Kelly Shaw's Blog: June 2017

Wednesday, June 28, 2017

Junk Van

JUNK VAN

To: Marcus Kingo

From: Kelly Shaw

Date: June 27^th, 2017

Re: Junk Van

Mr. Kingo,

I apologize for the inconvenience I may have caused by not being present at this morning’s meeting. After thoroughly reviewing the presentation from our consultants, I agree with their recommendation. Our current IT system is archaic and puts our company at a serious disadvantage compared to our competitors and in regards to potential growth. Therefore, my recommendation is to accept the platform service offer presented by our consultants.

Currently, our company’s most critical problem within our IT system is a result of human error. The long-lasting effects of human error should not be perceived as minuscule to the success of our company. Not only are our customers displeased with the time lag’s that are occurring, it has the potential to become a much larger problem than just unhappy consumers. To give you an example, Amazon’s cloud recently experienced an outage for an hour which caused a ripple effect to several other businesses and platforms. The cause; HUMAN ERROR! This simple mistake made by one person was estimated to cause $310 million in lost revenue for US Financial Service Companies and S&P 500 Companies.

An annual cost of approximately $45,00 is a small price to pay for taking the appropriate preventative measures for our business ensure its growth potential. Customer retention and acquisition are also crucial if we want to succeed. Two studies I researched showed that the probability of selling to existing customer and new customers are 60-70% and 5-20%, respectively and that 80% of future sales will stem from existing customers. Minimizing the risk of losing these opportunities with our consumers is a top priority! An updated IT system will do just that.

Please let me know what your thoughts are. I look forward to speaking with you regarding this matter. Thank you!

Best Regards,

Kelly Shaw

HTML & Google Maps API

To: Dr. Peterson

From: Kelly Shaw

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<h1>Montclair State University</h1>
<body>
<hr>
<b>
<p style="color:red;">
<font face="courier" size="5">Directions to Campus
</font><br />

<iframe width="600" height="450" frameborder="0" style="border:0" src="https://www.google.com/maps/embed/v1/place?q=Montclair%20State%20University&key=AIzaSyCZuTR4epQbXZMj4M8FnaRntxqwvoLfcFc" allowfullscreen></iframe>

</body>

<html>
<head>
<p style="color:blue;"><font face="courier" size="3">
<script>//javascript code
a=15;//initialization of variables
b=25;
c=a+b;//perform sum operation
document.write("sum of numbers is: " +c);//print the result(+ is a concatenate operator)
</script></p></font><br />
</head>
</html>

</html>

Wednesday, June 14, 2017

Visio

To: Dr. Peterson

From: Kelly Shaw

Date: June 14, 2017

Re: Visio

Memorandum

Recently, there has been talk of implementing the use of Microsoft Visio for every employee in our organization. I don’t think it is necessary to give access of this program to every employee however, Visio has capabilities that would certainly benefit our top management team during their meetings and presentations.

It is important for information to be clear and concise when it is being presented to other individuals. Visio provides graphic capabilities such as flowcharts and graphs that make information easier to comprehend. For example, financial information is presented quarterly to our employees and shareholders. Often, there are situations where certain jargon used in the financial world is not understood by other departments. Visio, which is compatible with other Microsoft Applications such as excel, can easily transfer financial data in a spreadsheet to a drawing or graph which makes the information easier to digest for nonfinancial individuals.

Providing visuals ultimately help reinforce key information and make complex information more transparent. As a result, less time is being wasted trying to analyze a cluster of information. Management is able to quickly analyze information with just a glance and make any adjustments needed to enhance operations and save money.

To ease any concerns about the costs associated with installing Visio for top management, there is a 30 day free trial available. This will be provide an estimate of how long it would take for one to familiarize themselves with the application and begin utilizing its capabilities. For those members of top management who are struggling or unfamiliar with Visio, there is a monthly webcast that offers training and tricks for free. After the trial period and seeing the impact it has on company’s presentation abilities and information retention, it can be purchased for $13.00 per user each with an annual contract. There are 20 people in our top management team which totals an additional $260.00 in costs for the use of Microsoft Visio. This cost in minimal compared to the enhancements that will our company will see as a result.

Please provide me with your thoughts and any additional feedback. Look forward to hearing from you!

Best Regards,

Kelly Shaw

Sunday, June 4, 2017

Blog About Blogs

June 4, 2017

To: Mr. Peterson

Re: Blog About Blogs

It is my understanding that you are interested in having all employees maintain a blog and have asked for my opinion on the possible impact of implementing this requirement. Blogging is an important aspect of a company's online marketing strategy and provides several advantages compared to businesses that do not blog; however, it is true that maintaining a user-friendly and interesting blog is a time consuming job which could result in less efficiency on other daily tasks. Therefore, my recommendation is to have a few employees maintain a blog rather than every employee.

A 2014 study by Katrina Pfannkuch showed that by 2020, it is estimated 85% of consumer relationships will be managed with no human interactions. This piece of information is enough evidence to show the importance of having a business blog. Consumers are more likely to search our business online themselves to read about who we are and read the reviews about our products/services prior to communicating with one of our employees. Most people, myself included, do not buy something without first reading about other's experiences through blogs or reviews. Maintaining a blog enables our company to connect with people through other networks which it the form of communication that is becoming more prevalent.

Another study done by State of Inbound Marketing revealed that "Companies that blog have 97% more inbound links". More inbound links results in a higher presence online. The likelihood of consumers coming across our business will increase dramatically resulting in a greater likelihood of making a sale. Both of these impacts are sufficient evidence that shows the advantages off having a blog for our business.

Best Regards,

Kelly Shaw

Saturday, June 3, 2017

ZARA Case

To: CEO

From: Kelly Shaw

Date: June 2, 2017

Re: Upgrading Zara POS/DOS Systems

After carefully reviewing the presentation on why we should upgrade to a more modern and convenient POS/DOS system, I find myself agreeing with the points which were made. With any successful business, it is imperative to make investments that will support the growth potential of the company. Zara already has a strong competitive advantage over its competitors by providing new items weekly and using PDA's to store current needs of their customers; however, will this advantage still be enough in a year from now? How about five years from now? The point is to recognize how times are changing and plan accordingly.

The graph shown above by the U.S. Census Bureau shows the growth of e-commerce sales as a percentage of total sales from 1999 - 2006. It also shows the percentage of sales that is not available to Zara. Since we do not have an online presence, we must profit solely on sales within the store. This was a critical driver in my opinion to upgrade our systems. Our customers are relying on our employees to provide them with accurate information and to go above and beyond to meet their needs. This could range from something as simple as quick service and a conversation over the transaction, to finding an item/size in another store for them to pick up. Being able to view other locations inventory in an efficient manner will not only make the customer happy, it will remind them that ZARA is unlike other retailers and are willing to go the extra mile. Ultimately, the goal is to create a memorable shopping experience that will keep people coming back. To accomplish this, we need to provide the proper tools and equipment to our employees. Some may view this upgrade as an unnecessary cost for the company to incur when there is no immediate threat or problem; personally, I view it as an investment in our future.

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