The role of ISs in today's business is vital, so I agree with FYC's placing great importance on them. A company web site is essential for virtually any company, as today's consumer expects any legitimate company to have a web site and also expects to be able to order products and interact with the company online. Moreover, consumers' expectations with regard to company ISs are rising, as a recent survey of 5,000 consumers from AT&T's Sterling Commerce shows that multi-channel shopping is also expected, with 65% wanting to be able to complete, cancel, or modify an order via either a store, the web site, or a call center regardless of which channel they used to place the order ("Guide to E-Commerce Technology," 2008). If anything, FYC needs to upgrade its Internet presence to a site that offers more than just an online catalogue and sales if it wants to be competitive with other retailers. Many customers today expect live chat and other conveniences that FYC does not offer.
Within FYC's organization, however, there are issues with the organizational processes. Many processes are done manually and do not make full use of the computer capabilities available, and this leaves the company exposed to substantial risk because there is no visibility into the data. The company's IS is largely antiquated and led by someone who is resistant to change-a fatal flaw for an IS director, since technology in the IS field changes daily.
A critique of FYC's organizational structure, hierarchy, and interdependence on IS would show that the company's greatest problem is its IS leadership. The company needs an IS leader who will take the initiative for bringing IS into the 21st century, automating all manual processes and integrating them into a responsive IS that allows management to see at a glance how the operation is doing as well as allowing the functional departments to see their own data. An IS that is properly d
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