subject name : : MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMS

ASSIGNMENT: Case Study: Airline Merger Comfort Airlines (CA) is a well-established full-service Malaysian airline that has a fully developed global route network with premier class facilities and customer loyalty programmes. It is a highly reputable airline established a long time ago that is already competing well with other similarly operated traditional airlines. However, CA has now taken a strategic decision to merge with Budget Travels (BT) which is a much smaller, low priced and no-frills airline, but otherwise a highly successful organisation doing much better than its competitors. It is agreed that after the merger, although BT will become a subsidiary company, they will keep some autonomy. This merger comprises the business aims, operational strategies, organisational structures and the Information Systems (IS) portfolios of the two companies which are very different. Nevertheless, both companies see huge advantages inherent in the merger. CA and BT are both currently looking into the differences in their operational and strategic processes and are developing a strategy to generate a framework for a workable merger of these areas. After the merger, there will be numerous changes in the work practices and the working environment. Some of the major existing differences can be summarised as follows: CA is a traditionally run airline with an older workforce, whereas BT can be regarded as a 21st century organisation with a much younger and more enthusiastic workforce. CA management style is highly demanding with huge administration, whereas BT management is much more open to suggestions and democratic. CA has many stand-alone and legacy enterprise systems, run on mainframe computers, whereas BT operates highly integrated information systems operating in distributed computing environments. CA organisational structures and work practices are highly rigid, whereas BT operates a less restricted, entrepreneurial culture within a flatter managerial structure. CA and BT are now seeking solutions, and expert advice, to bridge the gaps in managerial and operational matters. To this end, they have employed a consultancy firm to suggest a strategy for the merged organisation that is acceptable to both airlines and to their workforce. Assume that you are working as an advisor with the said consultancy firm and you have been given some relevant questions regarding the CA-BT merger concerns to answer and to provide suitable solutions.

Question: Write a short report convincing the Board of Directors of CA that they need to make changes to become more like a 21st century organisation. In particular the report should address: iv. Enterprise Systems (ES) within CA are mainly for the use by data centre personnel within the organisation. Customer interaction with the ES is rather limited. Discuss how the ES could bring benefits to the newly merged organisation.

give me the answer in 400 - 500 words