Amity Campus Uttar Pradesh India 201303

ASS IGNMENTS
PROGRAM: BSc IT SEMESTER-VI
Subject Name Enterprise Resource Planning Study COUNTRY Roll Number (Reg.No.) BSCIT01152009-2012059 Student Name : UGANDA : :NAJJITA LILIAN : Introduction to

INSTRUCTIONS a) Students are required to submit all three assignment sets. ASSIGNMENT DETAILS MARK S 10 10

Assignment A Five Subjective Questions Assignment B Three Subjective Questions + Case Study

Assignment C

Objective or one line Questions

10

b) Total weight age given to these assignments is 30%. OR 30 Marks c) All assignments are to be completed as typed in word/pdf. d) All questions are required to be attempted. e) All the three assignments are to be completed by due dates and need to be submitted for evaluation by Amity University. f) The students have to attached a scan signature in the form.

Signature Date

: :

_______

___________________________

__11/06/2012_______________________________

( ) Tick mark in front of the assignments submitted Assignment A Assignment B Assignment C

Assignment A
Q1.) What are the evaluation criteria of ERP packages? Explain.
Evaluation and selection of ERP package is an essential criterion for successful ERP implementation. Quality of selection will have a long term impact on the processes of the organization. It is also not easy to switch to another product with concomitant

scale of investment and complexities. This evaluation and selection process should be properly directed and normally comprises of following activities: Formation of an evaluation committee: An ERP implementation is not an IT project but a business oriented development. Therefore, in addition to Chief Information Officer, this committee should comprise of all functional heads and driven by a top management representative. Since all business functions are represented in selection process, the chosen package would have wide acceptance subsequently. Requirement Analysis: This analysis should outline functional expectations of various business divisions, such as warehouse, finance, procurement, from potential ERP package. Vital requirements specific to the company should be highlighted.

Global Presence: Check the performance and acceptability of the package globally. Local Presence: Check how the package is performing in the local market this gives an idea as to how
well a package is taking care of the country specific business needs. Investment in R & D: Evaluate the package from the point of view of investments the ERP vendor is making in R & D to continuously upgrade their product. A good investment in R&D is a healthy indication of the longevity of the package. Target Market: See which segment of the industry the package is basically aiming at. Some packages, for example, are specific to process industry type of applications whereas others cater specifically to discrete manufacturing. Choose a package that has a strong hold in your type of industry.

Price: This is of course the main criterion that decides what package you will finally go in for.
Modularity: This aspect needs to be considered when you want to implement only some particular functions in the ERP package. The availability of the package as independent modules is a must in this case.

Obsolescence: While considering a package it is essential to see what would be the active life of the
product before it becomes obsolete. As mentioned above, the investments in R & D directly contribute to upgrade a package from time to time thus increasing its useful life.

Ease of Implementation: This factor needs to be looked into in detail because a quick, smooth and
hassle-free implementation is the key to successful transition from the legacy system. This in turn ensures that your business is not adversely affected in the transition period.

Cost of Implementation: With large-scale integration of ERP packages and the consequent complexity
built into them, it has become essential to consider the cost of implementation which in some cases can be phenomenal

Post-Implementation Support: Before deciding on an ERP package, it is advisable to check the

quality and range of the post-implementation support that the vendor provides for his package.

Q2.) Discuss why is BPR important in an ERP implementation along-with concepts of Best Practices and Benchmarking?

BPR is important in ERP due to the following reasons;

Implementing a current purchased ERP system Automating current manual or error prone processes Improving service to customers Streamlining current processes to decrease time to market Participating in or conducting e-Marketplaces Reducing costs Addressing accountability Conducting e-Procurement

BEST PRACTICES
A best practice is a method or technique that has consistently shown results superior to those achieved with other means, and that is used as a benchmark. In addition, a "best" practice can evolve to become better as improvements are discovered. Best practice is considered by some as a business buzzword, used to describe the process of developing and following a standard way of doing things that multiple organizations can use. Documenting and charting procedures and practices is a complicated and time-consuming process often skipped by companies, even though they may practice the proper processes consistently. Some consulting firms specialize in the area of Best Practice and offer pre-made 'templates' to standardize business process documentation. Sometimes a "best practice" is not applicable or is inappropriate for a particular organization's needs. A key strategic talent required when applying best practice to organizations is the ability to balance the unique qualities of an organization with the practices that it has in common with others. Best practices are used in nearly every industry and professional discipline. Areas of note include information technology development, such as new software, but also in construction, transportation, business management, sustainable development and various aspects of project management. Best practices are also used in healthcare to deliver high-quality care that promotes best outcomes. Best practices are used within business areas including sales, manufacturing, teaching, programming software, road construction, health care, insurance and public policy.

BENCHMARKING
Benchmarking is the process of comparing one's business processes and performance metrics to industry bests and/or best practices from other industries. Dimensions typically measured are quality, time and cost. In the process of benchmarking, management identifies the best firms in their industry, or in another industry where similar processes exist, and compare the results and processes of those studied (the "targets") to one's own results and processes. In this way, they learn how well the targets perform and, more importantly, the business processes that explain why these firms are successful.

Q3.) Draw the Generic Model of ERP System with due explanation of various terms that describe the inter-organizational ERP capabilities. Give benefits provided by any four of the core ERP modules.

Benefits provided by ERP modules

Product Development and Production Shorten time to market Deliver higher quality products and ensure timely delivery Improve visibility in real time (availability check) Sales and Service Higher number of sales orders processed and reduced administrative costs Easy access to accurate, timely customer information Cost-effective mobile access for field employees Reduce travel costs by using online functions Adhere to environmental, health, and safety reporting requirements HR Management

Attract the right people, develop and leverage talents, align efforts with corporate objectives, and retain top performers Enable creation of project teams based on skills and availability, monitor progress on projects, track time, and analyze results Procurement and Logistics Execution Cost savings for all spending categories by automation Reduce costs through process automation, integration of suppliers, and better collaboration Improve resource utilization (RFID and bar codes) Enhance productivity of incoming and outgoing physical goods movements.

Q4.) Write short notes on either Baan or PeopleSoft or mySAP.

Baan is Enterprise Resource Planning software, originally developed by Jan Baan in the Netherlands in the late 1970s. The software attempts to integrate business processes--including manufacturing, accounting, human resources and customer relationship management--into a single, coherent system Baan ERP software is designed for manufacturing industries working on complex products with complex supply chains that work on different methodologies. Baan is especially suited for large made-to-order and engineering-to-order companies. Baan provides an attractive user interface with many graphical and point-and-click features and is compatible with Microsoft tools. Security-wise, however, it is not strong and relies on its compatibility with other products in this respect.

Q5.) Briefly explain the four main types of ERP architectures along-with their benefits and limitations.

Two-tier Implementations

In typical two-tier architecture, the server handles both application and database duties. The clients are
responsible for presenting the data and passing user input back to the server. While there may be multiple servers and the clients may be distributed across several types of local and wide area links, this distribution of processing responsibilities remains the same. Benefits

Easy-to-use and access to information and services. Low cost in terms of such infrastructure requirements as hardware. High performance with a limited number of workstations. Limitations Inflexible in terms of adding more clients and software - when the number of users or applications grows, performance deteriorates. Requires expensive middleware for integration. Changes or modifications in database affect applications. Implementation of processing management services using vendor proprietary database procedures restricts flexibility. There is limited flexibility in moving program functionality from one server to another without manually regenerating procedural code.

Three-tier Client/Server Implementations

In three-tier architectures, the database and application functions are separated. This is very typical of large production ERP deployments. In this scenario, satisfying client requests requires two or more network connections. Initially, the client establishes communications with the application server. The application server then creates a second connection to the database server.

Benefits Three-tier applications provide several benefits over traditional client-server applications including: Scalability: Three-tier architecture allows easier architecture to add, change, and remove applications because the user interface and database are not affected by upgrades to applications. Reliability: Three-tier architecture makes it easier to increase reliability of a system by implementing multiple levels of redundancy. In addition, scheduling and prioritization of jobs can be managed better from a central location. Flexibility: By separating the business logic of an application from its presentation logic, three-tier architecture makes the application much more flexible to changes. Flexibility in partitioning can be as simple as "dragging and dropping" application code modules onto different computers. Maintainability: Support and maintenance costs are less on a single server than it would be to maintain each installation or upgrade on a desktop client because the middle layer adds scheduling and prioritization for work in progress. Reusability: Separating the application into multiple layers makes it easier to implement reusable components. Security: Provide higher security because there is less software on the client machines, which means the IT staff has more control over the ERP system. Limitations Three-tier applications also have some limitations, including: Economics: Three-tier applications require additional hardware and software infrastructure to support the middle layer which can increase the overall platform costs. Complexity: A key limitation with three-tier architectures is that the development environment is

reportedly more difficult to use than the visually oriented development of two-tier applications.

Web-Based Architectures
This is often described as a fourth tier where the Presentation tier is split into Web Services tier and Web Browser tier. The ERP systems focus on the Internet to provide a powerful new functionality for Internetbased access and integration. This architecture leverages a number of Internet technologies and concepts to deliver simple, ubiquitous access to ERP modules and enable the open flow of information between systems. This functionality is primarily supported through the following Internet access technologies: Web Server ,ERP Portal, Back-End Server Integration ,Browser Plug-Ins or Applets This next generation architecture leverages a number of Internet technologies and concepts to deliver simple, ubiquitous access to ERP application modules and to enable the open flow of information between systems. Using the Internet Architecture as the foundation, end-users can access ERP applications over the Web browser, as well as more easily integrate their PeopleSoft applications with existing internal systems and external trading partner systems. The Internet Architecture can be servercentric or client-centric.

Benefits By leveraging such ubiquitous Internet technologies as Extensible Markup Language (XML) and Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP), the ERP system is able to support better systems integration. It does not have slower response time because all user requests are processed on the server. Limitation They can lack security and require all client workstations to be set up according to the standard specifications. Being dependent on Internet, means, when Internet is slow or down, there is low or no service. Server Oriented Architecture A service-oriented architecture is essentially a collection of services. Many of the concepts for Web services come from a conceptual architecture called service-oriented architecture (SOA). SOA configures entities (services, registries, contracts, and proxies) to maximize loose coupling and reuse. From an ERP perspective SOA decomposes the business tier into smaller, distinct units of services. These services collectively support an ERP functional module. They can individually be distributed anywhere in the system; however, SOA encourages these services to comply with certain design principles like existing autonomously, yet to evolve independently from each other. In that regard therefore, SOA basically produces an application environment with unique characteristics and benefits. The benefits range from short, long tern to business value.

Short-term benefits of Service Oriented Architecture; Enhances reliability of the architecture Reduces hardware acquisition costs Leverages existing development skills Accelerates movement to standards-based server and application consolidation Provides a data bridge between incompatible technologies Long-term benefits of Service Oriented Architecture; Provides the ability to build composite applications. Creates a self-healing infrastructure that reduces management costs. Provides truly real-time decision-making applications Enables the compilation of a unified taxonomy of information across an enterprise and its customers and partners. Business value benefits of Service Oriented Architecture; Increases the ability to meet customer demands more quickly. Lower costs associated with the acquisition and maintenance of technology. Empowers the management of business functionality closer to the business units. Leverages existing investments in technology and Reduces reliance on expensive custom development. Limitation of Service Oriented Architecture may include the following; Inconsistency in performance may arise due to the difficulty in adoption of the rapid sharing of assets and information-Organization's culture. Security system needs to be sophisticated, thus Complex security firewalls in place to support communication between services across applications that traverse the organization's networks. Costs can be high because services needs to be junked very often. ASSIGNMENT B

Questions: 1. Discuss at length the unique Supply-Chain Model of Dell. Dell employs the direct model of distribution of its PCs. Dell's supply-chain consists of only three stages thus the supplier, manufacturer (Dell) and end users or consumers. This means that Dell sells its computer systems and PCs directly to end customers, bypasssing distributors and retailers (resellers). Dell matches supply and demand because its customers order computer configurations over the phone or online (Internet). These computer configurations are built up from components that are available. To minimize the delay between purchase and delivery, Dell has a general policy of manufacturing its products close to its customers.

2. What is the main aim of Supply Chain Management? What are the key issues faced in SCM? The main aim of supply chain management is to enhance its customers' satisfaction levels in terms of cost, delivery, time, service and quality.

The key issues faced include; Dell's new retail business is not profiting. So the company intends to make its retail computer business cost effective by aligning (reducing) manufacturing costs (cost of goods sold) with its competitors. But this will be challenging since Dell does not have the same volume in retail globally (as competitors), and therefore a smaller fixed base to spread costs. Secondly, Dells supply chain had not exactly been designed for mass distribution. HP uses a diversified supply chain unlike Dells one supply chain approach.
3. How does Dell address the key drivers of Supply Chain Management? Forecasting; by directly dealing with the customer Dell gets a clearer indication of market trends. This helps Dell to plan for future besides better managing its supply chain. Network planning ;Dell matches supply and demand because its customers order computer configurations over the phone or online (Internet). These computer configurations are built up from components that are available. Inventory control; To minimize the delay between purchase and delivery, Dell has a general policy of manufacturing its products close to its customers. This also allows for implementing a just-in-time (JIT) manufacturing approach, which minimizes inventory costs. Low inventory is another signature of the Dell business model a critical consideration in an industry where components depreciate very rapidly. Supply contracts; Dell takes orders directly from its customers; either on phone or online. Thus, Dell reduces the cost of intermediaries that would otherwise add up to the total cost of PC for the customer. Dell also saves time on processing orders that other companies normally incur in their sales and distribution system. Outsourcing and procurement strategies; Dells value chain is one of a kind, they outsource all there components across the world and then assemble and sells it directly to the customers. Dell works in a very complex manner by directly supplying to the customer and by this they skip the market middlemen. They achieve value addition at the same time because of incurring low on total expenditure. This ensures dell to get the maximum advantage in the market.

Assignment C
1. Key success factors that decide about product competitiveness: a. Efficient knowledge b. Business experience management

c. Knowledge of Best Practices in the domain d. All of the above. 2. Which one of the following was introduced before Extended ERP? a. SCM b. CRM c. MRP d. SFA 3. Assessing readiness in an ERP implementation is critical to the overall implementation process. Which of the following ways does not contribute towards ensuring ERP readiness: a. Project managements focus on the issues, tasks, and activities to being ready. b. Knowledge Transfer Process in place. c. Discontinue training and complete focus on issues. d. Support functions are in place for post-production support for operationalizing the ERP. 4. Which of the following statements is true about ERP Implementation: a. As-Is stage follows To-Be stage. b. To-Be stage follows As-Is stage. c. Go-Live stage and As-Is stage can proceed simultaneously. d. None of the above. 5. Which of the following statement(s) is/are false with respect to ERP Implementation methodologies: a. The emphasis on the ERP software life cycle is whether to customize the software or to change the organizations processes to match those embedded in the software. b. The implementation strategy can be a comprehensive one, vanilla, or middle-of-the road strategy. c. ERP life cycle must incorporate traditional SDLC stages. d. Rapid Implementation methodologies have been developed by ERP consulting firms. 6. An implementation with considerable modifications to the ERP software package is referred to as:

a. Vanilla Implementation b. Business Process Reengineering c. Chocolate Implementation d. Generic Implementation Methodology 7. Which of the following is not a BPR Tool? a. Visual BPR b. mySAP c. iGrafx d. iThink 8. Which of the following statements about BPR is false? a. The business process cycle time is reduced significantly. b. The number of decision points is reduced to the bare minimum. c. The flow of information is streamlined, i.e., there is no unnecessary to-and-fro flow of information between departments. d. It helps in duplication of inter-departmental effort for similar processes. 9. ___________ is an important pre-cursor of ___________ Implementation. a. ERP; BPR b. BPR; ERP c. SDLC; ERP d. ERP; SDLC 10. The _________________________ of each process is necessary to ensure that a step was not missed or that a process not achievable. a. Testing and Measurement b. Measurement and Analysis

c. Testing and Validation d. Preparation and Refinement

Introduction to Enterprise Resource Planning

11. ________________________________ functionality of ERP makes it capable of, for instance, receiving invoices in Indian Rupees, splitting the payment into German Mark and Belgian Francs, billing in Italian Lire, receiving cash in British Pounds, with the general ledger stated in US Dollar or Japanese Yen. a. Multi-lingual b. Multi-currency c. Multi-mode manufacturing d. Multi-facility 12. Which of the following statements is false about the ERP modules: a. Organizations often selectively implement the ERP modules that are both economically and technically feasible. b. ERP vendors, including SAP, Oracle, and Microsoft provide modules that support the major functional areas of the business (e.g., accounting, production, financial management, human resources, sales order processing, and procurement). c. Customization or changes are not at all required when implementing the ERP modules. d. ERP modules include functionality to optimize business operations and resources to extend best practices to the entire value chain. 13. Manage human capital investments by analyzing business outcomes, workforce trends and demographics, and workforce planning is a strategic objective of one of the following ERP modules: a. Product Development and Manufacturing b. Sales and Service c. Human Resource Management d. Logistics 14. Which of the following statements is false about the Sales and Service modules provided by various ERP software packages: a. Decrease the number of sales orders processed.

b. Reduce administrative costs through automation of sales order management. c. Deliver greater customer satisfaction by providing easy access to accurate, timely information. d. None of the above.

Introduction to Enterprise Resource Planning

15. Which of the following statements is false regarding the three tiers of the ERP architecture: a. The data tier focus is on the structure of all organizational data and its relationships with both internal and external systems. b. Users usually interact with ERP packages like SAP through the application tier. c. Application tier consists of a Web-browser (i.e., Java layer) and a reporting tool where business processes and end-users interact with the system. d. Presentation tier provides the ability to customize views for every function within an enterprise. 16. Three-tier applications provide several benefits over traditional client-server applications that does not include: a. Scalability b. Reliability c. Flexibility d. Complexity 17. Web-based architecture is primarily supported through the following Internet access technologies, except: a. Web Server b. Service Oriented Architecture c. Back-End Server Integration d. Browser Plug-Ins or Applets 18. Client-centric platforms are not popular in devices such as: a. Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) b. Blackberries c. Mobile phones

d. PC-based devices 19. Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) is/are (Mark the False statement): a. object-oriented architectures for Web platforms b. does not allow message interaction between any service consumer and service provider c. essentially a collection of services d. loosely coupled, document-oriented interaction model 20. Which of the following is not a benefit of Service Oriented Architecture (SOA): a. Security system needs to be sophisticated b. Reduces hardware acquisition costs c. Increases the ability to meet customer demands more quickly d. Provides a data bridge between incompatible technologies 21. Which of the following statements is incorrect for Best Practices: a. A best practice is a method or technique that has consistently shown results superior to those achieved with other means. b. It is used to describe the process of developing and following a standard way of doing things that multiple organizations can use. c. Best practices fail to reveal how best performing companies are functioning. d. Best practices are used in nearly every industry and professional discipline. 22. _______________________________ is the process of comparing one's business processes and performance metrics to industry bests from other industries. a. Best Practice b. Benchmarking c. Logical Integration d. System Integration

23. SAP ERP Central Component (SAP ECC) had following component(s) of the initial SAP R/3 Enterprise: a. The SAP Business Warehouse b. SAP Strategic Enterprise Management c. Internet Transaction Server d. All of the above 24. In SAP R/3, which of the following is the correctly denote the meanings of R and 3? a. R = Right Choice; 3 = Version 3 b. R = Real Choice; 3 = Volume 3 c. R = Real Choice; 3 = Upgrade 3 d. R = Real Time; 3 = 3-Tier Architecture 25. Which of the following statements is false about SAP NetWeaver: a. SAP NetWeaver is wrapped into SAP Web Application Server. b. SAP NetWeaver is marketed as a service-oriented application and integration platform. c. SAP NetWeaver is built using open standards. d. SAP NetWeaver provides the development and runtime environment for SAP applications. 26. Which of the following is not a core module in the PeopleSoft HRMS application: a. eRecruit for Recruiters b. Workforce Administration c. Benefits Administration d. Customer Inquiry 27. PeopleSoft HRMS module is used for: a. Aligning the workforce to organizational goals & objectives. b. Improving Customer response. c. Does not streamline the processes.

d. Improving products quality. 28. ___________ is the core component of Baan application server. It is a process virtual machine to run Baan 4GL language. a. Bshell b. Baan Orgware c. Baan Dynamic Enterprise Modelling (DEM) d. Baan Tools 29. With _________________, Baan enables __________________________, a new paradigm which delivers a framework for insuring that enterprise applications are in close alignment with changing processes and business models. a. Dynamic Enterprise Modelling; Orgware b. Baan Tools; Orgware c. Orgware; Dynamic Enterprise Modelling d. Baan Tools; Dynamic Enterprise Modelling 30. Which of the following statements is false: a. Forecasts are never right. b. The longer the forecast horizon, the better is the forecast. c. The longer the forecast horizon, the worse is the forecast. d. Aggregate forecasts are more accurate. 31. Which one of the following is a key SCM Vendor: a. JDA Software Group, Inc. b. Seibel c. Clarify d. None of the above 32. Which of the following statement is false about SCM:

a. SCM plays a major role only in the success of e-business and not e-commerce. b. A good SCM is designed in collaboration with the organizations partners. c. ERP vendors have started including SCM as a component or module of the software. d. SCM provides a link for services, materials, and information across the value chain of the organization. 33. Process reference models contain: a. standard descriptions of management processes b. a framework of relationships among the standard processes c. standard metrics to measure process performance d. All of the above. 34. Which of the following is not a benefit of a Supply Chain Management system: a. Improved delivery performancequicker customer response and fulfillment rates. b. Reduced productivity and higher costs. c. Reduced inventory throughout the chain. d. Improved forecasting precision. 35. Which of the following statements does not bring out the difference between an ERP and SCM system? a. ERP focus is on providing an integrated transaction processing while SCMs focus is on providing a higher level of business planning and decision support. b. In an ERP system, all the demand, capacity and material constrains are considered in isolation of each other while in a SCM system, simultaneous handling of the constraints is done. c. ERP systems support only internal organization functions instead of inter-organizational supply chain functions, as done by SCM systems. d. ERP systems are built on top of SCM systems. 36. In _________________________ approach, the goal is to evaluate bids from vendors, comparing "apples-to-apples" in order to determine which system will work best in the company's current and future environment.

a. Total Cost of Ownership b. Proof of Concept Approach c. Request For Proposal Approach d. System validation 37. ______________________________________ is used to transfer electronic documents or business data from one computer system to another computer system, i.e. from one trading partner to another trading partner without human intervention. a. Electronic Data Intermission b. Electric Data Interchange c. Value Added Network d. Electronic Data Interchange 38. Which of the following is not a part of EDI Implementation: a. EDI Standards b. Dynamic Enterprise Modeling c. Translation software d. EDI Value Added Network Services 39. Which of the following is not an EDI Standard: a. The UN-recommended UN/EDIFACT b. The US standard ANSI ASC X12 (X12) c. The ODETTE standard used within the European automotive industry d. The CSMA/CD standard

Introduction to Enterprise Resource Planning

40. In EDI terminology, organizations that send or receive documents between each other are referred to as _____________________. a. Talking Organizations b. Trading Partners

c. Hubs d. Remote Centers