Birla Institute of Technology & Science, Pilani

Work-Integrated Learning Programmes Division

Second Semester 2013-2014
Comprehensive Examination
(EC-3 Regular)
Course No.
Course Title
Nature of Exam
Weightage
Duration
Date of Exam
Note:
1.
2.
3.

: BITS ZC471
: MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMS
: Open Book
: 50%
: 3 Hours
: 06/04/2014 (FN)

No. of Pages
=2
No. of Questions = 7

Please follow all the Instructions to Candidates given on the cover page of the answer book.
All parts of a question should be answered consecutively. Each answer should start from a fresh page.
Assumptions made if any, should be stated clearly at the beginning of your answer.

Q.1. For each of the following business process name fourITs that can be used:
(a)
Supply Chain Management
(b)
Knowledge Management
(c)
Partner Relationship Management
(d)
Inter Organizational Information Integration

[2]
[2]
[2]
[2]

Q.2. Explain the following briefly

(a)
UIDAI Project (100-120 words)
(b)
RajSWAN of Rajasthan (100-120 words)
(c)
Creating Bitcoins (100-120 words)
(d)
3D Printing (100-120 words)

[2]
[2]
[2]
[2]

Q.3. An Insurance Services firm spent millions of dollars integrating a customized CRM
application but when the project is finished it took operators too long to get data on screen.
The company has bogged down the performance of new CRM system by trying to integrate
too many business systems with it. The project ended up in failure.
ABC.com rolled out a CRM program by investing more than $1 million in customized
software and integrated all of its computer systems in an attempt to boost the efficiency of its
sales force. The application is supposed to allow sales people instant access to data for
prospective customers. But the system turned out to be too slow that while downloading
information the systems simply stopped. The project was a failure.
(a)
List three common reasons in both the failures
[3]
(b)
List, at least, four steps that ABC.com should have taken to avoid failure of CRM
implementation
[2]
Q.4. Blue Dart Express Ltd. (BDEL) is engaged in courier business for carriage and door-to-door
delivery of courier services in India and abroad. It started use of information technologies at
an early stage. BDEL has implemented innovative information technologies within the
organization to improve the business processes. Now the organization is planning to move to
the next level. i.e., to implement innovative mobile technologies to improve the business
processes.
(a)
State four business processes where mobile technologies can be implemented
[2]
(b)
Suggest, at least, five mobile technologies to BDEL. Clearly state the purpose for
which each mobile technology can be used.
[5]
BITS ZC471 (EC-3 Regular)

Second Semester 2013-2014

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BITS ZC471 (EC-3 Regular)

Second Semester 2013-2014

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Q.5. NAMS Inc. is an entertainment company having a chain of theme parks around the world. It
has over 10,000 employees and gets 50 million visitors every year and a considerable number
of them are return visitors and younger visitors. NAMS wants to implement a Business
Intelligence system to understand and serve its customers better and also to improve business
performance. Guide NAMS on the following points:
(a)
(b)
(c)

Help NAMS to arrive at a set of five clearly stated objectives for which BI initiative
would be useful
[5]
Which technology would be apt to meet data needs for a successful BI system? Name
two vendors from whom technology can be bought
[2]
Suggest three suitable BI tools with vendor names
[3]

Q.6. Imagine an e-commerce organization, having operations in many countries, using converged
communication and computing technology to improve business processes. Identify three
business processes and explain briefly how converged platform can be implemented across
activities in each business process.
[3]
Q.7. Fox Computing Systems is an organization that specializes on offering innovative and unique
state-of-art IT services in Europe. But, of late, companies in western world are turning to
companies in China, Brazil and India for better cost performance. Fox was losing in the
revenues and hence profit. To overcome the new trend, Fox has come up with new strategies.
Fox is confident that it can increase awareness of its brand by spreading its state-of-art
intellectual property in the form of software, patents, and ideas. This, in turn, should create
opportunities to sell high-value products and services that meet new demand. Fox eliminated
thousands of jobs in Europe. It decided to hire thousands of employees in India, Brazil or
China to minimize on the cost. Growth in the developing world is a natural part of strategy.
Fox will not give away a technology unless it has expertise that will enable it to make money
if the technology is widely adopted. When Fox hands out tools to clients, it often sells them
additional software and consulting services. Fox has also taken up open-source challenge. It
has embraced the Linux operating system. Clearly, Fox has responded to its diminishing
profit by way of coming up with new strategies.
Question:List, at least,three strategies adopted by Fox and for each strategy write one
advantage and one disadvantage of it.
[9]

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BITS ZC471 (EC-3 Regular)

Second Semester 2013-2014

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