Individual project 5 Final Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Individual project 5 Final - Assignment Example The market research was conducted through the pragmatic approach. The pragmatic approach secures effective cost benefit analysis of the current business environments (Bradley, 2007). Nordstrom Inc is a fashion store targeting the high-end American market. It was initiated by John Nordstrom and Carl Wallin; and its current headquarters is in Seattle area of Washington DC. The company started with the shoe business; but it has grown tremendously and currently stocks cosmetics, accessories, jewelry, handbags and clothing fragrances. Currently the company has over 260 stores in 35 states in America. The competitors for Nordstrom Inc in the luxury clothing sector include Lord and Taylor, Saks Fifth Avenue, Bloomindales and Neiman Marcas. The company is also implementing global strategies; for example it has operational stores in Canada. In the USA luxury clothing industry, Nordstrom Inc has the largest share of the store locations, and the biggest geographic representation (Gupta, 2005). Segmentation analysis entails dividing a big population into small segments so as to realize socio-demographic determinants of desired behaviors. The characteristics of members of the subpopulation are relatively similar statistically. Common factors of study in segmentation are demographic, behavioral or psychological variables like; education, age, attitudes, income and even sexual orientation (Kotler, 2006). Segmentation analysis integrates these factors into correlated attributes that identify specific population segments. Segmentation enables companies like Nordstrom Inc to produce the desired goods and services that address the requirements of the unique market segments. This will ensure increased market share, and thereafter improved sales and profit margins. Business segmentation analysis supports decision making in companies like Nordstrom. Segmentation is applied in clothing industry to ensure adequate understanding of the lifestyles, concerns or values of the

Strategic Role of Information Systems in Contemporary Business Essay

Strategic Role of Information Systems in Contemporary Business Organisations - Essay Example Behind the Google search engine IT infrastructure are huge server farms and storage databases that enable the production of significantly high computational processing power. There is speculation about Google’s server farms, terabytes of storage disks packaged into shipping containers in order to allow for more set-ups of server farms around the world (Spencer 2011:35). These infrastructures are then distributed across numerous independent, which further provide resources for parallel computing. The arrangement has enabled Google to expand its market worldwide, surpassing the 100 billion dollars market capital as well as gaining admiration and respect all over the globe. Additionally, the paper uses Porter’s 5-forces approach to elaborate the competitive environment of the company as well as highlights its competitive advantages. Introduction The Google search engine is among the most widely used search engines in the globe. The firm has captured the hearts of informati on-craving individuals searching the web for everything and anything in their imagination. The growth of the company has been tremendous, dominating the search engine market by more than 60% worldwide (Scott 2008:162). Additionally, the firm currently has a market capital approaching the 200 billion dollars mark, which economically suggests that the company is doing great. The company capitalizes on information technology strategies to expand its market share, including improvement of its unique search engine algorithm as well as knowledge management techniques (Dalkir 2005:122). This paper seeks to analyze the conceptual framework of Google’s strategies and the application of knowledge management concept in developing and sustaining the strategic capabilities and the competitive edge of the company. The research strategy focuses on the recent adoption of knowledge management techniques in the search engine, as well as other application like the new social network Google Plus . The paper utilizes materials from educative and scholarly articles, journals, and books. Conceptual Framework The success of Google in the web-based search engine industry is attributed to the adoption of knowledge management principles in its search technology. Knowledge management is a powerful tool that Google has incorporated at the centre of its search paradigm (Fernandez and Leidner 2008:81). The search technology design is in such a manner that it polls the collective judgment of many web creators to optimize its search results. Consequently, the company has created a multi-billion dollar business empire from super-targeted advertisements that give magazines and newspaper classified a run for their money. Google was a first-mover in the many/ordinary business model, leaving most of the other competitors on the few/expert model (Bottletree Books 2011:23). The company capitalizes on the fact that search results be ranked based on collective judgment. The search results improv e as more people conduct web search using their application, enabling Google to associate relevant contents with keywords. Findings and Analysis The development of search engines began in early 1990s with aims of facilitating