Technology Within local business Essay Example for Free

Technology Within local business Essay 1. To investigate the degree to which businesses in your local area rely on the use of information technology. 2. To identify how these businesses make use of information technology. 3. To select how these businesses in you locality and investigate how much it has invested in information technology and how this investment has enhanced its day-to-day operations INTRODUCTION Information Technology is the use of computers when storing, arranging and distribution of information or data. The impact of information technology has been felt all over the world and in all areas of life. Over the past twenty plus years it has changed the world we live in and redesigned the way we work and play. IT has defiantly made a dramatic impact in the business world. Businesses use IT for a number of different uses in the workplace. 61% of businesses researched by a website, used a computer, 61% use a fax machine, 50% use e-mail while only a small percentage use online services and the internet. Businesses use IT to store and speed up the handling of information. IT also opens up new communication techniques for businesses like the Internet, e-mail and fax. IT offers a chance to advertise to a massive audience and access to large amounts of information. Manufacturing businesses benefit from computer packages like Computer Aided Design (CAD) and Computer Aided Manufacturing (CAM). Businesses need to keep up with the growing demands of customers. IT has helped businesses operate in a faster, more efficient and an overall more organized way. IT allows even smaller businesses compete in the larger market. It opens up a whole world of customers for businesses and a whole new way of designing and making the products. The banking and finance industry has seen radical knew changes since the introduction of information technology. Banks can now store information on computer databases instead of using the old primitive filing systems that were vast and slow. Now with computers, data can be called up on screen in seconds. It also allows for more information to be collected and stored. The flexibility of this filing system is also greatly enhanced as information can be changed or added with ease. The information can also be shared with other bank branches very easily through the use of the Internet, e-mail and fax etc. The speed of which bank transactions take place has been increase with the use of Hole In The Wall machines. This new speed has resulted in a cut down in the number of bank branches. Initial investment of IT equipment is enough to put some business owners off the idea all together but once its up and operational the maintenance and running costs are quite low. From a basic personal computer ranging from i 500 and fax machines, computer networks and intranets costing thousands it is understandable why small businesses are hesitant to invest in such hardware. The running costs are low, with only the electrical bills to pay. Some Internet charges may apply, these would be set around i 10 i 50 per month and a domain address would be very low, around i 20 per month. Repair costs can be high as IT specialists can charge as high as i 40 per hour for a callout, and an extra fee for parts and extra labour needed. IT doesnt come cheap but it may benefit a business financially in the long run because of greater efficiency and communication. The purpose of this piece of coursework is to examine ways in which information technology has impacted on the Business world. With this in mind I have three specific aims, which I must fulfill. 1. I must investigate the degree to which businesses in my local area rely on the use of information technology. To complete this I must select a number of businesses, send them a questionnaire and record the findings. I wish to find out details like how many PCs the business has, how many staff uses information technology everyday and how they are trained. 2. I must identify how these businesses make use of information technology. To complete this I must draw up a suitable questionnaire and analyze the findings. I wish to find the different types of information technology that the business has and what advantages they have gained from using it. 3. I must select a business in my locality and investigate how much it has invested in information technology and how this investment has enhanced its day-to-day operations. To complete this I will make an appointment with contact person in Bank Of Ireland, and conduct an interview writing up my findings. I wish to find out things like what types of information technology the Bank of Ireland has, how much it has invested, how much staff uses IT, how the staff are trained and what advantages and disadvantages the Bank of Ireland has found while using the information technology. I am looking forward to completing this coursework for a number of reasons. I am interested in IT and it will be interesting finding out how IT also benefits those in the business world as those in the social. It will introduce me into the world of e-commerce and IT in business more and it will be enjoyable to do. I will take time to plan my work carefully however even at this early stage I realize that I may come across some problems. Some companies may not reply to my questionnaires correctly or at all. To overcome this I will send out a lot of questionnaires to lots of businesses to increase chances of getting a reply. It may be difficult to find information regarding IT and business. I will overcome this by using the Internet, library and textbooks to get vast amounts of information. I have to avoid leading questions in my questionnaire; I will have to include some open-ended questions to get a more accurate response.