Information Systems
Information systems prove to be useful for managing this condition by providing the supply chain with the required information. They also facilitate communication between the partners in the supply chain. Global coordination is indeed one of the extremely important roles the firms have to perform. This will enable firms to have optimal global operations in order to attain operational flexibility. It is amazing that the effectiveness of this noble service varies very differently in different firms. This may be due to the prevalence of different legacy components of software.
It is also due to the lack of support from the management, as well as low involvement of users. The management may also poorly define and plan the project. There are several ways of curbing the problems, such as evaluation of software procedures and software tools of design like XML and CASE among others. The managers need advice to communicate with the software specialists and users throughout the implementation process.
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Supply chain management security is application of procedures, policies and technologies needed to protect the supply chain assets, such as products, facilities, equipment, information and personnel, from theft, damage or terrorism. It also prevents the introduction of contraband, unauthorized people or weapons of mass destruction into the supply chain (Sheffie 78).
Firms are indeed managing very complex subsidiary networks with customers and suppliers. This is due to the globalization process-taking place currently. Information systems come in handy in managing this condition by providing the supply chain with the required information. They also facilitate communication between the partners in the supply chain. Global coordination is indeed one of the extremely important roles firms have to perform. This will enable firms to have optimal global operations in order to attain operational flexibility (Sheffie 78).
It is amazing that the effectiveness of this noble service varies very differently in different firms. This may be due to the prevalence of different legacy components of software. It is also due to the lack of support from the management and low involvement of users. The management may also poorly define and plan the project. There are several ways of curbing the problems, such as evaluation of software procedures and software tools of design like XML and CASE among others. Managers need advice to communicate with the software specialists and users throughout the implementation process (Sheffie 26).
Implementing this system may be difficult in a multinational company. The system must interface with interfirm and intrafirm software. This is through an IT network that covers all the countries the firm operates in. It can as well be through the exchange of structured information across the world, while allowing customization in each country. It also manages vast amount of information, such as duties and tariffs. The manager is also unfamiliar with the global contexts. Finally, there is a large number of global factors. Other complications arise from business, languages, cultures and legal environments that are very diverse (Blanchard 56). Variation in technology and vendor support, local market size, availability of local IT staff, national infrastructure and data export controls are some of the problems. Programs that are simple to carry out domestically are a problem when undertaken internationally.
Information systems are very important in the supply chain management. Supply chain management security is application of procedures, policies and technologies needed to protect the supply chain assets, such as products, facilities, equipment, information and personnel, from theft, damage or terrorism. It also prevents the introduction of unauthorized contrabands, people or weapons of mass destruction into the supply chain. (Sheffie 67). Security-oriented culture applied to the supply chain is of course good business.
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Supply chain protection does not stop at the point of securing facility through gates and locks, but extends further to protection of products and people. It is also a tool for preventing disruptions of supply chain operations. (Blanchard 45). Due to the interconnectedness of companies, products and transportation infrastructure in the global supply chains, there is concern that the disruptions may go beyond the individual firm, hence the need for a broader supply chain framework. This helps in protecting the customers, public and brand equity.
RFID is important in asset tracking. Companies put RFID tags on assets that are not important, stolen or underutilized. RFID is important where it tracks parts and works in progress. It reduces defects and manages the production of various samples of the same product. It tracks shipments among supply chain partners (Cheri 89). In the retailing industry, it is important for improving supply chain efficiency, and thus making sure that products are on the shelves when customers need them urgently. RFID is important in payment systems, with the most common one being the payment of road tolls without stopping in order to shorten the gap in the supply chain management (Blanchard 45). Security and access control also uses the RFID technology. This is in the use of electronic key to control access to buildings and areas in office places.
In the army department, it provides the military with access to information about equipment and supplies, thus enhancing readiness and safety (Cheri 89). The Salvation Army officials to the Haiti refugees living in makeshift camps involved the technology in the distribution of food. They did this by tagging some cards to over 4,000 families, and thus helping them in monitoring and controlling the situation. There is also the use of e-envelopes, which allows the creator of the document to specify only authorized users and uses. It also controls all aspects of what happens to a document (Cheri 89).
Therefore, the technology can create an audit trail of what has opened or tried to open the document, which has revoked the contents of the document, which has shared the documents. They can then enforce version control by turning off an old version and then authenticating the tampering with the document. It gives the digital signature technology, such as the one used in the US 2011 fiscal year budget. (Blanchard 26). Security competencies are through an interactive strategy, which involves the development of security capabilities, such as the infrastructure, assets and resources that maintain supply chain security.
There are 10 security competencies used in creating the security framework, such as Process Strategy, Process Management, Infrastructure Management, Communication Management, Management Technology, Process Technology, Metrics, Relationship Management, Public Interface Management and Service Provider Management. Of these, some are indeed very challenging to implement (Suder & Michael 45). Examples of security competencies that are challenging to implement are as follows:
The process technology deals with the use of information systems to track product movement. This is because many firms have not progressed beyond the implementation of physical security measures. They are still reluctant to attain the new technologies due to the costs involved. The next is the relationship and service provider management, which creates a mutual existence between the companies. (Suder & Michael 56).
Information systems implementation is also important in the process of digitizing standards in the company. Most companies report their economic activity in the form of accounting standards. In the US, the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) help accountants, managers, information system designers, investors, and auditors in the processing and interpreting the economic state of the firm.
The current accounting standards are ambiguous. There are instances where different firms have been able to interpret available standards to fit within GAAP. At the same time, they also deserve additional action by FASB. The use of accounting standards formalization is crucial, as it is to address exactly the above concerns (Terras 45). Feasibility then comes in to determine the extent to which the accounting standards should be formal. Some scholars support the decoupling of accounting standards setting from the setting of regulatory capital and reserves. Some, on the other hand, advocate for a government oversight organization.
FASB should make accounting standards understandable. Ambiguity allows inertial tendencies to continue within management accounting. Formalization becomes the solution, as it cannot tolerate inconsistency. Formalization is the creation of strictly ordered rules with interactions and objects that abide by the same rules. Pseudocode is a form of formalization with a platform free programming, such as structure of presentation. Pseudocode helps in alleviating ambiguity by mimicking the code used by actual programmers (Hulle 30). It follows a framework that is very rigid. Formalization is in the medical field where ontologists have managed to use the principle in their practice.
When a rule is too simple, formalization becomes a trivial task. On the contrary, if complexity grows, the chances for diversity in interpretation widen. FASB should delineate those areas that are to the judgment of practitioners. These follow a set of predetermined options (Hulle 34). Software vendors and in-house computer professionals at accounting firms are to bridge the gap between non-formalized prose and the formal computer language.
