How do they use ICT
Numerous activities will require ICT; they will use ICT to create posters which advertise their product. They will use ICT to make the poster look fancy and attractive with various effects that can only be done on a computer. They will also use ICT to create the surveys and the questionnaires, they will also have a database in which they keep all the opinions of the customer and see via the database which is the most common fault the customers have with McDonalds on the surveys.
They will work with the research and development department as well as the
Production operations department. The research department will look at what is already out there and also look at what the customer wants, they will create questionnaires and send emails to customers requesting them to share their views with the business and once the design department has put together a worthwhile design. The production operations department will then set out to create the design put forward by the design department. For example with McDonalds when creating a happy meal box or toy the research department will look at what is being successful so then once they have found a film they want to be represented through their happy meal they will then look to strike a deal with the film company who will also through this advertise and promote their film. So when they have the film pictures on the box and a character from the film is in the box then the child which is the happy meals target market will sell as it is being likened to that film they have just watched in the cinema and as the McDonalds’ in Newcastle is near the cinema then when people come out of the cinema and see that McDonalds are promoting something to do with that film they will more than likely go and see it.
To communicate with others in the business they will use various techniques to get the work around the business one is through telephone calls which will mean speaking to that person directly and any problems can be sorted out their and then. They could also use email to contact the research and development department and with that email there will probably be an attachment which consists of the questions the Marketing department wishes the research and development department to produce. Another way is through Fax the marketing department will fax letters to the other department who will then act upon those letters. Another and more common way is through meetings in which all the departments meet together to organise their next move this is a much better way of communicating as problems with the idea can be sorted out there and then whereas with the emailing way of communicating you not only have to be on the computer when an email is sent but it also takes more time to write the letter or email, emailing also doesn’t always give you the right feeling when it comes to getting your point across. They have to communicate with other people inside the business as they cant do everything themselves that is why businesses have all these departments so that work can be done in a much easier and orderly fashion so the marketing department will speak with the research and development department because they need the research and development department to carry out research on the customers and other products. Then once the idea is put together they will need to speak with the production department as they will create this product. The marketing department will also communicate with people and other organisations outside the business as they will provide the details they need. So they will have to contact there customers to see what they want and this usually done via email or Telephone.
Customer Services
Customers are what keep businesses ticking because their money is the income or revenue of the business. When customers buy goods or services they expect them to be of very good quality as well as this, the customer also has a legal right to not be conned into something when they buy a certain product or service. Customers expect the staff inside the business to be kind and helpful, know about the product and if possible offer something extra for their money. McDonalds will have a lot of competition so they will know that a customer has a lot of other places to go if they so wish. McDonalds need to make sure that the customer has a positive experience when they visit them and hopefully this will mean that the customer returns again and again. The customer service department is in charge of making the customer having this wonderful experience, so they will also if needed provide all the extras people need
- providing information
- giving advice
- delivery (doesn’t relate to McDonalds)
The customer service department will do all they possibly can to fulfil all the customers expectations.
Using ICT
The customer services department will use ICT to send emails to different customers who have queries and they will also create a database so as to record all the queries easily and then hopefully act on them one by one.
The Customer services department will work alongside numerous other departments one of which is the research and development department, they will tell the research and development department that they are having problems with an area and then the research and development department will look at how they can improve that area. They will also work with the Marketing and Sales department, they will communicate with the department to say to them which area in the business the customers are least pleased with and then once this has been sorted out the marketing department will then advertise that this problem has been sorted and this will then hopefully mean that the customers will come and be pleased with the changes which will hopefully bring in more customers.
The business will also communicate with people outside the business for example the customer services department will have to communicate with the companies suppliers so for example if the company has supplied McDonalds with bad meat of which a customer has complained about then McDonalds will communicate with the supplier via a telephone call or email in which the appropriate action would be taken.
Production Operations
The production operations department is responsible for obtaining resources required to create the product and provide the service that the organisation provides. They are also in charge of using the best of the resources available to them and then using those resources so that are used in the best way possible. For example McDonalds makes food so without food McDonalds would cease to exist and it is the same with a school if there is no children then it isn’t a school so the Production Operations department is in fact one of the key parts of the business.
Using ICT
The production operations department will use ICT to create a database or a spreadsheet for products made and sold. When you are in a business like McDonalds you need ingredients so they need a record of all the stock that they need so the database will have a reorder level so that McDonalds know that when they reach that number of boxes or burgers left then they should reorder so that they do not run out.
This department will work with the Marketing and sales department quite closely as the marketing and sales department will communicate with the production and operations department over levels of sales for say the Big Mac so that the supply can match the demand, so seeing as the big Mac is such a popular buy then the production and operations department will have to make more of the product so as to match the demand and say if there is something which isn’t as popular they stock less. The Production and Operations department will also need to make whatever the Marketing and Sales department asks of them so if they want something in the happy meal which they think will help sales then they have to comply.
The department also works closely with the Human Resources department as they will provide staff for the department and liaise with them over the job description so that they know exactly the skills that they are looking for in the employee as some skills are essential but others just preferred.
They will communicate with the marketing/Sales department and the HR department via Telephone Calls, Board Meetings or emails and possibly formal letters. Whereas when communicating outside the business they will communicate via Telephone calls and email as they external to the business and are on a off site location. So the PO department will communicate with their suppliers regularly and when ever a new order of a particular food or material they will be contacted. The PO department may also pay a personal visit to the supplier so as to negotiate with the company over possible deals.
Research and Development
New products are developed all the time whether it be due to Technological advancements or a change in customer buying behaviour such as when a recession is on and customers have less money to spend on luxuries but in McDonalds’ case no matter what the economic climate people are going to need food to keep them going so McDonalds have to make sure that they offer the best deals so they can bring in the customers and make a profit at their competitors losses. There may also be improvements on current products as the market research department may have picked out faults with the product as they have done a survey on the product and customers have pointed out where they would like there to be new features. This can be likened to McDonalds as they McDonalds like to have customer’s feedback on their products so they can take the appropriate action to improve the product.
In research and development the ICT section plays a major part as the Internet is a major part in keeping track of what your competitors are doing and what products they are releasing. They will also use ICT to create future developments such as when they are designing a new product or facility then the Graphics programs on the computer will be used to create 3-D models so as to give the rest of the business a view or a look into the future. This stage is very important as when these designs have been put forward it is much easier to make changes so as to create this product or Facility to the best of their ability and make it the best they can for the customers.
The research and development department communicates with the Marketing and Sales department regularly as the Marketing and research department will release questionnaires so as to get a customers opinion on a product once the questionnaires have been read and what most customers want has been clarified then the Research and development department will look at how these improvements could be moulded into the current product. McDonalds will use this as well so they will send out questionnaires say on the Big Mac meal and then they will feed back to McDonalds, then possibly they think that there should be s toy in the Big Mac meal but still at a cheap price so the R&D department will work with designers to develop the product that can be developed at a reasonable price and then sold at a competitive price. However if McDonalds’ are planning a new release they will make sure they keep it under wraps so that their competitors do not find out about it so that means that everybody working on the product will be sworn to secrecy. The Research and development department will also work closely with the productions department as they are the department in which the Research and development department’s designs are brought to life. Going back to the Graphics software which produces a preview on the new product once all final changes have been made then the Productions department will have the design then the design will be created.
The R&E department will communicate with the other departments via board meetings and Emails as most of the work is Graphical so designs and ideas cannot be always explained fully just through speaking and the Productions department need pictures so as to create the product how they want it to be created. Board meetings will be a very easy way to keep the business aware of current progress on products. Usually at board meetings all areas involved in the project are represented so ideas can be spread across the business much quicker and also with board meetings it is usually the top businessmen in the business so as there will probably be a large number of them there are more opinions on the product so they can all feed back to each other.
Administration and ICT
ICT is used throughout businesses because it helps to reduce the costs and improve goods and services. For example the Administrators can produce, check and amend documents using word processor and then via email they can send out lots of emails at the click of a button. Also customer details and lists of current stock can be stored on Databases. Without the use of ICT email and ICT have increased the ways in which business can communicate with each other. ICT security systems will also be used to control content which is sent or received on a company email system. This used a lot in McDonalds such as at the counter when a order is placed the person at the till will press a button on the keypad for say “Big Mac” and then that order will go through the system to a screen in the Kitchens in which the order will be shown then the cooks will prepare that order.
ICT can also be used to back up against lost data so when developments are been made to the system a back of the current system is made before update is installed. This makes it easier to reinstall the old system if a bug is found in the new one this will means that customer details and employee details are not lost and if anything goes wrong important information isn’t lost. Or back up disks could be used which are usually located offsite so they cannot be misplaced and in the event of a system failure or emergency such as a fire or terrorist attack. However this form of back up does not protect individual computer users from losing their own data. These businesses so as to protect employee details so all networks cannot be accessed by fraudster or hackers. So as to keep this confidentiality all employees issues each person a log in ID. The user must then enter a password so as to log on to his or her account.
The ICT department will work with all departments as the as there is always going to be a need for ICT whether its repairs or general problems. They will speak with other departments over what programs they require so the design department will want Graphics programs so as to create designs for future products. They will also work with the finance department as they will need the IT department for data input which is keying in data from documents to be processed on computer. They will also work with the HR department over maintaining user identity codes and passwords.
The ICT department will use numerous ways to communicate mainly on the computer so emails will be mainly used with this area. They will also communicate outside the business so as most businesses are connected to the internet it is very easy to contact businesses via email. The Internet can be also used to find out relevant information from other organisations such as the new Health and Safety rules that must be applied so with most businesses connected to the internet this means information can be found much easier and at a much faster rate.