SOLUTION MANUAL
Information Technology for Management: On-Demand Strategies for
Performance, Growth and Sustainability
EFRAIM TURBAN, CAROL POLLARD, GREGORY WOOD
11th Edition
,CHAPTER 1
Disruptive IT Impacts Companies, Competition and Careers
IT at Work
IT at Work 1.1
1. How did Fitbit manage to take the title of biggest selling
manufacturer of wearable technology tech and sustain it?
Fitbit disrupted the health and fitness industry when they brought to
market a smart- connected wearable activity tracker that fits effortlessly
into users’ life styles and thus
launched an industry and propelled themselves to market leader. Within five
years, Fitbit managed to take the title of biggest selling manufacturer of
wearable tech when it sold 21 million devices in one year.
2. What could other companies who produce fitness trackers do to
challenge Fitbit in the marketplace?
Answers may vary. Other companies may focus on cost to target a low-end
market with inexpensive products while others may focus on product
development to enhance the capability and features of their device to
maintain or grow respective market shares.
3. What other features do you think consumers would like Fitbit to
incorporate into its’ fitness tracker to further improve it? How would
consumers and Fitbit benefit from these improvements?
Answers may vary. Features could include feedback on movements to
improve performance (as with time-motion studies) and alerting workers
when they have had too much repetitive movement or not enough
movement for good health (as in a sedentary job). Additional features might
include the ability to monitor heart rate and sleep activity, waterproof devices
that can be worn in the shower or pool, advanced personal training features,
relaxation tools and integration with social networks.
IT at Work 1.2
1. What are two reasons why Zulpo had trouble finding qualified IT talent?
First, finding the talent and determining if they have the necessary skills and
experience and second, finding the qualified talent at a time when very few
IT workers are out of
1|Page
, work. 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).
2. What type of position(s) was Zulpo trying to fill?
A senior project manager, a network analyst and a help desk worker.
3. What methods would you recommend to Zulpo help him in his efforts to
recruit new IT personnel?
Answers may vary. Provided competitive benefits such as a signing bonus,
additional paid time off, flexible work schedule or work-from-home days.
Review Questions
1.1 Doing Business in the On-Demand Economy
1. What precipitated the on-demand economy?
Answers may vary. Years of technological innovation and a change in
consumer behavior laid the foundation for an on-demand economy. As
technology companies have become more digitized, they are looking for
ways to bring together consumers and providers of products and services
focusing on speed, ease and convenience. A low barrier to enter the on-
demand economy enables competition and growth.
2. How is IT contributing to the success of the on-demand economy?
Answers may vary. The proliferation of smartphone-connected consumers,
simple and secure purchase flows and location-based services are market
conditions and technological innovations that propel the on-demand economy
forward. Companies are focused on the strategic use of technology platforms
that consist of hardware, software, and networks that provide connectivity
for diverse transactions, such as ordering, tracking, user authentication, and
payments.
3. List the six IT business objectives.
1) Product development
2) Stakeholder integration
3) Process improvement
4) Cost efficiencies
5) Competitive advantages
6) Globalization
4. What are the key strategic and tactical questions that determine an
organization’s profitability and management performance?
Strategic direction:
o What do we do?
o What is our direction?
2|Page
, o What markets and customers should we be targeting and how do
we prepare for them?
Business model:
o How do we do it?
o How do we generate revenue & profits to sustain ourselves and
build our brand?
Business processes, procedures and technology
o How well do we do it?
o How can we be more efficient?
5. What is a business model?
A business model is the way an organization operates to generate revenue or
to sustain themselves. Elements of a business model can include identifying
customer base(s), establishing business processes and identifying business
resources, as examples.
6. What is a digital business model?
A digital business model defines how a company makes money or sustains
themselves by using digital technology. This is how a company engages
customers digitally to create value via websites, social channels and mobiles
devices. Companies that can adopt digital business models are better
positioned to take advantage of business opportunities, adapt to changes in
the market, and adjust to competitive forces and future trends.
7. Give two examples of how companies are transitioning to digital
business models. Answers may vary. NBA talent scouts no longer have
to review player statistics on spreadsheets and review hours of tapes. The
NBA now relies on STATS’ SportVU technology using cameras to tracks
the movement of every player on the court, record
ball movement and convert the movement to statistics in order to help make
trading decisions. The adoption of analytics to enable decision-making is
transforming the NBA from a traditional business model to a digital business
model.
Casinos are moving to digital business models by using dashboards to keep
casino floor staff informed of player demand and to increase the profitability
of blackjack, craps, and other table games. Casinos are adopting predictive
analytics to determine consumer behavior that can identify ways to increase
market share and profits. The data analytics is also used to enhance the
customer experience (CX) which is directly tied to customer loyalty and
increases revenue.
8. What factors are driving the move to digital business models?
Answers may vary. The on-demand economy is driving traditional business
models to digital business models to serve customers what they want when
they want it. Business leaders are realizing that in order to move their
business forward and to enable on- demand business models, they must
know what steps to take to get the most out of mobile, social, cloud, big
data, analytics, visualization technology and the Internet of
3|Page
Information Technology for Management: On-Demand Strategies for
Performance, Growth and Sustainability
EFRAIM TURBAN, CAROL POLLARD, GREGORY WOOD
11th Edition
,CHAPTER 1
Disruptive IT Impacts Companies, Competition and Careers
IT at Work
IT at Work 1.1
1. How did Fitbit manage to take the title of biggest selling
manufacturer of wearable technology tech and sustain it?
Fitbit disrupted the health and fitness industry when they brought to
market a smart- connected wearable activity tracker that fits effortlessly
into users’ life styles and thus
launched an industry and propelled themselves to market leader. Within five
years, Fitbit managed to take the title of biggest selling manufacturer of
wearable tech when it sold 21 million devices in one year.
2. What could other companies who produce fitness trackers do to
challenge Fitbit in the marketplace?
Answers may vary. Other companies may focus on cost to target a low-end
market with inexpensive products while others may focus on product
development to enhance the capability and features of their device to
maintain or grow respective market shares.
3. What other features do you think consumers would like Fitbit to
incorporate into its’ fitness tracker to further improve it? How would
consumers and Fitbit benefit from these improvements?
Answers may vary. Features could include feedback on movements to
improve performance (as with time-motion studies) and alerting workers
when they have had too much repetitive movement or not enough
movement for good health (as in a sedentary job). Additional features might
include the ability to monitor heart rate and sleep activity, waterproof devices
that can be worn in the shower or pool, advanced personal training features,
relaxation tools and integration with social networks.
IT at Work 1.2
1. What are two reasons why Zulpo had trouble finding qualified IT talent?
First, finding the talent and determining if they have the necessary skills and
experience and second, finding the qualified talent at a time when very few
IT workers are out of
1|Page
, work. 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).
2. What type of position(s) was Zulpo trying to fill?
A senior project manager, a network analyst and a help desk worker.
3. What methods would you recommend to Zulpo help him in his efforts to
recruit new IT personnel?
Answers may vary. Provided competitive benefits such as a signing bonus,
additional paid time off, flexible work schedule or work-from-home days.
Review Questions
1.1 Doing Business in the On-Demand Economy
1. What precipitated the on-demand economy?
Answers may vary. Years of technological innovation and a change in
consumer behavior laid the foundation for an on-demand economy. As
technology companies have become more digitized, they are looking for
ways to bring together consumers and providers of products and services
focusing on speed, ease and convenience. A low barrier to enter the on-
demand economy enables competition and growth.
2. How is IT contributing to the success of the on-demand economy?
Answers may vary. The proliferation of smartphone-connected consumers,
simple and secure purchase flows and location-based services are market
conditions and technological innovations that propel the on-demand economy
forward. Companies are focused on the strategic use of technology platforms
that consist of hardware, software, and networks that provide connectivity
for diverse transactions, such as ordering, tracking, user authentication, and
payments.
3. List the six IT business objectives.
1) Product development
2) Stakeholder integration
3) Process improvement
4) Cost efficiencies
5) Competitive advantages
6) Globalization
4. What are the key strategic and tactical questions that determine an
organization’s profitability and management performance?
Strategic direction:
o What do we do?
o What is our direction?
2|Page
, o What markets and customers should we be targeting and how do
we prepare for them?
Business model:
o How do we do it?
o How do we generate revenue & profits to sustain ourselves and
build our brand?
Business processes, procedures and technology
o How well do we do it?
o How can we be more efficient?
5. What is a business model?
A business model is the way an organization operates to generate revenue or
to sustain themselves. Elements of a business model can include identifying
customer base(s), establishing business processes and identifying business
resources, as examples.
6. What is a digital business model?
A digital business model defines how a company makes money or sustains
themselves by using digital technology. This is how a company engages
customers digitally to create value via websites, social channels and mobiles
devices. Companies that can adopt digital business models are better
positioned to take advantage of business opportunities, adapt to changes in
the market, and adjust to competitive forces and future trends.
7. Give two examples of how companies are transitioning to digital
business models. Answers may vary. NBA talent scouts no longer have
to review player statistics on spreadsheets and review hours of tapes. The
NBA now relies on STATS’ SportVU technology using cameras to tracks
the movement of every player on the court, record
ball movement and convert the movement to statistics in order to help make
trading decisions. The adoption of analytics to enable decision-making is
transforming the NBA from a traditional business model to a digital business
model.
Casinos are moving to digital business models by using dashboards to keep
casino floor staff informed of player demand and to increase the profitability
of blackjack, craps, and other table games. Casinos are adopting predictive
analytics to determine consumer behavior that can identify ways to increase
market share and profits. The data analytics is also used to enhance the
customer experience (CX) which is directly tied to customer loyalty and
increases revenue.
8. What factors are driving the move to digital business models?
Answers may vary. The on-demand economy is driving traditional business
models to digital business models to serve customers what they want when
they want it. Business leaders are realizing that in order to move their
business forward and to enable on- demand business models, they must
know what steps to take to get the most out of mobile, social, cloud, big
data, analytics, visualization technology and the Internet of
3|Page
