous encouragement, support, and under-standing they provided as we dedicated time and effort to creating this new edition.Finally, we dedicate the 11th edition of Information Technology for Management to the Memory of Dr. Linda Volonino, the driving force behind editions 7 through 10 of IT for Management. Thank you Linda, for all your hard work in providing the foundation for this latest edition of the textbook.CAROL POLLARDGREGORY WOOD
1CHAPTER 1Disruptive IT Impacts Companies, Competition, and CareersLEARNING OBJECTIVES 1.1 Describe how the on-demand economy is changing the way that business is conducted.1.2 Explain the role of IT in business process improvement. Understand the concepts of business process reengineering and competitive advantage.1.3 Describe innovating technologies and explain how they are disrupting enterprises.1.4 Understand the value of being an Òinformed userÓ of IT and the ways in which IT can add value to your career path and performance in the on-demand economy.CHAPTER OUTLINECase 1.1 Opening Case: Uber, Airbnb, and the On-Demand Economy 1.1 Doing Business in the On-Demand Economy 1.2 Business Process Improvement and Competitive Advantage 1.3 IT Innovation and Disruption 1.4 IT and You Case 1.2 Business Case: The Internet of Things Comes to the NFLCase 1.3 Video Case: What Is the Value of Knowing More and Doing More?IntroductionThe more digital technology advances, the more it is almost instantly integrated into our daily lives. Many managers and entrepreneurs recognize the need to integrate digital technology into their products and services. For example, it has been estimated that 78% of business
2 CHAPTER 1 Disruptive IT Impacts Companies, Competition, and Careersleaders expect their organizations to be a digital business by 2020. Outdated and complex application architectures with a mix of interfaces can delay or prevent the release of new products and services, and maintaining these obsolete systems absorbs large portions of the information technology (IT) budget.Companies such as Uber, Airbnb, Shyp, TaskRabbit, and other participants in the on-demand economy are leveraging IT to create exciting new business models and revolu-tionize the way workers, businesses, and customers interact and compete. Peter Hinssen, a well-known business author, university lecturer, and digital consultant, described the change in digital technology as follows:Technology used to be nice. It used to be about making things a little bit better, a little bit more efficient. But, technology stopped being nice: itÕs disruptive. ItÕs changing our business models, our consumer markets, our organizations. (MacIver, 2015)As businesses continue to join the on-demand economy, IT professionals must constantly scan for innovative new technologies to provide business value and help shape the future of the business. For example, smart devices, mobile apps, sensors, and technology platformsÑalong with increased customer demand for digital interactions and on-demand servicesÑhave moved commerce in fresh new directions. WeÕve all heard the phrase ÒthereÕs an app for thatÓ and that kind of consumer thinking is what drives the on-demand economy.Business leaders today need to know what steps to take to get the most out of mobile, social, cloud, big data, analytics, visualization technologies, and the Internet of Things (IoT) to move their business forward and enable new on-demand business models. Faced with oppor-tunities and challenges, managers need to know how to leverage IT earlier and more efficiently than their competitors.A goal of this book is to empower you to improve your use and management of IT at work by raising your understanding of IT terminology, practices, and tools and developing your IT skills to transform you into an informed IT user. Throughout this book, you will learn how digital technology is transforming business and society in the on-demand economy as the IT function takes on key strategic and operational roles that determine an enterpriseÕs success or failure. You will also be provided with an in-depth look at IT trends that have immediate and future capacity to influence products, services competition, and business relationships. Along the way, weÕll describe many different ways in which IT is being used and can be used in business and provide you with the some of the terminology, techniques and tools that enable organizations to leverage IT to improve growth, performance, and sustainability.In this opening chapter, you will learn about the powerful impacts of digital technology on people, business, government, entertainment, and society that are occurring in todayÕs on-demand economy. You will also discover how leading companies are deploying digital tech-nology and changing their business models, business processes, customer experiences, and ways of working. We will present examples of innovative products, services, and distribution channels to help you understand the digital revolution that is currently shaping the future of business, the economy and society and changing management careers. And, weÕll explain why IT is important to you and how becoming an Òinformed userÓ of IT will add significant value to your career and overall quality of life.
Introduction 3Case 1.1 Opening CaseTHE ON-DEMAND BUSINESS FRAMEWORKCORE ON-DEMANDSERVICESLogistics ManagementOffline Services Move OnlineVendor ManagementInterface LayerCONSUMERTECHNOLOGYUbiquitous ConnectivityMobile AdoptionApp MarketplaceCOMPLIMENTARYRESOURCESPayment SystemsCloud ServicesCRM Platforms1099 CommunityCONSUMERBEHAVIORTHEON-DEMANDECONOMYConvenienceEfficiencySimplicityInstant GratificationNICOLAS MAETERLINCK / Stringer /Getty ImagesUber and Airbnb Revolutionize Business Models in the On-Demand EconomyIf youÕve used Uber or Airbnb, then you have participated in the on-demand economy where speed, convenience, and simplicity are key factors in consumer behavior and purchasing decisions. Michael Boland, author of WhatÕs Driving the Local On-Demand Econ-omy, explains that as consumers, ÒWeÕre being conditioned to expect everything on-demand as the mobile device increasingly becomes the remote control for the physical worldÓ (Boland, 2015). For example, the majority of consumers who tap an Uber app to get a ride would not consider dialing an 800 number for a taxi. With all transactions performed by apps and automated processes, the entire process from hailing to paying for a ride is slick, quick, and easy, without cash or credit cards.Tech Platforms Enabled On-Demand Services to Take OffDecades of technological innovation have given us smartphone apps, mobile payment platforms, GPS and map technology, and social authentication. These technologies are being used to build the infra-structure needed for on-demand services. This infrastructureÑalso referred to as a technology platform or technology stackÑsupports the exchange and coordination of staggering amounts of data. The term technology stack reflects the fact that the platform is made up of multiple layers (stacks) of hardware, software, network connectivity, and data analytics capabilities.In many consumer markets today, companies that do not have iPhone or Android apps or technology platforms that support the exchange of goods and servicesÑno matter how useful their websiteÑmay find themselves losing their competitive edge.On-Demand Economy Requires a New Business ModelUber and Airbnb are popular examples of companies that developed on-demand business models to transform slow-to-innovate indus-tries. A simple definition of business model is the way a company generates revenue and makes a profit. On-demand business mod-els provide real-time fulfillment of goods and services, which have attracted millions of users worldwide. This model fits best when speed and convenience matter the most. The ground transporta-tion, grocery, and restaurant industries are examples of hyper-growth categories in the on-demand world. Forward-thinking companies are reshaping these industries.Uber Business ModelUber disrupted the taxi industry with a workforce that is essentially any person with a smartphone and a car. Location-aware smartphone apps bring drivers and passengers together, while in-app accounts make the cashless payment process effortless. By simply opening the Uber app and pressing the middle button for several seconds (a long press), customers can order a ride to their current location, selecting the kind of car they want. Payment is automatically charged to the credit card on file with receipts via email.The Uber concept developed in response to taxi scarcities. It started on a snowy Paris night in 2008 when the two founders could not get a cab. They wanted a dead-simple app that could get them a car with a tap. On June 1, 2015, the entrepreneurs celebrated Uber fifth anniversary and announced that the company had grown into a transportation network covering 311 cities in 58 countries in North and South Americas, Europe, Africa, Asia Pacific, and the Middle East.Uber has invested in new and developing technologies and part-nerships. The company partnered with Carnegie Mellon University to build robotic cars and new mapping software. In March 2015, Uber pur-chased deCarta, a 40-person mapping start-up to reduce its depend-ence on Google maps.Airbnb Business ModelAnother disruption to a traditional industry occurred when Airbnb blindsided the hotel industry. Airbnb allows anyone with a spare apartment or roomÑeven if only for a dayÑto run their own bed and breakfast by giving them a technology platform to market themselves to a global market. By 2016, the Airbnb site had over 1.5 million list-ings in 190 countries and 34,000 cities. Over 40 million guests have used Airbnb worldwide. For comparison, Hilton, InterContinental, and Marriott, the largest hotel chains in the world, have less than 1 million rooms each.Uber and Airbnb do not own inventory. Instead, they scale up (expand) by improving their ability to acquire and match customers and service providers.
4 CHAPTER 1 Disruptive IT Impacts Companies, Competition, and Careers 1.1 Doing Business in the On-Demand EconomyThe on-demand economy is revolutionizing commercial activities in businesses around the world. The businesses in this new economy are fueled by years of technology innovation and a radical change in consumer behavior. As companies become more highly digitized, it becomes more and more apparent that what companies can do depends on what their IT and data man-agement systems can do. For over a decade, powerful new digital approaches to doing business have emerged. And there is sufficient proof to expect even more rapid and dramatic changes due to IT breakthroughs and advances.In market segment after market segment, mobile communications and technology stacks make it financially feasible for companies to bring together consumers and providers of prod-ucts and services. These capabilities have created the on-demand economy. As Ev Williams, cofounder of Twitter says,The internet makes human desires more easily attainable. In other words, it offers convenience. Convenience on the internet is basically achieved by two things: speed, and cognitive ease. If you study what the really big things on the internet are, you realize they are masters at making things fast and not making people think.On-demand economy is the economic activity created by technology companies that fulfill consumer demand through the immediate provisioning of products and services.Business Success in Terms of Company Growth and ValuationThe ride-hailing app Uber and the housing rental app Airbnb are two of the most valuable start-ups, as displayed in Figure 1.1. Valuation of a company at its early stages is based heavily on its growth potential and future value. In contrast, the valuation of an established company is based on its present value, which is calculated using traditional financial ratios and techniques related to revenues or other assets.UberÕs massive market valueÑestimated at $60 billionÑis greater than 80% of all Standard & Poor (S&P) 500 companies, many of which have been around for 25, 50, or 100 years. Investors valued Airbnb at $24 billionÑhigher than the value of the hotel giant Marriott International. These companies would never have been able to grow in the old way as a traditional organization, with their own inventory of products, services, and workforce and traditional forms of technology.Questions 1. In what ways are the Uber and Airbnb business similar or different? 2. How did Uber achieve its new business model? 3. To what extent do you think changing their business models con-tributed to the success of Uber and Airbnb?Sources: Compiled from Primack (2015), Storbaek (2015), Winkler and MacMillan (2015,) Jaconi (2014), Uber.com (2017), Airbnb.com (2017).Started in 2008AirbnbÑshort for Air Bed andBreakfastThe leading disrupter in the hoteland vacation rental marketBy 2016, Airbnb was valued atabout $25 billion. Exceeded thevalue of Marriott InternationalUberStarted in 2009. Founder GarrettCamp wanted to tackle the taxishortage problem in San FranciscoUber epitomizes disruptionChanged the way customers thinkabout grabbing a rideBy 2016, Uber had higher valuationthan companies that make the carsits drivers useÐGM, Honda, and FordAirbnb FIGURE 1.1 On-demand business models of Airbnb and Uber have been extremely successful.
Doing Business in the On-Demand Economy 5The proliferation of smartphone-connected consumers, simple and secure purchase flows, and location-based services are a few of the market conditions and technological innovations that are propelling the explosion of on-demand services.Just as the rapid growth of online-only Amazon and eBay transformed retail, the even faster growth of app-driven companies, like Uber, Airbnb, and Grubhub, has disrupted the taxi, hotel, and restaurant markets. As you read in the opening case, in six short years, Uber changed the taxi industry as it rose from start-up to the worldÕs most valuable private technology company, and Airbnb tackled the fiercely competitive hotel market and attracted more than 60 million customers to become the third most valuable venture-capital-backed company in the world. Another example is Grubhub who became No. 1 in online food ordering, controlling over 20% of that $9 billion market. What todayÕs successful technology businesses have in common are platform-based business models. Platforms consist of hardware, software, and networks that provide the connectivity for diverse transactions, such as ordering, tracking, user authen-tication, and payments. These business models are designed to serve todayÕs on-demand economy, which is all about time (on-demand), convenience (tap an app), and personalized service (my way). For example, millennials want the ease of online payment over cash and insist on efficiency for all aspects of their lives, including shopping, delivery, and travel.Key strategic and tactical questions that determine an organizationÕs profitability and management performance are shown in Figure 1.2. Answers to each question require an understanding of the capabilities of mundane to complex IT, which ones to implement and how to manage them.Growth of the On-Demand EconomyWhether it is ease of scheduled deliveries or the corresponding time savings, the growth of the on-demand economy is a product of its alignment with consumersÕ growing appetite for greater convenience, speed, and simplicity. A recent survey reported that 86.5 million Americans have used the services of at least one on-demand start-up company (Chriss, 2016).The growth of the on-demand economy demonstrates the high level of interest consumers have in on-demand services from dog walking to laundry services, short-term home rentals, massages, and truck hauling. Although just applying a mobile app to an existing service will not ensure a companyÕs success, IT is a vital and integral part of the all businesses that are part of the on-demand economy.Businessprocesses,producers,and technologyStrategic direction:industry, markets,and customersBusiness model¥ What do we do?¥ What is our direction?¥ What markets & customers should we be targeting and how do we prepare for them?¥ How do we do it?¥ How do we generate revenues & profits to sustain ourselves and build our brand?¥ How well do we do it?¥ How can we be more efficient? FIGURE 1.2 Key strategic and tactical questions.
6 CHAPTER 1 Disruptive IT Impacts Companies, Competition, and CareersLow Cost of Entry One of the reasons that the on-demand economy has taken off is that it is easier than ever to become an on-demand business. Companies like Dispatch, a soft-ware as-a-service company, allow entrepreneurs to move into the on-demand world quickly and inexpensively. For example, Aatlantic Fitness, a fitness equipment repair service company, moved into the on-demand economy using Dispatch, and Handyman Connection, a 20-year-old home repair service company, is using DispatchÕs platform to compete with Handy, an on-demand service for house cleaning that has raised $60 million in venture capital.Digital Business ModelsThe on-demand economy is driving the transformation of traditional business models to digital business models to serve customers what they want and where they want it.Business models are the ways enterprises generate revenue or sustain themselves. Digital business models define how businesses make money via digital technology. Companies that adopt digital business models are better positioned to take advantage of business opportu-nities and survive, according to the Accenture Technology Vision 2013 report (Accenture, 2013). Figure 1.3 contains examples of new technologies that destroyed old business models and created new ones.The ways in which market leaders are transitioning to digital business models include the following:¥ NBA talent scouts rely on sports analytics and advanced scouting systems NBA talent scouts used to crunch playersÕ stats, watch live player performances, and review hours of tapes to create player profiles. Now software that tracks playersÕ performance has changed how basketball and soccer players are evaluated. For example, STATSÕ SportVU technology is revolutionizing the way sports contests are viewed, understood, played, and enjoyed. SportVU uses six palm-sized digital cameras that track the movement of every player on the court, record ball movement 25 times per second, and convert movements into statistics. SportVU produces real-time and highly complex statistics to complement the tra-ditional play-by-play. Predictive sport analytics can provide a 360-degree view of a playerÕs performance and help teams make trading decisions. Sports analytics bring about small competitive advantages that can shift games and even playoff series.¥ Dashboards keep casino floor staff informed of player demand Competition in the gaming industry is fierce, particularly during bad economic conditions. The use of manual spreadsheets and gut-feeling decisions did not lead to optimal results. Casino opera-tors facing pressure to increase their bottom line have invested in analytic tools, such as Location-aware technologiestrack items throughproduction and delivery toreduce wasted time andinefficiency in supply chainsand other business-to-business (B2B) transactionsTwitter dominates thereporting of news and eventsas they are still happeningFacebook became the mostpowerful sharing networkin the worldSmartphones, tablets, othertouch devices, and their appsreshaped how organizationsinteract with customersÑandhow customers wantbusinesses to interact withthem FIGURE 1.3 Digital business models refer to how companies engage their customers digitally to create value via websites, social channels, and mobile devices.
Doing Business in the On-Demand Economy 7To address these issues, IT leaders said they need to focus on relationships, meet more frequently with top management, and spend significant amounts of time with functional leaders, customers, and suppliers. Companies also need to emphasize finding, keeping, and developing IT talent and on improving IT to improve business performance. These findings point to one clear messageÑIT in the on-demand economy is about meeting cus-tomer needs.TangamÕs Yield Management solution (TYM). TYM is used to increase the yield (profitability) of blackjack, craps, and other table games. The analysis and insights from real-time apps are used to improve the gaming experience and comfort of players.Today, a top concern of well-established corporations, global financial institutions, born-on-the-Web retailers, and government agencies is how to design their digital business models in order to¥ Deliver an incredible customer experience¥ Turn a profit¥ Increase market share¥ Engage their employeesIn the digital (online) space, the customer experience must measure up to the very best the Web has to offer. Stakes are high for those who get it rightÑor get it wrong. Forrester research repeatedly confirms there is a strong relationship between the quality of a firmÕs customer experience and loyalty, which, in turn, increases revenue (Schmidt-Subramanian et al., 2013).ITÕs Role in the On-Demand EconomyAccording to the 2016 survey conducted by the Society of Information Management (SIM), 1,213 IT leaders (including 490 chief information officers (CIOs)) from 801 companies reported com-panies that are more highly digitized and tightly connected are putting a greater emphasis on the strategic use of IT to enhance growth and improve performance. As a result, IT priorities and spending are changing (Kappelman et al., 2017).A review of the top 10 IT management priorities reported in the survey results is shown in Table 1.1. Along with business-IT alignment and security, Table 1.1 clearly demonstrates a need for companies to focus on strategic and organizational priorities such as innovation, IT and business agility, speed of IT delivery, and business productivity and efficiency. TABLE 1.1 10 Top IT Management PrioritiesIT Management Issues1Technology Alignment with the Business2Security, Cybersecurity & Privacy3Innovation4IT Agility & Flexibility5Business Agility & Flexibility6Business Cost Reduction & Controls7IT Cost Reduction & Controls8Speed of IT Delivery & IT Time to Market9Business Strategic Planning10Business Productivity & EfficiencyAdapted from Kappelman et al. (2017).
8 CHAPTER 1 Disruptive IT Impacts Companies, Competition, and CareersIT Business ObjectivesNow, more than ever, IT must be responsive to the needs of consumers who are demanding a radical overhaul of business processes in companies across diverse industry sectors. Intuitive interfaces, around-the-clock availability, real-time fulfillment, personalized treatment, global consistency, and zero errorsÑthis is the world to which customers have become increasingly accustomed. And, itÕs not just about providing a superior user or customer experienceÑwhen companies get it right, they can also offer more competitive prices because of lower costs, bet-ter operational controls, and open themselves up to less risk.According to Chirantan Basu of Chron (Basu, 2017), to stay abreast of the ever- changing business landscape and customer needs, IT today must concentrate on the following six business objectives:1. Product development From innovations in microprocessors to efficient drug-delivery systems, IT helps businesses respond quickly to changing customer demands.2. Stakeholder integration Companies use their investor relations websites to communicate with shareholders, research analysts, and others in the market.3. Process improvement An ERP system replaces dozens of legacy systems for finance, human resources, and other functional areas, to increase efficiency and cost-effectiveness of internal business processes.4. Cost efficiencies IT allows companies to reduce transaction and implementation costs, such as costs of duplication and postage of email versus snail mail.5. Competitive advantage Companies can use agile development, prototyping, and other systems methodologies to being a product to market cost-effectively and quickly.6. Globalization Companies can outsource most of their noncore functions, such as HR and finance, to offshore companies and use ICT to stay in contact with its global employ-ees, customers, and suppliers 24/7.Every technology innovation triggers opportunities and threats to business models and strat-egies. With rare exceptions, every business model depends on a mix of IT, knowledge of its potential, the requirements for success, and, equally important, its limitations.Questions 1. What precipitated the on-demand economy? 2. How is IT contributing to the success of the on-demand economy? 3. List the six IT business objectives. 4. What are the key strategic and tactical questions that determine an organizationÕs profitability and management performance? 5. What is a business model? 6. What is a digital business model? 7. Give two examples of how companies are transitioning to digital business models. 8. What factors are driving the move to digital business models? 1.2 Business Process Improvement and Competitive AdvantageGiven that a companyÕs success depends on the efficiency of its business processes, even small improvements in key processes can have significant payoff. All functions and departments in the enterprise have tasks they need to complete to produce outputs, or deliverables, in order to meet their objectives.
Business Process Improvement and Competitive Advantage 9Before you can begin to improve something, you have to understand what it is you are improving. WeÕll start by defining a business process, looking at its characteristics, and then exploring ways in which a business process can be improved either incrementally or radically through Business Process Reengineering.What Is a Business Process?Business processes are series of steps by which organizations coordinate and organize tasks to get work done. In the simplest terms, a process consists of activities that convert inputs into outputs by doing work.Examples of common business processes are as follows:¥ Accounting Invoicing; reconciling accounts; auditing¥ Finance Credit card or loan approval; estimating credit risk and financing terms¥ Human resources (HR) Recruiting and hiring; assessing compliance with regulations; evaluating job performance¥ IT or information systems Generating and distributing reports and data visualizations; data analytics; data archiving¥ Marketing Sales; product promotion; design and implementation of sales campaigns; qualifying a lead¥ Production and operations Shipping; receiving; quality control; inventory management¥ Cross-functional business processes Involving two or more functions, for example, order fulfillment and product developmentThree Components of a Business Process Business processes have the three basic components shown in Figure 1.4. They involve inputs, activities, and deliverables.Processes can be formal or informal. Formal processes are documented and have well-established steps. Order taking and credit approval processes are examples. Routine formal processes are referred to as standard operating procedures (SOPs). An SOP is a well-defined and documented way of doing something. An effective SOP documents who will perform the tasks; what materials to use; and where, how, and when the tasks are to be performed. SOPs are needed for the handling of food, hazardous materials, or situations involving safety, secu-rity, or compliance. In contrast, informal processes are typically undocumented, have inputs that may not yet been identified, and are knowledge-intensive. Although enterprises would prefer to formalize their informal processes in order to better understand, share, and optimize them, in many situations process knowledge remains in peopleÕs heads.Processes range from slow, rigid to fast-moving, adaptive. Rigid processes can be struc-tured to be resistant to change, such as those that enforce security or compliance regulations. Adaptive processes are designed to respond to change or emerging conditions, particularly in marketing and IT.Improving Business ProcessesDesigning an effective process can be complex because you need a deep understanding of the inputs and outputs (also known as deliverables), how things can go wrong, and how to prevent Deliverables are the outputs or tangible things that are produced by a business process. Common deliverables are products, services, actions, plans, or decisions, such as to approve or deny a credit application. Deliverables are produced in order to achieve specific objectives.raw materials,data,knowledge,expertisework thattransformsinputs and actson data andknowledgeproducts,services,plans,or actionsInputsActivitiesBusiness ProcessDeliverables FIGURE 1.4 Three components of a business process.
10 CHAPTER 1 Disruptive IT Impacts Companies, Competition, and Careersthings from going wrong. For example, Dell had implemented a new process to reduce the time that tech support spent handling customer service calls. In an effort to minimize the length of the call, tech supportÕs quality dropped so much that customers had to call multiple times to solve their problems. The new process had backfiredÑincreasing the time to resolve computer problems and aggravating Dell customers.The importance of efficient business processes and continuous process improvement cannot be overemphasized. Why? Because 100% of an enterpriseÕs performance is the result of its processes. Maximizing the use of inputs in order to carry out similar activities better than oneÕs competitors is a critical success factor (CSF). Poorly designed, flawed, or outdated business processes waste resources, increase costs, cause delays, and aggravate customers. For example, when customersÕ orders are not filled on time or correctly, customer loyalty suffers, returns increase, and reshipping increases costs. The blame may not be employee incompetence, but a flawed order fulfillment process.DonÕt Automate, Obliterate!In todayÕs on-demand economy, incrementally improving a business process isnÕt always sufficient to create the type of change required. Instead, radical changes need to occur to meet higher customer expectations. To do this, companies have to go beyond simply automating an existing process. They must reinvent the entire business process, including reducing the number of steps required, eliminating documents, developing automated decision-making, and dealing with regulatory and fraud issues. Operating models, skills, organizational struc-tures, and roles need to be redesigned to match the reinvented processes. Data models should be adjusted and rebuilt to enable better decision-making, performance tracking, and cus-tomer insights.Leading organizations have come to recognize that it can take a long time to see the benefits of traditional large-scale projects that migrate all current processes to digital and sometimes they donÕt work. Instead, successful companies are reinventing processes, challenging every-thing related to an existing process and rebuilding it using cutting-edge digital technology. For example, rather than creating technology tools to help back-office employees type customer complaints into their systems, leading organizations create self-serve options for customers to type in their own complaints.Business Process Reengineering (BPR) The process by which these types of rad-ical process change can be achieved is referred to as business process reengineering (BPR), its slogan is ÒDonÕt automate, obliterate!Ó (Hammer and Champy, 2006). Consisting of eight stages, shown in Figure 1.5, BPR proposes that simply applying IT to a manual or outdated pro-cess does not always optimize it. Instead, processes need to be examined to determine whether they are still necessary. After unnecessary processes are identified and eliminated, the remain-ing ones are redesigned (or reengineered) in order to automate or streamline them. Next, the new process is implemented and put into operation and its performance is evaluated. Finally, the process is reassessed over time to continually improve it.The goal of BPR is to eliminate unnecessary, non-value-added processes, and simplify and automate the remaining processes to significantly reduce cycle time, labor, and costs. For example, reengineering the credit approval process cuts time from several days or hours to minutes or less. Simplifying processes naturally reduces the time needed to complete the pro-cess, which also cuts down on errors.After eliminating waste, technology can enhance processes by (1) automating existing manual processes; (2) expanding the data flows to reach more functions in order to make it pos-sible for sequential activities to occur in parallel; and (3) creating innovative business processes that, in turn, create new business models. For instance, consumers can scan an image of a product and land on an e-commerce site, such as Amazon.com, selling that product. This pro-cess flips the traditional selling process by making it customer-centric.You will read more about optimizing business processes and role of business process management (BPM) role in the alignment of IT and business strategy in Chapter 13.
Business Process Improvement and Competitive Advantage 11Gaining a Competitive AdvantageUnderstanding trends that affect the new ways business is being done and getting in front of those trends by changing adding, deleting, and changing existing business processes gives organizations an important competitive advantage over their competitors. Helping a company gain, maintain, and sustain a competitive advantage in the market is a very impor-tant function of IT. In business, as in sports or politics, companies want to winÑcustomers, market share, and position in the industry. Basically, this requires gaining an edge over com-petitors by being first to take advantage of market opportunities, providing better customer experiences, offering unique products or services, or convincing customers why your business is a more attractive alternative than your competitors.Influential industry leaders cite Ònew competitionÓ as their largest business challenge. Once an enterprise has developed a competitive edge, it can only be sustained by continually pursuing new and better ways to compete. Maintaining a competitive advantage requires forecasting trends and industry changes and figuring out what the company needs to do to stay ahead of the game. It demands continuously tracking competitors and their future plans and promptly taking corrective actions. Competitiveness depends heavily on IT agility and responsiveness. The benefit of IT agility is that it enables organizations to take advantage of opportunities faster or more effectively.Closely related to IT agility is flexibility. For example, mobile networks are flexibleÑable to be set up, moved, or removed easily, without dealing with cables and other physical require-ments of wired networks. Mass migration to mobile devices from PCs has expanded the scope of IT beyond traditional organizational boundariesÑmaking location practically irrelevant.IT agility, flexibility, and mobility are tightly interrelated and fully dependent on an organi-zationÕs IT infrastructure and architecture, which are discussed in Chapter 2.With mobile devices, applications, platforms, and social media becoming inseparable parts of work life and corporate collaboration and with more employees working from home, the result is the rapid consumerization of IT. IT consumerization is the migration of consumer Competitive advantage is an edge that enables a company to outperform its average competitor.Agility means being able to respond quickly.Responsiveness means that IT capacity can be easily scaled up or down as needed, which essentially requires cloud computing.Flexibility means having the ability to quickly integrate new business functions or to easily reconfigure software or applications.1. DevelopVision andObjectives2. UnderstandExistingProcesses3. IdentifyProcess forRedesign4. IdentifyChange Levers5. ImplementNew Process6. Make NewProcessOperational7. Evaluate NewProcess8. PerformContinuousImprovementBusiness ProcessReengineering FIGURE 1.5 Eight phases of business process reengineering.
12 CHAPTER 1 Disruptive IT Impacts Companies, Competition, and Careerstechnology into enterprise IT environments. This shift has occurred because personally owned IT is as capable and costÐeffective as its enterprise equivalents. IT at Work 1.1 demonstrates how FitBit has maintained a competitive advantage with its fitness tracker.As evidenced by the mergers of Grubhub/Seamless in food delivery and Handybook/Exec in home services, consolidation will accelerate as competition grows. This trend is underscored in the following examples:¥ Collaboration of complementary, noncompetitive businesses will become commonplace as a means to collectively educate consumers about the benefits of on-demand ser-vices, increase awareness, and provide added value to core users. These range from cross- promotions similar to that of Instacart/Washio to close partnerships such as that of WunWun/Gett.¥ Legacy providers in hospitality, transportation, and other Fortune 500s will Òpartner withÓ or ÒacquireÓ more innovative on-demand companies. Ken Chenault, Chairman and CEO of American Express, conceded in their annual report, ÒOur industry is being redefined by many forces, including the continued revolution in online and mobile technologies, which is transforming commerce and society.Ó Given the emerging influence of on-demand ser-vices, Amex launched a partnership with Uber earlier this year. American Express was able to get a foot in the door by allowing customers to earn 2× points for its spend on Uber with an American Express credit card.¥ As on-demand businesses solve for the current technological and logistical challenges, design will increasingly become one of the most meaningful forms of competitive advantage. Creating a memorable, frictionless user interface is the next battleground for addressing con-sumersÕ insatiable appetite for greater simplicity and convenience. Scott Belsky points out, ÒA new cohort of design-driven companies are adding a layer of convenience between us and the underlying services and utilities that improve our lives. This could change everything.ÓSources: Compiled from Ashcroft (2015), Nusca (2015), Grand View Research (2016), and Fitbit.com (2016).IT at Work 1.1 FitBit: Smart, Connected Device Transforms Competition and Promotes SustainabilityIn the first year of its existence, FitBit sold 100,000 devices. At the time, there were countless weight loss and exercise programs, plans, and gimmicks. But smart, connected wearable activity trackers were virtually nonexistent. Five years later, FitBit managed to take the title biggest selling manufacturer of wearable tech when it sold a whopping 21 million devices in 1 year. It still holds that title today.Vision: Simple Approach Plus Smart DeviceFitBit was launched in San Francisco, California, by Eric Friedman and James Park. These entrepreneurs took a basic approach to personal health and fitnessÑeating right and keeping active. Their vision was to develop a smart device that would motivate users to be more active, eat a well-rounded diet, and ultimately become healthier.Throughout the day, FitBit logs data about the wearerÕs activi-ties, including the number of steps taken, distance travelled, calories burned, and what needs to be done to reach a personal daily goal, for example, walking 2 miles. FitBitÕs internal memory can store at least a week of activity data.One of FitBitÕs competitive strengths is the app that is accessi-ble from a smartphone. Users can sync FitBit devices and view their online profile, activity levels, and sleep patterns on dashboards that display on more than 150 mobile devices, including iOS, Android, and Windows Phone products. This compatibility maximizes the number of friends and family in each userÕs network to share performance stats. It also motivates and increases user retention.First Class FitnessA smart wearable product that fits effortlessly into usersÕ life styles launched an industry and made FitBit a market leader. In the sec-ond quarter of 2015 (2Q15), FitBit shipped 4.4 million units, up 159% from the same quarter a year ago (2Q14) and held 24.3% global market share. Second in line was Apple with 3.6 million units shipped in 2Q15 and 19.9% global market share. Thanks to the technology that enabled FitBit and the companyÕs growing reputation, Friedman and Park are likely to be in business for a long time.IT at Work Questions 1. How did FitBit manage to take the title of biggest selling manufacturer of wearable technology tech and sustain it? 2. What could other companies who produce fitness trackers challenge FitBit in the marketplace? 3. What other features do you think consumers would like Fit-Bit to incorporate into its fitness tracker to further improve it? How would consumers and FitBit benefit from these improvements?
IT Innovation and Disruption 13Software Support for BPMThe purpose of business process management (BPM) is to help enterprises become more agile and effective by enabling them to better understand, manage, and adapt their business pro-cesses. Vendors, consulting and tech firms offer BPM expertise, services, software suites, and tools.BPM software is used to map processes performed either by computers or manuallyÑand to design new ones. The software includes built-in templates showing workflows and rules for various functions, such as rules for credit approval. These templates and rules provide consistency and high-quality outcomes. For example, OracleÕs WebLogic Server Process Edition includes server software and process integration tools for automating complex business processes, such as handling an insurance claim.But, BPM initiatives can be extremely challenging, and in order to be successful, BPM requires buy-in from a broad cross section of the business, the right technology selection, and highly effective change management processes.Questions 1. What is a business process? Give three examples. 2. What is the difference between business deliverables and objectives? 3. List and give examples of the three components of a business process. 4. Explain the differences between formal and informal processes. 5. What is an SOP? 6. What is the purpose of BPM? 1.3 IT Innovation and DisruptionDigital technology creates new markets, businesses, products, and careers. As digital changes the way consumers and retailers buy and sell products, companies must adapt and innovate to ensure their product offerings, platforms, technologies, and search options cater to these changing needs.SocialÐMobileÐAnalyticsÐCloud (SMAC) ModelWe are in the era of socialÐmobileÐanalyticsÐcloud (SMAC) computing that is reshaping business strategies and day-to-day operations (Figure 1.6).Business process management consists of methods, tools, and technology to support and continuously improve business processes.Estimated 15 billion devices are connected to the InternetÑforecasted to hit 50 billion by 2020 as more devices connect via mobile networksCurrent 4.2 billion IoT devices projected to increase to 24 billion in 2020. This represents 73% of the total Internet-connected base79% of online adults and 68% of all Americans use Facebook. Mobile use generates 30% of FacebookÕs ad revenue.U.S. mobile commerce sales top $104.05 billionFacebook dominates all other social platforms with audience reach FIGURE 1.6 SMAC reshapes business strategies and day-to-day operations.
14 CHAPTER 1 Disruptive IT Impacts Companies, Competition, and CareersThe cloud consists of huge data centers accessible via the Internet and forms the core by providing 24/7 access to storage, applications, and services. Handhelds and wearables, such as FitBit, Pebble, and the Apple Watch, and their users form the edge. Social channels con-nect the core and edge. The SMAC integration creates the technical and services infrastructure needed for digital business. This infrastructure makes it possible to meet the expectations of employees, customers, and business partners given that almost everyone is connected (social), everywhere they go (mobile), gets the information they need (analytics), and has 24/7 access to products and services (cloud).Here are three examples of SMACÕs influence:1. Powerful social influences impact advertising and marketing Connections and feed-back via social networks have changed the balance of influence. Consumers are more likely to trust tweets from ordinary people than recommendations made by celebrity endorse-ments. And, negative sentiments posted or tweeted can damage brands.2. Consumer devices go digital and offer new services The Nike+ FuelBand wristband helps customers track their exercise activities and calories burned. The device links to a mobile app that lets users post their progress on Facebook.3. eBayÕs move to cloud technology improves sellersÕ and buyersÕ experiences The worldÕs largest online marketplace, eBay, moved its IT infrastructure to the cloud. With cloud computing, eBay is able to introduce new types of landing pages and customer experiences without the delay associated with having to buy additional computing resources.The balance of power has shifted as business is increasingly driven by individuals for whom mobiles are an extension of their body and mind. They expect to use location-aware services, apps, alerts, social networks, and the latest digital capabilities at work and outside work. To a growing extent, customer loyalty and revenue growth depend on a businessÕs ability to offer unique customer experiences that wow customers more than competitors can.Technology Mega TrendsFor 21st-century enterprises, connectivity, big data and analytics, and digitization are tech-nology mega trends that cannot be ignored. Business breakthroughs and innovation would be impossible without them. They also mark the difference between outdated 20th-century business models and practices and those of todayÕs on-demand economy.The most influential IT mega trends driving digital transformation of companies in the on-demand economy are discussed next.Connectivity Companies need to connect with consumers and business partners across multiple channels and devices using digital platforms that consist of hardware, software ( mobile apps), networks (social media), (embedded sensors), and cloud computing.For example, rather than run applications or programs from software stored on a com-puter or server owned by the company, cloud computing allows companies to access the same kinds of applications through the Internet. Major business cloud computing providers include Amazon Web Services (AWS), Cisco Powered, Dell Cloud Solutions, Google Cloud, IBM Cloud Solutions, and Teradata Cloud. One of the many benefits of cloud is that it provides the flexibility to acquire or expand connectivity and computing power as needed for operations, business transactions, and communication.Expanded connectivity supports smart products, which have the ability to sense, process, report, and take corrective action, such as smart clothing, watches, phones, to smart buildings and smart cities. This IoT is becoming a driving force in the on-demand economy.Connectivity pushes other sub trends, like big data, to create market opportunities for new products and services, such as social sentiment analysis, open innovation, new insurance business models, and micro personalized marketing and medicines. Big data is one of the many disruptive technologies that are impacting people, processes, and profits.Mega trends are forces that shape or create the future of business, the economy, and society.
IT Innovation and Disruption 15Big Data and Data Analytics There is no question that the increasing volume of data can be valuable, but only if they are processed and available when and where they are needed. The problem is that the amount, variety, structure, and speed of data being generated or collected by enterprises differ significantly from traditional data. Big data are what high-volume, mostly text data are called. Big data stream in from multiple channels and sources, including the following:¥ Mobile devices and machine-to-machine sensors embedded in everything from airport runways to casino chips (Later in this chapter, you will read more about the IoT.)¥ Social content from texts, tweets, posts, blogs¥ Clickstream data from the Web and Internet searches¥ Video data and photos from retail and user-generated content¥ Financial, medical, research, customer, and business-to-business transactions.Big data are 80% to 90% unstructured. Unstructured data do not have a predictable format like a credit card application form. Huge volumes of unstructured data flooding into an enterprise are too much for traditional technology to process and analyze quickly. Big data tend to be more time-sensitive than traditional (or small) data. Data collected from social, mobile, and other channels are analyzed to gain insights and make smart decisions that drive up the bottom line. Machine-generated data from sensors and social media texts are main sources of big data.Big data has been one of the most disruptive forces businesses have seen in a long time. But when an enterprise harnesses its data and is able to act on analytic insights, it can turn the challenges into opportunities.Digitization Across industries, companies are attempting to transform their disconnected or disjointed approaches to customers, products, services, and operating models to an always-on, real-time, and information-rich marketplace. Some leaders are redesigning their capabilities and operating models to take full advantage of digital technologies to keep step with the ÒconnectedÓ consumer and attract talent. Others are creating qualitatively new business modelsÑand tremendous valueÑaround disruptive digital opportunities. In doing so, these companies secure not only continued relevance but also superior returns.Digitization often requires that old wisdom be combined with new skills, for example, by training a merchandising manager to program a pricing algorithm and creating new roles, such as user-experience designer. The benefits of digitizing processes, through business process reengineering, are huge. By digitizing information-intensive processes, costs can be cut by up to 90% and turnaround times improved by several orders of magnitude.Examples span multiple industries. For example, one bank digitized its mortgage appli-cation and decision process, cutting the cost per new mortgage by 70% and slashing time to preliminary approval from several days to just one minute. A telecommunications company created a self-serve, prepaid service where customers could order and activate phones without back-office involvement. A shoe retailer built a system to manage its in-store inventory that enabled it to know immediately whether a shoe and size was in stockÑsaving time for cus-tomers and sales staff. An insurance company built a digital process to automatically adjudi-cate a large share of its simple claims.In addition, replacing paper and manual processes with software allows businesses to automatically collect data that can be mined to better understand process performance, cost drivers, and causes of risk. Real-time reports and dashboards on digital-process performance enable managers to address problems before they get out of control. For example, quality issues in a companyÕs supply chain can be identified and remedied more rapidly by monitoring customer buying behavior and feedback in digital channels.Machine-to-Machine Technology Sensors can be embedded in most products. Objects that connect themselves to the Internet include cars, heart monitors, stoplights, and appliances. Sensors are designed to detect and react, such as FordÕs rain-sensing front wipers that use an advanced optical sensor to detect the intensity of rain or snowfall and adjust wiper speed Digitization is the process of transforming any kind of activity or information into a digital format that can be collected, stored, searched, and analyzed electronicallyÑand efficiently.
16 CHAPTER 1 Disruptive IT Impacts Companies, Competition, and Careersaccordingly. Machine-to-machine (M2M) technology enables sensor-embedded products to share reliable real-time data via radio signals. M2M and the Internet of Things (IoT) are widely used to automate business processes in industries ranging from transportation to health care. By adding sensors to trucks, turbines, roadways, utility meters, heart monitors, vending machines, and other equipment they sell, companies can track and manage their products remotely.When devices or products are embedded with sensors, companies can track their move-ments or monitor interactions with them. Business models can be adjusted to take advantage of what is learned from this behavioral data. For example, an insurance company offers to install location sensors in customersÕ cars. By doing so, the company develops the ability to price the driversÕ policies on how a car is driven and where it travels. Pricing is customized to match the actual risks of operating a vehicle rather than based on general proxiesÑdriverÕs age, gender, or location of residence. Table 1.2 lists a number of opportunities for improvement through the application of embedded physical things.Lessons Learned from Companies Using Disruptive TechnologiesThose companies who have adapted to change by exploiting digital technology and software are outperforming their peers. According to a survey conducted by CA Associates, companies who have turned the way they use technology from being a cost center and operational function to being a genuine competitive differentiator are reaping the benefits. Many reported doubling their revenue growth, experiencing a higher profit by a factor of 2.5 and increasing new business-based revenue by a factor of 1.5 (Vaughn-Brown, 2014). The five factors to which companies attribute these benefits can be summed up in the following Lessons Learned:1. Exploit the power of software Become Òapp-centricÓ and extend core business func-tions to include software development.2. Develop, deliver, disruptÑquickly! Embrace agile development techniques and broadly implement DevOps.3. Boost speed and efficiency with automated programming interfaces (APIs) Take a managed approach to use APIs for building full-function Web applications (particularly mobile apps) and for integrating back-office systems.Internet of Things (IoT) refers to a set of capabilities enabled when physical things are connected to the Internet via sensors. TABLE 1.2 Improvement Opportunities from Embedded SensorsIndustry SectorApplicationPayoffOil and gasExploration and development rely on extensive sensor networks placed in the earthÕs crust. Sensors can produce accurate readings of the location, structure, and dimensions of potential fieldsLower development costs and improved oil flowsHealth careSensors and data links can monitor patientsÕ behavior and symptoms in real time and at low cost allowing physicians to more precisely diagnose disease and prescribe treatment regimensReduce hospitalization and treatment costs by $1 billion per year in the United StatesRetailSensors can capture shoppersÕ profile data stored in their membership cards to help close purchasesAdditional information and discounts at point of saleFarmingGround sensors can take into account crop and field conditions and adjust the amount of fertilizer that is spread on areas that need more nutrientsReduction in time and costAdvertisingBillboards can scan people passing by, assessing how they fit consumer profiles, and instantly change displayed messages based on those assessmentsBetter targeted marketing campaigns; flexibility; increased revenuesAutomotiveSystems can detect imminent collisions and take evasive action, such as automatic braking systemsPotential accident reduction savings of more than $100 billion annually
IT and You 174. Leverage third-party innovation Take a more managed approach to use APIs for integrating third-party services into applications and enable external develop access to systems and data.5. Maximize returns with smarter IT investments Get smarter at assessing and prioritiz-ing IT investments to maximize return on investment and put portfolio management in place to prioritize and track IT programs.Business opportunities and challenges presented by todayÕs technology innovations are on an unprecedented scale. Cloud services, big data, mobility, digitization, and the IoT are likely to disrupt many industries and shake up competitive positions.Innovation is necessary for any company that wants to remain relevant, retain customers, and increase profits. Increased competition, expanded global markets, and empowered customers define todayÕs on-demand business environment.Questions 1. What are the benefits of cloud computing? 2. What is M2M technology? Give an example of a business process that could be automated with M2M. 3. Describe the relationships in the SMAC model. 4. What impacts is the SMAC model having on business? 5. Why have mobile devices given consumers more power in the marketplace? 6. Explain why connectivity is important in todayÕs on-demand economy. 7. In what ways is IT disrupting business? 1.4 IT and YouToday, IT and information systems touch nearly all aspects of our lives. IT is a part of our social life, our work, and every business process, and it is no longer the sole responsibility of the IT department. Just think about much of your day you spend interacting with technologyÑyour iPad, PC, and smartphone. It has been reported that the average American checks his/her phone 46 times every day! ThatÕs an increase of 35% over the 33 looks per day reported in a similar study just one year earlier. Aggregated across the 185 million American smartphone users, thatÕs 8 billion ÒlooksÓ per day (Eadicicco, 2015).IT impacts the way you work, the way you learn, the way you communicate and socialize and the way you entertain yourself. Today, success in any field, be it health care, marketing, finance, accounting, law, education, sports, entertainment, etc. requires much more than a cur-sory knowledge of IT. IT is and will remain the foundation of the global economy and is espe-cially important in the on-demand economy.On-Demand WorkersA recent survey of on-demand economy (Chriss, 2016) in the United States and online talent recruiters reported an increase in people working in the on-demand economy who are enjoy-ing a new way of working. Other facts and stats from the survey reveal the U.S. On-Demand workforce as a community of 45 million workers, the majority of whom are younger, optimistic, and urban-based (Table 1.3).The survey also revealed that fewer and fewer people are looking for traditional employment. For example, 91% like the control over where, when, and how they work that the on-demand jobs offer them. The motivation for most is not to replace a traditional job, but to earn supplemental income (Table 1.4).Cloud service is any computing resource that is provided over the Internet on demand.
18 CHAPTER 1 Disruptive IT Impacts Companies, Competition, and CareersThe data also shows a strong entrepreneurial drive behind people choosing on-demand work. Just over one-third of respondents owned full- or part-time business and approximately one quarter reporting they are working in the on-demand economy to build a business. This entre-preneurial spirit is reflected in the ways that on-demand worker are compensated. While the 40-hour workweek is still alive and well, sources of income have changed. Instead of one pay-check, on-demand workers typically receive their income from three different sources:1. On-demand work2. Contracting and consulting3. Running a businessChanges in Work Status While the on-demand economy provides positive opportunities, it can also offer limited benefits and inferior infrastructure. Take, for example, the Ò contractorÓ model that companies like Uber use. Initially, Uber set the standard for on-demand business by labeling its drivers Òindependent contractorsÓ and essentially claiming that all of its 160,000 drivers were self-employed. This pushed many of the costs of doing business onto the independent contractorsÕ shoulders and deprived them of baseline labor protections such as workerÕs compensation, social security contributions, minimum wage, and discrimination protections.This business model also allowed companies using the Uber model to sidestep federal, state, and county taxes and insurance premiums and undercuts competitors that used a traditional W-2 hiring model. However, not all on-demand businesses use the Uber model.Some companies treat their workers as employees from the start, while others have switched to the W-2 model and both approaches are reaping benefits. Shyp CEO Kevin Gibbon posted on LinkedIn that the move to employee status was Òan investment in a longer-time relationship with our couriers, which we believe will ultimately create the best experience for our customers.Ó After moving to the W-2 model, Shyp had only 1 out of 245 employees quit and customer complaints decreased at the package delivery company. And Instacart, a food shopping and delivery service, offered its shoppers the option to convert to part-time employees so they could offer training to ensure a consistent customer experience and greater customer satisfaction (National Employment Law Project, 2016).Regardless of their work status, it would appear that overall on-demand workers are highly satisfied with their work environment, perhaps because it fits a unique need. IntuitÕs on-demand economy survey reported the following:¥ 70% of on-demand workers are satisfied with their work.¥ 81% plan to continue working with the same provider over the next year.¥ 63% are happier to be working in the on-demand economy.Overall, on-demand workers are forward-looking, eager to embrace new opportunities, and want to take charge of their careers. TABLE 1.3 Profile of U.S. On-Demand WorkersCharacteristicNumberFinancial situation had improved over the past year23 millionExpected their financial situation to improve over the coming year28.8 millionUnder 35 years of age23 millionLive in urban areas18.45 million TABLE 1.4 Motivation to Work in the On-Demand EconomyMotivationPercentEarn supplemental income63Create and control their own schedule46Turned to on-demand work because they couldnÕt find another traditional job11
IT and You 19IT Adds Value to Your Performance and CareerWhether you join the ranks of the on-demand workers, or choose to stay in a traditional job, IT can greatly enhance your performance at work and the ways you move through your career path.Staying current in emerging technologies affecting markets is essential to the careers of knowledge workers, entrepreneurs, managers, and business leadersÑnot just IT and CIO.In the current marketplace, organizations are finding it particularly difficult to find quali-fied IT Talent, as illustrated in IT at Work 1.2.IT at Work 1.2Scott Zulpo Is Facing Stiff CompetitionHeÕs adding a senior project manager, a network analyst, and a help desk worker to his 55-member IT staff at BCU, a Vernon Hills, Illinois-based credit union where he is vice president of IT. And, Zulpo will need to add even more people to keep up with an increasing demand for tech-driven innovations.ÒThe challenge is twofoldÑfirst finding talent, and then deter-mining if that talent has the skills, experience and personality to thrive in the position,Ó says Zulpo, whoÕs mindful that Òthe cost and impact of not hiring an ÔAÕ player is huge.ÓZulpo has his work cut out for him. HeÕs hiring at time when very few IT professionals are out of work. Consequently, competition for tech talent is fierce. The unemployment rate for tech workers is about 2%, according to reports on recent data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2016).And, Zulpo isnÕt the only one whoÕs having a difficult time finding good IT talent. Many of his fellow IT leaders are seeking the same skills. ComputerworldÕs Forecast 2017 survey of 196 IT professionals found that both project management and technical support were among the top 10 most sought-after skills among companies that plan to recruit in the new year.ÒThe IT labor market is still very hot. The candidate is very much in the driverÕs seat,Ó says Jason Hayman, market research manager for IT staffing firm TEKsystems.Hayman cites a government report that estimates that 500,000 to 1 million IT jobs go unfilled every year, but notes that some ana-lysts say the figure is closer to 2 million. He says thereÕs a classic supply-and-demand scenario working here, with demand for talent far exceeding supply.The takeaway is that there are not enough IT workers!Compiled from: Bureau of Labor Statistics (2016), Pratt (2016), and Computerworld (2017).IT at Work Questions 1. What are two reasons why Zulpo had trouble finding quali-fied IT talent? 2. What of position was Zulpo trying to fill? 3. What methods would you recommend to Zulpo help him in his efforts to recruit new IT personnel?IT as a Career Fueled by corporate growth, systems expansion, need for competitive or unique services to increase business and security initiatives, companies are increasing their IT hires. Companies need new tech hires who have a background in both technology and business and who can articulate ITÕs value in meeting business goals. In particular, companies are seeking IT employees with skills in programming, application development, technical support, security, cloud, business intelligence, Web development, database administration, and project management.According to the U.S. Department of Labor (2016), IT job growth is estimated at 12% from 2014 to 2024, faster than the average for all other occupations. This means about 488,500 new jobs. The median annual wage for computer and IT occupations was $81,430 in May 2015, which was considerably higher than the median annual wage of $36,200 for all other occupa-tions. Here are some common IT jobs and their activities:IT managers Play a vital role in the implementation and administration of digital tech-nology. They plan, coordinate, and direct research on the computer-related activities of firms. In consultation with other managers, they help determine the goals of an organiza-tion and then implement technology to meet those goals.Chief technology officers (CTOs) Evaluate the newest and most innovative technolo-gies and determine how they can be applied for competitive advantage. CTOs develop technical standards, deploy technology, and supervise workers who deal with the daily IT issues of the firm. When innovative and useful new ITs are launched, the CTO determines implementation strategies, performs costÐbenefit or SWOT analysis, and reports those strategies to top management, including the CIO.
20 CHAPTER 1 Disruptive IT Impacts Companies, Competition, and CareersIT project managers Develop requirements, budgets, and schedules for their firmÕs IT projects. They coordinate such projects from development through implementation, working with their organizationÕs IT workers, as well as clients, vendors, and consultants. These managers are increasingly involved in projects that upgrade the information secu-rity of an organization.Data scientists Manage and analyze massive sets of data for purposes such as target mar-keting, trend analysis, and the creation of individually tailored products and services. Enter-prises that want to take advantage of big data use real-time data from tweets, sensors, and their big data sources to gain insights into their customersÕ interests and preference, to create new products and services, and to respond to changes in usage patterns as they occur. Big data analytics has increased the demand for data scientists, as described in Career Insight 1.1.Career Insight 1.1 Data Scientists Analyze Business Data for Actionable Business IntelligenceOnline searches for data scientist are outpacing the number of job postings by more than 20% and the large business consulting firm, Price-Waterhouse-Cooper, recently announced they would be add-ing more than 1,000 data scientists during the next 2 years.Big data, analytics tools, powerful networks, and greater processing power have contributed to growth of the field of data science. According to Glassdoor data (glassdoor.com, 2017), the median annual salary for data scientists in the United States is $113,436 and experienced data scientists who manage teams of 5 to 10 people are earning more than $250,000 per annum.But, itÕs not just about the moneyÑdata scientists enjoy what they do. The job is interesting, spanning many different aspects of the organization and in some cases involves analyzing community outreach programs supported by organizations.What Does a Data Scientist Do?Enterprises need people who are capable of analyzing and finding insights in data captured from a range of sources, including customer transactions, click streams, sensors, social media, log files, and GPS plots. Their mission is to unlock valuable and predictive insights that will influence business decisions and spur a competitive advantage. According to Gregg Gordon, VP of the Big Data practice group at Kro-nos, provider of workforce management solutions in the cloud,ItÕs not sitting in a room all day Ð we take our work and apply it to customer problems. WeÕre working and interacting with customers on a daily basis talking about real problems, then attempting to replicate, model and solve them.An interesting example of what a data scientist can achieve can be found by studying Jonathan Goldman, the person who transformed LinkedIn. At the time Goldman joined, LinkedIn had less than 8 million members. Goldman noticed that existing mem-bers were inviting their friends and colleagues to join, but they were not making connections with other members at the rate executives had expected. A LinkedIn manager said, ÒIt was like arriving at a conference reception and realizing you donÕt know anyone. So you just stand in the corner sipping your drinkÑand you probably leave early.Ó Goldman began analyzing the data from user profiles and looked for patterns to predict whose networks a given profile would land in. While most LinkedIn managers saw no value in GoldmanÕs work, Reid Hoffman, LinkedInÕs cofounder and CEO at the time, understood the power of analytics because of his experiences at PayPal. With HoffmanÕs approval, Goldman applied data analytics to test what would happen if a member were presented with names of other members they had not yet connected with, but seemed likely to know. He displayed the three best new matches for each member based on his or her LinkedIn profile. Within days, the click-through rate on those matches skyrocketed and things really took off. Thanks to this one feature, LinkedInÕs growth increased dramatically.Artist or Scientist?The most successfulÑand sought-afterÑdata scientists possess a combination of analytical skills, technical prowess and business acumen needed to effectively analyze massive data sets while thinking critically and shifting assumptions on the fly, ultimately transforming raw intelligence into concise and actionable insights.The LinkedIn example shows that good data scientists do much more than simply try to solve obvious business problems. Creative and critical thinking are part of their jobÑthat is, part analyst and part artist. They dig through incoming data with the goal of discov-ering previously hidden insights that could lead to a competitive advantage or detect a business crisis in enough time to prevent it. Data scientists often need to evaluate and select those opportunities and threats that would be of greatest value to the enterprise or brand.Questions 1. What types of IT career have the most potential in the current hiring market? 2. What factors does Zulpo take into consideration when heÕs evaluating job applicants? 3. Why is IT a major enabler of business performance and success? 4. Explain why it is beneficial to be an informed user of IT. 5. Do you think IT job prospects are strong? Explain.Sources: Darrow (2015), Marr (2016), U.S. Department of Labor (2016), and Bureau of Labor Statistics (2016).
IT and You 21IT Job Prospects In 2017, only 2% of all IT workers are unemployed. Workers with spe-cialized technical knowledge and strong communications and business skills, as well as those with an MBA with a concentration in an IT area, will have the best prospects. Job openings will be the result of employment growth and the need to replace workers who transfer to other occupations or leave the labor force (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2016)Dow Chemical set up its own social network to help managers identify the talent they need to carry out projects across its diverse business units and functions. To expand its talent pool, Dow extended the network to include former employees and retirees.Other companies are using networks to tap external talent pools. These networks include online labor markets such as Amazon Mechanical Turk and contest services such as InnoCen-tive that help solve business problems.¥ Amazon Mechanical Turk is a marketplace for work that requires human intelligence. Its Web service enables companies to access a diverse, on-demand workforce.¥ InnoCentive is an Òopen innovationÓ company that takes R&D problems in a broad range of areas such as engineering, computer science, and business and frames them as Òchallenge problemsÓ for anyone to solve. It gives cash awards for the best solutions to solvers who meet the challenge criteria.Becoming an Informed IT UserKnowing how best to you use IT and how and when to interact with IT personnel, and they with you, will help you perform better at home and at work and enable you to become an informed user of technology.The department or functional area that handles the collection, processing, storing, analysis and distribution of information using a computer-based tool can be referred to by many namesÑsome companies refer to it as information technology (IT), while others refer to it as information systems (IS), management information systems (MIS), IT support, IT services or computer information systems (CIS). Whatever the name, its purpose is the sameÑto support a companyÕs information needs by developing, operating, securing, and maintaining one or more information systems.To become an informed IT user, you will learn how the six components of an information systemÑhardware, software, procedures, people, networks, and dataÑinteract to provide you with the information that you need, when you need it, and in the format you need. These com-ponents will be discussed in detail in Chapter 2.By reading this book, you will become an informed user and you gain more value from IT to improve your performance and widen your career opportunities. For example, you will learn to¥ Understand how using IT can improve organizational performance¥ Understand how and why IT can benefit organizational growth¥ Understand how business can use IT to enhance the customer experience¥ Use how companies use IT to analyze business data and offer important insights¥ Be able to offer input into the development and use of IT¥ Be able to recommend and select IT applications at work¥ Know how to find emerging technologies to make radical improvement in business processes¥ Understand how IT can facilitate teamwork and improve individual productivity¥ Appreciate the importance of ethical behavior when using IT and explain the associated risks and responsibilities¥ Foster your entrepreneurial tendencies to start your own on-demand business.Informed user is a person knowledgeable about information systems and IT.
22 CHAPTER 1 Disruptive IT Impacts Companies, Competition, and CareersAssuring Your LearningDiscuss: Critical Thinking Questions1. Why are businesses experiencing a digital transformation?2. More data are collected in a day now than existed in the world 10 years ago. What factors have contributed to this volume of data?3. Assume you had no smartphone, other mobile device, or mobile apps to use for 24 hours. How would that mobile blackout disrupt your ability to function?4. Name three highly disruptive digital technologies. Give an example of one disruption for each technology.5. Why are enterprises adopting cloud computing?6. What is the value of M2M technology? Give two examples.7. Starbucks monitors tweets and other sources of big data. How might the company increase revenue from big data analytics?8. Select three companies in different industries, such as banking, retail store, supermarket, airlines, or package delivery, that you do business with. What digital technologies does each company use to engage you, keep you informed, or create a unique customer experience? How effective is each use of digital technology to keeping you a loyal customer?9. Describe two examples of the influence of SMAC on the financial industry.10. What is the potential impact of the IoT on the health-care industry?11. Why does reducing the cycle time of a business process also help to reduce errors?12. Research firm Gartner defines competitive advantage as a difference between a company and its competitors that matters to customers. Describe one use of M2M technology that could provide a manufacturer with a competitive advantage.13. What IT careers are forecasted to be in high demand? Explain why.14. Why or how would understanding the latest IT trends influence your career?Key Termsagility 11barriers to entry 23big data 15business model 3business process 9business process management (BPM) 13business process reengineering (BPR) 10business-to-business 15chief technology officers (CTOs) 19cloud computing 14cloud services 17competitive advantage 11critical success factor (CSF) 10cross-functional business process 9customer experience 7cycle time 22dashboards 12data analytics 3data science 20deliverables 9digital business model 7digitization 15flexibility 11informed user 21Internet of Things (IoT) 16IT consumerization 11IT project managers 20machine-to-machine (M2M) technology 16mega trends 14 objectives 8on-demand economy 4productivity 7responsiveness 11social, mobile, analytics and cloud (SMAC) 13standard operating procedures (SOPs) 9SWOT analysis 19unstructured data 15wearable technology 12Explore: Online and Interactive Exercises1. Research the growing importance of the IoT. Find two forecasts of its growth. What do they forecast?2. Go to Ò9 Successful Digital Disruption ExamplesÓ on the IT Business Edge website. Close the pop-up to view the slideshow and read the descriptions of each of the ways in which technology is disrupting our lives. Answer the following questions:a. Which of the following disruptions resonated best with you and your lifestyle? Explain.b. Which of the disruptions was most surprising to you? Why?c. Rank order the disruptions in their order of importance to you? Write a short report explaining your rankings.
Analyze & Decide: Apply IT Concepts to Business Decisions1. A transportation company is considering investing in a truck tire with embedded sensors. Outline the benefits of this investment. Would this investment create a long-term competitive advantage for the transportation company?2. Visit the website of UPS (ups.com), Federal Express (fedex.com), and one other logistics and delivery company.a. At each site, describe what information is available to customers before and after they send a package?b. Compare the three customer experiences. Which one do you prefer? Why? 3. Visit Dell.com and Apple.com to simulate buying a laptop computer. Compare and contrast the selection process, degree of customization, and other buying features. What are the barriers to entry into this market, based on what you learned from this exercise?Case 1.2Business Case: The Internet of Things Comes to the NFLPeople love sports statistics and the more the better. Responding to this customer demand, the NFL increased the quality and quantity of statistics available to coaches and fans with radio frequency identifica-tion (RFID) chips.Player RFID ProjectWhen the 2015 National Football League played its first game in New England, each player was equipped with a set of RFID sensors. Each sensor, about the size of a quarter, is embedded in playersÕ shoulder pads and emits a unique radio frequency. Every stadium used by the NFL is equipped with 20 receivers to pick up the RFID signals and pin-point every player on the field. It also records speed, distance traveled. acceleration in real time, and the direction the player is facing.The NFL plans to use the data it collects to power an Xbox One and Windows NFL apps to allow fans to call up stats for each player tied into the highlight clips posted on the app. The data will also be fed to broadcasters, leveraged for in-stadium displays, and provided to coaching staff and players.ÒWeÕve always had these traditional NFL stats,Ó says Matt Swensson, senior director of Emerging Products and Technology at the NFL. ÒThe league has been very interested in trying to broaden that and bring new statistics to the fans. Along the way, thereÕs been more realization about how the data can be leveraged to make workflow more efficient around the game.ÓZebra Technologies Software VendorThe NFLÕs technology partner in its IoT push was Zebra Technologies of Lincolnshire, Illinois.Zebra was well known for its manufacturing and selling marking, tracking and printing technologies such as thermal barcode label and receipt printers, RFID smart label printer/encoders, and card and kiosk printers. As it moved into IoT and M2M applications, Zebra launched its MotionWorks Sports Solution, which powers the NFL IoT initiative. Zebra was able to develop RFID tags that blink up to 85 times per sec-ond to track motion of athletes in subseconds. Then it had to find a cus-tomer for the productÑso it turned to the biggest fish in the pondÑthe NFL. Zebra trialed the tags by equipping more than 2,000 players, 18 NFL stadiums and officials, markers, and pylons. Over the course of the season, more than 1.7 billion sets of XY player coordinates were meas-ured, transmitted, and stored during the games. Every stadium was connected to a command station in San Jose, California, that controls when the data are collected, where they are sent, and stores them in the cloud.The Need for the Right PeopleAn important lesson that Zebra learned is that generic data scien-tists werenÕt sufficient to gain insight into the data. Zebra needed football experts. ÒWhen you look at analytics in football, you really need people. We had to go out and hire football people. The analyt-ics from manufacturing werenÕt the same as the analytics from foot-ball. We could see correlations in the data that seemed important and then found out they werenÕt. We had to bring in people that had the football expertise who could say ÔLook, this is why it mattersÕ,Ó said Jill Stelfox, Zebra Technologies Vice President and General Manager, Location Solutions.The latest development in this IoT initiative is its integration with NFLÕs fantasy football offerings.Questions 1. Why did NFL equip its players with RFID tags? 2. What factors contributed to the success of the IoT initiative at the NFL? 3. What other types of IoT applications can you think of that could be used in sports stadiums? Case 1.2 23
24 CHAPTER 1 Disruptive IT Impacts Companies, Competition, and CareersCase 1.3 Video Case: Knowing More and Doing MoreTeradata is a leading provider of big data and data analytics solutions. In a video, Teradata explains that when you know the right thing to do, you can do more of what truly matters for your business and your customers. Visit TeradataÕs website, search for and view the video entitled ÒManufacturing: What Would You Do If You Knew?Óª (the video runs for 1:26 minutes).Questions 1. What did you learn from the video? 2. What is the value of knowing more?ReferencesAccenture. Accenture Technology Vision 2013.Ashcroft, S. ÒFitbit sold 4.5 million trackers last quarter and smashed financial estimates.Ó Wareable.com, August 6, 2015.Barry Libert, B., Y. Wind, and M.B. Fenley. ÒWhat Airbnb, Uber, and Alib-aba Have in Common.Ó Harvard Business Review, November 20, 2014.Basu, C. ÒThe Six Important Business Objectives of Information Tech-nology.Ó Chron, 2017. Accessible from http://smallbusiness.chron .com/six-important-business-objectives-information-technology- 25220.htmlBoland, M. ÒWhatÕs Driving the Local on Demand Economy?Ó BIA/Kel-sey blog, May 5, 2015.Bureau of Labor Statistics. Occupational Outlook Handbook. U.S. Department of Labor, 2016Ð2017.Chandler, N. ÒHow FitBit Works.Ó HowStuffWorks.com, May 2, 2012.Chriss, A. ÒHow the On-Demand Economy Is Reshaping the 40 Hour Work Week.Ó 2016.Computerworld. Ò2017 Tech Forecast: IT Sharpens Its Focus.Ó Computerworld, 2017.Darrow, B. ÒData Science Is Still White Hot, but Nothing Lasts For-ever.Ó Fortune, 2015.Eadicicco, L. ÒAmerican Check Their Phones 8 Billion Times a Day.Ó Time, December 15, 2015.glassdoor.com. ÒData Scientist Salaries.Ó April 7, 2017.Grand View Research. ÒWearable Technology Market Analysis By Product (Wrist-Wear, Eye-Wear, Foot-Wear, Neck-Wear, Body-Wear), by Application (Fitness & Wellness, Healthcare, Infotainment, Defense, Enterprise and Industrial) and Segment Forecasts to 2022.Ó Grand View Research, 2016.Hammer, M. and J. Champy. ÒRe-engineering the Corporation: A Manifesto for Business Revolution.Ó Updated and revised edition. Harper Business Essentials, 2006.Jaconi, M. ÒThe ÔOn-Demand EconomyÕ Is Revolutionizing Consumer BehaviorÑHereÕs How.Ó Business Insider, July 13, 2014.Kappelman, L., E. McLean, V. Johnson, R. Torres, Q. Nguyen, C. Maurer, and M. Snyder. ÒThe 2016 SIM IT Key Issues and Trends Study.Ó MIS Quarterly Executive, March 2017.MacIver, K. ÒDigital Business in an Era of Disruptive Innovation.Ó I-CIO .com, November 2015.Marr, B. ÒIs Being a Data Scientist Really the Best Job in America?Ó Forbes, February 25, 2016.National Employment Law Project. ÒEmployers in the On-Demand Economy: Why Treating Workers as Employees is Good for Business.Ó http://www.nelp.org/content/uploads/Fact-Sheet- Employers-in-the-On-Demand-Economy.pdf, 2016.Nusca, A. ÒThe Numbers Are in: Apple Is No. 2 in Wearables.Ó Fortune, August 27, 2015.Pratt, M. Ò10 Hottest Tech Skills for 2017.Ó Computerworld, Decem-ber 7, 2016.Primack, D. ÒGrubHub Makes Major Move in Restaurant Delivery Wars.Ó Fortune, February 5, 2015.Schmidt-Subramanian, M., H. Manning, J. Knott, and Murphy. ÒThe Business Impact of Customer Experience, 2013.Ó Forrester Research, June 10, 2013.Storbaek, D. ÒThe 5-Step Uber Playbook That Will Disrupt the On-Demand Economy.Ó TechCrunch.com, October 15, 2015.U.S. Department of Labor (2016). ÒComputer and Information Technology OccupationsÓ. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/home.htmVaughn-Brown, J. ÒThe Digital Transformation Journey: Key Technol-ogy Considerations.Ó CA Technologies, 2014.Winkler, R. and D. Macmillan. ÒThe Secret Math of AirbnbÕs $24 Billion Valuation.Ó The Wall Street Journal, June 17, 2015.
25CHAPTER 2Information Systems, IT Architecture, Data Governance, and Cloud ComputingLEARNING OBJECTIVES2.1 Name the six components of an information system and match the various types of information systems to the type of support needed by business operations and decision-makers.2.2 Describe an IT infrastructure, an IT architecture, and an enterprisewide architecture (EA) and compare and contrast their roles in guiding IT growth and sustaining long-term performance.2.3 Explain the business benefits of information management and understand the importance of data governance and master data management in providing trusted data that is available when and where needed to support sustainability.2.4 Understand the concepts of data centers and cloud computing and understand how they add value in an organization.2.5 Describe the different types of cloud services and the various forms of virtualization and understand how they add value in an organization.CHAPTER OUTLINECase 2.1 Opening Case: Detoxing Location-Based Advertising Data at MEDIATA 2.1 IS Concepts and Classifications 2.2 IT Infrastructure, IT Architecture, and Enterprise Architecture 2.3 Information Management and Data Governance 2.4 Data Centers and Cloud Computing 2.5 Cloud Services and VirtualizationCase 2.2 Business Case: Data Chaos Creates RiskCase 2.3 Video Case: Cloud Computing at Coca-Cola Is Changing Everything
26 CHAPTER 2 Information Systems, IT Architecture, Data Governance, and Cloud ComputingIntroductionOne of the most popular business strategies for achieving success is the development of a competitive advantage. Competitive advantage exists when a company has superior resources and capabilities than its competitors that allow it to achieve either a lower cost structure or a differentiated product. For long-term business success, companies strive to develop sustainable competitive advantages, or competitive advantages that cannot be easily copied by the competition (Porter, 1998). To stay ahead, corporate leaders must constantly seek new ways to grow their business in the face of rapid technology changes, increasingly empowered consumers and employees, and ongoing changes in government regulation. Effective ways to thrive over the long term are to launch new business models and strategies or devise new ways to outperform competitors. Because these new business models, strategies, and per-formance capabilities will frequently be the result of advances in technology, the companyÕs ability to leverage technological innovation over time will depend on its approach to enter-prise IT architecture, information management, and data governance. The enterprisewide IT architecture, or simply the enterprise architecture (EA), guides the evolution, expansion, and integration of information systems (ISs), digital technology, and business processes. This guid-ance enables companies to more effectively leverage their IT capability to achieve maximum competitive advantage and growth over the long term. Information management guides the acquisition, custodianship, and distribution of corporate data and involves the management of data systems, technology, processes, and corporate strategy. Data governance, or informa-tion governance, controls enterprise data through formal policies and procedures. One goal of data governance is to provide employees and business partners with high-quality data they can trust and access on demand.Bad decisions can result from the analysis of inaccurate data, which is widely referred to as dirty data, and lead to increased costs, decreased revenue, and legal, reputational, and performance-related consequences. For example, if data is collected and analyzed based on inaccurate information because advertising was conducted in the wrong location for the wrong audience, marketing campaigns can become highly skewed and ineffective. Com-panies must then begin costly repairs to their datasets to correct the problems caused by dirty data. This creates a drop in customer satisfaction and a misuse of resources in a firm. One example of an organization taking strides to clean the dirty data collected through inac-curate marketing is the data management platform, MEDIATA, which runs bidding systems and ad location services for firms looking to run ads on websites (see Table 2.1). LetÕs see how they did this.Dirty data are data of such poor quality that they cannot be trusted or relied upon for decisions.
Introduction 27Case 2.1 Opening CaseDIRTY DATAAHEADCourtesy of Billy RayDetoxing Location-Based Advertising Data at MEDIATACompany OverviewMEDIATA uses its audience and media delivery platform to deliver thousands of successful online advertising campaigns across Australia, Hong Kong, and New Zealand. Known as a Òprogrammatic solution specialist,Ó the MEDIATA platform is truly cutting-edge. It runs bidding systems and ad location services for companies that are looking to run ads on websites and provides its clients with high-impact, fully man-aged, 100% transparent advertising campaigns that produce results. MEDIATA is committed to shaking up the online advertising industry and is evolving into a fast-growing international business. MEDIATA clients include Qantas, LG, Virgin Money, Konica Minolta, Optus, Carls-berg, Honda, ACCOR Hotels, Air New Zealand, Heinz, Woolworths, Citi-bank, and JP Morgan.The ProblemMEDIATA uses IP address data to locate customers and ad effectiveness. Unfortunately, as much as 80% of ad inventories come with an incor-rect location and MEDIATA realized that this Òdirty dataÓ was adversely affecting their business. Location-based advertising provides organi-zations and companies alike with massive benefits. Target customers can be reached easily and effectively through marketing campaigns tailored specifically for them. For example, utility companies and internet service providers usually have certain areas or regions that they service. Using location-based targeting (see Figure 2.1), these companies can target television, newspaper, and online display ads to attract new customers. Another benefit includes the reduced waste of running marketing campaigns in unprofitable areas. Firms can choose precisely where their advertisements are displayed without wasting resources on customer segments that will not respond because of location or preference discrepancies.Advanced data analytics in location-based advertising also allows companies like MEDIATA to reach customers where and when they are in decision-making mode using programmatic bidding algorithms and ad inventories. Browser-based ads use these algorithms to predict which customer segments will click on certain ads at certain times of the day. Automated bidding then ensues, with the ad spot on the page going to the highest bidder (Cailean, 2016). However, the data must be accurate to be useful and MEDIATA realized that their data could be much better than it was. Given the importance of this technology to advertisers and digital advertising agencies, there are overwhelming issues to overcome.The issues stem from outdated methods of locating Internet users through IP addresses. These old systems do not pinpoint where exactly traffic is coming from, rather they give advertising agencies broad geo-graphic regions to work with, and the ads go to random coordinates within the regions. Since the value of these activities comes from having accurate targeting, the inaccuracies of the antiquated systems severely impact profitability. As targeting regions shrink, information becomes more valuable and accurate, but even small inaccuracies dilute the value of demographic information applied to an audience.The SolutionIn 2016, MEDIATA established a data governance program in which it partnered with Skyhook, a U.S. global location software company to TABLE 2.1 Opening Case OverviewCompanyMEDIATA was launched as Valued Interactive Media (VIM) in 2009. Rebranded in 2013 as MEDIATAIndustryCommunications; AdvertisingProduct LinesWide range of programmatic solutions and products to provide practical solutions for digital marketing campaigns to deliver successful online advertising campaigns to organizations across Australia, Hong Kong, and New ZealandDigital TechnologyInformation management and data governance to increase trust and accessibility of data to facilitate a companyÕs visionBusiness VisionShake up the online advertising industry. Improve transparency and foster greater cooperation between partnersWebsitewww.mediataplatform.com
28 CHAPTER 2 Information Systems, IT Architecture, Data Governance, and Cloud Computing FIGURE 2.1 Location-based advertising. 2.1 IS Concepts and ClassificationBefore we being to explore the value of information systems (ISs) to an organization, itÕs use-ful to understand what an IS is, what it does, and what types of ISs are typically found at differ-ent levels of an organization.In addition to supporting decision-making, coordination, and control in an organization, ISs also help managers and workers analyze problems, visualize complex sets of data, and cre-ate new products. ISs collect (input) and manipulate data (process), and generate and dis-tribute reports (output) and based on the data-specific IT services, such as processing customer orders and generating payroll, are delivered to the organization. Finally, the ISs save (store) the data for future use. In addition to the four functions of IPOS, an information needs feedback from its users and other stakeholders to help improve future systems as demonstrated in Figure 2.2.The following example demonstrates how the components of the IPOS work together: To access a website, Amanda opens an Internet browser using the keyboard and enters a Web address into the browser (input). The system then uses that information to find the correct web-site (processing) and the content of the desired site is displayed in the Web browser (output). Next, Amanda bookmarks the desired website in the Web browser for future use (storage). The system then records the time that it took to produce the output to compare actual versus expected performance (feedback).Information systems (ISs) is a combination of information technology and peopleÕs activities using the technology to support business processes, operations, management, and decision-making at different levels of the organization.IPOS is the cycle of inputting, processing, outputting, and storing information in an information system.improve the effectiveness of MEDIATAÕs user profile data by more pre-cisely locating IP addresses resolving MEDIATAÕs challenges related to dirty data. SkyhookÕs Context Accelerator Hyperlocal IP uses big data analytics to provide over 1 billion IP addresses to advertising platforms and cleaned MEDIATAÕs dirty data to pinpoint customers within 100 meters, thus increasing ad effectiveness for its clients. Hyperlocal IP achieves this by using big data analytics to provide over 1 billion IP addresses to advertising platforms.Now, every time a device like a cell phone or laptop requests a location, the on-device software scans for Wi-Fi, GPS, or cell tower data. Combining all of these data points allows Skyhook to provide extremely accurate coordinates and pass this information along to MEDIATA to use.While this approach still is not perfect, it allows MEDIATAÕs adver-tisements to become closer than ever to their target customers. A nine-month study conducted after implementing Skyhook showed that MEDIATA saw a 20% increase in marketing campaign effectiveness. Creating and employing this data governance system allowed MEDIATA to clean its datasets and create new, effective methods to reach target audiences.Questions1. What business challenges did MEDIATA face because of its dirty data?2. What is the function of location-based advertising?3. Why is it important to maintain accurate location data?4. How did Skyhook and data governance enable MEDIATA to achieve its vision?5. What benefits did MEDIATA achieve as a result of implementing data governance?Sources: Compiled from Cailean (2016), Schneider (2014), and Schneider (2015).
IS Concepts and Classification 29Components of an ISA computerized IS consists of six interacting components. Regardless of type and where and by whom they are used within an organization, the components of an IS must be carefully man-aged to provide maximum benefit to an organization (see Figure 2.3).PROCESSINGProgramsEquipmentsStorageFEEDBACKError ReportPerformance MetricsHard DriveServerUSBINPUTDataInformationKnowledgeInstructionsSTORAGEOUTPUTReportsGraphicsCalculations FIGURE 2.2 IPOS cycle.PeopleDATADProceduresNetworkSoftwarekSoHardware FIGURE 2.3 Components of an IS.1. Hardware Any physical device used in a computerized IS. Examples include central pro-cessing unit (CPU), sound card, video card, network card, hard drive, display, keyboard, motherboard, processor, power supply, modem, mouse, and printer.2. Software A set of machine-readable instructions (code) that makes up a computer application that directs a computerÕs processor to perform specific operations. Computer software is nontangible, contrasted with system hardware, which is the physical compo-nent of an IS. Examples include Internet browser, operating system (OS), Microsoft Office, Skype, and so on.3. People Any person involved in using an IS. Examples include programmers, operators help desk, and end-users.4. Procedures Documentation containing directions on how to use the other components of an IS. Examples include operational manual and user manual.5. Network A combination of lines, wires, and physical devices connected to each other to create a telecommunications network. In computer networks, networked computing
30 CHAPTER 2 Information Systems, IT Architecture, Data Governance, and Cloud Computingdevices exchange data with each other using a data link. The connections between nodes are established using either cable media or wireless media. Networks can be internal or external. If they are available only internally within an organization, they are called Òintranets.Ó If they are available externally, they are called Òinternets.Ó The best-known example of a computer network is the World Wide Web.6. Data Raw or unorganized facts and figures (such as invoices, orders, payments, customer details, product numbers, product prices) that describe conditions, ideas, or objects.Data, Information, Knowledge, and WisdomAs you can see in Figure 2.3, data is the central component of any information system. Without data, an IS would have no purpose and companies would unable to conduct business. Gener-ally speaking, ISs process data into meaningful information that produces corporate knowl-edge and ultimately creates wisdom that fuels corporate strategy.Data are the raw material from which information is produced; the quality, reliability, and integrity of the data must be maintained for the information to be useful. Data are the raw facts and figures that are not organized in any way. Examples are the number of hours an employee worked in a certain week or the number of new Ford vehicles sold from the first quarter (Q1) of 2015 through the second quarter (Q2) of 2017 (Figure 2.4).Information is an organizationÕs most important asset, second only to people. Information provides the Òwho,Ó Òwhat,Ó Òwhere,Ó and ÒwhenÓ of data in a given context. For example, Data describe products, customers, events, activities, and transactions that are recorded, classified, and stored.Information is data that have been processed, organized, or put into context so that they have meaning and value to the person receiving them.Knowledge adds understanding, experience, accumulated learning, and expertise as they apply to a current problem or activity, to information.Creatively assess knowledge to developinnovative policies and procedures toreverse downward trend in salesUse information to determine reasonsfor consistent downward trend in salesfrom June 2016to June 201717, 25, 54, 12, 68, 19, 39, 42, 72Number of new vehicles soldDATA(Raw figures)INFORMATION(who, what, where, when)KNOWLEDGE(how)WISDOM(why)Q1 2015Q2 2015Q3 2015Q4 2015Q1 2016Q2 2016Q3 2016Q4 2016Q1 2017Q2 2017New Vehicle Sales by Quarter6543210 FIGURE 2.4 Examples of data, information, knowledge, and wisdom.
IS Concepts and Classification 31summarizing the quarterly sales of new Ford vehicles from Q1 2015 through Q2 2017 provides information that shows sales have steadily decreased from Q2 2016.Knowledge is used to answer the question Òhow.Ó In our example, it would involve deter-mining how the trend can be reversed, for example, customer satisfaction can be improved, new features can be added, and pricing can be adjusted.Wisdom is more abstract than data and information (that can be harnessed) and knowledge (that can be shared). Wisdom adds value and increases effectiveness. It answers the ÒwhyÓ in a given situation. In the Ford example, wisdom would be corporate strategists evalu-ating the various reasons for the sales drop, creatively analyzing the situation as a whole, and developing innovative policies and procedures to reverse the recent downward trend in new vehicle sales.ISs collect or input and process data to create and distribute reports or other outputs based on information gleaned from the raw data to support decision-making and business processes that, in turn, produce corporate knowledge that can be stored for future use. Figure 2.5 shows the input-processing-output-storage (IPOS) cycle.Wisdom is a collection of values, ethics, moral codes, and prior experiences that form an evaluated understanding or common-sense judgment.StorageTemporary memory (RAM), hard disks, flash memory, cloudPeopleUsers, clients, customers, operators, technicians, governments, companiesSendingresults,collectingdata,feedbackCommunicationWorking withinformation,changing,calculating,manipulatingProcessingData collected,captured,scanned,snapped fromtransactionsInputShowingresults onscreen,hardcopy, digitalcopy, archiveOutput FIGURE 2.5 Input-processing-output-storage model.Types of ISSAn IS may be as simple as a single computer and a printer used by one person, or as complex as several thousand computers of various types (tablets, desktops, laptops, mainframes) with hundreds of printers, scanners, and other devices connected through an elaborate network used by thousands of geographically dispersed employees. Functional ISs that support busi-ness analysts and other departmental employees range from simple to complex, depending on the type of employees supported. The following examples show the support that IT provides to major functional areas.1. Marketing Utilizing IBM software, Bolsa de Comercio de Santiago, a large stock exchange in Chile, is able to process its ever-increasing, high-volume trading in microseconds. The Chilean stock exchange system can do the detective work of analyzing current and past transactions and market information, learning, and adapting to market trends and con-necting its traders to business information in real time. Immediate throughput in combina-tion with analytics allows traders to make more accurate decisions.2. Sales According to the New England Journal of Medicine, one in five patients suffers from preventable readmissions, which cost taxpayers over $17 billion a year. In the past, hospitals have been penalized for high readmission rates with cuts to the payments they receive from the government (Zuckerman et al., 2016). Using effective management information systems (MISs), the health-care industry can leverage unstructured informa-tion in ways not possible before, according to Matt McClelland, manager of information
32 CHAPTER 2 Information Systems, IT Architecture, Data Governance, and Cloud Computinggovernance for Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina. ÒWith proper support, informa-tion governance can bridge the gaps among the need to address regulation and litiga-tion risk, the need to generate increased sales and revenue, and the need to cut costs and become more efficient. When done right, information governance positively impacts every facet of the business,Ó McClelland said in the Information Governance Initiative (Jarousse, 2016).Figure 2.6 illustrates the classification of the different types of ISs used in organiza-tions, the typical level of workers who use them and the types of input/output (I/O) pro-duced by each of the ISs. At the operational level of the organization, line workers use transaction processing systems (TPSs) to capture raw data and pass it along (output) to middle managers. The raw data is then input into office automation (OA) and MISs by middle managers to produce information for use by senior managers. Next, information is input into decision support systems (DSSs) for processing into explicit knowledge that will be used by senior managers to direct current corporate strategy. Finally, corporate executives input the explicit knowledge provided by the DSSs into executive information systems (EISs) and apply their experience, expertise, and skills to create wisdom that will lead to new cor-porate strategies.ExecutivesSenior ManagersMiddle ManagersLine WorkersExecutive Information Systems(EIS)Decision Support Systems(DSS)Management Information Systems(MIS)Transaction Processing Systems(TPS)WisdomKnowledgeInformationData FIGURE 2.6 Hierarchy of ISs, input/output, and user levels.Transaction Processing System (TPS)A TPS is designed to process specific types of data input from ongoing transactions. TPSs can be manual, as when data are typed into a form on a screen, or automated by using scanners or sensors to capture barcodes or other data (Figure 2.7). TPSs are usually operated directly by frontline workers and provide the key data required to support the management of operations.Organizational data are processed by a TPS, for example, sales orders, reservations, stock control, and payments by payroll, accounting, financial, marketing, purchasing, inventory con-trol, and other functional departments. The data are usually obtained through the automated or semiautomated tracking of low-level activities and basic transactions. Transactions are either:¥ internal transactions that originate within the organization or that occur within the orga-nization, for example, payroll, purchases, budget transfers, and payments (in accounting terms, they are referred to as accounts payable); or¥ external transactions that originate from outside the organization, for example, from cus-tomers, suppliers, regulators, distributors, and financing institutions.TPSs are essential systems. Transactions that are not captured can result in lost sales, dis-satisfied customers, unrecorded payments, and many other types of data errors with financial
IS Concepts and Classification 33impacts. For example, if the accounting department issued a check to pay an invoice (bill) and it was cashed by the recipient, but information about that transaction was not captured, then two things happen. First, the amount of cash listed on the companyÕs financial state-ments is incorrect because no deduction was made for the amount of the check. Second, the accounts payable (A/P) system will continue to show the invoice as unpaid, so the accounting department might pay it a second time. Likewise, if services are provided, but the transactions are not recorded, the company will not bill for them and thus lose service revenue.Batch versus Online Real-Time Processing Data captured by a TPS are pro-cessed and stored in a database; they then become available for use by other systems. Processing of transactions is done in one of two modes:1. Batch processing A TPS in batch processing mode collects all transaction for a day, shift, or other time period, and then processes the data and updates the data stores. Pay-roll processing done weekly or bi-weekly is an example of batch mode.2. Online transaction processing (OLTP) or real-time processing The TPS processes each transaction as it occurs, which is what is meant by the term real-time processing. In order for OLTP to occur, the input device or website must be directly linked via a network to the TPS. Airlines need to process flight reservations in real time to verify that seats are available.Batch processing costs less than real-time processing. A disadvantage is that data are inaccu-rate because they are not updated immediately, in real time.Processing Impacts Data Quality As data are collected or captured, they are vali-dated to detect and correct obvious errors and omissions. For example, when a customer sets up an account with a financial services firm or retailer, the TPS validates that the address, city, and postal code provided are consistent with one another and also that they match the credit card holderÕs address, city, and postal code. If the form is not complete or errors are detected, the customer is required to make the corrections before the data are processed any further.Data errors detected later may be time-consuming to correct or cause other problems. You can better understand the difficulty of detecting and correcting errors by considering identity theft. Victims of identity theft face enormous challenges and frustration trying to correct data about them.Management Information System (MIS)An MIS is built on the data provided by TPS. MISs are management-level systems that are used by middle managers to help ensure the smooth running of an organization in the short to medium term. The highly structured information provided by these systems allows managers © Jan_Neville/iStockphoto FIGURE 2.7 Scanners automate the input of data into a transaction processing system (TPS).
34 CHAPTER 2 Information Systems, IT Architecture, Data Governance, and Cloud Computingto evaluate an organizationÕs performance by comparing current with previous outputs. Func-tional areas or departments―accounting, finance, production/operations, marketing and sales, human resources, and engineering and design―are supported by ISs designed for their particular reporting needs. General-purpose reporting systems are referred to as management information systems (MISs). Their objective is to provide reports to managers for tracking operations, monitoring, and control.Typically, a functional system provides reports about such topics as operational efficiency, effectiveness, and productivity by extracting information from databases and processing it according to the needs of the user. Types of reports include the following:¥ Periodic These reports are created or run according to a pre-set schedule. Examples are daily, weekly, and quarterly. Reports are easily distributed via e-mail, blogs, internal web-sites (called intranets), or other electronic media. Periodic reports are also easily ignored if workers do not find them worth the time to review.¥ Exception Exception reports are generated only when something is outside the norm, either higher or lower than expected. Sales in hardware stores prior to a hurricane may be much higher than the norm. Or sales of fresh produce may drop during a food contamina-tion crisis. Exception reports are more likely to be read because workers know that some unusual event or deviation has occurred.¥ Ad hoc, or on demand Ad hoc reports are unplanned reports. They are generated to a mobile device or computer on demand as needed. They are generated on request to learn more about a situation, problem, or opportunity.Reports typically include interactive data visualizations, such as column and pie charts, as shown in Figure 2.8.© Damir Karan/iStockphoto FIGURE 2.8 Sample report produced by an MIS.Decision Support System (DSS)A DSS is a knowledge-based system used by senior managers to facilitate the creation of knowl-edge and allow its integration into the organization. More specifically, a DSS is an interactive application that supports decision-making by manipulating and building upon the information from an MIS and/or a TPS to generate insights and new information.Configurations of a DSS range from relatively simple applications that support a single user to complex enterprisewide systems. A DSS can support the analysis and solution of a specific problem, evaluate a strategic opportunity, or support ongoing operations. These sys-tems support unstructured and semistructured decisions, such as make-or-buy-or-outsource decisions, or what products to develop and introduce into existing markets.Degree of Structure of Decisions Decisions range from structured to unstruc-tured. Structured decisions are those that have a well-defined method for solving and the
IS Concepts and Classification 35data necessary to reach a sound decision. An example of a structured decision is determining whether an applicant qualifies for an auto loan, or whether to extend credit to a new customer―and the terms of those financing options. Structured decisions are relatively straightforward and made on a regular basis, and an IS can ensure that they are done consistently.At the other end of the continuum are unstructured decisions that depend on human intelligence, knowledge, and/or experience―as well as data and models to solve. Examples include deciding which new products to develop or which new markets to enter. Semistruc-tured decisions fall in the middle of the continuum. DSSs are best suited to support these types of decisions, but they are also used to support unstructured ones. To provide such support, DSSs have certain characteristics to support the decision-maker and the overall decision- making process.The main characteristic that distinguishes a DSS from an MIS is the inclusion of models. Decision-makers can manipulate models to conduct experiments and sensitivity analyses, for example, what-if and goal seeking. What-if analysis refers to changing assumptions or data in the model to observe the impacts of those changes on the outcome. For example, if sales forecasts are based on a 5% increase in customer demand, a what-if analysis would replace the 5% with higher and/or lower estimates to determine what would happen to sales if demand changed. With goal seeking, the decision-maker has a specific outcome in mind and needs to determine how that outcome could be achieved and whether it is feasible to achieve that desired outcome. A DSS can also estimate the risk of alternative strategies or actions.California Pizza Kitchen (CPK) uses a DSS to support inventory decisions. CPK has over 200 locations in 32 U.S. states and 13 other countries, including 17 California Pizza Kitchen non-traditional, franchise concepts designed for airports, universities, and stadiums. Maintaining optimal inventory levels at all its restaurants was challenging and time-consuming. The original MIS was replaced by a DSS to make it easy for the chainÕs managers to maintain updated records, generate reports as and when needed, and make corporate- and restaurant-level decisions. Many CPK restaurants reported a 5% increase in sales after the DSS was implemented.Executive Information System (EIS)EISs are strategic-level information systems that help executives and senior managers analyze the environment in which the organization exists. They typically are used to identify long-term trends and to plan appropriate courses of action. The information in such systems is often weakly structured and comes from both internal and external sources. EISs are designed to be operated directly by executives without the need for intermediaries and easily tailored to the preferences of the individual using them. An EIS organizes and presents data and information from both external data sources and internal MIS or TPS in an easy-to-use dashboard format to support and extend the inherent capabilities of senior executives.Initially, EISs were custom-made for an individual executive. However, a number of off-the-shelf EIS packages now exist and some enterprise-level systems offer a customizable EIS module.The ways in which the different characteristics of the various types of ISs are classified is shown in Table 2.2.HereÕs an example of how these ISs are used together to add value in an organization. Day-to-day transaction data collected by the TPS are converted into prescheduled summa-rized reports by middle managers using an MIS. The findings in these reports are then analyzed by senior managers who use a DSS to support their semistructured or unstructured decision-making. DSSs contain models that consist of a set of formulas and functions, such as statistical, financial, optimization, and/or simulation models. Corporations, government agencies, the military, health care, medical research, major league sports, and nonprofits depend on their DSSs to answer what-if questions to help reduce waste in production operations, improve inventory management, support investment decisions, and predict demand and help sustain a competitive edge.Customer data, sales, and other critical data produced by the DSS are then selected for further analysis, such as trend analysis or forecasting demand and are input into an EIS for
36 CHAPTER 2 Information Systems, IT Architecture, Data Governance, and Cloud Computing TABLE 2.2 Characteristics of Types of Information SystemsTypeCharacteristicsTPSUsed by operations personnelProduce information for other ISsUse internal and external dataEfficiency orientedMISUsed by lower and middle managersBased on internal informationSupport structured decisionsInflexibleLack analytical capabilitiesFocus on past and present dataDSSUsed by senior managersSupport semistructured or unstructured decisionsContain models or formulas that enable sensitivity analysis, what-if analysis, goal seeking, and risk analysisUse internal and external data plus data added by the decision-maker who may have insights relevant to the decision situationPredict the futureEISUsed by C-level managersEasy-to-use, customizable interfaceSupport unstructured decisionsUse internal and external data sourcesFocus on effectiveness of the organizationVery flexibleFocus on the futureuse by top level management, who add their experience and expertise to make unstructured decisions that will affect the future of the business.Figure 2.9 shows how the major types of ISs relate to one another and how data flow among them. In this example,1. Data from online purchases are captured and processed by the TPS and then stored in the transactional database.2. Data needed for reporting purposes are extracted from the database and used by the MIS to create periodic, ad hoc, or other types of reports.3. Data are output to a DSS where they are analyzed using formulas, financial ratios, or models.ISS Exist within Corporate CultureIt is important to remember that ISs do not exist in isolation. They have a purpose and a social (organizational) context. A common purpose is to provide a solution to a business problem. The social context of the system consists of the values and beliefs that determine what is admis-sible and possible within the culture of the organization and among the people involved. For example, a company may believe that superb customer service and on-time delivery are critical success factors. This belief system influences IT investments, among other factors.The business value of IT is determined by the people who use them, the business processes they support, and the culture of the organization. That is, IS value is determined by the
IT Infrastructure, IT Architecture, and Enterprise Architecture 37relationships among ISs, people, and business processes―all of which are influenced strongly by organizational culture.In an organization, there may be a culture of distrust between the technology and business employees. No enterprise IT architecture methodology or data governance can bridge this divide unless there is a genuine commitment to change. That commitment must come from the highest level of the organization―senior management. Methodologies cannot solve people problems; they can only provide a framework in which those problems can be solved.Questions1. Name the six components of an IS.2. Describe the differences between data, information, knowledge, and wisdom.3. Define TPS and give an example.4. Explain why TPSs need to process incoming data before they are stored.5. Define MIS and DSS and give an example of each.6. What characteristic distinguishes a DSS from an MIS?7. What level of personnel typically uses an EIS?8. What factors determine IS value? 2.2 IT Infrastructure, IT Architecture, and Enterprise ArchitectureEvery enterprise has a core set of ISs and business processes that execute the transactions that keep it in business. Transactions include processing orders, order fulfillment and delivery, pur-chasing inventory and supplies, hiring and paying employees, and paying bills. To most effec-tively utilize its IT assets, an organization must create an IT infrastructure, IT architecture, and an enterprise architecture (EA) as shown in Figure 2.10.DataDataDataData are extracted,transformed, &loaded (ETL)Data from onlinepurchasesof transactional dataDatabaseReportingMISModels applied todata for analysisDSSProcesses rawdataTPSAnalytical processingof data to discovertrends and learninsightsData Warehouse FIGURE 2.9 Flow of data from point of sale (POS) through processing, storage, reporting, decision support, and analysis. Also shows the relationships among different types of ISs.
38 CHAPTER 2 Information Systems, IT Architecture, Data Governance, and Cloud ComputingIT infrastructure is an inventory of the physical IT devices that an organization owns and operates. The IT infrastructure describes an organizationÕs entire collection of hardware, soft-ware, networks, data centers, facilities, and other related equipment used to develop, test, operate, manage, and support IT services. It does NOT include the people or process compo-nents of an information system.IT architecture guides the process of planning, acquiring, building, modifying, inter-facing, and deploying IT resources in a single department within an organization. The IT architecture should offer a way to systematically identify technologies that work together to satisfy the needs of the departmentsÕ users. The IT architecture is a blueprint for how future technology acquisitions and deployment will take place. It consists of standards, investment decisions, and product selections for hardware, software, and communications. The IT architecture is developed first and foremost based on department direction and business requirements.Enterprise architecture (EA) reviews all the information systems across all departments in an organization to develop a strategy to organize and integrate the organizationÕs IT infrastruc-tures to help it meet the current and future goals of the enterprise and maximize the value of technology to the organization. In this way, EA provides a holistic view of an organization with graphic and text descriptions of strategies, policies, information, ISs, and business processes and the relationships between them.The EA adds value in an organization in that it can provide the basis for organizational change just as architectural plans guide a construction project. Since a poorly crafted enterprise architecture (EA) can also hinder day-to-day operations and efforts to execute business strategy, it is more important than ever before to carefully consider the EA within your organization when deciding on an approach to business, technology, and corporate strategy. Simply put, EA helps solve two critical challenges: where an organization is going, and how it will get there.The success of EA is measured not only in financial terms, such as profitability and return on investment (ROI), but also in nonfinancial terms, for example, improved customer satisfac-tion, faster speed to market, and lower employee turnover as diagrammed in Figure 2.11 and demonstrated in IT at Work 2.1.EA Helps to Maintain SustainabilityAs you read in Chapter 1, the volume, variety, and speed of data being collected or generated have increased dramatically over the past decade. As enterprise ISs become more complex, ITInfrastructureITArchitectureHRACCTG.PRODUCTIONSALESFINANCEORGANIZATIONAL STRATEGYTO MAXIMIZEIT VALUEEnterpriseArchitecturePolicy FIGURE 2.10 Comparing IT infrastructure, IT architecture, and enterprise architecture.
IT Infrastructure, IT Architecture, and Enterprise Architecture 39SUCCESS(PROFITABILITY, ROI,INCREASED CUSTOMER SATISFACTION,FASTER SPEED TO MARKET,LOWER EMPLOYEE TURNOVER)CREATINGITLEVERAGINGITMAINTAININGITEA FIGURE 2.11 Enterprise architecture success.IT at Work 2.1A New Enterprise Architecture Improves Data Quality and EIS UseExecutives at a large chemical corporation were supported by an IS specifically designed for their needsÑcalled an executive information system (EIS). The EIS was designed to provide senior managers with internal and external data and key performance indicators (KPIs) that were relevant to their specific needs. Tech Note 2.1 describes KPIs. As with any system, the value of the EIS depends on the data quality.Too Much Irrelevant DataUnfortunately, the EIS was a failure. Executives soon discovered that only half of the data available through the EIS related to their level of analysis and decision-making at the corporate level. A worse prob-lem was that the data they needed were not available when and how they wanted them. For example, executives needed to analyze current detailed sales revenue and cost data for every strategic busi-ness unit (SBU), product line, and operating business to compare performance. But, data were not in standardized format as needed, making analysis difficult or impossible. A large part of the problem was that SBUs reported sales revenues in different time frames (e.g., daily, weekly, monthly, or quarterly), and many of those reports were not available when needed. As a result, senior management could not get a trusted view of the companyÕs current overall perfor-mance and did not know which products were profitable.There were two reasons for the failure of the EIS:1. IT architecture was not designed for customized reporting The design of the IT architecture had been based on financial accounting rules. That is, the data were organized to make it easy to collect and consolidate the data needed to prepare financial statements and reports that had to be submitted to the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) and other regulatory agencies. These statements and reports have well-defined or standardized formats and only need to be pre-pared at specific times during the year, typically annually or quarterly. The organization of the data (for financial reporting) did not have the flexibility needed for the customized ad hoc (unplanned) data needs of the executives. For example, it was nearly impossible to generate customized sales performance (nonfinancial) reports or do ad hoc analyses, such as com-paring inventory turnover rates by product for each region for each sales quarter. Because of lags in reports from various SBUs, executives could not trust the underlying data.2. Complicated user interface Executives could not easily review the KPIs. Instead, they had to sort through screens packed with too much dataÑsome of interest and some irrelevant. To com-pensate for poor interface design, several IT analysts themselves had to do the data and KPI analyses for the executivesÑdelaying response time and driving up the cost of reporting.Solution: New Enterprise Architecture with Standardized Data FormatsThe CIO worked with a task force to design and implement an entirely new EA. Data governance policies and procedures were imple-mented to standardize data formats companywide. Data govern-ance eliminated data inconsistencies to provide reliable KPI reports on inventory turns, cycle times, and profit margins of all SBUs.The new architecture was business-driven instead of financial reporting-driven. It was easy to modify reportsÑeliminating the costly and time-consuming ad hoc analyses. Fewer IT resources are needed to maintain the system. Because the underlying data are now relatively reliable, EIS use by executives increased significantly.IT at Work Questions1. Why was an EIS designed and implemented at the large chemical corporation?2. What problems did the executives have with the EIS?3. What were the two reasons for those EIS problems?4. How did the CIO improve the EIS?5. What are the benefits of the new IT enterprise architecture?6. What are the benefits of data governance?
40 CHAPTER 2 Information Systems, IT Architecture, Data Governance, and Cloud Computinglong-range IT planning is critical. Companies cannot simply add storage, new apps, or data ana-lytics on an as-needed basis and expect those additional IT assets to work with existing systems.The relationship between complexity and planning for the future is easier to see in physical things such as buildings and transportation systems. For example, if you are constructing a simple holiday cabin in a remote area, there is no need to create a detailed plan for future expansion. On the other hand, if you are building a large commercial development in a highly populated area, youÕre not likely to succeed without a detailed project plan. Relating this to the case of enterprise ISs, if you are building a simple, single-user, nondistributed system, you would not need to develop a well-thought-out growth plan. However, this approach would not be feasible to enable you to successfully manage big data, copious content from mobiles and social networks, and data in the cloud. Instead, you would need a well-designed set of plans, or blueprints, provided by an EA to align IT with business objectives by guiding and controlling hardware acquisition, software add-ons and upgrades, system changes, network upgrades, choice of cloud services, and other digital technology investments that you will need to make your business sustainable.There are two specific strategic issues that the EA is designed to address:1. IT systemsÕ complexity IT systems have become unmanageably complex and expensive to maintain.2. Poor business alignment Organizations find it difficult to keep their increasingly expen-sive IT systems aligned with business needs.Business and IT Benefits of EA Having the right EA in place is important for the fol-lowing reasons:¥ EA cuts IT costs and increases productivity by giving decision-makers access to information, insights, and ideas where and when they need them.¥ EA determines an organizationÕs competitiveness, flexibility, and IT economics for the next decade and beyond. That is, it provides a long-term view of a companyÕs processes, sys-tems, and technologies so that IT investments do not simply fulfill immediate needs.¥ EA helps align IT capabilities with business strategy―to grow, innovate, and respond to market demands, supported by an IT practice that is 100% in accord with business objectives.¥ EA can reduce the risk of buying or building systems and enterprise applications that are incompatible or unnecessarily expensive to maintain and integrate.Tech Note 2.1Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)KPIs are a set of quantifiable measures used to evaluate factors that are crucial to the success of an organization. KPIs present data in easy-to-comprehend and comparison-ready formats to gauge or compare performance in terms of meeting an organizationÕs operational and strategic goals. KPIs are used in four main areas: increasing revenue; reducing costs; improving process cycle-time; and improving cus-tomer satisfaction. Examples of key comparisons include actual versus budget, actual versus forecasted, and the ROI for this year versus prior years. KPIs help reduce the complex nature of organizational perfor-mance to a small number of understandable measures, including:¥ Financial KPIs: accounts payable turnover; inventory turn-over; net profit margin; sum of difference between planned and actual project budgets¥ Social media KPIs: social traffic and conversions (number of visitors who are converted to customers); likes; new followers per week; social visits and leads¥ Sales and marketing KPIs: cost per lead; how much revenue a marketing campaign generates; number of customer complaints; cycle time from customer request to delivery, percentage of correspondence replied to on time¥ Operational and supply chain KPIs: units per transaction; carrying cost of inventory; order status; back order rate¥ Environmental and carbon-footprint KPIs: energy, water, or other resource use; spend by utility; weight of landfill waste.
IT Infrastructure, IT Architecture, and Enterprise Architecture 41 TABLE 2.3 Components of an Enterprise ArchitectureBusiness architectureHow the business works. Includes broad business strategies and plans for moving the organization from where it is now to where it wants to be. Processes the business uses to meet its goals.Application architecturePortfolio of organizationÕs applications. Includes descriptions of automated services that support business processes; descriptions of interactions and interdependencies between the organizationÕs ISs.Information architectureWhat the organization needs to know to perform its business processes and operations. Includes standard data models; data management policies and descriptions of patterns of information production and use in an organization.Technology architectureHardware and software that supports the organization. Examples include desktop and server software; OSs; network connectivity components; printers, modems.IT at Work 2.2EA Must Be Dynamic and EvolvingIn order to keep IT aligned with the business, the EA must be a dynamic plan. As shown in the model in Figure 2.12, the EA evolves toward the target architecture, which represents the companyÕs future IT needs. According to this model, EA defines the following:1. The organizationÕs mission, business functions, and future direction2. Information and information flows needed to perform the mission3. The current baseline architecture4. The desired target architecture5. The sequencing plan or strategy to progress from the baseline to the target architecture.BaselineTransitionTargetImplementation StatusBaseline architectureSequencing planTarget architecture FIGURE 2.12 The importance of viewing EA as a dynamic and evolving plan The purpose of the EA is to maintain ITÐbusiness alignment. Changes in priorities and business are reflected in the target architecture to help keep IT aligned with them (Bloomberg, 2016).Developing an Enterprise Architecture (EA)Developing an EA starts with the organizationÕs goals, for example, where does it want to be in three years? and identifies the strategic direction in which it is heading and the business driv-ers to which it is responding. The goal is to make sure that everyone understands and shares a single vision. As soon as managers have defined this single shared vision of the future, they then consider the impact this vision will have on the business, technical, information, and solu-tions architectures of the enterprise. This shared vision of the future will dictate changes in all these architectures, assign priorities to those changes, and keep those changes grounded in business value.According to Microsoft, the EA should include the four different perspectives shown in Table 2.3.It is important to recognize that the EA must be dynamic, not static. To sustain its effective-ness, it should be an ongoing process of aligning the creation, operation, and maintenance of IT across the organization with the ever-changing business objectives. As business needs change, so must the EA, as demonstrated in IT at Work 2.2.
42 CHAPTER 2 Information Systems, IT Architecture, Data Governance, and Cloud ComputingQuestions1. What is the purpose of the IT infrastructure?2. How is the IT infrastructure different from the IT architecture?3. What is the purpose of an EA?4. What are the business benefits of EA?5. Explain why it is necessary to ensure that an EA maintains alignment between IT and business strategy?6. Explain KPIs and give an example. 2.3 Information Management and Data GovernanceAs shown in Figure 2.3, data is the heart of the business and the central component of an IS. Most business initiatives succeed or fail based on the quality of their data. Effective planning and decision-making depend on systems being able to make data available in usable formats on a timely basis. Almost everyone manages information. You manage your social and cloud accounts across multiple mobile devices and computers. You update or synchronize (ÒsynchÓ) your calendars, appointments, contact lists, media files, documents, and reports. Your pro-ductivity depends on the compatibility of devices and applications and their ability to share data. Not being able to transfer and synch whenever you add a device or app is bothersome and wastes your time. For example, when you switch to the latest mobile device, you might need to reorganize content to make dealing with data and devices easier. To simplify add-ons, upgrades, sharing, and access, you might leverage cloud services such as iTunes, Instagram, Diigo, and Box.This is just a glimpse at some of the information management situations that organiza-tions face today and shows why a continuous plan is needed to guide, control, and govern IT growth. As with building construction (Figure 2.13), blueprints and models help guide and govern future IT and digital technology investments.Information management is the use of IT tools and methods to collect, process, consolidate, store, and secure data from sources that are often fragmented and inconsistent.Career Insight 2.1 Essential Skills of an Enterprise Architect (EA)Enterprise architects need much more than technology skills. On a daily basis, an enterprise architectÕs activities can change quickly and significantly. Ideally, enterprise architects should come from a highly technical background. Even though enterprise architects deal with many other factors besides technology, it is still impor-tant to keep technical skills current. The job performance and suc-cess of such an architect―or anyone responsible for large-scale IT projects―depend on a broad range of skills.¥ Interpersonal or people skills The job requires interacting with people and getting their cooperation.¥ Ability to influence and motivate A large part of the job is motivating users to comply with new processes and practices.¥ Negotiating skills The project needs resources―time, money, and personnel―that must be negotiated to get things accomplished.¥ Critical-thinking and problem-solving skills Architects face complex and unique problems. Being able to expedite solu-tions prevents bottlenecks.¥ Business and industry expertise Knowing the business and industry improves the outcomes and the architectÕs credibility.¥ Process orientation Thinking in terms of process is essential for an enterprise architect. Building repeatable and reusable processes as artifacts from the work they do and how they work themselves.The most common function an enterprise architect will perform is that of overseeing a large-scale program. Programs are a group of related projects and as such, managing EA implementa-tions requires someone who is able to handle multiple aspects of a project at one time. Project management is covered in Chapter 13.
Information Management and Data Governance 43Information Management Harnesses Scattered DataBusiness information is generally scattered throughout an enterprise, stored in separate sys-tems dedicated to specific purposes, such as operations, supply chain management, or cus-tomer relationship management. Major organizations have over 100 data repositories (storage areas). In many companies, the integration of these disparate systems is limited―as is usersÕ ability to access all the information they need. As a result, despite all the information flowing through companies, executives, managers, and workers often struggle to find the information they need to make sound decisions or do their jobs. The overall goal of information manage-ment is to eliminate that struggle through the design and implementation of a sound data gov-ernance program and a well-planned EA.Providing easy access to large volumes of information is just one of the challenges facing organizations. The days of simply managing structured data are over. Now, organizations must manage semistructured and unstructured content from social and mobile sources even though that data may be of questionable quality.Information management is critical to data security and compliance with continually evolving regulatory requirements, such as the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, Basel III, the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), the USA PATRIOT Act, and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).Issues of information access, management, and security must also deal with information degradation and disorder―where people do not understand what data mean or how the data can be useful.Reasons for Information DeficienciesOrganizational information and decision support technologies have developed over many dec-ades. During that time management teamsÕ priorities have changed along with their under-standing of the role of IT within the organization; technology has advanced in unforeseeable ways, and IT investments have been increased or decreased based on competing demands on the budget. Other common reasons why information deficiencies are still a problem include:1. Data silos Information can be trapped in departmental data silos (also called information silos), such as marketing or production databases. Data silos are illustrated in Figure 2.14. Since silos are unable to share or exchange data, they cannot consistently be updated. When data are inconsistent across multiple enterprise applications, data quality cannot (and should not) be trusted without extensive verification. Data silos exist when there is no overall IT architecture to guide IT investments, data coordination, and communication. Data silos support a single function and, as a result, do not support an organizationÕs cross-functional needs.Data silo are stand-alone data stores. Their data are not accessible by other ISs that need it or outside that department.© Martin Barraud/Alamy FIGURE 2.13 Blueprints and models, like those used for building construction, are needed to guide and govern an enterpriseÕs IT assets.
44 CHAPTER 2 Information Systems, IT Architecture, Data Governance, and Cloud ComputingFor example, most health-care organizations are drowning in data, yet they cannot get reliable, actionable insights from these data. Physician notes, registration forms, dis-charge summaries, documents, and more are doubling every five years. Unlike structured machine-ready data, these are messy data that take too much time and effort for health-care providers to include in their business analysis. So, valuable messy data are routinely left out. Millions of insightful patient notes and records sit inaccessible or unavailable in separate clinical data silos because historically there has been no easy way to analyze the information they contain.2. Lost or bypassed data Data can get lost in transit from one system to another. Or, data might never get captured because of inadequately tuned data collection systems, such as those that rely on sensors or scanners. Or, the data may not get captured in sufficient detail, as described in Tech Note 2.2.3. Poorly designed interfaces Despite all the talk about user-friendly interfaces, some ISs are horrible to deal with. Poorly designed interfaces or formats that require extra time and effort to figure out increase the risk of errors from misunderstanding the data or ignoring them.4. Nonstandardized data formats When users are presented with data in inconsistent or nonstandardized formats, errors increase. Attempts to compare or analyze data are more dif-ficult and take more time. For example, if the Northeast division reports weekly gross sales revenues per product line and the Southwest division reports monthly net sales per product, you cannot compare their performance without converting the data to a common format. Consider the extra effort needed to compare temperature-related sales, such as air condition-ers, when some temperatures are expressed in degrees Fahrenheit and others in Centigrade.5. Difficult to hit moving targets The information that decision-makers want keeps changing―and changes faster than ISs can respond to because of the first four reasons in this list. Tracking tweets, YouTube hits, and other unstructured content requires expensive investments―which managers find risky in an economic downturn.These are the data challenges managers have to face when there is little or no information management. Companies undergoing fast growth or merger activity or those with decentral-ized systems (each division or business unit manages its own IT) will end up with a patchwork of reporting processes. As you would expect, patchwork systems are more complicated to modify, too rigid to support an agile business, and more expensive to maintain.Information Requirements:UnderstandableRelevantTimelyAccurateSecureParts ReplenishProcuringDesignBuildShipSalesFulfillmentBillingSupportCustomer dataProduct dataProcurement dataContract dataData orderParts inventory dataEngineering dataLogistics dataData TypesOperationssilosSourcingsilosCustomer-facingsilos FIGURE 2.14 Data (or information) silos are ISs that do not have the capability to exchange data with other systems, making timely coordination and communication across functions or departments difficult.
Information Management and Data Governance 45Factors Driving the Shift from Silos to Sharing and CollaborationSenior executives and managers are aware of the problems associated with their data silos and information management problems, but they also know about the huge cost and disruption associated with converting to newer IT architectures. The Òsilo effectÓ occurs when different departments of an organization do not share data and/or communicate effectively enough to maintain productivity. Surprisingly, 75% of employers believe team work and collaboration are essential, but only 18% of employees receive communication evaluations during performance critiques (Marchese, 2016). In the new age of efficiency of service, many companies like Formaspace, an industrial manufacturing and service corporation, must work toward complete cloud integration of old silos to increase customer service and generate more revenue. Enabling applications to interact with one another in an automated fashion to gain better access to data increases meaningful productivity and decreases time and effort spent in manual collaboration efforts. In an illustration of how silo integration is essential for a modern corporation, IT technician at Formaspace, Loddie Alspach, claims that in 2015, the company managed to increase revenues by 20% using Amazon-based cloud technology (Shore, 2015). However, companies are struggling to integrate thousands of siloed global applications, while aligning them to business operations. To remain competitive, they must be able to analyze and adapt their business processes quickly, efficiently, and without disruption.Greater investments in collaboration technologies have been reported by the research firm Forrester (Keitt, 2014). A recent study identified four main factors that have influenced the increased use of cloud technologies, as shown in Table 2.4 (Rai et al., 2015).Tech Note 2.2Need to Measure in Order to ManageA residential home construction company had two divisions: stand-ard homes and luxury homes. The company was not capturing material, labor, and other costs associated with each type of con-struction. Instead, these costs were pooled, making it impossible to allocate costs to each type of construction and then to calculate the profit margins of each division. They had no way of calculating profit margins on each type of home within the divisions. Without the ability to measure costs, they did not have any cost control.After upgrading their ISs, they began to capture detailed data at the division level. They discovered a wide profit margin on stand-ard homes, which was hiding the losses occurring in the luxury home division. Without cost control data, the profitable standard homes division had been subsidizing the luxury home division for many years. Based on the cost control data, the company decided to focus more on standard homes and adjust their pricing on luxury homes. This new cost control strategy increased the companyÕs long-term performance. TABLE 2.4 Key Factors Leading to Increased Migration to the CloudCost SavingsEfficient Use of ResourcesUnlimited Scalability of ResourcesLower MaintenanceBusiness Benefits of Information ManagementBased on the examples you have read, the obvious benefits of information management are:1. Improves decision quality Decision quality depends on accurate and complete data.2. Improves the accuracy and reliability of management predictions It is essential for managers to be able to predict sales, product demand, opportunities, and competitive
46 CHAPTER 2 Information Systems, IT Architecture, Data Governance, and Cloud Computingthreats. Management predictions focus on Òwhat is going to happenÓ as opposed to finan-cial reporting on Òwhat has happened.Ó3. Reduces the risk of noncompliance Government regulations and compliance require-ments have increased significantly in the past decade. Companies that fail to comply with laws on privacy, fraud, anti-money laundering, cybersecurity, occupational safety, and so on face harsh penalties.4. Reduces the time and cost of locating and integrating relevant information.Data Governance: Maintaining Data Quality and Cost ControlThe success of every data-driven strategy or marketing effort depends on data governance. Data governance policies must address structured, semistructured, and unstructured data (discussed in Section 2.3) to ensure that insights can be trusted.Enterprisewide Data Governance With an effective data governance program, managers can determine where their data are coming from, who owns them, and who is responsible for what―in order to know they can trust the available data when needed. Data governance is an enterprisewide project because data cross boundaries and are used by people throughout the enterprise. New regulations and pressure to reduce costs have increased the importance of effective data governance. Governance eliminates the cost of maintaining and archiving bad, unneeded, or inaccurate data. These costs grow as the volume of data grows. Governance also reduces the legal risks associated with unmanaged or inconsistently managed information.Three industries that depend on data governance to comply with regulations or reporting requirements are the following:¥ Food industry In the food industry, data governance is required to comply with food safety regulations. Food manufacturers and retailers have sophisticated control systems in place so that if a contaminated food product, such as spinach or peanut butter, is detected, they are able to trace the problem back to a particular processing plant or even the farm at the start of the food chain.¥ Financial services industry In the financial services sector, strict reporting requirements of the Dodd−Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 are leading to greater use of data governance. The Dodd−Frank Act regulates Wall Street practices by enforcing transparency and accountability in an effort to prevent another significant finan-cial crisis like the one that occurred in 2008.¥ Health-care industry Data are health careÕs most valuable asset. Hospitals have moun-tains of electronic patient information. New health-care accountability and reporting obli-gations require data governance models for transparency to defend against fraud and to protect patientsÕ information.Master Data and Master Data Management (MDM) Master data is the term used to describe business-critical information on customers, products and services, vendors, locations, employees, and other things needed for operations and business trans-actions. Master data are fundamentally different from the high volume, velocity, and vari-ety of big data and traditional data. For example, when a customer applies for automobile insurance, data provided on the application become the master data for that customer. In contrast, if the customerÕs vehicle has a device that sends data about his or her driving Data governance is the control of enterprise data through formal policies and procedures to help ensure data can be trusted and are accessible.
Information Management and Data Governance 47behavior to the insurer, those machine-generated data are transactional or operational, but not master data.Data are used in two ways―both depend on high-quality trustworthy data:1. For running the business Transactional or operational use2. For improving the business Analytic useMaster data are typically quite stable and typically stored in a number of different sys-tems spread across the enterprise. Master data management (MDM) links and synchronizes all critical data from those disparate systems into one file called a master file, to provide a common point of reference. MDM solutions can be complex and expensive. Given their com-plexity and cost, most MDM solutions are out of reach for small and medium companies. Ven-dors have addressed this challenge by offering cloud-managed MDM services. For example, in 2013, Dell Software launched its next-generation Dell Boomi MDM. Dell Boomi provides MDM, data management, and data quality services (DQS)―and they are 100% cloud-based with near real-time synchronization.Data governance and MDM manage the availability, usability, integrity, and security of data used throughout the enterprise. Strong data governance and MDM are needed ensure data are of sufficient quality to meet business needs. The characteristics and consequences of weak or nonexistent data governance are listed in Table 2.5.Data governance and MDM are a powerful combination. As data sources and volumes continue to increase, so does the need to manage data as a strategic asset in order to extract its full value. Making business data consistent, trusted, and accessible across the enterprise is a criti-cal first step in customer-centric business models. With data governance, companies are able to extract maximum value from their data, specifically by making better use of opportunities that are buried within behavioral data. TABLE 2.5 Characteristics and Consequences of Weak or Nonexistent Data Governance and MDM¥ Data duplication causes isolated data silos.¥ Inconsistency exists in the meaning and level of detail of data elements.¥ Users do not trust the data and waste time verifying the data rather than analyzing them for appro-priate decision-making.¥ Leads to inaccurate data analysis.¥ Bad decisions are made on perception rather than reality, which can negatively affect the company and its customers.¥ Results in increased workloads and processing time.Questions1. What is information management?2. What is the Òsilo effectÓ and how does it affect business performance?3. What three factors are driving collaboration and information sharing?4. What are the business benefits of information management?5. Explain why it is important to develop an effective data governance program?6. Explain the purposes of master data management.7. Why has interest in data governance and MDM increased?
48 CHAPTER 2 Information Systems, IT Architecture, Data Governance, and Cloud Computing 2.4 Data Centers and Cloud ComputingData centers and cloud computing are types of IT infrastructures or computing systems. Data center also refers to the building or facility that houses the servers and equipment. In the past, there were few IT infrastructure options. Companies owned their servers, storage, and network components to support their business applications and these computing resources were on their premises. Now, there are several choices for an IT infrastructure strategy―including cloud computing. As is common to IT investments, each infrastructure configuration has strengths, weaknesses, and cost considerations.Data CentersTraditionally, data and database technologies were kept in data centers that were typically run by an in-house IT department (Figure 2.15) and consisted of on-premises hardware and equip-ment that store data within an organizationÕs local area network.Today, companies may own and manage their own on-premises data centers or pay for the use of their vendorsÕ data centers, such as in cloud computing, virtualization, and software-as-a-service arrangements (Figure 2.16).© Oleksiy Mark/Shutterstock FIGURE 2.15 A row of network servers in a data center.© Michael D Brown/Shutterstock FIGURE 2.16 Data centers are the infrastructure underlying cloud computing, virtualization, networking, security, delivery systems, and software-as-a-service.
Data Centers and Cloud Computing 49In an on-premises data center connected to a local area network, it is easier to restrict access to applications and information to authorized, company-approved people and equip-ment. In the cloud, the management of updates, security, and ongoing maintenance are out-sourced to a third-party cloud provider where data is accessible to anyone with the proper credentials and Internet connection. This arrangement can make a company more vulnerable since it increases exposure of company data at many more entry and exit points. Here are some examples of data centers.¥ National Climatic Data Center The National Climatic Data Center is an example of a public data center that stores and manages the worldÕs largest archive of weather data.¥ U.S. National Security Agency The National Security AgencyÕs (NSA) data center, shown in Figure 2.17 is located in Bluffdale, UT. It is the largest spy data center for the NSA. People who think their correspondence and postings through sites like Google, Facebook, and Apple are safe from prying eyes should rethink that belief. You will read more about reports exposing government data collection programs in Chapter 5.¥ Apple Apple has a 500,000-square-foot data center in Maiden, NC, that houses servers for various iCloud and iTunes services. The center plays a vital role in the companyÕs back-end IT infrastructure. In 2014 Apple expanded this center with a new, smaller 14,250-square-foot tactical data center that also includes office space, meeting areas, and breakrooms.Since only the company owns the infrastructure, a data center is more suitable for organiza-tions that run many different types of applications and have complex workloads. A data center, like a factory, has limited capacity. Once it is built, the amount of storage and the workload the center can handle does not change without purchasing and installing more equipment.© epa european pressphoto agencyb.v./Alamy FIGURE 2.17 The NSA data center in Bluffdale, UT.When a Data Center Goes Down, so Does Business Data center failures dis-rupt all operations regardless of who owns the data center. Here are two examples.¥ Uber The startup company Uber experienced an hour-long outage in February 2014 that brought its car-hailing service to a halt across the country. The problem was caused by an outage at its vendorÕs West Coast data center. Uber users flooded social media sites with complaints about problems kicking off UberÕs app to summon a driver-for-hire.¥ WhatsApp WhatsApp also experienced a server outage in early 2014 that took the ser-vice offline for 2.5 hours. WhatsApp is a smartphone text-messaging service that had been bought by Facebook for $19 billion. ÒSorry we currently experiencing server issues. We hope to be back up and recovered shortly,Ó WhatsApp said in a message on Twitter that was retweeted more than 25,000 times in just a few hours. The company has grown rapidly to 450 million active users within five years, nearly twice as many as Twitter. More than two-thirds of these global users use the app daily. WhatsAppÕs server failure drove millions of users to a competitor. Line, a messaging app developed in Japan, added 2 million new registered users within 24 hours of WhatsAppÕs outage―the biggest increase in LineÕs user base within a 24-hour period.
50 CHAPTER 2 Information Systems, IT Architecture, Data Governance, and Cloud ComputingThese outages point to the risks of maintaining the complex and sophisticated technology needed to power digital services used by millions or hundreds of millions of people.Integrating Data to Combat Data ChaosAn enterpriseÕs data are stored in many different or remote locations―creating data chaos at times. And some data may be duplicated so that they are available in multiple locations that need a quick response. Therefore, the data needed for planning, decision-making, opera-tions, queries, and reporting are scattered or duplicated across numerous servers, data cent-ers, devices, and cloud services. Disparate data must be unified or integrated in order for the organization to function.Data Virtualization As organizations have transitioned to a cloud-based infrastruc-ture, data centers have become virtualized. For example, Cisco offers data virtualization, which gives greater IT flexibility. The process of data virtualization involves abstracting, transforming, merging, and delivering data from disparate sources. The main goal of data virtualization is to provide a single point of access to the data. By aggregating data from a wide range of sources users can access applications without knowing their exact location. Using data virtualization methods, enterprises can respond to change more quickly and make better decisions in real time without physically moving their data, which significantly cuts costs. Cisco Data Virtualiza-tion makes it possible to:¥ Have instant access to data at any time and in any format.¥ Respond faster to changing data analytics needs.¥ Cut complexity and costs.Compared to traditional (nonvirtual) data integration and replication methods, data virtu-alization accelerates time to value with:¥ Greater agility Speeds 5Ð10 times faster than traditional data integration methods¥ Streamlined approach 50Ð75% time savings over data replication and consolida-tion methods¥ Better insight Instant access to dataSoftware-Defined Data Center Data virtualization has led to the latest development in data centersÑthe software-defined data center (SDDC). An SDDC facilitates the integration of the various infrastructures of the SDDC silos within organizations and optimizes the use of resources, balances workloads, and maximizes operational efficiency by dynamically dis-tributing workloads and provisioning networks. The goal of the SDDC is to decrease costs and increase agility, policy compliance, and security by deploying, operating, managing, and maintaining applications. In addition, by providing organizations with their own private cloud, SDDCs provide greater flexibility by allowing organizations to have on-demand access to their data instead of having to request permission from their cloud provider (see Figure 2.18).The base resources for the SDDC are computation, storage, networking, and security. Typi-cally, the SDDC includes limited functionality of service portals, applications, OSs, VM hardware, hypervisors, physical hardware, software-defined networking, software-defined storage, a security layer, automation and management layers, catalogs, a gateway interface module, and third-party plug-ins (Figure 2.19).It is estimated that the market share for SDDCs will grow from the current level of $22 billion to more than $77 billion in the next five years. As the use of SDDCs grows at this extraor-dinary rate, data center managers will be called upon to scale their data centers exponentially at a momentÕs notice. Unfortunately, this is impossible to achieve using the traditional data center infrastructure. In the SDDC, software placement and optimization decisions are based on business logic, not technical provisioning directives. This requires changes in culture,
Data Centers and Cloud Computing 51© Kittichai/Shutterstock FIGURE 2.18 Corporate IT infrastructures can consist of an on-premises data center and off-premises cloud computing.Catalogs3rdPartyPlug-InsGatewayInterfaceModuleAutomated PoliciesManagementProvisioning & MonitoringSecuritySoftware-defined NetworkingSoftware-defined StoragePhysical & VirtualComputeLimited Functionality of Service Portals FIGURE 2.19 SDDC infrastructure (adapted from Sturm et al., 2017).processes, structure, and technology. The SDDC isolates the application layer from the physical infrastructure layer to facilitate faster and more effective deployment, management, and moni-toring of diverse applications. This is achieved by finding each enterprise application an optimal home in a public or private cloud environment or draw from a diverse collection of resources.From a business perspective moving to a SDDC is motivated by the need to improve secu-rity, increase alignment of the IT infrastructure with business objectives and provision of appli-cations more quickly.
52 CHAPTER 2 Information Systems, IT Architecture, Data Governance, and Cloud ComputingTraditional data centers had dedicated, isolated hardware that results in poor utilization of resources and very limited flexibility. Second-generation virtualization data cases improved resource use by consolidating virtualized servers. By reducing the steps needed to decrease the time it takes to deploy workloads, facilitating the definition of applications and resource needs, the SDDC creates an even more flexible environment in which enterprise applications can be quickly reconfigured and supported to provide infrastructure-as a service (IaaS). Tran-sitioning to an SDDC enables an organization to optimize its resource usage, provide capacity on demand, improve business-IT alignment, improve agility and flexibility of operations, and save money (Figure 2.20).TRADITIONAL DATACENTER¥ Hardware silos¥ Limited utilization¥ Limited flexibilityVIRTUALIZED DATA CENTER¥ Virtualized servers¥ Better resource use¥ Automate/Balance workload¥ Sub-optimal performanceSOFTWARE-DEFINEDDATA CENTER (SDDC)¥ IaaS¥ Optimized resource use¥ Increased business- IT alignment¥ Improved agility & flexibility¥ Capacity on demand¥ Cost savings FIGURE 2.20 Evolution of data centers (adapted from Sturm et al., 2017).Cloud ComputingIn a business world where first movers gain the advantage, IT responsiveness and agility pro-vide a competitive edge and lead to sustainable business practices. Yet, many IT infrastructures are extremely expensive to manage and too complex to easily adapt. A common solution is cloud computing. Cloud computing is the general term for infrastructures that use the Inter-net and private networks to access, share, and deliver computing resources. More specifically, IBM defines cloud computing as Òthe delivery of on-demand computing resourcesÑeverything from applications to data centersÑover the Internet on a pay-for-use basisÓ (IBM, 2016).Cloud computing is the delivery of computing and storage resources as a service to end-users over a network. Cloud systems are scalable. That is, they can be adjusted to meet changes in business needs. At the extreme, the cloudÕs capacity is unlimited depending on the vendorÕs offer-ings and service plans. A drawback of the cloud is control because a third party manages it. Unless the company uses a private cloud within its network, it shares computing and storage resources with other cloud users in the vendorÕs public cloud. Public clouds allow multiple clients to access the same virtualized services and utilize the same pool of servers across a public network. In con-trast, private clouds are single-tenant environments with stronger security and control for reg-ulated industries and critical data. In effect, private clouds retain all the IT security and control provided by traditional IT infrastructures with the added advantages of cloud computing.Selecting a Cloud VendorBecause cloud is still a relatively new and evolving business model, the decision to select a cloud service provider should be approached with even greater diligence than other IT deci-sions. As cloud computing becomes an increasingly important part of the IT delivery model, assessing and selecting the right cloud provider also become the most strategic decisions that business leaders undertake. Providers are not created equally, so it is important to investigate each providerÕs offerings prior to subscribing. When selecting and investing in cloud services, there are several service factors a vendor needs to address. These evaluation factors are listed in Table 2.6.
Data Centers and Cloud Computing 53Vendor Management and Cloud Service Agreements (CSAs) The move to the cloud is also a move to vendor-managed services and cloud service agreements (CSAs). Also referred to as cloud service level agreements (SLAs), the CSA or SLA is a negotiated agreement between a company and service provider that can be a legally binding contract or an informal contract. You can review a sample CSA used by IBM by visiting http://www-05.ibm.com/support/operations/files/pdf/csa_us.pdf.Staff experienced in managing outsourcing projects may have the necessary expertise for managing work in the cloud and policing SLAs with vendors. The goal is not building the best CSA terms, but negotiating the terms that align most closely with the business needs. For example, if a server becomes nonoperational and it does not support a critical business operation, it would not make sense to pay a high premium for reestablishing the server within one hour. On the other hand, if the data on the server support a business process that would effectively close down the business for the period of time that it was not accessible, it would be prudent to nego-tiate the fastest possible service in the CSA and pay a premium for that high level of service.In April 2015, the Cloud Standards Customer Council (CSCC) published the Practical Guide to Cloud Service Agreements, Version 2.0, to reflect changes that have occurred since 2012 when it first published the Practical Guide to Cloud Service Level Agreements. The new guide provides a practical reference to help enterprise IT and business decision-makers analyze CSAs from dif-ferent cloud service providers. The main purpose of a CSA is to set clear expectations for service between the cloud customer (buyer) and the cloud provider (seller), but CSAs should also exist between a customer and other cloud entities, such as the cloud carrier, the cloud broker, and even the cloud auditor. Although the various service delivery models, that is, IaaS, PaaS, SaaS, and so on, may have different requirements, the guide focuses on the requirements that are common across the various service models (Cloud Standards Customer Council, 2015, p. 4).Implementing an effective management process is an important step in ensuring internal and external user satisfaction with cloud services. Table 2.7 lists the 10 steps that should be taken by cloud customers to evaluate cloud providersÕ CSAs in order to compare CSAs across multiple providers or to negotiate terms with a selected provider. TABLE 2.6 Service Factors to Consider when Evaluating Cloud Vendors or Service ProvidersFactorsExamples of Questions to Be AddressedDelaysWhat are the estimated server delays and network delays?WorkloadsWhat is the volume of data and processing that can be handled during a specific amount of time?CostsWhat are the costs associated with workloads across multiple cloud computing platforms?SecurityHow are data and networks secured against attacks? Are data encrypted and how strong is the encryption? What are network security practices?Disaster recovery and business continuityHow is service outage defined? What level of redundancy is in place to minimize outages, including backup services in differ-ent geographical regions? If a natural disaster or outage occurs, how will cloud services be continued?Technical expertise and understandingDoes the vendor have expertise in your industry or business processes? Does the vendor understand what you need to do and have the technical expertise to fulfill those obligations?Insurance in case of failureDoes the vendor provide cloud insurance to mitigate user losses in case of service failure or damage? This is a new and important concept.Third-party audit or an unbiased assessment of the ability to rely on the service provided by the vendorCan the vendor show objective proof with an audit that it can live up to the promises it is making?
54 CHAPTER 2 Information Systems, IT Architecture, Data Governance, and Cloud ComputingCloud InfrastructureThe cloud has greatly expanded the options for enterprise IT infrastructures because any device that accesses the Internet can access, share, and deliver data. Cloud computing is a valuable infrastructure because:1. It is dynamic, not static and provides a way to make applications and computing power available on demand. Applications and power are available on demand because they are provided as a service. For example, any software that is provided on demand is referred to as software as a service (SaaS). Typical SaaS products are Google Apps and www.Salesforce.com. Section 2.5 discusses SaaS and other cloud services.2. Helps companies become more agile and responsive while significantly reducing IT costs and complexity through improved workload optimization and service delivery.Move to Enterprise Clouds A majority of large organizations have hundreds or thou-sands of software licenses that support business processes, such as licenses for Microsoft Office, Oracle database management, IBM CRM (customer relationship management), and var-ious network security software. Managing software and their licenses involves deploying, provi-sioning, and updating them―all of which are time-consuming and expensive. Cloud computing overcomes these problems.Issues in Moving Workloads from the Enterprise to the CloudBuilding a cloud strategy is a challenge, and moving existing applications to the cloud is stress-ful. Despite the business and technical benefits, the risk exists of disrupting operations or cus-tomers in the process. With the cloud, the network and WAN (wide area network) become an even more critical part of the IT infrastructure. Greater network bandwidth is needed to sup-port the increase in network traffic. And, putting part of the IT architecture or workload into the cloud requires different management approaches, different IT skills, and knowing how to manage vendor relationships and contracts. TABLE 2.7 Ten Steps to Evaluate a CSA1.Understand roles and responsibilities of the CSA customer and provider2.Evaluate business-level policies and compliance requirements relevant to the CSA customer3.Understand service and deployment model differences4.Identify critical performance objectives such as availability, response time, and processing speed. Ensure they are measurable and auditable5.Evaluate security and privacy requirements for customer information that has moved into the providerÕs cloud and applications, functions, and services being operated in the cloud to provide required service to the customer6.Identify service management requirements such as auditing, monitoring and reporting, measurement, provisioning, change management, and upgrading/patching7.Prepare for service failure management by explicitly documenting cloud service capabilities and performance expectations with remedies and limitations for each8.Understand the disaster recovery plan9.Develop a strong and detailed governance plan of the cloud services on the customer side10.Understand the process to terminate the CSA
Cloud Services and Virtualization 55Infrastructure Issues There is a big difference because cloud computing runs on a shared infrastructure, so the arrangement is less customized to a specific companyÕs require-ments. A comparison to help understand the challenges is that outsourcing is like renting an apartment, while the cloud is like getting a room at a hotel.With cloud computing, it may be more difficult to get to the root of performance problems, like the unplanned outages that occurred with GoogleÕs Gmail and WorkdayÕs human resources apps. The trade-off is cost versus control.Increasing demand for faster and more powerful computers, and increases in the number and variety of applications are driving the need for more capable IT architectures.Questions1. What is a data center?2. What is the difference between on-premises data centers and cloud computing?3. What is an SDDC?4. What are the advantages of using an SDDC?5. How can cloud computing solve the problems of managing software licenses?6. What factors should be considered when selecting a cloud vendor or provider?7. When are private clouds used instead of public clouds?8. Explain three issues that need to be addressed when moving to cloud computing or services. 2.5 Cloud Services and VirtualizationManagers want streamlined, real-time, data-driven enterprises, yet they may face budget cuts. Sustaining performance requires the development of new business applications and analytics capabilities, which comprise the front end and the data stores and digital infrastructure, or back end, to support them. The back end is where the data reside. The problem is that data may have to navigate through a congested IT infrastructure that was first designed decades ago. These network or database bottlenecks can quickly wipe out the competitive advantages from big data, mobility, and so on. Traditional approaches to increasing database performance―manu-ally tuning databases, adding more disk space, and upgrading processors―are not enough when you are you are dealing with streaming data and real-time big data analytics. Cloud ser-vices help to overcome these limitations. Cloud services are outsourced to a third-party cloud provider who manages the updates, security, and ongoing maintenance.At first glance, virtualization and cloud computing may appear to be quite similar. How-ever, cloud computing and virtualization are inherently different. Unlike cloud computing that involves multiple computers or hardware devices sending data through vendor-provided net-works, virtualization is the replacement of a tangible physical component with a virtual one. Each of these concepts are described and discussed in the following sections.Anything as a Service (XAAS) ModelsThe cloud computing model for on-demand delivery of and access to various types of com-puting resources also extends to the development of business apps. Figure 2.21 shows four Òas a serviceÓ (XaaS) solutions based on the concept that the resource―software, platform, infrastructure, or dataÑcan be provided on demand regardless of geolocation. As these as ser-vice solutions develop, the focus is changing from massive technology implementation costs to business-reengineering programs that enable XaaS platforms (Fresht, 2014).Cloud services are services made available to users on demand via the Internet from a cloud computing providerÕs servers instead of being accessed through an organizationÕs
56 CHAPTER 2 Information Systems, IT Architecture, Data Governance, and Cloud Computingon-premises servers. Cloud services are designed to provide easy, scalable access to applica-tions, resources, and services, and are fully managed by a cloud services provider.Cloud computing is often referred to as a ÒstackÓ or broad range of services built on top of each other under the name cloud. These cloud services can be defined as follows:¥ Software as a service (SaaS) is a widely used model in which software is available to users from a service provider as needed. A provider licenses a SaaS application to customers as an on-demand service, through a subscription, a pay-as-you-go model, or free of charge (where revenue can be generated by other means, such as through sale of advertisements).¥ Platform as a service (PaaS) is a computing platform that enables the quick and easy creation, testing, and deployment of web applications without the necessity of buying and maintaining the software and infrastructure underneath it. It is a set of tools and services that make coding and deploying these applications faster and more efficient.¥ Infrastructure as a service (IaaS) is a way of delivering servers, storage, networks, work-load balancers, and OSs as an on-demand service.¥ Data as a service (DaaS) is an information provision and distribution model in which data files (including text, images, sounds, and videos) are made available to customers over a network by a service provider.Software as a Service (SaaS) SaaS is a rapidly growing method of delivering soft-ware and is particularly useful in applications in which there are considerable interactions bet-ween the organization and external entities that do not confer a competitive advantage, for example, e-mail and newsletters. It is also useful when an organization is going to be needing a particular type of software for a short period of time or for a specific project, and for software that is used periodically, for example, tax, payroll, or billing software. SaaS is not appropriate for accessing applications that require fast processing of real-time data or applications where regulation does not permit data being hosted externally.Other terms for SaaS are on-demand computing and hosted services. The idea is basically the same: Instead of buying and installing expensive packaged enterprise applications, users can access software applications over a network, using an Internet browser. To use SaaS, a service provider hosts the application at its data center and customers access it via a standard Web browser.The SaaS model was developed to overcome the common challenge to an enterprise of being able to meet fluctuating demands on IT resources efficiently. It is used in many business functions, primarily customer relationship management (CRM), accounting, human resources (HR), service desk management, communication, and collaboration.© Vallepu/Shutterstock FIGURE 2.21 Four as a service solutions: software, platform, infrastructure, and data as a service.
Cloud Services and Virtualization 57There are thousands of SaaS vendors. www.Salesforce.com is one of the most widely known SaaS providers. Other examples are Google Docs and collaborative presentation soft-ware Prezi. For instance, instead of installing Microsoft Word on your own computer, and then loading Word to create a document, you use a browser to log into Google Docs. Only the browser uses your computerÕs resources.Platform as a Service (PaaS) PaaS provides a standard unified platform for devel-oping, testing, and deploying software over the Web. This computing platform allows the creation of Web applications quickly and easily without the complexity of buying and main-taining the underlying infrastructure. Without PaaS, the cost of developing some applications would be prohibitive. Examples of PaaS include databases, Web servers, development tools, and execution runtime. PaaS is particularly useful when multiple software developers are working on a software development project of when other external parties need to interact with the development process and for when developers want to automate testing and deploy-ment services. It is less useful in those instances where application performance needs to be customized to the underlying hardware and software or an application needs to be highly por-table in terms of where it is hosted. Some examples of PaaS include Microsoft Azure Service, www.Force.com, and Google App Engine.Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) Rather than purchasing all the components of its IT infrastructure, organizations buy their computing resources as a fully outsourced Infra-structure as a Service (IaaS) on demand. Generally, IaaS can be acquired as a Public or Private infrastructure or a combination of the two (Hybrid). A public IaaS is one that consists of shared resources deployed on a self-service basis over the Internet. On the other hand, a private IaaS is provided on a private network. And, a hybrid IaaS is a combination of both public and private. IaaS is useful where organizations experience significant highs and lows in terms of demand on the infrastructure, for new or existing organizations who have budgetary constraints on hardware investment and in situations where an organization has temporary infrastructure needs. Some IaaS providers you may be familiar with include Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Rackspace.Data as a Service (DaaS)ÑThe New Kid on the Block DaaS is the newest entrant into the XaaS arena. DaaS enables data to be shared among clouds, systems, apps, and so on regardless of the data source or where they are stored. Data files, including text, images, sound, and video, are made available to customers over a network, typically the Internet. DaaS makes it easier for data architects to select data from different pools, filter out sensitive data, and make the remaining data available on demand.A key benefit of DaaS is that it transfers the risks and responsibilities associated with data management to a third-party cloud provider. Traditionally, organizations stored and managed their data within a self-contained storage system, however, as data become more complex, it is increasingly difficult and expensive to maintain using the traditional data model. Using DaaS, organizational data are readily accessible through a cloud-based platform and can be delivered to users despite organizational or geographical constraints. This model is growing in popularity as data become more complex, difficult, and expensive to maintain. Some of the most common business applications currently using DaaS are CRM and enterprise resource planning (ERP). For an example of Daas, see IT at Work 2.3.IT at Work 2.3SlackSlack, the successful social chat app for companies and their executives and/or employees, has announced a Òdeep product partnershipÓ with Salesforce (Lunden, 2016). The partnership includes a new data sharing platform for businesses to easily share information about conversations they are having within the app. More specifically, businesses will be able to share details about client accounts in real time with automatic updates for new leads about the accounts. The new partnership will allow Slack and its users to be even more effective in collaboration and data sharing across many platforms and departments (Lunden, 2016).
58 CHAPTER 2 Information Systems, IT Architecture, Data Governance, and Cloud ComputingAs a Service Models Are Enterprisewide and Can Trigger Lawsuits The various As a Service models are used in various aspects of business. You will read how these specific services, such as CRM and HR management, are being used for operational and strategic purposes in later chapters. Companies are frequently adopting software, platform, infrastructure, data management, and starting to embrace mobility as a service and big data as a service because they typically no longer have to worry about the costs of buying, maintaining, or updating their own data servers. Both hardware and human resources expenses can be cut significantly. Ser-vice arrangements all require that managers understand the benefits and trade-offs―and how to negotiate effective SLAs and CSAs. Regulations mandate that confidential data be protected regardless of whether the data are on-premises or in the cloud. Therefore, a companyÕs legal department needs to get involved in these IT decisions. Put simply, moving to cloud services is not simply an IT decision because the stakes around legal and compliance issues are very high.Going CloudCloud services can advance the core business of delivering superior services to optimize busi-ness performance. Cloud can cut costs and add flexibility to the performance of critical busi-ness apps. And, it can improve responsiveness to end-consumers, application developers, and business organizations. But to achieve these benefits, there must be IT, legal, and senior man-agement oversight because a company still must meet its legal obligations and responsibilities to employees, customers, investors, business partners, and society.Virtualization and Virtual MachinesThere are many types of virtualization, such as virtual storage devices, virtual desktops, virtual OSs, and virtual servers for network virtualization. You can think of virtualization as a model for a physical component that is built into computer code, to create a software program that acts in the same way as the physical component it is modeling. For example, a virtual machine is a software representation of a computer, rather than an actual computer and a virtual server sends and receives signals just like a physical one, even though it doesnÕt have its own circuitry and other physical components.You might ask why organizations want to virtualize their physical computing and net-working devices. The answer is a gross underutilization of inefficient use of resources. Computer hardware had been designed to run a single OS and a single app, which leaves most computers vastly underutilized. Virtualization is a technique that creates a virtual (i.e., nonphysical) layer and multiple virtual machines (VMs) to run on a single physical machine. The virtual (or virtual-ization) layer makes it possible for each VM to share the resources of the hardware. Figure 2.22 shows the relationship among the VMs and physical hardware.ApplicationVirtualization LayerHardware LayerOperatingSystemApplicationOperatingSystemApplicationOperatingSystemVirtual Machines FIGURE 2.22 Virtual machines running on a simple computer hardware layer.
Cloud Services and Virtualization 59What Is a Virtual Machine? Just as virtual reality is not real, but a software-created world, a virtual machine is a software-created computer. Technically, a virtual machine (VM) is created by a software layer, called the virtualization layer, as shown in Figure 2.22. That layer has its own Windows or other OS and apps, such as Microsoft Office, as if it were an actual physical computer. A VM behaves exactly like a physical computer and con-tains its own virtual―that is, software-based―CPU, RAM (random access memory), hard drive, and network interface card (NIC). An OS cannot tell the difference between a VM and a physical machine, nor can applications or other computers on a network tell the difference. Even the VM thinks it is a ÒrealÓ computer. Users can set up multiple real com-puters to function as a single PC through virtualization to pool resources to create a more powerful VM.Virtualization is a concept that has several meanings in IT and therefore several defini-tions. The major type of virtualization is hardware virtualization, which remains popular and widely used. Virtualization is often a key part of an enterpriseÕs disaster recovery plan. In gen-eral, virtualization separates business applications and data from hardware resources. This separation allows companies to pool hardware resources―rather than dedicate servers to applications―and assign those resources to applications as needed.Different types of virtualization include:¥ Storage virtualization is the pooling of physical storage from multiple network storage devices into what appears to be a single storage device managed from a central console.¥ Server virtualization consolidates multiple physical servers into virtual servers that run on a single physical server.¥ Desktop virtualization is software technology that separates the desktop environ-ment and associated application software from the physical machine that is used to access it.¥ Application virtualization is the practice of running software from a remote server rather than on the userÕs computer.¥ Network virtualization combines the available resources in a network by splitting the network load into manageable parts, each of which can be assigned (or reassigned) to a particular server on the network.¥ Hardware virtualization is the use of software to emulate hardware or a total computer environment other than the one the software is actually running in. It allows a piece of hardware to run multiple OS images at once. This kind of software is sometimes known as a virtual machine.Virtualization Characteristics and Benefits Virtualization increases the flexi-bility of IT assets, allowing companies to consolidate IT infrastructure, reduce maintenance and administration costs, and prepare for strategic IT initiatives. Virtualization is not primarily about cost-cutting, which is a tactical reason. More importantly, for strategic reasons, virtual-ization is used because it enables flexible sourcing and cloud computing.The characteristics and benefits of virtualization are as follows:1. Memory-intensive VMs need a huge amount of RAM (random access memory, or pri-mary memory) because of their massive processing requirements.2. Energy-efficient VMs minimize energy consumed running and cooling servers in the data center―representing up to a 95% reduction in energy use per server.3. Scalability and load balancing When a big event happens, such as the Super Bowl, millions of people go to a website at the same time. Virtualization provides load balanc-ing to handle the demand for requests to the site. The VMware infrastructure automati-cally distributes the load across a cluster of physical servers to ensure the maximum performance of all running VMs. Load balancing is key to solving many of todayÕs IT challenges.
60 CHAPTER 2 Information Systems, IT Architecture, Data Governance, and Cloud ComputingVirtualization consolidates servers, which reduces the cost of servers, makes more effi-cient use of data center space, and reduces energy consumption. All of these factors reduce the total cost of ownership (TCO). Over a three-year life cycle, a VM costs approximately 75% less to operate than a physical server. IT at Work 2.4 describes one example of how virtualization can help organizations provide higher levels of customer service and improve productivity.Key Termsad hoc report 34batch processing 33cloud computing 52cloud service agreements (CSAs) 53customer-centric 47data 30data as a service (DaaS) 56data center 38data governance 46data silo 43database 33decision support systems (DSS) 32dirty data 26enterprise architecture (EA) 26exception report 34executive information systems (EISs) 32goal seeking 35information 30information management 42information systems (ISs) 28infrastructure as a service (IaaS) 56IT infrastructure 38IPOS 28knowledge 30management information systems (MIS) 34master data 46master data management (MDM) 47IT at Work 2.4Business Continuity with VirtualizationLiberty Wines supplies to restaurants, supermarkets, and indepen-dent retailers from its headquarters in central London. Recipient of multiple international wine awardsÑincluding the Interna-tional Wine Challenge on Trade Supplier of the Year for two years runningÑLiberty Wines is one of the United KingdomÕs foremost wine importers and distributors.IT Problems and Business NeedsAs the business expanded, the existing servers did not have the capacity to handle increased data volumes, and maintenance of the system put a strain on the IT team of two employees. Existing systems were slow and could not provide the responsiveness that employees expected.Liberty Wines had to speed up business processes to meet the needs of customers in the fast-paced world of fine dining. To provide the service their customers expect, employees at Liberty Wines needed quick and easy access to customer, order, and stock information. In the past, the company relied on 10 physical servers for applications and services, such as order processing, reporting, and e-mail.Virtualized SolutionLiberty Wines deployed a virtualized server solution incorporating Windows Server 2008 R2. The 10 servers were replaced with 3 physical servers, running 10 virtual servers. An additional server was used as part of a backup system, further improving resilience and stability.By reducing the number of physical servers from 10 to 4, power use and air conditioning costs were cut by 60%. Not only was the bottom line improved, but the carbon footprint was also reduced, which was good for the environment.The new IT infrastructure cut hardware replacement costs by £45,000 (U.S. $69,500) while enhancing stability with the backup system. Applications now run faster, too, so employees can pro-vide better customer service with improved productivity. When needed, virtual servers can be added quickly and easily to support business growth.Questions1. What is SaaS?2. What is PaaS?3. What is IaaS?4. How might companies risk violating regulation or compliance requirements with cloud services?5. In what ways is a virtualized information system different from a traditional information system?6. Describe the different types of virtualization.7. What is load balancing and why is it important?
Assuring Your Learning 61master file 47model 26online transaction processing (OLTP) 33platform as a service (PaaS) 56private cloud 52public cloud 52real-time processing 33service level agreement (SLA) 61software as a service (SaaS) 54software-defined data center (SDDC) 50stack 56structured decisions 35transaction processing systems (TPS) 32unstructured decisions 35virtualization 59virtual machine (VM) 59what-if analysis 35wisdom 31Assuring Your LearningDiscuss: Critical Thinking Questions1. Why is a strong market position or good profit performance only temporary?2. Assume you had:a. A tall ladder with a sticker that lists a weight allowance only five pounds more than you weigh. You know the manufacturer and model number.b. Perishable food with an expiration date two days into the future.c. A checking account balance that indicates you have sufficient funds to cover the balance due on an account.In all three cases, trusting the data to be exactly correct could have negative consequences. Explain the consequences of trusting the data in each instance. How might you determine the correct data for each instance? Which data might not be possible to verify? How does dirty data impact your decision-making?3. If business data are scattered throughout the enterprise and not synched until the end of the month, how does that impact day-to-day decision-making and planning?4. Assume a bankÕs data are stored in silos based on financial product―checking accounts, saving accounts, mortgages, auto loans, and so on. What problems do these data silos create for the bankÕs managers?5. Why do managers and workers still struggle to find information that they need to make decisions or take action despite advances in digital technology? That is, what causes data deficiencies?6. According to a Tech CEO Council Report, Fortune 500 companies waste $480 billion every year on inefficient business processes. What factors cause such huge waste? How can this waste be reduced?7. Explain why organizations need to implement EA and data governance.8. What two problems can EA solve?9. Name two industries that depend on data governance to comply with regulations or reporting requirements. Given an example of each.10. Why is it important for data to be standardized? Give an example of unstandardized data.11. Why are TPSs critical systems?12. Discuss why the cloud acts as the great IT delivery frontier.13. What are the functions of data centers?14. What factors need to be considered when selecting a cloud vendor?15. What protection does an effective SLA or CSA provide?16. Why is an SLA or a CSA a legal document?17. How can virtualization reduce IT costs while improving performance?Explore: Online and Interactive Exercises1. When selecting a cloud vendor to host your enterprise data and apps, you need to evaluate the service level agreement (SLA).a. Research the SLAs of two cloud vendors, such as Rackspace, Amazon, or Google.b. For the vendors you selected, what are the SLAsÕ uptime per-centages? Expect them to be 99.9% or less.c. Does each vendor count both scheduled downtime and planned downtime toward the SLA uptime percentage?d. Compare the SLAs in terms of two other criteria.e. Decide which SLA is better based on your comparisons.f. Report your results and explain your decision.2. Many organizations initiate data governance programs because of pressing compliance issues that impact data usage. Organizations may need data governance to be in compliance with one or more regula-tions, such as the Gramm−Leach Bliley Act (GLB), HIPAA, Foreign Cor-rupt Practices Act (FCPA), Sarbanes−Oxley Act, and several state and federal privacy laws.a. Research and select two U.S. regulations or privacy laws.b. Describe how data governance would help an enterprise com-ply with these regulations or laws.3. Visit www.eWeek.com Cloud Computing Solutions Center for news and reviews at www.eweek.com/c/s/Cloud-Computing. Select one of the articles listed under Latest Cloud Computing News. Prepare an executive summary of the article.4. Visit Rackspace.com and review the companyÕs three types of cloud products. Describe each of those cloud solutions.
62 CHAPTER 2 Information Systems, IT Architecture, Data Governance, and Cloud Computing5. Visit Oracle.com. Describe the types of virtualization services of-fered by Oracle.6. Visit YouTube.com and search for two videos on virtualization. For each video, report what you learned. Specify the complete URL, video title, who uploaded the video and the date, video length, and num-ber of views.Case 2.2 Business Case: Data Chaos Creates RiskData chaos often runs rampant in service organizations, such as health care and the government. For example, in many hospitals, each line of business, division, and department has implemented its own IT applications, often without a thorough analysis of its relationship with other departmental or divisional systems. This arrangement leads to the hospital having IT groups that specifically manage a particu-lar type of application suite or data silo for a particular department or division.Data ManagementWhen applications are not well managed, they can generate terabytes of irrelevant data, causing hospitals to drown in such data. This data chaos could lead to medical errors. In the effort to manage excessive and massive amounts of data, there is increased risk of relevant infor-mation being lost (missing) or inaccurateÑthat is, faulty or dirty data. Another risk is data breaches.¥ Faulty data By 2015, 96% of health-care organizations had adopted electronic health records, or EHRs (Office of the National Coordinator for HIT, 2016). It is well known that an unintended consequence of EHR is faulty data. According to a study pub-lished in the Journal of the American Medical Association, data in EHR systems may not be as accurate and complete as expected (Conn, 2016). Incorrect lab values, imaging results, or physi-cian documentation lead to medical errors, harm patients, and damage the organizationÕs accreditation and reputation.¥ Data breaches More than 25 million people have been affected by health-care system data breaches since the Office for Civil Rights, a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, began reporting breaches in 2009. Most breaches involved lost or stolen data on laptops, removable drives, or other portable media. Breaches are extremely expensive and destroy trust.Accountability in health-care demands compliance with strong data governance efforts. Data governance programs verify that data input into EHR, clinical, financial, and operational systems are accu-rate and completeÑand that only authorized edits can be made and logged.Vanderbilt University Medical Center Adopts EHR and Data GovernanceVanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) in Nashville, TN, was an early adopter of EHR and implemented data governance in 2009. VUMCÕs experience provides valuable lessons.VUMC consists of three hospitals and the Vanderbilt Clinic, which have 918 beds, discharge 53,000 patients each year, and count 1.6 mil-lion clinic visits each year. On average, VUMC has an 83% occupancy rate and has achieved HIMSS Stage 6 hospital EHR adoption. HIMSS (Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society, himss.org) is a global, nonprofit organization dedicated to better health-care out-comes through IT. There are seven stages of EHR adoption, with Stage 7 being a fully paperless environment. That means all clinical data are part of an electronic medical record and, as a result, can be shared Analyze & Decide: Apply IT Concepts to Business Decisions1. Financial services firms experience large fluctuations in business volumes because of the cyclical nature of financial markets. These fluctuations are often caused by crises―such as the subprime mort-gage problems, the discovery of major fraud, or a slowdown in the economy. These fluctuations require that executives and IT leaders have the ability to cut spending levels in market downturns and quickly scale up when business volumes rise again. Research SaaS solutions and vendors for the financial services sector. Would invest-ment in SaaS help such firms align their IT capacity with their business needs and also cut IT costs? Explain your answer.2. Despite multimillion-dollar investments, many IT organizations cannot respond quickly to evolving business needs. Also, they cannot adapt to large-scale shifts like mergers, sudden drops in sales, or new product introductions. Can cloud computing help organizations improve their responsiveness and get better control of their IT costs? Explain your answer.3. Describe the relationship between enterprise architecture and organizational performance.4. Identify four KPIs for a major airline (e.g., American, United, Delta) or an automobile manufacturer (e.g., GM, Ford, BMW). Which KPI would be the easiest to present to managers on an online dashboard? Explain why.
Case 2.3 63across and outside the enterprise. At Stage 7, the health-care organi-zation is getting full advantage of the health information exchange (HIE). HIE provides interoperability so that information can flow back and forth among physicians, patients, and health networks (NextGen Healthcare, 2016).VUMC began collecting data as part of its EHR efforts in 1997. By 2009, the center needed stronger, more disciplined data management. At that time, hospital leaders initiated a project to build a data governance infrastructure.Data Governance ImplementationVUMCÕs leadership team had several concerns.1. IT investments and tools were evolving rapidly, but they were not governed by HIM (Healthcare Information and Manage-ment) policies.2. As medical records became electronic so they might be trans-mitted and shared easily, they became more vulnerable to hacking.3. As new uses of electronic information were emerging, the medi-cal center struggled to keep up.Health Record Executive CommitteeInitially, VUMCÕs leaders assigned data governance to their traditional medical records committee, but that approach failed. Next, they hired consultants to help develop a data governance structure and organ-ized a health record executive committee to oversee the project. The committee reports to the medical board and an executive commit-tee to ensure executive involvement and sponsorship. The commit-tee is responsible for developing the strategy for standardizing health record practices, minimizing risk, and maintaining compliance. Mem-bers include the chief medical information officer (CMIO), CIO, legal counsel, medical staff, nursing informatics, HIM, administration, risk management, compliance, and accreditation. In addition, a legal medical records team was formed to support additions, corrections, and deletions to the EHR. This team defines procedures for removal of duplicate medical record numbers and policies for data management and compliance.Costs of Data FailureData failures incur the following costs:¥ Rework¥ Loss of business¥ Patient safety errors¥ Malpractice lawsuits¥ Delays in receiving payments because billing or medical codes data are not available.Benefits Achieved from Data GovernanceAs in other industries, in health care, data are the most valuable asset. The handling of data is the real risk. EHRs are effective only if the data are accurate and useful to support patient care. Effective ongoing data governance has achieved that goal at VUMC.Questions1. What might happen when each line of business, division, and department develops its own IT apps?2. What are the consequences of poorly managed apps?3. What two risks are posed by data chaos? Explain why.4. What are the functions of data governance in the health-care sector?5. Why is it important to have executives involved in data gover-nance projects?6. List and explain the costs of data failure.7. Why are data the most valuable asset in health care?Case 2.3 Video Case: Cloud Computing at Coca-Cola Is Changing EverythingWhen organizations say they are Òusing the cloud,Ó they can mean a number of very different things. Using an IaaS service such as Amazon EC2 or Terremark is different from using Google Apps to outsource e-mail, which is different again from exposing an API in Facebook.In this video Alan Boehme, CIO of the Coca-Cola Company discusses how Coca-Cola uses cloud computing to more effectively interact with its customers and describes the challenges Coca-Cola is facing in establish-ing SaaS partnerships with new start-ups.Complete these three steps: 1. Visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hCxmsSED2DY2. View the 13-minute video.3. Answer each of the three parts of the following question.Question1. Explain the value of Coca-ColaÕs cloud partnerships with start-up companies to:a. Coca-Colab. The start-up companies c. Coca-ColaÕs customersSources: Compiled from NextGen Healthcare (2016), Office of the National Coor-dinator for HIT (2016), and Conn (2016).
64 CHAPTER 2 Information Systems, IT Architecture, Data Governance, and Cloud ComputingIT ToolboxAccurately Measuring the Value of Data GovernanceWhen developing a data governance program, itÕs important to pre-sent a strong business case to get buy-in from top executives and stakeholders. A crucial part of the business case is an estimate of the data governance programÕs return on investment (ROI) to show how it will add value to the company. You will need to justify the ROI based on both business and IT strategy to ensure that available funds are used to best meet the business objectives.To do this you will need to carefully analyze the IT infrastruc-ture with regard to how different components of the IT infrastructure work together to support business processes, how data needed by one system can be received and used by another, how easily data can be communicated and/or repurposed. You will also need to factor in risks and adverse events such as costs associated with rework in data collection, costs associated with unreliable or unfit data, and delays associated with untimely or unavailable data. Now, all of these costs must be quantified and your level of confidence in the corporate data has to be calculated to ensure your business case accurately reflects the value of a data governance program.One metric used to make this calculation is the confidence in data-dependent assumptions metric, or CIDDA (Reeves & Bowen, 2013). The CIDDA identifies specific areas of deficiency.So, to sum up, when building a data governance model, it is necessary to:1. Establish a leadership team2. Define the programÕs scope3. Calculate the ROI using the CIDDA.CIDDA is computed by multiplying three confidence estimates using the following formula:CIDDAGMTSwhereG = Confidence that data are good enough for their intended purposeM = Confidence that data mean what you think they doTS = Confidence that you know where the data come from and trust the source.CIDDA is a subjective metric for which there are no industry benchmarks, yet it can be evaluated over time to gauge improve-ments in data quality confidence.To ensure your understanding of this IT Toolbox item, calculate the CIDDA of Company A over time, using the stated levels of confi-dence in the different aspects of its corporate data over Q1ÐQ4 2017:Q1_2017:40%,50%,20%Q2_2017:50%,55%,30%Q3_2017:60%,60%,40%Q4_2017:60%,70%,45%GMTSGMTSGMTSGMTSReferencesBloomberg, J. ÒChange as Core Competency: Transforming the Role of the Enterprise Architect.Ó Forbes, June 16, 2016.Cailean, I. ÒWhat Role Do Algorithms Play in Programmatic Advertis-ing?Ó Trade Mod, January 6, 2016. http://www.trademob.com/what-role-do-algorithms-play-in-programmatic-advertisingCloud Standards Customer Council. Practical Guide to Cloud Service Agreements, Version 2.0. April 2015. http://www.cloud-council.org/deliverables/CSCC-Practical-Guide-to-Cloud-Service-Agreements .pdfConn, J. ÒEHRs vs. Paper: A Split-decision on Accuracy.Ó Modern Healthcare, July 8, 2016.Fresht, P. ÒThe Ten Tenets Driving the As-a-service Economy.Ó Horses for Sources, October 6, 2014. http://www.horsesforsources.com/as a service-economy_100614IBM. ÒWhat is Cloud Computing?Ó IBM, June 6, 2016. https://www.ibm.com/cloud-computing/learn-more/what-is-cloud-computingJarousse, L. A. ÒInformation Governance for Hospitals.Ó Hospitals & Health Networks, February 18, 2016.Keitt, T. J. ÒCollaboration Technology Should Be Part of Your Cus-tomer Experience Tool Kit.Ó Forrester.com, June 30, 2014.Lunden, I. ÒEnterprise Chat App Slack Ties up with Salesforce in a Deep Product Partnership.Ó Tech Crunch, September 27, 2016. https://techcrunch.com/2016/09/27/enterprise-chat-app-slack-ties-up-with-salesforce-in-a-deep-platform-partnershipMarchese, L. ÒHow the ÔSilo EffectÕ Is Hurting Cross Team Collabora-tion.Ó Trello, May 10, 2016.NextGen Healthcare. ÒHealth Information Exchange (HIE).Ó NextGen Healthcare, March 31, 2016.Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology. ÒPercent of Hospitals, By Type, that Possess Certified Health IT.Ó Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, May 31, 2016.Porter, M. Competitive Advantage: Creating and Sustaining Superior Performance. Free Press, 1998.Rai, R., G. Sahoo, and S. Mehfuz. ÒExploring the Factors Influencing the Cloud Computing Adoption: A Systematic Study on Cloud Migra-tion.Ó Springerplus, April 25, 2015, 4, 197.Reeves, M. G. and R. Bowen. ÒDeveloping a Data Governance Model in Health Care.ÓHealthcare Financial Management, February 2013, 67(2): 82Ð86.Schneider, M. ÒCase Study: How MEDIATA Increased Campaign Perfor-mance with Hyperlocal Targeting.Ó Skyhook Wireless, July 22, 2014.Schneider, M. ÒSolving the Dirty Data Problem in Location-Based Advertising.Ó Street Fight, January 7, 2015.Shore, J. ÒCloud-Based Integration Seeks to Tear Down Data Silos.Ó Tech Target, August 19, 2015.Sturm, R., C. Pollard, and J. Craig. Application Performance Manage-ment in the Digital Enterprise. Elsevier, March 2017.Zuckerman, M.P.H., Sheingold, Ph.D., Orav, Ph.D., Ruhter, M.P.P., M.H.S.A., and Epstein, M.D. ÒReadmissions, Observation, and the Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program.Ó The New England Jour-nal of Medicine, April 21, 2016.
65CHAPTER 3Data Management, Data Analytics, and Business IntelligenceLEARNING OBJECTIVES 3.1 Describe the purpose and benefits of data management and how database technologies help support business processes.3.2 Describe the differences between centralized and distributed database architectures and the importance of creating and maintaining data that can be trusted.3.3 Understand the concepts of data analytics and data warehousing and evaluate their tactical and strategic benefits.3.4 Explain benefits of data and text mining and business intelligence and how they benefit an organization.3.5 Describe electronic records management and how it helps companies to meet their compliance, regulatory, and legal obligations.CHAPTER OUTLINECase 3.1 Opening Case: Coca-Cola Strategically Manages Data to Retain Customers and Reduce Costs 3.1 Data Management and Database Technologies 3.2 Centralized and Distributed Database Architectures 3.3 Data Warehouses 3.4 Data Analytics and Data Discovery 3.5 Business Intelligence and Electronic Records Management Case 3.2 Business Case: Big Data Analytics is the ÒSecret SauceÓ for Revitalizing McDonaldÕsCase 3.3 Video Case: Verizon Improves its Customer Experience with Data-Driven Decision-Making
66 CHAPTER 3 Data Management, Data Analytics, and Business IntelligenceIntroductionAs discussed in Chapter 2, collecting and maintaining trusted data is a critical aspect of any business. Knowing how and where to find data, store it efficiently, analyze it in new ways to increase the organizationÕs competitive advantage, and enable the right people to access it at the right time are all fundamental components of managing the ever-increasing amounts of corporate data. Indeed, data analytics is the primary differentiator when doing business in the 21st century. Transactional, social, mobile, cloud, Web, and sensor data offer enormous poten-tial. But without tools to analyze these data types and volumes, there would not be much dif-ference between business in the 20th century and business todayÑexcept for mobile access. High-quality data and human expertise are essential to the value of analytics.Human expertise is necessary because analytics alone cannot explain the reasons for trends or relationships; know what action to take; or provide sufficient context to determine what the numbers represent and how to interpret them.Database, data warehouse, data analytics, and business intelligence (BI) technologies interact to create a new biz-tech ecosystem. Data analytics and BI discover insights or rela-tionships of interest that otherwise might not have been recognized. They make it possible for managers to make decisions and act with clarity, speed, and confidence. Data analytics is not just about managing more or varied data. Rather, it is about asking new questions, formulating new hypotheses, exploration and discovery, and making data-driven decisions. Ultimately, a big part of data analysis efforts is the use of new analytics techniques.Mining data or text taken from day-to-day business operations reveals valuable information, such as customersÕ desires, products that are most important, or processes that can be made more efficient. These insights expand the ability to take advantage of opportu-nities, minimize risks, and control costs.While you might think that physical pieces of paper are a relic of the past, in most offices the opposite is true. Aberdeen GroupÕs survey of 176 organizations worldwide found that the volume of physical documents is growing by up to 30% per year. Document management tech-nology archives digital and physical data to meet business needs, as well as regulatory and legal requirements (Eisenhauer, 2015).Case 3.1 Opening Case© Katherine Welles/ShutterstockFernando Madeira/Shutterstockguyerwood/Getty ImagesCoca-Cola Strategically Manages Data to Retain Customers and Reduce CostsCoca-ColaÕs Data Management ChallengesThe Coca-Cola Company is a Fortune 100 company with over $43.7 billion in sales revenue and $7.35 billion in profit (Figure 3.1). The market leader manages and analyzes several petabytes (Pb) of data generated or collected from more than 500 brands and con-sumers in 206 countries. To understand the size of one petabyte of data, it would take 223,000 DVDs (4.7 Gb each) to hold 1 Pb of data! Coca-ColaÕs bottling partners provide sales and shipment data, while retail customers transmit transaction and merchandising data. Other data sources are listed in Table 3.1. Before the introduction of its newest BI system, Coca-Cola knew there were BI opportunities in the mountains of data its bottlers were storing, but finding and accessing all of that data for analytics proved to be nearly impossi-ble. The disparate data sources caused long delays in getting analyt-ics reports from IT to sales teams. The company decided to replace the legacy software at each bottling facility and standardize them on a new BI systemÑa combination of MicroStrategy and Microsoft BI products.
Introduction 67WorldÕs largest nonalcoholic beverage company with more than 500 brands of beverages,ready-to-drink coffees, juices, and juice drinks.Has the worldÕs largest beverage distribution system, with consumers in more than 200 countries.Products consumed at a rate of 1.9 billion servings a day worldwide.BrandBusiness Ethics &SustainabilityFocused on initiatives that reduce theirenvironmental footprint; support active, healthy living; create a safework environment; and enhance the economic development of the communities where they operate.Digital TechnologyCentralized databaseEnterprise data warehouse (EDW)Big data analyticsDecision models70 million Facebook followersThe Coca-ColaCompany FIGURE 3.1 The Coca-Cola Company overview. TABLE 3.1 Opening Case OverviewCompany¥ The Coca-Cola Company, www.coca-cola.com¥ Sustainability: www.coca-colacompany.com/sustainability¥ $43.7 billion in sales revenue and profits of $7.35 billion, 2016Industry¥ The global company manufactures, sells, and distributes nonalcoholic beveragesProduct lines¥ More than 500 brands of still and sparkling beverages, ready-to-drink coffees, juices, and juice drinksDigital technology¥ Enterprise data warehouse (EDW)¥ Big data and analytics¥ Business intelligence¥ In 2014, moved from a decentralized approach to a centralized approach, where the data are combined cen-trally and available via the shared platforms across the organizationBusiness challenges¥ Coca-Cola had 74 unique databases, many of them used different software to store and analyze data. Dealing with incompatible databases and reporting systems was a major problem. Coca-Cola had to take a strategic approach instead of a tactical approach with big dataGlobal data sources¥ Transaction and merchandising data¥ Data from nationwide network of more than 900 bottlers and manufacturing facilities¥ Multichannel retail data¥ Customer profile data from loyalty programs¥ Social media data¥ Supply chain data¥ Competitor data¥ Sales and shipment data from bottling partnersTaglinesÒTaste the feeling!ÓWebsitewww.coca-cola.comEnterprise Data ManagementLike most global companies, Coca-Cola relies on sophisticated enter-prise data management, BI, and analytic technologies to sustain its performance in fiercely competitive markets. Data are managed in a centralized database. They use data warehousing, data analytics, data modeling, and social media to respond to competitorsÕ activity, market changes, and consumer preferences.To support its business strategy and operations, Coca-Cola changed from a decentralized database approach to a centralized database approach (Figure 3.2). Now its data are combined centrally
68 CHAPTER 3 Data Management, Data Analytics, and Business Intelligenceand accessible via shared platforms across the organization to help its major retail customers such as Walmart sell more Coca-Cola prod-ucts and to improve the consumer experience and implemented a data governance program to ensure that cultural data sensitivities are respected.Sustaining Business PerformanceAll data are standardized through a series of master data management (MDM) processes. An enterprise data warehouse (EDW) generates a sin-gle view of all multichannel retail data and creates a trusted view of customers, sales, and transactions. This enables Coca-Cola to respond quickly and accurately to changes in market conditions.Throughout Coca-Cola huge volumes of data are analyzed to make more and better time-sensitive, critical decisions about products, shop-per marketing, the supply chain, and production. Point-of-sale (POS) data are captured from retail channels and communicated via a central-ized iPad reporting system to created customer profiles. POS data are analyzed to support collaborative planning, forecasting, and replenish-ment processes within its supply chain.Coca-ColaÕs Approach to Big Data and Decision Models Coca-Cola takes a strategic approach instead of a tactical approach to big data. The company is far advanced in the use of big data to manage its products, sales revenue, and customer experiences in near real time and reduce costs. For example, it cut overtime costs almost in half by analyzing service center data. Big data help Coca-Cola relate to its millions of Facebook followersÑmany of whom bolster the Coke brand.Big data play a key role in ensuring that its orange juice tastes the same year-round and is readily available anywhere in the world. Oranges used by Coca-Cola have a peak growing season of only three months. Producing orange juice with a consistent taste year-round despite the inconsistent quality of the orange supply is complex. To deal with this complexity, an orange juice decision model was developed, the Black Book model. A decision model quantifies the relationship between vari-ables to reduce uncertainty. Black Book combines detailed data on the 6001 flavors that make up an orange, weather, customer preferences, expected crop yields, cost pressures, regional consumer preferences, and acidity or sweetness rate. The model specifies how to blend the orange juice to create a consistent taste. CokeÕs Black Book juice model is consid-ered one of the most complex business analytics apps. It requires ana-lyzing up to 1 quintillion (10E18) decision variables to consistently deliver the optimal blend.With the power of big data and decision models, Coca-Cola is prepared for disruptions in supply far in advance. According to Doug Bippert, Coca-ColaÕs vice president of business acceleration, ÒIf we have a hurricane or a freeze, we can quickly re-plan the business in 5 or 10 minutes just because weÕve mathematically modeled itÓ (www.Business Intelligence.com, 2013b).Questions1. Why does the Coca-Cola Company have petabytes of data?2. Why is it important for Coca-Cola to be able to process POS data in near real time?3. How does Coca-Cola attempt to create favorable customer experiences?4. What is the importance of having a trusted view of the data?5. What is the benefit of a decision model?6. What is the Black Book model?7. Explain the strategic benefit of the Black Book model.Sources: Compiled from Burns (2013), BusinessIntelligence.com (2013), CNNMoney (2014), HBS (2015), Liyakas (2015), and Ransbothom (2015).alphaspirit/Shutterstock FIGURE 3.2 Data from online and offline transactions are stored in databases. Data about entities such as customers, products, orders, and employees are stored in an organized way.
Data Management and Database Technologies 69 3.1 Data Management and Database TechnologiesDue to the incredible volume of data that the typical organization creates, effective data manage-ment is vital to prevent storage costs from spiraling out of control and controlling data growth while supporting greater performance. Data management oversees the end-to-end lifecycle of data from creation and initial storage to the time when it becomes obsolete and is deleted.The objectives of data management include the following:1. Mitigating the risks and costs of complying with regulations.2. Ensuring legal requirements are met.3. Safeguarding data security.4. Maintaining accuracy of data and availability.5. Certifying consistency in data that come from or go to multiple locations.6. Ensuring that data conform to organizational best practices for access, storage, backup, and disposal.Typically, newer data, and data that is accessed more frequently, is stored on faster, but more expensive storage media while less critical data is stored on cheaper, slower media.The main benefits of data management include greater compliance, higher security, less legal liability, improved sales and marketing strategies, better product classification, and improved data governance to reduce risk. The following data management technologies keep users informed and support the various business demands:¥ Databases store data generated by business apps, sensors, operations, and transaction-processing systems (TPS). Data in some databases can be extremely volatile. Medium and large enterprises typically have many databases of various typesÑcentralized and distributed.¥ Data warehouses integrate data from multiple databases and data silos across the orga-nization, and organize them for complex analysis, knowledge discovery, and to support decision-making. For example, data are extracted from a database, processed to stan-dardize their format, and then loaded into data warehouses at specific times, such as weekly. As such, data in data warehouses are nonvolatileÑand are ready for analysis.¥ Data marts are small-scale data warehouses that support a single function or one department. Enterprises that cannot afford to invest in data warehousing may start with one or more data marts.¥ Business intelligence (BI)Ñtools and techniques process data and do statistical analysis for insight and discoveryÑthat is, to discover meaningful relationships in the data, keep informed in real time, detect trends, and identify opportunities and risks.Each of these database management technologies will be discussed in greater detail later in this chapter.Database Management Systems and SQLData-processing techniques, processing power, and enterprise performance management capabilities have undergone revolutionary advances in recent years for reasons you are already familiar withÑbig data, mobility, and cloud computing. The last decade, however, has seen the emergence of new approaches, first in data warehousing and, more recently, for transaction processing. Given the huge number of transactions that occur daily in an organization, the data in databases are constantly in use or being updated. The volatility of databases makes it impos-sible to use them for complex decision-making and problem-solving tasks. For this reason, data are extracted from the database, transformed (processed to standardize the data), and then loaded into a data warehouse.Data management is the management of the flow of data from creation and initial storage to the time when the data become obsolete and are deleted.Databases are collections of data sets or records stored in a systematic way.
70 CHAPTER 3 Data Management, Data Analytics, and Business IntelligenceDatabase management systems (DBMSs) integrate with data collection systems such as TPS and business applications; store the data in an organized way; and provide facilities for accessing and managing that data. Factors to consider when evaluating the performance of a database management system are listed in Tech Note 3.1. Over the past 25 years, the relational database has been the standard database model adopted by most enterprises. Relational data-bases store data in tables consisting of columns and rows, similar to the format of a spreadsheet, as shown in Figure 3.3.Database management systems (DBMSs) are software used to manage the additions, updates, and deletions of data as transactions occur, and to support data queries and reporting. They are online transaction-processing (OLTP) systems.© Alexander Fediachov/Alamy FIGURE 3.3 Illustration of structured data format. Numeric and alphanumeric data are arranged into rows and predefined columns similar to those in an Excel spreadsheet.Tech Note 3.1Factors That Determine the Performance of a DBMSFactors to consider when evaluating the performance of a database management system include:¥ Data latency Latency is the elapsed time (or delay) between when data are created and when they are available for a query or report. Applications have different tolerances for latency. Database systems tend to have shorter latency than data ware-houses. Short latency imposes more restrictions on a system.¥ Ability to handle the volatility of the data The database has the processing power to handle the volatility of the data. The rates at which data are added, updated, or deleted deter-mine the workload that the database must be able to control to prevent problems with the response rate to queries.¥ Query response time The volume of data impacts response times to queries and data explorations. Many databases pre-stage dataÑthat is, summarize or precalculate resultsÑso queries have faster response rates.¥ Data consistency Immediate consistency means that as soon as data are updated, responses to any new query will return the updated value. With eventual consistency, not all query responses will reflect data changes uniformly. Inconsis-tent query results could cause serious problems for analyses that depend on accurate data.¥ Query predictability The greater the number of ad hoc or unpredictable queries, the more flexible the database needs to be. Database or query performance management is more diffi-cult when the workloads are so unpredictable that they cannot be prepared for in advance. The ability to handle the workload is the most important criterion when choosing a database.¥ Query processing capabilities Database queries are pro-cessed in real time and results are transmitted via wired or wireless networks to computer screen or handheld devices.Query are ad hoc (unplanned) user requests for specific data.Relational management systems (RDBMSs) provide access to data using a declarative languageÑstructured query language (SQL). Declarative languages simplify data access by requiring that users only specify what data they want to access without defining how access will be achieved. The format of a basic SQL statement isSELECT column_name(s)FROM table_nameWHERE conditionAn instance of SQL is shown in Figure 3.4.Structured query language (SQL) is a standardized query language for accessing databases.
Data Management and Database Technologies 71© Piotr Adamowicz/Shutterstock FIGURE 3.4 An instance of SQL to access employee information based on date of hire.Check and control data integrity over timeData Filtering and ProfilingData Integrity and MaintenanceData SynchronizationData SecurityData AccessProvide authorized access to data in both planned and ad hocways within acceptable timeIntegrate, match or link data from disparate sourcesCorrect, standardize and verify the consistencyand integrity of the dataProcess and store data efficiently. Inspect data for errors,inconsistencies, redundancies and incomplete information FIGURE 3.5 DBMS functions.DBMS Functions An accurate and consistent view of data throughout the enterprise is needed so one can make informed, actionable decisions that support the business strategy. Functions performed by a DBMS to help create such a view are shown in Figure 3.5.Online Transaction Processing and Online Analytics Processing When most business transactions occurÑfor instance, an item is sold or returned, an order is sent or cancelled, a payment or deposit is madeÑchanges are made immediately to the database. These online changes are additions, updates, or deletions. DBMSs record and process transac-tions in the database, and support queries and reporting. Given their functions, DBMSs are referred to as online transaction processing (OLTP) systems. OLTP is a database design that Online transaction processing (OLTP) systems are designed to manage transaction data, which are volatile.
72 CHAPTER 3 Data Management, Data Analytics, and Business Intelligencebreaks down complex information into simpler data tables to strike a balance between transaction-processing efficiency and query efficiency. OLTP databases process millions of transactions per second. However, databases cannot be optimized for data mining, complex online analytics processing (OLAP) systems, and decision support. These limitations led to the introduction of data warehouse technology. Data warehouses and data marts are optimized for OLAP, data mining, BI, and decision support. OLAP is a term used to describe the analysis of complex data from the data warehouse. In summary, databases are optimized for extremely fast transaction processing and query processing. Data warehouses are optimized for analysis.DBMS and Data Warehousing Vendors Respond to Latest Data DemandsOne of the major drivers of change in the data management market is the increased amount of data to be managed. Enterprises need powerful DBMSs and data warehousing solutions, analytics, and reporting. The four vendors that dominate this marketÑOracle, IBM, Microsoft, and TeradataÑcontinue to respond to evolving data management needs with more intelligent and advanced software and hardware. Advanced hardware technology enables scaling to much higher data volumes and workloads than previously possible, or it can handle specific work-loads. Older general-purpose relational databases DBMSs lack the scalability or flexibility for specialized or very large workloads, but are very good at what they do.Trend Toward NoSQL Systems RDBMSs are still the dominant database engines, but the trend toward NoSQL (short for Ònot only SQLÓ) systems is clear. NoSQL sys-tems increased in popularity by 96% from 2014 to 2016. Although NoSQL have existed for as long as relational DBMS, the term itself was not introduced until 2009. That was when many new systems were developed in order to cope with the unfolding requirements for DBMSÑnamely, handling big data, scalability, and fault tolerance for large Web applications. Scalability means the system can increase in size to handle data growth or the load of an increasing number of concurrent users. To put it differently, scalable systems efficiently meet the demands of high-performance computing. Fault tolerance means that no single failure results in any loss of service.NoSQL systems are such a heterogeneous group of database systems that attempts to classify them are not very helpful. However, their general advantages are the following:¥ higher performance¥ easy distribution of data on different nodes, which enables scalability and fault tolerance¥ greater flexibility¥ simpler administrationStarting in 2010 and continuing through 2016, Microsoft has been working on the first rewrite of SQL ServerÕs query execution since Version 7 was released in 1998. The goal is to offer NoSQL-like speeds without sacrificing the capabilities of a relational database.With most NoSQL offerings, the bulk of the cost does not lie in acquiring the database, but rather in implementing it. Data need to be selected and migrated (moved) to the new database. Microsoft hopes to reduce these costs by offering migration solutions.DBMS Vendor Rankings The top five enterprise database systems of 2016 are OracleÕs 12c Database, Microsoft SQL Server, IBM DB2, SAP Sybase ASE, and PostgreSQL:1. Oracle 12c Database consolidates and manages databases as cloud services via OracleÕs multitenant architecture and in-memory data processing capabilities and can be rapidly provisioned.
Centralized and Distributed Database Architectures 732. Microsoft SQL Server ease of use, availability, and Windows operating system integration make it an easy choice for firms that choose Microsoft products for their enterprises.3. IBM DB2 is widely used in large data centers and runs on Linux, UNIX, Windows, IBM iSeries, and mainframes.4. SAP Sybase ASE is a major force after 25 years of success and improvements. Supports partition locking, relaxed query limits, query plan optimization, and dynamic thread assignment.5. PostgreSQL is the most advanced open source database, often used by online gaming applications and Skype, Yahoo!, and MySpace. This database runs on a wide variety of operating systems including Linux, Windows, FreeBSD, and Solaris.Questions1. Describe a database and a database management system (DBMS).2. Explain what an online transaction-processing (OLAP) system does.3. Why are data in databases volatile?4. Describe the functions of a DBMS.5. Describe the purpose and benefits of data management.6. What is a relational database management system? 3.2 Centralized and Distributed Database ArchitecturesDatabases can be centralized or distributed, as shown in Figure 3.6. Both types of databases need one or more backups and should be archived on- and offsite in case of a crash or secu-rity incident.For decades the main database platform consisted of centralized database files on massive mainframe computers. Benefits of centralized database configurations include the following:1. Better control of data quality Data consistency is easier when data are kept in one physical location because data additions, updates, and deletions can be made in a super-vised and orderly fashion.2. Better IT security Data are accessed via the centralized host computer, where they can be protected more easily from unauthorized access or modification.A major disadvantage of centralized databases, like all centralized systems, is transmission delay when users are geographically dispersed. More powerful hardware and networks com-pensate for this disadvantage.In contrast, distributed databases use client/server architecture to process information requests. The databases are stored on servers that reside in the companyÕs data centers, a private cloud, or a public cloud (Figure 3.7). Advantages of a distributed database include reli-abilityÑif one site crashes, the system will keep runningÑand speedÑitÕs faster to search a part of a database than the whole. However, if thereÕs a problem with the network that the distrib-uted database is using, it can cause availability issues and the appropriate hardware and soft-ware can be expensive to purchase.Centralized database stores all data in a single central compute such as a mainframe or server.Distributed database stores portions of the database on multiple computers within a network.
74 CHAPTER 3 Data Management, Data Analytics, and Business IntelligenceUsersLos AngelesUsersNew YorkUsersKansas CityUsersChicagoNew YorkUsersLos AngelesLos AngelesUsersKansas CityKansas CityCentral LocationCentralLocationNew YorkUsersNew York(a)(b)New YorkUsersChicagoChicago FIGURE 3.6 Comparison of (a) centralized and (b) distributed databases.Distributed databases on serversManufacturingManufacturingclientsHeadquarterclientsHeadquartersSales &MarketingSales & marketing clients FIGURE 3.7 Distributed database architecture for headquarters, manufacturing, and sales and marketing.
Centralized and Distributed Database Architectures 75Garbage In, Garbage OutData collection is a highly complex process that can create problems concerning the quality of the data being collected. Therefore, regardless of how the data are collected, they need to be validated so users know they can trust them. Classic expressions that sum up the situation are Ògarbage in, garbage outÓ (GIGO) and the potentially riskier Ògarbage in, gospel out.Ó In the latter case, poor-quality data are trusted and used as the basis for planning. For example, you have probably encountered data safeguards, such as integrity checks, to help improve data quality when you fill in an online form, such as when the form will not accept an e-mail address or a credit card number that is not formatted correctly.Table 3.2 lists the characteristics typically associated with dirty or poor-quality data. TABLE 3.2 Characteristics of Poor-Quality or Dirty DataCharacteristic of Dirty DataDescriptionIncompleteMissing dataOutdated or invalidToo old to be valid or usefulIncorrectToo many errorsDuplicated or in conflictToo many copies or versions of the same data―and the versions are inconsistent or in conflict with each otherNonstandardizedData are stored in incompatible formats―and cannot be compared or summarizedUnusableData are not in context to be understood or interpreted correctly at the time of accessDirty Data Costs and Consequences As discussed in Chapter 2, too often man-agers and information workers are actually constrained by data that cannot be trusted because they are incomplete, out of context, outdated, inaccurate, inaccessible, or so overwhelming that they require weeks to analyze. In such situations, the decision-maker is facing too much uncertainty to make intelligent business decisions.On average, an organization experiences 40% data growth annually, and 20% of that data is found to be dirty. Each dirty data point, or record, costs $100 if not resolved (Ring-Lead, 2015). The costs of poor-quality data spread throughout a company, affecting systems from shipping and receiving to accounting and customer service. Data errors typically arise from the functions or departments that generate or create the dataÑand not within the IT department. When all costs are considered, the value of finding and fixing the causes of data errors becomes clear. In a time of decreased budgets, some organizations may not have the resources for such projects and may not even be aware of the problem. Others may be spending most of their time fixing problems, thus leaving them with no time to work on pre-venting them. However, the benefits of acting preventatively against dirty data are astronomical. It costs $1 to prevent and $10 to correct dirty data. While the short-run cost of cleaning and preventing dirty data is unrealistic for some companies, the long-term conclusion is far more expensive (Kramer, 2015).Bad data are costing U.S. businesses hundreds of billions of dollars a year and affecting their ability to ride out the tough economic climate. Incorrect and outdated values, missing data, and inconsistent data formats can cause lost customers, sales, and revenue; misalloca-tion of resources; and flawed pricing strategies.Consider a corporation that follows the cost structure associated with clean/dirty data explained above with 100,000 data points. Over a three-year span, by cleaning the 20% of dirty data during the first year and using prevention methods for the following years, the corporation will save $8,495,000. Purely based on the quality of its data, a corporation with a large amount of data can hypothetically increase its revenue by 70% (RingLead, 2015).Dirty data is poor-quality data that lacks integrity and cannot be trusted.
76 CHAPTER 3 Data Management, Data Analytics, and Business IntelligenceThe cost of poor-quality data may be expressed as a formula:CostofPoor-Quality DataLost BusinessCosttoPrevent ErrorsCosttoCorrect ErrorsExamples of these costs include the following:¥ Lost business Business is lost when sales opportunities are missed, orders are returned because wrong items were delivered, or errors frustrate and drive away customers.¥ Time spent preventing errors If data cannot be trusted, then employees need to spend more time and effort trying to verify information in order to avoid mistakes.¥ Time spent correcting errors Database staff need to process corrections to the data-base. For example, the costs of correcting errors at U-rent Corporation are estimated as follows:a. Two database staff members spend 25% of their workday processing and verifying data corrections each day: 2people*25%of8hours/day4hours/day correcting errors b. Hourly salaries are $50 per hour based on pay rate and benefits: $50/hour*4hours/day$200/day correcting errors c. 250 workdays per year: $200/day*250days$50,000/yeartocorrect errors For a particular company, it is difficult to calculate the full cost of poor-quality data and its long-term effects. Part of the difficulty is the time delay between the mistake and when it is detected. Errors can be very difficult to correct, especially when systems extend across the enterprise. Another concern is that the impacts of errors can be unpredictable, far-reaching, and serious.Data Ownership and Organizational PoliticsCompliance with numerous federal and state regulations relies on rock-solid data and trusted metrics used for regulatory reporting. Data ownership, data quality, and formally managed data are high priorities on the agenda of CFOs and CEOs who are held personally accountable if their company is found to be in violation of regulations.Despite the need for high-quality data, organizational politics and technical issues make that difficult to achieve. The source of the problem is data ownershipÑthat is, who owns or is responsible for the data. Data ownership problems exist when there are no policies defining responsibility and accountability for managing data. Inconsistent data formats of various departments create an additional set of problems as organizations try to combine individual applications into integrated enterprise systems.The tendency to delegate data-quality responsibilities to the technical teams who have no control over data quality, as opposed to business users who do have such control, is another common pitfall that stands in the way of accumulating high-quality data.Those who manage a business or part of a business are tasked with trying to improve business performance and retain customers. Compensation is tied to improving profitability, driving revenue growth, and improving the quality of customer service. These key performance indicators (KPIs) are monitored closely by senior managers who want to find and eliminate defects that harm performance. It is strange then that so few managers take the time to under-stand how performance is impacted by poor-quality data. Two examples make a strong case for investment in high-quality data.Retail banking: For retail bank executives, risk management is the number one issue. Disre-gard for risk contributed to the 2008 financial services meltdown. Despite risk management strat-egies, many banks still incur huge losses. Part of the problem in many banks is that their ISs enable them to monitor risk only at the product levelÑmortgages, loans, or credit cards. Product-level risk management ISs monitor a customerÕs risk exposure for mortgages, or for loans, or for credit cards, and so forthÑbut not for a customer for all products. With product-level ISs, a bank cannot see the full risk exposure of a customer. The limitations of these siloed product-level risks have serious implications for business performance because bad-risk customers cannot be identified easily,
Centralized and Distributed Database Architectures 77and customer data in the various ISs may differ. However, banks are beginning to use big data to analyze risk more effectively. Although they are still very limited to credit card, loan, and mort-gage risk data, cheaper and faster computing power allows them to keep better and more inclusive records of customer data. Portfolio monitoring offers earlier detection and predictive analytics for potential customers, and more advanced risk models show intricate patterns unseen by the naked eye in large data sets. Also, more fact-based inputs and standardized organizational methods are being implemented to reduce loan and credit officer bias to take risks on undesirable customers.Marketing: Consider what happens when each product-level risk management IS feeds data to marketing ISs. Marketing may offer bad-risk customers incentives to take out another credit card or loan that they cannot repay. And since the bank cannot identify its best cus-tomers either, they may be ignored and enticed away by better deals offered by competitors. This scenario illustrates how data ownership and data-quality management are critical to risk management. Data defects and incomplete data can quickly trigger inaccurate marketing and mounting losses. BanksÕ increasing dependence on business modeling requires that risk man-agers understand and manage model risk better. Although losses often go unreported, the con-sequences of errors in the model can be extreme. For instance, a large AsiaÐPacific bank lost $4 billion when it applied interest-rate models that contained incorrect assumptions and data-entry errors. Risk mitigation will entail rigorous guidelines and processes for developing and val-idating models, as well as the constant monitoring and improvement of them (Harle et al., 2016).Manufacturing: Many manufacturers are at the mercy of a powerful customer baseÑlarge retailers. Manufacturers want to align their processes with those of large retail customers to keep them happy. This alignment makes it possible for a retailer to order centrally for all stores or to order locally from a specific manufacturer. Supporting both central and local ordering makes it difficult to plan production runs. For example, each manufacturing site has to collect order data from central ordering and local ordering systems to get a complete picture of what to manufacture at each site. Without accurate, up-to-date data, orders may go unfilled, or manu-facturers may have excess inventory. One manufacturer who tried to keep its key retailer happy by implementing central and local ordering could not process orders correctly at each manu-facturing site. No data ownership and lack of control over how order data flowed throughout business operations had negative impacts. Conflicting and duplicate business processes at each manufacturing site caused data errors, leading to mistakes in manufacturing, packing, and shipments. Customers were very dissatisfied.These examples demonstrate the consequences of a lack of data ownership and data quality. Understanding the impact mismanaged data can have on business performance high-lights the need to make data ownership and data accuracy a high priority.Data Life Cycle and Data PrinciplesThe data life cycle is a model that illustrates the way data travel through an organization as shown in Figure 3.8. The data life cycle begins with storage in a database, to being loaded into a data warehouse for analysis, then reported to knowledge workers or used in business Data Sourcesand DatabasesPersonalExpertise &JudgmentDataVisualizationSCME-commerceStrategyOthersCRMData AnalysisData StorageResultsBusiness AnalyticsBusinessApplicationsInternalDataExternalDataDataWarehouseDataMartsDataMartsOLAP,Queries,EIS, DSSDataMiningDecisionSupportKnowledgeand itsManagement FIGURE 3.8 Data life cycle.
78 CHAPTER 3 Data Management, Data Analytics, and Business Intelligenceapps. Supply chain management (SCM), customer relationship management (CRM), and e-commerce are enterprise applications that require up-to-date, readily accessible data to function properly.Three general data principles relate to the data life cycle perspective and help to guide IT investment decisions:1. Principle of diminishing data value The value of data diminishes as they age. This is a simple, yet powerful principle. Most organizations cannot operate at peak performance with blind spots (lack of data availability) of 30 days or longer. Global financial services institutions rely on near real-time data for peak performance.2. Principle of 90/90 data use According to the 90/90 data-use principle, a majority of stored data, as high as 90%, is seldom accessed after 90 days (except for auditing pur-poses). That is, roughly 90% of data lose most of their value after three months.3. Principle of data in context The capability to capture, process, format, and distribute data in near real time or faster requires a huge investment in data architecture (Chapter 2) and infrastructure to link remote POS systems to data storage, data analysis systems, and reporting apps. The investment can be justified on the principle that data must be inte-grated, processed, analyzed, and formatted into Òactionable information.ÓMaster Data and Master Data ManagementAs data become more complex and their volumes explode, database performance degrades. One solution is the use of master data and master data management (MDM) as introduced in Chapter 2. MDM processes integrate data from various sources or enterprise applications to create a more complete (unified) view of a customer, product, or other entity. Figure 3.9 shows how master data serve as a layer between transactional data in a database and analytical data in a data warehouse. Although vendors may claim that their MDM solution creates Òa single ver-sion of the truth,Ó this claim is probably not true. In reality, MDM cannot create a single unified version of the data because constructing a completely unified view of all master data is simply not possible.TransactionalDataMasterDataEnterpriseDataAnalyticalDataTransactional datasupports theapplicationsMaster data describeenterprises businessentities upon whichtransactions are conductedand dimensions (customers,product, supplier, account,site) around which analysesare performedAnalytical datasupport decision-making andplanning FIGURE 3.9 An enterprise has transactional, master, and analytical data.
Data Warehouses 79Each department has distinct master data needs. Marketing, for example, is concerned with product pricing, brand, and product packaging, whereas production is concerned with product costs and schedules. A customer master reference file can feed data to all enterprise systems that have a customer relationship component, thereby providing a more unified pic-ture of customers. Similarly, a product master reference file can feed data to all the production systems within the enterprise.An MDM includes tools for cleaning and auditing the master data elements as well as tools for integrating and synchronizing data to make them more accessible. MDM offers a solution for managers who are frustrated with how fragmented and dispersed their data sources are.Questions1. Describe the data life cycle.2. What is the function of master data management (MDM)?3. What are the consequences of not cleaning Òdirty dataÓ?4. Describe the differences between centralized and distributed databases.5. Discuss how data ownership and organizational politics affect the quality of an organizationÕs data. 3.3 Data WarehousesData warehouses are the primary source of cleansed data for analysis, reporting, and business intelligence (BI). Often the data are summarized in ways that enable quick responses to queries. For instance, query results can reveal changes in customer behavior and drive the decision to redevelop the advertising strategy.Master Reference File and Data Entities Realistically, MDM consolidates data from various data sources into a master reference file, which then feeds data back to the appli-cations, thereby creating accurate and consistent data across the enterprise. In IT at Work 3.1, participants in the health-care supply chain essentially developed a master reference file of its key data entities. A data entity is anything real or abstract about which a company wants to collect and store data. Master data entities are the main entities of a company, such as cus-tomers, products, suppliers, employees, and assets.IT at Work 3.1Data Errors Increase Costs DownstreamAt an insurance company, the cost of processing each claim is $1, but the average downstream cost due to errors in a claim is $300. The $300 average downstream costs included manual handling of exceptions, customer support calls initiated due to errors in claims, and reissuing corrected documents for any claims processed incor-rectly the first time. In addition, the company faced significant soft costs from regulatory risk, lost revenues due to customer dissat-isfaction, and overpayment on claims due to claims-processing errors. These soft costs are not included in the hard cost of $300.Every day health-care administrators and others throughout the health-care supply chain waste 24Ð30% of their time correct-ing data errors. Each transaction error costs $60 to $80 to correct. In addition, about 60% of all invoices among supply chain partners contain errors, and each invoice error costs $40 to $400 to recon-cile. Altogether, errors and conflicting data increase supply costs by 3Ð5%. In other words, each year billions of dollars are wasted in the health-care supply chain because of supply chain data disconnects, which refer to one organizationÕs IS not understanding data from anotherÕs IS.IT at Work Questions1. Why are the downstream costs of data errors so high?2. What are soft costs?3. Explain how soft costs might exceed hard costs. Give an example.
80 CHAPTER 3 Data Management, Data Analytics, and Business IntelligenceThree technologies involved in preparing raw data for analytics include ETL, change data capture (CDC), and data deduplication (Òdeduping the dataÓ). CDC processes capture the changes made at data sources and then apply those changes throughout enterprise data stores to keep data synchronized. CDC minimizes the resources required for ETL processes by only dealing with data changes. Deduping processes remove duplicates and standardize data formats, which helps to minimize storage and data synch.Building a Data WarehouseFigure 3.11 diagrams the process of building and using a data warehouse. The organizationÕs data from operational transaction processes systems are stored in operational databases Data warehouses that pull together data from disparate sources and databases across an entire enterprise are called enterprise data warehouses (EDWs).Data warehouses store data from various source systems and databases across an enterprise in order to run analytical queries against huge datasets collected over long time periods.The high cost of data warehouses can make them too expensive for a company to imple-ment. Data marts are lower-cost, scaled-down versions of a data warehouse that can be imple-mented in a much shorter time, for example, in less than 90 days. Data marts serve a specific department or function, such as finance, marketing, or operations. Since they store smaller amounts of data, they are faster and easier to use, and navigate.Procedures to Prepare EDW Data for AnalyticsConsider a bankÕs database. Every deposit, withdrawal, loan payment, or other transaction adds or changes data. The volatility caused by constant transaction processing makes data analysis difficultÑand the demands to process millions of transactions per second consume the databaseÕs processing power. In contrast, data in warehouses are relatively stable, as needed for analysis. Therefore, select data are moved from databases to a warehouse. Specifi-cally, data are as follows:1. Extracted from designated databases.2. Transformed by standardizing formats, cleaning the data, integrating them.3. Loaded into a data warehouse.These three proceduresÑextract, transform, and loadÑare referred to by their initials ETL (Figure 3.10). In a warehouse, data are read-only; that is, they do not change until the next ETL.Enterprise data warehouses (EDWs) is a data warehouse that integrates data from databases across an entire enterprise.© Vallepu/Shutterstock FIGURE 3.10 Data enter databases from transaction systems. Data of interest are extracted from databases, transformed to clean and standardize them, and then loaded into a data warehouse. These three processes are called ETL.
Data Warehouses 81Business Intelligence ManagementAnalyticsReportingQueriesData MiningInformationData MartsData MartDataWarehouseDataWarehouseBusinessIntelligenceEnvironmentETLprocessesTransactionSystemsOperationalDatabases FIGURE 3.11 Database, data warehouse and marts, and BI architecture.(left side of the figure). Not all data are transferred to the data warehouse. Frequently, only summary data are transferred. The warehouse organizes the data in multiple waysÑby subject, functional area, vendor, and product. As shown, the data warehouse architecture defines the flow of data that starts when data are captured by transaction systems; the source data are stored in transactional (operational) databases; ETL processes move data from databases into data warehouses or data marts, where the data are available for access, reports, and analysis.Real-Time Support from an Active Data WarehouseEarly data warehouse technology primarily supported strategic applications that did not require instant response time, direct customer interaction, or integration with operational systems. ETL might have been done once per week or once per month. But, demand for information to support real time customer interaction and operations leads to real-time data warehousing and analyticsÑknown as an active data warehouse (ADW). Massive increases in computing power, processing speeds, and memory made ADW possible. ADW are not designed to support executivesÕ strategic decision-making, but rather to support operations. For example, shipping companies like DHL use huge fleets of trucks to move millions of pack-ages. Every day and all day, operational managers make thousands of decisions that affect the bottom line, such as: ÒDo we need four trucks for this run?Ó ÒWith two drivers delayed by bad weather, do we need to bring in extra help?Ó Traditional data warehousing is not suited for immediate operational support, but active data warehousing is. For example, companies with an ADW are able to:¥ Interact with a customer to provide superior customer service.¥ Respond to business events in near real time.¥ Share up-to-date status data among merchants, vendors, customers, and associates.Here are some examples of how two companies use ADW.Capital One. Capital One uses its ADW to track each customerÕs Òprofitability scoreÓ to determine the level of customer service to provide for that person. Higher-cost personalized service is only given to those with high scores. For instance, when a customer calls Capital One,
82 CHAPTER 3 Data Management, Data Analytics, and Business Intelligencehe or she is asked to enter a credit card number, which is linked to a profitability score. Low-profit customers get a voice response unit only; high-profit customers are connected to a live customer service representative (CSR) because the company wants to minimize the risk of los-ing those customers.Travelocity. If you use Travelocity, an ADW is finding the best travel deals especially for you. The goal is to use ÒtodayÕs data todayÓ instead of ÒyesterdayÕs data today.Ó The online travel agencyÕs ADW analyzes your search history and destinations of interest; then predicts travel offers that you would most likely purchase. Offers are both relevant and timely to enhance your experience, which helps close the sale in a very competitive market. For example, when a cus-tomer is searching flights and hotels in Las Vegas, Travelocity recognizes the interestÑthe cus-tomer wants to go to Vegas. The ADW searches for the best-priced flights from all carriers, builds a few package deals, and presents them in real time to the customer. When customers see a personalized offer they are already interested in, the ADW helps generate a better customer experience. The real-time data-driven experience increases the conversion rate and sales.Data warehouse content can be delivered to decision-makers throughout the enterprise via the cloud or company-owned intranets. Users can view, query, and analyze the data and produce reports using Web browsers. These are extremely economical and effective data delivery methods.Data Warehousing Supports Action as well as Decisions Many organiza-tions built data warehouses because they were frustrated with inconsistent data that could not support decisions or actions. Viewed from this perspective, data warehouses are infrastruc-ture investments that companies make to support ongoing and future operations, including the following:¥ Marketing Keeps people informed of the status of products, marketing program effec-tiveness, and product line profitability; and allows them to take intelligent action to maxi-mize per-customer profitability.¥ Pricing and contracts Calculates costs accurately in order to optimize pricing of a contract. Without accurate cost data, prices may be below or too near to cost; or prices may be uncompetitive because they are too high.¥ Forecasting Estimates customer demand for products and services.¥ Sales Calculates sales profitability and productivity for all territories and regions; ana-lyzes results by geography, product, sales group, or individual.¥ Financial Provides real-time data for optimal credit terms, portfolio analysis, and actions that reduce risk or bad debt expense.Table 3.3 summarizes several successful applications of data warehouses. TABLE 3.3 Data Warehouse Applications by IndustryIndustryApplicationsAirlineCrew assignment, aircraft deployment, analysis of route profitability, and customer loyalty promotionsBanking and financialCustomer service, trend analysis, product and service services promotions, and reduction of IS expensesCredit cardCustomer service, new information service for a fee, fraud detectionDefense contractsTechnology transfer, production of military applicationsE-businessData warehouses with personalization capabilities, marketing/shopping preferences allowing for up-selling and cross-sellingGovernmentReporting on crime areas, homeland securityHealth careReduction of operational expensesInvestment and insuranceRisk management, market movements analysis, customer tendencies analysis, and portfolio managementRetail chainTrend analysis, buying pattern analysis, pricing policy, inventory control, sales promotions, and optimal distribution channel decision
Big Data Analytics and Data Discovery 83Questions1. What are the differences between databases and data warehouses?2. What are the differences between data warehouses and data marts?3. Explain ETL.4. Explain CDC.5. What is an advantage of an enterprise data warehouse (EDW)?6. Why might a company invest in a data mart instead of a data warehouse?7. What types of decisions can benefit from a data warehouse? 3.4 Big Data Analytics and Data DiscoveryLike mobile and cloud, big data and advanced data analytics are reshaping organizations and business processes to increase efficiency and improve performance. Research firm IDC fore-casts that big data and analytics spending will reach $187 billion in 2019 (Ovalsrud, 2016).Data analytics is an important tool across organizations, which helps users discover meaningful real-time insights to meet customer expectations, achieve better results and stay competitive. These deeper insights combined with human expertise enable people to recog-nize meaningful relationships more quickly or easily; and furthermore, realize the strategic implications of these situations. Imagine trying to make sense of the fast and vast data gener-ated by social media campaigns on Facebook or by sensors attached to machines or objects. Low-cost sensors make it possible to monitor all types of physical thingsÑwhile analytics makes it possible to understand those data in order to take action in real time. For example, sensors data can be analyzed in real time:¥ To monitor and regulate the temperature and climate conditions of perishable foods as they are transported from farm to supermarket.¥ To sniff for signs of spoilage of fruits and raw vegetables and detect the risk of E. coli con-tamination.¥ To track the condition of operating machinery and predict the probability of failure.¥ To track the wear of engines and determine when preventive maintenance is needed.In this section, you will learn about the value, challenges, and technologies involved in putting data and analytics to use to support decisions and action, together with examples of skill sets currently in high demand by organizations expanding their efforts to train, hire and retain com-petent data professionals (Career Insight 3.1).Big data is an extremely large data set that is too large or complex to be analyzed using traditional data processing techniques.Data analytics is a technique of qualitatively or quantitatively analyzing a data set to reveal patterns, trends, and associations that often relate to human behavior and interactions, to enhance productivity and business gain.Career Insight 3.1 Managing and Interpreting Big Data are High Demand SkillsConcerns about the analytics skills gap have existed for years. It is increasingly clear that the shortage isnÕt just in data scientists, but also data engineers, data analysts, and even the executives required to manage data initiatives. As a result, organizations and institu-tions are expanding their efforts to train, hire, and retain data pro-fessionals. Here are two of those skill sets that are in high demand.Big data specialists manage and package big data collec-tions, analyze, and interpret trends and present their findings in easy to understand ways to ÒCÓ-level executives. Those who can present the data through user-friendly data visualizations will be particularly sought after. Skills required of these big data profes-sionals include big data visualization, statistical analysis, Big Data reporting and presentation, Apache Hadoop, NoSQL Database Skills, and machine learning.Business intelligence (BI) analysts use tools and techniques to go beyond the numbers of big data and take action based on the findings of the big data analyses. Successful BI professionals use self-service BI platforms, like Tableau, SAP, Oracle BI, Micro-soft BI, and IBM Cognos, to create BI reports and visualizations to streamline the process and reduce reliance on additional staff. Additional skills of critical thinking, creative problem solving, effective communication, and presentations further enhance their attractiveness to employers (Hammond, 2015).
84 CHAPTER 3 Data Management, Data Analytics, and Business IntelligenceWhen the data set is too large or complex to be analyzed using traditional data processing applications, big data analytics tools are used. One of the biggest sectors of customer rela-tions relative to big data is customer value analytics (CVA). CVA studies the recent phenomenon that customers are more willing to use and purchase innovative products, services, and cus-tomer service channels while demanding an increasing amount of high-quality, personalized products. Companies and producers use big data analytics to capture this combination to transform the information into usable data to track and predict trends. If companies know what customers like, what makes them spend more, and when they are happy, they can leverage the information to keep them happy and provide better products and services.Companies can also use big data analytics to store and use their data across the supply chain. To maximize the effectiveness of data analytics, companies usually complete these objectives throughout their input transformation process:¥ Invest heavily in IT to collect, integrate, and analyze data from each store and sales unit.¥ Link these data to suppliersÕ databases, making it possible to adjust prices in real time, to reorder hot-selling items automatically, and to shift items from store to store easily.¥ Constantly test, integrate, and report information instantly available across the organizationÑ from the store floor to the CFOÕs office.These big data programs enable them to pinpoint improvement opportunities across the supply chainÑfrom purchasing to in-store availability management. Specifically, the companies are able to predict how customers will behave and use that knowledge to be prepared to respond quickly. According to Louis Columbus at Forbes, the market demand for big data analytics is about to hit its largest increase in history. Software for business analytics will increase by more than 50% by 2019. Prescriptive analytics software will be worth $1.1B in 2019, compared to its value of $415M in 2014. Since increasing the focus on customer demand trends, effectively entering new markets and producing better business models, and enhancing organizational performance are the most important goals for 21st-century companies, business analytics will be needed in almost every instance. Taking advantage of the benefits of business intelligence is allowing sectors like health care to compete in areas they would have not been able to enter before (Columbus, 2016).To be effective in using data analysis, organization must pay attention to the four Vs of analyticsÑvariety, volume, velocity, and veracityÑshown in Figure 3.12.Big data can have a dramatic impact on the success of any enterprise, or they can be a low-contributing major expense. However, success is not achieved with technology alone. Many com-panies are collecting and capturing huge amounts of data, but spending very little effort to ensure the veracity and value of data captured at the transactional stage or point of origin. Emphasis in this direction will not only increase confidence in the datasets, but also significantly reduce the efforts for analytics and enhance the quality of decision-making. Success depends also on ensuring that you avoid invalid assumptions, which can be done by testing the assumptions during analysis.Big data analytics process of examining large and varied data sets to identify hidden patterns and correlations, market trends, customer preferences and other useful information to enable better business decisions.VarietyVolumeVelocityVeracityValidating data and extracting insights thatmanagers and workers can trust are key factors of successful analytics. Trust in analytics has grownmore difficult with the explosion of data sources Speed of access reports that are drawn fromdata defines the difference between effectiveand ineffective analyticsLarge volumes of structured and unstructured data are analyzedThe analytic environment has expandedfrom pulling data from enterprise systems to include big data unstructured sources8 cm12 cmFlowerphotos/UniversalImages Group/GettyImagesiQoncept/Shutterstock6 cmVelocityAcceleration FIGURE 3.12 The four Vs of data analytics.
Big Data Analytics and Data Discovery 85Human Expertise and Judgment are NeededHuman expertise and judgment are needed to interpret the output of analytics (refer to Figure 3.13). Data are worthless if you cannot analyze, interpret, understand, and apply the results in context. This brings up several challenges:¥ Data need to be prepared for analysis For example, data that are incomplete or dupli-cated need to be fixed.¥ Dirty data degrade the value of analytics The ÒcleanlinessÓ of data is very important to data mining and analysis projects. Analysts have complained that data analytics is like janitorial work because they spend so much time on manual, error-prone processes to clean the data. Large data volumes and variety mean more data that are dirty and harder to handle.¥ Data must be put into meaningful context If the wrong analysis or datasets are used, the output would be nonsense, as in the example of the Super Bowl winners and stock market performance. Stated in reverse, managers need context in order to understand how to interpret traditional and big data.HumanexpertiseDataanalyticsHigh-quality dataTrends orrelationshipsContext to understand what the numbersrepresent and howto interpret themWhat action to take++ FIGURE 3.13 Data analytics, human expertise, and high-quality data are needed to obtain actionable information.IT at Work 3.2 describes how big data analytics, collaboration, and human expertise have transformed the new drug development process.Machine-generated sensor data are becoming a larger proportion of big data (Figure 3.14), according to a research report by IDC (2015). It is predicted that these data will increase to two-thirds of all data by 2020, representing a significant increase from the 11% level of 2005. In addition to its growth as a portion of analyzed data, the market for sensor data will increase to $1.7 trillion in 2020.On the consumer side, a significant factor in this market is the boom in wearable technologyÑproducts like FitBit and the Apple Watch. Users no longer even have to input data to these devices as it is automatically gathered and tracked in real time. On the public sector and enterprise side, sensor data and the Internet of Things (IoT) are being used in the advancement of IT-enabled business processes like automated factories and distribution centers and IT-enabled products like the wearable tech (IDC, 2015). Federal health reform efforts have pushed health-care organizations toward big data and ana-lytics. These organizations are planning to use big data analytics to support revenue cycle management, resource utilization, fraud prevention, health management, and quality improvement.Hadoop and MapReduce Big data volumes exceed the processing capacity of conventional database infrastructures. A widely used processing platform is Apache Hadoop.
86 CHAPTER 3 Data Management, Data Analytics, and Business IntelligenceIt places no conditions on the structure of the data it can process. Hadoop distributes com-puting problems across a number of servers. Hadoop implements MapReduce in two stages:1. Map stage MapReduce breaks up the huge dataset into smaller subsets; then distributes the subsets among multiple servers where they are partially processed.2. Reduce stage The partial results from the map stage are then recombined and made available for analytic tools.IT at Work 3.2Researchers Use Genomics and Big Data in Drug DiscoveryDrug development is a high-risk business. Almost 90% of new drugs ultimately fail to reach the market. One of the challenges has been the amount, variety, and complexity of the data that need to be systematically analyzed. Big data tech-nologies and privateÐpublic partnerships have made biomedical analytics feasible.New Drug Development Had Been Slow and ExpensiveBiotechnology advances have produced massive data on the biological causes of disease. However, analyzing these data and converting discoveries into treatments are much more dif-ficult. Not all biomedical insights lead to effective drug targets, and choosing the wrong target leads to failures late in the drug development process, costing time, money, and lives. Devel-oping a new drugÑfrom early discovery through Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approvalÑtakes over a decade. As a consequence, each success ends up costing more than $1 bil-lion. Sometimes much more! For example, by the time Pfizer Inc., Johnson & Johnson, and Eli Lilly & Co. announced their new drugs had only limited benefit for AlzheimerÕs patients in late-stage testing, the industry had spent more than $30 billion researching amyloid plaque in the brain.Reducing Risk of FailureDrug makers, governments, and academic researchers have partnered to improve the odds of drug success and after years of decline, the pharmaceutical industry is beginning to experience a greater rate of success with its clinical trials. Partnerships bring together the expertise of scientists from biology, chemistry, bio-informatics, genomics, and big data. They are using big data to identify biological targets for drugs and eliminate failures before they reach the human testing stage and many anticipate that big data and the analytics that go with it could be a key element in further increasing the success rates in pharmaceutical R&D (Cattell et al., 2016).GlaxoSmithKline, the European Bioinformatics Institute (EBI), and the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute established the Centre for Therapeutic Target Validation (CTTV) near Cambridge, England. CTTV partners combine cutting-edge genomics with the ability to collect and analyze massive amounts of biological data. By not developing drugs that target the wrong biological pathways, they avoid wasting billions of research dollars.With biology now a data-driven discipline, collaborations such as CTTV are needed to improve efficiencies, cut costs, and pro-vide the best opportunities for success. Other privateÐpublic part-nerships that had formed to harness drug research and big data include the following:¥ Accelerating Medicines Partnership and U.S. National Insti-tutes of Health (NIH) In February 2014 the NIH announced that the agency, 10 pharmaceutical companies, and nonprofit organizations were investing $230 million in the Accelerating Medicines Partnership.¥ Target Discovery Institute and Oxford University Oxford University opened the Target Discovery Institute in 2013. Target Discovery helps to identify drug targets and molecular inter-actions at a critical point in a disease-causing pathwayÑthat is, when those diseases will respond to drug therapy. Researchers try to understand complex biological processes by analyzing image data that have been acquired at the microscopic scale.ÒThe big data opportunity is especially compelling in com-plex business environments experiencing an explosion in the types and volumes of available data. In the health-care and pharma-ceutical industries, data growth is generated from several sources, including the R&D process itself, retailers, patients and caregivers. Effectively utilizing these data will help pharmaceutical companies better identify new potential drug candidates and develop them into effective, approved and reimbursed medicines more quicklyÓ (Cattell et al., 2016).IT at Work Questions1. What are the consequences of new drug development failures?2. What factors have made biomedical analytics feasible? Why?3. Large-scale big data analytics are expensive. How can the drug makers justify investments in big data?4. Why would drug makers such as Glaxo and Pfizer be willing to share data given the fierce competition in their industry?Sources: Compiled from Cattell et al. (2016), HealthCanal (2014), Kitamura (2014), and NIH (2014).
Big Data Analytics and Data Discovery 87To store data, Hadoop has its own distributed file system, Hadoop File System (HDFS), which functions in three stages:¥ Loads data into HDFS.¥ Performs the MapReduce operations.¥ Retrieves results from HDFS.Figure 3.15 diagrams how Facebook uses database technology and Hadoop. IT at Work 3.3 describes how First Wind has applied big data analytics to improve the operations of its wind farms and to support sustainability of the planet by reducing environmentally damaging carbon emissions.© Kittichais/iStockphoto FIGURE 3.14 Machine-generated data from physical objects are becoming a much larger portion of big data and analytics.MySQL databases capture andstore FacebookÕs data.Results are transferred back intoMySQL for use in pages that areloaded for members. Members see customized Facebookpages.Data are loaded into Hadoop whereprocessing occurs, such as identifyingrecommendations for you based onyour friendsÕ interests. FIGURE 3.15 FacebookÕs MySQL database and Hadoop technology provide customized pages for its members.
88 CHAPTER 3 Data Management, Data Analytics, and Business IntelligenceData and Text MiningData and text mining are different from DBMS and data analytics. As you have read earlier in this chapter, a DBMS supports queries to extract data or get answers from huge databases. But, in order to perform queries in a DBMS you must first know the question you want to be answered. You also have read that Data Analytics describes the entire function of applying technologies, algorithms, human expertise, and judgment. Data and text mining are specific analytic tech-niques that allow users to discover knowledge that they didnÕt know existed in the databases.Data mining software enables users to analyze data from various dimensions or angles, cat-egorize them, and find correlations or patterns among fields in the data warehouse. Up to 75% of an organizationÕs data are nonstructured word-processing documents, social media, text mes-sages, audio, video, images and diagrams, faxes and memos, call center or claims notes, and so on.IT at Work 3.4 describes one example of how the U.S. government is using data mining software to continuously improve its detection and deterrence systems.Text mining is a broad category that involves interpreting words and concepts in con-text. Any customer becomes a brand advocate or adversary by freely expressing opinions and attitudes that reach millions of other current or prospective customers on social media. Text mining helps companies tap into the explosion of customer opinions expressed online. Social commentary and social media are being mined for sentiment analysis or to understand consumer intent. Innovative companies know they could be more successful in meeting their customersÕ needs, if they just understood them better. Tools and techniques for analyzing text, documents, and other nonstructured content are available from several vendors.Combining data and text mining can create even greater value. Burns (2016) pointed out that mining text or nonstructural data enables organizations to forecast the future instead of merely reporting the past. He also noted that forecasting methods using existing structured data and non-structured text from both internal and external sources provide the best view of what lies ahead.Creating Business ValueEnterprises invest in data mining tools to add business value. Business value falls into three categories, as shown in Figure 3.16.IT at Work 3.3Industrial Project Relies on Big Data AnalyticsWind power can play a major role in meeting AmericaÕs rising demand for electricityÑas much as 20% by 2030. Using more domestic wind power would reduce the nationÕs dependence on foreign sources of natural gas and also decrease carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions that contribute to adverse climate change.First Wind is an independent North American renewable energy company focused on the development, financing, construction, ownership, and operation of utility-scale power projects in the United States. Based in Boston, First Wind has developed and oper-ates 980 megawatts (MW) of generating capacity at 16 wind energy projects in Maine, New York, Vermont, Utah, Washington, and Hawaii. First Wind has a large network of sensors embedded in the wind turbines, which generate huge volumes of data continuously. The data are transmitted in real time and analyzed on a 24/7 real time basis to understand the performance of each wind turbine.Sensors collect massive amounts of data on the temperature, wind speeds, location, and pitch of the blades. The data are ana-lyzed to study the operation of each turbine in order to adjust them to maximum efficiency. By analyzing sensor data, highly refined measurements of wind speeds are possible. In wintry conditions, turbines can detect when they are icing up, and speed up or change pitch to knock off the ice. In the past, when it was extremely windy, turbines in the entire farm had been turned off to prevent damage from rotating too fast. Now First Wind can identify the specific por-tion of turbines that need to be shut down. Based on certain alerts, decisions often need to be taken within a few seconds.Upgrades on 123 turbines on two wind farms have improved energy output by 3%, or about 120 megawatt hours per turbine per year. That improvement translates to $1.2 million in additional revenue a year from these two farms.IT at Work Questions1. What are the benefits of big data analytics to First Wind?2. What are the benefits of big data analytics to the environ-ment and the nation?3. How do big data analytics impact the performance of wind farms?Sources: Compiled from www.FirstWind.com (2014) and U.S. Department of Energy (2015).
Big Data Analytics and Data Discovery 89Here are some brief cases illustrating the types of business value created by data and text mining.1. Using pattern analysis, Argo Corporation, an agricultural equipment manufacturer based in Georgia, was able to optimize product configuration options for farm machinery and real-time customer demand to determine the optimal base configurations for its machines. As a result, Argo reduced product variety by 61% and cut days of inventory by 81% while still maintaining its service levels.2. The mega-retailer Walmart wanted its online shoppers to find what they were looking for faster. Walmart analyzed clickstream data from its 45 million monthly online shoppers; then combined that data with product- and category-related popularity scores. The popu-larity scores had been generated by text mining the retailerÕs social media streams. Lessons learned from the analysis were integrated into the Polaris search engine used by custom-ers on the companyÕs website. Polaris has yielded a 10% to 15% increase in online shop-pers completing a purchase, which equals roughly $1 billion in incremental online sales.3. McDonaldÕs bakery operation replaced manual equipment with high-speed photo analy-ses to inspect thousands of buns per minute for color, size, and sesame seed distribution. Automatically, ovens and baking processes adjust instantly to create uniform buns and reduce thousands of pounds of waste each year. Another food products company also uses photo analyses to sort every french fry produced in order to optimize quality.4. Infinity Insurance discovered new insights that it applied to improve the performance of its fraud operation. The insurance company text mined years of adjuster reports to look for key drivers of fraudulent claims. As a result, the company reduced fraud by 75%, and eliminated marketing to customers with a high likelihood of fraudulent claims.Making more informed decisions at the time they need to be madeDiscovering unknown insights, patterns, or relationshipsAutomating and streamlining or digitizing business processes FIGURE 3.16 Business value falls into three buckets.IT at Work 3.4DoD and Homeland Security Use Data Mining Spy Machine for Threat IntelligenceDigital Reasoning, a large player in the field of big data analytics has upgraded its software that is currently contracted by the Department of Defense and Homeland Security. Synthesys 4, the name for the brand new software, allows the agencies to monitor threats in the homeland and gather data about potential attacks. Ironically, one of the main tactics employed with this software is to track and deter potential employees or contractors who have access to it. Vice President of Federal Programs Eric Hansen says that the software excels at monitoring behavioral patterns, language, and data to act and respond like a human detective would to a potential threat.While Digital Reasoning also contracts out to other organiza-tions like Goldman Sachs, the US government is probably its most interesting and important client. Using automatic computer software to analyze data is much more effective at hindering attacks and quicker for analyzing large amounts of data about potential threats domestically and abroad. For instance, the software knows exactly what to look for without being bogged down and distracted by super-fluous data. As available data and analytical capabilities increase, the US government is continuously aiming to improve its detection and deterrence systems using software like Synthesys 4 (Bing, 2016).IT at Work Questions1. What is Synthesys 4?2. How does data mining help the DoD achieve its mission?3. What are the main threats to the governmentÕs data sources?4. Why does the government see Synthesys 4 as essential to its threat deterrence measures?Sources: Compiled from Bing (2016) and syntheses.net (2017).
90 CHAPTER 3 Data Management, Data Analytics, and Business IntelligenceText Analytics ProcedureWith text analytics, information is extracted from large quantities of various types of textual information. The basic steps involved in text analytics include the following:1. Exploring First, documents are explored. This might occur in the form of simple word counts in a document collection, or by manually creating topic areas to categorize docu-ments after reading a sample of them. For example, what are the major types of issues (brake or engine failure) that have been identified in recent automobile warranty claims? A challenge of the exploration effort is misspelled or abbreviated words, acronyms, or slang.2. Preprocessing Before analysis or the automated categorization of content, the text may need to be preprocessed to standardize it to the extent possible. As in traditional analy-sis, up to 80% of preprocessing time can be spent preparing and standardizing the data. Misspelled words, abbreviations, and slang may need to be transformed into consistent terms. For instance, BTW would be standardized to Òby the wayÓ and Òleft voice messageÓ could be tagged as Òlvm.Ó3. Categorizing and modeling Content is then ready to be categorized. Categorizing messages or documents from information contained within them can be achieved using statistical models and business rules. As with traditional model development, sample documents are examined to train the models. Additional documents are then processed to validate the accuracy and precision of the model, and finally new documents are evalu-ated using the final model (scored). Models can then be put into production for the auto-mated processing of new documents as they arrive.Analytics Vendor RankingsAnalytics applications cover business intelligence functions sold as a standalone application for decision support or embedded in an integrated solution. The introduction of intuitive deci-sion support tools, dashboards, and data visualization (discussed in detail in Chapter 11) have TABLE 3.4 Top Analytics VendorsRankVendorFocusProducts1SAPMarket lines of analytics products that cove BI and report-ing, predictive analysis, performance management and governance, risk and compliance applicationsSAP Business Objects Predictive AnalyticsSAP Business Objects BISAP Business Objects Planning and Consolidation2SASOffer simple desktop solutions to high performance dis-tributed processing solutionsSAS Analytics ProSAS Enterprise MinderSAS Visual AnalyticsSAS Customer Intelligence 3603IBMAllow users to quickly discover patterns and meanings in data with guided data discovery, automated predictive analytics, one-click analysis, self-service dashboards, and a natural language dialogueWatson Analytics4OracleOffer a complete solution for connecting and collabo-rating with analytics in the cloud. Products allow users to aggregate, experiment, manage, and analyze/actOracle Data IntegratorOracle Big Data Cloud ServiceOracle R Advanced Analytics for HadoopBI Cloud ServiceOracle Stream Explore5MicrosoftProvide a broad range of products from standalone solu-tions to integrated tools that provide data preparation, data discovery, and interactive dashboard capabilities in a single toolExcelHDInsightMachine LearningStream AnalyticsPower BI Embedded
Business Intelligence and Electronic Records Management 91added some interesting interactive components to big data analytics to bring the data to life and enable nonexperts to use it.Organizations invest in analytics, BI, and data/text mining applications based on new fea-tures and capabilities beyond those offered by their legacy systems. Analytics vendors offer everything from simple-to-use reporting tools to highly sophisticated software for tackling the most complex data analysis problems. A list of the top five analytics and BI application vendors are shown in Table 3.4.Questions1. Why are human expertise and judgment important to data analytics? Give an example.2. What is the relationship between data quality and the value of analytics?3. Why do data need to be put into a meaningful context?4. How can manufacturers and health care benefit from data analytics?5. How does data mining provide value? Give an example.6. What is text mining?7. What are the basic steps involved in text analytics? 3.5 Business Intelligence and Electronic Records ManagementContinuing developments in data analytics and business intelligence (BI) make it increas-ingly necessary for organizations to be aware of the differences between these terms and the different ways in which they add value in an organization. The field of BI started in the late 1980s and has been a key to competitive advantage across industries and in enterprises of all sizes. Unlike data analytics that has predictive capabilities, BI is a comprehensive term that refers to analytics and reporting tools that were traditionally used to determine trends in his-torical data.The key distinction between data analytics and BI is that analytics uses algorithms to statis-tically determine the relationships between data whereas BI presents data insights established by data analytics in reports, easy-to-use dashboards, and interactive visualizations. BI can also make it easier for users to ask data-related questions and obtain results that are presented in a way that they can easily understand.What started as a tool to support sales, marketing, and customer service departments has widely evolved into an enterprise wide strategic platform. While BI software is used in the operational management of divisions and business processes, they are also used to support strategic corporate decision-making. The dramatic change that has taken effect over the last few years is the growth in demand for operational intelligence across multiple systems and businessesÑincreasing the number of people who need access to increasing amounts of data. Complex and competitive business conditions do not leave much slack for mistakes.Unfortunately, some companies are not able to use their data efficiently, creating a higher cost to gather information than the benefits it provides. Luckily, BI software brings decision-making information to businesses in as little as two clicks. Small businesses have a shared interest with large corporations to enlist BI to help with decision-making, but they are usually unequipped to build data centers and use funds to hire analysts and IT consultants. However, small business BI software is rapidly growing in the analytics field, and it is increasingly cheaper to implement it as a decision-making tool. Small businesses do not always have workers spe-cialized in certain areas, but BI software makes it easy for all employees to analyze the data and make decisions (King, 2016).Business intelligence (BI) is a set of tools and techniques for acquiring and transforming raw data into meaningful and useful information for business analysis purposes in the forms of reports, dashboards, or interactive visualizations.
92 CHAPTER 3 Data Management, Data Analytics, and Business IntelligenceBusiness Benefits of BIBI provides data at the moment of value to a decision-makerÑenabling it to extract crucial facts from enterprise data in real time or near real time. A BI solution with a well-designed dash-board, for example, provides retailers with better visibility into inventory to make better deci-sions about what to order, how much, and when in order to prevent stock-outs or minimize inventory that sits on warehouse shelves.Companies use BI solutions to determine what questions to ask and find answers to them. BI tools integrate and consolidate data from various internal and external sources and then process them into information to make smart decisions. BI answers questions such as these: Which products have the highest repeat sales rate in the last six months? Do customer likes on Facebook relate to product purchase? How does the sales trend break down by product group over the last five years? What do daily sales look like in each of my sales regions?According to The Data Warehousing Institute, BI Òunites data, technology, analytics, and human knowledge to optimize business decisions and ultimately drive an enterpriseÕs suc-cess. BI programs usually combine an enterprise data warehouse and a BI platform or tool set to transform data into usable, actionable business informationÓ (The Data Warehousing Institute, 2014). For many years, managers have relied on business analytics to make better-informed decisions. Multiple surveys and studies agree on BIÕs growing importance in analyzing past performance and identifying opportunities to improve future performance.Common Challenges: Data Selection and QualityCompanies cannot analyze all of their dataÑand much of them would not add value. There-fore, an unending challenge is how to determine which data to use for BI from what seems like unlimited options (Oliphant, 2016). One purpose of a BI strategy is to provide a framework for selecting the most relevant data without limiting options to integrate new data sources. Information overload is a major problem for executives and for employees. Another common challenge is data quality, particularly with regard to online information, because the source and accuracy might not be verifiable.Aligning BI Strategy with Business StrategyReports and dashboards are delivery tools, but they may not be delivering business intelligence. To get the greatest value out of BI, the CIO needs to work with the CFO and other business lead-ers to create a BI governance program whose mission is to achieve the following (Ladley, 2016):1. Clearly articulate business strategies.2. Deconstruct the business strategies into a set of specific goals and objectivesÑthe targets.3. Identify the key performance indicators (KPIs) that will be used to measure progress toward each target.4. Prioritize the list of KPIs.5. Create a plan to achieve goals and objectives based on the priorities.6. Estimate the costs needed to implement the BI plan.7. Assess and update the priorities based on business results and changes in business strategy.After completing these activities, BI analysts can identify the data to use in BI and the source systems. This is a business-driven development approach that starts with a business strategy and work backward to identify data sources and the data that need to be acquired and analyzed.Businesses want KPIs that can be utilized by both departmental users and management. In addition, users want real-time access to these data so that they can monitor processes with the smallest possible latency and take corrective action whenever KPIs deviate from their target
Business Intelligence and Electronic Records Management 93values. To link strategic and operational perspectives, users must be able to drill down from highly consolidated or summarized figures into the detailed numbers from which they were derived to perform in-depth analyses.BI Architecture and AnalyticsBI architecture is undergoing technological advances in response to big data and the perfor-mance demands of end-users (Wise, 2016). BI vendors are facing the challenges of social, sen-sor, and other newer data types that must be managed and analyzed. One technology advance that can help handle big data is BI in the cloud. Figure 3.17 lists the key factors contributing to the increased use of BI. It can be hosted on a public or private cloud. Although cloud services come with more upkeep, optimizing the service and customizing it for oneÕs company brings undeniable benefits in data security. With a public cloud, a service provider hosts the data and/or software that are accessed via an Internet connection. For private clouds, the company hosts its own data and software, but uses cloud-based technologies.have created demand for effortless 24/7 access toinsights.Smart DevicesEverywherewhen they provide insightthat supports decisionsand action.Data are BigBusinesshelp to ask questions thatwere previously unknownand unanswerable.Advanced Bl andAnalyticsare providing low-cost andflexible solutions.Cloud Enabled Bland Analytics FIGURE 3.17 Four factors contributing to increased use of BI.For cloud-based BI, a popular option offered by a growing number of BI tool vendors is software as a service (SaaS). MicroStrategy offers MicroStrategy Cloud, which provides fast deployment with reduced project risks and costs. This cloud approach appeals to small and midsized companies that have limited IT staff and want to carefully control costs. The potential downsides include slower response times, security risks, and backup risks.Competitive Analytics in Practice: CarMax CarMax, Inc. is the nationÕs larg-est retailer of used cars and for a decade has remained one of FORTUNE MagazineÕs Ò100 Best Companies to Work For.Ó CarMax was the fastest retailer in U.S. history to reach $1 billion in revenues. In 2016 the company had over $15 billion in net sales and operating revenues, rep-resenting a 6.2% increase over the prior yearÕs results. The company grew rapidly because of its compelling customer offerÑno-haggle prices and quality guarantees backed by a 125-point inspection that became an industry benchmarkÑand auto financing. As of November 30, 2016, CarMax operated in 169 locations across 39 U.S. states and had more than 22,000 full- and part-time employees.CarMax continues to enhance and refine its information systems, which it believes to be a core competitive advantage. CarMaxÕs IT includes the following:¥ A proprietary IS that captures, analyzes, interprets, and distributes data about the cars CarMax sells and buys.¥ Data analytics applications that track every purchase; number of test drives and credit applications per car; color preferences in every demographic and region.
94 CHAPTER 3 Data Management, Data Analytics, and Business Intelligence¥ Proprietary store technology that provides management with real-time data about every aspect of store operations, such as inventory management, pricing, vehicle transfers, wholesale auctions, and sales consultant productivity.¥ An advanced inventory management system that helps management anticipate future inventory needs and manage pricing.Throughout CarMax, analytics are used as a strategic asset and insights gained from ana-lytics are available to everyone who needs them.Electronic Records ManagementAll organizations create and retain business records. A record is documentation of a business event, action, decision, or transaction. Examples are contracts, research and development, accounting source documents, memos, customer/client communications, hiring and promo-tion decisions, meeting minutes, social posts, texts, e-mails, website content, database records, and paper and electronic files. Business documents such as spreadsheets, e-mail messages, and word-processing documents are a type of record. Most records are kept in electronic for-mat and maintained throughout their life cycleÑfrom creation to final archiving or destruction by an electronic records management system (ERMS).One application of an ERMS would be in a company that is required by law to retain finan-cial documents for at least seven years, product designs for many decades, and e-mail mes-sages about marketing promotions for a year. The major ERM tools are workflow software, authoring tools, scanners, and databases. ERM systems have query and search capabilities so documents can be identified and accessed like data in a database. These systems range from those designed to support a small workgroup to full-featured, Web-enabled enterprise-wide systems.Legal Duty to Retain Business RecordsCompanies need to be prepared to respond to an audit, federal investigation, lawsuit, or any other legal action against them. Types of lawsuits against companies include patent violations, product safety negligence, theft of intellectual property, breach of contract, wrongful termina-tion, harassment, discrimination, and many more.Because senior management must ensure that their companies comply with legal and regulatory duties, managing electronic records (e-records) is a strategic issue for organizations in both the public and private sectors. The success of ERM depends greatly on a partnership of many key players, namely, senior management, users, records managers, archivists, adminis-trators, and most importantly, IT personnel. Properly managed, records are strategic assets. Improperly managed or destroyed, they become liabilities.ERM Best PracticesEffective ERM systems capture all business data and documents at their first touchpointÑdata centers, laptops, the mailroom, at customer sites, or remote offices. Records enter the enter-prise in multiple waysÑfrom online forms, bar codes, sensors, websites, social sites, copiers, e-mails, and more. In addition to capturing the entire document as a whole, important data from within a document can be captured and stored in a central, searchable repository. In this way, the data are accessible to support informed and timely business decisions.In recent years, organizations such as the Association for Information and Image Management (AIIM), National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), and ARMA International (formerly the Association of Records Managers and Administrators) have created and published industry standards for document and records management. Numerous best Electronic records management system (ERMS) consists of hardware and software that manage and archive electronic documents and image paper documents; then index and store them according to company policy.
Business Intelligence and Electronic Records Management 95practices articles, and links to valuable sources of information about document and records management, are available on their websites. The IT Toolbox describes ARMAÕs eight generally accepted recordkeeping principles framework.ERM BenefitsDepartments or companies whose employees spend most of their day filing or retrieving docu-ments or warehousing paper records can reduce costs significantly with ERM. These systems minimize the inefficiencies and frustration associated with managing paper documents and workflows. However, they do not create a paperless office as had been predicted.An ERM can help a business to become more efficient and productive by the following:¥ Enabling the company to access and use the content contained in documents.¥ Cutting labor costs by automating business processes.¥ Reducing the time and effort required to locate information the business needs to support decision-making.¥ Improving the security of content, thereby reducing the risk of intellectual property theft.¥ Minimizing the costs associated with printing, storing, and searching for content.When workflows are digital, productivity increases, costs decrease, compliance obli-gations are easier to verify, and green computing becomes possible. Green computing is an initiative to conserve our valuable natural resources by reducing the effects of our computer usage on the environment. You can read about green computing and the related topics of reducing an organizationÕs carbon footprint, sustainability, and ethical and social responsibil-ities in Chapter 14.ERM for Disaster Recovery, Business Continuity, and ComplianceBusinesses also rely on their ERM system for disaster recovery and business continuity, secu-rity, knowledge sharing and collaboration, and remote and controlled access to documents. Because ERM systems have multilayered access capabilities, employees can access and change only the documents they are authorized to handle.When companies select an ERM to meet compliance requirements, they should ask the following questions:1. Does the software meet the organizationÕs needs? For example, can the DMS be installed on the existing network? Can it be purchased as a service?2. Is the software easy to use and accessible from Web browsers, office applications, and e-mail applications? If not, people will not use it.3. Does the software have lightweight, modern Web and graphical user interfaces that effec-tively support remote users?4. Before selecting a vendor, it is important to examine workflows and how data, documents, and communications flow throughout the company. For example, know which informa-tion on documents is used in business decisions. Once those needs and requirements are identified, they guide the selection of technology that can support the input typesÑthat is, capture and index them so they can be archived consistently and retrieved on-demand.IT at Work 3.5 describes how several companies currently use ERM. Simply creating backups of records is not sufficient because the content would not be organized and indexed to retrieve them accurately and easily. The requirement to manage recordsÑregardless of whether they are physical or digitalÑis not new.
96 CHAPTER 3 Data Management, Data Analytics, and Business IntelligenceKey Termsactive data warehouse (ADW) 81big data 83big data analytics 84business analytics 68business intelligence (BI) 91business record 94business-driven development approach 92centralized database 73change data capture (CDC) 80data analytics 83data entity 79data management 69data marts 80data mining 88data warehouse 67database 69database management system (DBMS) 70decision model 68declarative language 70dirty data 75distributed database 73electronic records management system (ERMS) 94extract, transform and load (ETL) 80enterprise data warehouses (EDWs) 80eventual consistency 70fault tolerance 72Hadoop 85information overload 92immediate consistency 70latency 70MapReduce 86master data management (MDM) 78NoSQL 72online transaction processing (OLTP) systems 71online analytical processing (OLAP) systems 72petabyte 66query 70relational database 70relational management systems (RDBMSs) 70sentiment analysis 88scalability 72structured query language (SQL) 70text mining 88IT at Work 3.5ERM ApplicationsHere some examples of how companies use ERM in the health-care, finance, and education sectors:¥ The Surgery Center of Baltimore stores all medical records electronically, providing instant patient information to doc-tors and nurses anywhere and at any time. The system also routes charts to the billing department, which can then scan and e-mail any relevant information to insurance providers and patients. The ERM system helps maintain the required audit trail, including the provision of records when they are needed for legal purposes. How valuable has ERM been to the center? Since it was implemented, business processes have been expedited by more than 50%, the costs of these processes have been significantly reduced, and the morale of office employees in the center has improved noticeably.¥ American Express (AMEX) uses TELEform, developed by Alchemy and Cardiff Software, to collect and process more than 1 million customer satisfaction surveys every year. The data are collected in templates that consist of more than 600 different survey forms in 12 languages and 11 countries. AMEX integrated TELEform with AMEXÕs legacy system, which enables it to distribute processed results to many managers. Because the survey forms are now readily accessible, AMEX has reduced the number of staff who process these forms from 17 to 1, thereby saving the company more than $500,000 a year.¥ The University of Cincinnati provides authorized access to the personnel files of 12,000 active employees and tens of thou-sands of retirees. The university receives more than 75,000 queries about personnel records every year and then must search more than 3 million records to answer these queries. Using a microfilm system to find answers took days. The solution was an ERM that digitized all paper and microfilm documents, without help from the IT department, making them available via the Internet and the universityÕs intranet. Authorized employees access files using a browser.IT at Work Questions1. What are the business benefits of BI?2. What are two-related challenges that must be resolved for BI to produce meaningful insights?3. What are the steps in a BI governance program?4. What does it mean to drill down into data, and why is it important?5. What four factors are contributing to increased use of BI?6. Why is ERM a strategic issue rather than simply an IT issue?7. Why might a company have a legal duty to retain records? Give an example.8. Why is creating backups an insufficient way to manage an organizationÕs documents?
Assuring Your Learning 97Assuring Your LearningDiscuss: Critical Thinking Questions1. What are the functions of databases and data warehouses?2. How does data quality impact business performance?3. List three types of waste or damages that data errors can cause.4. What is the role of a master reference file?5. Give three examples of business processes or operations that would benefit significantly from having detailed real-time or near real-time data and identify the benefits.6. What are the tactical and strategic benefits of big data analytics?7. Explain the four Vs of data analytics.8. Select an industry. Explain how an organization in that indus-try could improve consumer satisfaction through the use of data warehousing.9. Explain the principle of 90/90 data use.10. Why is master data management (MDM) important in companies with multiple data sources?11. Why would a company invest in a data mart instead of a data warehouse?12. Why is data mining important?13. What are the operational benefits and competitive advantages of business intelligence?14. How can ERM decrease operating costs?Explore: Online and Interactive Exercises1. Visit www.YouTube.com and search for SAS Enterprise Miner Software Demo in order to assess the features and benefits of SAS Enterprise Miner. The URL is https://www.youtube.com/watch?v= Nj4L5RFvkMg.a. View the SAS Enterprise Miner Software demo, which is about seven minutes long.b. Based on what you learn in the demo, what skills or expertise are needed to build a predictive model?c. At the end of the demo, you hear the presenter say that ÒSAS Enterprise Miner allows end-users to easily develop predictive models and to generate scoring to make better decisions about future business events.Ó Do you agree that SAS Enterprise Miner makes it easy to develop such models? Explain.d. Do you agree that if an expert develops predictive models, it will help managers make better decisions about future business events? Explain.e. Based on your answers to (c), (d), and (e), under what condi-tions would you recommend SAS Enterprise Miner?2. Research two electronic records management vendors, such as Iron Mountain.a. What are the retention recommendations made by the vendors? Why?b. What services or solutions does each vendor offer?3. View the ÒEdgenet Gain Real time Access to Retail Product Data with In-Memory TechnologyÓ video on YouTube. Explain the benefit of in-memory technology.Analyze & Decide: Apply IT Concepts to Business Decisions1. Visit www.Oracle.com. Click the Solutions tab to open the menu; then click Data Warehousing under Technology Solutions.a. Scroll down to view ÒProcter & Gamble Drives 30X Performance Gains with Oracle Exadata.Ób. Describe the Procter & GambleÕs challenges, why it selected Oracle Exadata, and how that solution met their challenge.2. Visit www.Teradata.com. Click Resources and open ÒVideos.Ó Select one of the videos related to data analytics. Explain the benefits of the solution chosen.3. Spring Street Company (SSC) wanted to reduce the Òhidden costsÓ associated with its paper-intensive processes. Employees jokingly pre-dicted that if the windows were open on a very windy day, total chaos
98 CHAPTER 3 Data Management, Data Analytics, and Business Intelligencewould ensue as thousands of papers started to fly. If a flood, fire, or windy day occurred, the business would literally grind to a halt. The companyÕs accountant, Sam Spring, decided to calculate the costs of its paper-driven processes to identify their impact on the bottom line. He recognized that several employees spent most of their day filing or retrieving documents. In addition, there were the monthly costs to warehouse old paper records. Sam measured the activities related to the handling of printed reports and paper files. His average estimates were as follows:a. Dealing with a file: It takes an employee 12 minutes to walk to the records room, locate a file, act on it, refile it, and return to his or her desk. Employees do this 4 times per day (five days per week).b. Number of employees: 10 full-time employees perform the functions.c. Lost document replacement: Once per day, a document gets ÒlostÓ (destroyed, misplaced, or covered with massive coffee stains) and must be recreated. The total cost of replacing each lost document is $200.d. Warehousing costs: Currently, document storage costs are $75 per month.Sam would prefer a system that lets employees find and work with business documents without leaving their desks. HeÕs most concerned about the human resources and accounting departments. These person-nel are traditional heavy users of paper files and would greatly benefit from a modern document management system. At the same time, how-ever, Sam is also risk averse. He would rather invest in solutions that would reduce the risk of higher costs in the future. He recognizes that the U.S. PATRIOT ActÕs requirements that organizations provide immediate government access to records apply to SSC. He has read that manufactur-ing and government organizations rely on efficient document manage-ment to meet these broader regulatory imperatives. Finally, Sam wants to implement a disaster recovery system.Prepare a report that provides Sam with the data he needs to evalu-ate the companyÕs costly paper-intensive approach to managing docu-ments. You will need to conduct research to provide data to prepare this report. Your report should include the following information:1. How should SSC prepare for an ERM if it decides to implement one?2. Using the data collected by Sam, create a spreadsheet that calcu-lates the costs of handling paper at SSC based on average hourly rates per employee of $28. Add the cost of lost documents to this. Then, add the costs of warehousing the paper, which increases by 10% every month due to increases in volume. Present the results showing both monthly totals and a yearly total. Prepare graphs so that Sam can eas-ily identify the projected growth in warehousing costs over the next three years.3. How can ERM also serve as a disaster recovery system in case of fire, flood, or break-in?4. Submit your recommendation for an ERM solution. Identify two vendors in your recommendation.Case 3.2 Business Case: Big Data Analytics is the ÒSecret SauceÓ for Revitalizing McDonaldÕsWith 62 million daily customers and an annual revenue of $27 billion, McDonaldÕs has a virtually unrivaled amount of data at its disposal to analyze. In order to dominate the market, retain its loyal customers, and attract new customers who are skeptical of McDonaldÕs practices and quality, it lends itself to its data, becoming an Òinformation centric organization.Ó What does it mean to be information centric? Instead of using a fixed process of production, service, etc. as a business plan that is product driven, McDonaldÕs uses customer data to dictate its next move as a customer-driven corporation. During the inception of McDonaldÕs in 1940, the McDonald brothers derived a product-driven business centered around fast service and tasty food. While that method was successful before other restaurants entered the fast food market, growth was stunted due to a lack of innovation and change. So, the organization began to collect customer data as a means to monitor successful products, customer demands, and the results of marketing campaigns.This venture led to McDonaldÕs becoming the premier fast food chain across the United States in the 1980s. Soon after becoming a customer-driven corporation, McDonaldÕs introduced the Happy Meal so families with small children could reduce costs and waste at dinner time, released the Egg McMuffin as the most successful breakfast item of all time, equipped professionals and teenagers with free Wi-Fi to expand its customer segmentation, and provided nutrition details to become the most transparent fast food chain at the time. All of these improvements derived from McDonaldÕs using its immense amount of data to set its chain apart from the rest.In 2008, to further improve its ability to leverage big data, McDonaldÕs made the transition from average-based metrics to trend analytics. The issue with average-based metrics is that it is hard to compare regions and stores. A store could be growing in its sales and produc-tivity but have the same average metrics as a store that is declin-ing. Using trend analytics allowed McDonaldÕs to combine multiple datasets from multiple data sources to visualize and understand cause-and-effect relationships in individual stores and regions. The correlations it found enabled its analysts to prescribe solutions to problems in sales, production, turnover, and supply chain manage-ment to reduce costs and save time. The variables it studies allows McDonaldÕs to create a standardized experience across the world. However, analyzing local data in each store produces minor changes around the organization. For example, most McDonaldÕs locations look the same, but each restaurant is slightly different and optimized for the local market.A great example of McDonaldÕs big data analysis in action is its updated drive-thru system. All fast food chains have bottlenecks in their drive-thru lanes, but McDonaldÕs average customer wait time is about 3 minutes, which is close to the industryÕs longest wait time of 214 seconds. One of the most prominent issues in its drive-thru was that customers going through the line for dinner, ordering large meals and searching over the menu for an extended period of time, created a negative experience for each car in line behind them. In response, McDonaldÕs optimized the drive-thru across three components: design, information, and people. Design focused on the improvements to the drive-thru, including better speaker quality and higher resolution, digital menu boards. Information centered around what was on the menu board. In order to decrease order times, McDonaldÕs removed about 40% of the drive-thru menu board. In
Case 3.3 99its third aspect, people, the fast food chain attempted to reduce the negative experiences for those in line by creating a second drive-thru line with a designated order taker for each line, a third drive-thru win-dow, and two production lines.Another example showing McDonaldÕs commitment to being a customer-driven corporation is its introduction of all day breakfast, which was the highest priority for customers across the United States. Being the corporation with by far the largest share of the fast food market, McDonaldÕs will continue to use its growing data sets to provide the best experience and food to its customers (van Rijmenam, 2016).Questions1. Explain McDonaldÕs mission and responsibilities.2. What limitation did McDonaldÕs face in gaining data that wasmeaningful to decision-making?3. Describe trend analytics.4. Is McDonaldÕs product oriented or customer oriented?5. Why is the ability to identify patterns and relationships critical to McDonaldÕs operations?Case 3.3 Video Case: Verizon Improves Its Customer Experience with Data Driven Decision-MakingVerizon leverages TeradataÕs data analytics platform to shift its opera-tions from qualitative decision-making to evidence-based and data-driven decision-making to improve the customer experience. Visit www.Teradata.com and search for the video ÒVerizon: Using Advanced Analytics to Deliver on Their Digital Promise to Help Customers Inno-vate Their Lifestyle.Ó1. How does Verizon use Teradata to make decisions?2. How do the three sectors of Verizon work together to create value for the customer?3. How does Verizon use data analytics to Òpenetrate the marketÓ?4. What impact does customer behavior data have on VerizonÕsmarketing strategy?ÒIT MattersÓ Discussion BoardResearch the concept of Big Data. Find at least one company that main-tains a ÒBig DataÓ database.1. What is Big Data? Give at least three examples of organizationsthat have Big Data sets. What are the applications?2. Discuss one of the organizations that you identified that uses Big Data and briefly describe the use of Big Data in the organization.3. Discuss as much as you can find about the amount of data theyhave and how they process it.4. What did you learn or what lessons did you take away fromthis research?Provide at least two hyperlinked references to back up your findings (one for the organization you chose to discuss and one for the concept of big data in general). Post your findings and respond to at least two comments posted by your fellow students.IT ToolboxFramework for Generally Accepted Recordkeeping PrinciplesThe Framework for generally accepted recordkeeping principles is a useful tool for managing business records to ensure that they support an enterpriseÕs current and future regulatory, legal, risk mitigation, environmental, and operational requirements.The framework consists of eight principles or best practices, which also support data governance. These principles were created by ARMA International and legal and IT professionals.1. Principle of accountability Assign a senior executive tooversee a recordkeeping program; adopt policies and proce-dures to guide personnel; and ensure program audit ability.2. Principle of transparency Document processes andactivities of an organizationÕs recordkeeping program in anunderstandable manner and available to all personnel andappropriate parties.3. Principle of integrity Ensure recordkeeping program isable to reasonably guarantee the authenticity and reliabilityof records and data.4. Principle of protection Construct the recordkeepingprogram to ensure a reasonable level of protection to records and information that are private, confidential, privileged,secret, or essential to business continuity.5. Principle of compliance Ensure recordkeeping programcomplies with applicable laws, authorities, and the organiza-tionÕs policies.6. Principle of availability Maintain records in a manner that ensures timely, efficient, and accurate retrieval of neededinformation.7. Principle of retention Maintain records and data for anappropriate time based on legal, regulatory, fiscal, opera-tional, and historical requirements.8. Principle of disposition Securely disposed of records when they are no longer required to be maintained by laws or orga-nizational policies.Sources: Compiled from Van Rijmenam (2016) and McDonaldÕs (2017).
100 CHAPTER 3 Data Management, Data Analytics, and Business IntelligenceReferencesBing, C. ÒData Mining Software Used by Spy Agencies just got more Powerful.Ó FedScoop, June 21, 2016.Burns, E. ÒCoca-Cola Overcomes Challenges to Seize BI Opportuni-ties.Ó TechTarget.com. August 2013.Burns, E. ÒText Analysis Tool Helps Lenovo Zero in on the Customer.Ó Business Analytics, April 8, 2016.BusinessIntelligence.com. ÒCoca-ColaÕs Juicy Approach to Big Data.Ó July 29, 2013b. http://businessintelligence.com/bi-insights/coca-colas-juicy-approach-to-big-dataCattell, J., S. Chilukuri, and M. Levy. ÒHow Big Data Can Revolutionize Pharmaceutical R&D.Ó 2016. http://www.mckinsey.com/industries/ pharmaceuticals-and-medical-products/our-insights/how-big- data-can-revolutionize-pharmaceutical-r-and-dCNNMoney, The Coca-Cola Co (NYSE:KO) 2014.Columbus, L. ÒTen Ways Big Data Is Revolutionizing Marketing and Sales.Ó Forbes, May 9, 2016.Eisenhauer, T. ÒThe Undeniable Benefits of Having a Well-Designed Document Management System.Ó Axero Solutions, August 5, 2015.FirstWind website www.firstwind.com, 2017.Forbes. ÒBetting on Big Data.Ó 2015.Hammond, T. ÒTop IT Job Skills for 2014: Big Data, Mobile, Cloud, Security.Ó TechRepublic.com, January 31, 2014.Harle, P., A. Havas, and H. Samandari. ÒThe Future of Bank Risk Management.Ó McKinsey & Company, July 2016.Harvard Business School. ÒHow Coca-Cola Controls NatureÕs Oranges.Ó November 22, 2015.HealthCanal. ÒWhere Do You Start When Developing a New Medicine?Ó March 27, 2014.IDC. ÒExplosive Internet of Things Spending to Reach $1.7 Trillion in 2020, According to IDC.Ó June 02, 2015.King, L. ÒHow Business Intelligence Helps Small Businesses Make Better Decisions.Ó Huffington Post, July 28, 2016.Kitamura, M. ÒBig Data Partnerships Tackle Drug Development Failures.Ó Bloomberg News, March 26, 2014.Kramer, S. ÒThe High Costs of Dirty Data.Ó Digitalist, May 1, 2015.Ladley, J. ÒBusiness Alignment Techniques for Successful and Sustainable Analytics.Ó CIO, May 13, 2016.Liyakasa, K. ÒCoke Opens Data-Driven Happiness, Builds Out Market-ing Decision Engine.Ó Ad Exchanger, October 14, 2015.McDonaldÕs website 2017. https://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en-us/ about-us/our-history.htmlNIH (National Institute of Health). ÒAccelerating Medicines Partner-ship.Ó February 2014. http://www.nih.gov/science/amp/index.htmOliphant, T. ÒHow to Make Big Data Insights Work for You.Ó Business Intelligence, February 24, 2016.Ovalsrud, T. ÒBig Data and Analytics Spending to Hit $1.87 billionÓ CIO, May 24, 2016.Ransbothom, S. ÒCoca-ColaÕs Unique Challenge: Turning 250 Datasets into One.Ó MIT Sloan Management Review, May 27, 2015.RingLead, Inc. ÒThe True Cost of Bad (And Clean) Data.Ó July 17, 2015.syntheses.net 2017.The Data Warehousing Institute (TDWI). tdwi.org/portals/business- intelligence.asp. 2014U.S. Department of Energy. ÒWind Vision: A New Era for Wind Power in the United States.Ó http://energy.gov/eere/wind/maps/wind-vision, March 12, 2015.Van Rijmenam, M. ÒFrom Big Data to Big Mac; how McDonalds lever-ages Big Data.Ó DataFloq.com, August 15, 2016.Van Rijmenam, M. ÒHow Coca-Cola Takes a Refreshing Approach on Big Data.Ó DataFloq, July 18, 2016.Wise, L. ÒEvaluating Business Intelligence in the Cloud.Ó CIO, March 9, 2016.
101CHAPTER 4Networks, Collaborative Technology, and the Internet of ThingsCHAPTER OUTLINECase 4.1 Opening Case: Sony Builds an IPv6 Network to Fortify Competitive Edge 4.1 Network Fundamentals 4.2 Internet Protocols (IP), APIs, and Network Capabilities 4.3 Mobile Networks 4.4 Collaborative Technologies and the Internet of Things (IoT) Case 4.2 Business Case: Google Maps API for BusinessCase 4.3 Video Case: Small Island Telecom Company Goes GlobalLEARNING OBJECTIVES4.1 Describe the different types of networks and the basic functions of business networks.4.2 Understand the purpose of IPs and APIs and compare wireless 3G, 4G, and 5G networks and how they support businesses.4.3 Describe the growth in mobile data traffic and understand the components of the mobile infrastructure including near-field communication. List the business functions that near-field communication supports.4.4 Evaluate performance improvements gained from collaborative technology and understand concept of the Internet of Things (IoT)
102 CHAPTER 4 Networks, Collaborative Technology, and the Internet of ThingsIntroductionAcross all types and sizes of organizations, the Internet and networks have changed the way that business is conducted. Twenty years ago, computers were glorified typewriters that could not communicate with one another. If we wanted to communicate we used the telephone. Today computers constantly exchange data with each other over distance and time to provide companies with a number of significant advantages. The convergence of access technologies, cloud, 5G networks, multitasking mobile operating systems, and collaboration platforms con-tinues to change the nature of work, the way we do business, how machines interact, and other things not yet imagined. In this chapter you will learn about the different types of networks, how they affect the way that businesses communicate with customers, vendors, and other businesses, and how the largest network, the Internet, is enabling massive automatic data col-lection efforts from ÒthingsÓ rather than from people.Case 4.1 Opening CaseGrasko/ShutterstockRob Arnold/Alamy Stock PhotoJamesBrey/Getty ImagesSony Builds an IPv6 Network to Fortify Competitive EdgeSonyÕs Rapid Business GrowthIn the early 2000s, Sony Corporation had been engaged in strate-gic mergers and acquisitions to strengthen itself against intensifying competition (Figure 4.1). By 2007 SonyÕs enterprise network (internal network) had become too complex and was incapable of supporting communication, operations, and further business growth (Table 4.1). The enterprise network was based on IPv4. A serious limitation was that the IPv4 network could not provide real-time collaboration among business units and group companies.Expansion efforts were taking too long because of the complicated structure of the network, and total cost of ownership (TCO) was increas-ing. Also, a number of technical limitations were blocking internal com-munications. To eliminate these limitations, Sony decided to invest in IPv6-based networks.Network LimitationsMany of the Sony Group companies had developed independentlyÑand had independent networks. Devices connected to the independent networks were using the same IP addresses. That situation is compara-ble to users having duplicate telephone numbersÑmaking it impossi-ble to know which phone was being called. Also, phones with the same number could not call each other.Once these networks were integrated, the duplicate IP address caused traffic-routing conflicts. Routing conflicts, in turn, led to the fol-lowing problems:1. SonyÕs employee communication options were severely limited, which harmed productivity.2. File sharing and real-time communication were not possible.3. Introducing cloud services was difficult and time-consuming.Migration to IPv6 Networks: An Investment in the FutureWith its virtually unlimited number of IP addresses, IPv6 would support SonyÕs long-term, next-generation information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure strategy and improve collaboration and productivity.Migrating from IPv4 to IPv6 involved 700 sites, hundreds of thou-sands of networking devices, and hundreds of thousands of network users spread around the globe. During the transition, Sony realized that it was necessary to support both IP protocols. That is, while Sony wanted to eventually completely migrate to IPv6, the IPv6 would sup-plement and coexist with the existing enterprise IPv4 network, rather than replace it. Running both protocols on the same network at the same time was necessary because SonyÕs legacy devices and apps only worked on IPv4.Sony selected Cisco as a key partner in the migration and inte-gration of IPv4 and IPv6 traffic because of the maturity of its IPv6
Introduction 103technology. The integrated network has been used by Sony as infra-structure for product development. Sony also upgraded its Cisco net-work switches at the corporate data center, campuses, and remote offices to handle concurrent IPv4 and IPv6 traffic.Business ResultsThe use of IPv6 eliminated the issue of conflicting IP addresses, ena-bling Sony employees in all divisions to take advantage of the produc-tivity benefits of real-time collaboration applications. Other business improvements are as follows:¥ Flexibility to launch new businesses quickly.¥ Reduced TCO of enterprise network.¥ Network without communications constraints, supporting ÒOne SonyÓ through information systems:Decreased lead time of connecting a new group to the enterprise network.Automated network processes by ridding of manually config-ured NAT devices.However, SonyÕs networks are far from perfect, especially when it comes to its PlayStation Network Service. Unfortunately for gamers, the PSN consistently crashes without warning and for relatively long periods of time. The first crash of 2016 on January 4th caused the ser-vice to be down for about 8 hours for all users. During that time, many users could not play their games, use streaming services, or access the online store.Questions1. Explain how SonyÕs IPv4 enterprise network was restricting the productivity of its workers.Sony CorporationGlobal ReachNetwork SolutionSony aims to accelerate globalcollaboration and business acrossbusiness units to achieve goal ofÒOne Sony.ÓCisco Enterprise IPv6 networkintegrated with IPv4 network. Consumer electronics equipmentand services; music, pictures,computer entertainment.More versatile networkNetwork without communicationsconstraints, supporting ÒOne SonyÓthrough information systems.BrandBusiness Results FIGURE 4.1 Sony Corporation overview. TABLE 4.1 Opening Case OverviewCompanySony Corporation, Sony.comLocationHeadquartered in Tokyo, Japan. Over 700 total network sites worldwide.IndustriesOne of the largest consumer electronics and entertainment companies in the world, including audio/video equipment, semiconductors, computers, and video games. Also engaged in production and distribution of recorded music, motion picture, and video.Business challenges¥ Network expansion required too much time due to complexity of enterprise network.¥ Networking TCO (total cost of ownership) was continually increasing.¥ Numerous constraints on networks obstructing communication between com-panies in Sony Group.Network technology¥ Integrated its IPv4 networks with new IPv6 solutions from Cisco. The integrated IPv4/IPv6 network has been used by Sony as infrastructure for the development of new products and enterprise-wide collaboration.¥ Sony also upgraded its Cisco switches at the corporate data center, campuses, and remote offices to handle concurrent IPv4 and IPv6 traffic.
104 CHAPTER 4 Networks, Collaborative Technology, and the Internet of Things 4.1 Network FundamentalsTodayÕs managers need to understand the technical side of computer networks to make intel-ligent investment decisions that impact operations and competitive position. Enterprises run on networksÑwired and mobileÑand depend upon their ability to interface with other net-works and applications. Computer networks are changing significantly in their capacity and capabilities.Network TypesComputers on a network are called nodes. The connection between computers can be done via cabling, most commonly through Ethernet, or wirelessly through radio waves. Connected computers share resources, such as the Internet, printers, file servers, and other devices. The multipurpose connections enabled by a network allow a single computer to do more than if it were not connected to other devices. The most well-known network is the Internet.Computer networks are typically categorized by their scope. Common types of networks are shown in Table 4.2. Of these, LAN and WAN are the two primary and best-known categories of networks.Computer networks are a set of computers connected together for the purpose sharing resources. TABLE 4.2 Types of NetworksAcronymTypeCharacteristicsExampleLANLocal Area NetworkConnects network devices over a relatively short distanceOwned, controlled, and managed by one individual or organizationOffice buildingSchoolHomeWANWide Area NetworkSpans a large physical distanceGeographically dispersed collection of LANsOwned and managed by multiple entitiesInternetLarge companyWLANWireless Local Area NetworkLAN based on Wi-Fi wireless network technologyInternetLarge companyMANMetropolitan Area NetworkSpans a physical area larger than a LAN but smaller than a WANOwned and operated by a single entity, e.g., government agency, large companyCityNetwork of suburban fire stationsSANStorage Area NetworkServer Area NetworkConnects servers to data storage devicesHigh-performance databaseCANCampus Area NetworkCluster Area NetworkSpans multiple LANs but smaller than a MANUniversityLocal business campusPANPersonal Area NetworkSpans a small physical space, typically 35 feet or lessConnects personal IT devices of a single individualLaptop, smartphone, and portable printer connected together2. What problems did duplicate IP addresses cause at Sony? Give an analogy.3. Why did Sony need to run both protocols on its network instead of replacing IPv4 with IPv6?4. Describe the strategic benefit of SonyÕs IPv6 implementation.5. Do research to determine the accuracy of this prediction: ÒToday, almost everything on the Internet is reachable over IPv4. In a few years, both IPv4 and IPv6 will be required for universal access.ÓSources: Cisco (2016) and Neal (2016).
Network Fundamentals 105Intranets, Extranets, and Virtual Private NetworksIntranets are used within a company for data access, sharing, and collaboration. They are por-tals or gateways that provide easy and inexpensive browsing and search capabilities. Colleges and universities rely on intranets to provide services to students and faculty. Using screen shar-ing and other groupware tools, intranets can support team work.An extranet is a private, company-owned network that can be logged into remotely via the Internet. Typical users are suppliers, vendors, partners, or customers. Basically, an extranet is a network that connects two or more companies so they can securely share information. Since authorized users remotely access content from a central server, extranets can drastically reduce storage space on individual hard drives.A major concern is the security of the transmissions that could be intercepted or compro-mised. One solution is to use virtual private networks (VPNs), which encrypt the packets before they are transferred over the network. VPNs consist of encryption software and hardware that encrypt, send, and decrypt transmissions, as shown in Figure 4.2. In effect, instead of using a leased line to create a dedicated, physical connection, a company can invest in VPN technology to create virtual connections routed through the Internet from the companyÕs private net-work to the remote site or employee. Extranets can be expensive to implement and maintain because of hardware, software, and employee training costs if hosted internally rather than by an application service provider (ASP).© tungphoto/iStockphoto FIGURE 4.2 Virtual private networks (VPNs) create encrypted connections to company networks.Network TerminologyTo be able to evaluate the different types of networks and the factors that determine their func-tionality, you need to be familiar with the following network terminology:¥ Modem It is a device designed to adapt/modify the information signals in a way that can be transported by the media. The word modem is composed of two terms: Modulator and Demodulator, the modulator adapts the information signal in order to be transported by the media and the demodulator does the inverse process at reception. Digital modems are called ÒCSU/DSUÓ (Channel Service Unit/Data Service Units).¥ Modulation and coding These are the specific techniques used by the modem to adapt the signal to the media. There are several ways to do this process like Amplitude Modulation, Phase modulation, Frequency Modulation. In a few words modulation/coding is to decide how the Ò1sÓ and Ò0sÓ are represented in terms of voltages and/or frequencies.
106 CHAPTER 4 Networks, Collaborative Technology, and the Internet of Things¥ Signal It is the information we want to send, every signal is composed of a combination of 1s and 0s. Every signal has a frequency spectrum.¥ Signal frequency spectrum These are all the frequency components of a signal. The more 1s and 0s are transmitted per unit of time (i.e., per second) the highest will be the frequency components of a signal. The bandwidth of the signal is measured in hertz or number of variations per second. The more 1s and 0s are transmitted within one second the higher will be the frequency spectrum or signal bandwidth.¥ Media bandwidth Every media (i.e., Copper, Coaxial, and Fiber Optics) has a limitation in the range of frequency signals that can move through it without significant attenua-tion. The bandwidth of the media varies by type, is limited, and typically canÕt accept the entire signals frequency spectrum (Figure 4.3). The range of frequencies that can move through the media without significant attenuation is called bandwidth and it is also mea-sured in hertz.The mission of a modem/DSU-CSU is to adapt the information signal so that it can move through the media without significant attenuation. Typically Òsignificant attenua-tionÓ means that the signal has not lost more than half of its original power.Generally speaking, the media bandwidth (in hertz) can be defined as the range of frequencies (i.e., fmax − fmin) at which the signal has not lost more than 50% of its power. Upon coding-modulation techniques, it is possible to pack many binary symbols in one hertz (many binary symbols per second), for example, it is possible to pack 5 bits in each hertz of the signal. So if the bandwidth is 200,000 hertz then up to 1,000,000 bits/s (2000,000 hertz *5 bits/hertz) can be transmitted.A different modulation/coding technique (i.e., for the same signal and the same media) might pack 10 bits per every hertz of bandwidth and up to 2 Mbits/s (200,000 hertz *10 bits/hertz = 2 Mbits/s). The media bandwidth provided should be capable of transport-ing this coded-modulated signal without significant attenuation.¥ Capacity or digital bandwidth It is the maximum amount of bits/second that can be transmitted over the media. Upon ideal conditions, it is possible to reach the maximum capacity in a connection although this seldom happens (see Figure 4.4).Functions Supported by Business NetworksFigure 4.5 describes the basic business functions supported business networks: communica-tion, mobility, collaboration, relationships, and search. These functions depend on network switches and routersÑdevices that transmit data packets from their source to their destina-tion based on IP addresses. A switch acts as a controller, enabling networked devices to talk to each other efficiently. For example, switches connect computers, printers, and servers within an office building. Switches create a network. Routers connect networks. A router links computers 1 Gbps Ethernet100 Mbps EthernetGigabit Passive Optical Network (GPON)Ethernet Passive Optical Network (EPON)CableDSLISDN FIGURE 4.3 Bandwidth variation by media type.
Network Fundamentals 107to the Internet, so users can share the connection. Routers act like a dispatcher, choosing the best paths for packets to travel.Investments in network infrastructure, including data networks, IP addresses, routers, and switches are business decisions because of their impact on productivity, security, user experi-ences, and customer service.Quality of ServiceAn important management decision is the networkÕs quality of service (QoS), especially for delay-sensitive data such as real-time voice and high-quality video. The higher the required QoS, the more expensive the technologies needed to manage organizational networks. Bandwidth-intensive apps are important to business processes, but they also strain network capabilities and resources. Regardless of the type of traffic, networks must provide secure, pre-dictable, measurable, and sometimes guaranteed services for certain types of traffic. For exam-ple, QoS technologies can be applied to create two tiers of traffic:¥ Prioritize traffic Data and apps that are time-delay-sensitive or latency-sensitive apps, such as voice and video, are given priority on the network.091182273364455546637728819910MBytes06:51:5506:52:2306:52:5106:53:1906:53:4706:54:1506:54:4306:55:1106:55:3906:56:0706:56:35Current Bandwidth Usage – Last 5 MinutesEnterpriseCurrent Policy ThresholdBandwidth MonitorCurrent Policy Threshold(06:51:55): 300 FIGURE 4.4 Bandwidth capacity monitor.CommunicationMobilityProvides secure, trusted,and reliable access from anymobile device anywhere atsatisfactory download andupload speeds.RelationshipsManages interaction withcustomers, supply chainpartners, shareholders,employees, regulatoryagencies, and so on.SearchAble to locate data, contracts,documents, spreadsheets, and otherknowledge within an organization easily and efficiently.CollaborationSupports teamworkthat may be synchronousor asynchronous;brainstorming; andknowledge anddocument sharing.Provides sufficient capacity for humanand machine-generated transmissions.Delays are frustrating, such as whenlarge video files pause during downloadwaiting for the packets to arrive.Buffering means the network cannothandle the speed at which the video isbeing delivered and therefore stops tocollect packets. FIGURE 4.5 Basic functions of business networks.
108 CHAPTER 4 Networks, Collaborative Technology, and the Internet of Things¥ Throttle traffic In order to give latency-sensitive apps priority, other types of traffic need to be held back (throttled).The ability to prioritize and throttle network traffic is referred to as traffic shaping and forms the core of the hotly debated Net neutrality issue, which is discussed in IT at Work 4.1.Net neutrality is a principle that Internet service providers (ISPs) and their regulators treat all Internet traffic the same way. ItÕs essentially equal opportunity for Internet speeds and access to websiteÑno unfair fast or slow lanes and no blocking of anything thatÕs legal on your phone, computer, or table.IT at Work 4.1Net Neutrality Debate IntensifiesIn 2016, the battle over the complicated issue of net neutrality heated up due to AT&TÕs purchase of Time-Warner. However, with AT&TÕs takeover of Time-Warner, which owns HBO and DC Comics, it is almost certain that AT&T will give priority to customers who try to access its newfound property (Pachal, 2016). On the opposing side of that issue is traffic shaping. Traffic shaping creates a two-tier system for specific purposes such as:1. Time-sensitive data are given priority over traffic that can be delayed briefly with little-to-no adverse effect. Companies like Comcast and AT&T argue that Net neutrality rules hurt con-sumers. Certain applications are more sensitive to delays than others, such as streaming video and Internet phone services. Managing data transfer makes it possible to assure a certain level of performance or QoS.2. In a corporate environment, business-related traffic may be given priority over other traffic, in effect, by paying a premium price for that service. Proponents of traffic shaping argue that ISPs should be able to charge more to customers who want to pay a premium for priority service.Specifically, traffic is shaped by delaying the flow of less important network traffic, such as bulk data transfers, P2P file-sharing pro-grams, and BitTorrent traffic.Traffic shaping is hotly debated by those in favor of Net neu-trality. They want a one-tier system in which all Internet data packets are treated the same, regardless of their content, destina-tion, or source. In contrast, those who favor the two-tiered system argue that there have always been different levels of Internet ser-vice and that a two-tiered system would enable more freedom of choice and promote Internet-based commerce.Federal Communications CommissionÕs 2010 DecisionOn December 21, 2010, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approved a compromise that created two classes of Inter-net access: one for fixed-line providers and the other for the wireless Net. In effect, the new rules are Net semi-neutrality. The FCC banned any outright blocking of and Òunreasonable discriminationÓ against websites or applications by fixed-line broadband providers. But the rules do not explicitly forbid Òpaid prioritization,Ó which would allow a company to pay an ISP for faster data transmission. Net neutrality supporters include major internet companies who provide the content you read and watch online, including AOL, Facebook, Netflix, Twitter, and Vimeo who donÕt want to be discriminated against by network owners. Those against it include AT&T, Comcast Time Warner Cable, Verizon, and other internet service providers who own the networks and fear price controls.Net Neutrality Overturned in 2014In January 2014, an appeals court struck down the FCCÕs 2010 decision. The court allowed ISPs to create a two-tiered Internet, but promised close supervision to avoid anticompetitive practices, and banned ÒunreasonableÓ discrimination against providers.On April 24, 2014 FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler reported that his agency would propose new rules to comply with the courtÕs decision. These new rules were approved by the FCC in 2015. Wheeler stated that these rules Òwould establish that behavior harmful to consumers or competition by limiting the openness of the Internet will not be permittedÓ (Wheeler, 2014). But WheelerÕs proposal would allow network owners to charge extra fees to content providers. This decision has angered consumer advocates and Net neutrality advocates who view Wheeler with suspicion because of his past work as a lobbyist for the cable industry and wireless phone companies.Rolling Back Net Neutrality Protections in 2017The process to overhaul how the Internet is regulated is now offi-cially underway. On May 18, 2017 the FCC voted 2-1 to move forward with a proposal to roll back net neutrality protections. The contro-versial vote is the first step in a lengthy process to overturn the rules put into place during the Obama administration. Longtime net neu-trality advocates predict there will be negative consequences for businesses and consumers if net neutrality is overturned. Michael Cheah, general counsel at Vimeo, summed it up by saying that net neutrality is about Òallowing consumers to pick the winners and losers and not [having] the cable companies make those decisions for themÓ (Fiegerman, 2017).IT at Work Questions1. What is Net neutrality?2. What tiers are created by traffic shaping?3. Why did the battle over Net neutrality intensify in 2014?4. Did the FCCÕs 2015 net neutrality rules favor either side of the debate? Explain.5. What consequences may occur when the 2015 net neutrality rules are overturned?Sources: Compiled from Federal Communications Commission (fcc.gov, 2017), Fiegerman (2017), Pachal (2016), Wheeler (2014), and various blog posts.
Internet Protocols (IP), APIs, and Network Capabilities 109Questions1. Name the different types of networks.2. What is meant by ÒbandwidthÓ?3. What is the difference between an intranet and an extranet?4. How does a virtual private network (VPN) provide security?5. What is the purpose of a modem?6. Describe the basic functions of business networks.7. How do investments in network infrastructure impact an organization?8. Name the two tiers of traffic to which quality of service is applied. 4.2 Internet Protocols (IP), APIs, and Network CapabilitiesThe basic technology that makes global communication possible is a network protocol com-monly known as an Internet Protocol (IP). Each device attached to a network has a unique IP address that enables it to send and receive files. Files are broken down into blocks known as packets in order to be transmitted over a network to their destinationÕs IP address. Ini-tially, networks used IP Version 4 (IPv4). In April 2014 ARIN, the group that oversees Internet addresses, reported that IPv4 addresses were running outÑmaking it urgent that enterprises move to the newer IP Version 6 (IPv6) (Figure 4.6).The IPv6 Internet protocol has features that are not present in IPv4. For example, IPv6 simplifies aspects of how addresses are assigned, how networks are renumbered and places responsibility for packet fragmentation when packets are processed in routers. The IPv6 pro-tocol does not offer direct interoperability with IPv4, instead it creates a parallel, independent network. Fortunately, several transition mechanisms, such as NAT64 and 6rd, have been devel-oped to allow IPv6 hosts to communicate with IPv4 servers.Network protocols serve the following three basic functions:1. Send data to the correct recipient(s).2. Physically transmit data from source to destination, with security protected as needed.3. Receive messages and send responses to the correct recipient(s).The capacity and capabilities of data networks provide opportunities for more automated operations and new business strategies. M2M communications over wireless and wired Internet Protocol (IP) is the method by which data are sent from one device to another over a network.IP address is a unique identifier for each device that communicates with a network that identifies and locates each device. An IP address is comparable to a telephone number or home address.Packet is a piece of a message that is collected and re-assembled with the other pieces of the same message at their destination. To improve communication performance and reliability, each larger message sent between two network devices is often subdivided into packets.IP Version 4 (IPv4) has been Internet protocol for over three decades, but has reached the limits of its 32-bit address design. It is difficult to configure, it is running out of addressing space, and it provides no features for site renumbering to allow for an easy change of Internet Service Provider (ISP), among other limitations.IP Version 6 (IPv6) is the most recent version of the Internet Protocol. IPv6 is replacing IPv4 because of IPv4Õs limitations in number of IP addresses it can generate. IPv6 has a 128-bit address and allows 7.9 × 1028 times as many addresses as IPv4, which provides about 4.3 billion addresses.IPv4IPv632 bit address0000.0000.0000.0000128 bit address0000.0000.0000.0000.0000.0000.0000.0000 FIGURE 4.6 IPv4 addresses have 4 groups of four alphanumeric characters, which allow for 232 or roughly 4.3 billion unique IP addresses. IPv6 addresses have 8 groups of alphanumeric characters, which allows for 2128, or 340 trillion, trillion, trillion addresses. IPv6 also offers enhanced quality of service that is needed by the latest in video, interactive games, and e-commerce.
110 CHAPTER 4 Networks, Collaborative Technology, and the Internet of Thingsnetworks automate operations, for instance, by triggering action such as sending a message or closing a valve. The speed at which data can be sent depends on several factors, including capacity, server usage, computer usage, noise, and the amount of network traffic. Transfer rate or speed is an instantaneous measurement.Comparing 3G, 4G, 4G LTE, and 5G Network StandardsOver the past 20 years, networks have evolved from 3G networks designed for voice and data to 4G and 5G networks that support broadband Internet connectivity. In its 2016 report, SNS Research, a major market analysis and consulting firm, announced its forecast of 5G network contribution to the world economy. Experts predict that by 2020, ÒLTE and 5G infra-structure investments are expected to account for a market worth $32 billionÓ (PRNews-wire, 2016).3G networks support multimedia and broadband services over a wider distance and at faster speeds than prior generation networks. 3G networks have far greater ranges than 1G and 2G networks since they use large satellite connections to telecommunica-tion towers.4G networks are digital, or IP, networks that enable even faster data transfer rates. 4G delivers average realistic download rates of 3 Mbps or higher (as opposed to theoretical rates, which are much higher). In contrast, todayÕs 3G networks typically deliver average download speeds about one-tenth of that rate.5G networksÑthe coming generation of broadband technology. 5G builds on the foundation created by 4G. 5G will dramatically increase the speed at which data is transferred across the network.Unlike its predecessors, 2G and 3G that have a circuit-switched subsystem, 4G is based purely on the packet-based IP. Users can obtain 4G wireless connectivity through one of the following standards:1. WiMAX is a technology standard for long-range wireless networks. WiMax is based on the IEEE 802.16 standard. IEEE 802.16 specifications are as follows:¥ Range: 30 miles (50 km) from base station.¥ Speed: 70 megabits per second (Mbps).¥ Line-of-sight not needed between user and base station.WiMAX operates on the same basic principles as Wi-Fi in that it transmits data from one device to another via radio signals.2. Long-Term Evolution (LTE) is a GSM-based technology that provides the fastest and most consistent download speeds and most closely follows the United Nation technical stand-ard for 4G networks. In the United States, LTE is deployed by Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile. LTE capabilities include the following:¥ Speed: Downlink data rates of 100 Mbps and uplink data rates of 50 Mbps.Improved network performance, which is measured by its data transfer capacity, pro-vides fantastic opportunities for mobility, mobile commerce, collaboration, supply chain management, remote work, and other productivity gains.5G mobile networks will offer huge gains in both speed and capacity over existing 4G net-worksÑalong with opportunities at the operations and strategic levels. In the short term, the 5G infrastructure build-out will create new jobs. In the longer term, 5G will create entirely new markets and economic opportunities driven by superior mobile capabilities in industries rang-ing from health care to automotive.5G networks are designed to support the escalation in mobile data consumption, with users demanding higher data speeds and traffic volumes expected to increase by hundreds or even thousands of times over the next 10 years. It is likely that 5G networks will have to deliver baseline data speeds of 100 Mbit/s and peak speeds of up to 10 Gbit/s. 5G will make it easier to
Internet Protocols (IP), APIs, and Network Capabilities 111send texts, make calls, and download and upload Ultra HD and 3D videos. 5G operates with a 5-Ghz signal and is set to offer speeds of up to 1 gigabyte per second for tens of thousands of connections or tens of megabytes per second for tens of thousands of connections.The move to 5G is being driven by the significant increase in the number of devices to be supported. Mobile networks will no longer be concerned primarily with person-to-person communications, as the Internet of Things (IoT) creates billions of new devices for remote sensing, telemetry, and control applications which will lead to huge numbers of machine-to-machine and person-to-machine interactions. Although 5G isnÕt expected until 2020, many organizations are already investing in the infrastructure required to run this new mobile wireless standard.Circuit versus Packet SwitchingAll generations of networks are based on switching. Prior to 4G, networks included circuit switching, which is slower than packet switching. 4G was first to be fully packet switched, which significantly improved performance. The two basic types of switching are as follows:Circuit switching A circuit is a dedicated connection between a source and destination. In the past, when a call was placed between two landline phones, a circuit or connection was created that remained until one party hung up. Circuit switching is older technology that originated with telephone calls; it is inefficient for digital transmission.Packet switching Packet switching transfers data or voice in packets. Files are broken into packets, numbered sequentially, and routed individually to their destination. When received at the destination, the packets are reassembled into their proper sequence.Wireless networks use packet switching and wireless routers whose antennae transmit and receive packets. At some point, wireless routers are connected by cables to wired net-works. The first real network to run on packet-switching technology was ARPAnet described in Tech Note 4.1.Tech Note 4.1Origin of the Internet, E-mail, and TCP/IPThe Advanced Research Projects Agency network (ARPAnet) was the first real network to run on packet-switching technology. In October 1969, computers at Stanford University, UCLA, and two other U.S universities connected for the first timeÑmaking them the first hosts on what would become the Internet. ARPAnet was designed for research, education, and government agencies. ARPAnet provided a communications network linking the country in the event that a military attack or nuclear war destroyed conven-tional communications systems.In 1971 e-mail was developed by Ray Tomlinson, who used the @ symbol to separate the username from the networkÕs name, which became the domain name.On January 1, 1983, ARPAnet computers switched over to the transmission control protocol/Internet protocols (TCP/IPs) developed by Vinton Cerf. A few hundred computers were affected by the switch. The original ARPAnet protocol had been limited to 1,000 hosts, but the adoption of the TCP/IP standard made larger numbers of hosts possible. The number of Internet hosts in the domain name system (DNS) topped 1.05 billion in 2016, almost double the number reported in 2010.Application Program Interfaces and Operating SystemsWhen software developers create applications, they must write and compile the code for a spe-cific operating system (OS). Figure 4.7 lists the common OSs. Each OS communicates with hardware in its own unique way; each OS has a specific API that programmers must use. Video game consoles and other hardware devices also have application program interfaces (APIs) that run software programs.Application program interface (API) An interface is the boundary where two separate systems meet. An API provides a standard way for different things, such as software, content, or websites, to talk to each other in a way that they both understand without extensive programming.
112 CHAPTER 4 Networks, Collaborative Technology, and the Internet of ThingsWhat Is an API? An API consists of a set of functions, commands, and protocols used by programmers to build software for an OS. The API allows programmers to use predefined functions or reusable codes to interact with an OS without having to write a software program from scratch. APIs simplify the programmerÕs job.APIs are the common method for accessing information, websites, and databases. They were created as gateways to popular apps such as Twitter, Facebook, and Amazon and enterprise apps provided by SAP, Oracle, NetSuite, and many other vendors.Automated API The current trend is toward automatically created APIs that are making innovative IT developments possible. Here are two examples of the benefits of automated APIs:¥ Websites such as the European Union Patent office have mappings of every one of their pages to both URLs for browser access and URLs for REST APIs. Whenever a new page is published, both access methods are supported.¥ McDonaldÕs, along with Unilever and Gatorade, are using automated APIÕs to bring adver-tisements to Snapchat users. The social network app is using an auction-based system and targeting to choose which users see which advertisements (Joseph, 2016).API Value Chain in Business APIs deliver more than half of all the traffic to major companies like Twitter and eBay. APIs are used to access business assets, such as cus-tomer information or a product or service, as shown in Figure 4.8. IT developers use APIs to quickly and easily connect diverse data and services to each other. APIs from Google, Twitter, Amazon, Facebook, Accuweather, Sears, and E*Trade are used to create many thousands of applications. For example, Google Maps API is a collection of APIs used by developers to create customized Google Maps that can be accessed on a Web browser or mobile devices. Tech Note 4.2 describes a new API that Amazon developed for its Internet assistant, Alexa.APIDevelopersProvides quick,easy access tobusiness assets.Applicationscreated usingAPIsUse APIs tocreate newbusiness.Business AssetsDatainformationproductsservicesCustomers, employees,and end-users use thebusiness apps that givethem access to assets. FIGURE 4.8 API value chain in business.AndroidiOSWindows PhoneCommon Mobile OSWindowsMac OS XLinuxCommon Desktop OS FIGURE 4.7 Common mobile and desktop operating systems. Each computer OS provides an API for programmers. Mobile OSs are designed around touchscreen input.
Mobile Networks and Near-Field Communication 113Questions1. Why has IPv6 become increasingly important?2. What is the difference between IPv4 and Ipv6?3. What is the purpose of an IP address?4. What are the benefits of using an API?5. What is the difference between 4G and 5G?6. What is the most current network standard?7. What benefits will the upcoming 5G network standard offer businesses?8. What is the difference between circuit switching and packet switching?Tech Note 4.2Amazon Develops New API for AlexaOnline retail giant Amazon announced in 2016 its new and improved API for its voice-automated speaker Alexa, along with other devel-oped applications. The new API allows software developers to increase the efficiency of AlexaÕs list feature, which allows users to add items to their lists within Alexa. For example, a user can ask Alexa to Òadd buy soccer cleatsÓ to their to-do lists (Zeman, 2016). This application extends to shopping lists, buy lists, and even music playlists.The new API called the List Skills API means that developers will have a standardized voice interaction model instead of having to create one of their own. In other words, applications like Alexa will all have standardized instructions that users can take advan-tage of universally. Similarly, Apple developed Siri for iPhones, Apple compuers, and iPads. List Skills API gives customers the ability to add anything to their lists or give commands across any device or application that uses it.The API value chain takes many forms because the organiza-tion that owns the business asset may or may not be the same as the organization that builds the APIs. Different people or organiza-tions may build, distribute, and market the applications. At the end of the chain are end-users who benefit from the business asset. Often, many APIs are used to create a new user experience. The business benefits of APIs are listed in Table 4.3. TABLE 4.3 Business Benefits of APIsCharacteristicBenefitAPIs are channels to new customers and marketsAPIs enable partners to use business assets to extend the reach of a companyÕs products or services to customers and markets they might notAPIs promote innovationThrough an API, people who are committed to a challenge or problem can solve it themselvesAPIs are a better way to organize ITAPIs promote innovation by allowing everyone in a company to use each otherÕs assets without delayAPIs create a path to lots of AppsApps are going to be a crucial channel in the next 10 years. Apps are powered by APIs. Developers use APIs and combinations of APIs to create new user experiences 4.3 Mobile Networks and Near-Field CommunicationIn the 21st-century global economy, advanced wireless networks are a foundation on which global economic activity takes place. Current 4G and 5G networks and technologies provide that foundation for moving entire economies. For any nation to stay competitive and prosper-ous, it is imperative that investment and upgrades in these technologies continue to advance to satisfy demand. Cisco forecasts that the average global mobile connection speed will more
114 CHAPTER 4 Networks, Collaborative Technology, and the Internet of Thingsthan double from the current 1.4 to 3 Mbps and 5G networks are promising speeds that will be 100 times faster than current speeds. The factors that are driving global mobile traffic are shown in Figure 4.9.More MobileConnections¥ Over 11.6 billionFaster MobileSpeeds¥ 3Megabits per second (Mbs)More MobileUsers¥ Appx. 6.1 billionMore MobileVideo¥ 75% of mobile traffic FIGURE 4.9 Four drivers of global mobile traffic through 2020.Busy-hour InternetTrafficIncrease by factor of 4.6Average traffic will only increase by factor of 229% of network traffic30% of network traffic67% of total network trafficThree times the entire global populationIncrease 100%Equivalent to 95 times the volume of the entire globalInternet in 2005It will take an individual 5 million years to watch the amount ofvideo that will cross global IP networks EACH month!PCsSmartphonesWireless & MobileGlobal InternetTrafficDevices connected toIP networksBroadband SpeedsVideo FIGURE 4.10 Mobile Data Traffic Milestone by 2020.Increase in Mobile Network Traffic and UsersIn its most recent Visual Networking Index Forecast (VNI), Cisco reported that mobile data traffic has grown 400 million times over the past 15 years. They also predict that by 2020 monthly global mobile data traffic will be 30.6 Exabytes; number of mobile-connected devices will exceed 11.6 billion (exceeding the worldÕs projected population of 7.8 billion) and smartphones will account for 81% of total mobile traffic. This includes a major increase in machine-to-machine communications and the number of wearable technol-ogy devices.Smartphone users are expected to rise from the 2.6 billion reported in 2014 to 6.1 billion in 2020 and 80% of these new smartphone users will be located in Asia Pacific, the Middle East, and Africa. Much of that traffic will be driven by billions of devices talking to other devices wire-lessly and consumersÕ growing demand for more and more videos.According to the Cisco Visual Networking Index (VNI): Forecast and Methodology 2015Ð2020. (Cisco 2016), annual global IP traffic will reach 2.3 Zettabytes or 194 Exabytes per month and smartphone traffic will exceed PC traffic by 2020. Figure 4.10 lists the milestones that mobile data traffic will reach by 2020.Exabyte is one quintillion bytes (1,000,000,000,000,000,000 Bytes) which is the equivalent of 1,000 petabytes of data or 7 trillion online video clips. Five Exabytes is equal to all words ever spoken by human beings.Zettabyte is one sextillion bytes (1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 Bytes) which is approximately equal to 1,000 Exabytes.
Mobile Networks and Near-Field Communication 115Higher Demand for High-Capacity Mobile NetworksThis increase in mobile networks capacity and use is increasing the demand for high-capacity mobile networks. The four drivers of the increase in global mobile traffic demand are shown in Figure 4.10. Demand for high-capacity networks is growing at unprecedented rates. Examples of high-capacity networks are wireless mobile, satellite, wireless sensor, and VoIP (voice over Internet Protocol) such as Skype. Voice over IP (VoIP) networks carry voice calls by converting voice (analog signals) to digital signals that are sent as packets. With VoIP, voice and data trans-missions travel in packets over telephone wires. VoIP has grown to become one of the most used and least costly ways to communicate. Improved productivity, flexibility, and advanced features make VoIP an appealing technology.Mobile InfrastructureEnterprises are moving away from the ad hoc adoption of mobile devices and network infra-structure to a more strategic planning build-out of their mobile capabilities. As technologies that make up the mobile infrastructure evolve, identifying strategic technologies and avoid-ing wasted investments require more extensive planning and forecasting. Factors to consider are the network demands of multitasking mobile devices, more robust mobile OSs, and their applications. Mobile infrastructure consists of the integration of technology, software, support, standards, security measures, and devices for the management and delivery of wireless com-munications, including the following.Wi-Fi and Bluetooth Bluetooth is a short-rangeÑup to 100 meters or 328 feetÑwireless communications technology found in billions of devices, such as smartphones, computers, medical devices, and home entertainment products. When two Bluetooth-enabled devices connect to each other, this is called pairing.Wi-Fi is the standard way computers connect to wireless networks. Nearly all computers have built-in Wi-Fi chips that allow users to find and connect to wireless routers. The router must be connected to the Internet in order to provide Internet access to connected devices.Wi-Fi technology allows devices to share a network or Internet connection without the need to connect to a commercial network. Wi-Fi networks beam packets over short distances using part of the radio spectrum, or they can extend over larger areas, such as municipal Wi-Fi networks. However, municipal networks are not common because of their huge costs. See Figure 4.11 for an overview of how Wi-Fi works.Wi-Fi Networking Standards ¥ 802.11ac This is the newest generation of Wi-Fi signaling in popular use. 802.11ac uti-lizes dual-band wireless technology and support simultaneous connections on both the 2.4 and 5 GHz Wi-Fi bands. 802.11ac offers backward compatibility to 802.11b/g/n and bandwidth rated up to 130 Mbps on 5 GHz, plus up to 450 Mbps on 2.4 GHz.¥ 802.11b This standard shares spectrum with 2.4-GHz cordless phones, microwave ovens, and many Bluetooth products. Data are transferred at distances up to 100 meters or 328 feet.¥ 802.11a This standard runs on 12 channels in the 5-GHz spectrum in North America, which reduces interference issues. Data are transferred about 5 times faster than 802.11b, improving the quality of streaming media. It has extra bandwidth for large files. Since the 802.11a and b standards are not interoperable, data sent from an 802.11b network cannot be accessed by 802.11a networks.¥ 802.11g This standard runs on three channels in the 2.4-GHz spectrum, but at the speed of 802.11a. It is compatible with the 802.11b standard.¥ 802.11n This standard improves upon prior 802.11 standards by adding multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) and newer features. Frequency ranges from 2.4 to 5 GHz with a data rate of about 22 Mbps, but perhaps as high as 100 Mbps.Bluetooth is a short-range wireless communications technology.Wi-Fi is the standard way computers connect to wireless networks.
116 CHAPTER 4 Networks, Collaborative Technology, and the Internet of ThingsTwo Components of Wireless InfrastructureThere are three general types of mobile networks: wide area networks (WANs), WiMAX, and local area networks (LANs). WANs for mobile computing are known as wireless wide area networks (WWANs). The range of a WWAN depends on the transmission media and the wire-less generation, which determines which services are available. The two components of wire-less infrastructures are wireless LANs and WiMAX.WLANs Wireless LANs use high-frequency radio waves to communicate between com-puters, devices, or other nodes on the network. A wireless LAN typically extends an existing wired LAN by attaching a wireless AP to a wired network.WiMAX Wireless broadband WiMAX transmits voice, data, and video over high-frequency radio signals to businesses, homes, and mobile devices. It was designed to bypass traditional telephone lines and is an alternative to cable and DSL. WiMAX is based on the IEEE 802.16 set of standards and the metropolitan area network (MAN) access standard. Its range is 20Ð30 miles and it does not require a clear line of sight to function. Figure 4.12 shows the components of a WiMAX/Wi-Fi network.Wireless NetworkAccess PointCable/DSLModemAntennaRadioWavesDirectional Antennaand PC CardLaptop(s) or Desktop(s)123Radio-equipped access point connected to the Internet(or via a router). It generates and receives radio waves(up to 400 feet).Several client devices, equipped with PC cards, generate and receive radio waves.Router is connected to the Internet via a cable or DSL modem, or is connected via a satellite.Wireless NetworkPC Card213SatelliteInternetPCRouter FIGURE 4.11 Overview of Wi-Fi.
Mobile Networks and Near-Field Communication 117Mashup of GPS and Bluetooth The mashup of GPS positioning and short-range wireless technologies, such as Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, can provide unprecedented intelligence. These technologies create opportunities for companies to develop solutions that make a consumerÕs life better. They could, for example, revolutionize traffic and road safety. Intelligent transport systems being developed by car manufacturers allow cars to communicate with each other and send alerts about sudden braking and will even allow for remote driving in the future. In the event of a collision, the carÕs system could automatically call emergency services. The technology can also apply the brakes automatically if it was determined that two cars were getting too close to each other or alert the driver to a car that is in their blind spot in the next lane.Advancements in networks, devices, and RFID sensor networks are changing enterprise information infrastructures and business environments dramatically. The preceding exam-ples and network standards illustrate the declining need for a physical computer, as other devices provide access to data, people, or services at anytime, anywhere in the world, on high-capacity networks.Business Use of Near-Field CommunicationIf youÕve used AirDrop on your smartphone youÕve engaged in near-field communication. NFC is a location-aware technology that is more secure than other wireless technolo-gies like Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. And, unlike RFID, NFC is a two-way communication tool. An NFC tag contains small microchips with tiny aerials which can store a small amount of information for transfer to another near-field communication (NFC) device, such as a mobile phone.Location-aware NFC technology can be used to transfer photos and files, make pur-chases in restaurants, resorts, hotels, theme parks and theaters, at gas stations, and on buses and trains. Here are some examples of NFC applications and their potential business value.¥ The Apple iWatch wearable device with NFC communication capabilities could be ideal for mobile payments. Instead of a wallet, users utilize their iWatch as a credit card or wave their wrists to pay for their Starbucks coffee. With GPS and location-based e-commerce services, retailers could send a coupon alert to the iWatch when a user Mashup is a general term referring to the integration of two or more technologies.Near-field communication (NFC) enables two devices within close proximity to establish a communication channel and transfer data through radio waves.Notebook withbuilt-inWiMAX adapterWi-FiHotspotsBase StationWiMAXHubInternetWiMAXNetwork FIGURE 4.12 WiMAX/Wi-Fi network.
118 CHAPTER 4 Networks, Collaborative Technology, and the Internet of Thingspasses their store. Consumers would then see the coupon and pay for the product with the iWatch.¥ The self-healthcare industry is being radically transformed by the growing use of NFC tech-nology. Wearable devices such as Fit-Bits, smart glucose monitors, and electrical nerve stimulators are becoming increasingly cheap and popular due to the proliferation of NFC tech. These devices can not only monitor, but they also can provide Òautomated or remote treatmentÓ to users (Patrick, 2016). Remote control with health-care devices allow for smarter preventive care without the need for doctor or hospital visits and can increase the well-being of those living with chronic illnesses.¥ Passengers on public transportation systems can pay fares by waving an NFC smartphone as they board.Another interesting near-field application is described in IT at Work 4.2 when technology was used as an incentive in a marketing campaign by Warner Music.IT at Work 4.2NFC-Embedded Guitar PicksFans attending gigs by The Wild Feathers were given guitar picks embedded with an NFC tag. Warner Music had distributed the guitar picks for fans to enter a competition, share content via social media, and vote at the gig simply by tapping with an NFC phone. NFC-embedded picks were inserted into the bandÕs promotional flyers at six European venues. Each pick was encoded with a unique URL and also printed with a unique code for iPhone users to enable tracking and monitoring.Marketing Campaign Success Shows an Exciting Future for NFCThe tags generated a high response rate. Over 65% of the NFC guitar picks had registered in the competition. And 35% of the fans had shared content on social mediaÑspending an average of five min-utes on the site.NFC is being used in marketing campaigns because the technology offers slick one-tap interaction. NFC allows brands to engage with their customers in unique ways and create exciting user experiences. With millions of NFC-equipped smartphones set to reach users over the next few years and the technologyÕs advan-tages for shoppers and businesses, NFC is emerging as a major technology.IT at Work Questions1. Assume you attended a concert and were given a brochure similar to the one distributed to fans at The Wild Feathers concert. Would you use the guitar pick or comparable NFC-embedded item to participate in a contest? To post on Facebook or tweet about the concert? Explain why or why not.2. How can NFC be applied to create an interesting user experience at a sporting event? At a retail store or coffee shop?3. Refer to your answers in Question 2. What valuable informa-tion could be collected by the NFC tag in these businesses?Bluetooth and Wi-Fi seem similar to near-field communication on the surface. All three allow wireless communication and data exchange between digital devices like smartphones. The difference is that near-field communication utilizes electromagnetic radio fields while technologies such as Bluetooth and Wi-Fi focus on radio transmissions instead.Choosing Mobile Network SolutionsWhen you are choosing a mobile network solution, itÕs important to carefully consider the four factors shown in Figure 4.13.1. Simple Easy to deploy, manage, and use.2. Connected Always makes the best connection possible.3. Intelligent Works behind the scenes, easily integrating with other systems.4. Trusted Enables secure and reliable communications.
Collaborative Technologies and the Internet of Things 119Questions1. What are the factors contribute to mobility?2. Why is mobile global traffic increasing?3. What accounts for the increased in mobile traffic?4. Give some examples of VoIP networks.5. How is NFC different from RFID?6. What are the two components of a wireless network infrastructure?7. What is near-field communication and how is it used in business?8. What factors should be considered when evaluating mobile networks?SIMPLE¥ Easy to deploy, manage, and useCONNECTED¥ Always makes the best connection possibleINTELLIGENT¥ Works behind the scenes¥ Easily integrated with other systemsTRUSTED¥ Enables secure and reliable communications FIGURE 4.13 Four important factors to consider when choosing a mobile network solution. 4.4 Collaborative Technologies and the Internet of ThingsNow more than ever, business gets done through information sharing and collaborative plan-ning. Business performance depends on broadband data networks for communication, mobil-ity, and collaboration. For example, after Ford Motor Company began relying on UPS Logistics GroupÕs data networks to track millions of cars and trucks and to analyze any potential prob-lems before they occur, Ford realized a $1 billion reduction in vehicle inventory and $125 mil-lion reduction in inventory carrying costs annually.More and more people need to work together and share documents over time and dis-tance. Teams make most of the complex decisions in organizations and many teams are geo-graphically dispersed. This makes it difficult for organizational decision-making when team members are geographically spread out and working in different time zones.Messaging and collaboration tools include older communications media such as e-mail, videoconferencing, fax, and textsÑand blogs, Skype, Web meetings, and social media. Yam-mer is an enterprise social network that helps employees collaborate across departments, locations, and business apps. These private social sites are used by more than 400,000 enter-prises worldwide. Yammer functions as a communication and problem-solving tool and is rap-idly replacing e-mail. You will read about Yammer in detail in Chapter 7.
120 CHAPTER 4 Networks, Collaborative Technology, and the Internet of ThingsVirtual CollaborationLeading businesses are moving quickly to realize the benefits of virtual collaboration. Several examples appear below.Information Sharing Between Retailers and Their Suppliers One of the most publicized examples of information sharing exists between Procter & Gamble (P&G) and Walmart. Walmart provides P&G with access to sales information on every item Walmart buys from P&G. The information is collected by P&G on a daily basis from every Walmart store, and P&G uses that information to manage the inventory replenishment for Walmart.RetailerÐSupplier Collaboration: Asda Corporation Supermarket chain Asda has rolled out Web-based electronic data interchange (EDI) technology to 650 suppliers. Web EDI technology is based on the AS2 standard, an internationally accepted HTTP-based pro-tocol used to send real-time data in multiple formats securely over the Internet. It promises to improve the efficiency and speed of traditional EDI communications, which route data over third-party, value-added networks (VANs).Lower Transportation and Inventory Costs and Reduced Stockouts: Unilever UnileverÕs 30 contract carriers deliver 250,000 truckloads of shipments annually. UnileverÕs Web-based database, the Transportation Business Center (TBC), provides these car-riers with site specification requirements when they pick up a shipment at a manufacturing or distribution center or when they deliver goods to retailers. TBC gives carriers all of the vital information they need: contact names and phone numbers, operating hours, the number of dock doors at a location, the height of the dock doors, how to make an appointment to deliver or pick up shipments, pallet configuration, and other special requirements. All mission-critical information that UnileverÕs carriers need to make pickups, shipments, and deliveries is now available electronically 24/7.Reduction of Product Development Time Caterpillar, Inc. is a multinational heavy-machinery manufacturer. In the traditional mode of operation, cycle time along the supply chain was long because the process involved paperÑdocument transfers among man-agers, salespeople, and technical staff. To solve the problem, Caterpillar connected its engi-neering and manufacturing divisions with its active suppliers, distributors, overseas factories, and customers through an extranet-based global collaboration system. By means of the collab-oration system, a request for a customized tractor component, for example, can be transmitted from a customer to a Caterpillar dealer and on to designers and suppliers, all in a very short time. Customers also can use the extranet to retrieve and modify detailed order information while the vehicle is still on the assembly line.Group Work and Decision ProcessesManagers and staff continuously make decisions as they develop and manufacture products, plan social media marketing strategies, make financial and IT investments, determine how to meet compliance mandates, design software, and so on. By design or default, group pro-cesses emerge, referred to as group dynamics, and those processes can be productive or dys-functional.Group Work and Dynamics Group work can be quite complex depending on the fol-lowing factors:¥ Group members may be located in different places or work at different times.¥ Group members may work for the same or different organizations.
Collaborative Technologies and the Internet of Things 121¥ Needed data, information, or knowledge may be located in many sources, several of which are external to the organization.Despite the long history and benefits of collaborative work, groups are not always successful.Online Brainstorming in the Cloud Brainstorming ideas is no longer limited to a room full of people offering their ideas that are written on a whiteboard or posters. Companies are choosing an alternativeÑonline brainstorming applications, many of them cloud-based. An advantage is the avoidance of travel expenses if members are geographically dispersed, which often restricts how many sessions a company can afford to hold. The following are two exam-ples of online brainstorming apps:¥ Evernote is a cloud-based tool that helps users gather and share information, and brain-storm ideas. One function is Synch, which keeps Evernote notes up-to-date across a userÕs computers, phones, devices, and the Web. A free version of Evernote is available for down-load from www.evernote.com.¥ iMindmap Online, from UK-based ThinkBuzan, relies on mind mapping and other well-known structured approaches to brainstorming. iMindmap Online helps streamline work processes, minimize information overload, generate new ideas, and boost innovation.The Internet of Things (IoT)The Internet of Things has the potential to impact how we live and how we work. The IoT is a subset of the Internet which dictates that objects we interact with everyday send and receive signals to and from each other to exchange data about almost everything. The IoT can best be described as a collection technology in that it collects data from millions of data sensors embedded in everything from cars to refrigerators to space capsules. This aggregation of data points through smart meters, sensors, etc. contribute to the ÒInternet of ThingsÓ (IoT).Analytics, big data, and sensor integrations are revolutionizing how we live and work. A recent study conducted by IndustryWeek (2016), reported that more than half of U.S. manufac-turers report they are currently using IoT technology to collect machine data, and a significant but smaller percentage (44%) are collecting data from sensors embedded in their products.Several things have created the Òperfect stormÓ for the creation and growth of the IoT. These include more widely available broadband Internet, lower cost of connecting, development of more devices with Wi-Fi capabilities and embedded sensors, and the overwhelming popularity of the smartphone. In laypersonÕs terms, the IoT is the concept of connecting any device that has an on/off switch to the Internet or each other. This includes everything from everyday items such as cell-phones, coffee makers, washing machines, lamps, and headphones to airplane jet engines or an oil rig drill, smart traffic signals, smart parking, traffic congestion monitoring, air pollution sensors, potable water monitoring, and river, dam, and reservoir water level monitors. In other words, if it can be connected, it will be connected. Just think of the IoT as a giant network of connected ÒthingsÓ with relationships between people-to-people, people-to-things, and things-to-things.The primary driver for IoT is the broader adoption and deployment of sensors and smart devices. Some industries have had IoT in place for quite some time, but for others it is an entirely new concept. Lately, IoT has been gaining in popularity and use. The use of the smaller sensors, as compared to the traditional IT infrastructure, enables companies to gain more com-puting capacity and reduce power consumption for less cost. All in all, itÕs a win-win situation.IoT Sensors, Smart Meters, and the Smart GridIt has been estimated that the number of network-connected sensors and devices could triple to 21 billion by 2020 (IndustryWeek, 2016).Internet of Things is the network of physical objects or ÒthingsÓ embedded with electronics, software, sensors, and network connectivity, that enables these objects to collect and exchange data.
122 CHAPTER 4 Networks, Collaborative Technology, and the Internet of ThingsSensors The heart of IoT resides in the source of the data, that is, the sensors. Sensors generate data about activities, events, and influencing factors that provide visibility into perfor-mance and support decision processes across a variety of industries and consumer channels.Smart Grid and Smart Cities With a combination of smart meters, wireless tech-nology, sensors, and software, the smart grid allows utilities to accurately track power grids and cut back on energy use when the availability of electricity is stressed. And consumers gain insight into their power consumption to make more intelligent decisions about how to use energy.A fully deployed smart grid has the potential of saving between $39.69 and $101.57, and up to 592 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions, per consumer per year in the United States, according to the Smart Grid Consumer Collaborative (SGCC).On a broader scale, the IoT can be applied to things like Òsmart citiesÓ that can help reduce waste and improve efficiency. IT at Work 4.3 describes how a town in Spain is using the IoT to improve everyday life for itsÕ citizens, or is it?IT at Work 4.3Smart City or Police State?In the small city of Santander on SpainÕs Atlantic coast, Mayor I–igo de la Serna raised $12 million, mostly from the European Commission, to launch SmartSantander. SmartSantander is a smart city experiment that is improving the quality of life, reducing energy consumption, and engaging its citizens in civic duties.20,000 Sensors EmbeddedThe city implemented wireless sensor networks and embedded 20,000 sensors in its streets and municipal vehicles to monitor gar-bage collection, crime, and air quality and manage street lighting for better energy efficiency. ÒThe internet of Things unites all the data coming from sensors, along with the data the city already has and data provided by citizens,Ó says Joaquin Gonzalez, director of Telefonica in Cantabria (Frangoul, 2016). Sensors communicate with smartphone apps to inform drivers and commuters on parking availability, bus delays, road closures, and the current pollen count in real time. Parking apps direct drivers to available spaces via cell phone alerts. Drivers benefit from a reduction in the time and annoyance of finding parking spots. Anyone can feed his or her own data into the system by, for example, snapping a smartphone photo of a pothole or broken streetlight to notify the local government that a problem needs to be fixed. Users can even point their smart-phones at landmarks in the city to learn more about them and events happening around the city.Build-Out of Smart City ApplicationsThis mobile technology can help cities contribute to a greener planet. Municipal landscape sprinklers can send facts to city agencies for analysis to conserve water usage. Sensors can monitor weather and pollen counts as well as water and power leaks. City officials also claim that the development has saved money through automated and data driven applications such as dimming street lights at optimal times, resulting in 25% savings on electricity bills and 20% on garbage.Police StateThe data streams and mobile apps that keep citizens informed also keep the government informed. What is the difference between a smart city and a police state? Many see the new sensor saturation as a sort of ÒBig BrotherÓ experiment. Consider how data collected from sensors mounted outside a bar to track noise levels might be used.¥ Scenario #1: Instances of loud noises and squealing tires are transmitted to local police. The city uses the information to enforce public nuisance laws and make arrests.¥ Scenario #2: People who live in the neighborhood show civic leaders what is keeping them up at night and receive help in resolving the problem.¥ Scenario #3: Landlords could use data showing less noise and cleaner air to promote their apartments or office buildings.The Dark Side of SmartThe wireless networks and sensors need to be maintained. Thou-sands of batteries embedded in roadways could have expensive and disruptive maintenance requirements.Parking space alerts might create other annoyances. If everyone becomes aware of a parking spot up the street, the rush of cars converging on a few open locations could lead to rage and defeat the purpose of such an alert.IT at Work Questions1. What are the benefits of a smart city?2. What are the potential abuses of data collected in this way?3. Consider the dark side of smart. Are you skeptical of the ben-efits of a smart city?4. Would you want to live in a smart city? Explain.5. How would you prevent Santander from becoming a police state?Sources: Compiled from Eggers (2016), Frangoul (2016), OÕConnor (2013), and Edwards (2014).
Collaborative Technologies and the Internet of Things 123Security and Privacy in the IoT Network security and data privacy are manufac-turersÕ top concerns about IoT technology. With billions of devices connected together there are a multitude of end-points where security breaches can occur and individuals or organizations can be hacked.Advantages and Disadvantages of IoT Organizations are struggling with the advantages and disadvantages associated with the IoT and seeking to understand how it will impact their business.Wireless hospitals and remote patient monitoring, for example, are growing IoT trends. Tracking medical equipment and hospital inventory, such as gurneys, is done with RFID tag-ging at a number of hospitals. Remote monitoring apps are making health care easier and more comfortable for patients while reaching patients in remote areas.Organizations can expect to gain from using the IoT in a number of ways, for example, expected benefits from using IoT include the following:1. Monitoring performance, quality, and reliability of products and services2. Gaining insight into potential new products and service3. Support sales4. Better understand product use5. Remote troubleshooting of products6. Deliver revenue-generating post-sales service7. More efficiently deliver post-sales servicesSimilarly, there are concerns around using the IoT and the ability to collect and analyze the massive amounts of data that it enables. Main disadvantages that organizations have about the use of IoT include the following:1. Network security2. Data privacy3. Data analysis capabilities4. Data collection capabilities5. Realistic efficiency opportunities6. Realistic new revenue opportunities7. CostQuestions1. Why has group work becoming more challenging?2. What might limit the use of face-to-face brainstorming?3. How can online brainstorming tools overcome those limits?4. List ways in which virtual collaboration can be used in business.5. What devices do you have that take advantage of the IoT? Describe how they impact the way that you live and work.6. What is driving the rise of the IoT?7. What is the main concern that organizations have about the IoT?8. Do you think the advantages outweigh the disadvantages of the IoT? Explain.
124 CHAPTER 4 Networks, Collaborative Technology, and the Internet of ThingsKey Terms3G 1104G 1105G 110application program interface (API) 111Bluetooth 115circuit switching 111computer networks 104Exabyte 114extranet 105fixed-line broadband 108group dynamics 120information and communications technology (ICT) 102Internet of Things 121Internet Protocol (IP) 109Intranet 105IP address 109IP Version 4 (IPv4) 109IP Version 6 (IPv6) 109latency-sensitive apps 107local area network (LAN) 116Long-Term Evolution (LTE) 110mashup 117near-field communication (NFC) 117Net neutrality 108Net semi-neutrality 108packet 109packet switching 111protocol 109quality of service (QoS) 107router 106sensors 122smart grid 122smart city 122switch 106traffic shaping 108transmission control protocol/Internet protocols (TCP/IPs) 111virtual private networks (VPNs) 105voice over IP (VoIP) 115wide area network (WAN) 116Wi-Fi 115WiMAX 116Zettabyte 114Assuring Your LearningDiscuss: Critical Thinking Questions1. Explain how network capacity is measured.2. How are devices identified to a network?3. Explain how digital signals are transmitted.4. Explain the functions of switches and routers.5. QoS technologies can be applied to create two tiers of traffic. What are those tiers? Give an example of each type of traffic.6. Typically, networks are configured so that downloading is faster than uploading. Explain why.7. What are the differences between 3G, 4G, and 5G networks?8. What are two 4G wireless standards?9. How is network performance measured?10. Discuss two applications of near-field communication (NFC).11. What are the benefits of APIs?12. Describe the components of a mobile communication in-frastructure.13. What is the range of WiMAX? Why does it not need a clear line of sight?14. Why are VPNs used to secure extranets?15. How can group dynamics improve group work? How can it disrupt what groups might accomplish?16. What are the benefits of using software to conduct brainstorming in the cloud (remotely)?Explore: Online and Interactive Exercises1. Visit the Google apps website. Identify three types of collaboration support and their value in the workplace.2. Compare the various features of broadband wireless networks (e.g., 3G, Wi-Fi, and WiMAX). Visit at least three broadband wireless network vendors.a. Prepare a list of capabilities for each network.b. Prepare a list of actual applications that each network can support.c. Comment on the value of such applications to users. How can the benefits be assessed?
Case 4.2 125Case 4.2 Business Case: Google Maps API for BusinessA restaurant owner has a website where customers can place orders for delivery. When a customer inputs a delivery address, a software script verifies whether the address is within the delivery range of the restau-rant. If the address is not in the delivery range, the site does not let the customer check out and sends a message informing the customer that he or she is outside of the delivery range. The script requests infor-mation from Google Maps via an API to calculate whether or not the address was in the range. The free version, called Google Maps API, allows up to 2,500 requests per day from a single IP address and is lim-ited to noncommercial purposes.The owner needs to purchase a Google Maps API for Business license because any requests in excess of 2,500 will be ignored. The Google Maps API for Business provides better resolution, scale, and enhanced features and support to businesses that add maps to their websites, mobile apps, or asset-tracking applications.Directions and Routing FeaturesThe Google Maps API delivers the full power of GoogleÕs routing engine to applications. Among other features, it:¥ Generates routes between up to 23 locations for driving, walking, or cycling.¥ Generates routes to avoid toll roads or highways.¥ Reduces travel time by calculating the optimal order to visit each location.¥ Calculates travel time and distance between locations, for example, to offer users a way to filter search results by drive time.Data VisualizationThe Google Maps API lets managers visualize data using heat maps, symbols, and custom styles. For U.S. maps, companies have access to a demographics layer containing up-to-date census data provided by Nielsen and five-year projections of many data fields. The demograph-ics layer may only be used on intranets or internal websites.Advanced AnalyticsThe Google Maps API for Business offers an analytics tool that shows how visitors interact with the mapsÑfor example, how many visitors switched to satellite view, what they zoomed, and which map features were used the most. Using this information, businesses can customize the user experience based on their preferences and better engage with customers.Automobile AssociationGoogle Maps is the most widely used online mapping service in the world, with more than 800,000 sites using the Google Maps API and over 250 million active users on mobile devices alone. In the United Kingdom, the Automobile Association (AA) provides roadside assistance and directions to motorists. AA invested in the Google Maps API for Business to offer interactive route planning and improve visitorsÕ experiences. The value AA derived from the API was a 12% increase in the number of routes downloaded, hit-ting an average of 4 million downloads per week of its routing or trip-planning service. Approximately 20% of site visitors remained on the site for at least five minutesÑup from only 6% prior to imple-mentation. The API also cuts the time and cost of IT support for the mapping platform.Questions1. Describe Google Maps API.2. Why do you think Google provides free noncommercial use of its Maps API?3. How many times have you used a websiteÕs mapping feature for directions or to calculate distance? How did having a familiar interface improve your experience?4. Google claims that its Maps API helps a companyÕs customers and employees make better business and purchasing decisions by visualizing important information on a familiar map. Explain how data visualization provides these benefits. Give two examples in your explanation.Analyze & Decide: Apply IT Concepts to Business Decisions1. Visit www.Youtube.com and search for tutorials on the latest ver-sion of iMindMap. Watch a few of the tutorials. As an alternative, watch the video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UVt3Qu6Xcko&list=PLA42C25431E4EA4FF. Describe the potential value of sharing maps online and synching maps with other computers or devices. What is your opinion of the ease or complexity of the iMindMap interface?2. Visit the AT&T website and read the article ÒWhat you Need to Know about IoT Wide Area Networks.Ó Write a short report discussing the benefits of each type of network that can be used in an organiza-tionÕs IoT and make a choice for your Òbusiness.Ó
126 CHAPTER 4 Networks, Collaborative Technology, and the Internet of ThingsReferencesCisco. ÒSony Adopts Cisco Solution for Global IPv6 Project.Ó Cisco Public Information, Customer Case Study. October 28, 2014.Cisco. ÒCisco Visual Networking Index: Forecast and Methodology, 2015Ð2020,Ó 2016.Edwards, J. ÒThe Connected Life.Ó Teradata Magazine, Q1, 2014.Eggers, W. D. Ò8 Ways Digital is Transforming Governments around the World.Ó The Huffington Post, July 18, 2016.Fiegerman, S. ÒTrumpÕs FCC May Try to Roll Back Net Neutral-ity. HereÕs Why it Matters.Ó 2017. Accessed at: http://money.cnn.com/2017/01/24/technology/fcc-net-neutrality/index.htmlFrangoul, A. ÒThousands of Sensors are Making This Famous City Smarter.Ó CNBC, May 5, 2016.IndustryWeek. ÒThe Internet of Things: Finding the Path to Value.Ó IndustryWeek. 2016.Joseph, S. ÒMcDonaldÕs, Unilever and Gatorade Among the First to Run Snapchat API Campaigns.Ó TheDrum, October 6, 2016.Neal, D. ÒSonyÕs Playstation Network Is Down in the UK, Again.Ó The Inquirer, October 26, 2016.OÕConnor, M. C. ÒSantander: Test Bed for Smart Cities and Open Data Policies.Ó SmartPlanet.com, May 8, 2013.Pachal, P. ÒHow the AT&T-Time Warner Deal Threatens Net Neutral-ity.Ó Mashable, October 23, 2016.Patrick, M. ÒHow Will the Internet of Medical Things Change Health-care?Ó Electronic Design, October 20, 2016.PRNewswire. ÒLTE and 5G Infrastructure Investments are Expected to Account for a Market Worth $32 Billion by 2020ÑResearch and Mar-kets.Ó October 20, 2016.Wheeler, T. ÒSetting the Record Straight on the FCCÕs Open Internet Rules.Ó FCC blog, April 24, 2014.Zeman, E. ÒAmazon Opens Beta for Alexa List Skills API.Ó Programma-bleWeb, October 13, 2016.Case 4.3 Video Case: Small Island Telecom Company Goes GlobalGo online to research the Isle of Man, a small island in the Irish Sea off the coast of Great Britain. Visit the Cisco website. Search for the video ÒIsland Telecom Competes on a Global Level.Ó Watch the video to learn how this small telecom company was able to evolve from a traditional local service provider to a global cloud services innovator thanks to CiscoÕs networking technology (video runs 2:09 minutes).Questions1. Describe the benefits that Island Telecom achieved through using CiscoÕs networking product.2. What factors allowed Island Telecom to make the transition from local to global?
127CHAPTER 5Cybersecurity and Risk Management TechnologyCHAPTER OUTLINECase 5.1 Opening Case: Yahoo wins the gold and silver medal for the worst hacks in history! 5.1 The Face and Future of Cyberthreats 5.2 Cyberattack Targets and Consequences 5.3 Cyber Risk Management 5.4 Internal Audits and Controls 5.5 Frameworks, Standards, and ModelsCase 5.2 Business Case: Lax Security at LinkedIn ExposedCase 5.3 Video Case: Botnets, Malware Security, and Capturing CybercriminalsLEARNING OBJECTIVES 5.1 Describe the extent of incidents and data breaches in organizations and the sources of cyberthreats that are putting organizations in jeopardy.5.2 Describe the targets of cyberattacks and the impact these attacks have on both public and private sector organizations.5.3 Explain why cyber risk management must be a top business priority and outline an organizational model for cybersecurity.5.4 Describe the internal audits and controls that are used to defend against occupational fraud at all levels of an organization.5.5 Explain how risk management frameworks, standards, and models help ensure compliance with industry and federal regulations. Assess the risk associated with a network crash, debilitating hacker attack, or other IT disruption.a. Explain how compliance and security can diverge such that being compliant is not necessarily equivalent to being secure. (Home Depot, Target, and a myriad of others were all PCI compliant.)
128 CHAPTER 5 Cybersecurity and Risk Management TechnologyIntroductionToday, most business leaders know they are responsible for cybersecurity and privacy threats, wherever they occur. What most donÕt understand is how to design, implement, and manage threat-intelligent business strategies and risk management plans to prevent data breaches and protect IT and business resources.In the digital economy, organizational data is typically available on demand 24/7 to enable companies to benefit from opportunities for productivity improvement and data sharing with customers, suppliers, and business partners. The concept of data on demand is an operational and competitive necessity for global companies, but unfortunately, it also opens them up to cyberattacks.New vulnerabilities are continuously being found in operating systems, applications, and wired and wireless networks. Left unaddressed, vulnerabilities provide an open door for cyber-attacks that can cause business disruptions and devastating financial consequences. Managers no longer question whether their networks will be breached, but when it will happen, how much damage will be done, how long the investigation will take, and how much the investiga-tion and fines will cost.For example, after detecting a network hack, credit card processing company Global Payments, Inc. spent 14 months investigating the resulting data breach that exposed 1.5 million U.S. debit and credit card accounts. GlobalÕs damages totaled $93 million. This loss consisted of $36 million in fraud losses and fines and $77 million for the investigation, remediation, credit monitoring, and identity theft insurance for affected consumers. And this is not an unusual occurrence, according to a global study conducted by the Ponemon Institute, the average cost of a breached record is $141 and the average cost of an overall data breach is $3.62 million (Ponemon Institute, 2017).These reports of data breaches focus primarily on what companies are required to report publiclyÑtheft of personally identifiable information (PII), payment data, and personal health information (PHI). Consequently, the costs commonly associated with data breaches only take into consideration these more easily understood impacts. But these are not always an attackerÕs objective. Rarely brought into full view are theft of intellectual property (IP), espionage, data destruction, attacks on core operations, or attempts to dis-able critical infrastructure. These attacks can have a much more significant impact on orga-nizations. But the damage they cause is not widely understood and is much more difficult to quantify.As a result, organizations need to acquire a deeper knowledge of cyberattacks and com-bine it with business context, valuation techniques, and financial quantification to establish the true costs of their losses. Applying this more accurate knowledge of potential business impacts, leaders can be much more effective in managing and controlling cyber risk and improve their ability to recover from a cyberattack.In Chapter 5, you will learn about cybersecurity terminology, the rising number of data breaches, sources of cyberthreats, damage caused by cybercriminalsÕ aggressive tac-tics and their impacts on organizations. You will also learn how organizations can defend against cyberattacks, correctly assess the damage they cause, and ensure the actions needed for business continuity. But, first, letÕs take a look at two of the biggest cyberattacks ever reported.
Introduction 129Case 5.1 Opening CaseYahoo Wins the Gold and Silver Medal for the Worst Hacks in History!It wasnÕt until Fall 2016 that Yahoo alerted its users and the public to the first of two of the largest known breaches of user information in history that had occurred 2Ð3 years earlier. On September 22, 2016, Yahoo publicly disclosed that over 1 billion Yahoo account records were stolen in mid-2013. A second news release on December 15, 2016, revealed a second attack that occurred in 2014 when the account information of over 500 million Yahoo account holders was breached. The delay in reporting is partly due to the fact that Yahoo itself did not know of the breach until shortly before releasing these statements to the public. The information leaked in the attacks included e-mail accounts, telephone numbers, street addresses, unencrypted security questions and answers, but no financial information.To add insult to injury, at the time of the first news release, Yahoo was in negotiations with mega-corporation Verizon to acquire Yahoo for $4.83 billion. After the first news release, Verizon said that the announce-ment could have a negative impact on their purchasing decision. The second news release caused Verizon to further review the financial impli-cations of the two breaches and reduce its offer by $350 million.The 2013 breach was conducted by an unknown unauthorized third party. The information stolen in the 2014 attack was sold by a Òstate- sponsored actorÓ on the Dark Web for 3 Bitcoins (approx. $1,900). The actor, who used the name ÒPeaceÓ is of Russian origin and attempted to sell data from 200 million Yahoo users online. Yahoo urged all of its users to change their passwords and security questions and to review their accounts for suspicious activity. To date, little information has been released on the 2013 breach, but more is known about the incident that occurred in 2014.How the Second Attack was Carried OutThe data theft was similar to the way in which a typical online attack of a database is carried out. The protections used for database containing the login and personal information were insufficient to protect against the advanced methods used by the hackers. In this case, the encryption method employed in the database was broken by the hacker. Addition-ally, cybercrime analyst Vitali Kremez maintains that the hacker stole the information from Yahoo slowly and methodically so as to not draw attention to the breach taking place.Since the breach was not immediately detected, the hacker had plenty of time to leverage the information in a financially, personal, or politically beneficial manner. It is not clear if the seller is the original hacker.Impact of the Data BreachSince the breaches were so devastating and far reaching to most of YahooÕs customer base, Verizon is having second thoughts about the acquisition. Craig Silliman, general counsel to Verizon, said Verizon has Òa reasonable basisÓ to believe that the data breach will have a sig-nificant impact on the deal proceedings and the likelihood that it will actually happen (Fiegerman, 2016). He furthers to explain that Yahoo will have to convince Verizon that the breach will not affect future pro-cesses in the company and that more security features have been and will be implemented. Also, the incidents could make the Yahoo deal worth about $200 million less than the $4.8 billion initially settled upon. In addition to the decreased value of YahooÕs core assets, the companyÕs stock fell about 2% after the comments by Craig Silliman.Justice is ServedOn March 17, 2017, the U.S. Department of Justice indicted two Russian Intelligence agents and two state-sponsored hackers, Alexsey Belan and Karim Baratov, for the theft of the Yahoo user data in 2014. Belan, one of the FBIÕs most notorious criminal hackers, had been previously indicted in two other cases. In the indictments it was revealed that the targets of the theft included Russian journalists, U.S. and Russian gov-ernment officials, military personnel, and private-sector employees of financial, transportation, and other companies (Balakrishnan, 2017).The obvious issue surrounding the Yahoo data breaches is Inter-net security. Simple username, password, and security questions sim-ply are not enough to keep hackers at bay. UC Davis professor Hemant Bhargava notes that two-factor authentication (TFA) is successful in many other companies and that Yahoo should follow suit (Matwyshyn & Bhargava, 2016). An example of TFA would be that a user is asked to enter information such as username and password, then a mobile app generates and sends a random number code for the user to enter before being granted access to his or her account. Both the Yahoo account and the mobile app are linked to a common, secure account. This method is exceptionally popular and useful since over 50% of Web users access the Web through their mobile phones.Questions1. Why do you think Yahoo was targeted for these data breaches?2. Why did Yahoo keep the breaches from the public eye? How did their nondisclosure affect YahooÕs relationship with its customers and partners?3. In addition to the data theft, what else was damaged by this incident?4. Were these cybersecurity incidents foreseeable? Were they avoidable?5. Assuming that the CEO and CIO were forced to resign, what mes-sage does that send to senior management at Yahoo?Sources: Compiled from Fiegerman (2016), Hackett (2016a), Kan (2016), Lee (2016), Matwyshyn and Bhargava (2016), Murgia (2016), Sterling (2015), and Balakrishnan (2017).G Fiume/Getty ImagesTetiana Vitsenko/AlamyStock PhotoRyan Anson/Bloomberg/Getty Images
130 CHAPTER 5 Cybersecurity and Risk Management Technology 5.1 The Face and Future of CyberthreatsOver the past several years, the number of cyberattacks in which data records have been stolen by hackers has increased at an alarming rate. In 2016, the total number of U.S. data breaches hit an all-time record high of 1,093 according to a report released on January 19, 2017, by the Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC) (Goldman, 2017). This represents a 40% increase over the previous year. The general business sector reported the highest number of cyberattacks with 494 reported incidents, followed by the healthcare/medical industry with 377, education sector with 98, government/ military with 72, and the banking/credit/financial sector with 52 breaches (see Figure 5.1).Vulnerability is a gap in IT security defenses of a network, system, or application that can be exploited by a threat to gain unauthorized access. Vulnerabilities can be exemplified by lack of controls around people (user training, inadequate policies), process (inadequate sep-aration of duties, poor process controls), or tools (lack of technical controls enforcement or monitoring).Data incidents and breaches in 2016 exposed everything from usernames to passwords to Social Security numbers and are caused by the successful exploitation of vulnerabilities in information systems by a threat (risk = threat × vulnerability). Vulnerabilities threaten the confi-dentiality, integrity, or availability (CIA) of data and information systems, as defined in Figure 5.2.Data incident is an attempted or successful unauthorized access to a network, system, or application; unwanted disruption or denial of service; unauthorized use of a system for processing or storage of data; changes to system without the owners knowledge, instruction, or consent.Data breach is the successful retrieval of sensitive information by an individual, group, or software system.Business, 494,45%Health care, 377,34%Education,98, 9%Government,72, 7%Finance, 52, 5%Total Incidents = 1,093 FIGURE 5.1 Number of 2016 U.S. data breaches by industry sector.Confidentiality: No unauthorized data disclosure.Integrity: Data, documents, messages, and other fileshave not been altered in any unauthorized way.Availability: Data is accessible when needed by thoseauthorized to do so. FIGURE 5.2 The three objectives of data and information systems security.
The Face and Future of Cyberthreats 131Hacks of high-tech companies like Yahoo, LinkedIn, Google, Amazon, eBay, and Sony, and top security agencies like the CIA and FBI are proof that no one is safe. Cyberwarriors are too well funded and motivated. Taking a global perspective, VerizonÕs 2016 Data Breach Investigations Report (DBIR) examined over 100,000 incidents, including 3,141 confirmed data breaches across 82 countries. Of these, 89% of the breaches were motivated by finan-cial gain or espionage. In over 90% of the breaches, it took attackers mere minutes (or less) to compromise a system. On the other hand, it took companies weeks to months to dis-cover that a breach had occurred and in most cases it was external sources, such as cus-tomers or law enforcement that sounded the alarm! Cyberthreats can be intentional or unintentional.Table 5.2 lists eight sources of intentional and unintentional cyberthreats that account for the vast majority of data breaches and other cybersecurity incidents.Cyberthreat is a threat posed by means of the Internet (a.k.a. cyberspace) and the potential source of malicious attempts to damage or disrupt a computer network, system, or application.Fifty-six percent of all breaches were phishing attacks, where hackers trick an employee into clicking a specially crafted e-mail link or attachment which then provides the hackers access to the userÕs system and ultimately corporate network and data. These attacks were up 38% from 2015. Table 5.1 lists the top five data breaches worldwide in 2016. Although these numbers are high, itÕs important to remember that a vast majority of data breaches go unreported, according to cybersecurity experts, because corporate victims fear that disclo-sure would damage their stock price, or because they never knew they were hacked in the first place.The consequences of insufficient cybersecurity include damaged reputations, consumer backlash, lost market share, falling share prices, financial penalties, and federal and state government fines. As a result, companies are investing heavily in security-related technol-ogiesÑworldwide spending on security-related hardware, software, and services rose to $73.7 billion in 2016 from $68.2 billion a year earlier and that number is expected to approach $90 billion in 2018. TABLE 5.1 2016 Biggest Data Breaches Worldwide, in Terms of Number of Data Records BreachedCompanyType of Data BreachRecords BreachedAnthem InsuranceThe attack against U.S.-based health insurer Anthem was an identity theft breach that resulted in the theft of 78.8 million records, making it the largest data breach of the year in terms of records compromised. Current and former members of one of AnthemÕs affiliated health plans, as well as some members of other independent Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans who received health-care services in any of the areas that Anthem serves, were said to be affected.78.8 MillionTurkish General Directorate of Population and Citizenship AffairsThe Turkish government agency experienced an identity theft attack at the hands of a malicious outsider. The attack exposed 50 million records, and information pertaining to citizens was stolen.50 MillionKorean Pharmaceutical Information CenterThe South Korean organization that distributes pharmacy management soft-ware to many of the countryÕs pharmacies was hit by an identity theft breach launched by a malicious insider. The result was the exposure of 43 million records. According to the Korea Herald, medical information of nearly 90% of the South Korean population was sold to a multinational firm, which processed and sold the data.43 MillionU.S. Office of Personnel ManagementThe state-sponsored attack, which was described by federal officials as being among the largest breaches of government data in the history of the United States, scored a 9.6 on the risk assessment scale. The attack exposed data including PII such as Social Security numbers, names, dates and places of birth, and addresses.22 MillionExperianThe U.S.-based credit bureau and consumer data broker experienced an iden-tity theft breach by a malicious outsider that resulted in the theft of 15 million records. The data included some PII about consumers in the United States, including those who applied for T-Mobile services or device financing.15 MillionSource: Breach Level Index (2016).
132 CHAPTER 5 Cybersecurity and Risk Management TechnologyIntentional ThreatsExamples of intentional threats include data theft such as inappropriate use of data (e.g., manipulating inputs); theft of computer time; theft of equipment and/or software; deliberate manipulation in handling, entering, programming, processing, or transferring data; sabotage; malicious damage to computer resources; destruction from malware and similar attacks; and miscellaneous computer abuses and Internet fraud.Unintentional ThreatsUnintentional threats fall into three major categories: human error, environmental hazards, social unrest and computer system failures.¥ Human error can occur in the design of the hardware or information system. It can also occur during programming, testing, or data entry. Neglecting to change default passwords in applications or on systems or failing to manage patches creates security holes. Human TABLE 5.2 Major Sources of CyberthreatsSource/TypeCharacteristicsSolutionIntentional CyberthreatHackingUnauthorized access of networks, systems or applications for economic, social, or political gain. Use of programs such as backdoor services to promote reentry or further incursion into target environmentTrain your staffChange password frequentlyHave ÒstrongÓ passwordsPhishingSocial engineering, targeting human behavior rather than computer technologyTrain your staffMonitor activityCrimewareUse of malware and ransomwareUse antimalware/AV softwarePatch promptlyMonitor change and watch key indicatorsBack-up system regularlyCapture data on attacksPractice principle of least privilegeDistributed denial-of-serviceUse of compromised systems to overwhelm a system with malicious trafficSegregate key serversChoose your providers carefullyTest your anti-DDoS serviceInsider and privi-lege misuseEmployees, contractors, partners, suppliers, and other external entities with specific insider roles abusing access granted to systems for legitimate business purposes.Monitor user behaviorTrack mobile media usageKnow your dataPhysical theftTheft of laptops, tablets, peripherals, printed material, etc.Encrypt your dataTrain your staffReduce use of paperUnintentional CyberthreatPhysical lossTheft of laptops, tablets, and peripheral devicesEncrypt your dataTrain your staffMiscellaneous errorsAny unintentional action that compromises security, except theft, and loss of assetsLearn from your mistakesStrengthen controlsEnsure all assets go through a rigorous check by IT before they are decommis-sioned or disposed ofSource: Verizon (2016).
The Face and Future of Cyberthreats 133An Inside Look at How the Hacking Industry Operates Hacking is an industry with its own way of operating, a workforce, and support services. Hackers use social networks, underground forums, and the Deep Web to rate and promote services, share exploits, and recruit others. In certain forums and in the Deep Web, hackers can purchase the use of any number of services. These include the following:Educational servicesSoftware platforms for building and distributing hacking tools and malware/ransomwareSale or purchase of stolen data ranging from items as simple as e-mail accounts to credit cards, PII, and corporate data.error also includes untrained or unaware users falling prey to social engineering like phishing scams or ignoring security procedures. Human errors contribute to the majority of internal control and information security problems.¥ Environmental hazards include volcanoes, earthquakes, blizzards, floods, power fail-ures or strong fluctuations, fires (the most common hazard), defective heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems, explosions, radioactive fallout, and water-cooling-system failures. In addition to the primary damage, computer resources can be damaged by the side effects of a hazard, such as smoke and water. Such hazards may disrupt normal computer operations resulting in extended data inaccessibility and exorbitant restoration and recovery costs.¥ Computer systems failures can occur as the result of poor manufacturing, defective materials, or poor maintenance. Unintentional malfunctions can also occur for other rea-sons, ranging from administrator inexperience to inadequate testing.In the next sections, you will learn more about the various sources of cyberthreats and their potential impact on organizations.HackingHacking is a very profitable industry. In 2016, 56% of reported data breaches were reported to be the result of hacking, which is 18% higher than those reported for 2015 (Verizon, 2016). Hacking is a big part of underworld cybercrime, and a way for hacktivists to protest. Both the anonymity of the Internet and lack of international treaties provide hackers with a feeling of near invincibility because they face very low risk of capture and punishment.It is important to note that in the Hacker culture there are three classes of Hackers, shown in Table 5.3.Hacking is broadly defined as intentionally accessing a computer without authorization or exceeding authorized access. Various state and federal laws govern computer hacking.Hacktivist is short for hacker-activist or someone who performs hacking to promote awareness for or otherwise support a social, political, economic, or other cause. Hacking an application, system, or network without authorization, regardless of motive, is a crime. TABLE 5.3 Three Classes of HackersTypeCharacteristicsOutcomeWhite hatComputer security specialist who breaks into protected systems and networks to test and assess their security.Use their skills to improve security by exposing vulnerabilities before malicious hackers (black hats) can detect and exploit them.Black hatPerson who attempts to find computer security vulnera-bilities and exploit them for personal financial gain or other malicious reasons.Can inflict major damage on both individual com-puter users and large organizations by stealing personal financial information, compromising security of major systems, or shutting down or alerting the function of websites and networks.Gray hatPerson who may violate eth-ical standards or principles, but without the malicious intent ascribed to black hat hackers.May engage in practices that are less than ethical, but are often operating for the common good, e.g., exploits a security vulnerability to spread public awareness that the vulnerability exists.
134 CHAPTER 5 Cybersecurity and Risk Management TechnologyContract hackers are available for hire or complete hack attacks can be bought.Hacking help desks provide 24/7 supportÑmaking sophisticated attacks easier to manage and execute.Organized crime groups quickly learned that cybercrime has better payoffs with substan-tially lower risks to life, limb, and liberty than other activities like human trafficking, smug-gling, extortion, and the drug trade. They become virtually untouchable by law enforcement because often no one sees the crime and if it is identified, the lack of international treaties and cooperation make capture and trial between those non-extradition countries virtu-ally impossible. Given this, it is not surprising that almost every survey identifies the same troubling trendÑthe recovery costs and frequency of cybercrimes are increasing while the costs of execution are declining. This means much stronger IT security practices and defenses are obviously needed. One of the greatest cybersecurity weaknesses is users who ignore the dangers of weak passwordsÑmore than half of all confirmed data breaches involve weak or stolen passwords. The capture and misuse of credentials, such a userÕs IDs and passwords, is one of the foundations of the cybercriminal and nation-state hackers used in executing numerous other types of cyberthreats, including phishing (discussed in more detail later in the chapter). Proper credential management is essential to security.Cyber Social Engineering and Other Related Web-Based ThreatsExperts believe the greatest cybersecurity dangers over the next few years will involve persis-tent threats, mobile computing, and the use of social media for social engineering. From an IT security perspective, social engineering is a hackerÕs clever use of deception or manipulation of peopleÕs tendency to trust, be helpful, or simply follow their curiosity. Powerful IT security systems cannot defend against what appears to be authorized access.Notorious hacker Kevin Mitnick, who served time in jail for hacking, used social engineering as his primary method to gain access to computer networks. In most cases, the criminal never comes face-to-face with the victim, but communicates via the phone or e-mail.Humans are easily hacked, making them and their social media posts high-risk attack vec-tors. For instance, it is often easy to get users to infect their corporate network or mobile devices by tricking them into downloading and installing malicious applications or backdoors.Phishing Phishing is the term used to describe a social-engineering attack that can use e-mail sent to the recipient under false pretense to steal confidential information from the target. This is done by the sender pretending to be a known person or legitimate organization, such as PayPal, a bank, credit card company, or other trusted source and asking the user to perform an action that would expose his or her computer to a cyberthreat or reveal credentials, personal, financial, or business-related private information. Phishing messages are either sent in mass campaigns or they are specifically targeted at a particular group of people or person. The former requires no front work to gain context for the target but relies on sheer volume of messages (millions to tens of millions) to achieve returns.The latter requires more effort to gather relevant context about the message target and is therefore sent out in far smaller batches but has a higher rate of return on both the number of opened messages and the payback per message for that effort. The latter approach is dis-cussed later in this section.Phishing messages include a request to respond with information of some kind or a link to a fraudulent website that often looks like an authentic site the user works with. When the user clicks the link to the site, he or she falls victim to a malware download, drive-by attack, or information skimming such as being asked for a credit card number, Social Security number, account number, or password.Criminals use the Internet and private networks to hijack large numbers of systems including PCÕs mobile devices, servers, and Internet of Thing (IoT) devices to spy on users, spam them, shake down businesses, and steal identities. Once captured, they are called Bots,
The Face and Future of Cyberthreats 135short for robots or Internet Robots. But why are they so successful? The Information Security Forum, a self-help organization that includes many Fortune 100 companies, compiled a list of the top information problems and discovered that nine of the top 10 incidents were the result of three factors:1. Mistakes or human errors leading to misconfigured systems, applications, or networks2. Malfunctioning systems3. Failure to patch or otherwise properly maintain software on existing systemsUnfortunately, these factors can too easily create gaps in cybersecurity controls that com-panies and individuals use to protect their information.Spear Phishing Spear phishing targets select groups of people who have something in common. They can work at the same company, bank at the same financial institution, use a specific Internet provider, or attend the same church or university. The scam e-mails appear to be sent from organizations or people the potential victims normally receive e-mails from, mak-ing them even more deceptive.Here is how spear phishing works:1. Spear phishers gather information about peopleÕs activities, social groups, companies, and/or jobs from general media announcements, social media or compromised accounts, applications that are poorly designed and leak information or they can steal it from web-sites, computers, or mobile devices they have compromised, and then use that informa-tion to customize messages.2. Then they send the customized e-mails to targeted victims, creating some sort of pretext requiring the user to act or respond. These can be threats of account closure, loss of access or privilege, loss of funds or additional charges, legal actions impact to friends or family members, and so on. With the background information gained the message creates a very legitimate-sounding and compelling explanation as to why they need your personal data.3. Finally, the victims are asked to click on a link inside the e-mail that takes them to a phony but realistic-looking website, where they are asked to provide passwords, account num-bers, user IDs, access codes, PINs, and so on.When spear phishing targets are executives or persons of significant wealth, power, influence, or control the activity is known as Òwhaling.ÓCrimeware IT security researchers discover almost 1 million malicious programs every day. Why would so many hackers be spending so much time generating or launching these pro-grams? The answer is simpleÑit pays well! Crimeware can be broken down into several cate-gories, including spyware, adware, malware, and ransomware.Malware Assaults are Part of Everyday Operations There have been numerous test cases of malware overheating devices, causing them to physically distort or worse. These attacks, bundled into a cyberattack, could have devastating and lasting effects beyond what we commonly associate with an aggravating distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack.Viruses, worms, trojans, rootkits, backdoors, and keyloggers are types of malware. Most viruses, trojans, and worms are activated when an attachment is opened or a link is clicked. But when features are automated, they may trigger malware automatically, too. For example:¥ If an e-mail client, such as Microsoft Outlook or Gmail, is set to allow scripting, then virus infection occurs by simply opening a message or attachment.¥ Viewing e-mail messages in HTML, instead of in plain text, can trigger virus infections.Malware is not just about e-mail. It also includes rogue applications and malicious websites.Spyware is tracking software that is not designed to intentionally damage or disable a system. For example, an employer may install spyware on corporate laptops to monitor employee browsing activities, or an advertiser might use cookies to track what Web pages a user visit in order to target advertising in a marketing campaign.Adware is software that embeds advertisements in the application. It is considered a legitimate alternative offered to consumers who do not wish to pay for software.Malware refers to hostile or intrusive software, including computer viruses, rootkits, worms, trojan horses, ransomware, and other malicious programs used to disrupt computer or mobile operations, gather sensitive information, gain access to private computer systems.Ransomware is a type of malware that is designed to block access to a computer system until a sum of money has been paid.
136 CHAPTER 5 Cybersecurity and Risk Management TechnologyRemote access trojans (RATS) are a form of Trojan horse that creates an unprotected backdoor into a system through which a hacker can remotely control that system. As the name implies, a backdoor provides easy access to a system, computer, or account by creating the access that may or may not require authentication.However, hackers are very territorial and donÕt want someone else using systems they worked to compromise, so RATS often require some form of access control to eliminate the need to authenticate with a username and password.A malwareÕs payload is code that is dropped on the system that performs any or all of the following functions: facilitates the infection or communicates with the command and con-trol server or downloads more code. In doing so, the payload carries out the purpose of the malware. The payload could cause damage that is visible or operate in stealth mode so as to remain undetected. A vector is the specific method that malware uses to propagate, or spread, to other machines or devices. Malware may also replicate to make copies of itself.Malware creators often use social engineering to maximize the effective distribution of their creations. For example, the ILoveYou worm, released in May, 2000, used social engineering to entice people to open malware-infected e-mail messages. It successfully attacked tens of millions of Windows computers when it was sent as an e-mail attachment with the subject line: ILOVEYOU. Within nine days, the worm had spread worldwide, crippling networks, destroying files, and causing an estimated $5.5 billion in damages.Malware Reinfection, Signatures, Mutations, and Variants When a host computer is infected, attempts to remove the malware may failÑand the malware may reinfect the host for these two reasons:1. Malware is captured in backups or archives Restoring the infected backup or archive also restores the malware.2. Malware infects removable media Months or years after the initial infection, the remov-able media may be accessed, and the malware could attempt to infect the host.Most antivirus (AV) software relies on signatures to identify and then block malware. According to the Worldwide Malware Signature Counter, at the start of 2013, there were an esti-mated 19 million malware signatures. Detecting and preventing infections are not always a pos-sibility. Zero-day exploitsÑmalware so new their signatures are not yet knownÑare an example. Malware authors also evade detection by AV software and firewalls by altering malware code to cre-ate variants, which have new signatures. But not all procedures or AV tools are capable of removing every trace of the malware. Even if the malicious parts of the infection can be cleaned from a system, the remaining pieces of code could make the system unstable or expose to future infection.Botnets TodayÕs malware is often designed for long-term control of infected machines. Advanced malware sets up outbound communication channels in order to upload stolen data, download payloads, or do reconnaissance.In contrast, a botnet is a group of external attacking entities and is a totally different attack method/vector from malware which is internal to the system. Infected computers, called zom-bies, can be controlled and organized into a network of zombies on the command of a remote botmaster (also called bot herder). Storm worm, which is spread via spam, is a botnet agent embedded inside over 25 million computers. StormÕs combined power has been compared to the processing might of a supercomputer. Storm-organized attacks are capable of crippling any website. Zombies can be commanded to monitor and steal personal or financial dataÑacting as spyware. Botnets are used to send spam and phishing e-mails and launch DDoS attacks. Bot-nets are extremely dangerous because they scan for and compromise other computers, which then can be used for every type of crime and attack against computers, servers, and networks.Ransomware Is Increasingly Becoming a Problem Ransomware has been around for more than a decade. The problem began on a fairly small scale, targeting individual users, but the ransomware cyberthreat has been growing in the last couple of years and the Trojan horse is a program that appears harmless, but is, in fact, malicious.
The Face and Future of Cyberthreats 137attacks have become large scale. Now, some company executives fear entire companies will be shut down by ransomware until they pay up, or risk losing all their data.Ransomware works by first infiltrating a computer with malware and then encrypting all the files on the disk. The malware used to encrypt files can be difficult to defend against, and the encryption in most cases canÕt be broken. Then, the user is presented with a limited time offer: Lose all your data or send money with the promise the data will be unlocked. The fee typically varies from a few dollars to hundreds of dollars and often has to be transmitted in Bitcoin. One hospital in Los Angeles, whose electronic medical record system was locked out for 10 days, was forced to pay cyberattackers 40 Bitcoins to get its system unlocked when law enforcement and computer experts were unable to help in restoring the hospitalÕs data files.Computer security experts have theorized that this type of attack has a higher rate of success versus other cybercrime activity that has become more difficult. The best insurance against ransomware is to have offline or segregated backups of data.Denial-of-ServiceCybersecurity experts warn that battling the increasing number of Denial-of-Service (DoS) threats needs to be a top priority. DoS threats come in a number of Òflavors,Ó depending on their target. The three most prominent forms are:Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS)Ñcrashes a network or website by bombarding it with traffic (i.e., requests for service) and effectively denying services to all those legiti-mately using it and leaving it vulnerable to other threats.Telephony Denial-of-Service (TDoS)Ñfloods a network with phone calls and keeps the calls up for long durations to overwhelm an agent or circuit and prevents legitimate callers such as customers, partners, and suppliers from using network resources.Permanent Denial-of-Service (PDoS)Ñcompletely prevents the targetÕs system or device from working. This attack type is unique. Instead of collecting data or providing some ongoing perverse function its objective is to completely prevent its targetÕs device(s) from functioning. The damage PDoS causes is often so extensive that hardware must be rein-stalled or reinstated. PDoS is also known as Òphlashing.ÓA ÒchillingÓ example of the havoc that PDoS can cause was demonstrated when a PDoS attack took the building management system offline in a block of residential apartments in Finland. The systemÕs Internet connection was blocked causing the system to repeatedly try to reconnect by rebooting itself. During this downtime, the system was unable to supply heat at a time when temperatures were below freezing! Fortunately, the energy company was able to find alternate accommodations for residents until the system was brought back online.Insider and Privilege MisuseThreats from employees, referred to as internal threats, are a major challenge largely due to the many ways an employee can carry out malicious activity. Insiders may be able to bypass physical security (e.g., locked doors) and technical security (e.g., passwords) measures that organizations have put in place to prevent unauthorized access. Why? Because defenses such as firewalls, intrusion detection systems (IDSs), and locked doors mostly protect against external threats. Despite the challenges, insider incidents can be minimized with a layered defense-in-depth strategy consisting of security procedures, acceptable use policies (AUPs), and technology controls.Data tampering is a common means of attack that is overshadowed by other types of attacks. It refers to an attack during which someone enters false or fraudulent data into a com-puter, or changes or deletes existing data. Data tampering is extremely serious because it may not be detected. This is the method often used by insiders.
138 CHAPTER 5 Cybersecurity and Risk Management TechnologyPhysical Theft or LossThe threat of an information asset going missing, whether through negligence or malice can send companies into a panic. The ÒminiaturizationÓ of computing has led to an increase in physical theft or loss. Laptops, tablets, modems, routers, and USBs are much more easily trans-portable than mainframes or servers! When a laptop or tablet with unencrypted sensitive docu-ments on it goes missing itÕs difficult to determine if a data breach has actually occurred, but precautions must always be taken. Theft of laptops occurs primarily in victimsÕ own work area or from their vehicles. On the positive side, lost items are much more prevalent than theft. Theft is more likely to be related to the procurement of USB drives and printer paper.Miscellaneous ErrorsThe main concern related to this source of cyberthreat is a shortage of capacity, thus prevent-ing information from being available when needed. Other threat actions that fall within this category of miscellaneous errors are shown in Table 5.4.New Attack VectorsVulnerabilities exist in networks, operating systems, applications, databases, mobile devices, and cloud environments. These vulnerabilities are attack vectors or entry points for malware, hackers, hacktivists, and organized crime. Mobile devices and apps, social media, and cloud services introduce even more attack vectors for malware, phishing, and hackers. As a result, new cyberthreats are on the horizon.Malicious (Rogue) Mobile Applications The number of malicious Android applica-tions is growing at an alarming rate. According to a report by AV provider and software analysis group Trend Micro, more than 850,000 Android phones worldwide have been infected by the new ÒGodlessÓ malware, as of June, 2016 (Goodin, 2016). The malware is transferred to usersÕ phones through rogue applications in the Google Play store. According to mobile security cloud service providers Marble Security and Trend Micro, over 42% of the more than 300 rogue mobile applications found in the Google Play store are published in the United States (RT.com, 2015; Duan, 2016). Almost all of these applications were found in unreliable third-party stores. Rogue mobile applications can serve up trojan attacks, other malware, or phishing attacks.Companies offering legitimate applications for online banking, retail shopping, gaming, and other functions might not be aware of threats lurking in their app stores. And despite their best efforts, legitimate app store operators cannot reliably police their own catalogs for rogue apps.With a single click on a malicious link, users can launch a targeted attack against their organizations.Attack vector is a path or means by which a hacker can gain access to a computer or network server in order to deliver a malicious outcome. TABLE 5.4 Threat Actions Classified as Miscellaneous ErrorsMisdeliveryInformation delivered to the wrong person, when e-mails or documents are sent to the wrong peoplePublishing errorInformation published to an unintended audience, such as the entire Internet, enabling them to view itMisconfigurationA firewall rule is mistyped allowing access to a sensitive file server from all internal networks rather than a specific pool of hostsDisposal errorA hard drive is not ÒwipedÓ on decommissioned devicesProgramming errorCode is mistyped or logic is flawedDate entry errorData is entered incorrectly or into the incorrect file or duplicatedOmissionData is not entered; document is not sent
Cyberattack Targets and Consequences 139Questions1. Define and give an example of an intentional threat and an unintentional threat.2. Why might management not treat cyberthreats as a top priority?3. Describe the differences between distributed denial-of-service (DDoS), telephony denial-of-service (TDoS), and permanent denial-of-service (PDoS).4. Why is social engineering a technique used by hackers to gain access to a network?5. List and define three types of malware.6. What are the risks caused by data tampering?7. Define botnets and explain why they are dangerous.8. Why is ransomware on the rise? How might companies guard against ransomware attacks? 5.2 Cyberattack Targets and ConsequencesEvery enterprise has data that profit-motivated criminals want. Customer data, networks, web-sites, proprietary information systems, and patents are examples of assetsÑthings of value that need to be protected. However, it would appear that management may not be doing enough to defend against cyberattacks. Even high-tech companies and market leaders appear to be detached from the value of the confidential data they store and the ways in which highly motivated hackers will try to steal them.One of the biggest mistakes managers make is underestimating IT vulnerabilities and threats. For example, workers use their laptops and mobiles for both work and leisure, and in an era of multitasking, they often do both at the same time. Yet off-time or off-site use of devices remains risky because, despite policies, employees continue to engage in dangerous online and communication habits. Those habits make them a weak link in an organizationÕs otherwise solid security efforts.Some of the most prevalent and deadly targets that cyber criminals will attack in companies and governmental agencies include: critical infrastructure; theft of IP; identity theft; bring your own device (BYOD); and social media. Some of these attacks will be conducted as high-profile attacks while others will fall into the category of Òunder-the-radarÓ attacks. Before discussing the different cyberattack targets, letÕs take a look at the differences between these two approaches.ÒHigh-ProfileÓ and ÒUnder-the-RadarÓ AttacksAdvanced persistent threat (APT) attackers operate Òunder the radarÓ so they can continue to steal data, as described in IT at Work 5.1 and profit from it. These APT attackers are profit-motivated cybercriminals who often operate in stealth mode. In contrast, hackers and hacktiv-ists with personal agendas carry out high-profile attacks to gain recognition and notoriety.Hacktivist groups, such as Anonymous, a loosely associated international network of activist and hacktivist entities and its spin-off hacker group, LulzSec, have committed daring data breaches, data compromises, data leaks, thefts, threats, and privacy invasions. Consider the following three examples:Philippine Commission on Elections A few months before a Philippine election, the hacker group Anonymous tapped into the commissionÕs website and released personal information on 55 million registered voters. The demonstration was in response to the PhilippinesÕ lax security measures around its voting machines; 1.3 million overseas votersÕ information, which included passport numbers, were included in the breach.Combined Systems, Inc. Proudly displaying its hacktivist flag, Anonymous took credit for knocking Combined Systems, Inc. offline and stealing personal data from its clients. Anonymous went after Combined Systems, which sells tear gas and crowd-control devices to law enforcement and military organizations, to protest war profiteers.
140 CHAPTER 5 Cybersecurity and Risk Management TechnologyCIA Twice in one year, Anonymous launched a DoS attack that forced the CIA website offline. The CIA takedown followed a busy week for the hacktivists. Within 10 days, the group also went after Chinese electronics manufacturer Foxconn, American Nazi groups, AV firm Symantec, and the office of SyriaÕs president.In contrast, APTs typically steal corporate and government secrets. Most APT attacks are launched through phishing. Typically, this type of attack begins with some reconnaissance on the part of attackers. This can include researching publicly available information about the company and its employees, often from social networking sites. This information is then used to create targeted phishing e-mail messages. A successful attack could give the attacker access to the enterpriseÕs network.APTs are designed for long-term espionage. Once installed on a network, APTs transmit copies of documents, such as Microsoft Office files and PDFs, in stealth mode. APTs collect and store files on the companyÕs network; encrypt them; then send them in bursts to servers often in China or Russia. This type of attack has been observed in other large-scale data breaches that exposed significant numbers of identities.Both high-profile and under-the-radar attacks can be launched against a number of differ-ent targets. We will discuss those next.Critical Infrastructure AttacksHackers, hacktivists, crime syndicates, militant groups, industrial spies, fraudsters, and hostile governments continue to attack networks for profit, fame, revenge, or an ideology; to wage warfare and terrorism, fight against a terrorist campaign, or disable their target. For example, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Industrial Control Systems Cyber Emergency Response Team (ICS-CERT) warned that attacks against critical infrastructure are growing. In 2015, more than 427 vulnerability incidents were reported, far surpassing the 245 total attacks reported in 2014. The most affected industry was the energy sector.Figure 5.3 shows the 16 critical infrastructure sectors whose assets, systems, and net-works, whether physical or virtual, are considered so vital to the United States that their incapacitation or destruction would have a debilitating effect on security, national economic security, national public health or safety, or any combination thereof.Critical infrastructure is defined as, Òsystems and assets, whether physical or virtual, so vital to the a country that the incapacity or destruction of such systems and assets would have a debilitating impact on security, national economic security, national public health or safety, or any combination of those mattersÓ (Department of Justice, 2001).Chemical Water andWastewaterTransportationSystems Nuclear Reactors,Materials & WasteITHealth care &Public Health EnergyEmergencyServicesDefenseIndustrial BaseCritical Mfg.CommunicationsCommercialFood &AgricultureFinancialGovernmentFacilitiesDams FIGURE 5.3 U.S. critical infrastructure sectors.
Cyberattack Targets and Consequences 141Attacks on critical infrastructure sectors can significantly disrupt the functioning of government and businessÑand trigger cascading effects far beyond the targeted sector and physical location of the incident. These cyberattacks could compromise a countryÕs critical infrastructure and its ability to provide essential services to its citizens.For example, the first cyberattack against a nationÕs power grid occurred in December, 2015, when a cyberattacker successfully seized control of the Prykarpattyaoblenergo Control Center (PCC) in the Western Ukraine leaving 230,000 citizens without power for up to six hours. The attackers carefully planned their assault over many months. They studied the networks and siphon operator credentials and finally launched their devastating synchronized assault in the middle of winter. The PCC operated a supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system, which is a common form of industrial control system, that distributed electricity. The critical devices at 16 substations became unresponsive to any remote command by its oper-ators after attackers overwrote its firmware. This type of control system is surprisingly more secure than some used in the United States since they have robust firewalls that separate them from control center business networks. Governments around the world have plans in place to deal with the consequences of natural disasters, yet none have disaster relief plans for a downed power grid. Clearly, this must change. Local and state governments must work together with their national counterparts to produce and quickly implement plans to address future attacks.In response to the consistently growing number of cyberattacks over the past decade, the Inter-American Committee Against Terrorism (CICTE) issued a formal declaration to protect critical infrastructure from emerging threats and a Presidential executive order was signed in May 2017 to strengthen the cybersecurity of Federal networks and critical infrastructure.Theft of Intellectual PropertyIntellectual property (IP) can represent more than 80% of a companyÕs value and as such is a critical part of all 21st-century organizations. Losing customer data to hackers can be costly and embarrassing but losing IP, commonly known as trade secrets, could threaten a companyÕs existence. ItÕs a business leadersÕ nightmareÑthat gut-wrenching realization that a corporate network has been breached and valuable intellectual assets have been stolen by unknown cybercriminals (Gelinne et al., 2016).Theft of IP has always been a threat from corporate moles, disgruntled employees, and other insiders. While some IP may still be obtainable exclusively through physical means, dig-itization has made theft easier. Advancements in technology, increased mobility, rapid global-ization, and the anonymous nature of the Internet create growing challenges in protecting IP. HackersÕ preferred modus operandi is to break into employeesÕ mobile devices and leapfrog into employersÕ networksÑstealing trade secrets without a trace.Cybersecurity experts and government officials are increasingly concerned about breaches from other countries into corporate and government networks either through mobile devices or other means. For example, a government agency could have blueprints for a secret new weapon system stolen by foreign agents, or an employee of a popular game developer might steal their latest game before it is released to the public.In May of 2016, President Barack Obama signed the Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA), to allow Òthe owners of trade secrets to bring a civil action in federal court for trade secret mis-appropriationÓ (Gibson Dunn, 2016). Until the signing of the DTSA, corporations had to rely on state law regarding trade secrets. Now, every American corporation is equally protected under federal law. Moreover, it extends the power of the federal government in regulation of trade secrets through interstate and foreign commerce while maintaining existing trade secret laws.A famous example of theft of IP is the APT attack named Operation Aurora perpetrated against Google, described in IT at Work 5.1.Intellectual property is a work or invention that is the result of creativity that has commercial value, including copyrighted property such as a blueprint, manuscript, or a design, and is protected by law from unauthorized use by others.
142 CHAPTER 5 Cybersecurity and Risk Management TechnologyIdentity TheftOne of the worst and most prevalent cyberthreats is identity theft. Thefts where individualsÕ Social Security and credit card numbers are stolen and used by thieves are not new. Criminals have always obtained information about other peopleÑby stealing wallets or dumpster diving. But widespread electronic sharing and databases have made the crime worse. Because finan-cial institutions, data-processing firms, and retail businesses are reluctant to reveal incidents in which their customersÕ personal financial information may have been stolen, lost, or compro-mised, laws continue to be passed that force those notifications.Bring Your Own DeviceAnother, more recent, vulnerability is bring your own device (BYOD). Roughly 74% of U.S. organ-izations are either already using or planning to use BYOD. ItÕs an appealing concept because BYOD enables companies to cut costs by not having to purchase and maintain employeesÕ IT at Work 5.1Operation AuroraOperation Aurora was a counterespionage operation being run by the Chinese government. It was a series of cyberattacks conducted by APTs with ties to the PeopleÕs Liberation Army in China. Attackers successfully accessed a database that flagged Gmail accounts marked for court-ordered wiretaps to gain insights into active inves-tigations being conducted by the FBI and other law enforcement agencies that involved undercover Chinese operatives.To access IP, Operation Aurora exploited security flaws in e-mail attachments to sneak into the networks of major financial, defense, and technology companies and research institutions in the United States by performing six steps, as described in Figure 5.4. Standard IT security technologies at Google failed to prevent these six steps from occurring and neither Google nor its Gmail account holders knew they had been hacked.Once the APTs gained access to GoogleÕs internal systems (Step 6), they were free to steal corporate secrets. Reportedly, over 30 other large companies from a wide range of industries were sim-ilarly targeted by Operation Aurora.Most hack activities do not become headline grabbers until after the incidents are detected and reported. Even then, victimized companies are reluctant to discuss them so statistics are scarce. In the case of Operation Aurora, the attack was not discovered until almost one year after the fact!IT at Work Questions1. Describe the six steps of Operation Aurora.2. What was the purpose of Operation Aurora?3. What could Google have done to prevent Operation Aurora?1. A targeted userreceives a link in ane-mail or text froma ÒtrustedÓ source.4. The exploitdownloads a binarydisguised as animage and executesthe malicious payload.5. The payload setsup a backdoor andconnects to C and Cservers in Taiwan.6. Attackers nowhave completeaccess to internalsystems. They arenow a persistentthreat.2. When the userclicks the link, awebsite hosted inTaiwan loads. Itcontains maliciousJavaScript.3. The userÕsbrowser downloadsand executes theJavaScript, whichincludes a zero-dayIE exploit. FIGURE 5.4 Overview of the six steps in the Operation Aurora APT attack.
Cyberattack Targets and Consequences 143mobile devices. Unfortunately, many companies have rushed into it without considering issues relating to security. Mobile devices rarely have strong authentication, access controls, and encryption even though they connect to mission-critical data and cloud services. For example, only 20% of androids have a security app installed.The BYOD trend is driven by employees using their own devices for business purposes because they are more powerful than those the company has provided. Another factor is mobility. In the past, and before the BYOD push, employees worked at their desks on a land-line and on a computer plugged into the wall with a network cable. This change in exposure requires greater investment to defend against BYOD risks. As more and more people work from home and on the go, the office-bound traditional 9-to-5 workday has become a thing of the past.Users bringing their personal mobile devices and their own mobile applications to work and connecting them to the corporate network is part of the larger consumerization of information technology (COIT) trend. Bring your own device (BYOD) and bring your own apps (BYOA) are practices that move enterprise data and IT assets to employeesÕ mo-bile devices and the cloud, creating a new set of tough IT security challenges. Figure 5.5 sum-marizes how apps, mobile devices, and cloud services put organizations at a greater risk of cyberattack. Widely used applications that are outside of the organizationÕs firewall are Twitter, Google Analytics, Dropbox, WebEx, and Salesforce.com.Enterprises take risks with BYOD practices that they never would consider taking with con-ventional computing devices. One possible reason is that new devices, apps, and systems have been rolled out so quickly. As a result, smartphones are not being managed as secure devices, with fewer than 20% of users installing antimalware and 50% using some type of data encryp-tion. In fact, employees expected instant approval of (or at least no disapproval of) and support for their new tablet computers within hours of the productÕs release.BYOD Raises Serious and Legitimate Areas of Concern Hackers break into employeesÕ mobile devices and leapfrog into employersÕ networksÑstealing secrets without a trace. New vulnerabilities are created when personal and business data and communications are mixed together. All cybersecurity controlsÑauthentication, access control, data confiden-tiality, and intrusion detectionÑimplemented on corporate-owned resources can be rendered useless by an employee-owned device. The corporationÕs mobile infrastructure may not be able to support the increase in mobile network traffic and data processing, causing unaccept-able delays or requiring additional investments.Another serious problem arises when an employeeÕs mobile device is lost or stolen. The company can suffer a data breach if the device is not adequately secured by a strong password and the data on the BYOD is not encrypted.Tech Note 5.1 demonstrates why users should only download applications from trusted sources and check reviews to verify the legitimacy of the application being downloaded.¥ Business operations are controlled by apps, systems, and networks that are so interconnected that anyoneÕs mobile device is an entry point for attacks.¥ Cloud services have created vulnerabilities in systems and apps that are surprising even the experts.Cloud servicescreatevulnerabilitiesApps and mobilescreate attackvectors FIGURE 5.5 Factors that expose companies and users to attack.
144 CHAPTER 5 Cybersecurity and Risk Management TechnologySocial Media AttacksCompaniesÕ poor social media security practices put their brands, customers, executives, and entire organizations at serious risk. According to Cisco, Facebook scams are the most common form of malware distributed in 2015. The FBI reported that social media-related events had quadrupled over the past five years and PricewaterhouseCoopers (2015) found that more than one in eight enterprises has suffered at least one security breach due to a social media-related cyberattack.Social networks and cloud computing increase vulnerabilities by providing a single point of failure and attack for organized criminal networks. Critical, sensitive, and private information is at risk, and like previous IT trends, such as wireless networks, the goal is connectivity, often with little concern for security. As social networks increase their offerings, the gap between services and information security also increases. For example, virus and malware attacks on a well-established service such as e-mail have decreased as e-mail security has improved over the years. Unfortunately, malware is still finding ways to successfully disrupt new services and devices, such e-readers, netbooks, GoogleÕs Chrome OS, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, LinkedIn, and other cloud-based social media networks. For example, in Twitter and Facebook, where users build relationships with other users, cybercriminals are hacking in using stolen logins. These types of attacks that take advantage of user trust are very difficult to detect. Facebook recently reported that up to 2% of its 31 million accounts are false, Twitter estimates 5%, and LinkedIn openly admitted, that they donÕt have a reliable system for identifying and counting duplicate or fraudulent accounts.To combat these cyberthreats, Web filtering, user education, and strict policies are key to preventing widespread outbreaks.Networks and Services Increase Exposure to Risk An overriding reason why these networks and services increase exposure to risk is the time-to-exploitation of todayÕs sophisticated spyware and mobile viruses. Time-to-exploitation is the elapsed time between when vulnerability is discovered and when it is exploited. That time has shrunk from months to minutes so IT staff have ever-shorter timeframes to find and fix flaws before they are compro-mised by an attack. Some attacks exist for as little as two hours, which means that enterprise IT security systems must have real-time protection.When new vulnerabilities are found in operating systems, applications, or wired and wireless networks, patches are released by the vendor or security organization. Patches are software programs that users download and install to fix a vulnerability. Microsoft, for example, releases patches that it calls service packs to update and fix vulnerabilities in its operating systems, including Vista, and applications, including Office 2010. Service packs can be down-loaded from MicrosoftÕs website.Left undetected or unprotected, vulnerabilities provide an open door for IT attacks and business disruptions and their financial damages. Despite the best technology defenses, information secu-rity incidents will occur mostly because of the users who do not follow secure computing practices and procedures. IT at Work 5.2 illustrates how GoogleÕs new automated cybersecurity initiative is poised to reduce GoogleÕs losses suffered due to cyberattacks in the cloud.Tech Note 5.1Android Botnet over SMSA botnet of exploited android phones was sending massive amounts of spam via Yahoo e-mail servers using the short mes-saging service (SMS) as the command and control (C&C) chan-nel. Infected androids, or bots, log into the ownerÕs Yahoo Mail account to send spam. Most of the devices were located in Chile, Venezuela, Thailand, Indonesia, Lebanon, Philippines, Russia, and Saudi ArabiaÑin countries where users are less likely to get their android applications from the Google Play market, which automatically ensures that the applications are safe. Users down-loading free phone apps from third-party app stores to avoid paying for legitimate versions were actually downloading the android malware.User should only download applications from trusted sources and also check the reviews to verify the applications are legitimate because there are many bogus applications.
Cyberattack Targets and Consequences 145IT at Work 5.2GoogleÕs Automated Game of Monkey in the MiddleGoogle is the worldÕs largest Internet-based search engine, servicing 2 trillion Internet searches every year (Burgess, 2016). In addition to being the largest encyclopedia known to man, Google has also expanded its services into cloud computing and online advertising. The Internet security sector is becoming increasingly important as the amount of global cyberattacks grows every year. Encryption tech-nologies serve the purpose of hiding information from unauthorized personnel and hackers using binary code (0 s and 1 s instead of plain text). In October, 2016, Google made the leap to becoming a security platform for Internet communication using encryption technology.In order to do this, Google created three adversarial neural net-works, that is, an information processing unit that acts very much like the brain, using interconnected processing ÒneuronsÓ to gather con-clusions about large data sets or other sources of information. In turn, adversarial neural networks are those that compete with each other to gain the same information more quickly or efficiently. Google named its three neural networks Eve, Alice, and Bob. Alice was tasked to send secret, encrypted messages to Bob, while Eve attempts to intercept the information before Bob receives it. The purpose of this demonstration is to test the plausibility of neural networks in Internet security appli-cations and train them to better encrypt sensitive information.GoogleÕs Neural Network EffectivenessThroughout 15,000 simulations, Alice and Bob were able to send and decrypt hidden messages without Eve fully decrypting any of them. In fact, as the study progressed, Eve made more decryption errors as Bob and Alice became more effective (Figure 5.6). The implications of this study are significant to the future of machine learning and security. While neural networks are relatively simple in terms of cryptanalysis, because the adversarial neural networks were able to learn how to better secure information, other, more complex security technologies can also learn how to protect information and determine which information is worth protecting.IT at Work Questions1. Why is decryption security important in todayÕs inter-connected society?2. What can GoogleÕs AI teach us about cybersecurity?3. What are the future implications of this study?87654Bits wrong (of 16)321050005000100001500020000steps250003000035000400000BobEve FIGURE 5.6 Effectiveness of Bob and Eve in receiving and decrypting messages over time.Sources: Compiled from Berman (2016), Burgess (2016), and Abadi and Andersen (2016).Questions1. What is a critical infrastructure?2. List three types of critical infrastructures.3. How do social networks and cloud computing increase vulnerability?4. Why are patches and service packs needed?5. Why is it important to protect IP?6. How are the motives of hacktivists and APTs different?7. Explain why data on laptops and computers need to be encrypted.8. Explain how identity theft can occur.
146 CHAPTER 5 Cybersecurity and Risk Management Technology 5.3 Cyber Risk ManagementTop management needs to sponsor and promote security initiatives and fund them as a top priority. As you will read in this section, robust data security is not just the responsibility of IT and top management, but the ongoing duty of everyone in an organization.It is becoming more important than ever that security is viewed as a high priority as the growth of mobile technologies and the IoT threaten to provide attackers with new opportu-nities. The five key factors contributing to the rising number of data breaches that must be addressed in a cyber risk management program are listed in Table 5.5.Keep in mind that security is an ongoing, unending processÑsomething akin to painting the Golden Gate Bridge in San FranciscoÑand not a problem that can be solved with just hardware or software. Hardware and software security defenses cannot protect against irre-sponsible business practices. These are organizational and people issues.IT DefensesSince malware and botnets use many attack methods and strategies, multiple tools are needed to detect them and/or neutralize their effects. Three essential defenses are the following:1. Antivirus Software Antimalware tools are designed to detect malicious codes and pre-vent users from downloading them. They can also scan systems for the presence of worms, trojans, and other types of threats. This technology does not provide complete protection because it cannot defend against zero-day exploits. Antimalware may not be able to detect a previously unknown exploit.2. Intrusion Detection Systems (IDSs) As the name implies, an IDS scans for unusual or suspicious traffic. An IDS can identify the start of a DoS attack by the traffic pattern, alert-ing the network administrator to take defensive action, such as switching to another IP address and diverting critical servers from the path of the attack.3. Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPSs) An IPS is designed to take immediate actionÑsuch as blocking specific IP addressesÑwhenever a traffic-flow anomaly is detected. An application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC)-based IPS has the power and analysis capa-bilities to detect and block DDoS attacks, functioning somewhat like an automated cir-cuit breaker.Business policies, procedures, training, and disaster recovery plans as well as hardware and software are critical to cybersecurity. Table 5.6 lists the characteristics of an effective cybersecurity program.To help keep managers updated on the latest cyberthreats and prioritize defenses, KPMG publishes its Data Loss Barometer. The annual report describes the latest trends and statistics for data losses worldwide. Key findings and predictions are listed in Table 5.7.The higher the value of the asset to the company and to cybercriminals, the greater the risk is to the company and the higher the level of security needs to be. The smart strategy is Risk is the probability of a threat successfully exploiting a vulnerability and the estimated cost of the loss or damage. TABLE 5.5 Five Key Factors Leading to an Increase in Cyberattacks1. Interconnected, interdependent, wirelessly networked business environment2. Smaller, faster, cheaper computers and storage devices3. Decreasing skills necessary to be a computer hacker4. International organized crime taking over cybercrime5. Lack of management support
Cyber Risk Management 147to invest more to protect the companyÕs most valuable assets rather than trying to protect all assets equally, as discussed in IT at Work 5.2. The IT security fieldÑlike sports and lawÑhas its own terminology, which is summarized for quick reference in Figure 5.7 and Table 5.8. TABLE 5.6 Characteristics of an Effective Cybersecurity ProgramMake data and documents available and accessible 24/7 while simultaneously restricting access.Implement and enforce procedures and AUPs for data, networks, hardware, and software that are company or employee owned, as discussed in the opening case.Promote secure and legal sharing of information among authorized persons and partners.Ensure compliance with government regulations and laws.Prevent attacks by having network intrusion defenses in place.Detect, diagnose, and respond to incidents and attacks in real time.Maintain internal controls to prevent unauthorized alteration of data/records.Recover from business disasters and disruptions quickly. TABLE 5.7 Worldwide Data Loss Key Findings and PredictionsKey findings from KPMG Data Loss Barometer Report and its predictions for the next few years:¥ Hacking is the number one cause of data loss.¥ Internal threats have reduced significantly, while external threats are increasing significantly.¥ The most hacked sectors are technology, financial services, retail, and automotive.¥ Expect increased loss of data from mobile devices.¥ Expect a steep rise in automated hacking and botnets.¥ Expect less tolerant regulators and greater fines and negative consequences.¥ Expect greater visibility and reporting of data loss as a result of less tolerant regulators.Source: KPMG (2016).ThreatSomeone or something thatcan cause loss, damage,or destruction.VulnerabilityWeakness or flaw in a system thatallows an attack to be successful.CompaniesÕ IT security defensesinfluence how vulnerable they areto threats.AssetSomething of value that needs toprotected.Customer data, trade secrets,proprietary formulas, and other intellectual property.ExploitA program (code) that allows attackersto automatically break into a systemthrough a vulnerability.To attack or take advantage of avulnerability.RiskProbability of a threat exploiting avulnerability and the resulting cost ofthe loss, damage, disruption,or destruction.Risk = f(Threat, Vulnerability, Cost ofthe impact) FIGURE 5.7 Basic IT security concepts.
148 CHAPTER 5 Cybersecurity and Risk Management TechnologyMinimum Security Defenses for Mobiles Minimum security defenses for mobile devices are mobile biometrics, rogue app monitoring, remote wipe capability, and encryption. For travelers, do-not-carry rules may be a necessary defense.A biometric control is an automated method of verifying the identity of a person, based on physical or behavioral characteristics. The most common biometrics are a thumbprint or fingerprint, voice print, retinal scan, and signature.Mobile biometrics, such as voice and fingerprint biometrics, can significantly improve the security of physical devices and provide stronger authentication for remote access or cloud services. Biometric controls have been integrated into e-business hardware and software prod-ucts. Biometric controls do have some limitations: They are not accurate in certain cases, and some people see them as an invasion of privacy. Most biometric systems match some personal characteristic against a stored profile.When Apple acquired Siri, Inc., the voice-based personal assistant Siri was integrated into its AppleÕs operating system, Siri gave Apple the potential to move into voice biometrics.Voice biometrics is an effective authentication solution across a wide range of consumer devices including smartphones, tablets, and TVs. Future mobile devices are expected to have fingerprint sensors to add another authentication factor.Another type of defense is rogue app monitoring to detect and destroy malicious applica-tions in the wild. Several vendors offer 24/7 monitoring and detection services to monitor major app stores and shut down rogue applications to minimize exposure and damage.In the event of loss or theft of a device, a mobile kill switch or remote wipe capability as well as encryption are needed. All major smartphone platforms have some kind of remote-erase capability and encryption option.In response to mobile security threats, many U.S. companies and government agencies are imposing do-not-carry rules on mobiles to prevent compromise. Travelers can bring only ÒcleanÓ devices and are forbidden from connecting to the governmentÕs network while abroad.Do-Not-Carry Rules The U.S. Chamber of Commerce did not learn that it and its member organizations were the victims of a cybertheft for months until the FBI informed the Chamber that servers in China were stealing data from four of its Asia policy experts, individuals who fre-quently travel to Asia. Most likely, the expertsÕ mobile devices had been infected with malware TABLE 5.8 IT Security TerminologyTermDefinitionExposureEstimated cost, loss, or damage that can result if a threat exploits a vulnerabilityAccess controlSecurity feature designed to restrict who has access to a network, IS, or dataAuditProcedure of generating, recording, and reviewing a chronological record of system events to determine their accuracyEncryptionTransforming data into scrambled code to protect them from being understood by unauthorized usersPlaintext or clear textReadable textCiphertextEncrypted textAuthenticationMethod (usually based on username and password) by which an IS validates or verifies that a user is really who he or she claims to beBiometricsMethods to identify a person based on a biological feature, such as a fingerprint or retinaFirewallSoftware or hardware device that controls access to a private network from a public network (Internet) by analyzing data packets entering or exiting itIntrusion detection system (IDS)A defense tool used to monitor network traffic (packets) and provide alerts when there is suspicious traffic, or to quarantine suspicious trafficFault toleranceThe ability of an IS to continue to operate when a failure occurs, but usually for a limited time or at a reduced level
Cyber Risk Management 149that was transmitting information and files back to the hackers. By the time the Chamber hard-ened (secured) its network, hackers had stolen at least six weeks of e-mails, most of which were communications with the largest U.S. corporations. Even later, the Chamber learned that its office printer and a thermostat in one of its corporate apartments were communicating with an Internet address in China. The Chamber did not disclose how hackers had infiltrated its sys-tems, but its first step was to implement do-not-carry rules.U.S. companies, government agencies, and organizations are now imposing do-not-carry rules, which are based on the assumption that devices will inevitably be compromised according to Mike Rogers, current chairman of the House Intelligence Committee. For example, House members can bring only ÒcleanÓ devices and are forbidden from connecting to the gov-ernmentÕs network while abroad. Rogers said he travels Òelectronically nakedÓ to ensure cyber-security during and after a trip. IT at Work 5.3 explains how one cybersecurity expert complies with do-not-carry rules while traveling.Business Continuity PlanningRisk management is not complete without a business continuity plan that has been tested to verify that it works. Business continuity refers to maintaining business functions or restoring them quickly when there is a major disruption. The plan covers business processes, assets, human resources, business partners, and more. Fires, earthquakes, floods, power outages, malicious attacks, and other types of disasters hit data centers. Yet, business continuity plan-ning capabilities can be a tough sell because they do not contribute to the bottom lineÑthat is, until it is too late. Compare them to an insurance policy: If and only if a disaster occurs, the money has been well spent. And spending on business continuity preparedness is an ongoing process because there is always more that could be done to prepare better.The purpose of a business continuity plan is to keep the business running after a disaster occurs. Each function in the business should have a feasible backup plan. For example, if the customer service center or call center was destroyed by a storm or lost all power, would anyone know how the reps would continue to answer customer calls? The backup plan could define how to provide necessary network access to enable business to continue.Government RegulationsCyberattacks are now the number one type of danger facing many countries around the globe. As a result, international, federal, and state laws and industry regulations mandate that enter-prises invest in cybersecurity defenses, audits, and internal controls to help secure confidential data, prevent attacks, and defend against fraud and unauthorized transactions such as money laundering (Morris 2016).IT at Work 5.3Traveling Electronically CleanWhen Kenneth G. Lieberthal, an expert at the Brookings Institution, travels to other countries, he follows a routine that seems straight from a secret agent movie. He leaves his smartphone and laptop at home. Instead, he brings loaner devices, which he erases before he leaves the United States and wipes clean the minute he returns. While traveling, he disables Bluetooth and Wi-Fi and never lets his phone out of his sight. While in meetings, he not only turns off his phone, but also removes the battery for fear his microphone could be turned on remotely.Lieberthal connects to the Internet only through an encrypted, password-protected channel. He never types in a password directly, but copies and pastes his password from a USB thumb drive. By not typing his password, he eliminates the risk of having it stolen if key-logging software were to be installed on his device.IT at Work Questions1. Many travelers might consider LieberthalÕs method too inconvenient. Clearly, his electronically clean methods are time consuming and expensive. In your opinion, is there a trade-off between cybersecurity and convenience? Explain.2. Create a list of best cybersecurity practices for travelers based on LieberthalÕs methods.
150 CHAPTER 5 Cybersecurity and Risk Management TechnologyIT defenses must satisfy ever-stricter government and international regulations. All mandate the protection of PII. To protect consumers, some countries require strict compli-ance with these regulations. For example, in the United States the director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) warned that the agency would bring enforcement action against small businesses lacking adequate policies and procedures to protect consumer data. Some examples of major national security regulations are listed in Figure 5.8. Some of these regulations also apply to occupational fraud that is described in the next section.To ensure compliance with these regulations in United Sates, the SEC and FTC impose huge fines for data breaches to deter companies from underinvesting in data protection.Questions1. Explain why it is becoming more important for organizations to make cyber risk management a high priority?2. Name four U.S. government regulations that relate to cyber risk management.3. What is the purpose of rogue application monitoring?4. Why is a mobile kill switch or remote wipe capability an important part of managing cyber risk?5. Why does an organization need to have a business continuity plan?6. Name the three essential cybersecurity defenses.7. Name three IT defenses.8. Why do companies impose do-not-carry rules? 5.4 Defending Against FraudNot all cybercrimes are ÒattacksÓ conducted from outside the organization. Some are con-ducted by employees within the organization. This is called fraud. Fraudsters carry out their crime by abusing the power of their position or by taking advantage of the trust, ignorance, or laziness of others. According to the latest Annual Global Fraud Survey, 81% of organizations Fraud is a nonviolent crime in which fraudsters use deception, confidence, and trickery for their personal gain.Personal Information Protectionand Electronic Document Act(PIPEDA)SarbanesÐOxley Act (SOX)Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLB)Federal Information SecurityManagement Act (FISMA)USA PATRIOT ActBasel IIICANADAUSAUNITEDKINGDOMGLOBAL FINANCIAL SERVICESData Protection ActJAPANPersonal InformationProtection ActAUSTRALIAFederal Privacy Act FIGURE 5.8 Global government regulations of PII.
Defending Against Fraud 151have been victims of frauds perpetrated by insiders. Of these, 36% were carried out by senior or middle managers and 45% were attributed to junior employees. Only 23% of the reported frauds resulted from actions of an agent or nonemployee with access.Occupational Fraud Prevention and DetectionHigh-profile cases of occupational fraud committed by senior executive have led to an increase in government regulations. Unfortunately, this increased legislation has not put an end to fraud.The single most effective fraud prevention tactic is making employees aware that fraud will be detected by IT-monitoring systems and punished, with the fraudster possibly turned over to the police or FBI. The fear of being caught and prosecuted is a strong deterrent. IT must play a visible and major role in detecting fraud. A strong corporate governance program and internal audits and controls are essential to the prevention and detection of occupational fraud.Several examples of occupational fraud, their characteristics and the extent to which they impact corporate financial statements are illustrated in Figure 5.9.Corporate Governance An enterprise-wide approach that combines risk, security, compliance, and IT specialists greatly increases the prevention and detection of fraud. Preven-tion is the most cost-effective approach, since detection and prosecution costs are enormous in addition to the direct cost of the loss. It starts with corporate governance culture and ethics at the top levels of the organization.IT monitoring and control also demonstrate that the company has implemented effec-tive corporate governance and fraud prevention measures. Regulators look favorably on companies that can demonstrate best practices in corporate governance and operational risk management. Management and staff would then spend less time worrying about regulations and more time adding value to their brands and business.Internal fraud prevention measures are based on the same controls that are used to pre-vent external intrusionsÑperimeter defense technologies, such as firewalls, e-mail scanners, and biometric access. They are also based on human resource (HR) procedures, such as recruit-ment screening and training.Intelligent Analysis and Anomaly Detections Most detection activity can be han-dled by intelligent analysis engines using advanced data warehousing and analytics techniques. These systems take in audit trails from key systems and personnel records from the HR and finance departments. The data are stored in a data warehouse where they are analyzed to detect anomalous patterns, such as excessive hours worked, deviations in patterns of behavior, copy-ing huge amounts of data, attempts to override controls, unusual transactions, and inadequate Type of FraudImpacts Financial Statements?Typical CharacteristicsOperating Management CorruptionNoOccurs off the books. Median loss due to corruption is 6X median loss due to misappropriationConflict of InterestNoBreach of confidentiality, such as revealing competitor bids. Often occurs coincident with bribery.BriberyNoUses positional power or money to influence othersEmbezzlement or ÒmisappropriationÓYesEmployee theft. Employee access to company property creates the opportunity for embezzlementSenior management financial reporting fraudYesInvolves massive breach of trust and leveraging of positional powerAccounting Cycle fraudYesAlso called Òearnings managementÓ or Òearnings engineering.Ó Violates generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) and other all other accounting principles. See aicpa.org FIGURE 5.9 Types, impact, and characteristics of occupational fraud.
152 CHAPTER 5 Cybersecurity and Risk Management Technologydocumentation about a transaction. Information from investigations is fed back into the detec-tion system so it learns of any anomalous patterns. Since insiders might work in collusion with organized criminals, insider profiling is important to find wider patterns of criminal networks.General ControlsIt is also important to have a set of general controls in place. The major categories of general controls are physical controls, access controls, data security controls, communication network controls, and administrative controls.Physical Controls Physical security refers to the protection of computer facilities and resources. This includes protecting physical property such as computers, data centers, soft-ware, manuals, and networks. It provides protection against most natural hazards as well as against some human hazards. Appropriate physical security may include several physical controls such as the following:¥ Appropriate design of the data center. For example, the data center should be noncombus-tible and waterproof.¥ Shielding against electromagnetic fields.¥ Good fire prevention, detection, and extinguishing systems, including a sprinkler system, water pumps, and adequate drainage facilities.¥ Emergency power shutoff and backup batteries, which must be maintained in operational condition.¥ Properly designed and maintained air-conditioning systems.¥ Motion detector alarms that detect physical intrusion.Access Controls Access control is the management of who is and who is not autho-rized to use a companyÕs hardware and software. Access control methods, such as firewalls and access control lists, restrict access to a network, database, file, or data. It is the major line of defense against unauthorized insiders as well as outsiders. Access control involves authori-zation (having the right to access) and authentication, which is also called user identification (proving that the user is who he or she claims to be).Authentication methods include:¥ Something only the user knows, such as a password¥ Something only the user has, for example, a smart card or a token¥ Something only the user is, such as a signature, voice, fingerprint, or retinal (eye) scan; implemented via biometric controls, which can be physical or behavioralAdministrative Controls While the previously discussed general controls are technical in nature, administrative controls deal with issuing guidelines and monitoring compliance with the guidelines. Examples of controls are shown in Table 5.9.To guard against fraud and protect clients, customers, and constituents, all public and private enterprises are subject to federal and state laws and regulations, some of which are shown in Figure 5.8. In the United States, the SarbanesÐOxley Act requires that companies prove that their financial applications and systems are controlled (secured) to verify that financial reports can be trusted. It is intended to discourage fraud at the corporate and executive levels.SarbanesÐOxley Act Mandates More Accurate Business Reporting and Disclosure of Violations The SarbanesÐOxley Act (SOX) mandates more accurate business reporting and disclosure of generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) viola-tions. Section 302 deters corporate and executive fraud by requiring that the CEO and CFO verify that they have reviewed the financial report, and, to the best of their knowledge, the report
Defending Against Fraud 153does not contain an untrue statement or omit any material fact. To motivate honesty, executive management faces criminal penalties including long jail terms for false reports. Section 805 man-dates a review of the Sentencing Guidelines to ensure that Òthe guidelines that apply to organi-zations . . . are sufficient to deter and punish organizational criminal conduct.Ó The Guidelines also focus on the establishment of Òeffective compliance and ethicsÓ programs. As indicated in the Guidelines, a precondition to an effective compliance and ethics program is Òan organiza-tional culture that encourages ethical conduct and a commitment to compliance with the law.ÓAmong other measures, SOX requires companies to set up comprehensive internal controls. There is no question that SOX, and the complex and costly provisions it requires public com-panies to follow, have had a major impact on corporate financial accounting. For starters, com-panies have had to set up comprehensive internal controls over financial reporting to prevent fraud, catching it when it occurs. Since the collapse of Arthur Andersen, following the accounting firmÕs conviction on criminal charges related to the Enron case, outside accounting firms have gotten tougher with clients they are auditing, particularly with regard to their internal controls.SOX and the SEC are making it clear that if controls can be ignored, there is no control. Therefore, fraud prevention and detection require an effective monitoring system. If a company shows its employees that it can find out everything that every employee does and use that evi-dence to prosecute a wrongdoer to the fullest extent possible under the law, then the likelihood of any employee adopting an ÒI can get away with itÓ attitude drops drastically.Approximately 85% of occupational fraud could be prevented if proper IT-based internal controls had been designed, implemented, and followed.Internal ControlsThe internal control environment is the work atmosphere that a company sets for its employees. Internal control (IC) is a process designed to achieve:¥ Reliability of financial reporting, to protect investors¥ Operational efficiency¥ Compliance with laws, regulations, and policies¥ Safeguarding of assetsCyber Defense StrategiesThe objective of IT security management practices is to defend all of the components of an information system, specifically data, software applications, hardware, and networks, so they remain in compliance. Before they make any decisions concerning defenses, the people responsible for security must understand the requirements and operations of the business, which form the basis for a customized defense strategy. TABLE 5.9 Representative Administrative Controls¥ Appropriately selecting, training, and supervising employees, especially in accounting and information systems¥ Fostering company loyalty¥ Immediately revoking access privileges of dismissed, resigned, or transferred employees¥ Requiring periodic modification of access controls, such as passwords¥ Developing programming and documentation standards (to make auditing easier and to use the standards as guides for employees)¥ Insisting on security bonds or malfeasance insurance for key employees¥ Instituting separation of duties, namely, dividing sensitive computer duties among as many employees as economically feasible in order to decrease the chance of intentional or uninten-tional damage¥ Holding periodic random audits of the system
154 CHAPTER 5 Cybersecurity and Risk Management TechnologyThe defense strategy and controls that should be used depend on what needs to be pro-tected and a costÐbenefit analysis. That is, companies should neither underinvest nor overin-vest. The major objectives of defense strategies are listed in Table 5.10.A defense strategy is also going to require several controls, as shown in Figure 5.10. General controls are established to protect the system regardless of the specific application. For example, protecting hardware and controlling access to the data center are independent of the specific application. Application controls are safeguards that are intended to protect specific applications. In the next two sections, we discuss the major types of these two groups of information system controls. TABLE 5.10 Major Objectives of Defense StrategiesActionDetailsPrevention and deterrenceProperly designed controls may prevent errors from occurring, deter criminals from attacking the system, and, better yet, deny access to unauthorized people. These are the most desirable controls.DetectionLike a fire, the earlier an attack is detected, the easier it is to combat, and the less damage is done. Detection can be performed in many cases by using special diagnostic software, at a minimal cost.Contain the damageThis objective involves minimizing or limiting losses once a malfunction has occurred. It is also called damage control. This can be accomplished, for example, by including a fault-tolerant system that permits operation in a degraded mode until full recovery is made. If a fault-tolerant system does not exist, a quick and possibly expensive recovery must take place. Users want their systems back in oper-ation as fast as possible.RecoveryA recovery plan explains how to fix a damaged information system as quickly as possible. Replacing rather than repairing components is one route to fast recovery.CorrectionCorrecting the causes of damaged systems can prevent a problem from occurring again.Awareness and complianceAll organization members must be educated about the hazards and must comply with the security rules and regulations.Defense ControlWeb ControlsBiometricsData SecurityCommunicationAdministrativeOtherAccessPhysicalOutputProcessingInputEncryptionCable TestersFirewallsVirus ProtectionAuthenticationBiometricsGeneralApplication FIGURE 5.10 Major defense controls.
Frameworks, Standards, and Models 155Auditing Information SystemsSome companies rely on surprise audits. But being proactive about searching for problems is more effective and can stop frauds early on, before the losses mount. An audit is an impor-tant part of any control system. Auditing can be viewed as an additional layer of controls or safeguards. It is considered as a deterrent to criminal actions, especially for insiders. Auditors attempt to answer questions such as these:¥ Are there sufficient controls in the system? Which areas are not covered by controls?¥ Which controls are not necessary?¥ Are the controls implemented properly?¥ Are the controls effective? That is, do they check the output of the system?¥ Is there a clear separation of duties of employees?¥ Are there procedures to ensure compliance with the controls?¥ Are there procedures to ensure reporting and corrective actions in case of violations of controls?Auditing a website is a good preventive measure to manage the legal risk. Legal risk is important in any IT system, but in Web systems it is even more important due to the content of the site, which may offend people or be in violation of copyright laws or other regulations (e.g., privacy protection). Auditing e-commerce is also more complex since, in addition to the website, one needs to audit order taking, order fulfillment, and all support systems.Questions1. What defenses help prevent occupational fraud?2. What level of employee commits the most occupational fraud?3. What is the purpose of internal controls?4. What federal law requires effective internal controls?5. Explain the concepts of intelligence analysis and anomaly detection.6. Name the major categories of general controls.7. Explain authentication and name two methods of authentication.8. What are the six major objectives of a defense strategy? 5.5 Frameworks, Standards, and ModelsA number of frameworks, standards, and models have been developed to guide cyber defense strategies.Risk Management and IT Governance FrameworksTwo widely accepted frameworks that guide risk management and IT governance are Enter-prise Risk Management (ERM) and Control Objectives for Information and Related Tech-nology (COBIT) 5.Enterprise Risk Management Framework ERM is a risk-based approach to managing an enterprise developed by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO). ERM integrates internal control, the SarbanesÐOxley Act man-dates, and strategic planning.ERM consists of eight components, listed in Table 5.11.
156 CHAPTER 5 Cybersecurity and Risk Management TechnologyThese eight components can be viewed from a strategic, operations, reporting, and com-pliance perspective at all level of the organizations. Taking a portfolio view of risk, management must consider how individual risks are interrelated and apply a strong system of internal controls to ensure effective enterprise risk management. Those involved in ERM include management, Board of Directors, Risk officers, and internal auditors. ERM is intended to be part of routine planning processes rather than a separate initiative. The ideal place to start is with buy-in and commitment from the board and senior leadership.COBIT 5 COBIT 5, is the internationally accepted IT governance and control framework created by the International Systems Audit and Control Association (ISACA) to align IT with business objectives, delivering value, and manage associated risks. It provides a framework for management, users, and IS audit, control, and security practitioners that allows them to bridge the gap between control requirements, technical issues, and business risks.COBIT 5 is the leading framework for the governance and security of IT. COBIT 5, the most current version of the COBIT 5 framework is based on five principles, shown in Figure 5.11. COBIT 5 contains highly relevant guidance for IT practitioners and business leaders regarding TABLE 5.11 Enterprise Risk Management ComponentsComponentDescriptionInternal environmentAssess risk management philosophy and cultureObjective settingDetermine relationship of risk to organizational goalsEvent identificationDifferentiate between risks and opportunities; negative/positive impactRisk assessmentAssess risk probability and impactRisk responseIdentify and evaluate risk responsesControl activitiesDevelop policies and procedures to ensure implementation of risk responsesInformation and communicationIdentify, capture, and communicate informationMonitoringConduct ongoing and separate evaluations of risk-related activities1. MeetingStakeholderNeeds5. SeparatingGovernanceFromManagement4. Enabling aHolisticApproach3. Applying aSingleIntegratedFramework2. CoveringtheEnterpriseEnd-to-EndCOBIT 5Principles FIGURE 5.11 COBIT 5 principles.
Frameworks, Standards, and Models 157governing and protecting data and information. COBIT 5 encourages each organization to customize COBIT to fit its priorities and circumstances and can be downloaded from isaca.org.Three of the five COBIT 5 principles are most applicable to security:1. A system needs to be in place that considers and effectively addresses enterprise information security requirements. At a minimum, this would include metrics for the number of clearly defined key security roles and the number of security-related inci-dents reported.2. An established security plan has been accepted and communicated throughout the organization. This would include level of stakeholder satisfaction with the security plan, the number of security solutions that are different from those in the plan and the number of security solutions deviating from the enterprise security architecture that can lead to security gaps and potentially lengthen the time to resolve security or com-pliance issues.3. Information security solutions are implemented throughout the organization. These should include the number of services and solutions that align with the security plan and security incidents caused by noncompliance with the security plan.By following these three principles, using a specified set of IT-enabling processes, and tak-ing additional steps to move from an application centric focus to a data centric focus, organiza-tions that use COBIT 5 can improve the governance and protection of their data and information.While COBIT 5 provides sound and comprehensive improvement recommendations to start the security governance journey, organizations clearly need to move beyond reactive compliance and security to proactively mandating the need for data privacy and security enterprise-wide. In this way data are always protected.ERM and COBIT 5 can be used separately or jointly. As with most improvement methodol-ogies, the key to success is to start using them one step at a time.Industry StandardsIndustry groups impose their own standards to protect their customers and their membersÕ brand images and revenues. One example is the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) created by Visa, MasterCard, American Express, and Discover. PCI is required for all members, merchants, or service providers that store, process, or transmit cardholder data. PCI DSS requires merchants and card payment providers to make certain their Web applications are secure. If done correctly, this could reduce the number of Web-related security breaches.The purpose of the PCI DSS is to improve customersÕ trust in e-commerce, especially when it comes to online payments, and to increase the Web security of online merchants. To motivate following these standards, the penalties for noncompliance are severe. The card brands can fine the retailer, and increase transaction fees for each credit or debit card transaction. A find-ing of noncompliance can be the basis for lawsuits.IT Security Defense-In-Depth ModelThe Defense-in-Depth Model encourages a multilayered approach to information security. The basic principle is that when one defense layer fails, another layer provides protection. For example, if a wireless networkÕs security was compromised, then having encrypted data would still protect the data, provided that the thieves could not decrypt it.The success of any type of IT project depends on the commitment and involvement of executive management, also referred to as the tone at the top. The same is true of IT security. This information security tone makes users aware that insecure practices and mistakes will not be tolerated. Therefore, an IT security model begins with senior management commitment and support, as shown in Figure 5.12. The model views information security as a combination of people, policies, procedures, and technology.
158 CHAPTER 5 Cybersecurity and Risk Management TechnologyTo use the Defense-in-Depth Model an organization must carry out four major steps: Step 1: Gain senior management commitment and support Senior managersÕ influence is needed to implement and maintain security, ethical standards, privacy practices, and internal control. IT security is best when it is top-driven. Senior managers decide how stringent infosec policies and practices should be in order to comply with laws and regulations. Finan-cial institutions are subject to strict security and anti-money laundering (AML) rules because they face numerous national and international regulations and have high-value data. Advertis-ing agencies and less regulated firms tend to have more lenient rules. Other factors influencing infosec policies are a corporationÕs culture and how valuable their data are to criminals.For instance, management may decide to forbid employees from using company e-mail accounts for nonwork purposes, accessing social media during work hours, or visiting gambling sites. These decisions will then become rules stated in company policy, integrated into procedures, and implemented with technology defenses. Sites that are forbidden, for instance, can be blocked by firewalls. Step 2: Develop acceptable use policies and IT security training Organizations need to put in place strong policies and processes that make responsibilities and accountabilities clear to all employees. An acceptable use policy (AUP) explains what management has decided are acceptable and unacceptable activities, and the consequences of noncompli-ance. Rules about tweets, texting, social media, e-mail, applications, and hardware should be treated as extensions of other corporate policiesÑsuch as physical safety, equal oppor-tunity, harassment, and discrimination. No policy can address every future situation, so rules need to be evaluated, updated, or modified. For example, if a company suffers a mal-ware infection traced to an employee using an unprotected smartphone connected to the company network, policies to restrict or prohibit those connections might be advisable. Step 3: Create and Enforce IT security procedures and enforcement Secure proce-dures define how policies will be enforced, how incidents will be prevented, and how an incident will be responded. Here are the basic secure procedures to put in place:a. Define enforcement procedures Rules that are defined in the AUP must be enforced and enforcement procedures must be applied consistently. Procedures for monitoring employee Internet and network usage are defined at this stage.b. Designate and empower an internal incident response team (IRT) The IRT typi-cally includes the CISO, legal counsel, senior managers, experienced communicators, and key operations staff. Minimizing the team size and bureaucracy can expedite decision making and response. Because there may be significant liability issues, legal counsel needs to be involved in incident response planning and communication.c. Define notification procedures When a data breach occurs the local police depart-ment, local office of the FBI, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the U.S. Secret Service, or other relevant agency need to be notified immediately. Federal and state laws or industry regulations may define how and when affected people need to be notified.Step 4Hardware and software(kept up-to-date)Step 3IT security proceduresand enforcementStep 2Acceptable use policiesand IT security trainingStep 1Senior managementcommitment and support FIGURE 5.12 IT security defense-in-depth model.
Frameworks, Standards, and Models 159d. Define a breach response communications plan Effective incident response com-munication plans include personnel and processes with lists, channels, and social media needed to execute all communications that might be needed.e. Monitor information and social media sources Monitor Twitter, social media, and news coverage as a standard procedure to understand how people are responding to the incident and criticizing the company. Damage control procedures may be needed.When an incident occurs, the organization is ready to respond intelligentlyÑhaving the correct information to be honest, open, and accountable, and to communicate with consumers and other important audiences as quickly as possible. Step 4: Implement Security Tools: Hardware and software The last step in the model is implementation of software and hardware needed to support and enforce the AUP and secure practices. The selection of hardware and software defenses is based on risk, security budget, AUP, and secure procedures. Every device that connects to an organi-zationÕs network; every online activity and mobile app of employees; and each file sent or received are access points. Technology defense mechanisms need to be:¥ able to provide strong authentication and access control of industrial grade¥ appropriate for the types of networks and operating systems¥ installed and configured correctly¥ tested rigorously¥ maintained regularlyHow much does a cyberattack really cost an organization? Regulatory fines, public rela-tions costs, breach notification and protection costs, and other consequences of large-scale data breaches are easy to see and quantify. However, the effects of a cyberattack can linger for years, resulting in a wide range of intangible costs tied to a damaged reputation, disruption of operations, loss of IP or other strategic assets. The latter are much more difficult to measure since they are not easily quantifiable.No matter which frameworks, standards, and controls are used to assess, monitor, and control cyber risk, a balanced approach to measuring direct costs and intangible impacts asso-ciated with cyberattacks must be used to paint an accurate picture of the damage sustained and to guide the creation of increased security measures going forward.Questions1. Who created the Enterprise Risk Management Framework? What is its purpose?2. What are the five principles of COBIT 5? Explain.3. What is the difference between internal and external controls?4. Why do industry groups have their own standards for cybersecurity? Name one standard.5. Are measurements of direct costs sufficient to reflect total damage sustained by a cyberattack?6. What four components comprise the IT security defense-in-depth model?7. What are the four steps in the IT security defense-in-depth security model?8. Explain why frameworks, standards, and models are important parts of a cybersecurity program.Key Termsacceptable use policy (AUP) 158access control 152administrative controls 152advanced persistent threat (APT) 139adware 135Anonymous 139application controls 154assets 139attack vector 138audit 155backdoor 134biometric control 148
160 CHAPTER 5 Cybersecurity and Risk Management TechnologyExplore: Online and Interactive Exercises1. Visit http://www.informationisbeautiful.net/visualizations/worlds-biggest-data-breaches-hacksa. Choose two companies where data breaches have occurred.b. Explain the reasons for these breaches and discuss how they could have been avoided.2. Visit https://www.identityforce.com/resources/quiz and take the Identity Theft Quiz. What was your score? Explain ways in which you could improve your score so that you are not as much at risk for identity theft.3. Visit https://www.identityforce.com/blog/2016-data-breaches and choose one of the major data breaches listed. Read about the data breach. What lessons did you learn from the article?black hat 133botnet 136bring your own apps (BYOA) 143bring your own device (BYOD) 143business continuity plan 149business impact analysis (BIA) 163command and control (C&C) channel 144consumerization of information technology (COIT) 143contract hacker 134Control Objectives for Information and Related Technology (COBIT) 5 155corporate governance 151critical infrastructure 140cyberthreat 131data breach 130Data incident 130data tampering 137distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack 135do-not-carry rules 149enterprise risk management (ERM) 155fraud 150general controls 154gray hat 133hacking 133hacktivist 133intellectual property 141internal control (IC) 153internal threats 137intrusion detection system (IDS) 137intrusion prevention system (IPS) 146IT governance 156LulzSec 139malware 135mobile biometrics 148occupational fraud 150patches 144payload 136Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) 157permanent denial-of-service (PDoS) 137phishing 134physical controls 152ransomware 135remote access trojan (RAT) 136remote wipe capability 148risk 146rogue app monitoring 148rootkit 135service pack 144signature 136social engineering 133spam 136spear phishing 135spyware 135telephony denial-of-service (TDoS) 137threat 130time-to-exploitation 144trojan 135Trojan horse 136vector 136Virus 135voice biometrics 148vulnerability 130white hat 133worm 135zero-day exploit 136zombie 136Assuring Your LearningDiscuss: Critical Thinking Questions1. Why is cybercrime expanding rapidly? Discuss some possible solutions.2. In addition to hackers, what kinds of cybercriminals do organiza-tions need to defend against?3. What are the major motives of cybercriminals?4. In what ways do users make themselves vulnerable to cybercrimes?5. Why do malware creators alter their malware?6. Why should you set a unique password for each website, service, and device that you use?7. How can malware be stopped from stealing or disclosing data from an organizationÕs network?8. What impact might huge fines have on how much a company budg-ets for IT security defenses?9. Why are BYOD, BYOA, and do-not-carry rules important to IT secu-rity? Why might users resist such rules?10. Why do users refuse to use strong passwords even though they know how dangerous weak passwords are?11. How can the risk of occupational fraud be decreased?12. Why should information control and security be of prime concern to management?13. Explain what firewalls protect and what they do not protect.14. Why are authentication and authorization important in e-commerce?15. Some insurance companies will not insure a business unless the firm has a computer disaster recovery plan. Explain why.16. Explain why risk management should involve the following ele-ments: threats, exposure associated with each threat, risk of each threat occurring, cost of controls, and assessment of their effectiveness.17. Discuss why the SarbanesÐOxley Act focuses on internal control. How does that focus influence information security?
Case 5.2 161Case 5.2 Business Case: Lax Security at LinkedIn ExposedOn any social network, most users mistakenly believe that their privacy is only as good as the privacy of their most carelessÑor temporaryÑfriend. In fact, weak passwords and hackers can deprive users of all privacy.When the business social networking site LinkedIn was hacked (Figure 5.13), hackers stole 6.5 million passwords and e-mail addresses. This data breach was discovered by IT security experts when they found millions of LinkedIn passwords posted on a Russian underground web-site (Figure 5.14). Experts also determined that a hacker named Dwdm was asking underground members for help in cracking the stolen passwords. Within only 2 days, most passwords were cracked. Why were LinkedInÕs passwords cracked so quickly? The simple answer is that LinkedIn was using an outdated encryption method instead of up-to-date industry-standard encryption. As a result, membersÕ passwords were really only camouflagedÑand crackable.LinkedIn Criticized for Bad Data SecurityWhat could hackers do to your online accounts if they had your pass-words for 48 hours and you did not know? That is what LinkedIn allowed to happen by waiting 2 days before notifying members that their passwords had been stolen. The company took a lot of criticism Hackers breached LinkedlnÕsnetwork and stole 6.5 million of itscustomersÕ passwords, which hadbeen only lightly encrypted. Theywere posted to a Russian hackerforum for all to see and steal.Data BreachLinkedlnHack attack led to 6.5 millione-mail addresses and passwordsbeing compromised.Over $1 million in costsassociated with forensic work,investigating, and addressingthe breach.Seven-figure investments in ITinfrastructure to update andharden network and data security.Costs FIGURE 5.13 LinkedIn data breach overview.© Kevin Britland/Alamy FIGURE 5.14 LinkedIn did not discover its own data breach and, when informed of it, delayed notifying members.4. Research vendors of biometrics. Select one vendor and discuss three of its biometric devices or technologies. Prepare a list of major capabili-ties. What are the advantages and disadvantages of its biometrics?5. Visit https://learn-umbrella.cisco.com/product-videos/what-is-a-secure-internet-gateway to watch the video ÒWhat is a Secure In-ternet Gateway?Ó, where Dan Hubbard, Cloud Security Product CTO at Cisco explains how security needs to adapt to keep up with the evolv-ing workforce and how Cisco Umbrella can assist companies protect their employees wherever they choose to work.a. Describe two things that you learned from watching this video.b. Do you think Cisco Umbrella would be an effective tool for companies to use? Explain why or why not.Analyze & Decide: Apply IT Concepts to Business Decisions1. Many firms concentrate on the wrong questions and end up throw-ing a great deal of money and time at minimal security risks while ig-noring major vulnerabilities. Why?2. Assessing how much a company is legally obligated to invest in cy-bersecurity remains a challenge. Since there is no such thing as perfect security (i.e., there is always more that you can do), resolving these questions can significantly affect cost.a. When are a companyÕs security measures sufficient to com-ply with its obligations? For example, does installing a firewall and using virus detection software satisfy a companyÕs legal obligations?b. Is it necessary for an organization to encrypt all of its data?3. Assume that the daily probability of a major earthquake in Los An-geles is .07%. The chance of your computer center being damaged dur-ing such a quake is 5%. If the center is damaged, the average estimated damage will be $1.6 million.a. Calculate the expected loss (in dollars).b. An insurance agent is willing to insure your facility for an annual fee of $15,000. Analyze the offer, and discuss whether to accept it.4. Should an employer notify employees that their usage of comput-ers is being monitored? Why or why not?5. Twenty-five thousand messages arrive at an organization each year. Currently, there are no firewalls. On average, 1.2 successful hackings occur each year. Each successful hack attack results in a loss of about $130,000 to the company. A major firewall is proposed at a cost of $66,000. The estimated useful life is three years. The chance that an in-truder will break through the firewall is 0.0002. In such a case, the dam-age will be $100,000 (30%), $200,000 (50%), or there will be no dam-age. There is an annual maintenance cost of $20,000 for the firewall.a. Should management buy the firewall?b. An improved firewall that is 99.9988% effective and that costs $84,000, with a life of three years and annual maintenance cost of $16,000, is available. Should this firewall be purchased instead of the first one?
162 CHAPTER 5 Cybersecurity and Risk Management Technologyfor not notifying members via Twitter or Facebook immediately. According to the chief executive of the Public Relations Consultants Association, Francis Ingham, LinkedIn ignored the first rule of crisis management, which is to be first to tell your customers.What surprised customers and IT security experts was that a com-pany that collects and profits from vast amounts of data had taken a negligent approach to protecting it. Figure 5.15 explains why it was sur-prising and alarming that LinkedInÕs password protection was weak.E-mail Addresses are Universal UsernamesAt most e-commerce and social sites, usernames are e-mail addressesÑmaking them our universal username for online accounts. If the e-mail is a work account, then everyone also knows where we work and our login name. Therefore, knowing usersÕ usernames and passwords pro-vides authorized access to corporate accounts with almost no risk of being detected. Hackers attacked LinkedIn to gain access to over 161 million membersÕ credentials as a means to gain access to much more valuable business networks and databases.Business Risks and Collateral DamageThe hack caused the following business risks and collateral damage.¥ Takeover of membersÕ other accounts by hackers, fraudsters, and other criminals. Hackers know that people reuse passwords; once their LinkedIn accounts are linked to Facebook and Twitter, far too much information may be revealed. Knowing where people worked and their e-mail accounts allowed hackers to quickly use the stolen LinkedIn passwords to log in to corporate accounts, online bank accounts, and so on to steal more data or transfer funds.¥ Damage to LinkedInÕs biggest revenue sourceÑits advertising business. LinkedInÕs financial success is tied to its advertising rev-enues, which in turn are based on the number of active members and membership growth.¥ Fines for violating privacy laws and regulations. Any company exposing the confidential data of customers or employees faces steep fines. Regulators impose harsh penalties for breaking pri-vacy laws and not taking reasonable care to defend against data breaches. Strict data privacy laws in states such as Massachusetts and California could keep LinkedIn fighting legal battles for years.¥ Cleanup costs. The cleanup cost LinkedIn nearly $1 million and another $2Ð$3 million in upgrades. Forensic work on the pass-word theft cost another $500,000 to $1 million.Data Security: A Top Management ConcernData security is a senior management concern and responsibility. It affects a companyÕs operations, reputation, and customer trust, which ultimately impact revenue, profits, and competitive edge. Yet, defenses that could help to prevent breaches are not always implemented.Some experts argue that senior management continues to skimp on basic protections because computer security is not regulatedÑthat is, until a business suffers a major crisis. After the data breach, LinkedIn implemented improved password storage encryption, hired private security and forensics experts, and called in the FBI to help investigate the security breach.Comparison with Other CyberattacksWhile 6.5 million leaked passwords represent a serious breach, it affected a relatively small percent of the more than 175 million mem-bers LinkedIn had at that time. Overall, the LinkedIn breach, while somewhat costly, did not do as much harm as those experienced by other hacked companies such as Global Payments, Sony, and Certifi-cate Authority DigiNotar, which were literally hacked out of business.Just the BeginningFour years after the data breach, the number of released account details was found to be 117 million rather than 6.5 million. In May, 2016, Russian hacker ÒPeace,Ó who sold the Yahoo data breach information in the Open-ing Case, made available for purchase LinkedIn account details on a mar-ketplace in the Dark Web for $2,300. In response to the massive breach of additional accounts, LinkedIn required the affected accountholders to change their passwords and urged all other users to change theirs as well. In addition, LinkedIn spent about $4 million repairing and upgrad-ing their security infrastructure to combat future leaks (Hackett, 2016b).Questions1. LinkedIn does not collect the credit card or other financial account information of its members. Why then would profit- motivated hackers be interested in stealing LinkedInÕs stored data? What data would hackers be most interesting in accessing?2. Companies are often slow to self-detect data breaches so a cyberattack can occur without a company even knowing it has a problem. What effect do you think LinkedInÕs failure to self-detect its massive data breach had on its popularity and credibility?3. Most corporate security incidents are uncovered by a third party, like a security firm, that picks up on evidence of malicious activity. Why do you think IT security experts and not LinkedIn discovered the data breach?4. Explain why LinkedInÕs lax approach to membersÕ information security and weak passwords was very surprising to members and information security professionals.5. Identify and evaluate the actual and potential business risks and damages from LinkedInÕs data breach.6. In your opinion, was LinkedIn negligent in protecting its main asset? Explain.¥ LinkedlnÕs business model: collect and profit from data.¥ Linkedln was not some cash-poor startup company. The company had piles of cash from its successful initial public offering (IPO) in May 2011. Once it went public, Linkedln, like all public companies, had to report hack attacks to the SEC.¥ LinkedlnÕs net income for the first quarter of 2012 was $5 million, more than double its $2.1 million net income in the first quarter 2011. Linkedln had a lot to protect… and lose.Its most valuable asset is dataItÕs a high-tech, public company with a brand image to protectIt had a lot of net income to protect FIGURE 5.15 Three reasons why LinkedInÕs underinvestment in data security did not make business sense.Sources: Compiled from Franceschi-Bicchierai (2016), Hackett (2016b), and Ponemon Institute (2017).
Case 5.3 163Case 5.3 Video Case: Botnets, Malware Security, and Capturing CybercriminalsGunter Ollmann, vice president of research at Damballa, Inc., explains what companies have learned from the Operation Aurora attacks against major companies. In the video, you will learn why it is difficult for law enforcement to track and prosecute cybercriminals, includ-ing botnet operators who now launch targeted botnet attacks with the help of automated tools. Also discussed is the effectiveness of MicrosoftÕs legal action to shut down the C&C (command and control) network of the Waladec botnet. Visit searchsecurity.techtarget.com/video/Botnets-malware-and-capturing-cybercriminals to view the video, read its transcript and answer the following questions.Questions1. Why are botnets used?2. What is needed to get started in the botnet industry? Explain why.3. Given your answers, what should users and organizations do and/or not do to reduce the threat of botnets?IT ToolboxConducting a CostÐBenefit AnalysisIt is usually not economical to prepare protection against every possible threat. Therefore, an IT security program must provide a process for assessing threats and deciding which ones to prepare for, which ones to ignore and which ones to provide reduced protec-tion against. Two commonly used cost-benefit analysis tools are risk assessment and business impact analysis. Risk assessment relies solely on quantitative measures, while the business impact analysis takes into account both qualitative and quantitative indicators.¥ Risk assessmentRisk assessments are done using an app or spreadsheet. The basic computations are shown here: 12Expected lossPPL whereP1 = probability of attack (estimate, based on judgment)P2 = probability of attack being successful (estimate, based on judgment)L = loss occurring if attack is successfulExample:An organization estimates that the probability of a cyberattack is 2% and the attack has only a 10% chance of being successful. If the attack is successful, the company estimates that it will lose $1 million.This would be expressed as: 12.02,.10,$1,000,000PPL Then expected loss from this particular attack is 120.020.1$1,000,000$2,000PPL ¥ Business impact analysisA business impact analysis (BIA) estimates the consequences of disruption of a business function and collects data to develop recovery strategies.Potential loss scenarios are first identified during the risk assess-ment. Operations may also be interrupted by the failure of a supplier of goods or services or delayed deliveries. There are many possible scenarios that should be considered.The BIA identifies both operational and financial impacts result-ing from a disruption. The financial impacts are easier to assess, but the operational impacts are more difficult to determine because of their qualitative nature. Several examples of operational and finan-cial impacts to consider are shown in Table 5.12.The losses assessed using these two methods should be com-pared with the costs for possible recovery strategies to determine net risk. The BIA report should also prioritize the order of events for resto-ration of the business, with processes having the greatest operational and financial impacts being restored first. TABLE 5.12 Business Disruption Qualitative and Quantitative ImpactsTypeMetricDescriptionFinancialQuantitativeLost sales and incomeDelayed sales or incomeIncreased expenses (e.g., overtime labor, outsourcing, expediting costs)Regulatory finesContractual penalties or loss of contractual bonusesOperationalQualitativeCustomer dissatisfaction or defectionDelay of new business plans
164 CHAPTER 5 Cybersecurity and Risk Management TechnologyReferencesAbadi, M., and D.G. Andersen. ÒLearning to Protect Communications with Adversarial Neural Cryptography.Ó Cornell University Library, October 24, 2016.Balakrishnan, A. ÒU.S. Accuses Russia of Hacking Yahoo.Ó CNBC, March 15, 2017.Berman, R. ÒAlice, Bob, and Eve Are Neural Networks. And They Have Secrets.Ó Big Think, November 1, 2016.Breach Level Index. Ò2015: The Year Data Breaches Got Personal.Ó February 18, 2016.Burgess, M. ÒHow GoogleÕs AI taught itself to create its own encryp-tion.Ó Wired, October 31, 2016.Department of Justice. ÒThe USA Patriot Act: Preserving Life and LibertyÓ. 2001. Accessed from https://www.justice.gov/archive/ll/highlights.htmDuan, E. ÒDressCode and its Potential Impact for Enterprises.Ó Trend-Micro, September 29, 2016.Fiegerman, S. ÒVerizon says YahooÕs massive breach could impact deal.Ó CNN, October 13, 2016.Franceschi-Bicchierai, L. ÒAnother Day, Another Hack: 117 Million LinkedIn Emails and Passwords.Ó Motherboard Vice, May 18, 2016.Gelinne, J., J. Fancher, and E. Mossburg. ÒThe Hidden Costs of an IP Breach: Cyber Theft and the Loss of Intellectual Property.Ó Deloitte Review, Issue 19, July 25, 2016.Gibson Dunn. ÒPresident Obama Signs Federal Trade Secrets Law.Ó May 11, 2016.Goldman, J. ÒAll-Time High of 1,093 Data Breaches Reported in U.S. in 2016.Ó E-Security Planet, January 24, 2017. Accessed from: http://www.esecurityplanet.com/network-security/all-time-high-of-1093-data-breaches-reported-in-u.s.-in-2016.htmlGoodin, D. ÒGodless Apps, Some Found in Google Play, Can Root 90% of Android Phones.Ó ArsTechnica, June 23, 2016.Hackett, R. ÒYahooÕs Titanic Data Breach Highlights Risk to M&A.Ó For-tune, September 23, 2016a.Hackett, R. ÒLinkedIn Lost 167 Million Account Credentials in Data Breach.Ó Fortune, May 18, 2016b.Kan, M. ÒHackers Now Have a Treasure Trove of User Data with the Yahoo Breach.Ó International Data Group, September 22, 2016.KPMG. Consumer Loss Barometer. 2016. https://assets.kpmg .com/content/dam/kpmg/cn/pdf/en/2016/08/consumer-loss- barometer-v1.pdfLee, D. ÒÔStateÕ Hackers Stole Data from 500 Million Users.Ó BBC, Sep-tember 23, 2016.Matwyshyn, A., and H. Bhargava. ÒWill YahooÕs Data Breach Help Overhaul Online Security?Ó Knowledge@Wharton: University of Pennsylvania, September 27, 2016. Accessed from http://knowl-edge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/will-yahoos-data-breach-help- overhaul-online-security/Morris, A., D. Nathan, and A. Ayyar. ÒBroker-Dealers and Their Auditors Face Increased Regulatory Scrutiny.Ó Bloomberg Legal, November 3, 2016.Murgia, M. ÒCyber experts look to usual suspects in Yahoo hack.Ó Financial Times, September 25, 2016.Ponemon Institute. Ò2017 Cost of Data Breach Study: Global Over-viewÓ June, 2017.PricewaterhouseCoopers. ÒUS Cybersecurity: Progress Stalled.Ó July, 2015.RT.com. ÒBuyer Beware: US Is Biggest Creator of Malicious Mobile Apps.Ó February 4, 2015.Sterling, G. ÒBing Reaches 20 Percent Search Market Share Milestone in US.Ó SearchEngineLand, April 16, 2015.Verizon. Ò2016 Data Breach Investigations Report.Ó Accessed from: http://www.verizonenterprise.com/verizon-insights-lab/dbir/2016
165CHAPTER 6Search, Semantic, and Recommendation TechnologyCHAPTER OUTLINECase 6.1 Opening Case: Mint.com Uses Search Technology to Rank Above Established Competitors 6.1 Using Search Technology for Business Success 6.2 Organic Search and Search Engine Optimization 6.3 Pay-Per-Click and Paid Search Strategies 6.4 A Search for MeaningÑSemantic Technology 6.5 Recommendation EnginesCase 6.2 Business Case: Deciding What to WatchÑVideo Recommendations at Netflix Case 6.3 Video Case: Power Searching with GoogleLEARNING OBJECTIVES6.1 Describe how search engines work and identify ways that businesses gain competitive advantage by using search technology effectively.6.2 Explain how to improve website ranking on search results pages by optimizing website design and creating useful content.6.3 Describe how companies manage paid search advertising campaigns to increase awareness and drive sales volume.6.4 Describe how semantic Web technology enhances the accuracy of search engines results and how businesses can optimize their websites to take advantage of this emerging technology.6.5 Describe how recommendation engines are used to enhance user experience and increase sales on e-commerce websites.IntroductionEvery day, over 1.5 billion people around the world use what seems to be a simple tool to find information onlineÑa search engine. We sometimes take for granted that behind a relatively simple user interface, an increasingly complex set of search engine technologies are at work,
166 CHAPTER 6 Search, Semantic, and Recommendation Technologyhelping us find the information we need to do our jobs, conduct research, locate product reviews, or find information about the television shows we watch. Because most search engine services are free, people are not generally aware that ÒSearchÓ has become a multibillion- dollar-a-year business. More importantly, the way search engines work and how they rank-order the links displayed when we conduct a search have huge implications for millions of other busi-nesses. Because consumers typically donÕt look past the first few pages of search results, hav-ing your business appear at the top of a search results page can make a big difference in how much traffic your website gets. In this chapter, you will read about how search engines work and how they determine which websites are listed at the top of search results. You will also read about the strategies companies use to increase their presence on search results pages includ-ing search engine optimization (SEO) and pay-per-click (PPC) advertising.Semantic technologies are increasingly being used by search engines to understand Web page content. In this chapter you will read about the ways that search engines are using semantic technology to improve performance, increasing relevant pages and decreasing the number of irrelevant pages that appear in search results.Finally, you will read about recommendation engines. These tools attempt to anticipate online information you might be interested in. Netflix uses recommendation engines to sug-gest movies you might like to watch and news organizations use them to recommend stories you might want to read on their websites. Amazon credits its recommendation technology for increasing sales by suggesting products that customers might want to buy.Business managers need to understand search and recommendation technologies because their influence in directing potential consumers to business websites is already significant and expected to grow substantially in the future.Case 6.1 Opening CaseMint.com Uses Search Technology to Rank Above Established CompetitorsCompany OverviewMint is a popular, Web-based personal finance service that makes it easy for users to keep track of bank, credit card, and other financial accounts using a computer or mobile device. Customers can also use the service to create budgets and monitor progress toward financial goals. Since it began in 2006, the company has grown rapidly despite competition from more established companies. In 2009, Mint was acquired by Intuit, the maker of TurboTax and Quicken financial soft-ware. Today, over 20 million people use MintÕs free financial manage-ment service (Table 6.1).The Business ChallengeIn the months leading up to the 2006 launch of Mint.com, a personal finance service, the leadership team faced a formidable challenge: How to establish name awareness and brand equity in a market filled with established competitors, without spending a lot of money? Mint knew it would be competing in a market space already populated by familiar brands like Quicken Online and Microsoft Money Online. Since online platforms and communication channels tend to favor existing compa-nies with established audiences and reputations, the team knew they had to come up with a powerful strategy for overcoming the estab-lished brands.MintÕs Content Marketing StrategyAs a Web-based service, it was critical for Mint.com to rank high on search engine results pages (SERPs) when consumers used sites like Google or Bing to find information about personal finance services and related topics. Consumers are more likely to visit websites that appear at the top of SERPs. While the service was still in the beta (trial) stage of development, workers at Mint developed an aggressive strategy to optimize the brandÕs ranking on popular search engines. Their strat-egy involved building the companyÕs Web presence on criteria used by Geber86/E+/Getty ImagesIanDagnall Computing/AlamyStock PhotoÞlo/DigitalVision Vectors/GettyImages
Introduction 167 TABLE 6.1 Opening Case OverviewCompanyMintHistoryMint was launched in 2006 as a free, Web-based personal finance app by founder Aaron Patzer. In 2009, the company was acquired by the financial software company Intuit.GrowthWithin two years of launch, Mint claimed over 1.5 million users. By 2012, the company claimed 10 million users and by 2016, the number of users rose to over 20 million.Product linesMintÕs original service allowed users to track balances and transactions on credit card, investment, and bank accounts as well as to create budgets and establish financial goals. In addition, Mint now offers users a bill pay service and credit score monitoring.Social technologyPrior to the release of its flagship personal finance app, Mint created a large following of prospective users with MintLife, a blog that offered valuable advice targeted to young professionals.Search technologyMint utilized an aggressive SEO strategy to rank highly on search results pages. Specific actions included the following:¥ Creation of useful personal finance content on its blog, MintLife¥ Use of targeted keywords in website content¥ Established audiences on popular social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter¥ Used various strategies, including sponsorship of third-party blogs, to generate links (or ÒbacklinksÓ) to Mint.com from other websitesWebsiteMint.comsearch engines to determine SERP ranking. The strategy focused on the following:¥ Increasing the number of other websites that linked back to MintÕs website (called ÒbacklinksÓ)¥ Creating interesting and useful content about personal finance topics that prospective customers would find helpful¥ Identifying keywords and phrases used by prospective customers when searching for personal financial services, and creatively inserting these words and phrases into website content¥ Regularly updating and adding to their collection of personal finance content¥ Establishing a presence on popular social media sites, expanding their audience on those sites, and encouraging the audience to share links to MintÕs website contentMonths prior to the launch of its personal finance service, Mint rolled out a personal finance blog called MintLife and quickly devel-oped a reputation for providing helpful financial advice targeted to young professionals. Blog posts on MintLife were creatively seeded with keywords and phrases the team had identified as likely to be used by prospective customers when conducting Internet searches for financial services. Mint also created landing pages on their web-site containing content optimized for keywords and phrases related to financial services. As search engines tracked this content, Mint began to lay a foundation for eventually being viewed by search engines as a credible authority for personal finance topics. New posts were regularly added to the blog, which further enhanced MintÕs ranking since search engines favor websites with lots of content (content depth) and regular updates. To further establish its position as a useful and authoritative site, Mint sponsored sev-eral third-party blogs and cultivated relationships with authors of established finance and money management blogs. MintÕs founder, Aaron Patzer, gave hundreds of interviews, resulting in print media and online articles about the start-up company. These and other actions resulted in more third-party websites posting links back to Mint.com. These ÒbacklinksÓ were tracked by search engines and resulted in additional increases to the siteÕs ranking on SERPs. Popu-lar search engines also track a companyÕs presence on social media and the extent to which users share information about the company and its products. MintÕs blog featured content in a variety of inter-esting formats: videos, podcasts, infographics, and so on. Users on social news sites like Reddit.com frequently shared and ÒupvotedÓ interesting infographics from MintÕs blog. Links to other types of blog content were shared by users on Facebook, Twitter, and other social media platforms. As a result, MintÕs expanding audiences on Face-book, Twitter, and other social media platforms further enhanced the new companyÕs SERP ranking.ResultsIn 2007, Mint launched its new financial services website into a market where it already enjoyed considerable name recognition and aware-ness. Within 2 years, the service acquired 1.5 million users and was purchased by Intuit for $170 million. The company continued its suc-cessful content marketing strategy, climbing to 10 million users in 2012 and over 20 million users today.Questions1. Why did Mint invest the time and effort to publish a financial services blog almost two years before the launch of its service?2. How did Mint use social media sites to increase its ranking on the search results pages of popular search engines?3. Why did Mint use keywords and phrases associated with personal finance when creating content for its blog?4. Why did Mint put so much emphasis on improving the rank of its website on SERPs?5. Why did Mint use infographics, videos, and other types of rich media in its financial services blog?Sources: Compiled from Sukhraj (2015), Bulygo (2013a), Obi-Azubuike (2016), Prince (2016), Greene (2016).
168 CHAPTER 6 Search, Semantic, and Recommendation Technology 6.1 Using Search Technology for Business SuccessSearch engines like Google, Bing, Yahoo, and others have traditionally been regarded as a consumer technology. But search technology has become an important business tool with many different uses and applications. In this section, you will learn how search engines work and the role they play in generating revenue and consumer awareness for organizations. You will also discover how businesses use enterprise search technology to unlock hidden content with their organizations. Finally, you will read about how search and Internet technology is evolving to provide more accurate and useful results.How Search Engines WorkPeople use the word search engine to refer to many different kinds of information retrieval (IR) services that find content on the World Wide Web. These services vary in significant ways. Understanding how these services differ can improve the quality of results obtained when con-ducting a search for online information. Listed below is a brief description of different IR ser-vices for finding Web content:¥ Crawler search engines rely on sophisticated computer programs called spiders, crawlers, or bots that surf the Internet, locating Web pages, links, and other content that are then stored in the search engineÕs page repository. The most popular commercial search engines, Google and Bing, are based on crawler technology.¥ Web directories list Web pages organized into hierarchical categories. Originally, Web direc-tories were created and maintained by human editors who decided how a website would be categorized. Today, many Web directories use technology to automate new website list-ings. Web directories are typically classified as ÒgeneralÓ directories that cover a wide-range topical categories, or ÒnicheÓ directories that focus on a narrow range of topics. Examples of popular general directories include Best of the Web, JoeAnt, and LookSmart. Wikipedia maintains a list of general and niche Web directories.¥ Hybrid search engines combine the results of a directory created by humans and results from a crawler search engine, with the goal of providing both accuracy and broad coverage of the Internet.¥ Meta-search engines compile results from other search engines. For instance, Dogpile generates listings by combining results from Google and Yahoo.¥ Semantic search engines are designed to locate information based on the nature and meaning of Web content, not simple keyword matches. The goal of these search engines is to dramatically increase the accuracy and usefulness of search results. Semantic search engines are described in more detail in Section 6.4.Web DirectoriesBefore crawler search engines became the dominant method for finding Web content, people relied on directories created by human editors to help them find information. Web directories are typically organized by categories (for instance, see the categories listed on Best of the Web). Web page content is usually reviewed by directory editors prior to its listing in a category to make sure it is appropriate. This reduces the number of irrelevant links generated in a search. The review process, however, is very slow compared to the automated process used by crawlers (described in the following section). As a result, the listings in a Web directory represent a relatively small portion of the Web. Directories are particularly useful when conducting searches on a narrow topic, such as identifying suppliers of a specific type of product or service. Companies who need Search engine an application for locating Web pages or other content (e.g., documents, media files) on a computer network. Popular Web-based search engines include Google, Bing, and Yahoo.Spiders also known as crawlers, Web bots, or simply Òbots,Ó spiders are small computer programs designed to perform automated, repetitive tasks over the Internet. They are used by search engines for scanning Web pages and returning information to be stored in a page repository.
Using Search Technology for Business Success 169to identify vendors or suppliers may consult a niche Web directory created for just this purpose. For example, see the Web directory at business.com.How Crawler Search Engines WorkThe two most popular commercial search engines on the Web, Google and Bing, are based on crawler technology. Behind the relatively simple interfaces of these two powerful search engines, a great deal of complex technology is at work (Figure 6.1). Because modern search engines use proprietary technology in the race to stay ahead of competitors, it is not possible to tell exactly how they decide what websites will appear in a SERP. While they each produce different results, it is possible to describe the basic process shared by most crawler search engines. The following description is based on publications by Grehan (2002) and Oak (2008).1. The crawler control module assigns Web page URLs to programs called spiders or bots. The spider downloads these Web pages into a page repository and scans them for links. The links are transferred to the crawler control module and used to determine where the spi-ders will be sent in the future. (Most search engines also allow Web masters to submit URLs, requesting that their websites be scanned so they will appear in search results. These requests are added to the crawler control queue.)2. The indexer module creates look-up tables by extracting words from the Web pages and recording the URL where they were found. The indexer module also creates an inverted index that helps search engines efficiently locate relevant pages containing keywords used in a search. (See Figure 6.2 for examples of an inverted index.)3. The collection analysis module creates utility indexes that aid in providing search results. The utility indexes contain information about things such as how many pages are in a web-site, the geographic location of the website, number of pictures on a Web page, Web page length, or other site-specific information the search engine may use to determine the rel-evance of a page.4. The retrieval/ranking module determines the order in which pages are listed in a SERP. The methods by which search engines determine website listing order varies and the spe-cific algorithms they use are often carefully guarded trade secrets. In some cases, a search engine may use hundreds of different criteria to determine which pages appear at the top of a SERP. Google, for instance, claims to use over 200 ÒcluesÓ to determine how it ranks pages (Google.com, 2014).Page repository a data structure that stores and manages information from a large number of Web pages, providing a fast and efficient means for accessing and analyzing the information at a later time.Crawler control module a software program that controls a number of ÒspidersÓ responsible for scanning or crawling through information on the Web.Page RepositoryWWWTextUtilityIndexerModuleStructureCollectionAnalysis ModuleSurferÐClient QueriesSpiders/CrawlersCrawler ControlIndexesURLSubmissions1. URL2. URL3. URL.QueryFormulationResultsRanking.. FIGURE 6.1 Components of crawler search engine (Adapted from Grehan, 2002).
170 CHAPTER 6 Search, Semantic, and Recommendation Technology5. Web pages retrieved by the spiders, along with the indexes and ranking information, are stored on large servers (see IT at Work 6.1).6. The query interface is where users enter words that describe the kind of information they are looking for. The search engine then applies various algorithms to match the query string with information stored in the indexes to determine what pages to display in the SERP.Each search engine utilizes variations and refinements of the aforementioned steps in an attempt to achieve superior results. The Web search industry is highly competitive and the proprietary advances in search technology used by each company are closely guarded secrets. For instance, even the first step in the process, crawling the Web for content, can vary greatly depending on the strategic goals of the search engine. Some search engines limit the number of pages scanned at each website, seeking instead to use limited computing power and resources to cover as many websites as possible. Other search engines program their spi-ders to scan deep into each website, seeking more complete coverage of each siteÕs content. Still other search engines direct their spiders to seek out websites that contain certain types of content, such as government sites or shopping (e-commerce) sites. Another decision that search engines make regarding spiders is the amount of resources directed at searching new websites versus devoting resources to exploring previously indexed pages for updates or changes.One of the many challenges faced by large commercial search engines is storage. In the simplest sense, the crawler approach to search requires a company to store a copy of the Web in large data centers. In addition to the petabytes of storage required to maintain this copy of the Web, the search engine must also store the results of its indexing process and the list of links for future crawls.Petabyte a unit of measurement for digital data storage. A petabyte is equal to one million gigabytes.Document ID1To the heart, real lovealways endures.Though passion maycool, love remains true.True love kindles thepassion in my heart.23ContentURLSearch Query:Page IndexInverted IndexIDTermDocument: Position11:3, 3:71:41:5, 2:5, 3:21:61:72:7, 3:22:12:2, 3:52:32:42:63:33:8heartreallovealwaysendurestruethoughpassionmaycoolremainskindlesheart2345678910111213True loveResults Ranking (based on position)True love kindles the passion in my heart.Though passion may cool, love remains true.Documents withboth terms: 2 and 3 FIGURE 6.2 Search engines use inverted indexes to efficiently locate Web content based on search query terms.
Using Search Technology for Business Success 171IT at Work 6.1Google Data CentersNot only does Google maintain a copy of the Internet for its search engine services, it is also constantly updating a map of the entire planet for users of its popular Google Earth application. In addition, the company is making a full-text, searchable copy of over 129,864,880 known books, equal to 4 billion pages or 2 trillion words. And then there are applications like Gmail, serving roughly 425 million people and YouTube, where 300 hours of video are uploaded every minute! Add all this up, and Google is facing perhaps the biggest data storage challenge ever. So where does Google store all of these data?Challenges: Energy, Performance, and SecurityInformation collected by Google is housed on over 1 million servers spread across 12 different facilities worldwide. The facilities are large, factory-like installations containing row upon row of racked and stacked servers. Cooling systems, required to keep servers from overheating, are a significant component of any large data center (Figure 6.3). Google pioneered the software systems that connect the companyÕs servers and make it possible for various applications to access data stored on the machines. Unlike other companies that purchase servers from outside suppliers, Google builds its own. Based on its experience creating the hardware, software, and facil-ities necessary to power the company on a global scale, Google is recognized as a leader in data center operations.The companyÕs data centers, including the servers, are built with energy efficiency, reliability, and performance in mind. As Google is a leading provider of Internet services, its data infrastruc-ture must keep up with growing consumer demand for speedy performance and reliability. A typical Google search delivers millions of pages of results in less than half a second. Consumer expectations for performance have grown so high that waiting more than a few seconds for an e-mail to load or a search to run can cause frustration.More recently, Google has had to contend with revela-tions that the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) breached its server network security. This follows cyberattacks in 2010 and 2011 by hackers suspected of being associated with the Chinese government. Protecting company data from criminals is a significant challenge in itself, but Google is understandably frustrated by the fact that it must now fight off cyber-attacks from two world superpowers, one of which is its own government.Environmental ImpactIndustrywide, data centers used 70 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity in 2014, representing a 4% increase from the amount used in 2012. Industrywide, data center energy use and the related environmental impact have become an issue of growing concern. Google is widely recognized as operating some of the most efficient data centers in the world, but many critics are disturbed by the industryÕs overall level of energy consumption. According to some estimates, data centers account for about 2% of the worldÕs energy use and the fast rate of growth is cause for concern (see Figure 6.4). Google has taken an active approach to reducing its environmental footprint. Beginning in 2017, Google will source 100% of its energy needs for offices and data centers from renewable sources. See GoogleÕs data center Web page https://www.google.com/about/datacenters for additional information.Google Data Center Statistics¥ Number of servers worldwide Over 1 million¥ Number of data centers Nine in North America, one in South America, two in Asia, and four in Europe¥ 2016 Capital investment in data centers Approximately $11 billion¥ Data processing volume Over 100 petabytes a day¥ Average energy efficiency PUE* = 1.12¥ Energy use Continual use of about 260 megawatts of electricity, approximately 0.01% of global energy consumption¥ Energy use comparisons Owns about 3% of servers world-wide, but only uses about 1% of data center industry energy¥ Renewable energy Claims that 100% percent of its energy use comes from renewable sources*PUE stands for Power Usage Effectiveness. A PUE of 2.0 means that for every watt of power devoted to computing, an additional watt is spent on cooling, power distribution, and overhead. The Data Center Industry average PUE falls between 1.8 and 1.89.Sources: Jacobson (2010), Grifantini (2011), Newman (2011), Schneider (2011), Glanz (2011, 2012), Gallagher (2012), Venkatraman (2012), Anthony (2013), Miller (2013), Sverdlik (2016).Bloomberg/Getty Images FIGURE 6.3 Pipes pass through the chiller plant at the Google, Inc., data center in Changhua, Taiwan. Google doubled its spending plan for its new data center in Taiwan to $600 million amid surging demand from Asia for its Gmail and YouTube services.© asharkyu/Shutterstock FIGURE 6.4 New, large-scale data centers being constructed for companies like Google, Microsoft, and Facebook house thousands of servers and are creating concern among environmentalists over increases in energy consumption.
172 CHAPTER 6 Search, Semantic, and Recommendation TechnologyWhy Search Is Important for BusinessSearch engines have become a part of our everyday life. They are free, easy to use, and become more powerful and effective every day. Most of us take them for granted and are generally unaware of the complex technologies that power these tools. For the average Web user, it may not be vitally important to understand how search technology is evolving. But for business managers, understanding the potential power of search technology is crucial and becoming more important every day. It has long been recognized that access to information is a competitive advantage. Search technology impacts business in each of the following ways:¥ Enterprise searchÑfinding information within your organization¥ Recommendation enginesÑpresenting information to users without requiring them to conduct an active search¥ Search engine marketing (SEM)Ñgetting found by consumers on the Web¥ Web searchÑfinding crucial business information onlineEach of these important search technology applications are described in what follows.Enterprise Search Enterprise search tools are used by employees to search for and retrieve information related to their work in a manner that complies with the organizationÕs information-sharing and access control policies. Information can come from a variety of sources, including publicly available information, enterprise information (internal records) found in company databases and intranets, as well as information on individual employee computers (Delgado, Renaud, & Krishnamurthy, 2014). Enterprise search tools allow companies to gain competitive advantages by leveraging the value of internal information that would otherwise remain hidden or Òsiloed.Ó Information can be inaccessible as a result of incompatible technol-ogies in various units, lack of coordination or cooperation between units, security concerns, and concerns about the cost of making information accessible (Thomas, 2013; Walker, 2014).In most organizations today, a large portion of employees are Òknowledge workersÓ (e.g., business analysts, marketing managers, purchasing agents, IT managers, etc.). Access to information has a significant impact on their productivity. Enterprise search tools allow workers to extract internal information from databases, intranets, content management sys-tems, files, contracts, policy manuals, and documents to make timely decisions, adding value to the company and enhancing its competitive advantage.Structured versus unstructured data One of the challenges encountered by devel-opers of enterprise search tools is that information is not always in the same format. Data exist in two formats: structured or unstructured. Structured data can be defined as highly orga-nized information, which is easily searchable using simple search engine algorithms or related procedures. Unstructured data, sometimes called messy data, refers to information that is not organized in a systematic or predefined way. Unstructured data files are also more likely to con-tain inaccuracies or errors. Examples of unstructured data include e-mails, articles, books, and documents. Unstructured data accounts for a majority of all the data present on computers today. Originally, enterprise search tools worked only with structured data. Many newer sys-tems claim to work with unstructured information as well, although there is great variability in terms of how well they actually do this.Security issues in enterprise search Unlike a Web search, enterprise search tools must balance the goal of making information widely available throughout the organization with the need to restrict access based on an employeeÕs job function or security clearance. Limiting access to certain documents or data is referred to as access control. Enterprise search tools introduce the potential for a number of security breaches or access of unauthorized information. Most of these can be addressed as long as the organizationÕs IT workers install and maintain the search systemÕs security features, including security integrations with other enterprise programs. An audit of requests logs should be conducted regularly to look for patterns or inconsistencies.
Using Search Technology for Business Success 173Enterprise search vendors Market analysts Frost and Sullivan (Prnewswire.com, 2013) estimate that the global market for enterprise search tools was over $1.47 billion in 2012; it is predicted that the market will grow to over $5 billion by 2020. Clearly, organizations around the world recognize the value of this technology. Several different companies make and sell enterprise search systems, Autonomy, Google, Coveo, and Perceptive Software being the top contenders (Andrews & Koehler-Kruener, 2014). Vendors can be broken down into the following three categories:¥ Specialized search vendors (for instance, Attivio, Endeca, Vivisimo): Software designed to target specific user information needs¥ Integrated search vendors (for instance, Autonomy, IBM, and Microsoft): Software designed to combine search capabilities with information management tools¥ Detached search vendors (for instance, Google, ISYS): Software designed to target flexi-bility and ease of useWith so many options available for enterprise search, it is important that organizations conduct a careful needs analysis prior to acquisition.Recommendation Engines Recommendation engines represent an interesting twist on IR technology. Unlike Web search engines that begin with a user query for information, recommendation engines attempt to anticipate information that a user might be interested in. Recommendation engines are used by e-commerce sites to recommend products; news orga-nizations to recommend news articles and videos; Web advertisers to anticipate the ads people might respond to; and so on. They represent a huge potential for businesses and developers. While the use of recommendation engines is widespread, there is still much work to be done to improve the accuracy of these fascinating applications. You can read more about recommen-dation engines in Section 6.5.Search Engine Marketing Most traditional advertising methods target customers who are not actively engaged in shopping for a product. Instead, they are watching television, listening to the radio, reading a magazine, or driving down the road, paying little attention to the billboards they pass. To most people, advertising represents an unwelcome interruption. On the other hand, people using search engines are actively looking for information. As a result, they are much more likely to be interested in product and service information found in SERPs as long as it is related to the topic they are searching for. Efforts to reach this targeted audience are much more likely to produce sales. ThatÕs why search engine marketing (SEM) has become an important business strategy. Industry experts report that people generally engage in three basic types of searches:1. Informational search Using search engines to conduct research on a topic. This is the most common type of search.2. Navigational search Using a search engine to locate particular websites or Web pages.3. Transactional search Using a search engine to determine where to purchase a product or service.You might think businesses would be primarily interested in transactional searches, but all three types are important and play a key role in the buying process. Say you are interested in purchasing a new tablet computer. Your first step is likely to engage in an informational search, attempting to learn about the product category of mobile tablet devices. Businesses should offer content on their websites and social media sites for consumers seeking general product information. An informational search also represents an opportunity to influence consumers early in the purchasing process.After researching a product category, you might try finding websites of particular com-panies to learn more about individual tablet computer brands (navigational search). Com-panies need to design their websites so that they can be found easily by search engines.Search engine marketing (SEM) a collection of online marketing strategies and tactics that promote brands by increasing their visibility in SERPs through optimization and advertising.
174 CHAPTER 6 Search, Semantic, and Recommendation TechnologyFinally, you might try to determine where to buy your tablet computer by searching on terms like Òlowest price,Ó Òfree shipping,Ó and so on. This is an example of a transactional search.Search engine marketing (Figure 6.5) consists of designing and advertising a Web page, with the goal of increasing its visibility when consumers conduct the three types of searches just described. SEM strategies and tactics produce two different, but complementary outcomes:1. Organic search listings are the result of content and website design features intended to improve a siteÕs ranking on SERPs that result from specific keyword queries. No payments are made to the search engine service for organic search listings.2. Paid search listings are a form of advertising and are purchased from search engine companies. The placement and effectiveness of paid search ads on SERPs are a function of several factors in addition to the fees paid by advertisers. You will read more about these factors in Section 6.3.Businesses utilize search engine optimization (SEO) to improve their websiteÕs organic listings on SERPs. SEO specialists understand how search engines work and guide companies in designing websites and creating content that will produce higher organic SERP rankings than competitive websites.Paid search listings are often referred to as pay-per-click (PPC) advertising because adver-tisers pay search engines based on how many people click on the ads. Typically, PPC ads are listed separately from organic search results. Managing an effective PPC ad campaign involves making strategic decisions about what keyword search queries you want to trigger the display of your ad. You will read more about PPC or paid search advertising in Section 6.3.Social media optimization refers to strategies designed to enhance a companyÕs standing on various social media sites. Increasingly, search engines evaluate a companyÕs presence on social media to determine its reputation, which in turn influences how the company is ranked in SERPs. You will read more about social media strategies in Chapter 7.Growth of search engine marketing As companies begin to realize the power of SEM, more money is being spent on this highly effective strategy. In 2016, businesses spent an esti-mated $65 billion on SEO services to improve the rank or listing order of their organic listings on SERPs. This figure is expected to rise to almost $80 billion in 2020 (Sullivan, 2016). In addition, the research firm eMarketer (2016) estimates that spending on PPC search advertising reached $86.25 billion in 2016, an increase of 15.4% from the year before. Both types of spending, SEO and PPC, illustrate how important search marketing is to businesses these days. Companies now spend more on SEM than they do on television or print advertising. Unlike most traditional advertising methods, return on investment (ROI) can be calculated for SEM by tracking click-through rates (CTRs), changes in site traffic, and purchasing behavior.Click-through rates (CTRs) the percentage of people who click on a hyperlinked area of a SERP or Web page.Search EngineMarketingSEOSearch EngineOptimizationSMOSocial MediaOptimizationPPCPay-Per-ClickAdvertising FIGURE 6.5 Search engine marketing integrates three different strategies: search engine optimization, pay-per-click advertising, and social media optimization.
Using Search Technology for Business Success 175Mobile Search and Mobile SEO Mobile devices have become ubiquitous. With the emergence of smartphones and tablet computers, mobile devices now account for over half of all Web traffic. In some developing countries, mobile devices account for an even larger share of Internet use since they are less expensive than computers. Since more people are using mo-bile devices to surf the Web, it should come as no surprise that more Internet searches are conducted using mobile devices instead of computers.With the dramatic increase in mobile device usage, companies need to make sure their websites and content can be found via mobile search. This means optimizing mobile websites differently from desktop sites. Two issues essential to mobile SEO include:1. Properly configuring the technical aspects of the mobile site so that it can be crawled and indexed by search engines.2. Providing content that is useful to people using mobile devices. Webmasters should con-sider how people use their mobile devices differently from computers and adjust content on their mobile websites accordingly. For instance, if consumers are likely to use their mobile device to check product reviews while shopping in a store, make this information easy to find on the mobile website.When designing a mobile site for e-commerce, Web developers should make sure that information about store location, product reviews, and promotional offers is easily available and optimized so that it will appear in a mobile SERP. Mobile shoppers also use barcode scanning apps as a kind of mobile search engine for locating product reviews and price comparisons while shopping in stores. This practice, called showrooming, is becoming increasingly popular with con-sumers and creating a great deal of frustration and worry on the part of brick-and-mortar retailers.Social Search Most major social media websites (i.e., Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.) have search engines designed to help users find content on their platforms. Of course, some search tools are better than others. It probably comes as no surprise that Face-book users have access to some advanced search features. People can search for friends by name or find information related to their friends using more complex queries such as ÒMovies liked by friends who liked The GodfatherÓ or ÒMusic liked by friends who liked Lady Gaga.Ó Face-book search can be used to find services, events, places, and groups. You can use it to find some place to eat with a search phrase like ÒSeafood restaurants in New Orleans.Ó Clearly, Facebook hopes to leverage the content and connections created by users to power a search tool that people will use instead of Google, Bing, or some other general Web search engine.Recently, Facebook added a new image search feature powered by artificial intelligence that allows users to search for pictures using words that describe whatÕs in the picture instead of relying on tags and captions. For instance, you might search for ÒSanta Claus photoÓ and the search engine will be able to find photos with Santa Claus even if no tags or text associate the picture with Santa Claus. Developers say that eventually the image search will be able to recognize photos based on objects, actions (e.g., walking, running, dancing), and other descrip-tive terms. Eventually, this technology could be used to perform similar searches for video and other immersive formats (Candela, 2017).Facebook undoubtedly can devote more resources to innovations of this nature than other social media platforms. However, while other platforms may take longer to develop sophisticated social search tools, most have the same motivations as Facebook when it comes enhancing user experience and providing a mechanism for highlighting content from individ-uals and organizations with commercial interests. With over 2 billion searches conducted on Facebook each day, businesses will undoubtedly be willing to pay for ways to reach this sizable social media audience in much the same way that they currently advertise on Google, Bing, and other Internet search engines (Kraus, 2015; Constine, 2016).Personal Assistants and Voice Search Major Internet technology firms Apple, Amazon, Google, and Microsoft and a host of smaller firms have launched intelligent personal assistant (IPA) systems that threaten to disrupt conventional SEM paradigms. IPA software is typically designed to help people perform basic tasks like turning on/off lights and small
176 CHAPTER 6 Search, Semantic, and Recommendation Technologyappliances, activating household alarm systems, and searching the Internet for music, videos, weather, and other types of information. While IPAs are still in the growth stages of the product life cycle, forecasted demand for the foreseeable future seems strong.The typical IPA system is a voice-activated program that uses commands that approx-imate natural language. For instance, to learn about the weather, you might ask AmazonÕs IPA, ÒAlexa, whatÕs the weather for this weekend?Ó To get AppleÕs IPA to play a specific music genre, you might say, ÒSiri, play some R&B music.Ó In the not too distant future, we can expect voice-activated IPAs will be integrated with mobile devices, televisions, automobiles, and even hotel rooms.Business that have become skilled at using SEO and PPC campaigns to drive traffic to their websites will have to go back to the drawing board to figure out how the rise in voice search will affect some fundamental marketing strategies. Currently, IPAs act like a kind of filter, screening search results and often basing answers on a single source. Just as businesses once faced the challenge of reformatting website content for smaller screens on mobile devices, they must now determine how to serve up information in a format optimized to make it attractive to a variety of IPAs acting as proxies for their owners.Web Search for Business Commercial search engines and Web directories are use-ful tools for knowledge workers in business. To use search engines effectively, workers should familiarize themselves with all the features available on the search engine they use. Since Google is the most popular search engine, we highlight some of those features in the following list. Many of these features are also available on Bing.com.¥ Focused search You can focus your search to information in different formatsÑWeb pages, videos, images, maps, and the likeÑby selecting the appropriate navigation button on the SERP page.¥ Filetype If you are looking specifically for information contained in a certain file format, you can use the Òfiletype:[file extension]Ó command following your keyword query. For in-stance, the search Òprivate colleges filetype:xlsÓ will produce links to MS Excel files with information related to private colleges. Use this command to find Adobe files (.pdf), MS Word files (.docx), MS PowerPoint files (.pptx), and so on.¥ Advanced search To narrow your search, go to the Advanced Search panel. From this page, you can set a wide range of parameters for your search, including limiting the search to certain domains (e.g., .gov, .org, .edu), languages, dates, and even reading level. You can also use this to narrow your search to a particular website.¥ Search tools button Allows you to narrow your results to listings from specific locations or time frames.¥ Search history Have you ever found a page using a search engine, but later had trouble finding it again? If you are logged into your Google account while using the search engine, itÕs possible to review your search history. It will show you not only your search queries but also the pages you visited following each query.These are just a few of the many features you can use to conduct a power search. While you are in college, take the time to become proficient with using different search engine features. Not only will it help with your immediate research needs, it will help you in your career as well. At the end of this chapter, we include information for a free online Power Search course offered by Google. This is a good way to enhance your ability to find the information you need.Finding intellectual property Your business may have an interest in protecting certain kinds of intellectual property being used without permission on the Web. This might include confidential reports, images, copyrighted blog posts, creative writing (e.g., poetry, novels, etc.), and so on. You can use search engines to find where someone may have posted your intellec-tual property on the Web without permission (see Osher, 2014). You can search for text-based work by simply using queries containing strings of text from the material youÕre looking for. Images can be found by using GoogleÕs reverse image search engine. Tin Eye is an alternative reverse image search engine with a number of interesting features.
Using Search Technology for Business Success 177Real-time search Sometimes you need information about things as they happen. For in-stance, you may be interested in monitoring news stories written about your company or you might need to know what people are saying about your brand or a political candidate on Twit-ter. For these situations, youÕll need a real-time search tool.Say your company wants to explore accepting Bitcoin payments. (Bitcoin is a digital currency that was launched in 2009.) After engaging in a traditional Web search to learn about the currency, you decide you want to learn about public interest in Bitcoin and find news stories that have recently been published about the currency. You might consider using the following tools:¥ Google Trends This tool will help you identify current and historical interest in the topic by reporting the volume of search activity over time. Google Trends allows you to view the information for different time periods and geographic regions.¥ Google Alerts Use Google Alerts to create automated searches for monitoring new Web content, news stories, videos, and blog posts about some topic. Users set up alerts by specifying a search term (e.g., a company name, product, or topic), how often they want to receive notices, and an e-mail address where the alerts are to be sent. When Google finds content that match the parameters of the search, users are notified via e-mail. Bing has a similar feature called News Alerts.¥ Twitter Search You can leverage the crowd of over 650 million Twitter users to find information as well as gauge sentiment on a wide range of topics and issues in real time. TwitterÕs search tool looks similar to other search engines and includes an advanced search mode. In addition to real-time search, the Twitter search tool is also an example of social search, which was explained earlier in the chapter.Social bookmarking search Social bookmarking sites like Diigo provide a way for users to save links to websites they want to access at a later time. When saving page links, users tag them with keywords that describe the pageÕs content. The bookmarked links form a graph of content on the Web that can be used by others. Because the Web pages are tagged by humans, search results are often more relevant than results from commercial search engines. Pinterest is a variation on the social bookmarking idea, allowing users to save and share images they find online. You can find information about various topics by searching Pinterest to see what other users have collected on the subject.Vertical search As described previously, large commercial search engines use indicators of popularity or reputation to determine website quality. This seems to work well for a gener-alized Web search, but it might not be effective when users search on very specific topics such as rare disease, which, by definition, does not generate a lot of activity on the Web. Crawlers do not often index pages in the lower levels of less popular websites. Vertical search engines are programmed to focus on Web pages related to a particular topic and to drill down by crawling pages that other search engines are likely to ignore. Vertical search engines exist for a variety of industries. Ironically, the best way to find a vertical search engine is to search for it on a commercial search engine like Google or Bing.Questions1. What is the primary difference between a Web directory and a crawler-based search engine?2. What is the purpose of an index in a search engine?3. Why are companies increasingly interested in enterprise search tools capable of handling unstruc-tured data?4. What is the difference between SEO and PPC advertising?5. Describe three different real-time search tools.
178 CHAPTER 6 Search, Semantic, and Recommendation Technology 6.2 Organic Search and Search Engine OptimizationThe goal of SEO practitioners is to help organizations increase traffic to their websites. They accomplish this by optimizing websites in an effort to increase visibility and ranking on SERPs. Using Web analytics programs like Google Analytics, companies can determine how many peo-ple visit their site, what specific pages they visit, how long they spend on the site, and what search engines are producing the most traffic (see Figure 6.6). More sophisticated SEO prac-titioners will also attempt to determine what keywords or phrases generated traffic to their website. These are just a few of the many metrics used to measure the effectiveness of SEO strategies. In the sections that follow, we will use the most popular search engine, Google, to explain the basics of SEO. Most of what we write, however, will also apply to other popular search engines.Strategies for Search Engine OptimizationAs mentioned at the beginning of this chapter, all search engines use somewhat different pro-prietary algorithms for determining where a website will appear in search results. As a result, it is not possible to tell what specific factors will be used or how much weight they will carry in determining SERP ranking. Over time, there has been a significant increase in the number of factors that search engines like Google use to determine how a site is listed on a SERP. The general consensus among SEO experts is that Google probably uses over 200 different factors. To make things even more challenging, Google updates its algorithm hundreds of times a year. This presents somewhat of a moving target for SEO professionals hired to improve the organic SERP listings of their clients.Why Does Google Keep Changing Its Algorithm? GoogleÕs overall goal is to constantly improve the experience of people using its search engine. Over time, Google engi-neers have developed ways to predict if a website will provide a positive experience for people using its search engine. Whenever a new way to improve user experience is found, they imple-ment the change by updating the algorithm. Google also employs sophisticated technologies like artificial intelligence and semantic search algorithms to enhance the search experience. © franckreporter/iStockphoto FIGURE 6.6 Tools like Google Analytics are used to monitor changes in website traffic as a result of SEO practices.
Organic Search and Search Engine Optimization 179Artificial intelligence constantly monitors how users respond to search results and modifies the listing algorithm to improve results. Semantic technology helps Google do a better job of understanding the content on a Web page and matching that content with the words and phrases people use to conduct a search.Ranking Factors: On-Page and Off-Page SEO To understand how Google ranks website listings in search results, we begin by dividing ranking factors into on-page factors and off-page factors.On-page factors are elements of the Web page that can be directly controlled by the pub-lisher or Web page creator. SEO professionals attempt to improve a websiteÕs SERP listing by opti-mizing on-page factors related to content, functionality, and HTML programming (Sullivan, 2015).Content Perhaps one of the biggest changes Google has made to its ranking algorithm over the years is an increased emphasis on high-quality content. Content marketing is a strategy that has gained popularity in recent years because of the significant weight assigned to high-quality content when determining search results and its role in attracting increased Web traffic. Some specific ways that Google determines if a website has high-quality content include the following:¥ The quality of writing on the Web page¥ The presence of relevant keywords and phrases associated with the topic¥ How ÒfreshÓ or up-to-date the content is¥ Use of multiple content formats (i.e., news, video, podcast, blog, and social content)¥ Depth or quantity of topical content¥ Links that point to other well-respected and trustworthy websites¥ The proportion of relevant to irrelevant text about a topic¥ Barriers to content have a negative impact on user satisfaction. Examples include making people register, provide names, or fill out forms to get to content.Functionality and programming Website functionality has an impact on SERP rankings. Pages that donÕt load quickly or display well on mobile devices are less likely to result in a positive user experience. Information in a pageÕs HTML (programming language) source code also influences ranking algorithms. Functionality and programming can be assessed by factors such as the following:¥ How easily search engine programs can ÒcrawlÓ the Web page.¥ How well the Web page works with mobile devices.¥ How quickly the Web page loads.¥ Availability of secure (https://) connections for visitors.¥ Minimal presence of duplicate content on the website.¥ Page URLs that contain keywords.¥ Use of topical words and phrases in source code metadata (e.g., title tags, page descrip-tions, keywords).¥ How frequently users click on a listing in search results. Click-through rates (CTR) are determined in part by how attractive a websiteÕs listing is on a SERP. The way a SERP listing looks is the result of the Web pageÕs HTML source code.¥ Hacked websites, sites that infect users with malware, and sites that fail to clean up spam or irrelevant content in comment sections are all factors that negatively impact user experience.Off-page factors can be influenced but not directly controlled by SEO professionals. Many off-page factors are strongly related to a websiteÕs relevance and credibility. Other off-page factors are related to personalized search, a relatively new effort by Google to improve user experience (Sullivan, 2015).
180 CHAPTER 6 Search, Semantic, and Recommendation TechnologyRelevance and credibility Google uses a number of different metrics to determine if a website is a trustworthy source of information on a particular topic. Many of these metrics are based on user behavior and how the site is represented on other websites and social media platforms:¥ Backlinks to the target website on other well-respected and trustworthy websites. The use of backlinks is based on the assumption that people who create website content are more likely to place links to high-quality websites than poor-quality sites on their Web pages. Google assigns a PageRank score to each Web page based on the quality and quantity of backlinks associated with the page. Since the PageRank score is believed to be a heavily weighted factor, SEO professionals have developed several creative strategies for increasing legitimate backlinks to their websites while avoiding certain tactics that Google disapproves of. Google downgrades websites that use methods that artificially inflate their backlink count.¥ Click-through rate (CTR) is also an indicator of relevance. Users are more likely to click on SERP listings related to the information theyÕre searching for.¥ Amount of advertising on the websiteÑToo many ads detract from topical website content.¥ Dwell timeÑThis is a measure of how long a user remains on a page. Users stay on pages with useful content longer than pages that lack useful content.¥ Sites listed in respected Web directories are more likely to contain quality content because they have been reviewed by human editors. Positive comments on review sites like Yelp.com and Zagat.com also have a positive impact on a websiteÕs reputation.¥ High-quality or helpful websites are more likely to be discussed on social media. Examples include comments on Facebook and Google+, shares, Tweets, Likes, and so on.¥ Site trafficÑSites with high-quality content tend to get more traffic over time.Personalized search Google uses information about the person conducting the search in an effort to enhance their experience:¥ User locationÑthe country, city or area the user is from¥ Past experienceÑGoogle SERPs can be influenced by search and Web browsing history¥ Social experienceÑthe extent to which the user or people in their network engaged with or discussed the website favorably on social media including Google+, Facebook, Twitter, and so onContent and Inbound MarketingThe ultimate goal of search engines is to help users find information. Sometimes it seems that SEO practitioners lose sight of this and spend too much time chasing down hundreds of factors they think are being used by search engine ranking algorithms. At worst, SEO can represent an attempt to Ògame the systemÓ or trick search engines into ranking a site higher than its content deserves (see the discussion of black hat SEO in the next section).Perhaps the most important action an organization can take to improve its websiteÕs rank-ing and satisfy website visitors is to provide helpful content that is current and updated reg-ularly. When SEO practices are combined with valuable content, websites not only become easier to find but also contribute to building brand awareness, positive attitudes toward the brand, and brand loyalty.Inbound marketing represents an alternative approach to traditional outbound marketing strategies (e.g., mass media advertising). Inbound marketers attract customers to their websites with content that is informative, useful, or entertaining. Inbound marketing campaigns are based on strategies that integrate content generation, SEO, and social media tactics. In Chapter 7, you will read more about how inbound marketers integrate content, SEO, and social media strategies in powerful marketing campaigns that deliver sales and profit. See Figure 6.7.
Organic Search and Search Engine Optimization 181Black Hat versus White Hat SEO: Ethical Issues in Search Engine OptimizationSearch engines regularly update their algorithms to improve results. Two well-known Google updates called Panda (released in 2011) and Penguin (released in 2012) were designed to improve the ranking of websites with quality content and downgrade poor-quality sites. Both updates are designed to defeat what are commonly referred to as Òblack hat SEOÓ tactics. People who employ black hat SEO tactics try to trick the search engine into thinking a web-site has high-quality content, when in fact it does not. With stronger detection systems now in place, websites that use these tactics (or even appear to use them) will be severely down-graded in GoogleÕs ranking system. Some examples of black hat SEO tactics are defined in the following list:Link spammingÑGenerating backlinks for the primary purpose of SEO, not adding value to the user. Black hat SEOs use tricks to create backlinks. Some examples include adding a link to a page in the comments section of an unrelated blog post, or building sites called Òlink farmsÓ solely for the purpose of linking back to the promoted page.Keyword tricksÑBlack hat SEOs will embed several high-value keywords on pages with unrelated content to drive up traffic statistics. For instance, an e-commerce site might embed words like ÒamazonÓ (a word that frequently shows up in search queries) in an attempt to get listed on SERPs of people looking for amazon.com.Ghost textÑThis tactic involves adding text on a page that will affect how a website is listed on SERPs. The text may not have anything to do with the real content of the page, or it may simply repeat certain words to increase the content density. The text is then hidden, usually by making it the same color as the background.Shadow pagesÑAlso called Òghost pagesÓ or Òcloaked pages,Ó this black hat tactic involves creating pages that are optimized to attract lots of people. The pages, however, contain a redirect command so that users are sent to another page to increase traffic on that page.These particular tactics are no longer effective as a result of updates to the Google ranking system. Most likely, other search engines have adopted similar measures. However, there will always be people who take shortcuts attempting to achieve higher SERP rankings. Businesses must be careful when hiring SEO consultants or agencies to make sure they do not use prohib-ited SEO techniques. When these actions are discovered, Google and other search engines will usually punish the business by dramatically reducing their visibility in search results.Communicationis interactiveor two-wayMarketerspromotecompany byeducating orentertainingTypicalstrategies:content, socialmedia, and SEOCustomersseekout thebusinessInbound MarketingCommunicationis one-wayBusinessesbroadcastmessages thatinterruptcustomersTypicalstrategies:TV, radio,print, outdoor, cold callsBusinessesseek outcustomersOutbound Marketing FIGURE 6.7 Inbound marketers use valuable content, search engine optimization, and social media to attract customers.
182 CHAPTER 6 Search, Semantic, and Recommendation TechnologyQuestions1. Search engines use many different ÒcluesÓ about the quality of a websiteÕs content to determine how a page should be ranked in search results. Explain how a search engine uses specific factors to deter-mine the quality of a websiteÕs content.2. SEO professionals strive to increase a Web pageÕs PageRank score which is based on the quality and quantity of backlinks. Explain what a backlink is and why search engines use the PageRank score to determine the order in which websites are listed in SERPs.3. Explain why the so-called black hat SEO tactics are ultimately short-sighted and can lead to significant consequences for businesses that use them.4. What is the fundamental difference between on-page and off-page SEO factors?5. Explain why providing high-quality, regularly updated content is the most important aspect of any SEO strategy. 6.3 Pay-Per-Click and Paid Search StrategiesIn addition to organic listings, most search engines display paid or sponsored listings on their SERPs. These advertisements provide revenue for the search engine and allow it to offer Web search services to the general public for free. They also provide a way for smaller organizations with new websites to gain visibility on SERPs while waiting for their SEO strategies to produce organic results. Most major search engines differentiate organic search results from paid ad list-ings on SERPs with labels, shading, and placing the ads in a different place on the page. Some critics have complained that paid advertisements receive preferential page placement and are not clearly distinguished from organic listings. However, at the time of this publication, it is easy to distinguish ads from organic results on Google and Bing SERPs. Defenders of the search engine companies argue that since the paid ads make it possible for everyone to use search services for free, the preferential page placement is justified.Creating a PPC Advertising CampaignThere are five steps to creating a PPC advertising campaign on search engines.1. Set an overall budget for the campaign.2. Create ads−most search engine ads are text only, but this is likely to change in the future.3. Select keywords and other parameters associated with the campaign.4. Set up billing account information.5. Modify key words and ad copy based on results.Search advertising allows businesses to target customers who are likely to purchase their products. They do this by selecting keywords that correspond to search queries that potentially identify someone as a customer. For instance, a company that sells womenÕs purses may want to appear on a SERP when someone conducts a search using any of the following terms or phrases:¥ Purse¥ Handbag¥ WomenÕs purses¥ LadiesÕ purses¥ Designer purses¥ Designer handbags
Pay-Per-Click and Paid Search Strategies 183Google and other search engines provide advertisers with tools for evaluating the impact of different keywords or phrases. These tools typically display information about how often people use the word in a search and also recommend alternative words to consider using in the campaign. Advertisers ÒbidÓ on having their ads appear when someone searches on one of their keywords. Higher bids result in a greater probability that the ad will appear in search results associated with the keyword. However, this might also deplete the advertiserÕs budget more quickly. On the other hand, if a bid is too low, the ad might not appear at all. Keyword tools usually provide information about typical bid prices for each keyword or phrase. Smart advertisers start with a modest bid and increase it over time to achieve the ad placement rate they desire.The likelihood of ad placement is also influenced by a quality score representing the search engineÕs estimate of how successful the ad will be. Quality scores are determined by factors related to ad relevance and user experience factors. Relevant ads closely match the intent of the userÕs search. The expected CTR indicates how likely the ad will be clicked on. The userÕs landing page experience is determined by things such as how relevant, transparent, and easy-to-navigate the page is. According to Google, quality scores are determined by sev-eral factors:¥ Expected keyword CTR¥ The past CTR of your URL¥ Past effectiveness (overall CTR of ads and keywords in the account)¥ Landing page quality (relevance, transparency, ease of navigation, etc.)¥ Relevance of keywords to ads¥ Relevance of keywords to customer search query¥ Geographic performanceÑaccount success in geographic regions being targeted¥ How well ads perform on different devices (quality scores are calculated for mobile, desktop/laptop, and tablets)Relevant ads that produce sales are good for all parties. The search engine makes more money from clicked ads, the advertiser benefits from increased revenue, lower costs-per-click, and more favorable ad placement. When ads are relevant and landing pages are functional and contain relevant information, customers are more likely to find and purchase what they are looking for.In addition to selecting keywords and setting bid prices, advertisers also set parameters for the geographic location and time of day they want the ad to appear. These factors allow for additional customer targeting designed to help advertisers reach the consumers most likely to purchase their products.Companies need to consider the fit between ad content and landing page content and functionality. For instance, sometimes companies create product-oriented ads, but then link to the main page of their website instead of a page with information about the product in the ad. Other factors include landing page design, call to action (CTA) effectiveness, and quality of the shopping cart application. It does not make sense to spend money on a PPC campaign designed to drive consumers to an unattractive and dysfunctional website.One of the attractive features of PPC ad campaigns is that managers can monitor results in real time and make adjustments to the campaign parameters if necessary. Advertisers fre-quently set up A/B tests to evaluate the relative effectiveness of two different ads. After a period of time, the advertiser checks to see which ad is producing better results and discontinues use of the less effective ad for the remainder of the campaign. Some advertisers run A/B tests throughout the campaign, constantly testing ad copy and other elements in the spirit of con-tinuous improvement. You can learn more about advertising on the major commercial search engines by visiting the following websites:¥ Google adwords.google.com¥ Bing advertise.bingads.microsoft.com¥ Yahoo advertising.yahoo.com
184 CHAPTER 6 Search, Semantic, and Recommendation TechnologyMetrics for Paid Search AdvertisingIn addition to more effective targeting, one of the key benefits of online advertising is the ability to evaluate its contribution to sales revenue more effectively. PPC advertisers use the following metrics to gauge the effectiveness of their campaigns:Click-through rates (CTRs) By themselves, CTRs do not measure the financial perfor-mance of an ad campaign. But they are useful for evaluating many of the decisions that go into a campaign, such as keyword selection and ad copy and ad attractiveness.Keyword conversion High CTRs are not always good if they do not lead to sales. Since the cost of the campaign is based on how many people click an ad, you want to select key-words that lead to sales (conversions), not just site visits. PPC advertisers monitor which keywords lead to sales and focus on those in future campaigns.Cost of customer acquisition (CoCA) This metric represents the amount of money spent to attract a paying customer. To calculate CoCA for a PPC campaign, you divide the total budget of the campaign by the number of customers who purchased something from your site. For instance, if you spent $1,000 on a campaign that yielded 40 customers, your CoCA would be $1,000/40 = $25 per customer.Return on advertising spend (ROAS) The campaignÕs overall financial effectiveness is evaluated with ROAS (revenue/cost). For example, if $1,000 was spent on a campaign that led to $6,000 in sales, ROAS would be $6,000/$1,000 = $6. In other words, for every dollar spent on PPC ads, $6 was earned.Questions1. What would most people say is the fundamental difference between organic listings and PPC listings on a SERP?2. What are the five primary steps to creating a PPC advertising campaign on search engines?3. In addition to the Òbid priceÓ for a particular keyword, what other factor(s) influence whether or not an advertisement will appear on a search results page? Why donÕt search engines use just the adver-tiserÕs bid to determine if an ad will appear on search results pages?4. How do on-page factors influence the effectiveness of PPC advertisements?5. What factors determine an adÕs quality score?6. Describe four metrics that can be used to evaluate the effectiveness of a PPC advertising campaign. 6.4 A Search for MeaningÑSemantic TechnologyIf there is one thing history has taught us, it is that the future is hard to predict. It might seem silly to predict what the future Internet will look like when itÕs clear so many people are having trouble understanding all the implications of the present Internet. However, forward-thinking businesses and individuals are beginning to plan for the next evolution which is sometimes called Web 3.0.The current Web is disjointed, requiring us to visit different websites to get content, engage in commerce, and interact with our social networks (community). The future Web will use context, personalization, and vertical search to make content, commerce, and community more relevant and easier to access. With the addition of mobile technology, this Web will be always accessible.¥ Context defines the intent of the user; for example, trying to purchase music, to find a job, to share memories with friends and family.
A Search for MeaningÑSemantic Technology 185¥ Personalization refers to the userÕs personal characteristics that impact how relevant the content, commerce, and community are to an individual.¥ Vertical search, as you have read, focuses on finding information in a particular content area, such as travel, finance, legal, and medical.What Is the Semantic Web?Semantic refers to the meaning of words or language. The semantic Web is one in which computers can interpret the meaning of content (data) by using metadata and natural language processing to support search and retrieval, analysis and information amalgamation from both structured and unstructured sources. Semantic technologies are being developed that will create a new, richer experience for Web users.Tim Berners-Lee, creator of the technology that made the World Wide Web possible, is director of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). This group develops programming standards designed to make it possible for data, information, and knowledge to be shared even more widely across the Internet. The result of these standards is a metadata language, or ways of describing digital information so that it can be used by a wide variety of applications.Much of the worldÕs digital information is stored in files structured so they can only be read by the programs that created them. With metadata, the content of these files can be labeled with tags describing the nature of the information, where it came from, or how it is arranged. At the risk of sounding too dramatic, metadata transforms a connected, but largely uninterpreta-ble Web (network) of pages into a large database that can be searched, analyzed, understood, and repurposed by a variety of applications.It is helpful to think about the semantic Web against the background of earlier Internet functionality (see Table 6.2). The early Internet allowed programmers and users to access information and communicate with one another without worrying about the details associ-ated with the machines they used to connect to the network and store the information. The semantic Web continues this evolution, making it possible to access information about real things (people, places, contracts, books, chemicals, etc.) without knowing the details associ-ated with the nature or structure of the data files, pages, and databases where these things are described or contained (Hendler & Berners-Lee, 2010). This will greatly expand the ways in which we search for and find information related to our needs and interests.The Language(s) of Web 3.0The early Web was built using hypertext markup language (HTML). Web 2.0 was made possible, in part, by the development of languages like XML and JavaScript. The semantic Web utilizes additional languages that have been developed by the W3C. These include resource description framework (RDF), Web ontology language (OWL), and SPARQL protocol and RDF query language (SPARQL). RDF is a language used to represent information about resources on the Internet. It will describe these resources using metadata uniform resource identifiers (URIs) like Òtitle,Ó Òauthor,Ó Òcopyright and license information.Ó It is one of the features that allow data to be used by multiple applications. TABLE 6.2 Evolution of the WebWeb 1.0 (The Initial Web)A Web of PagesPages or documents are Òhyperlinked,Ó making it easier than ever before to access connected information.Web 2.0 (The Social Web)A Web of ApplicationsNew applications and technologies allow people to easily create, share, and organize information.Web 3.0 (The Semantic Web)A Web of DataUsing metadata tags, artificial intelligence, natural language processing, and other semantic tools, computers can be used to access specific information across platforms and applications, regardless of the original structure of the file, page, or document. It turns the Web into a giant readable database.
186 CHAPTER 6 Search, Semantic, and Recommendation TechnologyAs the acronym SPARQL implies, it is used to write programs that can retrieve and manip-ulate data stored in RDF format. OWL is the W3C language used to categorize and accurately identify the nature of things found on the Internet. These three languages, used together, will enhance the element of context on the Web, producing more fruitful and accurate information searches. The W3C continues its work, with input by programmers and the broader Internet community, to improve the power and functionality of these languages.Semantic Web and Semantic SearchAs you have read, the semantic Web is described by metadata, making it easier for a broad range of applications to identify and utilize data. One of the barriers to creating a semantic Web based on metadata, however, is the tagging process. Who will tag all the data currently on the Web? How can we be sure that such data will be tagged correctly? Will people purposely tag data incorrectly to gain some kind of advantage in the same way that black hat SEO tactics are used to mislead search engines?Semantic search engines can be programmed to take advantage of metadata tags, but their usefulness would be very limited if that was the only way they could understand Web content.Metadata tags, therefore, are just one approach used by semantic search engines to under-stand the meaning of online content. In addition to metadata tags, semantic search engines use a variety of other strategies to find meaning:¥ Natural language processing¥ Contextual cues¥ Synonyms¥ Word variations¥ Concept matching¥ Specialized queries¥ Artificial IntelligenceSemantic search will seek to understand the context or intent of users looking for information in an effort to increase the relevance and accuracy of results (DiSilvestro, 2013). For instance, if a search engine understood the proper context of a search query containing the word ÒDisneyworld,Ó it would know if the user was¥ planning a vacation, or¥ looking for a job at the theme park, or¥ interested in the history of Disney World.Semantic Search Features and Benefits So what can semantic search engines do that is so much better compared to search engines that work solely on keyword match-ing? Grimes (2010) provides a list of practical search features based on semantic search technology.Related searches/queries The engine suggests alternative search queries that may pro-duce information related to the original query. Search engines may also ask you, ÒDid you mean: [search term]?Ó if it detects a misspelling.Reference results The search engine suggests reference material related to the query, such as a dictionary definition, Wikipedia pages, maps, reviews, or stock quotes.Semantically annotated results Returned pages contain highlighting of search terms, but also related words or phrases that may not have appeared in the original query. These can be used in future searches simply by clicking on them.
A Search for MeaningÑSemantic Technology 187Full-text similarity search Users can submit a block of text or even a full document to find similar content.Search on semantic/syntactic annotations This approach would allow a user to indi-cate the Òsyntactic role the term playsÑfor instance, the part-of-speech (noun, verb, etc.)Ñor its semantic meaning, whether itÕs a company name, location, or event.Ó For instance, a keyword search on the word ÒcenterÓ would produce too many results. Instead, a search query could be written using a syntax such as the following: center This would only return documents where the word ÒcenterÓ was part of an organizationÕs name (e.g., Johnson Research Center or Millard Youth Center). Google currently allows you to do something similar to specify the kind of files you are looking for (e.g., filetype:pdf).Concept search Search engines could return results with related concepts. For instance, if the original query was ÒTarantino films,Ó documents would be returned that contain the word ÒmoviesÓ even if not the word Òfilms.ÓOntology-based search Ontologies define the relationships between data. An ontol-ogy is based on the concept of ÒtriplesÓ: subject, predicate, and object. This would allow the search engine to answer questions such as ÒWhat vegetables are green?Ó The search engine would return results about Òbroccoli,Ó Òspinach,Ó Òpeas,Ó Òasparagus,Ó ÒBrussels sprouts,Ó and so on.Semantic Web search This approach would take advantage of content tagged with metadata as previously described in this section. Search results are likely to be more accu-rate than keyword matching.Faceted search Faceted search provides a means of refining or filtering results based on predefined categories called facets. For instance, a search on ÒcollegesÓ might result in options to Òrefine this search by. . .Ó location, size, degrees offered, private or public, and so on. Many e-commerce websites provide users with faceted search features, allow-ing shoppers to filter search results by things like price, average rating, brand name, and product features.Clustered search This is similar to a faceted search, but without the predefined cat-egories. Visit Carrot2.org to better understand this concept. After conducting a search, click on the ÒfoamtreeÓ option to see ways to refine your search. The refining options are extracted from the content in pages of the initial search.Natural language search Natural language search tools attempt to extract words from questions such as ÒHow many countries are there in Europe?Ó and create a semantic representation of the query. Initially, this is what people hoped search engines would evolve toward, but Grimes wonders if we have become so accustomed to typing just one or two words into our queries that writing out a whole question may seem like too much work.You may recognize some of these search enhancements when using popular commercial search engines like Google or Bing. That is because they have been building semantic tech-nologies into their systems to improve user experience. You are encouraged to explore other search engines with semantic search features like DuckDuckGo and SenseBot.Semantic Web for BusinessWhat opportunities and challenges does the semantic Web hold for businesses? Perhaps the most immediate challenge faced by businesses is the need to optimize their websites for semantic search. Because search engines are responsible for directing so much traffic to business websites, it will be important that companies take advantage of semantic technologies to ensure they continue to remain visible to prospective customers who use search engines. While
188 CHAPTER 6 Search, Semantic, and Recommendation Technologythe details of semantic SEO are beyond the scope of this book, we can illustrate one important benefit of semantic website optimization. Websites optimized for semantic technology with metadata produce richer, more attractive listings on SERPs. Google calls these rich snippets (see Figure 6.8).Note how detailed the organic search listing in Figure 6.8 is compared to a basic listing. These enhanced search listings are more visually attractive and produce greater CTRs.Businesses need to stay up to date with advances in semantic search so that they can continuously optimize their sites to increase traffic from major search engines.Questions1. List five different practical ways that semantic technology is enhancing the search experience of users.2. How do metadata tags facilitate more accurate search results?3. Briefly describe the three evolutionary stages of the Internet?4. Define the words Òcontext,Ó Òpersonalization,Ó and Òvertical search.Ó Explain how they make for better information search results.5. What are three languages developed by the W3C and associated with the semantic Web? 6.5 Recommendation EnginesA lot of times, people donÕt know what they want until you show it to them.ÑSteve Jobs (quoted in Business Week, May 12, 1998)Think about the challenge faced by large e-commerce websites like Amazon or Netflix. Brick-and-mortar retailers can capture peopleÕs attention in the store with eye-catching point-of-purchase displays or suggestive selling by store employees. However, these are not options FIGURE 6.8 The Google search listing for this New York-based grocery chain is more attractive because it uses metadata from the businessÕs website. (Google and the Google logo are registered trademarks of Google, Inc., used with permission.)
Recommendation Engines 189for retail websites. They need an effective way of recommending their vast array of products to customers. Most e-commerce sites provide website search tools based on the technologies previously discussed in this chapter. Relying on customers to find products through an active search, however, assumes customers know what they want and how to describe it when form-ing their search query. For these reasons, many e-commerce sites rely on recommendation engines (sometimes called recommender systems). Recommendation engines proactively identify products that have a high probability of being something the consumer might want to buy. Amazon has long been recognized as having one of the best recommendation engines. Each time customers log into the site, they are presented with an assortment of products based on their purchase history, browsing history, product reviews, ratings, and many other factors. In effect, Amazon customizes their e-commerce site for each individual, leading to increased sales. Consumers respond to these personalized pages by purchasing products at much higher rates when compared to banner advertisements and other Web-based pro-motions. At Amazon, the recommendation engine is credited with generating 35% of sales (Arora, 2016).Recommendation FiltersThere are three widely used approaches to creating useful recommendations: content-based filtering, collaborative filtering, and hybrid strategies (Asrar, 2016).Content-Based Filtering Content-based filtering recommends products based on the product features of items the customer has interacted with in the past (Figure 6.9). Inter-actions can include viewing an item, ÒlikingÓ an item, purchasing an item, saving an item to a wish list, and so on. In the simplest sense, content-based filtering uses item similarity to make recommendations. For instance, the Netflix recommendation engine attempts to recom-mend movies that are similar to movies you have already watched (see IT at Work 6.2). Music-streaming site Pandora creates its recommendations or playlists based on the Music Genome Project©,a system that uses approximately 450 different attributes to describe songs. These detailed systems for describing movies and songs enhance NetflixÕs and PandoraÕs positions in highly competitive industries because of their ability to offer superior recommendations to their customers.3. Recommendation: ÒBased on your rating of fruity cocktail umbrella drink you may also like…Ó1. Customer likes fruity cocktail umbrella drink2. Computer searches products for fruity cocktail umbrella drink FIGURE 6.9 Content-based filtering produces recommendations based on similarity of product features.
190 CHAPTER 6 Search, Semantic, and Recommendation TechnologyCollaborative Filtering Collaborative filtering makes recommendations based on a userÕs similarity to other people. For instance, when a customer gives a product a high rating, he or she may receive recommendations based on the purchases of other people who also gave the same product a high rating. Sometimes, websites will explain the reason for the rec-ommendations with the message ÒOther people who liked this product also bought. . .Ó Many collaborative filtering systems use purchase history to identify similarities among customers. In principle, however, any customer characteristic that improves the quality of recommendations could be used (see Figure 6.10).In an effort to develop increasingly better recommendation engines, developers are exploring a number of creative ways to predict what consumers might like based on patterns of consumer behavior, interests, ratings, reviews, social media contacts and conversations, media use, financial information, and so on.In addition to content filtering and collaborative filtering, two other approaches to rec-ommendation engines are mentioned in the literature: knowledge-based systems and demographic systems. Knowledge-based systems use information about a userÕs needs to rec-ommend products. This kind of system is useful for developing recommendations for products IT at Work 6.2Violent Nightmare-Vacation Movies and Other Fun Movie Genres at NetflixAlexis Madrigal (2014) reverse-engineered NetflixÕs list of movie genres and was surprised to learn the company uses approxi-mately 76,897 different ways to describe movies, creating the potential for some unusually specific movie recommendations. Christian Brown (2012) compiled a list of humorous and some-times disturbing movie categories, a few of which are listed below: 10. Cerebral Con-Game Thrillers 9. Visually Striking FatherÐSon Movies 8. Violent Nightmare-Vacation Movies 7. Understated Independent Workplace Movies 6. Feel-Good Opposites-Attract Movies 5. Witty Dysfunctional-Family TV Animated Comedies 4. Period Pieces about Royalty Based on Real Life 3. Campy Mad-Scientist Movies 2. Mind-Bending Foreign Movies 1. More like Arrested DevelopmentThe fact that Netflix went to the trouble of creating so many detailed and descriptive labels suggests that a content-based fil-tering strategy is at use in the companyÕs recommendation system.3. Recommendations: ÒOther customers who like pink beverage also like…Ó1. Customer likes pink beverage2. Other customers like pink beverage FIGURE 6.10 Collaborative filtering bases recommendations on similarity to other customers.
Recommendation Engines 191that consumers do not shop for very often. For instance, an insurance company may ask a cus-tomer a series of questions about his or her needs, and then use that information to recom-mend policy options. Demographic systems base recommendations on demographic factors corresponding to a potential customer (i.e., age, gender, race, income, etc.). While similarity to other customers might play a role in developing these recommendations, such systems are different from collaborative filtering systems that typically rely on information about a personÕs behavior (i.e., purchase, product ratings, etc.).Systems are being developed that leverage big data streams from multiple sources to refine and enhance the performance of current systems.Limitations of Recommendation Engines While recommendation engines have proven valuable and are widely used, there are still challenges that must be overcome. Four commonly cited limitations are described as follows:Cold start or new user Making recommendations for a user who has not provided any information to the system is a challenge since most systems require a starting point or some minimal amount of information about the user (Adomavicius & Alexander, 2005; Burke, 2007). Tiroshi and colleagues (2011) have suggested consumersÕ existing social media profiles from sites like Facebook and Twitter could be used in situations where a website did not have sufficient information of its own to make recommendations.Sparsity Collaborative systems depend on having information about a critical mass of users to compare to the target user in order to create reliable or stable recommendations. This is not always available in situations where products have only been rated by a few people or when it is not possible to identify a group of people who are similar to a user with unusual preferences (Burke, 2007).Limited feature content For content filter systems to work, there must be sufficient information available about product features and the information must exist in a struc-tured format so it can be read by computers. Often feature information must be entered manually, which can be prohibitive in situations where there are many products (Adoma-vicius & Alexander, 2005).Overspecialization If systems can only recommend items that are highly similar to a user profile, then the recommendations may not be useful. For instance, if the recommen-dation system is too narrowly configured on a website that sells clothing, the user may only see recommendations for the same clothing item he or she liked, but in different sizes or colors (Adomavicius & Alexander, 2005).Hybrid Recommendation Engines Hybrid recommendation engines develop recommendations based on some combination of the methodologies described above (content-based filtering, collaboration filtering, knowledge-based and demographic systems). Hybrid systems are used to increase the quality of recommendations and address shortcomings of systems that only use a single methodology. Burke (2007) identified various ways that hybrid recommendation engines combine results from different recommender systems. To illustrate the potential complexity and variation in hybrid systems, four approaches are listed below:¥ Weighted hybrid Results from different recommenders are assigned a weight and combined numerically to determine a final set of recommendations. Relative weights are determined by system tests to identify the levels that produce the best recommendations.¥ Mixed hybrid Results from different recommenders are presented alongside of each other.¥ Cascade hybrid Recommenders are assigned a rank or priority. If a tie occurs (with two products assigned the same recommendation value), results from the lower-ranked sys-tems are used to break ties from the higher-ranked systems.¥ Compound hybrid This approach combines results from two recommender systems from the same technique category (e.g., two collaborative filters), but uses different algo-rithms or calculation procedures.
192 CHAPTER 6 Search, Semantic, and Recommendation TechnologyRecommendation engines are now used by many companies with deep content (e.g., large product inventory) that might otherwise go undiscovered if the companies depended on cus-tomers to engage in an active search.To simplify our description of recommendation engines, most of the examples above have been based on the e-commerce sites recommending products to customers. However, this technology is used by many different kinds of business organizations, as illustrated in Table 6.3.Questions1. How is a recommendation engine different from a search engine?2. Besides e-commerce websites that sell products, what are some other ways that recommendation engines are being used on the Web today?3. What are some examples of user information required by recommendation engines that use collab-orative filtering?4. Before implementing a content-based recommendation engine, what kind of information would website operators need to collect about their products?5. What are the four limitations or challenges that recommendation systems sometimes face?6. What is a recommendation engine called that combines different methodologies to create recom-mendations? What are three ways these systems combine methodologies? TABLE 6.3 Examples of Recommendation Engine ApplicationsCompanyHow It Uses Recommendation Engines. . .AmazonRecommends products using multiple filtering methods.NetflixApproximately 75% of Netflix movies are selected as a result of its recommendation system.PandoraThis streaming music site creates playlists based on similarity to initial songs or artists selected by the user.CNN, Time, Fast Company, Rolling Stone, NBCNews.com, Reuters, Us WeeklyThese news and entertainment companies all use a recom-mendation engine (or Òcontent discovery systemÓ) created by Outbrain.com to suggest additional articles related to the one site visitors initially viewed.YouTubeYouTube uses a variation of AmazonÕs recommendation engine to suggest additional videos people might like to watch.GoodreadsThis social website for readers recommends books based on user ratings of books they have read.SamsungUses recommendation engines built into its Òsmart TVsÓ to sug-gest television programming to viewers.Facebook and LinkedInThese social networking services use recommendation engines to suggest people that users may want to connect with.AppleHelps users find mobile apps they might enjoy.Microsoft Xbox 360Suggests new games based on what users have previously shown an interest in.TripadvisorRecommends travel destinations and services based on destina-tions people have viewed or rated.Stitch FixThis fashion start-up uses a recommender system in conjunction with human stylists to select and ship clothing products to customers, before customers viewed or ordered them!
Assuring Your Learning 193Assuring Your LearningKey Termsaccess control 172backlinks 180click-through rates (CTRs) 174collaborative filtering 190collection analysis module 169content-based filtering 189crawler control module 169crawler search engines 168dwell time 180enterprise search 172ghost text 181hybrid recommendation engines 191hybrid search engines 168inbound marketing 180indexer module 169informational search 173keyword conversion 184keywords 169link spamming 181metadata 185meta-search engines 168navigational search 173organic search listings 174page repository 169PageRank 180paid search listings 174pay-per-click (PPC) 174petabyte 170quality score 183query interface 170recommendation engines 173resource description framework (RDF) 185retrieval/ranking module 169rich snippets 188search engine 168search engine marketing (SEM) 173search engine optimization (SEO) 174search engine results page (SERP) 166semantic search engines 168semantic Web 185shadow pages 181showrooming 175social media optimization 174SPARQL protocol and RDF query language (SPARQL) 185spiders 168structured data 172transactional search 173uniform resource identifiers (URIs) 185unstructured data 172vertical search engines 177Web directories 168Web ontology language (OWL) 185Discuss: Critical Thinking Questions1. Why is it important that businesses maintain a high level of visibil-ity on SERPs?2. Why are organic search listings more valuable than paid search listings for most companies over the long term? Even though organic search listings are more valuable, what are some reasons that com-panies should consider using PPC advertising as part of their search marketing strategies?3. Why is relevant and frequently updated content a significant factor for companies concerned about their visibility on popular search en-gines? Does the quality of content impact organic results, paid results, or both? Explain.4. Explain the differences between Web directories, crawler search en-gines, and hybrid search engines.5. Why do search engines consider their algorithms for rank ordering Web page listings on SERPs to be trade secrets? What would be the consequences of publicizing detailed information about how a search engine ranks its results?6. Why do consumer search engines like Google and Bing require vast amounts of data storage? How have they addressed this need? What environmental issues are associated with the way large technology companies operate their data storage facilities?7. Explain why enterprise search technology is becoming increasingly important to organizations. Describe how enterprise search applica-tions are different from consumer search engines in terms of their func-tionality, purpose, and the special challenges they must overcome.8. Explain why people are much more likely to view and pay attention to product and service information in SERPs compared to traditional mass media advertising? What strategies are businesses adopting to take advantage of this trend?9. Why is it easier to measure the return-on-investment of re-sources spent on search engine marketing compared to mass media advertising?10. How has the widespread adoption of mobile devices impacted the SEO practices?11. Identify at least five ways that Google has changed its algo-rithms in recent years to encourage website developers to do more than simply list keywords in an attempt to improve their ranking on search results.12. The ultimate goal of Google, Bing, and other consumer search en-gines is to provide users with a positive user experience. What recom-mendations would you make to a website owner with regard to using website content to improve the siteÕs rank on search result listings?13. Why are Òblack hatÓ SEO techniques (see Section 6.2) considered unethical? Who is harmed by the use of such techniques? What are the consequences of using these questionable SEO tactics?14. Explain how search engines determine if websites contain infor-mation relevant to a userÕs search inquiry.15. Identify and describe the five steps to creating a PPC ad campaign.16. How does an advertiserÕs bid and quality score determine the like-lihood of PPC ad placement on SERPs? What are the factors that Google uses to determine an advertiserÕs quality score? Why does Google use the quality score instead of relying solely on the advertiserÕs bid?17. Describe three metrics used by PPC advertisers to evaluate the ef-fectiveness of their search ad campaign.
194 CHAPTER 6 Search, Semantic, and Recommendation Technology18. Identify the three things that SEO practitioners can optimize by making changes to on-page factors. What three things can SEO prac-titioners attempt to optimize by making changes to off-page factors?19. Describe five ways that semantic search engines could enhance functionality for users. How will businesses benefit from the develop-ment of semantic search functions?20. Recommender systems use different approaches to generating recommendations. Explain the difference between content-based filtering and collaborative filtering. Describe the kind of information required for each approach to work.21. What are the alternatives to content-based filtering and collabora-tive filtering recommender systems? When is it most useful to use these alternatives?22. Hybrid recommendation engines utilize two or more filtering strategies to create recommendations. Describe the four different ap-proaches to creating a hybrid system.Explore: Online and Interactive Exercises1. Select a search query term or phrase based on a class assignment, a product you plan to purchase, or some area of personal interest. Use the query at each of the following search engines:a. Google.comb. Bing.comc. Yahoo.comd. DuckDuckGo.comFor each site, make the following observations:a. How relevant or useful are the websites listed on the first two pages of search results?b. What differences do you observe in terms of how the search engines list websites on the search results page?c. Do you see any indication that the search engine is using semantic technology to generate results (see ÒSemantic Search Features and BenefitsÓ in Section 6.4)?2. Visit the website for fitbit products at fitbit.com and familiarize yourself with the products and website content.a. Make a list of nonbranded keywords and phrases (i.e., doesnÕt contain the word ÒfitbitÓ) that you would recommend fitbit use to optimize its pages so they show up in organic search listings.b. Based on your list of keywords and phrases, make a list of recommendations for content (i.e., articles, blog posts, information, etc.) that fitbit should add to its website to increase the chances that it will show up in organic search results. What keywords should be emphasized in the content you recommend?3. Use an existing account, or sign up for an account, at one of the websites listed in Table 6.3. Make a list of the ways the website recommends its content, goods, or services to you. Based on your observations, are you able to determine what kind of recommendation system is in use by the website?4. Pretend you are going to purchase an expensive item like a large flat-screen television or a major appliance from a national retailer like Best Buy or Sears. Using your mobile phone, attempt to find store locations, product information, and customer reviews. Next, install one of the popular shopping and price comparison apps listed below on your phone:¥ Red Laser¥ Amazon Price Check, or Flow (also by Amazon)¥ Barcode Scanner¥ Or, find a similar price-checking app at your mobile app storeNow, go shopping (visit the store). While shopping, use your mobile app to find product reviews and make price comparisons of the products you find. Briefly describe your mobile shopping experience. How did the mobile technology help or hinder your shopping experience? What challenges does mobile technology pose for traditional retailers?5. Pretend you are an SEO consultant for a local business or not-for-profit organization. Visit the organizationÕs website to familiarize yourself with the brand, mission, products, services, and so on. Next, make a list of keywords or phrases that you think should be used to optimize the site for search engines. Rank-order the list based on how frequently you think the words are used in searches. Finally, go to google.com/trends/explore and enter your keywords or phrases, creating a graph that illustrates how often they have been used in search queries. Based on what you learn, what keywords or phrases would you recommend the organization use to optimize its site?Analyze & Decide: Apply IT Concepts to Business Decisions1. Perform a search engine query using the terms Òdata centerÓ + Òenvironmental impact.Ó Describe the environmental concerns that large-scale data centers are creating around the globe and steps that companies are taking to address these concerns. Read about GoogleÕs efforts at environment.google. In your opinion, is Google making a satisfactory effort to minimize the negative impact of its business on the environment? Explain your answer.2. Review the information in Section 6.1 about the three types of searches (informational, navigational, and transactional) that people conduct on search engines. Put yourself in the role of an SEO consultant for your college or university. Create a set of content and/or keyword strategies that you would recommend to your institutionÕs leaders to increase the chances of appearing on SERPs resulting from prospective students conducting each kind of search.
Case 6.2 1953. Review the information about website relevance and credibility in Sec-tion 6.3. Next, generate a list of strategies or ways that a website owner might use to improve its ranking on search results pages by optimizing the site for relevance and credibility. For instance, if one of your factors is Òsite traffic,Ó you might recommend that the website owner post links to the website on the company Facebook page to increase traffic. Or, you might recommend the website run a contest that requires people to visit the site to enter. This would increase traffic during the contest.4. Traditional brick-and-mortar stores are increasingly frustrated by competition with online retailers. Online websites often have a cost advantage because they do not have to maintain physical storefronts or pay salespeople, and can use more efficient logistical and opera-tional strategies. This sometimes allows them to offer better prices to consumers. With the emergence of recommendation engines, they appear to be gaining another advantageÑthe ability to suggest prod-ucts to customers based on their past shopping history and personal characteristics. Pretend you are a senior manager for a national retail chain. How could your company make use of recommendation sys-tems to suggest products to customers shopping in your store? Outline a creative approach to this problem that identifies the information you would need to collect, the in-store technology required, and the man-ner in which you would inform customers about the personalized rec-ommendations generated by your system.5. Select a consumer product or service for which there are at least three popular brand names. For example, you might choose the cat-egory Òcell phone carriers,Ó which includes Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile. On the Google.com/trends page, type the brand names, separated by commas, into the search field at the top of the screen (e.g., Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile). The resulting chart will display the search query volume by brand, an indicator of how much interest each brand has received over time. Using the Google Trends data, an-swer the following questions.Tip: Before answering the questions below, use GoogleÕs search engine to find articles on Òhow to interpret Google trends.Ó This will help you better understand the Google trends report and make it easier to answer the following questions.a. Using the date setting at the top of the Google Trends page, ex-plore different periods of time. Briefly summarize how interest in each brand has changed over the last four years.b. In the Regional Interest section, you can see how interest in each brand varies by country or city. In which countries and cities is each brand most popular?c. In the Related Searches section, you will see a list of topics and query terms of interest to people who used one of the brand names in a search. How does the list of related topics change from one brand name to another? Do the topic and query term lists give you any insight into what kind of information people may be inter-ested in relative to each brand?d. Using a search engine, see if you can find market share data for the product or industry you researched on Google Trends. If you find this information, does there seem to be any relationship between search volume and market share for the brand names you explored?Case 6.2 Business Case: Deciding What to WatchÑVideo Recommendations at NetflixNetflix is the undisputed leader of video streaming services, account-ing for more than half (53%) of U.S. video streaming subscriptions. Amazon Prime Video (25%) and Hulu (13%) are the companyÕs largest competitors. Netflix is also the oldest company in this group, having originally started as a DVD by mail rental service. Unlike other com-panies that dominated the DVD rental business, Netflix successfully made the transition to on-demand video streaming by investing in new technology and redefining its business model. The service is now available in 190 countries and claims over 90 million subscrib-ers globally.Netflix executives credit the companyÕs recommendation system for driving the ÒNetflix experienceÓ and boosting profitability (Gomez-Uribe & Hunt, 2015; Raimond & Basilico, 2016). Surprisingly, the origin of the recommendation system dates back to 2000, when Netflix was still a DVD rental service. Recommendations during these early days were based largely on membersÕ movie ratings. Ratings often reflect how people want to be perceived as opposed to how they act. For instance, rating data will tend to overemphasize how much people like documentaries and foreign language films, whereas behavioral metrics provide more accurate meas-ures of how subscribers use the service. Today, when Netflix subscribers use the online service, they see recommendations generated by multiple algorithms that use descriptive information about the subscriber and their past viewing behavior (Gomez-Uribe & Hunt, 2015). Netflix claims that 75% of the activity on the service is a result of the recommendations it offers subscribers.Netflix AnalyticsNetflix enjoys a significant advantage over traditional television chan-nels because the company collects information about how subscrib-ers use the service. Netflix can make marketing and product decisions based on several behavioral metrics. You might be surprised at the details Netflix collects:¥ The device you use (tablet, Roku, smart TV, etc.)¥ Where (zip code) you watch from¥ The days and times you watch¥ When you pause, rewind, or fast-forward during viewing¥ How you searchÑthe words and phrases used, how long you search, etc.¥ Whether or not you watch the credits following a show¥ How many episodes of a series you watched¥ Whether or not you watch all episodes in a series¥ How long it takes you to watch all episodes in a series
196 CHAPTER 6 Search, Semantic, and Recommendation Technology¥ How many hours you spend using the service¥ What movies and television shows you watch¥ How often you use the serviceIn addition to making recommendations, Netflix uses the informa-tion to do the following:¥ Identify subscribers who are likely to cancel the service¥ Select new movies to add to their catalog¥ Decide if a television show should be renewed for another season¥ Identify movies and television shows to drop from the catalog¥ Determine the days and times to recommend certain movies or shows¥ Determine what to recommend immediately following the view-ing of another movie or show¥ Determine how to describe movies and shows (i.e., long vs. short descriptions)Recommendation Algorithms at NetflixThe Netflix home screen can offer up to 40 rows of recommendations to a subscriber. Each row is generated by a different algorithm designed to personalize recommendations as well as determine the order in which movies and shows are listed. Each row is based on a different theme or rationale for the titles appearing in the row. Netflix even uses a Page Generation Algorithm to personalize the type of row-level recommendations and their order when creating the page. Some examples of the different recommendation rows include the following:Genre Rows Several of the rows appearing on the home page are based on movie or television show genres that Netflix believes the subscriber will be interested in based on past viewing behavior. Genre rows are generated by what Netflix calls its Personalized Video Ranker (PVR). The rows reflect three levels of personalization: (1) the selection of the genre, (2) the selection of specific titles within the genre, and (3) the ordering of the titles.Continue Watching Titles appearing in the Continue Watching row highlight episodic content that Netflix thinks a subscriber might want to return to. The Continue Watching ranker evaluates recently viewed videos for signals that a subscriber intends to resume watching or is no longer interested in the title. These signals include things like time since last viewing, point of abandonment (mid-program, end of program), if other titles have been viewed since, and type of device used.Because You Watched The Because you watched (BYW) row is based on the similarity of recommended videos to past videos watched by the subscriber. The BYW row is determined by the Sims Ranker, which generates an ordered list of videos, based on similarity, for every title in the catalog. Various personalization cues are then used to further refine the subset of videos that actually appear in the row on the home page.Top Picks The goal of the Top Picks row is to feature NetflixÕs best guess as to the videos in its catalog that are most likely to be of interest to the subscriber. The Top Picks algorithm uses cues from the individual subscriber along with viewing trend information to recommend titles from among the most popular or top-ranked videos in the catalog.Netflix believes that its recommendation system plays a significant role in user satisfaction and customer retention. A team of workers regularly updates the system with new algorithms and modifications to existing ones. Their ultimate goal is to generate such high-quality recommendations that subscribers will rarely have to search for videos to watch.Questions1. You read about four different types of recommendations that Netf-lix features on their home page. Think of a new type of recommen-dation row that Netflix could use and the kind of information or behavioral metrics that would be needed to generate your recom-mendations.2. Based on the information in this case, would you say that Netflix primarily uses content-based filtering, collaborative filtering, or both? Explain your answer.3. Netflix is expanding globally. When Netflix first enters a market, the recommendation system can face Òcold startÓ or ÒsparsityÓ problems. Explain why this happens and suggests ways that Netf-lix might deal with these challenges.4. What metrics do you think Netflix could use to identify subscribers who are likely to cancel the service?5. Visit NetflixÕs Technology Blog http://techblog.netflix.com. Iden-tify three challenges that the company faces in generating recom-mendations for its subscribers.Sources: Compiled from Bulygo (2013b), Alvino and Basilico (2015), Gomez-Uribe and Hunt (2015), Arora (2016), Cheng (2016), Lubin (2016), Nicklesburg (2016), Raimond and Basilico (2016).Case 6.3 Video Case: Power Searching with GoogleThis video case is a bit different from what you have seen in other chap-ters. Google has created two easy-to-follow video courses designed to teach you how to use search engines more effectively: Power Search-ing and Advanced Power Searching. Each course contains a series of videos that you can view at your own pace. Following each video, you are shown a set of activities and small quizzes that you can use to test your knowledge. Start with the Power Searching course. Once you have mastered the basic skills discussed in that course, move on to the Advanced Power Searching course.Visit GoogleÕs Search Education Online page powersearching-withgoogle.com. On this page, you will see links for the two self-guided courses: Power Searching and Advanced Power Searching. Select
References 197the Power Searching link and begin viewing the course videos. After each video, do the related activities and test your knowledge with any online quizzes or tests that are provided. After you have completed the Power Searching course, go back and take the Advanced Power Search-ing course.While it may take several days to complete both courses, we encour-age you to do so. The time you invest in learning these power search techniques will pay off next time you need to use a search engine for a class- or work-related research project.Question1. Describe two or three search techniques you learned from these tutorial videos that you think will be particularly helpful.ReferencesAdomavicius, G. and T. Alexander. ÒToward the Next Generation of Recommender Systems: A Survey of the State-of-the-Art and Possi-ble Extensions.Ó IEEE Transactions on Knowledge and Data Engineer-ing 17, no. 6, 2005, 734−749.Alvino, C. and J. Basilico. ÒLearning a Personalized Homepage.Ó tech-blog.netflix.com, April 9, 2015.Andrews, W. and H. Koehler-Kruener. ÒMagic Quadrant for Enterprise Search.Ó gartner.com, July 16, 2014.Anthony, S. ÒMicrosoft Now Has One Million Servers−Less Than Google, But More Than Amazon, Says Ballmer.Ó extremetech.com, July 19, 2013.Arora, S. ÒRecommendation Engines: How Amazon and Netflix Are Winning the Personalization Battle.Ó martechadvisor.com, June 28, 2016.Asrar, S. ÒA Quick Look at Recommendation Engines and How the New York Times Makes Recommendations.Ó knightlab.northwestern.edu, March 28, 2016.Brown, C. Ò43 Increasingly Precise Netflix Custom Genre Recommen-dations.Ó TheAwl.com, March 16, 2012.Bulygo, Z. ÒHow Mint Grew to 1.5 Million Users and Sold for $170 Mil-lion in Just 2 Years.Ó blog.kissmetrics.com, November, 2013a.Bulygo, Z. ÒHow Netflix Uses Analytics to Select Movies, Create Con-tent, and Make Multimillion Dollar Decisions.Ó blog.kissmetrics.com, 2013b.Burke, R. 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ÒBreakthrough Analysis: Two + Nine Types of Semantic Search.Ó InformationWeek.com, January 1, 2010.Hendler, J. and T. Berners-Lee. ÒFrom the Semantic Web to Social Machines: A Research Challenge for AI on the World Wide Web.Ó Arti-ficial Intelligence 174, 2010.Jacobson, J. ÒGoogle: 129 Million Different Books Have Been Pub-lished.Ó PCWorld.com, August 6, 2010.Kraus, J. ÒThe Advanced Guide to Facebook Graph Search.Ó sitepoint.com, August 18, 2015.Lubin, G. ÒHow Netflix Will Someday Know Exactly What You Want to Watch as Soon as You Turn Your TV On.Ó Businessinsider.com, September 21, 2016.Madrigal, A. ÒHow Netflix Reverse Engineered Hollywood.Ó The Atlan-tic, January 2, 2014.Miller, R. ÒGoogle Has Spent $21 Billion on Data Centers.Ó Datacenter-knowledge.com, September 17, 2013.Newman, J. Ò6 Things YouÕd Never Guess About GoogleÕs Energy Use.Ó Techland.time.com, September 9, 2011.Nicklesburg, M. ÒStudy: Amazon Video Is Now the Third-largest Stream-ing Service, Behind Netflix and YouTube.Ó geekwire.com, June 22, 2016.Oak, M. ÒHow Does a Search Engine Work?Ó buzzle.com, June 5, 2008.Obi-Azubuike, G. ÒFive SEO Strategies That Will Grow Your Business.Ó Linked.com/pulse, February 4, 2016Osher, M. ÒFinding Copyright Infringements of Your Artwork on the Internet.Ó MarianOsher.com, February 9, 2014.Prince, K.T. ÒMint by the Numbers: Which User Are You?Ó blog.mint.com, April 6, 2016.Prnewswire.com. ÒGrowth of Big Data in Businesses Intensifies Global Demand for Enterprise Search Solutions, Finds Frost & Sullivan.Ó January 24, 2013.Raimond, Y. and J. Basilico. ÒRecommending for the World.Ó techblog.netflix.com, February 17, 2016.
198 CHAPTER 6 Search, Semantic, and Recommendation TechnologySchneider, D. ÒUnder the Hood at Google and Facebook.Ó spectrum.ieee.org, May 31, 2011.Sullivan, D. ÒThe Periodic Table of SEO Success Factors: 2015 Edition Now Released.Ó SearchEngineLand.com, June 1, 2015.Sullivan, L. ÒReport: Companies Will Spend $65 Billion on SEO In 2016.Ó MediaPost.com, April 21, 2016.Sukhraj, R. ÒHow Mint Acquired Over 1.5 Million Users Without a Sin-gle Growth Hack.Ó Impactbnd.com, June 17, 2015.Sverdlik, Y. ÒHereÕs How Much Energy All US Data Centers Consume.Ó datacenterknowledge.com, June 27, 2016.Thomas, V. ÒSix Reasons to Break Out of Your OrganizationÕs Silos.Ó mangoapps.com, September 24, 2013.Tiroshi, A., T. Kuflik, J. Kay, and B. Kummerfeld. ÒRecommender Systems and the Social Web.Ó In Proceedings of the International Workshop on Augmenting User Models with Real World Experiences to Enhance Personalization and Adaptation (AUM), Girona, Spain, July 15, 2011. Ardissono, L. and T. Kuflik (eds.), Springer-Verlag Berlin, Heidelberg, 2012.Venkatraman, A. ÒGlobal Census Shows Data Centre Power Demand Grew 63% in 2012.Ó Computerweekly.com, October 8, 2012.Walker, M. ÒData Silos Obstruct Quest for Competitive Advantage.Ó datasciencecentral.com, February 11, 2014.
199CHAPTER 7Web 2.0 and Social TechnologyLEARNING OUTCOMES7.1 Understand the key technologies that made Web 2.0 possible, and appreciate the opportunities and challenges that social media represents for business organizations.7.2 Describe the features and capabilities of large social networking services.7.3 Explain how blogs and microblogs facilitate communication on a global scale.7.4 Describe how mashups, RSS technology, and monitoring tools are valuable to business organizations and individual users.7.5 Describe how organizations and groups make use of new Web 2.0 collaboration tools and services.CHAPTER OUTLINECase 7.1 Opening Case: Social Customer Service Takes Off at KLM 7.1 Web 2.0ÑThe Social Web 7.2 Social Networking Services and Communities 7.3 Engaging Consumers with Blogs and Microblogs 7.4 Mashups, Social Metrics, and Monitoring Tools 7.5 Enterprise 2.0: Workplace Collaboration and Knowledge SharingCase 7.2 Business Case: Facebook Helps Songkick Rock the Ticket Sales IndustryCase 7.3 Business Case: AT&TÕs ÒIt Can WaitÓ Campaign against Distracted DrivingIntroductionEveryone is talking about social media. Chances are you and your friends connect on social networking services or other forms of social media frequently. Every day, people discover new ways to share things with their network of friends through messaging, photographs, videos, and blogs. The digital-savvy, connected generation or millennialsÑteens and those in their
200 CHAPTER 7 Web 2.0 and Social Technologyearly twentiesÑÒgetÓ social media, but might not be able to accurately define it or explain how companies use social technology to influence brand attitudes and consumer behavior. After you venture past the big brand namesÑFacebook, Twitter, YouTube, and LinkedInÑawareness of social media tools drops off quickly. Most social media use among Millennials is for recreational or entertainment purposes. There is little understanding of how social media can be used for marketing, recruiting, research, collaboration on projects, or personal branding.Facebook has caught the attention of business organizations because the number of peo-ple who use the site is huge (and continues to grow!). Businesses are also exploring promo-tional opportunities on sites like Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, and YouTube. Companies get 24/7 advertising, live interaction with customers and prospects, and targeted ads. Organizations are working feverishly to prompt consumers to engageÑto like, tweet, comment, and share their brand experiences with others. And they are spending a lot of time doing just that. According to eMarketer (2016), U.S. companies will spend over $72 billion advertising on social networks, more than they spend on television ($71.29 billion).In this chapter, you will learn what makes social media social. You will also learn about social media applications that have both personal and professional uses, and you will learn how business organizations make use of social media to gain competitive advantages in the marketplace.Case 7.1 Opening CaseSocial Customer Service Takes Off at KLMOn April 14, 2010, an Icelandic volcano with a difficult name (Eyjafjal-lajškull) erupted, spewing volcanic ash several kilometers into the atmosphere and disrupting air travel for 10 million people across northwestern Europe for days. Like many other airlines in the area, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines was overwhelmed by stranded passengers seeking information by phone and e-mail. While some people waited on hold for hours trying to reach a call center, other passengers turned to social media to find answers.Just a year before, KLM had launched an exploratory effort to figure out how the company could use social media. With a relatively new Twitter account and Facebook page, the companyÕs social media team suddenly found themselves fielding questions from countless frustrated travelers. The team quickly set up a special social media room, called in 100 reinforcements from other units in the company, and began responding around the clock to inquiries coming in on Face-book and Twitter. This marked the beginning of social customer service at KLM. Today, KLM employs over 235 social media service agents who respond each week to 15,000 questions or comments from customers in 13 different languages (Table 7.1).Customer Service Is Not an OptionWhile KLM uses social media to run contests, entertain passengers, and promote the airline, customer service remains the clear priority for the social unit. The company believes that in todayÕs fast paced, com-petitive environment, customers expect businesses to provide sup-port services via social media. Companies that fail this test will suffer consequences.Lilja Kristjansdo/NordicPhotos/Getty ImagesFindlay/Alamy Stock PhotoEstelle Johnson/EyeEm/Getty Images TABLE 7.1 Opening Case OverviewCompanyKLM Royal Dutch AirlinesLocationHeadquartered in Amstelveen, KLM is the national airline of the Netherlands. KLM currently oper-ates passenger and cargo service to 133 destinations in 70 countries around the world.HistoryFounded in 1919, KLM is the oldest airline in the world still operating under its original name.Social mediaCustomers can contact KLM on Twitter, Facebook, Facebook Messenger, and LinkedIn. The company publishes a blog and also maintains a presence on Pinterest, Google+, YouTube, and Instagram.Customer serviceKLM is credited with pioneering the use of social media for customer service. The company is widely recognized within the airline industry for providing excellent customer support.
Web 2.0ÑThe Social Web 201Be Where Your Customers AreA companyÕs social media strategy canÕt be effective if they arenÕt using the same social channels as their customers. Over the years, KLM has expanded their social media coverage based on the platforms their customers use. In addition to Facebook and Twitter, custom-ers can now contact KLM social agents from LinkedIn and Facebook Messenger. Agents can help customers book or change a flight, check-in, pick a seat, or assist with any problems that might occur. In addi-tion, KLM publishes a blog and maintains a presence on Pinterest, Google+, YouTube, and Instagram.One-Stop Shopping Means Social RevenueThe KLM model of customer service adheres to a one-stop shop principle. That means if a customer asks about changing their ticket, the social agent will look up the information and respond with a cus-tomized answer instead of just sending a link to the companyÕs general terms and conditions Web page. The goal is to resolve the customerÕs issue through the social channel used to contact the company. After answering questions about flight times, pricing, and other details, KLM social agents provide a direct link to a payment page where cus-tomers complete their purchase. For many customers, the process is simply more convenient than purchasing through another channel.ÒMove fast, break things, and donÕt be afraid to fail.ÓKarlijn Vogel-Meijer, Manager Social Media at KLM, explains that the company understands mistakes are bound to happen from time to time, especially if youÕre moving fast. The social unit has support from the top of the organization, giving it the freedom to try new things and innovate. As a result, KLM is considered a leader for the way its social customer service unit has pioneered the use of social media to support customers and maintain high levels of positive sentiment. ItÕs hard to be innovative if youÕre always worried about making mistakes. As Vogel-Meijer says, ÒIf youÕre afraid, you will stall.Ó One of KLMÕs latest inno-vations is the use of artificial intelligence, a new technology that helps agents answer many routine questions they receive from customers.Faster Response TimesAs more companies gear up to engage customers through social media, customer expectations also increase. When customers contact a company about a problem, they not only expect an answer, they also want a response quickly. KLM strives to answer each customer within 30 minutes. At the top of KLMÕs Twitter page, the company posts the average response time and updates it every 5 minutes so even if things are taking a little longer, customers know when to expect a reply. By managing expectations, KLM minimizes customer frustrations.ConclusionKLM Royal Airlines is recognized around the world as the leader in social media customer service. Some airlines arenÕt prepared for the chal-lenges associated with social media. For instance, when a disgruntled customer contacts a call center to make a complaint, only the customer and company know about the call. When a customer complains on social media, the world can see the complaint and how well the com-pany works to resolve the problem. The social media customer service unit at KLM not only contributes to the companyÕs high customer satis-faction and positive sentiment, but also to the bottom line. In 2015, KLM estimated that each social agent was responsible for approximately $170,000 in revenue. With 235 social agents, that translates into over $39 million.Questions1. Why does KLM think that Customer Service is the most important application of social media?2. How does KLM determine which social media platforms to use?3. Explain the reasoning behind KLMÕs Ò. . . donÕt be afraid to failÓ philosophy.4. KLMÕs Òone-stop shopÓ model probably increases the time a social agent spends responding to a customerÕs inquiry. Why does the company use this approach?5. Many airlines have yet to embrace the use of social media like KLM. What challenges do you think other airlines face when mak-ing the transition to using social media?Source: Compiled from Baer and Brown (n.d.), ter Haar (2015), Koetsier (2015), Simson (2015), Azfar (2016), Hutchinson (2016), KLM (2016), Talkwalker.com (2017). 7.1 Web 2.0ÑThe Social WebIn your lifetime, there have been dramatic changes in the way people use the Internet. In the early 1990s, many people did not have regular access to the Internet, and those who did typi-cally Òdialed upÓ their network from a home or office telephone. Dial-up access meant long waits as content from Web pages ÒdownloadedÓ onto the screen. Some users joked that the letters ÒwwwÓ in a Web address stood for Òworld wide wait.Ó E-mail was the primary mechanism for communicating on the Internet. Online communities were often like public bulletin boards where all members of the community could read the messages that others posted. Websites were static, essentially online billboards for the businesses that created them. Online purchas-ing (e-commerce) was rare and risky because there were few safeguards in place to protect your credit card information. But all that has changed.The Constantly Changing WebToday, most of us access the Internet using wired or wireless broadband technology, consum-ing bandwidth that was unheard of a few years ago. We expect to be able to stream audio and
202 CHAPTER 7 Web 2.0 and Social Technologyvideo files, and watch feature-length films over wireless connections and mobile devices. We surf Web pages that constantly change their appearance in response to how we interact with them. While e-mail is still a common form of communication in business, young people tend to view it with disdain in favor of tweets, texts, or social networking sites like Twitter and Face-book. We keep track of our world, interests, and hobbies by reading blogs and online news-papers, and use a variety of tools and services for sharing them with others. In addition to consuming content, we add comments or reviews and signal our appreciation for the content by retweeting or clicking a ÒLikeÓ button.Increasingly, Internet users are becoming content creatorsÑthey write their own blogs, post videos on YouTube, share personal experiences on Facebook, and share pictures using sites like Flickr or Photobucket. E-commerce continues to grow and evolve, in some cases changing entire industries. E-books are now more popular than print books on sites like Amazon. More people purchase music from sites like iTunes or use streaming-music sites like Pandora or Spotify than purchase music on CDs. Sites like Travelocity and Orbitz have almost completely replaced traditional travel agencies and agents. Many people are more likely to use sites like eBay and Craigslist to get rid of unwanted household items instead of holding garage sales or placing classified ads in a local paper. One of the biggest changes in online retail is the use of social features by e-commerce sites. Most online retailers make use of customer reviews, customer ratings, and information sharing on social networks.While there are many exciting examples of companies that have embraced the potential of Web 2.0 technologies and the emerging social culture that characterizes our modern online experience, many businesses, agencies, and individuals have been slow to understand the chal-lenges and opportunities created by the social Web. Smart managers are constantly evaluating how changes in social media and related technologies affect their business and industry. Busi-nesses and business professionals must devote time and resources to consistently monitoring technological innovation and related changes in consumer behavior in order to remain relevant, taking advantage of potential opportunities to create competitive advantages when they arise.Invention of the World Wide WebThe World Wide Web (WWW) was invented by Tim Berners-Lee and launched in 1991. Its use outside of scientific and academic circles was uncommon until the mid-1990s. Web access from homes was mostly via telephone lines, slow 56-kbps (kilobits per second) dial-up modems, and paid subscription network services such as CompuServe and America Online (AOL). Websites were primitive static designs that served as online billboards or postcards. You can view archived websites using the Wayback Machine. During that time, e-mail was viewed as a sophisticated communications tool that most people accessed at work or on college campuses, but not from home.As the above description suggests, communication was primarily unidirectional. There were no easy-to-use conduits for widespread social interaction. The average user was the target or recipient of communications, not a creator.A Platform for Services and Social InteractionNow the Web is a platform for all kinds of activityÑshopping, entertainment, news, education, research, and business processes like logistics and electronic funds transfer (EFT). Homes maintain broadband wireless networks to connect multiple users simultaneously to the Internet from computers, tablets, video game systems, and video-streaming devices like the Roku box. In addition to the aforementioned activities, new technologies gave rise to websites with features and services that make it easy for people to interact with one another. As a result, these services collectively are referred to as social media. While the applications that are labeled as Web 2.0 may simply be an extension of earlier advances, it is the change in user behavior that matters most to business organizations around the world. The new technologies dramatically increase the ability of people to interact with businesses and each other, sharing and finding information, and forming relationships. This perspective explains why Web 2.0 is often called the social Web (Table 7.2).Web 2.0 a term used to describe a phase of World Wide Web evolution characterized by dynamic Web pages, social media, mashup applications, broadband connectivity, and user-generated content.World Wide Web (WWW) a network of documents on the Internet, called Web pages, constructed with HTML markup language that supports links to other documents and media (e.g., graphics, video, audio, etc.).Broadband refers to wide bandwidth technologies that create fast, high-volume connections to the Internet and World Wide Web.Social media a collection of Web applications based on Web 2.0 technology and culture that allows people to connect and collaborate with others by creating and sharing digital content.
Web 2.0ÑThe Social Web 203Emergence of Social Applications, Networks, and ServicesStarting in 2000, a series of developments in the technology and business environment occurred that set the stage (infrastructure) for Web 2.0.1. Broad bandwidth (broadband) Internet access became faster and more widely avail-able due to large-scale adoption of broadband technology. Website load times shrank from a minute to instantaneous. Huge bandwidth is required to support byte-intensive music downloads and streaming video and movie services. As residential broadband con-nections became common place and public broadband connections increased in coffee shops, malls, college campuses, and other community centers, people began to rely on applications that required fast, high-volume data connections. These broadband connec-tions increased the overall attractiveness and accessibility of the InternetÑlaying the foun-dation for interactivity and the social Web.2. Sustainable business models After the dot.com bust in the late 1990s when many badly conceived Internet businesses failed, a new breed of business emerged. These businesses had realistic revenue models. Companies like Amazon, Google, eBay, and others began to demonstrate that it was possible to create e-commerce and consumer service sites that could generate revenue and become not only self-sustaining, but also profitable.3. New Web programming technologies New Web programming languages and technologies were developed that made it possible for programmers to create dynamic and feature-rich websites. In some cases, these new features and website capabilities created new business opportunities, which in turn led to increased demand for Web access. Increased Web usage then led to larger potential markets for businesses with successful revenue models. The busi-nesses frequently reinvested earnings into expanding their technological capabilities in an effort to attract even more customers. This cycle of enhanced technological features leading to greater value for the consumer/Web user and then to more people using the Web continues today. Some of these new Web technologies are described in more detail in Tech Note 7.1.4. Application programming interfaces (API) and software development kits (SDK) One of the big differences between Web 1.0 and Web 2.0 is the extent to which business organizations are willing to share information (data) with other organizations and developers who are creating new programs or services. For instance, Google Maps might allow a restaurant review website like Yelp.com to use its mapping application to create a feature on the Yelp site showing restaurant locations on a map. Historically, businesses have been highly protective of their intellectual property and were generally unwilling to share it with other companies. However, many companies that emerged during the Web 2.0 era have come to recognize the benefits of certain types of sharing or collaboration with others. For instance, when Google makes part of its mapping program available to others, it increases the number of people using the Google product and expands its share of the marketplace. In turn, Yelp frequently makes some of its data available to companies developing new applications. For instance, Trulia is a real estate company that helps people find new homes. TABLE 7.2 Web 1.0 versus Web 2.0Web 1.0ÑThe Early WebWeb 2.0ÑThe Social WebStatic pages, HTMLDynamic pages, XML, and JavaAuthor-controlled contentUser-controlled contentComputersComputers, cell phones, televisions, PDAs, game systems, car dashboardsUsers view contentUsers create contentIndividual usersUser communitiesMarketing goal: influenceMarketing goal: relationshipsData: single sourceData: multiple sources, for example, mashups
204 CHAPTER 7 Web 2.0 and Social TechnologyThey use information from Yelp.com to help their customers learn about businesses, res-taurants, grocery stores, and other amenities in the neighborhood they are considering, without having to leave the Trulia website. Businesses have learned that when done right, sharing information often creates synergies that benefit all involved. From a technology standpoint, two programming tools make this data sharing possible: APIs and SDKs.An API is a set of commands and programming standards used by developers to write appli-cations that can communicate with other applications. In other words, it aids developers in determining how their applications can pass data back and forth with some other application.An SDK is a bit more complex than an API. SDKs are a collection of software tools used by developers for writing applications that run on a specific device or platform. For instance, a Facebook SDK helps third-party developers write programs that will run on Facebook.Businesses that share data with other companies usually write the APIs and SDKs that define the rules and restrictions for information sharing. In that way, they retain control over who uses their data and how it is used. If a developer simply needs to share data with another website, they will likely use an API created by the other website. If they are creating an application that will actually run on the other website, they will most likely use an SDK developed by the other website. Together, APIs and SDKs have fundamentally changed the degree to which businesses share their information resulting in a vastly improved and more useful World Wide Web.While APIs and SDKs can either be proprietary (user pays a fee) or open source, most popular APIs are open source, which means that anyone can use them for free, although other conditions may be placed on their use. Visit programmable Web.com for a listing of popular APIs.Tech Note 7.1AJAX Technologies and APIsAJAX technologies, or asynchronous JavaScript and XML (AJAX), is a term referring to a group of technologies and programming lan-guages that make it possible for Web pages to respond to usersÕ actions without requiring the entire page to reload. AJAX makes it possible for Web developers to create small apps that run on a page instead of a server. This capability makes programs run much faster, eliminating a key source of frustration with the early Web. Another important programming development is the API, which acts as a software gateway programmers can use to pass data back and forth between two or more applications, platforms, or websites (see IT at Work 7.1). With AJAX and APIs, website programmers can import data from other sources to create new functions and features that we have come to associate with social media applications (see the discussion of mashups later in this chapter).AJAX technologies include JavaScript, extendable markup language (XML), document object model (DOM), hypertext markup language (HTML), XMLHttpRequest, and cascading style sheets (CSS), all of which are defined in Table 7.3. TABLE 7.3 AJAX Technologies for Web 2.0Hypertext markup language (HTML): The predominant language for Web pages; it is used, along with CSS, to describe how things will appear on a Web page.Cascading style sheets (CSS): A language used to enhance the appearance of Web pages written in a markup language.Document object model (DOM): A programming API for documents. Programmers use it to manipulate (e.g., build, add, modify, delete, etc.) HTML documents.Extensible markup language (XML): A set of rules and guidelines for describing data that can be used by other programming languages. It makes it possible for data to be shared across the Web.JavaScript: An object-oriented language used to create apps and functionality on websites. Examples of JavaScript apps include pop-up windows, validation of Webform inputs, and images that change when a cursor passes over them.XMLHttpRequest: A JavaScript object that serves as an API used by programs to retrieve data or resources from a URL without requiring a page load. It plays an important role in providing programmers with the ability to create dynamic and interactive Web pages and applications.Sources: van Kesteren et al. (2014), techterms.com (2014), W3C (2015), Grigorik (2017) .
Web 2.0ÑThe Social Web 205Why Managers Should Understand Web TechnologyYou might ask yourself why business managers who are not directly involved in managing an organizationÕs website should be concerned about the underlying technology of Web 2.0 and social media. The answer is that these technologies determine website features and capabil-ities. In other words, they determine what is possible on the Web. Understanding how Web technology is evolving helps managers identify strategic opportunities and threats as well as the ways in which a company might develop sustainable competitive advantages in the mar-ketplace. Therefore, it is important to monitor the ongoing development of APIs, Web develop-ment languages, and other technologies that affect the functioning of the Web.APIs For instance, APIs associated with Facebook determine the nature of apps that can be written to interact with core Facebook features. Major changes to the Facebook APIs are often rolled out to much fanfare because they define opportunities for developing new ways for users to create and share content on Facebook and across the Web, as described in IT at Work 7.1.At FacebookÕs annual developer conferences in 2010 and 2011, founder Mark Zuckerberg made announcements about changes in Facebook APIs that would extend the social networking giantÕs presence across the Web through the use of social plug-ins, which are listed in Table 7.4. See the discussion of Open Graph in Section 7.2.IT at Work 7.1Myntra Leverages Facebook APIs and SDKs for Success in Mobile Fashion SalesMyntra is IndiaÕs largest fashion e-commerce company, serving millions of customers and featuring over 2,000 of the worldÕs top fashion brands. The company generates sales of over 200,000 items from its mobile app on any given day. Myntra is recognized as being the worldÕs first mobile-only e-commerce platform and reportedly sold $500 million in gross merchandise volume in FY2015Ð16. Using FacebookÕs Open Graph API and SDK, the company was able to install features that let customers easily post information to their Facebook pages without leaving the Myntra app. This makes it pos-sible for the company to leverage the social network of each cus-tomer to increase brand awareness and interest in the marketplace. Using FacebookÕs SDK, the company implemented Facebook Login for its app as well as developed programs to access customer insight data and a range of analytics about the performance of their Facebook ads, conversion channels, and the success of various cus-tomer retention strategies. As a result of these integrations with Facebook, Myntra experienced significant growth and credits Face-book for as much as 25% of its sales revenue. In addition, Myntra improved the effectiveness of ad targeting and reduced advertising costs after learning that customers who use Facebook Login to access the e-commerce app were 32% more likely to convert (make a purchase) than other customers.Sources: ÒMyntra Ð Best of FashionÓ at developers.facebook.com. TABLE 7.4 Facebook Social Plug-Ins Used Across the WebPlug-inWhat It Does. . .Like buttonShares pages from a website back to a userÕs Facebook profile with a single click.Send buttonAllows users to send content from a website to their Facebook friends.CommentsThis plug-in allows users to comment on a Web pageÕs content using their Face-book profile and shows the activity to the userÕs friends in a newsfeed.EmbeddedPlaces content from any public Facebook post on to a website post or blog.FacepileThis feature displays the profile photos of the people who have connected with a Facebook page or app.Login buttonShows profile pictures of the userÕs friends who have already signed up for a Website in addition to a login button.Source: Facebook (2014).
206 CHAPTER 7 Web 2.0 and Social TechnologyPlug-ins Plug-ins are buttons or features on non-Facebook sites that interact with Face-book in some way. For instance, CNN.com might include a Recommend button on all its news articles. When a Facebook user presses the button, a link to the story is automatically created on the userÕs Facebook page. You donÕt have to be a Web programmer to follow and understand public announcements about API updates from Facebook, Google Maps, YouTube, Twitter, and other popular social media platforms. Using the monitoring tools discussed later in this chapter, you can stay informed about these changes and begin to assess how they will impact you as an individual, website developer, or business manager.Communicating on the WebCollectively, social media apps have shifted the locus of control for mass communications from large organizations to one shared with individual users. Now people as well as organizations control both the message and the medium. Instead of an organization broadcasting a single message to a mass audience, a massive number of conversations take place among any num-ber of people and organizations.No one has complete control over the message or the medium, yet everyone can play a part. The challenge for businesses today is to change mindsets and develop strategies that take advantage of social media. Instead of a focus on developing sophisticated ways of getting their message heard, companies must now develop sophisticated strategies for listening and responding to what their consumers are saying.Because of the relatively low cost and ease of use, social media is a powerful force for democratization; the network structure enables communication and collaboration on a mas-sive scale. Figure 7.1 shows the emergence of mass social media. The figure compares tradi-tional and social media and illustrates the new tools of social media, for example, blogs and video blogs (vlogs), as being in the consumerÕs control. With traditional media, content is tightly controlled and brand messages are ÒpushedÓ out to users, often in the form of an ad interruption. With social media, users are frequently attracted or ÒpulledÓ to content that is interesting to them and they have greater freedom to decide if, when, and how they want to interact with such content.Notice that traditional media content goes from the technology to the people, whereas in social media, people create and control the content.NetworkEffectsConsumerControlVideosPodcastsTweetsForumsWikisEnterprise 2.0 PlatformsInstitutionalControlTraditional MediaSocialConsumptionSocial MediaBlogosphereBlogBlogBlogBlogBlogBlogPrintVia comments,Inst. Msg., Feedback,Ratings, ReviewsRadioMoviesMediaOutletsShiftObservePublishContributeTelevision FIGURE 7.1 The emergence and rise of mass social media.
Web 2.0ÑThe Social Web 207Social Media Applications and ServicesEarly descriptions of Web 2.0 would often identify the applications listed in Table 7.5 as typical of social media. You will read more about each of these applications later in the chapter.Few applications fit neatly into these categories anymore because of feature convergence. For instance, Facebook started as a social networking service (SNS), but now has features that span almost all of the categories in Table 7.5. It is a sharing site used by many to distribute photos. It is increasingly common for people to tag or label photos with the names of people in the picture, making it easy to find and display photos of individuals that have been saved in multiple locations on Facebook. Users can maintain blogs on their Facebook page and Facebook hosts thousands of apps that pull data from sources outside of the social network, making it a huge mashup app.Likewise, YouTube started as a sharing site, making it easy for people to share video clips with others. However, YouTube now contains many features that make it difficult to distin-guish from an SNS. The same is true of Flickr, a photo-sharing site that has really become a community platform for people interested in photography.While some original social media applications are still present on the Web today, thou-sands of newer applications have sprung up and continue to blur the lines of the original social media application categories.Social Media Is More than Facebook, YouTube, and TwitterMany people think that social media is limited to a few iconic companies or brand names: Face-book, Twitter, YouTube, and LinkedIn. While those companies have certainly capitalized on the new technology and tend to dominate their respective market niches, social media is a term describing a range of technologies that are used across the Internet and are part of most web-sites you use today.While you may be familiar with using social media for recreational purposes or com-municating with friends and family, businesses use social technologies for a wide variety of other benefits:¥ Collaboration¥ Communication and engagement with customers (marketing)¥ Image and reputation management (public relations)¥ Communication and engagement with employees and partners (management)¥ Talent acquisition and recruiting (human resources)¥ Research and knowledge management¥ Productivity and information utilities¥ Fund raisingSocial networking service (SNS) an online platform or website that allows subscribers to interact and form communities or networks based on real-life relationships, shared interests, activities and so on. TABLE 7.5 Web 2.0 ApplicationsApplicationDescriptionSocial networking serviceOnline communitiesBlogsOnline journalsMashups/widgets/RSSWeb applications that pull data from various sources and display on another page to create new functionalitySocial bookmarking/tagsAn application for tagging or labeling online content for later retrievalWikisA collaborative application that allows multiple people to create and edit online contentSharing sitesWebsites that make it easy for users to upload and share digital content like photos, videos, or music
208 CHAPTER 7 Web 2.0 and Social TechnologyThe following section lists some of the key elements of social media that distinguish it from other types of media.Elements of Social Media: What Makes It Different? In order to understand what makes the modern Web so different from its earlier incarnation, it is helpful to understand the differentiating features and benefits made possible by XML, Java Script, APIs, and related technologies.User-generated content (UGC) In contrast to traditional mediaÑTV, radio, and magazinesÑsocial media makes it possible for users to create and share their own content. Using social technologies, people share photographs, music, and video with the world. They express themselves using the written word in stories, articles, and opinion pieces that they publish on their own websites or other platforms. They rate products and write reviews. Many individuals and groups have become Internet celebrities as a result of the shows they created for YouTube. And because of YouTubeÕs revenue-sharing policy, those that attract the largest audiences earn millions of dollars.Content control Most content creation and sharing is done without editorial review. As a result, users decide for themselves what they want to create and share. Social technolo-gies have shifted control of online content to a broad base of users. It is users who deter-mine what content Ògoes viralÓ or becomes highly popular through sharing, not advertising agencies or companies with large advertising budgets.Conversation With the advent of social media, a paradigm shift occurred in marketing communications from a broadcast (one-way) model to a conversation (two-way) model. Dialogue takes place in the form of one-to-one, one-to-many, and many-to-one formats. Social media websites contain features that allow people to talk back in a variety of ways.Community (common values, culture) Many social media technologies ultimately result in the creation of communities. Like their offline counterparts, these online commu-nities are made up of people who share a bond of common interests, values, norms, and even sanctions. Some communities are highly structured, whereas others may be more fluid and informal. As businesses learn to communicate on Web 2.0, some will attempt to create communities made up of consumers who have a strong interest in a particular brand. Social networking services lend themselves to this type of strategy, but brand com-munities can be developed around blogs, wikis, sharing sites, and many other types of social media applications.Categorization by users (tagging) Newer Web technologies have begun to allow users to decide for themselves how to categorize and label information they find online. This has created the potential for powerful forms of collaboration and information sharing as well as alternative forms of information search (see the discussion of social bookmarking later in the chapter).Real people (profiles, usernames, and the human voice vs. the corporate ÒweÓ) Social media technologies allow people to express their individuality through the crea-tion of online identities. In traditional media, communication and expression come from celebrities or corporate spokespersons. Web 2.0 provides people with the tools to create personal brands that characterize their personal, professional, or creative identity.Connections (followers, friends, members, etc.) There are many ways to establish additional levels of connection and reflect some level of a relationship. You can become someoneÕs friend on Facebook. Follow someone on Twitter. Subscribe to a personÕs blog. Perhaps just as important, these connections can be severed when one party wants to end the relationship.Constant updating (real time, dynamic) Unlike the static Web of the 1990s, social tech-nologies reflect our constantly evolving relationships, opinions, political views, religious beliefs, and values. The social Web is a constant stream of communications that never turns off and can sometimes be overwhelming. Popular examples of this characteristic include Twitter, Facebook Live, or Snapchat.
Web 2.0ÑThe Social Web 209Content separated from form Data from one source can be used or exported to other platforms. This allows users to organize and display content in ways they find most helpful. For instance, with a really simple syndication (RSS) aggregator, users pull content from a number of sources into a single location, making it easier to follow news stories and blog posts from multiple sites. Someone writing about local restaurants can pull content from food critics, customer comments, and map location information from a variety of sources and aggregate this information into a single site, making it easier for users to get a com-plete picture of a restaurant without having to surf around to different sites.Equipment independence Increasingly, people access the Web and social media from a variety of computers and mobile devices, including laptops, tablets, smartphones, video game systems, DVD players, and televisions. In the near future, you might access the Web from such home appliances as your refrigerator or even a kitchen countertop. (Check out the amazing new technology featured on videos by Corning Glass. Go to YouTube and search for ÒA Day Made of GlassÓ using the YouTube search engine.)With Web 2.0, Markets are ConversationsAs you have read, the availability of Web 2.0 applications is changing not only how people behave but also the way they think about things. This new way of thinking is captured in a pro-vocative list of 95 statements called the Cluetrain Manifesto (Levine et al., 2000). Perhaps the fundamental principle of the Manifesto is described by its first thesis: Markets are conversations. Other excerpts from the Manifesto are listed in Table 7.6. Over time, successful companies will learn to engage customers in conversations as an alternative to the unidirectional or broadcast method of communication. While the Cluetrain Manifesto seemed idealistic, impractical, and revolutionary when it was first written in 2000, we are starting to see increasing examples of individuals and companies turning those principles into action.While many companies still struggle with the concept of conversation, Forrester researchers Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff (2008) describe a number of companies that recognize the power of what they call the groundswell, Òa spontaneous movement of people using online tools to connect, take charge of their own experience and get what they needÑinformation, support, ideas, products, and bargaining powerÑfrom each otherÓ. Li and Bernoff identify five key stra-tegic priorities that companies should focus on to leverage the groundswell:1. Listening Monitoring what your customers say on social media. By listening to what customers say to your company and what they say to each other, organizations can gain valuable insights.2. Talking While listening is perhaps the most important priority, businesses still need to develop their message and communicate to their target audience(s).3. Energizing Using a variety of tactics, companies can create and maintain relationships with brand advocates who will support and promote the brand to their friends and follow-ers on the Web. Energizing brand advocates is analogous to generating word-of-mouth communications in traditional marketing. TABLE 7.6 Excerpts from the Cluetrain ManifestoSelect Cluetrain Theses¥ ÒMarkets are conversations.Ó¥ These conversations enable powerful forms of social organization and knowledge exchange.¥ People have figured out they obtain better information and support from one another than from vendors. So much for corporate rhetoric about adding value to commoditized products.¥ Companies should realize their markets are often laughing. At them.Source: Levine et al. (2000).
210 CHAPTER 7 Web 2.0 and Social Technology4. Supporting Using social media to deliver effective and convenient customer service is one way to support your customers. Some businesses create communities where custom-ers can help each other with product-related issues and questions.5. Embracing Many companies are utilizing social media to solicit new product ideas and suggestions for improving customer satisfaction from current customers. Managers are often surprised to learn that customers have great ideas for how the company can do better.These groundswell strategies identify the most significant activities that companies should focus on with regard to using social media.In the rest of this chapter, we describe a variety of social media applications that are growing in popularity. We highlight some of the most attractive features, and encourage you to explore them firsthand. Most are free, so they are easy to try. You are also encouraged to stay on top of new trends and applications by following online sources like Mashable, Social Media Today, and Social Media Examiner. The only way to truly understand the social media environment is to immerse yourself in it, experiencing it directly. We think it is both fascinating and fun, and hope you will too.Questions1. How has Web 2.0 changed the behavior of Internet users?2. What are the basic tools or applications that characterize Web 2.0?3. Why is Web 2.0 referred to as the social Web?4. What are some of the benefits or advantages that Web developers gain from using AJAX technologies?5. What are some of the most important messages for business organizations in the Cluetrain Manifesto?6. What is feature convergence? Give some examples of this trend with regard to social media apps. 7.2 Social Networking Services and CommunitiesOnline or virtual communities parallel physical communities, such as neighborhoods, clubs, and associations, except they are not bound by political or geographic boundaries. These communities offer several ways for members to interact, collaborate, and trade. Virtual or online communities have been around for a long time and predate the World Wide Web. The Usenet provided the initial platform for online communities by making it possible for users to exchange messages on various topics in public newsgroups, which are similar in many ways to online bulletin board systems. While the Usenet is technically not part of the Internet, much of its content can be accessed from Internet sites like Google Groups or subscription-based news services like Giganews and Astraweb.Online communities can take many forms. For instance, some people view the blogosphere (all the blogs on the Web) as a community. YouTube is a community of people who post, view, and comment on videos. Epinions is a community of people who share their experiences and opinions about products and companies. Flickr, Photobucket, and similar sites are photo-sharing communities. Wikipedia is a community of people who create, edit, and main-tain an online knowledge base. Twitter is a community, or perhaps several communities, of people who frequently exchange short, 140-character messages with one another about a variety of topics. Obviously, social networking sites like Facebook and LinkedIn are commu-nities and have seen tremendous growth in recent years. People today spend a significant portion of their time on social networks (see Figure 7.2). For better or worse, social media has
Social Networking Services and Communities 211changed the way we interact with others, how we communicate with companies and brands, how we learn about local and international events, and how we define relationships, reputa-tion, privacy, group affiliations and status.Social network analysis (SNA) is the mapping and measuring of relationships and flows between people, groups, organizations, computers, or other information- or knowledge- processing entities. The nodes in the network are the people and the groups, whereas the links show relationships or flows between the nodes. SNA provides a visual and a mathematical analysis of relationships. In its corporate communications, Facebook has begun using the term social graph to refer to the global social network reflecting how we are all connected to one another through relationships. Berners-Lee (2007) extended this concept even further when he coined the term giant global graph. This concept is intended to illustrate the connections between people and/or documents and pages online. Connecting all points on the giant global graph is the ultimate goal for creators of the semantic Web, which you read about in Chapter 6.Online communities have received increasing attention from the business community. Online communities can be used as a platform for the following:¥ Selling goods and services¥ Promoting products to prospective customers; for example, advertising¥ Prospecting for customers¥ Building relationships with customers and prospective customers¥ Identifying customer perceptions by ÒlisteningÓ to conversations¥ Soliciting ideas for new products and services from customers¥ Providing support services to customers by answering questions, providing information, and so on¥ Encouraging customers to share their positive perceptions with others; for example, via word of mouthSemantic Web an extension of the World Wide Web that utilizes a variety of conventions and technologies that allow machines to understand the meaning of Web content.FacebookAverage Weekly Minutes on Social MediaSnapchatInstagramPinterestTumblrTwitterGoogle+LinkedInVine1,0399003321113179511579174621204047211620196020040060080010001200Age 18 to 34Age 35+ FIGURE 7.2 Data collected in 2016 illustrate that people spend more time on Facebook than any other social networking site. One of the newest social platforms, Snapchat, is already in second place across age groups, although younger people spend almost three times longer on the service than older people. (Adapted from comScore, 2016.)
212 CHAPTER 7 Web 2.0 and Social Technology¥ Gathering information about competitors and marketplace perceptions of competitors¥ Identifying and interacting with prospective suppliers, partners, and collaborators (See the discussion of Enterprise 2.0 in the next section.)The Power of the CrowdIn recent years, several companies have created online communities for the purpose of identifying market opportunities through crowdsourcing. Crowdsourcing is a model of problem solving, production and idea generation that marshals the collective talents of a large group of people. Using Web 2.0 tools, companies solicit, refine, and evaluate ideas for new products and services based on input from their customers. Business organizations that have implemented this approach include Fiat, Sara Lee, BMW, Kraft, Procter & Gamble, and Starbucks. See Table 7.7 for a list of other examples.CrowdfundingMore recently, businesses and entrepreneurs have turned to the crowdsourcing model to raise money for business start-ups or projects. A number of crowdfunding sites have become popular in recent years, including GoFundMe and Kickstarter. Each crowdfunding site is governed by different rules that establish the kinds of projects or organizations that can use them and the types of crowdfunding allowed on the site (Table 7.8). Crowdfunding sites TABLE 7.7 Examples of Crowdsourcing WebsitesCategoryCrowdsource WebsitesR&D crowdsourcingInnoCentiveÑChallenge Driven InnovationYet2ÑInnovation and IP MarketplaceNineSigmaÑTechnology Problem SolvingHypiosÑProblem Solving for Advanced TechnologyCrowdsourcing for marketing, design, and ideasBrand TagsÑBrand Identification from the CrowdGuerra CreativaÑLogos and DesignsLeadVineÑLeads and ReferralsChallenge.govÑSolutions to Government ProblemsCrowdsourced product ideasProcter & GambleÑCrowdsource Product Ideas for P&GQuirkyÑCommunity Sourced Product IdeasCafePressÑBuy, Sell, Create Your ProductCrowdsourcing HR & freelance workAmazon Mechanical TurkÑÒA Marketplace for WorkÓClickworkerÑCloud-based global workforceTopcoderÑCrowd CodingCrowdfunding websitesArtistShareÑNew Artist ProjectsKickstarterÑLarge, general crowdfunding siteGoFundMeÑFor personal fundraisersCrowdriseÑFunding for Inspiring Social CausesPeer-2-peer websitesWikipediaÑOnline Encyclopedia Produced by the PeopleQuoraÑAnswers from Experts, Amateurs and Insiders, Voted Up or DownYahoo AnswersÑAnother P2P Question & Answer SiteDiigoÑCrowdsourced Web Bookmarks, Tags, and MoreAdapted from Board of Innovation Crowdsourcing Examples. See this page for additional examples.
Social Networking Services and Communities 213typically collect a percentage of the money raised, but even this can vary, so it is important to read the terms of service (TOS) agreement carefully before selecting a site to raise money on. See Crowdfunding.com for a list of the most popular sites.Social Networking ServicesSocial networking services represent a special type of virtual community and are now the dom-inant form of online community. With social networking, individual users maintain an identity through their profile and can be selective about which members of the larger community they choose to interact with. Over time, users build their network by adding contacts or friends. On some social networks, organizations create an identity by establishing discussion forums, group pages, or some other presence.The number of SNSs has grown tremendously in recent years. It is expected that the social networking sector will segment and consolidate in the future just like other industries. Among general-purpose SNS platforms, Facebook is the clear leader with over 2 billion active users. FacebookÕs dramatic growth over the past decade has been unparalleled in the social media world (Table 7.9).Terms of service (TOS) agreement a formal listing of the policies, liability limits, fees, user rights and responsibilities associated with using a particular service. Users are typically required to acknowledge they have read, understand, and agree to the TOS before they are allowed the service to use. TABLE 7.8 Types of CrowdfundingDonationsOften used by charities and political campaigns. Contributors do not receive anything tangible in exchange for their donation, just the knowledge that they are supporting a cause they like or believe in. (In some cases, contributors may be eligible for a tax write-off.)RewardsContributors receive some kind of ÒperkÓ or thank-you gift. Often, it is something related to the project. For instance, people who contribute to a filmmakerÕs project may receive a copy of the finished work on DVD.CreditContributors essentially make microloans to fund projects and expect to be repaid with interest.EquityContributors make Òmicro investmentsÓ and receive a proportional ownership stake in the company. It is likely that regulatory agencies that oversee equities markets in the United States and other countries will establish rules governing or even restrict-ing this type of crowdfunding.RoyaltiesContributors receive a percentage of the sales revenue generated by a project. For instance, people who contribute to a musicianÕs recording project might receive roy-alties from the sale of the artistÕs music.Sources: Outlaw (2013), Wikipedia (2014). TABLE 7.9 Facebook Statistics2 billion monthly active users as of July 5, 20171.28 billion daily active users on average for March 31, 20171.74 billion mobile monthly active users as of December 31, 20161.15 billion mobile daily active users on average for December 2016Approximately 85.8% of daily active users are outside the United States and CanadaFacebook owns several other companies including Instagram (mobile photo-sharing), WhatsApp (mobile messenger app), Oculus (virtual reality), Moves (activity log), and Masquerade (selfie filters)Over 2 billion people use one of FacebookÕs mobile messenger apps every monthÑFacebook Messenger or WhatsApp. ThatÕs in addition to the billions of active Facebook.com usersSource: Facebook, Inc.
214 CHAPTER 7 Web 2.0 and Social TechnologyFacebook Dominates Social NetworkingFacebook was launched in 2004 by a former Harvard student, Mark Zuckerberg. Facebook features include Profile, News Feed, Messenger, Groups, Events, Photo and Video Sharing, Search and Pages (for individuals, groups, and organizations to create public profiles). Apart from these basic applications, users can add any of the millions of Facebook apps that have been developed by others. Today over 90% of users access the site from mobile devices instead of desktop computers and over 50% only access the site from a mobile device (see Figure 7.3).Facebook pioneered the Newsfeed feature, a constantly updated stream of status updates and postings from a userÕs friends. Today the Newsfeed also contains sponsored posts (adver-tisements) as part of FacebookÕs growing advertising program. In late 2011, Facebook intro-duced another major revision to its site called Timeline. The Timeline app is designed to show the chronological progression of key events in a personÕs life as illustrated by his or her Facebook status updates, photos, songs listened to, bad haircuts, as well as changes in occupations, loca-tions, relationships, and the like. The Timeline feature effectively curates all the content users share on the networking service. When it was initially launched, many users were surprised by While SNS sites share some common features, they are not all alike. As the category matures, sites are differentiating themselves in a variety of ways:¥ Target age group¥ Geographic location of users¥ Language¥ Area of interest, for example, music, photography, gaming, travel¥ Social versus professional networking (see IT at Work 7.2)¥ Interface, for example, profile page, microblog, virtual world, emphasis on graphic versus text contentIT at Work 7.2Recruiters Use Professional Networking SitesSusan Heathfield, a human resources (HR) expert at About.com, maintains that it is no longer sufficient to post job openings on monster.com, Careerbuilder.com, and Craigslist.com. Job postings on these large sites often generate hundreds of applications from unqualified candidates. This can be overwhelming for recruiters and very inefficient. Instead, many have turned to professional networking sites like LinkedIn. Heathfield identified a number of specific ways that businesses recruiters use LinkedIn to increase their effectiveness:¥ Identify potential candidates among their existing network of professionals.¥ Ask their network to identify or recommend candidates for a position.¥ Evaluate potential employees based on references and refer-rals from their existing network.¥ Actively search for relevant keywords or qualifications in the profiles of LinkedIn users.¥ Ask current employees to search among their LinkedIn net-works for potential candidates.¥ Post job openings on LinkedIn.¥ Request introductions to potential candidates through their existing network of professionals.¥ Use Inmail (the internal LinkedIn e-mail system) to contact potentially qualified individuals.It is clear that recruiters have come to embrace LinkedIn as an effective and costÐefficient way of generating qualified candi-dates. As LinkedInÕs global presence grows, this will provide an important benefit to companies who need to fill positions inter-nationally.IT at Work Questions1. Why have monster.com, Careerbuilder.com, and Craigslist.com lost their effectiveness?2. Why have HR departments turned to professional net-working sites like LinkedIn?3. Why is it so essential for career-minded workers to build a professional social network? What can this network do for you?Source: Heathfield (2012).
Social Networking Services and Communities 215what they felt was a radical interface change and were uncomfortable with how easy it became for others to access old, long forgotten posts and status updates. Facebook responded with pri-vacy features that gave users greater control over who could view their content.When Zuckerberg created Facebook, he had very strong social ambitions aimed at helping people connect to others on the Web. Facebook was initially an online social space for college and high school students. It started by connecting students to all others at the same school. In 2006 Facebook expanded to anyone 13 years or older with a valid e-mail address. The lack of privacy controls was among the biggest reasons why some business people resisted joining Facebook during its early years.In 2008 Facebook introduced controls that allowed users to set different access levels to information for various groups of people in their network; for example, family, friends from school, friends from work, and so on. For instance, close friends might see your mobile phone number, music favorites, e-mail address, and so forth, while other friends might see only the basic information. Facebook is sometimes criticized for its approach to user privacy, high-lighting an ongoing tension between the corporate goals of Facebook, which depends on a high level of access to user data, and the desire of individual users to control access to their personal information. See IT at Work 7.3 for additional information about social media privacy issues.Facebook has expanded to the rest of the world with the help of its foreign-language members: Engineers first collected thousands of English words and phrases throughout the site and invited members to translate those bits of text into another language. Members then rated translations until a consensus was reached. The Spanish version was created by about 1,500 volunteers in less than a month. The German version was created by 2,000 volunteers in less than 2 weeks. In early March 2008, Facebook invited French members to help out. They completed the translations in a few days. Facebook exists in over 100 different languages and approximately 85% of users reside outside of the United States and Canada. In May 2012, Facebook went public with its initial public offering (IPO), selling company shares on the NASDAQ stock exchange. It raised over $16 billion, making it the third largest ever IPO in U.S. history. While founder Mark Zuckerberg sold some 30 million shares during the offering (for $1.15 billion), he continues to own approximately 15% of the company. His net worth of over $56.7 billion places him among the 10 wealthiest people on the planet.The Open Graph Initiative A primary reason that Facebook expands is the network effect: More users mean more value. In April 2010, Zuckerberg announced FacebookÕs new initiative called Open Graph. The goal was to connect all the different relationships that exist on the Internet by linking websites to Facebook. Programmers at external websites were encouraged to include a Facebook ÒLikeÓ button on their websites. That way, when a Facebook member visits the website, they can click ÒLikeÓ and their relationship with that website will be reflected back on their Facebook page for friends to see.Network effect from the field of economics, the network effect explains how the perceived value of a product or service is affected by the number of people using the product or service.© incamerastock/Alamy FIGURE 7.3 People are increasingly using mobile devices like smartphones and tablets to access Facebook and other social media sites.
216 CHAPTER 7 Web 2.0 and Social TechnologySocial Logins Facebook also encourages other websites to allow people to use their Face-book username and password to sign in or create accounts. For instance, if you are a Facebook member and you visit ESPN (a sports news site) or Yelp (a local directory service), you can sign into the sites using your Facebook username and password. Facebook will then share your profile information with those sites. A number of services compete for social logins including Google+, Twitter, Yahoo, and LinkedIn. Toward the end of 2015, Facebook had the largest share of social logins (62%) followed by Google+ with 24% (Peterson, 2016).Google Takes on Facebook with G+Launched in June 2011, Google+, or G+, was the search engine giantÕs attempt to capture a share of the social networking market. Determining how well Google+ has performed takes a bit of calculation. Officially, there are over 2.5 billion G+ user accounts. But that figure is mis-leading because everyone that signs up for GoogleÕs popular e-mail service (Gmail) automati-cally gets a Google+ account. More realistic estimates of activity and users on Google+ suggest that the service probably has between 4 and 6 million users that engage, interact, and post publically (Gallagher, 2015). Having failed to meet early expectations for a big Facebook ver-sus Google+ rivalry, one might wonder why the company continues to maintain the social platform. Some speculate that Google wants to maintain its position in social logins where it holds second place. Others have suggested that while few people actually use Google+, there is value in all those billions of profiles. The profiles, combined with the data you generate using IT at Work 7.3Addressing Social Media Privacy ConcernsPrivacy rights are too easily abused. Governments and industry associations are trying to control these abuses through legisla-tion and professional standards, but they frequently fail to provide adequate protection. One of the most effective deterrents is fear of backlash from abuses that become public and cause outrage. So it is important to identify privacy issues that pertain to social media and specifically SNSs. Examples of privacy violations include the following:¥ Posting pictures of people on social networking sites without their permission¥ Tricking people into disclosing credit or bank account information or investing in Òwork at homeÓ scams¥ Sharing user information with advertisers without usersÕ knowledge or consent¥ Disclosing an employerÕs proprietary information or trade secrets on social networking sites¥ Posting information on social networking sites that could com-promise peopleÕs safety or make them targets for blackmailTaking Control of Your PrivacyThe most important thing that users can do to protect themselves is to understand that they are responsible for protecting their own information. The basic solution is common sense. Unfortu-nately, most social networking sites create the illusion of privacy and control. This sometimes can lull even the most vigilant users into making mistakes. Sites like Facebook make us feel like our information is only going to be seen by those we have allowed to become part of our network. Wrong. Listed below are common-sense guidelines:¥ Do not post private data. Nothing, absolutely nothing you put on a social networking site is private. You should avoid posting personal information including full birth date, home address, phone number, and the like. This information can be used for identity theft.¥ Be smart about who you allow to become part of your net-work. It is not uncommon for teenagers to ÒfriendÓ hundreds of individuals on their Facebook accounts. With this many con-tacts, there is no way to protect profile or other information.¥ Do not rely on current privacy policies or terms of service (TOS) agreements. Social networking sites change their privacy policies regularly. Many have accused Facebook of doing this specifically to wear down user vigilance with regard to maintaining desired privacy settings. Regularly review your social network service privacy policies explained in the TOS. Set your privacy settings at the level offering maximum protectionÑoperating as if you have no privacy whatsoever.¥ Minimize your use of applications, games, and third-party programs on social networking sites until you have carefully investigated them. They can expose you to malicious pro-grams or viruses. Do not automatically click on links that look as if they were sent to you by members of your network.IT at Work Questions1. Which of these guidelines is the easiest to follow? Which is the toughest? Explain why.2. Why is it recommended that you not post private data on a social network, even those with privacy settings?
Social Networking Services and Communities 217other Google products, helps the company better understand your interests as well as how to effectively place ads in front of you as you surf the Web. Finally, the company does announce updates, improvements, and changes to Google+ from time to time. Given GoogleÕs tradition of regularly evolving products, perhaps the social network will emerge as something useful down the line. For now, Google hasnÕt given any indication that it is ready to close the doors on its social network (Pierce, 2015).Be in the Now with SnapchatCompared to social networks like LinkedIn (2003), Facebook (2004), YouTube (2005), and Twitter (2006), Snapchat, founded in 2011, is a relative newcomer to the social media big leagues. But that hasnÕt kept Snapchat from quickly becoming one of the most popular social platforms, second only to Facebook in terms of where people spend their time (see Figure 7.2). As FacebookÕs appeal among teens and young adults declines, the mobile-only Snapchat service has become the hot new social platform for an age group that some experts call digital natives or The App Generation because they were born after digital technologies became ubiquitous. SnapchatÕs core feature set can be described as a fun messaging app that emphasizes communication through pictures and videos instead of the text-based mes-sages people have sent to each other for years. SnapchatÕs rapid growth during a relatively short life has been nothing but spectacular and mirrors in a way its most distinctive fea-ture when compared to other social platformsÑSnapchat picture and video messages self-destruct within 10 seconds after being viewed. When founder and CEO Evan Spiegel first pitched the concept to classmates at Stanford University, they frowned on disappearing picture idea, claiming nobody would use an app that couldnÕt save messages. On most other social platforms, it seems the goal is to curate or build a collection of photos, posts, and mes-sages. Facebook even goes so far as to remind users of updates and pictures posted years ago, encouraging people to reshare the memories with others in their network. One of the post popular features on Twitter is the Òretweet,Ó or the act of forwarding an interesting tweet from someone to other people in your network. ThatÕs not allowed on SnapchatÑno saving, no forwarding, no looking back through silly pictures that special someone sent you when your relationship was, well, less complicated. According to some of its most rabid fans, Snap-chat is all about the Ònow.Ó Most likely youÕve heard stories about people who spend hours cultivating their personal brand by sharing carefully retouched photographs of themselves, regularly posting witty status updates, and telling stories of doing Òabsolutely amazing things, all the time, with tons of friends.Ó Snapchat seems to rebel against the rehearsed and unnaturally choreographed public images that people sometimes become obsessed with creating on other sites. Instead, Snapchat encourages users to have fun and be a little crazy while using the service. In the emerging Snapchat culture, spontaneous silliness is the norm. Some speculate that young people enjoy the app because it allows them to ignore all those warnings from parents, teachers, and future employers about posting incriminating images on social media. According to Snapchat, any consequences are likely to be short-lived, dis-appearing within 10 seconds. But while SnapchatÕs growing fan base might be enjoying the thrill of adding doggy noses and ears to selfies they just took with their friends at a party, senior leadership at the company is busy managing a host of serious issues. In 2012, Snap-chatÕs daily user base of 10 million people were sharing about 20 million images a day. Fast forward to 2017, and the daily user base has grown to more than 160 million people sharing 2.5 billion snaps a day (snaps is a metric that counts both photographs and videos). With that kind of growth, the company must be continuously expanding its computing infrastructure, which, in turn, means arranging for venture capital funding and ultimately launching an IPO on March 2, 2017. Following its first day of trading, the appÕs parent company, Snap, Inc., had a public market valuation of over $28 billion. While the company reported revenue of $404.5 million in 2016, like many start-up companies it still hasnÕt made a profit. Almost 98% of its revenue comes from advertising. While users have been quick to join the new social network, advertisers are still figuring out how Snapchat integrates with their overall promo-tion strategy. In addition, older social platforms obviously have advertising and promotional
218 CHAPTER 7 Web 2.0 and Social Technologyprograms that advertisers already understand. As well, they have years of behavioral data and consumer insights that help advertisers accurately target prospective custom-ers. In conclusion, while Snapchat is a hit with consumers, the business challenges facing the leadership team as they manage the companyÕs growth, financing, infrastructure, and branding are monumental. Hopefully, the companyÕs lively ghost logo will prove to represent the playful spirit in all of us and not the omen of a company that lived fast, but died young.And Now for Something Different: Second LifeSecond Life is a social network service unlike most others. What makes it unique is that it uses a 3D virtual world interface in which users, called Residents, are represented by avatars, or cyber bodies that they create (Figure 7.4).Developed by Linden Research in 2003, Second Life lets residents communicate with others in the virtual world through chat or voice communications. Residents can create and trade things they make in Second Life, including virtual clothes, art, vehicles, houses, and other architectural structures. They can also earn money by providing services such as instruction in a foreign lan-guage or serving as a DJ in a virtual club. This has led to the evolution of a Second Life economy with its own currency, the Linden dollar (L$). While most of the economic activity remains in the Second Life world, there have been news reports of a few entrepreneurs who made consider-able sums of real money. The most common businesses were operated by programmers and art-ists with the skills to make virtual objects that less talented residents were willing to pay real money for.Between 2006 and 2008, there was a big spike in interest on the part of businesses that witnessed great potential in using Second Life. For example, IBM used it as a location for meet-ings, training, and recruitment. Musicians performed concerts to crowds in virtual amphithe-aters, and to smaller audiences in virtual nightclubs and bars. American Apparel was the first major retailer to set up shop in Second Life. Starwood Hotels used Second Life as a relatively low-cost market research experiment in which avatars visit StarwoodÕs virtual Aloft hotel. The endeavor created publicity for the company, and feedback on the design of the hotel was solicited from visiting avatars. This information was used in the creation of the first real-world Aloft hotel, which opened in 2008 (Carr, 2007). Starwood subsequently donated its Second Life property to a not-for-profit educational organization. Fashion and clothing manufacturers like Reebok, American Apparel, Adidas, and others used Second Life as a place to feature new clothing designs, setting up virtual stores where Second Life citizens could purchase digital clothing for their avatars. The hope was that awareness of fashion products on Second Life would spur interest and eventual purchase of real-world products. But efforts by these and Avatars an icon, figure or visual representation of a person in computer games, simulations, virtual worlds or online discussion forms.STR/Reuters – Images FIGURE 7.4 Second Life residents participate in a virtual world beauty contest sponsored by cosmetics manufacturer LÕOreal.
Social Networking Services and Communities 219other businesses, like 1-800-flowers, to get Second Life citizens to purchase real-world prod-ucts through the virtual community proved disappointing. Many businesses that were quick to become part of the early excitement around Second Life eventually left the virtual world community.The general consensus seems to be that weÕre still not ready for virtual world applications. Based on past experience, significant technological, social, cultural, and financial hurdles have to be overcome before virtual worlds like Second Life develop the kind of mass appeal that innovators predicted back in 2008. That said, there are signs that the virtual world concept may be entering a new phase of innovation. Second Life recently rolled out an upgraded virtual reality (VR) space called ÒSansarÓ that takes advantage of new technology like the Oculus Rift, a VR headset that creates an immersive experience for users. Linden Labs, the company that operates Second Life believes the new VR technology will solve many of the in-world function-ality problems that frustrated new users in the early days. This time, however, Linden Labs will have some competition. Philip Rosedale, the founder of Linden and Second Life has left that company and started a new Òsocial VRÓ venture called High Fidelity. RosedaleÕs new company is also creating virtual world applications that make use of VR technology. He envisions an open-source platform where users can build their own virtual worlds connected to the worlds created by others, a type of virtual world social network.Of course, given the history of virtual worlds up to now, it might be easy to dismiss claims and predictions about the potential of VR and virtual worlds if it werenÕt for the backing of companies like Facebook which invested close to $2 billion to acquire Oculus. Zuckerberg said that he believes the acquisition is a long-term bet on the future of social networking. Only time will tell if these new technologies represent the future of social networking (see Hay, 2015; Johnson, 2015; Kushner, 2017; Metz, 2017).Private Social NetworksThe ultimate niche community is the private SNS. Private SNSs use social technology to create a community restricted to members selected by the SNSsÕ owner. Private SNSs allow a greater degree of control over the network. Companies can easily monitor activity on their own SNS platforms and track conversations taking place about their brands and products. However, managing a private SNS requires considerably more time, attention, and resources than main-taining a presence on a general SNS. Organizations need to understand up-front that they are making a substantial commitment with this strategy.Most colleges and universities have Facebook pages. In addition, many institutions have set up private SNSs to engage students even before they have started school there. Students typically gain access to these private SNSs when they are admitted to the institution. On the system, they can interact with admissions counselors, current students, and other admitted students. Interactions that occur on these networks set the stage for relationships and engage-ment that are simply not possible with e-mail and phone calls.In 2008 Mercedes-Benz created two private SNSs designed to increase engagement with current and potential customers. The Mercedes Advisor network is for current Mercedes-Benz owners. GenerationBenz.com is a private network for prospective Mercedes owners. Member-ship in the network is limited to those who fit MercedesÕ profile for younger luxury car buyers. Both of these communities provide the company with an opportunity to engage their target audiences directly. Members participate in market surveys and polls, provide feedback on prospective ad campaigns and product features, and participate in discussion groups with company managers. This provides valuable feedback to Mercedes as well as creates strong advocates for the companyÕs luxury car brand.While engaging customers on a private SNS can be time-consuming and potentially require significant staffing resources, the technological challenges associated with setting up a private SNS are relatively small. A number of companies offer a combination of free and subscription-based pricing for individuals or organizations wishing to create a private social network. Basic SNS sites can be set up fairly quickly for free. Search on Òprivate social network servicesÓ for the latest information.
220 CHAPTER 7 Web 2.0 and Social TechnologyFuture of Social Networking SystemsSocial networking services are perhaps the most feature-rich applications of Web 2.0. It is expected that growth and innovation in this sector will continue as individual users and busi-ness organizations discover its power for building networks and relationships. We expect that Facebook will continue to dominate the field, but that smaller SNSs will stake out strong posi-tions in niche markets using traditional market segmentation strategies that focus on the needs of specific geographic, cultural, age, or special interest segments. Finally, with the advent of VR technologies, more powerful computers, and large-capacity Web server installations, virtual worlds may become an exciting new platform for all types of social interaction in the future.Questions1. What are the major differences between SNSs and older online communities?2. What is the basic difference between the social graph and Berners-LeeÕs concept of the Giant Global Graph?3. Explain FacebookÕs Open Graph initiative and how it plans to expand its influence across the World Wide Web.4. What are some potential ways that business organizations can take advantage of Second LifeÕs unique virtual world interface?5. Why would a business want to create a private SNS? What are some of the challenges associated with doing this? 7.3 Engaging Consumers with Blogs and MicroblogsOne of the problems with traditional media, like newspapers and magazines, is that editors and publishers decide what you should read. Often their decisions are based on what the masses will buy at the newsstands. Space is limited and barriers to getting published are high. News services frequently fail to devote sufficient space to complex issues or viewpoints that might challenge the financial or business interests of the publicationÕs owners or advertisers. But with social media, anyone can write a column or article and publish it online for the world to read (see IT at Work 7.4).Of course, this creates another potential problem: clutter. Blogging is so easy that even people who do not have much to say can publish their thoughts, opinions, and ideas. Readers need to be prepared to look at online content with a skeptical eye and find ways to judge the credibility of the material they find on social media.In their simplest form, blogs are websites where people regularly post content. Some personal blogs are simply online diaries or journals where people share their thoughts, reflec-tions, or an account of their life. Other blogs are more sophisticated and professional in format, resembling online newspapers or magazines. Because blogging technology has become so commonplace, you may not always realize you are reading a blog when accessing online content. Many organizations have integrated one of the blogging platforms discussed later with their website. Blogging tools make it easy for organizations to provide website visitors with frequently updated content on pages with titles such as ÒWhatÕs New,Ó ÒCompany News,Ó or ÒProduct Updates.Ó As a result, you may be a frequent blog reader without realizing it!Blogs contain content in a variety of digital formats including text, photographs, video, and music. People who create and maintain blogs are referred to as bloggers.What Is the Purpose of a Blog?Many professionals now blog as a way to establish their reputation and promote their busi-ness interests, or because they enjoy writing and sharing their viewpoints with others.
Engaging Consumers with Blogs and Microblogs 221Corporate bloggers use the medium to tell stories about their brands and connect with customers.On the surface, blogging appears to be a broadcast (one-to-many) communication tool. However, it can also be an effective tool for interactive dialogue. Many blogs utilize comment features, allowing readers to respond to blog posts, interacting with the blogger and other readers. Successful bloggers tend to comment on and link to other blogs in their posts, in effect maintaining a dialogue or conversation with other bloggers. These connections between blogs create what some refer to as the blogosphere, or a network of blogs. IT at Work 7.5 lists a number of ways that organizations use blogs for marketing.IT at Work 7.4How to Create a BlogSetting up a blog is relatively easy. Making the effort to regularly write and post content that others will find interesting is more chal-lenging. The following steps outline the process of setting up a blog.1. Create a plan. Successful blogging requires a certain degree of organization and discipline. You can address this part of the project by developing a plan at the outset. The plan should answer questions like these:a. What are you going to blog about? What will be the focus or topic of your blog?b. Identify your target audience. For whom are you writing?c. How often do you intend to update your blog? Some blog-gers post new material daily, some weekly, and some just a few times a month. As a general rule, readers are more likely to follow blogs that are updated regularly. Avoid sporadic updates or only blogging when you feel like it. Successful bloggers frequently set up a publication schedule outlining topics and posting dates to keep themselves on track.d. Who else is blogging about the same topic? Identify blog-gers you can interact with through your posts and com-ments on their blogs.2. Determine if you will self-host your blog by purchasing a host-ing plan and domain name (URL), or if your blog will use a free blogging service. Free services allow you to get up and running quickly and do not require any long-term commitments. This provides an easy, low-risk way to get started. While this might be the most convenient approach, you do not actually own your blog or the content you post there because it is on a domain owned by someone else. Your domain name in these situations is usually in the form of Òmyblogname.blogspot.com,Ó which can appear less professional to some readers. Purchasing a hosting plan and domain name, however, is the better long-term strategy since it creates a unique identity for your blog.3. Select a blogging platform (see the section below). This is the software that will provide the look and feel of your site and give you myriad features you can employ to build a successful blog. Standard features in most blog platforms include a com-ment section, RSS buttons so readers can subscribe to your blog, and share buttons so readers can post links to your blog on other social media sites (e.g., Twitter, Facebook, Digg, etc.).4. Set up your blog. Once youÕve set up your hosting and platform arrangements, you will need to create the aesthetic design for your site. Most platforms make this easy with a multitude of template options that you can further customize to give your blog a unique look.5. Get started. Now comes the challenging part, writing your posts and regularly updating your blog to attract readers. You can read blogs about blogging to get great tips and advice.IT at Work 7.5How Marketers Use Blogs and MicroblogsBlogs and microblogs provide individuals and organizations with a means to accomplish a variety of communications objectives. Mar-keters use blogs and microblogs to¥ Develop relationships with independent bloggers, encour-aging them to write positive stories about the brand, product, and company¥ Engage members of the blogging community, via corporate blogs, by providing helpful and interesting information¥ Tell the companyÕs Òstory,Ó position a product, create brand identity, and differentiate from the competition¥ Engage customers and readers by soliciting comments and feedback about information provided in blog posts¥ Drive traffic to the company website by using Twitter to announce recent updates to the company blog¥ Inform current or prospective customers about positive blog posts featuring your product or company that were written by independent, third-party bloggers¥ Encourage repeat visits to the company website through reg-ular updates or new posts to the blog¥ Have a celebrity or influential expert send a tweet with a promotional message about your brand using TwitterÕs new advertising program
222 CHAPTER 7 Web 2.0 and Social TechnologyBlogging and Public RelationsSome bloggers have become highly successful and have developed a large audience for their material. Many people approach blogging like a business and consider themselves Òpublishers,Ó with the goal of generating enough readers or subscribers that they can make money from advertisers and ad agencies who will pay to display their ads on an individual bloggerÕs site. Earlier in this chapter, you read about a set of groundswell social media strategies described by Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff. One of those strategies, Energizing, is accomplished when a business identifies a blogger whose audience matches its target market and persuades that person to write about the companyÕs product. This is similar to a public relations manager sending a press release to a journalist, hoping he or she will write a news story about the company in the local paper. When a highly credible and influential blogger writes a positive story about your company, it can have a very positive impact on your brandÕs image. Bloggers can also have a negative impact if they write unfa-vorable posts about the company or its products. As a result, public relations professionals are learning how to identify and form positive relationships with influential bloggers with the goal of generating favorable coverage of the company and its products. Frequently, this will involve doing things like providing the blogger with information in advance of it being released to the public, providing access to company executives for interviews, send-ing the blogger samples of the companyÕs product so that he or she can write about it from firsthand experience, and so on. For some companies, particularly those in the technology industry, building relationships with influential bloggers has become an important public relations strategy.Reading and Subscribing to BlogsThe best way to gain an understanding of the blogging phenomenon is to simply start reading blogs. You can use search engines like Google or Yahoo to find blogs on all kinds of topics. Most blogs make it easy to subscribe using an RSS reader (see Section 7.4 later on in this chapter). Reading blogs is a great way to stay current on rapidly evolving topics related to technology and business.Blogging PlatformsSelecting a blogging platform is an important decision when setting up a blog. Installing a platform when you are creating a blog is relatively easy. Converting to a new blogging platform after using another one for a while is not. Two of the most popular platforms are WordPress followed by GoogleÕs Blogger platform. Other blog platforms include TypePad, Movable Type, and Tumblr. The Tumblr platform is significantly different from traditional platforms in that it emphasizes easy posting of photos and light copy. As such, it is considered to be a microblog-ging platform and is discussed later in this chapter.When choosing between WordPress and Blogger, WordPress is a feature-rich platform and offers greater control over site appearance (Figure 7.5). Blogger is simpler and easier to use, making it a more desirable choice for beginning bloggers who want to get up and running without becoming bogged down in technological issues. BloggerÕs affiliation with Google might also be attractive because of the potential for integration with other Google services. For in-stance, Blogger comes with a built-in analytics program that appears to share many similarities with Google Analytics, a stand-alone Web traffic-monitoring tool.For now, begin by reading blogs about social media, information technology, and other topics that are of personal interest. Note how these blogs vary in terms of style, length, and appearance. Identify the features they offer readers for commenting on and sharing content. After you get a feel for how people blog, try setting up your own blog using GoogleÕs free platform and hosting service at www.google.com/blogger.Blogging platform a software application used to create, edit, and add features to a blog. WordPress and Blogger are two of the most popular blogging platforms.
Engaging Consumers with Blogs and Microblogs 223© NetPhotos/Alamy FIGURE 7.5 WordPress is one of the leading platforms for online blogs.© 2020WEB/Alamy FIGURE 7.6 Twitter is a microblogging SNS that limits users to messages of 140 characters or less.MicroblogsYou may be a microblogger and not even know it! Microblogging is a way of sharing content with people by the regular, often frequent posting of short messages. Although people donÕt usually call it microblogging, perhaps the most common form of this social media activity occurs when you update your status message on Facebook. More often, however, the term is used to describe popular microblogging services like Twitter and Tumblr.Most microblog content consists of text-based messages, although there appears to be an increase in people who are microblogging photos and video on Twitter and Tumblr. Tumblr has increased in popularity recently among younger Internet users because of its multimedia capa-bilities and ease of use.TwitterTwitter has grown in popularity over the last few years, becoming one of the worldÕs largest communication platforms. According to Twitter, approximately 5 million messages, or tweets, are sent each day by over 310 million active monthly users (see Figure 7.6). People frequently attach descriptive keywords or hashtags, designated by the # sign, to their tweets to make them easier for others to find (e.g., #news, #politics, #fail).Microblog a blog that consists of frequent, but very brief posts containing text, pictures, or videos. Twitter is perhaps the most well-known example of a microblog.Tweet a brief 140-character message or post broadcast on Twitter, a microblogging service.
224 CHAPTER 7 Web 2.0 and Social TechnologyTwitter has played a significant role in both global and domestic events (Lee, 2013). In countries where the media is largely dominated by government control, Twitter has proven to be a valuable tool for activists engaged in organizing protests, debating political view-points, and broadcasting real-time information about significant events that might otherwise be ignored by the mainstream media. Twitter has become a primary channel for real-time updates on events and issues in politics, entertainment, social causes, and sports. In 2016, Twitter kept people informed about the #RIO2016 Olympics, #BrexitÑBritainÕs separation from the European Union, the #BlackLivesMatter movement, news about the popular televi-sion show #GameofThrones, and, of course, the U.S. presidential #Election2016 where Twitter was used heavily by both candidates. For better or worse, President Donald Trump continues to use Twitter as a primary communications tool since winning the election. Because of Twit-terÕs reach, most federal and state political leaders now use Twitter as a regular channel for communicating with their followers. For the same reason, most advocacy groups engage in what some call hashtag activism, using the service to maintain awareness levels about their cause as well as influence peopleÕs beliefs and attitudes on key issues. Twitter has even begun to influence investment decisions made on Wall Street. Financial research analysts have cre-ated algorithms that use the volume and sentiment of Twitter traffic to predict the future stock value of a company.Twitter is attractive to individuals, groups, and organizations because it provides a direct link to the public, bypassing traditional mass media, which often acts as an information gate-keeper. Ironically, Twitter frequently influences what we see on traditional media. Journalists regularly use Twitter to broadcast breaking news stories. ÒHashtag journalistsÓ increasingly monitor Twitter to identify newsworthy events being tweeted (reported) by eyewitnesses and to gauge the publicÕs interest in an event or issue by monitoring trending topics. Using Twit-ter to monitor public sentiment as well as influence public opinion has become an important skill for public relations professionals working for business and not-for-profit organizations. Organizations can no longer afford to ignore the conversations that take place on Twitter about their brands, products, and executives. Furthermore, public relations professionals must understand how to actively participate in these conversations or risk appearing aloof and out-of-touch.Twitter is often used by consumers to complain about frustrations they are having with a company or its products. In response, some companies have adopted Twitter as a cus-tomer service channel, along with e-mail and telephone call centers (see Opening Case 6.1). When customer service representatives find people complaining about their brand or prod-uct, they can use the service to empathize with the customerÕs frustration and offer solutions for resolving the problem. Because conversations on Twitter are public, other customers can watch or Òlisten inÓ on interactions between an unhappy customer and a customer service rep-resentative and judge how effective the company is at solving problems. This can be a benefit or liability for organizations depending on how adept they are at communicating and resolving customer problems on Twitter.Just a few years ago, many businesses appeared to be somewhat confused about how to incorporate the microblogging service into their communications strategy. That has changed. Over 65% of companies now use Twitter for marketing communications and are increas-ingly expanding their reach by encouraging employees to share relevant messages with their personal social networks. In addition to organic (unpaid) tweets, companies are spending close to $3 billion a year on promoted tweets, or paid ads sent out over the network. Twitter is viewed by many companies as a good way to reach people on mobile devices.Like other social media tools, the best way to gain an understanding of Twitter is to use it. The official Twitter interface is simple and efficient, but a large segment of the Twittersphere uses third-party apps that have been developed to enhance the siteÕs functionality and user experience. Some are considered essential tools in the life of the power Twitter user:¥ TweetDeck is an advanced, split-screen app that allows users to view messages stream-ing from followers, people being followed, and people the user might wish to follow. It also makes it easy to quickly reply to incoming tweets, increasing the frequency of Twitter Twittersphere the universe of people who use Twitter, a microblogging service.
Engaging Consumers with Blogs and Microblogs 225conversations. The TweetDeck interface makes it easy to participate in Twitter forums or online discussion groups similar to what takes place in a chat room. In 2011, this popular Twitter application was acquired by Twitter and continues to be a popular interface appli-cation for people accessing the service from a computer.¥ Dlvr.it automates posts to Twitter and other social platforms published on a blog using RSS technology.¥ Twitterholic is a service that ranks users by the number of followers, friends, and updates.Many users believe Twitter is best suited for mobile devices like smartphones or tablets, which enable users to post spontaneous messages and updates regardless of their location. There are literally hundreds of third-party Twitter apps for computers and mobile devices, with more being written every day. You can find the most popular mobile apps by using an Internet search engine or searching your phoneÕs app store.How Do People and Businesses Use Twitter? Think of Twitter as a social net-work where the dominant focus is on status updates. People tweet messages to their followers that they think will be of interest. While some businesses still struggle with ways to use Twitter effectively, many have adopted strategies that engage consumers, enhance brand image, and improve revenue. Examples include the following:¥ Celebrities use Twitter to update loyal fans about their day-to-day activities.¥ Social media experts like Jeremiah Owyang and Brian Solis use Twitter to share links to online material that people in their profession will find interesting.¥ Companies use Twitter to update customers about new products and special offers.¥ Mobile food service trucks in large cities use Twitter to update customers about their current and future locations.¥ Businesses can advertise on Twitter using a variety of ad types including promoted tweets, promoted accounts, and promoted trends ads.¥ News services like CNN and Mashable use Twitter as a Òheadline newsÓ stream, sending links to news stories on their websites.¥ Coupon and shopping services use Twitter to send daily deals and special offers to their followers.¥ People use Twitter to send status updates to their friends, keeping others informed about their activities, sharing stories and links to online material they find interesting.¥ Politicians use Twitter to communicate with their constituents, often linking to stories or material on their website that they believe will help support their positions on issues.¥ Businesses can use Twitter to increase traffic to their website by tweeting links to information on the website that they think people will find interesting.When users receive a tweet from someone they follow, they can ÒReplyÓ to the message, or retweet it by forwarding the message to everyone in their network. In this way, users engage in a dialogue of sorts with people they are connected to on the service. Tweets that are retweeted among many different users can go viral.Tumblr BlogsTumblr is often described as a microblogging service because it makes the posting of mul-timedia content easy for users and allows them to update their blogs frequently. However, Tumblr blogs can include just as much text as a regular blog, although most who use the ser-vice emphasize photographs and video as the primary content. This emphasis on multimedia makes the Tumblr blogs more visually compelling. Tumblr is particularly popular among those who are blogging about things like fashion, entertainment, and the arts.
226 CHAPTER 7 Web 2.0 and Social TechnologyQuestions1. What is the difference between a blog and a microblog?2. What is a blogging platform?3. Why do marketers use blogs and microblogs?4. What makes Twitter a more attractive communication channel than traditional media for many indi-viduals and organizations?5. How is Tumblr different from other types of blogging platforms? 7.4 Mashups, Social Metrics, and Monitoring ToolsA mashup is a Web application that combines information from two or more sources and pre-sents this information in a way that creates some new benefit or service. Using AJAX technolo-gies and APIs, websites and applications can pull information from a variety of sources.One of the most common examples of a consumer mashup that you are likely to encounter involves the integration of map data (from companies such as Google or MapQuest) with information like store names, locations, phone numbers, and consumer reviews from other websites.By combining this information in a single location or application, users enjoy a powerful and visually compelling service. ProgrammableWeb maintains a helpful directory of mashups.Enterprise mashups combine data from internal business sources (e.g., sales records, customer information, etc.) and/or information from external sources for enhanced usefulness and productivity. For instance, a bank may utilize an enterprise mashup to display a mortgage application from its own records, the property location on a Google map, and information from county government property tax records.What Makes a Mashup SocialTo begin with, many of the most popular APIs used in mashup apps are from social media sites. That means the data involved in the mashup are likely to be user-generated social information. The other reason mashups are considered social media is that they represent the power to separate content from formÑallowing Web developers (and sometimes users) greater control over how information is displayed and used on the Web.Mashups also represent a change in philosophy for content creators. Traditionally, a business that created content operated a closed system where it maintained almost complete control over the Òproduct.Ó On the social Web, content creators enjoy greater distribution by allowing others access to their digital information through an API. For instance, the Google brand name appears on thousands of websites due to its open-source mapping API. If Twitter did not have an open-source API, awareness and use of the service would be far less than it is today because users would have to go to the Twitter site in order to use it. By giving up some control, these content creators enjoy wider distribution and market penetration.While the ability to create powerful mashup applications has not yet reached most individual Web users, it has decentralized control over how content is displayed and used, which is a key principle of Web 2.0 social technologies (Section 7.1). We anticipate that it will not be long before someone develops a technology that will make it easier for the average user to create his or her own custom mashup applications.Mashup technology also represents a tremendous opportunity for new Web-based busi-nesses with limited start-up capital. For example, the online directory and business review service, Yelp.com, uses the Google Maps API to make it easier for users to locate restaurants
Mashups, Social Metrics, and Monitoring Tools 227and bars in their area. In turn, Yelp has an API that allows sites like Zillow.com to use YelpÕs information when displaying information about homes and neighborhoods to prospective real estate customers.RSS TechnologyAnother technology that extends control of Web content beyond the creator is really simple syndication (RSS) (Figure 7.7). Traditionally, users had to visit multiple sites in order to view content at each location. This is potentially time-consuming and difficult for users who are interested in following several sources. RSS technology allows users to subscribe to multiple sources (e.g., blogs, news headlines, social media feeds, videos, and podcasts) and have the content displayed in a single application, called an ÒRSS readerÓ or ÒRSS aggregator.Ó In effect, users can create a customized news and information site by personalizing how they want infor-mation from their news sources organized and displayed. Popular RSS aggregators include Feedly, Digg Reader, and The Old Reader. Many other free or freemium aggregators are avail-able with a variety of features.© AKP Photos/Alamy FIGURE 7.7 Many blogs use the RSS logo to identify the subscription link that readers use to import the blogÕs content to their RSS aggregator.Social Monitoring ServicesA fast-growing sector in the social technology field involves social monitoring services. Moni-toring applications allow users to track conversations taking place on social media sites. The initial impetus for the growth of monitoring tools was the need for business organizations to better understand what people were saying about their brands, products, and executives (the ÒlisteningÓ part of the Groundswell Strategy model discussed in Section 7.1). Monitoring ser-vices can be used to identify industry experts, commentators, and opinion leaders who post regularly to social media sites. Once identified, public relations professionals can build rela-tionships with these individuals and encourage them to become brand advocates who regu-larly portray the brand or company positively in their online writing and social media posts. See IT at Work 7.6.In the next section, we describe two categories of social monitoring tools: subscription-based services and free monitoring services.Subscription Monitoring Services The most comprehensive social media moni-toring tools require the user to pay a subscription or licensing fee. These tools not only monitor the social media environment for mentions of your brand or company name but also provide analytics and tools for measuring trends in the amount of conversation occurring, the tone or sentiment (e.g., positive, negative, neutral) of the conversation, and other important aspects
228 CHAPTER 7 Web 2.0 and Social TechnologyIT at Work 7.6Businesses Monitor Social Activity. . .¥ To identify brand advocatesÑpeople who repeatedly discuss a particular topic¥ To find experts talking about technical or business topics¥ To assess reputation or sentiment in the online community about a brand, person, or issue¥ To understand customers by listeningÑidentifying topics of interest to the online community¥ To track trends in the volume or nature of online conversations¥ To assess the relationship between marketing actions (e.g., product launch) and online conversations¥ To identify potential problems with your brandÕs reputation before things get out of controlof the social interactions occurring online. Some of these tools are actually social media management platforms that help companies administer social media marketing campaigns and inbound marketing programs. The monitoring tools are just one of several features avail-able in these enterprise-level applications.Most high-end monitoring tools report information using a dashboard interface, which graphically represents the data it collects. Some of the most popular among these paid ser-vices include the following:¥ SalesforceÕs Social Studio (formerly Radian 6)¥ Sysomos ¥ Cision¥ Sprout Social¥ Oracle Social CloudWhile prices for these high-end monitoring services can vary widely (typically, hundreds of dollars a month), they are usually beyond the budget of individual users.Free Monitoring Services Fortunately, there are number of free monitoring tools that can be used by anyone. Some of these tools, like Twitter Search, are designed to monitor conver-sations on a single social media platform, while others, like Social Mention, are designed to pro-vide feedback on activity across a number of social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter, and blogs. The following list provides a brief description of some free social monitoring services.Social Mention Our favorite free monitoring tool is Social Mention. This tool aggregates content from over 80 different social media sites including Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter. The best thing about Social Mention is that it provides users with four metrics that give insight into the nature of conversations taking place on the Web.Users can generate these statistics daily for a particular topic (e.g., brand name, public figure, current event) and record them in a spreadsheet. Over a period of time, it becomes easy to see trends developing with regard to factors such as how many people are talking about a topic or how they feel about a topic. This is useful information for the social media marketer.Social Mention Metrics ¥ Strength The likelihood that a particular topic is being discussed on social media platforms¥ Passion The degree to which people who are talking about your brand will do so repeatedly¥ Sentiment The tone of the conversation; this metric helps you understand if people are feeling positive, negative, or neutral about the topic¥ Reach Measures the range of influence. It is the number of unique authors divided by the number of mentions.
Enterprise 2.0: Workplace Collaboration and Knowledge Sharing 229Go to www.socialmention.com and explore what people are talking about with regard to current events, celebrities, popular products, or any other issue you are interested in. See what you can learn from the four metrics listed by the site.Twitter Search This tool on the Twitter website generates a list of recent tweets containing a specific word or phrase. You can use the search engine to generate a list of tweets containing keywords related to an issue, a brand name, a company name, elected official, and so on. If your goal is to measure the sentiment of the conversation about a particular topic or brand, you can accomplish this informally by simply scrolling through the messages to get a feel for what people are saying (see twitter.com/search).If you want to do a more formal analysis, randomly sample, say, 100 tweets and manually categorize each as positive, negative, or neutral. Repeat this on a daily basis and you will be able to identify trends in the sentiment of online conversations over time. Companies can use Twitter search to identify users who are having problems or complaining about their product and take corrective action by responding to specific tweets.Hootsuite Hootsuite is a popular social media management platform with specific tools for engagement, publishing, analytics, monitoring, and advertising across multiple social media channels. Users can open a free account to explore the service and upgrade to a larger range of features for as little as $10/month. When fully configured, Hootsuite is similar to an enterprise-level system.Google Alerts Unlike the other tools listed above, Google alerts do not provide much in the way of metrics that describe social media activity. However, it is an extremely useful monitoring tool that conducts automated Google searches for new Web content. Searches can be general or specific to social content on blogs and discussion forums. Users receive regular e-mail updates with search results (see www.google.com/alerts). This tool is particularly useful for managers who need to be aware of any news stories, blog posts, and discussion forums where a particular product, brand name, company, or person is mentioned. It is great for monitoring competitive organizations. It is easy to use, and because the searches are automated, it is very convenient.Social monitoring tools play an essential role in helping social media marketers gain insight into the conversations taking place on the Web. They represent a set of powerful tools in the arsenal of firms that seek to understand consumers, what they are interested in, what they are talking about, and what they are thinking. As such, it is important that you become familiar with these tools, their strengths and weaknesses.Questions1. Why are mashups considered part a social technology?2. Describe a typical consumer mashup.3. What is an RSS reader?4. Describe the ways in which businesses can benefit from using social media monitoring tools.5. Explain the difference between the Strength metric and the Sentiment metric reported by www.Socialmention.com. 7.5 Enterprise 2.0: Workplace Collaboration and Knowledge SharingWorking on a team project or coordinating the efforts of a work group or committee can be chal-lenging. In addition to the normal challenges associated with teamwork, many organizations and their employees today are located in different locations across a region, a country, or the
230 CHAPTER 7 Web 2.0 and Social Technologyglobe. Whether you are working with a group of fellow students on a class project, or a team of employees charged with developing a global marketing plan for your companyÕs new brand, there are all kinds of factors that can be difficult to overcome for even the most dedicated groups.In todayÕs competitive environment, businesses must be agile, able to respond quickly to a rapidly evolving marketplace. Employees must be able to work collaboratively, communi-cate clearly, reach consensus, make decisions, and implement their action plans effectively. Many businesses use Intranets to deploy tools for employee collaboration and productivity. An Intranet is a password-protected network that uses the same Web-based technologies (e.g., browsers, Web pages, and hyperlinked text) found on the World Wide Web. Think of it as a private or internal Web. As organizations update their Intranets, employees can now take advantage of many social features they have become accustom to using on the World Wide Web. This trend is sometimes referred to as Enterprise 2.0. While employees may be familiar with the new technology, there is still a need to change work-related behaviors and organiza-tional culture to maximize the benefit from these enterprise social technologies.In this section, we review a number of social tools for collaboration that are available to everyone. Small businesses, startups, and nonprofits that lack resources to deploy modern Intranets can use these tools for increased productivity. Larger companies will use similar tools as part of their enhanced (Enterprise 2.0) Intranets.Tools for Meetings and DiscussionsDialogue or synchronous communication is an important part of the collaborative process. This can pose a challenge, however, for teams that cannot meet face to face. In the last few years, services like Skype, and GoToMeeting have become a popular way to make reasonably good-quality video calls between two or three people. Fuze and Google+ Hangouts are free video conferencing platforms that have the advantage of allowing up to 10 people to participate in a video conference (see Figure 7.8). Several other companies also offer free or low-cost video conferencing platforms with variations in performance quality and number of features. In addi-tion to basic video conferencing features, some platforms offer the ability to share desktop views with other callers, which makes it possible to share presentations, spreadsheets, and documents just like you would in a face-to-face meeting.Social Tools for Information Retrieval and Knowledge SharingWhen people work together as part of a group or team, they frequently need to share informa-tion with other members of the group. As you learned in Chapter 6, search engines like Google Synchronous communication dialogue or conversation that takes place in real time, without the long delays between exchanges that occur, for instance, in e-mail or discussion board conversations.© White House Photo/Alamy FIGURE 7.8 On January 30, 2012, President Barack Obama participated in an online interview held through a Google+ Hangout, making it the first completely virtual interview from the White House.
Enterprise 2.0: Workplace Collaboration and Knowledge Sharing 231and Bing are among the most frequently used tools on the Web. These large search engines now use information culled from social media sites to improve the relevance of SERP listings. In addition, some sites continuously update a real-time listing of trending search topics, providing users with another means of information retrieval based on the search behavior of the crowd.While the most popular search engines use social media data as part of their search results ranking algorithm, the information retrieval process on Internet search engines is not particu-larly social. Over the last decade, some attempts have been made to personalize search results based on information from a userÕs social network. For instance, the names of people from your social network might appear alongside certain Web page listings if they visited a page, ÒlikedÓ a page, or perhaps made a comment on a page. By and large that information is no longer provided on SERPs because of privacy concerns and the fact that it did not tend to result in an improved user experience. However, Internet search engines are not the only option available for information retrieval. Other services do a better job of integrating our social connections with social technology to create useful tools for information retrieval and knowledge sharing.Discussion groups on SNSs can provide a forum for asking questions to groups of people. For instance, the American Marketing Association maintains a discussion group on LinkedIn that has over 52,000 members. Participants can ask questions and solicit input from other members of the group. Members can also monitor discussion groups, receiving periodic digests of group activity that can be scanned for material of interest. LinkedIn can be a particularly use-ful website for business professionals with questions that can be answered by experts or other business professionals. Facebook and Twitter also host topical discussion groups that can be a helpful resource for information. In addition to hosting different types of discussion groups, all three of these SNSs can serve as a platform or Òvirtual officeÓ for the working group or team. For instance, a team can set up a private group page on LinkedIn and use it to communicate with one another as well as share information the team will need to conduct its work.Q&A websites are very similar to discussion groups in that they provide a forum for peo-ple to ask questions and get answers from experts or knowledgeable professionals. There are literally hundreds of Q&A websites on the Internet and each site tends to target a different audience. Sites like Quora are considered high quality, general Q&A, which means that a wide array of topics are discussed on the site and the impact of disruptive users is limited by moderation, user profiles, website policy, and other controls that help maintain a constructive and useful environment. Reddit is another generalist Q&A site containing thousands of distinct discussion groups or Òsubreddits.Ó The discussion groups on Reddit range from highly technical and professional to groups that engage in discussions and content sharing that most people would consider to be in extremely poor taste. But it is the lack of regulation and policing that appeals to a large portion of RedditÕs audience, making it one of the top five most popular U.S. sites on the Web today. Another Q&A website likely to be useful to business professionals is Stack Exchange. This site is a collection of over 150 Q&A ÒcommunitiesÓ or groups where people share information. Many of these groups focus on programming and technology topics, but Stack Exchange also hosts communities for topics like Personal Finance & Money, Project Management, Personal Productivity, and Sustainable Living. Depending on the specific information needed, it is quite likely that some form of discussion group or Q&A website will prove useful in helping the group find answers to important questions in a timely manner.Social search tools were discussed in Chapter 6 where you learned that many social net-working sites like Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter have developed powerful search engines capable of finding information and multimedia content on their networks. These search tools have been largely overlooked by business professionals in favor of search engines like Google and Bing. However, for some topics, social media search engines may provide more timely and relevant information than Internet search engines.Social Bookmarking ToolsMost Web browsers allow users to store links to online content by saving them to a list of favorites or bookmarks. This approach becomes cumbersome as more information is saved because lists grow long and difficult to use. Organizing bookmarks into folders helps a bit, but the folders tend to hide information and users can forget what folder they have stored information in.
232 CHAPTER 7 Web 2.0 and Social TechnologyDiigo, Delicious, Clipix, and Teamgum Social bookmarking tools allow users to tag Web content with keywords of their choosing. Users can later retrieve those links by search-ing on one or more of these keywords. In addition to helping users retrieve the saved URLs of websites they want to return to, many social bookmarking sites can be used as an alternative search engine, helping users search for and discover Web content tagged by other users. This is what makes the bookmarking system Òsocial.Ó Information searches on these sites will produce different results than Google or Bing because the websites are categorized based on a folksonomy (folk taxonomy). In other words, humans tag websites differently than the com-puter algorithms used by Google or Bing, and thatÕs why the search will generate a different and potentially more useful list of websites.Delicious has a long history as a social bookmarking service. Founded in 2003, it was for many years the most popular application of its kind. Over the last decade however, its standing in the category has diminished as the company was bought and then sold several times. It appears that owners had trouble figuring out how to properly monetize the service. It is currently owned by Delicious Media, a joint venture between Domainer Suite, a website development company, and Science, Inc., an Internet technology investment company. While it continues to operate under its original brand name, Delicious, the company recently announced that its domain name would be changing back to the original, somewhat quirky spelling: del.icio.us.In addition to developing new features that will attract social bookmarkers away from competing services, the company will have to reestablish its reputation and regain the trust of users who left Delicious during a turbulent time when it appeared the site would close down and leave users without a way to retrieve hundreds or thousands of bookmarks they had col-lected over a period of years. Today, the site continues to offer basic social bookmarking fea-tures. In addition, it appears the new management team is working on a business model where Delicious has become part of a sophisticated content/advertising/e-commerce network of pub-lishers. Hopefully, the new strategy will allow the social bookmarking pioneer to become a suc-cessful company once again.One of DeliciousÕ competitors, Diigo, has developed several social bookmarking and col-laboration tools, making it perhaps the best application in this category. On the Diigo platform, users can create either public or private groups for sharing Web content. Social tools on Diigo allow group members to comment on and discuss shared bookmarks as well as indicate their approval using a ÒLikeÓ button. Diigo has a highlight tool that allows users to feature excerpts from Web pages for other members of the group and they can leave digital Òsticky notesÓ with comments on websites for other members of the group to read. Public groups on Diigo can become quite large and take on the feel of an online community, with users contributing, liking, and commenting on bookmarks related to a particular topic.While Diigo appears to be the most fully featured application in this category, two newer websites show strong potential for offering similar benefits. Clipix and Teamgum are social bookmarking sites that also allow users to tag Web content with their own keywords and phrases. Using the Teamgum application, users are encouraged to ÒGumÓ (save) interesting Web content by clicking a small tab the program installs on your browser. The application makes saving and sharing images, videos and screenshots particularly easy. Teamgum also keeps everyone on the team updated about which members have viewed the shared content. Clipix users also tag content with their own keywords, but the applicationÕs user interface is almost completely visual, representing saved bookmarks as pictures. Diigo and Teamgum take a more traditional approach, using words to label the bookmarks with names and titles.Content Creation and SharingWork groups and committees typically find it necessary to share documents and files as part of their collaborative efforts. In the past, a large amount of paper was consumed when every-one on the team was given a hard copy of the documents being used and discussed. With the advent of e-mail, workers began distributing documents electronically, which was perhaps the Folksonomy a system of classifying and organizing online content into categories by the use of user-generated metadata such as keywords.
Enterprise 2.0: Workplace Collaboration and Knowledge Sharing 233easiest way for working teams to share documents. Now business professionals are starting to experience the limitations of e-mail as a distribution and document storage system. It is not uncommon for successful business people to be overwhelmed by the volume of e-mail they receive each day. As a result, members of a team or work group will sometimes overlook an e-mail containing the latest version of an important document. Also, when documents are dis-tributed via e-mail, it isnÕt always clear which team members are responsible for the different changes made to the original document. If the group determines that a previous version of the document is better than a later version, it isnÕt always easy to simply reverse the latest changes. And finally, some e-mail systems will reject the attachment of files that exceed a certain file size limit. This usually isnÕt a problem for text documents, but files containing pictures, sound, or other multimedia content can be problematic. Fortunately, today a number of different file-sharing and storage options are widely available.Dropbox Dropbox is a cloud storage service that makes it easy to access your documents from any of the devices you work on. Think of it as a shared hard drive for your computer, phone, and tablet computer. Dropbox also allows you to share files and folders with others, making it a great tool for document sharing. There are two Dropbox features that make it particularly attractive. First, saving files to Dropbox is just as easy as saving a file to your hard drive. Other cloud-based document services require you to manually upload and download files. Dropbox also maintains a version history record for documents, making it easy to see the changes made to a document and undo them if necessary. This is a great feature for teams working on col-laborative writing projects. Dropbox prices its service based on the amount of storage space users anticipate needing. It also offers a free plan for people who will use less than 1 terabyte (1,024 gigabytes) of space. This makes Dropbox a good solution for students and small busi-nesses. Business users will typically purchase a premium plan that provides for much more space, enhanced security, and account administrative features as well as API access, which will allow the company to integrate Dropbox with existing computer applications.Box Like Dropbox, Box is a cloud storage service but places greater emphasis on social tools and features, which make it a great choice for collaborating teams. Users can edit files stored on Box without downloading to their hard drives. Like many other social companies, Box has created an open-source API, allowing third-party developers to write applications for Box users that offer additional sharing and collaboration features. Over 60 such apps have been devel-oped so far.Wikis While Dropbox and Box allow teams to collaborate on the creation of documents, a wiki allows teams to collaborate on the creation of Web pages. A wiki is a website that allows many people to add or update information found on the site. Wikis can be used as a work space for collaborative teams or they can become public websites built by groups of collaborators. The most popular wiki project is Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia (alexa.com, 2014). Businesses can create wikis for a particular product and allow employees and even customers to con-tribute information that will form a knowledge base resource for those who need information about the product.There are many different sites like wikispaces.com and wikidot.com that offer free, basic wiki services to users. Wikis can be a particularly good way for a small business to distribute nonconfidential information to employees and business partners. Setting up a wiki is much easier than creating a full-featured website and it doesnÕt require anyone to administer the sharing of documents placed on the wiki.Thanks to the features and benefits of social technology, teams and work groups today can communicate, conduct research, find information, and share results with others more easily than ever before. Videoconferencing in particular has enhanced our ability to converse and conduct meetings with people in distant locations. Social bookmarking services not only provide a better means of curating lists of websites we may want to return to someday, but these services also leverage the power of the crowd to index websites on the basis of human
234 CHAPTER 7 Web 2.0 and Social TechnologyAssuring Your LearningDiscuss: Critical Thinking Questions1. Explain the fundamental differences between Web 1.0 and Web 2.0.2. Define social media and explain why how the use of social technol-ogies fundamentally changed how people and organizations used the World Wide Web.3. Compare the communication practices of organizations using the broadcast model versus the communication practices of organizations using a conversation model and Web 2.0 technologies.4. What are the four primary factors described in the text that set the stage for Web 2.0 or the social Web that we enjoy today?5. What is an API? Why should marketing professionals monitor changes in the access and functionality of APIs used by website and application developers?6. Explain FacebookÕs Open Graph Initiative. How do FacebookÕs social plug-ins play a role in the Open Graph program?7. Briefly describe each of the following kinds of social media:a. social networking serviceb. blogc. microblogging servicecategorization, which can sometimes yield more useful results than the index systems of Web crawler search engines (see Chapter 6.) Finally, wikis and cloud-based services for document storage and sharing make it easier to save and organize our data. Many of these systems also provide features that facilitate collaboration among team or work group members improving organizational efficiency and productivity.Questions1. How can working teams use social media as an alternative to face-to-face meetings?2. Why are social bookmarking services superior to the traditional method of saving ÒfavoritesÓ or ÒbookmarksÓ in a browser?3. What are some ways you can use social media to solicit knowledge, information, and advice from experts on the Web?4. What advantages do sites like Dropbox and Box have over e-mail as a way of sharing and collabo-rating on creating documents?5. Why are search results generated on a social bookmarking site likely to be different from search results from Google or Bing?Key Termsapplication programming interface (API) 203asynchronous JavaScript and XML (AJAX) 204avatars 218blogs 220blogging platform 222broadband 202cascading style sheets (CSS) 204cloud storage service 233crowdfunding 212crowdsourcing 212document object model (DOM) 204enterprise mashups 226extendable markup language (XML) 204feature convergence 207folksonomy 232giant global graph 211hashtag activism 224hypertext markup language (HTML) 204Intranet 230JavaScript 204mashup 226microblog 223network effect 215promoted tweets 224really simple syndication (RSS) 227semantic Web 211sharing sites 208social bookmarking 232social media 202social monitoring services 227social network analysis (SNA) 211social networking service (SNS) 207social web 202synchronous communication 230terms of service (TOS) agreement 213tweet 223twittersphere 224Usenet 210Web 2.0 202wiki 208World Wide Web (WWW) 202XMLHttpRequest 204
Assuring Your Learning 235d. social bookmarking servicee. RSS readerf. sharing communitiesg. mashupsh. document storage and sharing site8. Explain what is meant by Òfeature convergenceÓ and how it is blur-ring the distinction between different types of social media platforms.9. Each of the following was listed as an element of social media. De-scribe each and explain its role in shaping and defining the social Web.a. user generated contentb. content controlc. conversationd. community (common values, culture)e. categorization by users (tagging)f. real peopleg. connectionsh. constant updatingi. content separated from formj. equipment independence10. If you were looking for a job or wanted to build your reputation as an expert in some area related to marketing, what social media tools would you use for your personal branding strategy and why?11. How can companies utilize social media collaboration tools to be-come more competitive?12. Describe how mashups create new benefits and functionality from existing data or information.13. Describe some common ways that marketers can benefit by using social media monitoring tools.14. How will concern for individual privacy affect the growth and expansion of social networking services and other social Web applications?Explore: Online and Interactive Exercises1. Using online sources, research FacebookÕs Open Graph initiative. Make a list of ÒprosÓ and ÒconsÓ regarding these changes from the viewpoint of a Facebook user.2. Using Google to find interesting and helpful blogs:Step 1 First go to Google.com and enter a search word(s) or phrase related to the topic you are interested in.Step 2 When the results page appears, click on the word ÒNewsÓ that appears under the left side of the search window. Then, click on the word ÒToolsÓ that appears under the right side of the search window.Step 3 After you click Tools, a new row of filter words will appear. Look for the words ÒAll newsÓ. Click on ÒAll newsÓ and select Blogs from the drop-down list. This will limit the SERP list-ings to blog Web pages.Step 4 Find a blog or two that seem interesting and read a few posts. Leave comments in the response section (if available). See if the blog author or other readers reply.3. Set up an account on two different RSS readers (e.g., Digg Reader and Feedly.com) and use them to subscribe to some blogs that are of interest to you (see question 2 above for how to find blogs). Prepare a report or presentation comparing the strengths and weakness of each application.4. Using articles you can find online, prepare a report on the economic activity that takes place on Second Life. Describe how people make money in the virtual world and identify the opportunities and chal-lenges associated with making a living via Second Life.5. If you have an account on Twitter, download TweetDeck, an alter-native interface for Twitter. Use TweetDeck and prepare a brief report on the advantages or disadvantages of using this program.6. Visit the LinkedIn page for college students: students.linkedin.com. Using the information on this page, create a LinkedIn account and be-gin building your professional network. Search the Internet for addi-tional tips on using LinkedIn to find jobs and prepare a brief report on your findings.7. Using a search engine, find four examples of mashup applica-tions. Prepare a report describing each one. If possible, identify the website(s) where data are pulled from to create the application.8. Create an account on diigo.com, the social bookmarking site. Actively use it to tag and categorize Web pages that you want to re-member for future viewing. Use the search engine on diigo.com to find pages that other users have tagged. Compare the effectiveness of your searches to similar searches using Google and Yahoo.Analyze & Decide: Apply IT Concepts to Business Decisions1. Use socialmention.com to evaluate the nature of conversations people are having about three telecommunications companies: AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint. Based on the four metrics provided by Social Mention, decide which company is viewed most favorably and least favorably by the marketplace. Using Twitter search, read a sample of tweets where people discuss the companies. Can you draw any conclu-sions as to specific reasons why the companies are viewed favorably or unfavorably?2. Your boss would like you to recommend a free service for stor-ing and sharing documents in the cloud. Create accounts at Box.com and Dropbox.com. Explore each service so that you understand how it works. Make a recommendation and provide your reasons for the ser-vice you select.3. The supervisor of your department recently read a story about companies that use Second Life to conduct virtual meetings on the ser-vice. Create an account on Second Life and spend a few hours learning
236 CHAPTER 7 Web 2.0 and Social Technologyhow to use it. With a handful of other students, arrange to meet in Second Life for a brief discussion. Based on your experience, prepare a recommendation for your supervisor stating whether or not you think using Second Life for meetings would be a good idea. Justify your recommendation.4. The marketing manager in your department just read a story about the rapid growth Snapchat, a relatively new social media app. Because your company sells fashion items to women in the 18- to 34-year-old age group, the manger thinks this may be a good platform for promoting your companyÕs brand. You are asked to research the advertising and promotional opportunities on Snapchat and come up with a list of ways to promote your brand on the app. After visiting snapchat.com/ads to conduct your research, you might also want to use a search engine to find additional websites with information about advertising on Snap-chat. After collecting your information, prepare a brief memo outlining your recommendationsCase 7.2 Business Case: Facebook Helps Songkick Rock the Ticket Sales IndustryWeb 2.0 or social technology makes it possible for business to share information in mutually beneficial ways. Specifically, programming tools like APIs and SDKs make it possible for developers to create applications that will connect Facebook with other websites as well as applications that exchange data with applications on Facebook. For instance, Facebook has created several different programming tools that help organizations leverage the power social networking data for attracting and engaging customers. When IT and marketing managers understand the capabilities of FacebookÕs programs, they are better able to imagine the myriad ways to leverage the technology for engag-ing customers, promoting brands, enhancing brand reputations and reducing marketing expenses.Songkick is the worldÕs second largest seller of concert tickets, sending out over a million geo-targeted concert alerts each day via e-mail and push notifications. In a crowded industry of ticket sellers, SongkickÕs unique mission is to be the Ò. . . worldÕs leading independ-ent artist- ticketing and concert discovery platform.Ó Their strategy is to treat artists with respect, providing multiple ways for musicians and bands to promote their music, grow their fan base, and provide a simple, costÐ effective program for selling concert tickets. Their vision is simple, they want every show to sell out! For music fans, the mission is not just to sell you tickets to concerts you already know about, but to alert you to artists and events that you might not otherwise be aware of. As a busi-ness strategy, the companyÕs mission and vision are inspirational, empowering and easy to understand. However, translat-ing this simplicity into action requires a sophisticated combination of integrated technologies that rely heavily on APIs, SDKs, analytics programs, data sharing and social media.For SongkickÕs customers to find value in the concert alerts they receive, the company must understand its cus-tomer base and be able to predict the kinds of shows people are most likely to be interested in. When customers create their Songkick account prior to purchas-ing tickets, they use FacebookÕs Login instead of filling out forms with lots of questions. This not only makes it easier to set up a Songkick account, but it gives the company access to a rich set of demographic and behavioral data that will later help them make personalized rec-ommendations about artists and events. The Facebook Login feature is created by developers using the Facebook SDK, which provides tools programmerÕs use to integrate the login feature with their own plat-forms. Approximately 50% of SongkickÕs customers use the feature to create or log in to their account.To further expand their understanding of customers and their behavior, SongkickÕs developers used the Facebook SDK and the App Events Export API to connect with the Facebook Analytics for Apps program. This provided Songkick with an in-depth view of its audi-ence, their preferences, and behaviors associated with patterns of engagement and retention. Based on insights from Analytics for Apps program, Songkick was able to identify new features and ser-vices for their app that improved its value to customers. Finally, Songkick programmers used the Facebook SDK and APIs to inte-grate with the Facebook App Ads program. This program connected Songkick ads that appear on Facebook with the Songkick app, pro-viding analytics and improving customer engagement. For instance, Songkick can use what Facebook calls Deep Linking with their ads. Deep Linking makes it easier for new app installers (customers) to reach the information that originally inspired them to try the service. PeopleImages/DigitalVision/Getty Images
Case 7.3 237What this means in practice is that when a Facebook user sees a personalized Songkick ad promoting a Goo Goo Dolls concert, they will download and open the Songkick app, and be promptly taken to the app page for the Goo Goo Dolls concert, the reason they downloaded the app in the first place. Without Deep Linking, users would likely have to navigate several account setup and introductory screens before reaching the desired information. Deep Linking improves customer satisfaction, engagement, retention, and conversions.As a result of SongkickÕs integration and data sharing with Face-book programs, the company experienced 7% more purchases by people using Facebook Login and a 15% increase in sales as a result of insights gained from Analytics for Apps. Furthermore, customers acquired from the Facebook network had a 35% higher lifetime value than customers acquired from other channels.Questions1. Why is Facebook motivated to share so much data about its users with other companies as well as creating ways for users to log in into other websites with their Facebook username and password?2. What does Songkick gain by having customers use Facebook Login to create accounts and log in to their website or mobile app?3. How does FacebookÕs Deep Linking program improve customer satisfaction and increased conversions (purchases)?4. How did Songkick benefit from integrating its platform with Face-bookÕs Analytics for Apps program?5. How does Songkick use information it obtains from Facebook to effectively alert customers to artists and concert events they might not otherwise hear about? CouldnÕt they just as easily do that by sending information about all the upcoming concerts in a customerÕs geographic area?Sources: For more information, see ÒSongkick Orchestrates a Sound Growth StrategyÓ at developers.facebook.com and Songkick.com.Case 7.3 Business Case: AT&TÕs ÒIt Can WaitÓ Campaign against Distracted DrivingLaunched in 2010, AT&T has used the power of traditional and social media to change the way that people think and act about using their phones while driving. The It Can Wait campaign has grown over the years into a multipronged approach to reach new and experienced drivers from multiple age groups. Specific strategies that have been used during the life of the campaign so far include the following:Online resource center The campaign website (itcanwait.com) features downloadable resources and informational material for individuals, schools, and business organizations. The site also contains posters, educational guides, and fact sheets as well as links to videos and public service ads created for television. Recent additions to the site include an immersive, 360-view simulation of distracted driving, links to the DriveMode app (see below) and information about the organizationÕs VR tour, which uses the VR technology to illustrate the dangers of dis-tracted driving.Traditional media Campaign slogans ÒIt can waitÓ and ÒNo text is worth dying forÓ were incorporated into advertisements in print media, television, radio, and billboards. Television ads in particular were noted for their ability to convey the dramatic and emotional impact of fatal accidents resulting from dis-tracted driving.Social media Multiple social media platforms were used to pro-mote the campaignÕs message against distracted driving.¥ Social buttons on the campaignÕs website are used to post anti-distracted-driving messages to a userÕs Facebook page and Twitter feed. These same messages provided links to the campaign website, encouraging people in the userÕs network to visit the site and learn more about the issue.¥ The hash tag #ItCanWait has been appended to messages on Twitter and other social media platforms, resulting in over a bil-lion impressions during the life of the campaign.¥ Almost 130,000 people follow the campaignÕs Twitter handle, @ItCanWait. The campaign actively monitors and responds to tweets sent to @ItCanWait as well as messages with the #ItCan-Wait hashtag.¥ Television ads and videos created specifically for social media have received over 6 million views on YouTube. A documentary about distracted driving by famed director Werner Herzog has over 3.3 million views on YouTube. Campaign advocates regu-larly share these videos with their social networks on Facebook, Twitter, and other social media platforms.Online pledges To further increase engagement with various audiences, people are encouraged to make a pledge on the cam-paign website to never engage in distracted driving. To increase public commitment to their pledges, people can post a Òpledge pictureÓ declaring their support of the #ItCanWait movement. So far, over 14 million people have made the pledge. After making their pledge, people can post it to Facebook and Twitter. Research has shown that people are more likely to follow through on public commitments.The DriveMode app AT&T created a smartphone app that allows users to customize auto-generated messages that are sent in response to any texts the user receives while driving. The app has been downloaded 10 million times. While the app receives generally positive reviews, comments on the apps download sites report a range of concerns including functionality issues that have caused users to abandon the app. AT&T also makes a commercial
238 CHAPTER 7 Web 2.0 and Social Technologyversion of the app for business organizations that want to dis-courage employees from distracted driving during work.Social support and advocacy All AT&T employees take the pledge and encourage every customer they speak with to take the pledge as wellÑthatÕs 500,000 a day. In addition, the cam-paign has received public support from over 1,500 organiza-tions across the United States and numerous celebrities have attended promotional events for the campaign and use their social media networks to express support for the campaign and its message.VR Simulator The organization sponsors hundreds of events across the country each year where people have the opportunity to experience distracted driving in a 3D VR simulator developed by AT&T. Users sync their phones with the simulator, which then challenges them to operate a vehicle while reading and sending texts, with predictable outcomes.The organization regularly collects data to evaluate the impact its efforts are having on distracted driving across the country. Some positive signs include the fact that more people are more aware of the dangers of texting and driving, and most people now agree that it is unsafe to text while driving. Preliminary research in a small number of states suggests a correlation between ItCanWait campaign activities and a reduction in distracted-driv-ing-related accidents.Questions1. Visit the campaign website at itcanwait.com. After reviewing the website, describe which features you think are the most effective in terms of reducing the likelihood that people will engage in dis-tracted driving.2. Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff identified five key strategic prior-ities that companies should focus on to leverage the ground-swell. Describe how the It Can Wait campaign has made use of the ÒEnergizingÓ strategy described by Li and Bernoff.3. Describe how the It Can Wait campaign has engaged in the ÒListeningÓ strategy described by Li and Bernoff.4. Describe how the It Can Wait campaign has engaged in the ÒTalkingÓ strategy described by Li and Bernoff.5. Describe how the It Can Wait campaign has engaged in the ÒSup-portingÓ strategy described by Li and Bernoff.Sources: Herzog (2013), Schlackman (2014), AT&T (2016), Governors Highway Safety Association (2016), Kaker (2016).Referencesalexa.com. ÒAlexa Topsites.Ó June 5, 2014.AT&T. ÒThe AT&T Issue Brief Library: Promoting Safety.Ó about.att.com, August 8, 2016.Azfar, R. ÒKLM Pilots Artificial Intelligence-enabled Customer Service Responses on Social Media.Ó mobilemarketer.com, October 3, 2016.Baer, J. and A. Brown. (Hosts) ÒHow a Volcano Created a World-Class Social Media Program for KLM AirlinesÓ (Audio Podcast), convinceandconvert.com, n.d.Berners-Lee, T. ÒGiant Global Graph.Ó TimblÕs blog, Decentralized Information Group, November 2007.Carr, D. ÒIs Business Ready for Second Life?Ó Baselinemag.com, March 2007.comScore. Ò2016 U.S. Cross Platform Future in Focus.Ó comScore.com, 2016.eMarketer. ÒUS Digital Ad Spending to Surpass TV this Year.Ó eMarketer.com, September 13, 2016.Facebook. ÒSocial Plugins.Ó developers.facebook.com, June 10, 2014.Gallagher, F. ÒHow Many Users Does Google+ Really Have?Ó techtimes.com, May 6, 2015.Grigorik, I. ÒConstructing the Object Model.Ó developers.google.com, February 9, 2017.Governors Highway Safety Association. ÒAT&TÕs It Can Wait.Ó ghsa.org, 2016.Hay, M. ÒSecond Life Is Staying Alive.Ó good.is, March 26, 2015.Heathfield, S. ÒUse LinkedIn for Recruiting Employees.Ó Human resources.com, accessed, August 12, 2012.Herzog, W. ÒFrom One Second to the NextÓ Documentary Film, YouTube.com, August 7, 2013.Hutchinson, A. ÒKLM Announces Facebook Messenger Integration Ð The Next Step for Messenger Commerce.Ó socialmediatoday.com, March 30, 2016.Johnson, E. ÒIn the Shadow of Second Life, Virtual Reality Startups Say This Time ItÕll Work. Really.Ó recode.net, July 31, 2015.Kaker, R. ÒCampaign Analysis: ÔIt Can WaitÕ.Ó prezi.com, April 13, 2016.KLM. ÒKLM runs pilot with Artificial Intelligence provided by Digital-Genius.Ó news.klm.com, September 29, 2016.Koetsier, J. ÒKLMÕs 150 Social Media Customer Service Agents Gener-ate $25M in Annual Revenue.Ó venturebeat.com, May 21, 2015.Kushner, D. ÒBeyond Second Life: Philip RosedaleÕs Gutsy Plan for a New Virtual-Reality Empire.Ó spectrum.ieee.org, January 30, 2017.Lee, D. ÒHow Twitter changed the world, hashtag-by-hashtag.Ó bbc.com, November 7, 2013.Levine, R., C. Locke, D. Searls, and D. Weinberger. The Cluetrain Mani-festo: The End of Business as Usual. Cambridge, MA: Perseus, 2000.Li, C. and J. Bernoff. Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Business Press, 2008.Metz, R. ÒSecond Life Is Back for a Third Life, This Time in Virtual Real-ity.Ó technologyreview.com, January 27, 2017.Outlaw, S. ÒWhat Type of Crowdfunding Is Best for You?Ó Entrepreneur.com, October 3, 2013.Peterson, T. ÒFacebook Owns Social Login Scene, But GoogleÕs Creep-ing Up.Ó adage.com, January 28, 2016.
References 239Pierce, D. ÒGoogle+ as We Knew It Is Dead, But Google Is Still a Social Network.Ó wired.com, March 2, 2015.Schlackman, E. ÒCase Study: AT&TÕs ÔIt Can WaitÕ No Texting and Driv-ing Campaign.Ó sites.psu.edu, July 23, 2014.Simson, M. ÒKLM Aims to Double Social Media ROI after €25 Million Haul in 2014.Ó runwaygirlnetwork.com, February 7, 2015.Talkwalker.com. ÒSocial Media Analytics for KLM.Ó n.d., Retrieved March 15, 2017.techterms.com. ÒJavascript.Ó June 10, 2014.ter Haar, G. ÒWhat Has KLM Learned From 5 Years of Social Media Ser-vice?Ó blog.klm.com, April 17, 2015.van Kesteren, A., J. Aubourg, J. Song, and H. Steen (eds.). ÒXML Http Request Level 1: W3C Working Draft 30 January 2014.Ó W3.org, January 2014.W3C.ÒXML Essentials.Ó World Wide Web Consortium, W3.org, 2015.Wikipedia. ÒAjax (Programming).Ó June 10, 2014.Wikipedia. ÒCrowdfunding.Ó June 10, 2014.
240CHAPTER 8IntroductionThis is both an exciting and challenging time to be a retailer. Traditional brick-and-mortar stores face increasingly intense competition from other traditional retailers as well as competitors in the online and mobile retail channels. Consumers, armed with mobile devices, have more information than ever before about products, prices, and alternative places to buy products. A Retail, E-commerce, and Mobile Commerce TechnologyCHAPTER OUTLINECase 8.1 Opening Case: MacyÕs Races Ahead with Mobile Retail Strategies 8.1 Retailing Technology 8.2 Business-to-Consumer (B2C) E-commerce 8.3 Business-to-Business (B2B) E-commerce and E-procurement 8.4 Mobile Commerce 8.5 Mobile Transactions and Financial ServicesCase 8.2 Business Case: CheggÕs Mobile StrategyCase 8.3 Video Case: Searching with Pictures Using MVSLEARNING OUTCOMES8.1 Describe how the concept of omni-channel retailing is changing the nature of shopping for consumers.8.2 Identify five key challenges faced by online retail businesses in the Business-to-Consumer (B2C) marketplace.8.3 Identify various ways that e-businesses are facilitating trade between buyers and sellers in the Business-to-Business (B2B) marketplace.8.4 Understand how mobile technologies are creating opportunities for new forms of commerce in established industries.8.5 Recognize how mobile payment methods benefit both consumers and retailers.
Introduction 241Case 8.1 Opening CaseMacyÕs Races Ahead with Mobile Retail StrategiesMobile devices, particularly smartphones, have become a key tool in the arsenal of modern-day shoppers. Using barcode scanner apps, customers in brick-and-mortar retail stores can quickly compare prices with other stores and online retailers. They can access product information, check expert and consumer product reviews, and even purchase products from online retailers. This practice, called show-rooming, represents a significant threat to many traditional retailers who continue to ignore the impact of mobile consumer behavior.Showrooming is frustrating to retailers who bear the costs of pro-viding sales support, product inventory and maintaining a store front, only to see customers purchase products at a lower price from an online retailer with lower overhead costs. At one point, Target asked several of its vendors to create special products, only sold in Target stores, in an attempt to stifle consumer comparison shopping via mobile devices (Zimmerman, 2012). But other retailers, recognizing the pervasive nature of mobile shopping trends, are developing strategies to embrace and engage the mobile shopper.Department store giant MacyÕs is recognized as a pioneer when it comes to using mobile technologies to enhance the shopping experience of its customers (Table 8.1). The online trade magazine Advertising Age says that MacyÕs is one of the most innovative when it comes to digital, social, and mobile technology (Figure 8.1). MacyÕs uses in-store displays to encourage customers to use mobile devices while shopping. The Back- stage Pass Program is designed to enhance the in-store shopping expe- rience at MacyÕs. Using quick response (QR) codes and short message service (SMS) technology, customers can easily access fun and informa- tive 30-second videos that highlight the retailerÕs celebrity designers and fashion experts (see related videos at youtube.com/Macys). Mobile shop- pers can access the videos by scanning the QR codes posted on displays in each department. Shoppers who do not have a QR code scanner can access the videos by texting a special keyword to MacyÕs using codes sup- plied on the displays. Backstage Pass is an example of what marketers call a mobile display strategy. It is supported by an integrated communi- cations campaign involving traditional television and print media adver- tising. MacyÕs can measure customer interest in the program by tracking the number of times customers watch the videos. Based on the initial suc- cess of the program, MacyÕs increased spending on mobile display strate- gies by 70%.Another key mobile strategy used by MacyÕs is the SMS database strategy, growing its list of customers who have opted in to receive dis-counts and special offers via text message. According to Martine Rear-don, executive vice president of national marketing at MacyÕs, New York, KNSY/Corbis/Getty ImagesChris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg/GettyImagesFrancesco Carta fotografo/Moment Open/Getty Imagesparticular source of frustration for traditional retailers is the practice of showrooming, where consumers visit a store to look at merchandise, seek information and advice from salespeople, maybe even try on clothes, and then leave the store to make their purchases online from a company that offers lower prices.Online retailers also face significant challenges. Maintaining an e-commerce website requires ongoing investment in new technologies designed to enhance the online shopping experience, increase operational and logistical efficiency, as well as maintain high levels of cus-tomer satisfaction. Thanks to social media, dissatisfied customers now have numerous forums for informing others about frustrating experiences they might have with a company. It can be dif-ficult meeting customer expectations that seem to grow more and more demanding every day.Companies that are branching out into mobile commerce face challenges as well. For years, industry pundits have said that mobile commerce, or m-commerce, is going to be huge. But those predictions have failed to materialize for a number of reasons, leaving some to question their investments in mobile technology. However, there are signs that mobile devices have finally begun to make an impact on retailing in noticeable ways. Nevertheless, the question still remains whether or not this emerging channel will become as big a force as some have predicted for years. In this chapter, you will read about the forces that are shaping consumer shopping behavior and the ways that traditional, online, and mobile retailers are using technology to address the many challenges they face.Quick response (QR) code A machine-readable code typically used to store a link to a URL or Web address that can be read by a mobile device.Barcode A machine-readable code consisting of numbers and a pattern of thick and thin lines that can be scanned to identify the object on which the code appears.Showrooming The practice of examining products in a traditional retail store, sometimes with the help of a salesperson, and then purchasing the product online.Short message service (SMS) A technology used to send and receive text messages on mobile devices via a telecommunications network.
242 CHAPTER 8 Retail, E-commerce, and Mobile Commerce Technology© gpointstudio/Shutterstock FIGURE 8.1 MacyÕs encourages shoppers to use mobile technology in its stores through a variety of strategies, including mobile videos that describe merchandise, benefits from mobile check-in, and fun augmented-reality apps. TABLE 8.1 Opening Case OverviewCompanyMacyÕs, Inc.The businessMacyÕs is a premier department store retailer with a significant online e-commerce website and mobile shopping app.Product linesMacyÕs department stores offer a range of products, including fashionable clothing, jewelry, footwear, furniture, bedding, small kitchen appliances, cookware, and other household goods.Business challengesImplementation of an omni-channel retail concept that allows con-sumers to freely and seamlessly engage with MacyÕs through a traditional storefront, e-commerce website, or mobile technology.Digital technologyMacyÕs embraces technology to enhance the shopping experience through the use of QR codes and SMS text messaging, mobile videos to provide information about merchandise, and an SMS database for distribution of mobile coupons and marketing communications.TaglinesÒThe Magic of MacyÕs,Ó ÒMacyÕs, way to shop!Óthe retailer is including SMS short codes in most of its printed coupons to encourage customers to opt in to receive coupons and other offers via text message. MacyÕs customers have responded well to these kinds of promotions, so growing the list of people who opt in to this program should be easy.With its mobile check-in strategy, MacyÕs has partnered with Four-square and Shopkick to create check-in programs that reinforce shop-ping behavior at retail outlets. Mobile customers using the Shopkick app on their phones receive points on their account just for visiting a MacyÕs store. They may also receive special offers from MacyÕs via the Shopkick app when they visit particular departments or scan featured merchandise. The points can be redeemed for restaurant vouchers, iTunes gift cards, and gift cards from a variety of participating retailers. MacyÕs partnered with Foursquare and a charitable foundation cre-ated by insurance company Aflac. For every consumer who checks-in at MacyÕs via the Foursquare app, Aflac donates $1 to its charity, The Aflac Cancer Center and Blood Disorders Service of ChildrenÕs Health-care of Atlanta. Aflac made the same offer to customers who checked in while watching MacyÕs famous Thanksgiving Day Parade, using an entertainment check-in service called GetGlue.com (now called tvtag.com). These kinds of partnerships and programs not only reinforce store shopping behavior but also enhance MacyÕs positive brand repu-tation among target consumers.Via the mobile payment strategy, customers can pay for products at MacyÕs using Google Wallet, a mobile payment app (Figure 8.2). At the register, customers simply tap their phones on a Near-Field Communi-cations (NFC) device in order to transfer funds to MacyÕs. Google Wallet is one of several approaches to mobile payment competing to become the dominant alternative to traditional credit cards. Mobile payment is expected to become widespread in the near future as banks, retailers, and telecommunications companies gain experience with the technol-ogy. (Read more about mobile payment in Section 8.5.)In an augmented reality strategy, during the Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday season, MacyÕs runs a program to benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Over the past few years, MacyÕs has donated $1 for every customer who visits a store and ÒmailsÓ a letter to Santa. In 2011, MacyÕs made that visit even more fun, inviting customers to take pictures of their children in special holiday displays using augmented reality apps Augmented reality A technology that superimposes a computer-generated image onto an image of the real world to provide information or entertainment.
Retailing Technology 243© LDProd/iStockphoto FIGURE 8.2 Customers at MacyÕs can pay for purchases with their smartphones by using a mobile wallet app. 8.1 Retailing TechnologyLife is not easy for managers in the retail sector these days. The challenges faced by retailers have never been more complex, frustrating, and fraught with peril. Consumers are demanding, price-conscious, and easily swayed by competitors. Technology is both a blessing and a curse. Countless new and innovative technology ÒsolutionsÓ to retailing problems are offered by a dizzying array of vendors. Many of the newest technologies promise to give retailers a competi-tive edge in the marketplace but are unproven. Budgets for technology are limited, and making the wrong decision can lead to financial consequences, operational failures, and lost custom-ers. However, because of intense competition, retailers cannot afford to be too conservative, or they risk losing out to competitors with technologies that enhance the shopping experience, reduce costs, integrate sales channels, and improve recordkeeping, data collection, and analysis of key performance indicators (KPIs).Keeping Up with Consumer Demands and BehaviorUnderstanding and responding to consumer needs and behavior is the key to survival for the modern retailer. The challenge, however, is increasingly complex as retailers are confronted with a number of difficult industrywide trends and changing consumer behavior (Galgey and Pattinson, 2013).Empowered Price Sensitivity Consumers have always been concerned about price. In todayÕs retail environment, the consumer is more empowered than ever to find the lowest that inserted one of the animated characters associated with the cam-paign into the picture. Pictures could then be uploaded into a holiday card template, shared by e-mail, or posted to the customerÕs Facebook page.While other retailers are still trying to understand mobile consumer behavior, MacyÕs is already adapting to a new retail environment where increasing numbers of consumers are using handheld devices. It has shown that traditional brick-and-mortar retailers can enhance the in-store shopping experience using mobile technologies in a variety of ways.Questions1. Describe how each of MacyÕs mobile retail strategies enhances the in-store shopping experience for customers.2. What will most customers think about TargetÕs attempt to make mobile price comparison more difficult?3. How does MacyÕs benefit from the use of location-based apps such as Foursquare and Shopkick?4. Why is it important that MacyÕs get customers to Òopt inÓ to its program before sending promotional text messages?5. Does MacyÕs Backstage Pass Program really add value to the cus-tomer, or is it just a ÒgimmickÓ with short-term benefits?6. Traditional retailers spend a considerable amount of money to maintain an inventory of products and provide salespeople to service in-store customers. Explain whether or not the practice of showrooming is unethical. What can retailers do to respond to the showrooming trend?Sources: Compiled from Zimmerman (2012), Tsirulnik (2011), MacyÕs (2011), Johnson (2011), Kats (2012).
244 CHAPTER 8 Retail, E-commerce, and Mobile Commerce Technologyprice available for a product. Using the Web and mobile technology, consumers can look up information about alternative products and prices from a variety of local and online retailers using a mobile device. Retailers need clear strategies to respond to the empow-ered consumer by price matching or finding ways to offer greater value.Nonlinear Search and Influence Patterns The path by which consumers pursue pur-chases today is often varied and unpredictable. In simpler times, consumers were largely influenced by mass media advertising that drove them to brick-and-mortar stores for pur-chase. While things were perhaps never quite that simple, consumers today are influenced by a range of new communications channels including social media, mobile ads, e-mail, search marketing, and other digital communications.Channel Hopping Just as consumers are influenced by a greater number of communica-tions channels, their options for purchasing products have increased. Consumers can now purchase products through traditional retailers, online, and via mobile devices and apps. Some experts are beginning to view social media as a potential retail channel called social commerce. For instance, Dell sells millions of dollars of refurbished computer equipment each year through its @delloutlet Twitter account. The manner in which consumers use each channel varies. Some consumers will use a brick-and-mortar store to gather informa-tion about a product but purchase it online. Others will do their research online but prefer to purchase the product through a traditional retailer. Some may plan to purchase the product at a store, but if they find that the product they want is not available, they will buy it from their mobile device while in the store. The many combinations of shopping chan-nel, communications channel, and stage of the shopping process are enormous and make strategic planning a challenge. Modern retailers will increasingly rely on data analytics to distinguish patterns or trends in consumer shopping behavior across channels to identify the best ways to satisfy customer needs.Digital Immigrants, Natives, and Dependents Retailers have long been aware of the dif-ference between digital immigrants and digital natives. Digital natives are the first genera-tion to have grown up surrounded by digital devices (i.e., computers, smartphones, digital cameras, video recorders, etc.) and Internet connectivity. They are comfortable using tech-nology to move easily between various retail channels to optimize their purchasing on price, convenience, and desire for instant gratification. Digital immigrants, however, are older, and although they are increasingly comfortable with technology, they fundamentally view retail channels as separate and distinct. They are much less likely than natives to incorporate mobile technology into their shopping behavior. Digital dependents represent the emerg-ing generation of young people who are growing up in a world of broadband connections, constant connectivity, and related technology and become uncomfortable if they do not have access to it. This generation will place even greater demands on retailers, expecting to use technology to accomplish all facets of the shopping experience. Brick-and-mortar retail-ers will continue to play an important role in the lives of this generation, but they will expect in-store shopping to be fully integrated with the technology they have come to depend on.Need for Convenience As economic and social factors lead to more stressful lives, con-sumers will be looking for products and shopping channels that reduce the impact on their time and financial resources, while satisfying their demand for immediate gratification and desirable goods and services.The Omni-Channel Retailing ConceptAs the retailing world began to evolve as a result of digital technology and the Internet, new chan-nels emerged that were initially thought to be separate and distinct. Most retailers and a fairly large segment of the consumer market still view online shopping (e-commerce) and mobile commerce (m-commerce) channels as competing with traditional brick-and-mortar stores.As you read in the opening case, Target feels threatened by customers who showroom its stores using mobile devices. However, as businesses learn about the full potential of mobile and other digital technologies, the distinction between the newer channels and in-store retailing is
Retailing Technology 245beginning to blur. While most businesses currently operate their e-commerce and mobile chan-nels separately from the traditional retail channel, it is expected that strategies integrating the customer experience across channels will emerge, resulting in what the National Retail Federa-tion (2011) refers to as the omni-channel retailing approach.As illustrated in Figure 8.3, many businesses operate separate retail channels. For instance, in-store product prices may be different from those the customer finds on the com-panyÕs e-commerce website and direct mail catalog. Records of customer purchases from the e-commerce site may not be available to service personnel assisting the customer at the store level. But retail strategy is evolving. The ultimate goal is to offer consumers multiple brand-based ÒtouchpointsÓ that leverage the strengths of each channel. For instance, a company with a truly integrated or omni-channel strategy might spark a customerÕs interest using mo-bile advertising or direct mail catalogs. The customer then visits a brick-and-mortar store to examine the product firsthand and speak to a salesperson. In-store purchases might be made using one of the mobile payment methods discussed later in this chapter. If the store does not have the particular size or color of the product desired, the customer might order it by access-ing the storeÕs e-commerce site with his or her smartphone by scanning a QR code placed stra-tegically on an in-store display. The product would then be delivered through the mail. Product returns could be handled through the mail or returned to the store, depending on what is most convenient for the customer. Customer service reps in a call center would have a record of the customerÕs purchase regardless of which channel the transaction had been completed through. The omni-channel strategy will also take into consideration the potential impact of social media, whereby customers interact with the brand on sites such as Facebook or Twitter and share brand experiences with others in their social network.Single ChannelThe LegacyConsumer contact withretailers limited to singlechannel.Retailers only had a singleÒtouch pointÓ with which toconnect with consumers.Retailers operate separate channelsas independent ÒsilosÓ that sometimes compete for consumerattention.Retailers have a single view of theconsumer, but continue to operateseparate channels as silos.Retailers leverage the functionality ofeach channel as well as their singleview of the customer to provideoptimal overall experience.Customers enjoy an integrated,value-added experience with brandacross multiple channels.Customers see multiple but separate channels with which they can interactwith the same brand.Customers see multiple retailchannels available for acquiringgoods and servies.The RealityThe AspirationNirvanaMulti-ChannelCross-ChannelOmni-Channel FIGURE 8.3 Retail strategy is evolving toward an omni-channel approach (adapted from National Retail Federation, 2011).Questions1. Describe the factors that influence consumer shopping behavior today.2. What does the concept of digital native, digital immigrant, and digital dependent help us to under-stand about peopleÕs use of technology during shopping activities?3. Why are retailers likely to view technology as both a blessing and a curse?4. Describe how an omni-channel retailer is likely to be different from a traditional, single-channel retailer?
246 CHAPTER 8 Retail, E-commerce, and Mobile Commerce Technology 8.2 Business-to-Consumer (B2C) E-commerceDuring the late 1990s, the idea of purchasing things online was still a novel concept. People who purchased books and other low-priced items from websites were seen as innovators. Nowadays, shopping for things online and finding the best deal by comparing online prices with those in brick-and-mortar stores are common consumer behaviors. In the past decade, the variety of goods and services available through e-commerce sites has skyrocketed. If you look through older textbooks in the IT field, you will find authors predicting that e-commerce will only be successful with low-priced consumer goods. But we now know that this is simply not the case. People today purchase everything from toothpaste to cars and diamond rings online. E-commerce in the B2B sector is even larger than it is in the B2C marketplace.Retail sales via online channels, financial services, travel services, and digital products (e.g., music- and movie-streaming services) are widely popular forms of B2C commerce. The most well-known B2C site is Amazon.com, whose IT developments received U.S. patents that keep it ahead of competition. Many of these are described in IT at Work 8.1.Several of the leading online service industries are banking, trading of securities (stocks, bonds), and employment, travel, and real estate services.Online BankingOnline banking includes various banking activities conducted via the Internet instead of at a physical bank location. Online banking, also called direct banking, offers capabilities ranging from paying bills to applying for a loan. Customers can check balances and transfer funds at any time of day. For banks, it offers an inexpensive alternative to branch banking. Transaction costs are about 2 cents per transaction versus $1.07 at a physical branch.Most brick-and-mortar conventional banks provide online banking services and use e-commerce as a major competitive strategy. Customers are aware that if they bank exclu-sively with a brick-and-mortar institution, they may be missing out on high-paying investment options or competitive loan rates that easily undercut those of many traditional banking entities. For an illustration of how online banks operate differently than traditional banks, see IT at Work 8.2.International and Multiple-Currency BankingInternational banking and the ability to handle trading in multiple currencies are critical for international trade. Electronic fund transfer (EFT) and electronic letters of credit are impor-tant services in international banking. An example of support for e-commerce global trade is provided by TradeCard (tradecard.com). TradeCard offers a software-as-a-service (SaaS) model that provides supply chain collaboration and a trade finance compliance platform.Although some international retail purchasing can be done by giving a credit card number, other transactions may require cross-border banking support. For example, Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank (HSBC) has developed a special system, HSBCnet, to provide online banking in 60 countries. Using this system, the bank has leveraged its reputation and infrastructure in the developing economies of Asia to rapidly become a major international bank without devel-oping an extensive new branch network.Online RecruitingMost companies and government agencies advertise job openings, accept rŽsumŽs, and take applications via the Internet. The online job market is especially effective and active for technology-oriented jobs. While sites such as dice.com and monster.com can still be Electronic fund transfer (EFT) A transfer of funds from one bank account to another over a computerized network.
Business-to-Consumer (B2C) E-commerce 247IT at Work 8.1Amazon.comÕs IT Patents Create Competitive EdgeEntrepreneur and e-commerce pioneer Jeff Bezos envisioned the huge potential for retail sales over the Internet and selected books for his e-commerce venture. In July 1995, Bezos started Amazon.com, offering books via an electronic catalog from its website. Key features offered by Amazon.com were broad selection, low prices, easy searching and ordering, useful product information and personalization, secure payment systems, and efficient order fulfillment. Early on, recognizing the importance of order fulfillment, Amazon.com invested hundreds of millions of dollars in building physical warehouses designed for shipping small pack-ages to hundreds of thousands of customers.Amazon has continually revised its business model by improving the customerÕs experience. For example, customers can personalize their Amazon accounts and manage orders online with the patented One-Click order feature. This personalized service includes an electronic wallet (e-wallet), which enables shoppers to place an order in a secure manner without the need to enter their address, credit card number, and so forth, each time they shop. One-Click also allows customers to view their order status and make changes on orders that have not yet entered the shipping pro-cess. To emphasize its large inventory of books, Amazon obtained registered trademarks for its retail slogans: ÒEarthÕs Biggest Selec-tionÓ and ÒIf ItÕs in Print, ItÕs in Stock.ÓIn addition, Amazon added services and alliances to attract more customers and increase sales. In January 2002, Amazon.com declared its first-ever profit during the 2001 fourth quarter; 2003 was the first year it cleared a profit in each quarter.Amazon has heavily invested in its IT infrastructure and obtained patents for much of the technology that powers its web-site. The following list of patents gives a glimpse into the legal side of the e-commerce giant and explains why numerous major retailers, such as Sears and Sony, have used Amazon.com as their sales portal.¥ 6,525,747: Method and system for conducting a discussion relating to an item¥ 6,029,141: Internet-based customer referral system, also known as the Affiliate program¥ 5,999,924: Method for producing sequenced queries¥ 5,963,949: Method for data gathering around forms and search barriers¥ 5,960,411: Method and system for placing a purchase order via a communications network (One-Click purchase)¥ 5,826,258: Method and apparatus for structuring the querying and interpretation of semistructured information¥ 5,727,163: Secure method for communicating credit card data when placing an order on a nonsecure network¥ 5,715,399: Secure method and system for communicating a list of credit card numbers over a nonsecure networkAmazon launched the Kindle e-reader in 2007. Its success dem-onstrated the viability of the e-book market and led to the entry of numerous competitors, such as Barnes & NobleÕs Nook and the Apple iPad. E-books now account for about 30% of all books sold, and AmazonÕs share of the e-book market is 65% (Bercovici, 2014). Since 2011, Amazon has sold more e-books than print books (Miller and Bosman, 2011).In mid-2010, Amazon started rolling out a software upgrade for Kindle, adding the ability for users to share e-book passages with others on Facebook and Twitter. The new social networking feature in Version 2.5 adds another Web link to the standard Kindle and the larger Kindle DX, as Amazon finds itself in an increasingly competitive market because of the iPadÕs features. The iPad is designed for reading digital books, watching online video, listening to music, and Web browsing, making it more of a tablet device than simply an e-reader. Amazon also created the Kindle app that can be used on a wide range of mobile devices, so now customers can purchase and read e-books from Amazon without having to purchase a Kindle reader.Finally, as you read in Chapter 6, Amazon has been a pioneer in the development of recommendation engines designed to sug-gest products to customers based on their purchase history and shopping behavior. AmazonÕs recommendation system is consid-ered among the best in the industry.IT at Work Questions1. Why is order fulfillment critical to AmazonÕs success? 2. Why did Amazon patent One-Click and other IT infrastruc-ture developments? 3. How has Amazon adapted the Kindle to new technologies? 4. Why would other retailers form an alliance with Amazon.com?Sources: Compiled from Gonsalves (2010), Rappa (2010), Bercovici (2014), Miller and Bosman (2011).Electronic wallet (e-wallet) A software application that can store encrypted information about a userÕs credit cards, bank accounts, and other information necessary to complete electronic transactions, eliminating the need to re-enter the information during the transaction.helpful, job seekers nowadays are employing a variety of social media tools, including the use of LinkedIn.com, to develop a network of contacts and establish an online reputation. A number of studies suggest that over 95% of recruiters use LinkedIn to identify prospective job candidates. Some candidates have used blogging as a way of creating a personal brand, establishing themselves as an expert in a particular area by sharing content that reflects their professional interests, expertise, and insight. For candidates that wish to employ this strategy without the hassle of maintaining their own personal blogs, LinkedIn provides a forum called LinkedIn Pulse. In many countries, governments must advertise job openings on the Internet.
248 CHAPTER 8 Retail, E-commerce, and Mobile Commerce TechnologyIT at Work 8.2Ally Bank Ð Building Trust and Confidence OnlineA Crisis of Confidence in Consumer BankingWhile the first Internet-only bank, or direct bank, appeared in the mid-1980s, it wasnÕt until around 2010 that these online institutions became mainstream. Some have attributed general consumer frustra-tion resulting from the 2008 economic crisis with generating consumer interest in new, agile banking institutions that appear to be more responsive to consumer needs for convenience and customer support.Banks have historically built their reputations on trust and consumer confidence that they would act ethically, protect con-sumersÕ money, and make customer interests a priority. However, the financial crisis of 2008 led to large-scale consumer mistrust and frustration with traditional banks and financial services companies. Banking is now considered one of the least trustworthy industries by consumers (Edelman, 2013, OÕConnell, 2013). Consumers also believe that irresponsible behavior by banking organizations was a primary cause of the economic meltdown that led to high levels of unemployment and fiscal uncertainty in the United States and across the globe (The Financial Brand, 2013).Many banks only made matters worse during this period when they instituted a number of business practices that further alienated consumers (OÕConnell, 2013). During a time when con-sumers were already frustrated with financial institutions because of the economic crisis, many banks hiked interest rates on loans, reduced the interest rate they paid on consumer savings and checking accounts, made it more difficult for consumers to open credit accounts, imposed new types of fees on consumer services, and oftentimes failed to transparently disclose information about fees and interest rates in promotional messages and other forms of communication with consumers. As a result, consumer confidence in the banking industry dropped to an all-time low following the 2008 financial crisis (Gallup, 2014). See Figure 8.4.In an effort to take advantage of widespread consumer frus-tration and dissatisfaction with traditional banking companies, a number of new, smaller, and more agile banks are moving to offer alternative approaches to consumer banking services. Ally Bank is a popular Internet-only bank that is widely recognized for its suc-cess in developing a business model with significant appeal to retail banking customers.Overview of Ally BankAlly Bank, based in Midvale, Utah, is a subsidiary of Ally Financial, formerly GMAC, the financial unit of General Motors Corporation. Since its launch in 2009, Ally Bank has worked hard to create a public image that differentiates itself from business practices that caused consumers to mistrust and grow frustrated with traditional banks and financial service corporations. AllyÕs marketing commu-nications messages emphasize that it:¥ Puts customer needs first.¥ Offers consumers smart banking alternatives with no hidden fees and higher interest rates on savings and investment accounts.¥ Is friendly, transparent, and easy to work with, unlike large, fee-happy banks.¥ Is new, innovative, fun and offers an attractive alternative to traditional banking corporations.What Makes Ally Bank Different?Apart from a brand image that differentiates Ally Bank from its com-petitors, the company uses technology to distinguish itself in three important ways:1. The company is part of a growing group of Internet-only or direct banks. Instead of brick-and-mortar bank branches, Ally BankÕs customers use the Web to access their accounts, make transactions, and monitor their funds.2. Unlike other banks that have been slow to embrace social media, Ally Bank is recognized as a leader in the banking industry for its use of social media to engage consumers.3. Ally Bank offers customers mobile banking apps to make doing business with the company even more convenient.0.00%*percent of consumers who indicated a Ògreat dealÓ or Òquite a lotÓ of confidence in banks10.00%20.00%30.00%40.00%50.00%60.00%70.00%1979198119831984198519861987198819891990199119921993199419951996199719981999200020012002200320042005200620072008200920102011201220132014Consumer confidence in banking industry* FIGURE 8.4 Consumer confidence in the banking industry from 1979 to 2014. Source: Gallup, 2014.
Business-to-Consumer (B2C) E-commerce 249Internet banks provide customers with the convenience of 24/7 banking services through the Web. Consumers access their account information using a computer, tablet, or smartphone. Deposits are made by scanning or photographing checks and transferring the image to the bank. Checks can also be mailed to the bank. Internet banks typically offer savings and checking accounts, certificates of deposit, retirement accounts, and various types of loans and mortgages. Because Internet banks do not bear the cost of maintaining physical branch offices, they often offer customers better interest rates and lower fees compared to traditional banks. To retrieve cash, customers use ATM machines. Many Internet banks reimburse customers for fees they incur when using the ATM machines of other banks.Social MediaTraditional banks have been reluctant to utilize social media chan-nels for engaging consumers for fear of violating long-standing banking regulations that govern disclosures and consumer pri-vacy. Given the current level of consumer frustration, many banks are probably also hesitant about what their customers are likely to say about them through comments, ratings, and reviews on social media. This hesitation to embrace new media has created an oppor-tunity for upstart banking organizations such as Ally Bank. Since the Internet bank lacks a physical presence, social media is the primary channel for interacting with customers in ways that promote trust, confidence, and loyalty, key ingredients for maintaining long-term financial relationships.Ally Bank is recognized as an industry leader when it comes to its innovative use of social media. According to Smith (2014), Ally Bank excels in three areas of social media:¥ Communicating the brand via social channels¥ Using data to drive social marketing decisions¥ Cross-platform integration of marketing strategiesExamples of AllyÕs social media marketing include using Twitter to offer personal finance advice. Ally has also teamed up with Bankrate.com to sponsor a monthly, hour-long TweetChat (discussion group) called #AllyBRchat, where participants discuss a range of personal finance issues. The firmÕs Facebook page is used to engage consumers with links to AllyÕs ÒStraight Talk Blog,Ó opinion polls, and educational videos. On Ally BankÕs YouTube channel, visitors will find installments of financial advice programs with titles such as ÒAlly Bank Financial Etiquette,Ó ÒDiscovering Retirement,Ó and ÒBehind the Scenes with Kiplinger.Ó Across all of these social platforms, Ally Bank offers consumers information, advice, and tools by posting over 1,500 pieces of content every month (Tejwani, 2012).Ally BankÕs Mobile StrategyAlly BankÕs adoption of mobile technology follows the bankÕs philos-ophy of putting the customer first and creating the most convenient ways for them to access and manage their money. According to Car-rie Sumlin, a Digital Deposits Executive at Ally Bank, the companyÕs goal with both mobile and Web technology is to make sure that all applications live up to the promise of transparency, simplicity, and ease of use (Yurcan, 2014). First introduced in April 2012, AllyÕs mobile apps offer a wide range of functionality including account management, bill payment, fund transfers to external banks, and a tool for finding ATM and cash-back locations. Managers at Ally Bank are constantly evaluating customer reaction to the mobile apps by monitoring how the apps are used, which devices are being used, and customer feedback collected through social media, Web-based consumer surveys, and calls to their customer service center.ResultsIn a 2015 study of the top 100 banks, Ally Bank was ranked #1 for its use of social media. The study reported that Ally demonstrated the highest level of engagement compared to other banks. Customers found a series of posts about DeEtte Sauer, who became a competi-tive swimmer and adopted a healthier lifestyle after retiring, particu-larly interesting. The company used Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube videos to tell her story. More than 60,000 people responded to the series by liking, commenting, or sharing Ally BankÕs posts. ÒOur goal was to engage consumers in a dialogue by featuring real-life retirees and their decisive financial turning points and actions that enabled their current retirement lifestyle,Ó according to a bank spokesperson (McCormick, 2016).Ally Bank was rated among the best in the nation by the Pew Charitable Trusts for its use of best disclosure practices, evidence that the company is succeeding in its goal to be transparent about fees and other information important to consumers (Malone, 2014).Ally Bank is regularly recognized by organizations and publica-tions such as Money Magazine, Huffington Post, Kiplinger, Forester Research, and Bank Tracker as being among the best banks in the industry, providing the best banking website, and providing an excel-lent customer experience. For an extensive list of awards and recog-nitions, see the Media CenterÑAwards and Recognitions page on the Allybank.com website.ConclusionAlly Bank is clearly an innovator and a disruptive competitor in an otherwise tradition-bound industry that has not always been respon-sive to consumer needs. The company has distinguished itself by its innovative, technology-driven approach to providing financial ser-vices, a provocative and engaging marketing and branding strategy, and an ability to communicate with consumers through social media channels. In the short time that Ally Bank has been in business, it has attracted over 825,000 customers, manages $45 billion in retail deposits, and achieves customer satisfaction levels of over 90% (Ally Financial, 2014). It is recognized as a leader in the direct banking seg-ment of the consumer banking industry.IT at Work Questions1. Visit Ally BankÕs Facebook page. Identify examples of how the company speaks in an authentic or real voice to its customers.2. How has Ally Bank attempted to take advantage of negative consumer sentiment toward traditional banks in the industry?3. As Ally Bank develops its mobile banking service, what guides the companyÕs development of the necessary technological applications?4. Visit Ally BankÕs YouTube channel. After reviewing video clips of AllyÕs past advertising campaigns, how would you describe its brand image?5. Visit Allybank.com and review the information about its banking services. Do you think that Internet-only banks will eventually attract a significant number of customers away from traditional banks?
250 CHAPTER 8 Retail, E-commerce, and Mobile Commerce TechnologyIssues in Online RetailingDespite the tremendous growth of online retailers, many face challenges that can interfere with business growth. Major issues include the following:1. Resolving channel conflict Sellers that are click-and-mortar companies, such as LeviÕs or GM, face a conflict with their regular wholesale and retail distributors when they circum-vent those distributors by selling online directly to customers. (These distributors are other businesses that carry the companyÕs product.) This situation is called channel conflict because it is a conflict between an online selling channel and physical selling channels. Channel conflict has forced some companies to limit their B2C efforts or not to sell direct online. An alternative approach is to try to collaborate in some way with the existing distributors whose services may be restructured. For example, an auto company could allow customers to configure a car online but require that the car be picked up from a dealer, where customers could also arrange financing, warranties, and service.2. Resolving conflicts within click-and-mortar organizations When an established company sells online directly to customers, it creates conflict with its own offline opera-tions. Conflicts may arise in areas such as pricing of products and services, allocation of resources (e.g., advertising budget), and logistics services provided by the offline activities to the online activities (e.g., handling of returns of items bought online). To minimize this type of conflict, companies may separate the online division from the traditional division. The downside is that separation can increase expenses and reduce the synergy between the two organizational parts.3. Managing order fulfillment and logistics Online retailers face tough order fulfillment and logistics problems when selling online because of the need to design systems to accept and process a huge volume of small orders, to physically pick items from ware-house shelves and put them into boxes, to be sure that the correct labels are applied, and to accept returns. The return process is referred to as reverse logistics.4. Determining viability and risk of online retailers Many pure online retailers went bankrupt in the dot.com era, the result of problems with cash flow, customer acquisition, order fulfillment, and demand forecasting. Online competition, especially in commodity-type products such as CDs, toys, books, or groceries, became very fierce due to the ease of entry into the marketplace. As PorterÕs (2008) five competitive forces model explains, low entry barriers intensify competition in an industry. So a problem most new and estab-lished online retailers face is to determine how long to operate while you are still losing money and how to finance those losses.5. Identifying appropriate revenue (business) models One early dot.com model was to generate enough revenue from advertising to keep the business afloat until the cus-tomer base reached critical mass. This model did not always work. Too many dot.coms were competing for too few advertising dollars, which went mainly to a small number of well-known sites such as AOL, MSN, Google, and Yahoo. In addition, there was a Òchicken-and-eggÓ problem: Sites could not get advertisers to come if they did not have enough visitors. To succeed in e-commerce, it is necessary to identify appropriate revenue models and modify those models as the market changes.Online Business and Marketing PlanningOnline marketing planning is very similar to any other marketing plan. It is not a best prac-tice, though, and somewhat strange, to devise separate online and offline plans because that is not how customers perceive a business. Here are several online business and planning recom-mendations:1. Build the marketing plan around the customer, rather than on products.2. Monitor progress toward the one-year vision for the business in order to identify when adjustments are needed, and then be agile enough to respond.Channel conflict Competition between a manufacturerÕs distribution partners who sell through different channels. Channel conflict can occur at the wholesale, retail, or internal sales department level.
Business-to-Business (B2B) E-commerce and E-procurement 2513. Identify all key assumptions in the marketing plan. When there is evidence that those assumptions are wrong, identify the new assumptions and adjust the plan.4. Make data-driven, fact-based plans.Questions1. Describe how digital content and services can lead to significantly lower costs.2. Why does channel conflict sometimes occur when companies sell their products through both traditional and online channels?3. How has Amazon maintained its competitive edge?4. Describe some of the ways that Ally Bank has become one of the most successful direct banks in the industry today.5. Explain why retail banking has become one of the least trusted industries by consumers since the early 2000s.6. List three online marketing planning recommendations. 8.3 Business-to-Business (B2B) E-commerce and E-procurementIn business-to-business (B2B) markets, the buyers, sellers, and transactions involve only organizations. B2B comprises about 85% of e-commerce dollar volume. It covers applications that enable an enterprise to form electronic relationships with its distributors, resellers, sup-pliers, customers, and other partners. By using B2B, organizations can restructure their supply chains and partner relationships.There are several business models for B2B applications. The major ones are sell-side mar-ketplaces and e-sourcing (the buy-side marketplace).Sell-Side MarketplacesIn sell-side B2B markets, there are basically two types of e-commerce: direct and marketplace. In direct e-commerce, organizations sell their products or services to other organizations from their own private website or one managed by a third party. This model is similar to the B2C model in which the buyer is expected to come to the sellerÕs site, view catalogs, and place an order. In the B2B sell-side marketplace, however, the buyer is an organization. B2B marketplace e-commerce takes place on websites where the products of many different companies can be purchased. The marketplace model creates much greater competition for the companies that sell their products on the site and therefore creates an advantage for buyers. For this reason, some sellers prefer the direct model. A recent introduction of a B2B marketplace website is Amazon Business. Alibaba is a wholesaling e-commerce site that primarily sells products from Chinese manufacturers to other companies around the world.In an attempt to avoid the cut-throat competition that can be produced by market-place e-commerce sites, some B2B sellers are integrating back-office solutions to their direct e-commerce sites that add extra value to their buyers and create exit barriers for customers. For example, integrated B2B solutions can include things such as digital order writing for fields sales staff, automated order sync, which integrates orders with accounting or other administrative software, and integrations with Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems. These integrated solutions can streamline the procurement process, saving the buyer time and money, giving them a reason to stick with a seller that offers these benefits.
252 CHAPTER 8 Retail, E-commerce, and Mobile Commerce TechnologySome B2B sellers such as Dell Computer use auctions extensively. In addition to auc-tions from their own websites, organizations can use third-party auction sites, such as eBay, to liquidate items. Companies such as Overstock help organizations to auction obsolete and excess assets and inventories.B2B e-commerce websites are used by hundreds of thousands of companies. This strategy can be especially powerful for companies with superb reputations. The seller can be either a manufacturer (e.g., IBM), or a distributor (e.g., avnet.com is an example of a large distributor in IT), or a retailer (e.g., Office Depot). The seller uses e-commerce to increase sales, reduce selling and advertising expenditures, increase delivery speed, and reduce administrative costs.E-SourcingE-sourcing refers to many different procurement methods that make use of an electronic venue for identifying, evaluating, selecting, negotiating, and collaborating with suppliers. The pri-mary methods are online auctions, RFQ (request for quote) processing, and private exchanges. E-sourcing also applies to many other secondary activities, which add to the cycle time and transaction costs when performed using traditional methods. Secondary activities include trading partner collaboration, contract negotiation, and supplier selection.E-ProcurementCorporate procurement, also called corporate purchasing, deals with the transactional elements of buying products and services by an organization for its operational and func-tional needs. Organizations procure materials to produce finished goods, which is referred to as direct procurement, and products for daily operational needs, which is referred to as indirect procurement. E-procurement refers to the reengineered procurement process using e-business technologies and strategies. Strategies and solutions linked to e-procurement have two basic goals: ¥ Control costs The first goal is to control corporate spending. Organizations want to spend intelligently for procurement activities to maximize the value of their spending, that is, to ensure that money spent to procure items results in procuring the right products at the best value. Corporate e-procurement constitutes a substantial portion of an organizationÕs operational spending. For example, it is common for large manu-facturing organizations to spend millions of U.S. dollars procuring products and ser-vices. Organizations thus design e-procurement systems to facilitate and control overall procurement spending.¥ Simplify processes The second goal is to streamline the procurement process to make it efficient. Inefficiencies in the procurement process introduce delays in ordering and receiving items and tax internal resources.The two goals of cost control and streamlining can be met in three ways: 1. Streamline the e-procurement process within an organizationÕs value chain. Doing so reduces the number of employees needed to process purchasing, reduces the procure-ment cycle time to order and receive items, and empowers an organizationÕs staff with enough information about the products and services to enable them to make intelligent decisions when procuring items.2. Align the organizationÕs procurement process with those of other trading partners, which belong to the organizationÕs virtual supply chain. Alignment can be achieved by automat-ing the process from end to end, including trading partnerÕs systems, and simplifies the buying process. This enables suppliers to react efficiently to buyersÕ needs.3. Use appropriate e-procurement strategies and solutions. Organizations analyze spending patterns in an effort to improve spending decisions and outcomes.
Mobile Commerce 253Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) SystemsElectronic data interchange (EDI) systems are typically set up by large companies for the effi-cient procurement of products from an assortment of established vendors. While EDI technol-ogies predate large scale use of the Internet, most EDI systems now use the Internet as the primary method of transmitting data. EDI systems are designed as a way to efficiently exchange documents, eliminating many of the costs associated with processing paper documents. As such, they lend themselves to buyers and suppliers that need to convey information to each other in the form of purchase orders, invoices, bills of lading, customs documents, shipping status documents, payment documents, and so on. While EDIs use the Internet for data trans-mission, they are not accessible to the public. Instead, only approved or authorized vendors are given access to a companyÕs EDI system.Public and Private ExchangesExchanges are sites where many buyers and sellers conduct business transactions. They may be public or private, depending on whether or not they are open to the public. The two most com-mon types of B2B online exchanges are vertical and horizontal exchanges. Vertical exchanges serve one industry (e.g., automotive, chemical), along the entire supply chain. Horizontal exchanges serve many industries that use the same products or services (e.g., office supplies, cleaning materials), although many exchanges sell a variety of wholesale goods, primarily to retail businesses.1. Vertical exchanges for direct materials These are B2B marketplaces where direct materialsÑmaterials that are inputs to manufacturing or specialized services such as health careÑare traded, usually in large quantities. An example is PlasticsNet.com, a verti-cal marketplace for industry professionals.2. Horizontal exchanges These are many-to-many e-marketplaces for indirect materials, such as office supplies, light bulbs, and cleaning materials used by any industry. Because these products are used for maintenance, repair, and operations (MRO) (and not resold to generate revenue), these indirect supplies are called MRO supplies. Prices are fixed or negotiated in this systematic exchange. Examples include Worldbid B2B Market, Global Sources and Alibaba.com.Another important facet of managing procurement is demand managementÑknowing or predicting what to buy, when, and how much. The best procurement cost is zero, when people are not buying what they do not need.Questions1. Briefly differentiate between the sell-side marketplace and e-sourcing.2. What are the two basic goals of e-procurement? How can those goals be met?3. What is the role of exchanges in B2B?4. Explain why maverick buying might take place and its impact on procurement costs. 8.4 Mobile CommerceIn 1997, two Coca-Cola vending machines that accepted payment via SMS text message were installed in Helsinki, Finland. Ever since, industry experts and pundits have been predicting that mobile commerce was about to become Òthe next big thingÓ in marketing and the sale
254 CHAPTER 8 Retail, E-commerce, and Mobile Commerce Technologyof consumer goods. Before we explore how mobile commerce has evolved since 1997, let us define some terms related to this topic:Mobile commerce or m-commerce The buying or selling of goods and services using a wireless, handheld device such as a cell phone or tablet (slate) computer.Mobile e-commerce The use of a wireless handheld devices to order and/or pay for goods and services from online vendors. Example: Ordering a pair of shoes from Zappos.com using a mobile app, or purchasing music from iTunes from your iPod.Mobile retailing The use of mobile technology to promote, enhance, and add value to the in-store shopping experience. Example: Using a coupon on your cell phone when check-ing out at the Hard Rock CafŽ, or Òchecking inÓ to a retail location using a mobile app from ShopKick.com or Foursquare.com.Mobile marketing A variety of activities used by organizations to engage, communi-cate, and interact over Wi-Fi and telecommunications networks with consumers using wireless, handheld devices. Example: Sending special offers to customers who have opted in to receive discounts via SMS text message or advertising a brand on a popular mobile game app such as Angry Birds. For additional illustrations of mobile marketing, see IT at Work 8.3.IT at Work 8.3Angry Birds Make Mobile Game Developers HappyHave you ever played popular mobile games such as Angry Birds, Candy Crush, or PokŽmon Go? For years, games have been the most popular type of mobile app, second only to news apps. According to Business Insider, over 20% of the apps in AppleÕs App Store were mobile games, the largest category. While many apps in this category are free, 93% of app downloaders are wil-ling to pay for game apps, compared to 76% for news apps. While the average time that people spend playing mobile games is only about 2 minutes a day, Òcore gamers,Ó or the 20% that spend the most time playing, can log 1.6 hours a day or almost 12 hours a week. Revenue from the 2016 mobile game market is esti-mated to exceed $36 billion, and expect it to rise to over $52 bil-lion by 2019.To put this in perspective, in 2009, iOS and Android mobile gaming apps accounted for just 11% of the portable (handheld) gaming market dominated by Sony and Nintendo. By 2017, mo-bile games accounted for 37% of the overall gaming market. It is also the fastest growing segment (+21.3%) compared to PC games (+3.4%) and game consoles (+0.9%). Clearly, mobile gam-ing apps have become a disruptive force in the marketplace, dis-placing two historically strong companies who underestimated the potential of the mobile platform for gaming. Even more impressive is the fact that the aforementioned statistics are based on revenues produced by paid downloads and donÕt reflect the millions of free games downloaded every year. But even free games make money through advertising and in-app purchases. Some games, such as Angry Birds, become so popular that they generate additional revenue through sales of game-related mer-chandise (Figure 8.5).IT at Work Questions1. Why did established companies such as Nintendo and Sony fail to gain an early position in the growing mobile gaming market?2. How are mobile games different from traditional video games? What advantages do mobile game apps have over traditional video games?3. Gaming and social media are among the most popular mo-bile app categories in the United States. What do you think this says about the role of mobile devices in the lives of U.S. consumers?4. Since many gaming apps are free, how do developers make money in this category?5. From a business perspective, what evidence suggests that the mobile gaming market represents a significant marketplace?Sources: Compiled from Meola (2016), Statista.com (2016), Asante (2012).© Ian Dagnall/Alamy FIGURE 8.5 Angry Birds was such a popular mobile game that it generated additional revenue from sales of clothing, plush toys, posters, lunch boxes, and even bed linens.
Mobile Commerce 255These four terms are not mutually exclusive. Mobile e-commerce, mobile retailing, and mobile marketing are all forms of mobile commerce. Mobile e-commerce emphasizes the use of mobile apps and mobile websites for carrying out transactions and does not necessarily involve interaction with a traditional retail store. Mobile retailing, on the other hand, empha-sizes in-store shopping using a mobile device but could include situations where the customer ultimately orders from a website or mobile app. Mobile marketing is the term used to describe promotional strategies and tactics that encourage both mobile e-commerce and mobile retail. See IT at Work 8.4 for examples of mobile marketing. This overlap is a reflection of the evolu-tion toward the omni-channel retail concept discussed earlier in the chapter (see Figure 8.3).Although there have been some interesting and even successful examples of m-commerce since 1997, predictions about mobile technology becoming a pervasive force in consumer retailing have proven overly optimistic over the years. There are several reasons why con-sumers and businesses have been slow to embrace m-commerce:¥ Relatively primitive mobile devices (compared to modern smartphones and tablets)¥ Concerns about privacy and security¥ Slow network connection speeds¥ Limited market size¥ Limited and inconvenient mobile payment options¥ Lack of technological standardization (devices, OSs, browsers, etc.)However, many of these barriers have been reduced or eliminated. As you read in the previous section, the number of people who now own mobile devices, particularly smart-phones, has grown dramatically. According to one widely quoted statistic, more people own cell phones today than own toothbrushes! Telecommunications carriers have expanded their cov-erage of populated areas using high-speed networks. Modern smartphones and tablet devices have features that make shopping via bright colorful screens fun and easy. Mobile devices have become the dominant way that people engage in some types of Internet activity, such as using social media, while other reports indicate that more people use mobile devices now than use personal computers. While security will always be an evolving concern, consumer comfort with completing transactions on mobile devices continues to grow. A number of mobile payment methods are emerging that are more convenient than traditional transaction methods. So after years of waiting, it appears that earlier predictions about m-commerce are finally starting to come true. In this section, we will describe some of the many ways businesses and consumers are using mobile technologies to buy and sell goods and services.Information: Competitive Advantage in Mobile CommerceIntegrating mobile technology with a brandÕs retail and e-commerce strategy provides another important benefit to business: customer information and identification. When customers interact with a brand using a mobile device, information is collected about the customer that can be used to optimize the interaction. For instance, when customers use a brandÕs mobile app to shop for products, their shopping experience can be customized based on the companyÕs knowledge of previous purchases, payment methods, product preferences, and even location.In-Store Tracking In-store shopping experiences can be optimized through mobile technology that can track a customerÕs movement through a retail store. This is analogous to e-commerce sites that track the pages a customer looks at in order to better understand consumer interests and to make decisions about website design. Tracking how a customer moves through a store, noting what displays the customer looks at, or what departments the customer spends the most time in can be extremely helpful for understanding
256 CHAPTER 8 Retail, E-commerce, and Mobile Commerce TechnologyIT at Work 8.4Wireless Marketing and Advertising in ActionIndustry analysts expect advertising in the mobile channel to heat up. Increasing numbers of smartphones, better browsers, enhanced GPS capabilities, and better ways of measuring advertising effec-tiveness are all factors powering this growth. The following are a few examples of wireless advertising in action.Location-Based Marketing Many apps that people use for shopping, travel, entertainment, and product/service reviews provide information useful to advertisers. In addition, many of these apps provide information about a userÕs GPS location while others employ a Òmobile check-inÓ strategy. As previ-ously discussed, many retailers are deploying in-store tracking with the use of apps. Advertisers can use this information to generate targeted in-app advertising messages, increasing the chances that the ads will lead to a purchase transaction.Foursquare.com was one of the most popular apps in the emerging field of mobile location-based marketing and mobile advertising. It used social media and gamification to encourage users to share their location through mobile check-in. However, now that many other apps and social media platforms offer similar features, Foursquare has become less popular. But the number of companies using location-based marketing continues to increase.Mobile Location-Based Marketing A marketing strategy that uses information from a mobile deviceÕs GPS or custom-erÕs mobile check-in on a social network to determine the con-tent of marketing communications they receive on the device (e.g., advertisements, coupons, special offers).Another location-based mobile marketing app is Shopkick. When the Shopkick app is activated, users receive points when they visit a participating retailer. Retaile