Shannon Pickering

Business Administration Conversations……..

Evaluating Enterprise Application Integration

Workbook

Adopt strategies to continue learning about Enterprise Application Integration through conversations with my peers.

ACTIVITY #1: The Big Ideas

Consider the “big ideas” that I learned about in the first 7 weeks of the course about Enterprise Application Integration based on three themes: 1) Project Management and Process, 2) Stakeholder Roles, 3) Data and Database.

Step 1: What is the one big idea I am taking away from this course for the following themes:

Business Processes Integration Data and Database

Collaboration Efficiencies Knowledge

Step 2: Using point form, enhance the big idea for each of the themes by adding more detail

Business Processes Integration Data and Database Functional silos, such as marketing,

accounting and human resources do not work in today’s business environment.

Collaboration is required across functional areas in order to facilitate the sharing of information and ideas.

Collaboration provides the opportunity for employees within an organization to build on each other’s ideas.

Sharing information and ideas leads to innovation, which is essential in staying competitive.

Functional areas may begin to blur, with employees expected to seamlessly work across functional areas.

The integration of business processes allows organizations to be more efficient and productive.

It reduces redundancies, such as duplicate work, or duplicate information being kept.

Integration facilitates quick and easy sharing information and ideas across an organizations.

Efficient business practices reduce costs, increase productivity and allow organizations to provide better customer service.

Effective use of databases can provide access to vast amounts of knowledge.

Databases can be analyzed for information relevant to providing better customer service, and information that will assist an organization meeting its strategic objectives.

Organizations need to be aware of privacy concerns regarding keeping and having access to large amounts of personal information.

Shannon Pickering

Step 3: Summarize your “big ideas” in a way that portrays your learning throughout the first 7 weeks of the semester.

In this class, I have learned about the importance of organizations adopting a collaborative approach in their business procedures. A collaborative business approach can be accomplished through integrating data processes, which allows information to be easily shared throughout an organization. Collaboration is very important in a company meeting its strategic objectives. The success of a business depends on its ability to satisfy its customers, and integrating data allows for better customer service. Based on these ideas, I have been able to formulate some ideas regarding enterprise application integration:

Innovation and excellent customer services are arguably two of the most important factors in building a successful business. Enterprise application integration can facilitate both customer service improvements and innovation. Enterprise application integration facilitates collaboration, the sharing of knowledge and efficiencies. Through collaboration and sharing knowledge, organizations can uncover ways to improve their business practices and better serve their customers. This information can be gleaned from collecting and sharing customer feedback, or collecting and analyzing customer information stored in databases, provided these practices are completed ethically and transparently. To effectively use database information to better serve the customer, the customer needs to be aware of how their information is being used, and must give consent to have their information collected. Furthermore, efficiencies in an organization lead to more efficient customer service. It allows organizations to have sales information, addresses, and other pertinent information on-hand when addressing a customer, thereby saving the customer time. Complaints or concerns can be in a more seamless manner, reducing customer frustration with the organization.

Innovation is also facilitated through enterprise data applications. A more collaborative work environment allows ideas to be shared and built on throughout an organization. Functional areas which may have had little contact in the past are now integrated, giving employees different departments perspective how their business activities impact others in the organization. New perspectives may lead to new and innovative business practices. Enterprise application integration also allows organizations to collect and share vast amounts of information. By analyzing this information, an organization may be able to uncover information that may have gone unnoticed in the past, such as consumer trends, and uncover it at an unprecedented rate. This information may become a catalyst for new ways of thinking, and facilitate the development of new and innovative business ideas.

Step 4: Share your “big ideas” with your peers at your table.

ACTIVITY #2: Business Conversations

Shannon Pickering

At your assigned table make notes of all the ideas during each discussion session. You will be asked to move to another table so that you cover all three areas during this round robin session. Seek out innovative ideas from others at the table or ask questions that will shed light on your thoughts about innovations you can use in your professional development. .

Business Processes Integration Data and Database

Application integration within an organization results in a common product or service. A consumer can expect consistency in its interactions with an organization, or its product or service.

Brainstorming and collaboration are encouraged.

It allows organizations to better serve its customers, and develop innovative ways to better serve them.

Application integration in business processes results in a saleable product.

Blended learning is an example of integration. It facilitates self-learning in an efficient manner by streamlining learning content.

Within an organization, integration results in employees becoming better informed about other departments.

Databases allow organizations to keep data organized, facilitating information management.

Enterprise application integration allows data to be stored in a clear and concise format.

All organizational data can be kept in one place, reducing redundancies such as duplicate data sets or inefficiencies through each functional area having to develop and maintain its own data set.

ACTIVITY #3: Big Ideas to Development of Skills and Knowledge

Shannon Pickering

From the Big Ideas synthesis, and your table talk sessions, bring together your personal viewpoints and the collective viewpoints – regarding IDEAS to help you develop a plan to improve skills and knowledge pertinent to information management systems. Record your more developed ideas under the appropriate category. Use the following questions to reflect on my learning for the assigned theme.

ThemeQuestion Business Processes Integration Data and Database

Where am I now in regard to the theme?

I tend to prefer to work independently, which may result in lost opportunities to learn from my classmates, and to impart knowledge on others. I enjoy collaboration in a productive environment, where people build on the ideas of others.

I find that inefficiencies often occur in group collaboration as a result of an inability to share knowledge. The inability to share information often leads to contradictory results, and makes aggregation of the final product difficult and time- consuming.

I am familiar with using databases to obtain basic information, such as names and phone numbers.

Where am I heading and where would I like to be?

I think that our program at Mohawk has provided us with plenty of opportunities acquire skills relevant to a variety of functional areas, and to develop collaborative skills. I would like to utilize the opportunities provided through our program to further enhance these skills.

I would like to learn how to use technologies which facilitate easy collaboration and sharing of ideas, such as OneDrive and Google Cloud.

I would like to learn how to analyze data effectively. The thought of uncovering new knowledge and using it to develop new ideas and innovative processes is very appealing.

What strategic alliances should I be forming internally and externally to develop skills and knowledge relevant to these themes?

I want to focus on developing a large network of individuals to share ideas with. I can develop this network through professional development events, and establishing long term relationships with students I enjoy working with. Information management could assist in building and maintaining this network.

Group projects provide a perfect opportunity to learn about these platforms, provided others are interested. We could learn these technologies together, and utilize them in a way that created efficiencies in the collaborative process.

I would like to learn as much as possible from our Database Management class. Next semester I can tutor others in using Microsoft access, allowing me to share knowledge with others and reinforce the development of my own skills.

Shannon Pickering

ACTIVITY #4: Final Synthesis

Outline your big idea as a result of this session. Consider whether or not your big idea has changed based on interaction with your peers.

When enterprise application integration is used effectively, knowledge sharing and collaboration occur between an organization and its customers. Furthermore, communication between the two parties becomes increasingly efficient. As this process occurs, improved customer service becomes a means of innovation, and innovation becomes a means of providing better customer service. Innovation within the organization results in better products and services, as well as innovative ways to better serve the customers of an organization. Through enterprise application integration, customers are better equipped to provide feedback, and can share their thoughts, concerns and suggestions with the organization. Their insights can provide organizations with new and innovative ways to serve their customers and improve their business practices. In short, innovation can lead to enhancements in customer service, and improved customer service can inspire innovation within an organization.

Shannon Pickering

Enterprise application integration encourages innovation within an organization. Knowledge is shared, collaboration is encouraged, and organizational efficiencies make available additional resources for use in innovative approaches.

Enterprise application integration leads to improved customer

service. It provides customers with a means of sharing their opinions with organizations in an efficient

manner. Organizations can use this feedback to better serve its

customers.

When completing this assignment, I was able to better formulate my ideas and gather interesting information through our collaborative exercise. Although I prefer to work independently, I appreciated the opportunity to develop ideas with fellow classmates.