Logistics and Information System Development are hot topics in today’s business world. Although many studies have been conducted on these two areas, information about logistics costs is still lacking in many companies. Information Systems are tools that, if properly developed, aid organizations in processing data and providing information with speed, accuracy and quality to its intended users. A lacking in the relation between the business world and the Information System’s world was apparent in a studied company’s self-developed Enterprise Resource Planning system, where information about logistics costs was neglected. A case study made in this same studied company, show the importance of seven different logistics costs types and its related information. Using the analysis of the material gathered from both literary work and this case study, it was determined what information about logistics costs is neglected by the manufacturing organization’s self-developed ERP-system. Finally, it was concluded what information on these logistics costs that should be considered by manufacturing organizations for facilitating the understanding of total product cost of specific products and which may not be supported by these systems.

Thesis (MAcc (Accountancy))--University of Stellenbosch, 2007. / The successful implementation of an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) System can help an organisation to redefine its business processes and enhance its competitive advantage. An ERP System Implementation is a transformation project, which changes the way an organisation thinks and acts about its business. An ERP System implementation is also a complex endeavour, and as such, it requires rigorous risk management. The understanding and management of risks relevant to ERP System Implementation Projects are critical in order to ensure that the project delivers on its objectives within the specified budget and timelines, and eventually realises the envisaged business benefits. The purpose of this study is to discuss how key risks relevant to ERP System Implementation Projects could be addressed by applying project management disciplines derived from the PRINCE2 (PRojects IN Controlled Environment) project management methodology. This methodology was developed by the Office of Government Commerce in the United Kingdom. This study also provides a framework that could be applied at the outset and during an ERP System Implementation Project by business management, to understand the risks (“what could go wrong?”) and project management disciplines that should be applied to address these risks (“what must go right?”). This framework was derived by: • Identifying key risks relevant to ERP System Implementation Projects; • Mapping these key risks onto SAP Implementation phases to highlight where these risks could materialise in the SAP Implementation process; • Then mapping these key risks across PRINCE2 project management processes and SAP Implementation phases by creating the SAP Implementation Key Risks Map; and finally • Providing a detailed description of how to apply PRINCE2 project management disciplines to address each risk in the SAP Implementation Key Risks Map.

This dissertation is seen as a contribution to the field of enterprise resource planning systems (ERP) and their application in regional science. The main objective is to demonstrate the possibility of using accounting data of enterprise information systems for regional evaluation, for example, regional statistics, identifying agglomeration and economic analysis of some spatial dependency of economic activities, through a set of accounting data obtained from business entities. The dissertation is divided into two parts - theoretical framework and practical part. The theoretical framework provides a theoretical basis for the definition of information society, ERP, their structure and deployment of ERP in the EU regions, including the use of accounting data from the ERP for the regional evaluation. It also contains a definition of the region and regional relations as part of a regional policy. Regional statistics and the comparison of regional indicators, definitions of economic clusters, enterprise networking and methodology of identification of economic agglomerations are explained in another part dissertation. Interpretation of statistical methods are then used in the practical part of the dissertation. In the practical part is then performed identification of economic agglomerations, derived from accounting data of enterprise resource planning systems, 27 randomly selected enterprises with nationwide coverage in ČR, regardless of the branch structure, followed by an analysis of the spatial dependence of sales and purchases to the distance.

Growing enterprises have growing amounts of information. Making sure that this information is easily accessible to its employees is not an easy task. For this task Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems come in handy. However, the ERP systems contain lots of information and may be too complex to handle this information or may be too slow in sharing this information within the organisation. This thesis introduces a new solution for how mobile applications can connect to an ERP system by exploiting database synchronisation, which allows the employees to get the information wherever they are without the need to directly access the ERP system. There are three important questions in this thesis: how the ERP works, how to build a mobile application and, how to build a back end? By combining answers to these questions a whole system is built which is production ready and can copy data between the ERP system and the back end and show the information in a mobile application. The overarching goals were to build a system that could extract data from the ERP system into a proprietary back end and a mobile application that could synchronise with the back end. However, synchronisation between the mobile application and the back end was not implemented due to lack of time. The back end had to be able to scale up to 500 concurrent users and respond within 3 seconds, both of these goals were achieved. The mobile application that was built to display the information to the end user was built with usability in mind, since Netlight wanted a straightforward application that anyone could use. The mobile application was shown to have good usability. The results of this thesis project show that building systems around ERPs, instead of inside them, gives these systems the ability to scale, improved the implementation time, and reduced the company’s maintenance efforts. / Växande företag får mer och mer information. Att kunna se till att den informationen blir enkelt tillgänglig för alla inom företaget är inte nödvändigtvis lätt. Det är ofta det som affärssystem kan användas till, dock innehåller affärssystem väldigt mycket information och kan vara för komplexa för att enkelt kunna hantera information man är intresserad av. Det kan även uppstå problem i prestanda i och med storleken på affärssystemet. I det här examensarbetet föreslås ett nytt sätt för hur mobila applikationer kan integreras med affärssystem genom att synkronisera mot dess databas, vilket tillåter anställda att komma åt informationen vart de än befinner sig. I det här examensarbetet finns det tre olika delar som är intressanta, hur affärssystemet fungerar, hur man bygger en mobilapplikation och hur man bygger ett back end. Genom att kombinera kunskapen från ovan nämnda delar, byggdes systemet som är redo för produktion och kan synkronisera data från affärssystemet till back endet, samt att visa upp informationen i mobilapplikationen. De översiktliga målen var att bygga ett system som kunde extrahera data från affärssystemet till ett eget byggt back end och en mobilapplikation som kunde synkronisera med detta back end. Dock blev synkroniseringen mellan mobilapplikationen och back endet aldrig implementerat. Back endet skulle även kunna skala upp till 500 samtidiga användare och då kunna svara inom 3 sekunder, vilket man lyckades med. Mobilapplikationen som byggdes för att visa information byggdes med användbarhet i tankarna, eftersom Netlight ville ha en enkel mobilapplikation som vem som helst skulle kunna använda. Mobilapplikationen analyserades fram till att vara användarvänlig. Detta examensarbete visar på att det går att bygga system runt affärssystem istället för att bygga dem i affärssystemen, vilket möjliggör att systemet kan skala upp bättre, mindre tid för implementation samt mindre underhåll.

The rapid changes in the global economy have imposed high pressure on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and their operations. Many SMEs have realized how important it is to integrate all units in the business by introducing Enterprise Resource Planning systems (ERP systems).    The adoption decision phase in ERP systems is an early phase and is often confused with implementation, which is a major cause of failure. This confusion can especially hit hard on small and medium-sized companies that may lack sufficient resources. The adoption decision phase can be particularly crucial in such case. The purpose of this study is to investigate which driving forces that influence the adoption decision phase of ERP systems within SMEs. The Technology-Organization-Environment (TOE) theoretical framework was used to create a theoretical foundation for finding drivers from previous research.   Semi-structured interviews were then conducted with six ERP consultants. Respondents' responses were analyzed thematically, and 12 themes were identified as driving forces. These could then be compared with previous research. The driving forces identified were management and decision makers, benefits and efficiency, functionality, regulations and security, competition and the future, industry type and complexity, education and competence, finance and resources, supplier and solutions, integration with existing systems, maintenance and support, and challenges and uncertainty. The driving forces that were identified but could not be linked to previous research were functionality, and challenges and uncertainty.   Keywords: Adoption decision, driving forces, Enterprise Resource Planning systems (ERP system), small and medium-sized enterprises (SME), Technology-Organization-Environment (TOE).

This research examines the impact of purchasing constraints and demand variability on working capital balances. The working capital accounts considered are creditors, debtors and raw material inventories. Purchasing constraints and demand uncertainty are defined. The supply chain of the South African cable industry, and one manufacturer in particular, and the challenges faced in the cable manufacturing process are discussed. To quantify the influences, a comparison between working capital accounts in the case of economic order quantity and actual purchasing practices is performed. A simulation model is developed to reproduce a larger sample of demand data, matching the cumulative probability density function of each cable type contained in the annual sales budget. The results show, that the working capital accounts react differently to changes in purchasing conditions and variations in demand, the most sensitive being raw material inventories. The study quantifies the influence of purchasing constraints on each working capital value. / Business Management / M.Com. (Business Management)

The use of enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems by small enterprises is proliferating. Traditionally used by large enterprises, ERP systems are now considered important enterprise management aids, which may contribute to the sustainability and growth of small enterprises. Although varying acceptance factors may impact on the acceptance of ERP systems, there is no consolidated list of ERP system acceptance factors specific to small enterprises. In this study, the strategic, business, technical and human factors that influence the acceptance of ERP systems in small manufacturing enterprises in South Africa is presented. These influencing factors may guide future initiatives aiming to ensure the acceptance of ERP systems by small manufacturing enterprise. A combined quantitative and qualitative data analysis approach was used as an analytical lens to interpret responses gathered from small manufacturing enterprises. Recommendations are made for future research on ERP system acceptance and adoption within the broader spectrum of small enterprises. / Information Systems / M. Sc. (Information Systems)

This research examines the impact of purchasing constraints and demand variability on working capital balances. The working capital accounts considered are creditors, debtors and raw material inventories. Purchasing constraints and demand uncertainty are defined. The supply chain of the South African cable industry, and one manufacturer in particular, and the challenges faced in the cable manufacturing process are discussed. To quantify the influences, a comparison between working capital accounts in the case of economic order quantity and actual purchasing practices is performed. A simulation model is developed to reproduce a larger sample of demand data, matching the cumulative probability density function of each cable type contained in the annual sales budget. The results show, that the working capital accounts react differently to changes in purchasing conditions and variations in demand, the most sensitive being raw material inventories. The study quantifies the influence of purchasing constraints on each working capital value. / Business Management / M.Com. (Business Management)

Submitted by Paulo Junior (paulo.jr@fgv.br) on 2010-05-25T21:11:32Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Luciano Gaete 2010 - versão final.pdf: 5228505 bytes, checksum: 668724e59158a53c0d46d3c184d08b55 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Paulo Junior(paulo.jr@fgv.br) on 2010-05-25T21:16:45Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Luciano Gaete 2010 - versão final.pdf: 5228505 bytes, checksum: 668724e59158a53c0d46d3c184d08b55 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2010-05-27T17:20:43Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Luciano Gaete 2010 - versão final.pdf: 5228505 bytes, checksum: 668724e59158a53c0d46d3c184d08b55 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010-05-05 / The main goal of this work is to obtain and empirically validate an Information System Resistance model which could be applied to better understand the resistance phenomenon to information systems. The study was conducted by an explanatory research in a quantitative approach, based on an extensive review of the pertinent world literature that resulted in the consolidation of the main existing theories and models about the subject. In the proposed model a set of aspects was considered that although already having been discussed in the available literature, in its majority has not yet been empirically tested, which are: (i) the idiosyncratic individual characteristics, (ii) the technical aspects of the information systems, (iii) the socio-technical interaction aspects, (iv) the power and political interaction aspects and finally, (v) the organization context in which technology and man are inserted and interact. Then a meta-model was done as well as a survey. Once applied on Internet, the survey obtained 169 valid responses, from Brazilian IT managers who had experienced at least one experience with ERPs - Enterprise Resource Planning Systems – implementation. To obtain the final model statistical factorial analysis was applied to the answers. Each identified factor in the model corresponds to an expected cause to the information system resistance behavior. The model was than submitted to hypotheses tests trying to establish the relation between each resultant factor and the direct resistance perception of each respondent. A consolidated information system resistance model based on the Brazilian IT Managers perception about the ERPs implementation has emerged from this study. / Este trabalho visa obter e verificar empiricamente um meta-modelo que possa apoiar e aprofundar a compreensão do fenômeno da resistência a sistemas de informação. Tratase de uma pesquisa explanatória e quantitativa na qual faz-se, por meio de uma extensa revisão da literatura mundial, o levantamento e consolidação das principais teorias e modelos existentes sobre o tema. Dessa forma, buscando obter um melhor entendimento do problema de pesquisa, propõe-se um meta-modelo de fatores pertinentes ao comportamento de resistência a sistemas de informação. Neste modelo, considera-se um conjunto de aspectos que, embora já abordados anteriormente, em sua maior parte ainda não haviam sido testados empiricamente, quais sejam: (i) as características idiossincráticas dos indivíduos, (ii) os aspectos técnicos inerentes aos sistemas de informação, (iii) as características da interação sócio-técnica, (iv) as características da interação de poder e políticas e, finalmente, (v) as características das organizações nas quais a tecnologia e o homem estão inseridos e interagem entre si. O instrumento de pesquisa utilizado no trabalho foi um questionário estruturado, aplicado via Internet, com suas questões contextualizadas quanto aos sistemas de gestão empresarial ERPs: Enterprise Resource Planning Systems. Obteve-se um total de 169 respondentes, considerando-se uma amostra composta exclusivamente por gestores de tecnologia da informação (TI) brasileiros e que tenham vivenciado pelo menos uma experiência de implantação de sistemas ERP ao longo de suas carreiras. Uma vez realizada a coleta dos dados, foram empregados testes estatísticos relativos à análise fatorial, visando alcançar um modelo definitivo. A partir do novo modelo encontrado, por meio da validação proporcionada pela análise fatorial, cada fator identificado representou uma causa para o comportamento de resistência a sistemas de informação. Por fim, testou-se também hipóteses a partir do novo modelo identificado, verificando-se as relações entre a percepção direta dos gestores quanto à resistência e os diversos fatores considerados relevantes para a explicação deste comportamento. Como resultado do estudo, consolidou-se um modelo de análise do comportamento de resistência a sistemas de informação, baseado na percepção do gestor de TI e contextualizado nos sistemas ERPs.

The use of enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems by small enterprises is proliferating. Traditionally used by large enterprises, ERP systems are now considered important enterprise management aids, which may contribute to the sustainability and growth of small enterprises. Although varying acceptance factors may impact on the acceptance of ERP systems, there is no consolidated list of ERP system acceptance factors specific to small enterprises. In this study, the strategic, business, technical and human factors that influence the acceptance of ERP systems in small manufacturing enterprises in South Africa is presented. These influencing factors may guide future initiatives aiming to ensure the acceptance of ERP systems by small manufacturing enterprise. A combined quantitative and qualitative data analysis approach was used as an analytical lens to interpret responses gathered from small manufacturing enterprises. Recommendations are made for future research on ERP system acceptance and adoption within the broader spectrum of small enterprises. / Information Systems / M. Sc. (Information Systems)