The Harley Davidson manner of zeroing on a software provider adopted the thorough process of weighing the offerings of the software provider in a quantitative and consistent setup. Exhibit 10 provides an overview of the factors, both quantitative and qualitative, the SiL’K team rated the providers on to aid in their selection process. The factors listed though impressive and quite thorough, lacks in three crucial factors we believe would make a deep influence in choosing a provider. They are future scalability and expandability, flexibility to adapt to probable changes during development and maturity of technology being used. Elaborating on why the above stated factors are important to be considered during the selection process, we believe …show more content…
Provider 1 came across as a seamless cultural fit for Harley Davidson. As we stated above, the factors which we believe need to weigh most heavily can be put under the umbrella of qualitative, ideological and cultural fit, both in terms of processes and people. And Provider 1 fit into this criteria perfectly. They showed a high level of enthusiasm and passion both about their product as well as the opportunity to work with Harley Davidson, as exhibited by the Harley Davidson gear they wore for the presentation. They were thoroughly prepared to offer a solution to every requirement that was asked for and also to offer a work around when a direct solution wasn’t possible. We believe that a provider’s culture, style of working and willingness to adapt and please supersedes other factors and this was what Provider 1 offered. It also scored high on Architecture Compatibility, Training, Understanding Harley’s requirements and Enabling the SMS. They understood Harley’s working ideology and philosophy (For example, Provider 1’s understanding of the importance of brand imagery adopted by the company as demonstrated by the Harley Davidson shirts they donned). And, this was their distinguishing factor. Although they didn’t score highest on the functionality side and did not provide support for Web enablement in their package (they provided a work around though), the above stated strengths made Provider 1 the best choice. The software provider selection process employed by Harley
In the case of Providian Trust, the organization attempts to outsource the implementation of a major software system aimed at updating its internal business processes and outdated information system to be more cost efficient and provide more timely services to its customers. However, there are certain activities and processes that are needed to ensure that the procurement process is effective and the appropriate goods and/or services are acquired. For example, a needs analysis or feasibility study will need to be conducted prior to sending out the request for proposal (RFP). Specifically, for IT projects, such as the software development for Providian, this will pay off despite the chosen vendor as well as help avoid falling in love with a pretty interface and not what’s under the hood. In addition, the focus will be on solving business problems and seeing and understanding vendor capabilities and tool demos in relation to the project goals and objectives for the future. Additionally, there are some key criteria that should be followed to help ensure the success of a vendor selection and the procurement planning
List and describe at least three factors that a firm should consider when making an outsourcing decision.
Martin Smith is newly employed in Greenlane Group, a top venture firm. Mr. Weatherstorm, his senior partner gave him three proposals to assess and evaluate. Martin’s task was to make a presentation about the advantages of the three data communication companies and come up with a credible recommendation on which of the proposals should Greenlane Group choose?
I think Harley Davidson did a very good job selecting the evaluation criteria. From the functional criteria, I consider Receiving, Supply Management and Project Tracking the most important functionalities. The others are mainly
1. The entire product was built based on customer needs that were identified by querying an extensive network of sales and marketing industry professionals. While MarketSoft used an elaborate LP language to ensure that what they heard translated to all of
All companies provided a very satisfactory proposal in terms of functionality. All of them met our requirements by more than 90%. What will definitely act as a tie-breaker is the cultural binding that they might have with us. This is a crucial factor, because we are proposing a bold change and employees need to be accompanied and motivated. We have to make sure the provider knows our philosophy and culture. That will ensure that implementation, training and the change management go as smoothly as possible. No matter how good is the software in terms of functionality, if change and people are not managed carefully, the whole project risks failure. For that reason, our recommendation is provider 1. As top executives are often very sensitive to money issues, I would also stress the fact that provider 1 is the most cost effective option.
After analyzing all these risks and criteria Id like to present some points to demonstrate why we should go for outsourcing:
Allowed Keda to gain insights on the vendors and also possible complications in the implementation process
Cain grew up as the very first child in the world. He was the son of Adam and Eve, the handcrafted creations of God at the beginning of time. Cain grew up with a younger brother named Abel. He worked as a gardener while Abel was a herdsman. The turning point in Cain’s life was during harvest time when he brought a sacrifice of vegetables to God while his brother brought the best lamb he had. God accepted Abel’s offering but rejected Cain’s. This threw Cain into an uncontrollable rage in which he planned the murder of his brother. Even though God warned Cain to subdue his evil intentions, Cain murdered his brother. This caused God to curse Cain as an endless wonderer. Cain’s sin was infected into all his descendants to the point of God whipping the slate clean in a flood only to save Cain’s brother’s second brother Seth’s descendant – Noah and his family.
2. Based on the information in the case, which provider would you select (and why)? Argue in favor of and against each vendor before arriving at the final decision?
When customers seek for a specific product or service, they obviously want the company to be responsible and well organized. A customer wants to be able to trust the company in which the company delivers everything correctly and the way the costumer wants. When all the customer wants and needs are met, the customer will be to determine which company fits best.
Cultural issues different customers in the global market have different culture and this calls for a different strategy to handle their needs
Nowadays, societies crucially depend on high-quality software for a large part of their day to day activities. Hence, software professionals, researchers, managers, and practitioners alike have to decide what software technologies and products
As for South America, Harley-Davidson Inc. HOG +0.31% opened a permanent Latin America headquarters, joining a growing list of U.S. companies looking to tap into the emerging market. (By Melodie Warner in Market Watch) South America has a growing economy and a huge acceptance for an icon in the motorcycle industry like Harley Davidson. In the same way Japan embraced Harley “Their economy is a fast growing luxury market” p.c11.
Ford Motor Company is undergoing a transformation that is putting their customers at the center of everything they do. Their vision is to be the world’s leading consumer company for automotive products and services. That requires a much different headset than that of a traditional automobile manufacturer—one that concentrates intensely on the people who buy and use their products. Obviously, they had had a pretty good idea of what their customers wanted in the past, or we wouldn’t be approaching our 100th anniversary.