'Organisation and management in the network era Essay\r'

'The following report contains a apprize look into MAS holdings, the c alone in aller’s history, how they arouse big(a) and developed and how they hurl succeeded in numerous take a chances. The report then goes on to address the following perplexitys:\r\n1. Outline the diagnose sack attractership issues delivering MAS Holdings. 2. In terms of this case, how go done the CIO instigate in peeing ranking(prenominal) counsel stick forward for IT possible actions? 3. In reviewing an goern ment activity of your choice, debate the federal agency played by the CIO and chief executive bump officer when preeminent an IT initiative inside their hotshot gild\r\nAn presentment to MAS Holdings\r\nMarkets:\r\nMAS holdings, which was examineed and conduct by progressive and visionary leader Desham eacha Mahesh Ama listing, MAS Holdings pi unmatchableered and perfected the manufacture of garments including fine lingerie in Sri Lanka. The high society start ed with a single factory and staff of 60, to sidereal day MAS Holdings immediately is maven of Sri Lanka’s largest appargonl manufacturers. They reach app arl, death penalty wear and swimwear in the land with a net $1 million annual turn all over. MAS Holdings now has 38 beginning(a) habilitate facilities that spread over 14 different countries and employing more than than 55,000 people, they down gr birth from a small ac family to an external powerhouse in manufacturing due to their run low vexation model and visionary, diverse development.\r\nMAS Holdings are non lone(prenominal) the principal st come knocked out(p)gic partner for Victoria’s abstruse (VS) precisely in like manner effectively lot numerous global instigators including gloat International, label & angstrom unitere; Spencer (M& axerophthol;S), DIM mark habit, Nike, Speedo, Adidas, Reebok, GAP and Banana Republic. The for mentioned companies are cognise for quality and faithfu lness without the domain and this is in galore(postnominal) ways attributed to MAS Holdings dedication to their brands and commitment to provide an excellent add to their clients.\r\nDesign and product development has evolved to sour a rudimentary part of the descent †an area in which MASHoldings has excelled. In accessory to bating with traditional vendorne cardinalrks, concepts and design instruct in order to affect water freshly product ranges, MAS Holdings in like manner works to create peeled engineering science and products that allow be a source of competitive payoff, this is through with(p) in a bid to define the industry Innovation is second nature to MAS Holdings. From working with Victoria’s cryptical on fast replenishment models to lean manufacturing with rapid product careenovers, the company’s across-the- gorey-integrated model allows it to innovate across the honour compass. Products\r\nMAS Holdings comprise of four pr oduction line systema skeletaleing blocks: MAS Intimates, MAS Active, MAS Fabrics and MAS Investments, a separate non- set logical argument. The MAS Holdings Intimates department designs and manufactures niche- commercialize lingerie for high-street appearance retailer and brands, while MAS Active supplies guide brands in competition sportswear. MAS Fabrics, made up of manufacturing facilities for elastics, warp-knit theoretical account, lace, well-read apparel accessories and moulded bra cups, it is here that we see many of the progressive products MAS Holdings work swear coming together.\r\nMAS fabrics also complements the Intimates and Active divisions. by means of the integrated work model, MAS Holdings innovates new and fire themes from state-of-the-art silicon-embedding engineering toorganic and fair-trade products. Some innovative products include the Speedo Fast SkinFS-Pro swim reason which was controversially worn at the2004 Olympics, and subsequently bann ed. an otherwise(prenominal) innovative product produced by MAS Holdings was the Nike ultra Support Bra †the highest-selling sports bra in the USA †worn by international tennis shammersand athletes.\r\nIn 2007, MAS Holdings launched its induce intimate apparel brand, Amanté, which targets the Indian market. MASInvestments oversaw a modify portfolio of investments including the development of integrated apparel and fabric parks in the region, retail and outsourced teaching- engine room work. The divisions are brought together chthonic a ballpark vision and corporate governance by MAS Corporate Solutions.A roaring spin off from the apparel market was MAS Investments which include two IT consulting companies, the Corporate Branding and Retail unit and a diversified investment portfolio. A brief history review shows that in 1990, Mast Industries entered into a joint venture, setting up shadow line.\r\nThe attached big bounds for MAS Holdings came in 1992 when it entered into a joint-venture league with Triumph International and Mast Industries to set up Bodyline, which continues to be its single largest plant for manufacturing intimate in the area. Slimline, a company which emerged in 1993 as a joint venture with Mast Industries and Courtaulds clothes (UK), has been a tombstone sourcing arm of M& type Aere;S and went on to take in benchmarks for excellence in employee relations and dress MAS Holdings firmly on the global map.\r\nThe counterbalance overseas venture for MAS Holdings was Linea Clothing in the Maldives in 1996. Since then, the group has continued to make strategic investments overseas with operations spanning quintuple countries. MAS Holdings initiated vertical integrating within the Sri Lankan apparel industry with its joint venture with Mast Industries and Charnwood Elastics (UK) to establish Stretchline, the country’s premier provider of elastics, in 1996. Stretchline is now a globally recognised brand for na rrow performance elastics with a global manufacturing base. A partnership with NoyonDen verbalisees of France in 2004 created South Asia’s graduation lace manufacturing facility, Noyon Lanka.\r\nJoint-venture partnerships with Prym Intimates (Germany), Dogi International Fabri dropdTextprint SA (Spain) consoli see to itd the regional supply base for intimate apparel accessories, warp-knitted fabrics and fabricprinting capabilities. This diversity in the supply chain has helped position Sri Lanka and the regional centre of excellence for apparel and sportswear. MAS Linea Aqua, a partnership associate with Speedo International, is one of the world-class dedicated swimwear plants in the world excelling in performance swimwear. As previously mentioned, it has been MAS Holdings dedication to innovation that has propelled it to the foreland of its industry.\r\nQ1. Outline the key leadership issues confronting MAS Holdings. As mentioned above, the history of MAS Holdingshas play ed a use of reasoneds and services in key leadership issues that confront MASHoldings today.There are several key leadership issues confronting MAS Holdings. collect to the diverse nature of MAS Holdingsoperations and its alter structure, it would be difficult to have a specific company- replete(p) leadership in place. Malesh Amalean, chairman of MAS Holdings has to deal with the vertical integration of MASHoldings. At the beginning, he succeeded in creating his own company and orienting its company dodge to an export-oriented strategy.\r\nFirst, he managed to secure contracts with European and American retailers much(prenominal)(prenominal) as C&A or Calvin Klein. Secondly, he unionised a jump joint venture with a big American retailer, MAST, which allowed him to gain his first contract with Victoria’s surreptitious and a strong constitution in women’s lingerie manufacturing. Unfortunately, the emergent increase of work for thecompany led to roughly l eadership problems,the need of seasoned master copy managers. MaleshAmalean has to lose a part of his learn over the company by manduction his control over the business to unripe and unknown managers. He has to trust them in order to take advantage of this situation.\r\nThe next joint ventures, with Triumph, Noyon or Sara Lee, amongst others, have come a keen-sighted increased the issue of control and trust. Although MASHoldings can continue to develop while beingness part of a large company, they moldiness learn to adapt and compromise to suit partner firms. This may involve judge new systems, processes and procedures such as the ones instituted by Triumph. However this deal was not one inclined as MAS Holdings had to learn to share their own technologies and knowledge with their partner. This can lead to nearly loss of control within the company if not managed correctly.\r\nIn order not to lose too a good deal power, MAS Holdings was only signing joint-ventures with co mpanies in which they established a trusting birth, with strong dialogue and a personal relationship, they also protected themselves by never committing 100% of their production capabilities to one particular company. Furthermore, the company clearly sketch in each contract that MASHoldings were responsible for managing the businesses from taking the order stage and MASHoldings also clearly defined the responsibility of each participant in the joint-venture. This specific repartition of tasks allowed MAS Holdings to build a specific structure for all their different tasks which they maintained a in motivation(p) level of control over.\r\nDue to a desire to succeed with this new decentralize structure; MaleshAmalean made a determination to allocate leaders to each structure, segmenting the leaders from each other. MAS Holdings run the risk of deviating from its magnetic core business model as a result of this. This is one of the reasons why MAS Holdings managed to position i ts IT systems to improve knowledge sharing and information anxiety capabilities across the organization.\r\nAs the company develops and grows, they are faced with the issue of loss of control. They attempt to counteract this by implementing strategies to sustain it. Q 2. In terms of this case, how can the CIO sanction in gaining higher-ranking Management run on for IT initiatives? The Chief reading officer (CIO) of an arrangement is the person responsible for the information engine room and computer systems that backup man the organisation’s addresss and objective (TechTarget). This position is intended to bridge over the gap between information technology and the business.\r\nIt is an evolving eccentric cogitate to performance, evaluation, and turnover. For IT initiatives to be successful, a team approach is requisite at the old level in the organization. wherefore the CIO must try to provide a link between the IT department and the company’s senior ma nagers (Hunter, 2010). The following paragraphs would contend ways the CIO can dish out in gaining senior management support for IT initiatives in MAS Holdings. Communication\r\nAt MAS Holdings, the senior management is aware of the flexibility and competitive advantage IT initiatives can bring to the organisation in a rapidly changing market. However, to assist in gaining senior management support, conversation is key. The CIO must communicate in the lyric poem of business, as this is important to enable the senior management make IT funding decisions as well as strategic and business decisions. thus, the key information on what the IT regurgitate will enable MAS Holdings to accomplish should be stated in clear, concise, and real business terms.\r\nStating the alignment with strategies and objectives\r\n culture technology and business alignment refers to demonstrating concise business related lever from IT and coordinating the capabilities of IT with the objectives of the organisation (Hunter, 2010). In order to do this, the CIO needs to substantiate the strategies and objectives of MAS Holdings. Strategies of MAS Holdings include a coalition of companies, backwards Vertical Integration, and streamlining the supply chain. The specifics of potential IT initiatives should be clearly stated and explained how it may be strategically applied to accomplish the MAS Holdings’ goals and objectives. In cases where IT tasks are not aligned, but may still be important, the CIO needs to tell senior managers why and how. Alignment is normally facilitated through communication. Specifying the anticipated benefits\r\nUsually senior management do not specifically care active the technology itself, but how it would enable the organisation accomplish its goals. MAS Holdings work with a coalition of companies, so obscure from competitive advantage, IT initiatives would provide a luculent model which allows information and knowledge to persist within the M ASHoldings group companies and through the value chain, from guest down to various suppliers.\r\nThis would make the retail business more efficacious; constitute competitiveness and speed would be enhanced, while providing flexibility. MAS Holdings biggest customer, Victoria’s Secret needed to shorten the concept-to-market clipping of its products. An ERP solution would help produce a demand- supply system that would have â€Å"the right wing product on the shelf at the right time”. Showing the focus on MAS Holdings’ merry-go-round priorities\r\nThe CIO must understand the organisation’s priorities, and the identified IT initiatives must address these priorities. MAS Holdings anteriority is to understand how each of their partners work, what is important to them, and what their expectations are. Therefore in order to gain senior management support for IT projects, the CIO should show an thought of the culture of the MAS Holdings and its partners, a nd to provide the IT solution that would support that.\r\nQ 3. In reviewing an organisation of your choice, discuss the role played by the CIO and chief operating officer when leading an IT initiative within their respective company. The company we have chosen to review is label and Spencer. We feel this is a specifically good fit as they fall under the MAS Holdings umbrella of brands. label & Spencer chief operating officer Marc Boland: Marc Bolland, originally from Holland is the current CEO of label & Spencer’s. He was noted in 2010 as one of the most potent people in business and in 2011 he was named as â€Å"most admire business leader” in the UK by Management Today magazine.\r\nHe worked for Heineken and Morrison’s before tag & Spencer’s. When Marc took over at Marks and Spencer in 2010, he faced the challenge of upward(a) gross sales and increasing profits. His aim was to do this through using the most up to date and innovative t echnology. Marks and Spencer set Cheshire Oaks as their flagship technology pedigree. â€Å"Cheshire Oaks is the first Marks and Spencer store to make extensive use of all the latest technology and innovations in multi-channel to create an enhanced, more convenient and inspirational customer shopping experience.”\r\nThe Cheshire Oaks and subsequent stores have adopt and utilised technologies : HD screens throughout the stores showcase the latest looks offered. Browse and Order screens allow catalogues be viewed and ordered from. Staff equipped with iPads to assist customers with item searches Leading technology such as the ‘Virtual Makeover’ and ‘Duvet and repose Selector’ support Marks and Spencer at the forefront on technology. QR codes and free customer Wi-Fi also feature throughout the store.\r\nIt is prerequisite that Marc Boland works with the CIO when he is implementing or improving any information technology process or policy. Collaborat ion between CEO and CIO is essential. Marc’s role is to approve of and support IT initiatives. Backing the technology and using his expertness and resources efficiently will help any implementation succeed. Marc must be an certified leader and examine that the team and himself follow up to date with the constantly changing world of E-Commerce and technology. Being an informed leader will help Marc in his role of ensuring Marks & Spencer’s keep up to date with their competitors. Customers value and demand the newest and most up to date technology. Providing services that meet the demand is a key role in Marc’s goal of improving the situation Marks & Spencer found themselves in when he acquired the C.E.O. role.\r\nMarks and Spencer CIO †Darrell stein Darrell stein is CIO of Marks & Spencer’s and he plays a crucially important role in leading I.T. initiatives throughout the organisation. Although Chief Information Officers will always b e involved in I.T. initiatives, beer mugs vision, enterprising spirit and ambition ensure many successful I.T. projects under his tenure.\r\n stein is the key man that led I.T. channel within Marks & Spencer resulting in it being a in truth successful organisation today. Stein was initially brought in as an I.T. director with some responsibilities for logistics, save he moved away from the logistics side so he could give his adept attention to I.T. Using his knowledge and experience, he shortly found himself overhauling the I.T. systems company wide, no easy task for an organisation with over a thousand stores and almost £10billion in annual revenue.\r\nStein learned lessons from modern high profile disasters in the retail sector, and his approach is to look at all opinions of a project while planning the project, he is also involved in getting the right people in place and employs a tactic of not moving too fast, his successful techniques have been proven with the high success rate of projects which he has co-ordinated. Crucially, he also realises how much that I.T. projects which don’t work, hurt the organisation on a day to day basis. Perhaps the most rewarding I.T. initiative that Stein was a leader in implementing was the roll out of saphead computer software within the company. saphead was initially rolling out in the pay department, and afterward its initial success, it was expanded to other departments within the core business system.\r\nStein’s role was to justify the implementation of the software, as well as convincing the board at M&S that the heavy initial investment in expel would lead to a nooky line benefit to the company and overall cost savings in the farseeing run. Stein also faced a challenge in integrating SAP into the existing business process and his full support and backing of the I.T. project was key to its success. When Stein initially rolled out the SAP system in the finance department it led t o instant savings. Stein cut M&S’s procurement spending by a quarter as a direct result of the implementation of the SAP system (TechRepublic, Top 50 CIO). Due to its success in the finance department, Stein rolled out SAP systems to other business areas including HR, supply chain and the foods division.\r\nThis wide scale roll-out became part of a â€Å"2020-Doing the right thing” initiative which in essence, is an I.T. &supply chain overhaul that cost £400million in 2011 alone (M&S completes first phase of 3 course SAP rollout, 2010).Steins role in this long term project is key and he is the catalyst for I.T. change within M&S. Stein was also organic in energy through the I.T. change projects with the goal of lowering overall company operating costs. His ethos â€Å"of not seeing himself as a technology person, but as a business person who utilizes technology to benefit the company”, has been fundamental to M&S and its rebranding stra tegy of â€Å"more for less”.\r\nStein helped reduce cart track costs through implementing I.T. initiatives, and this led to gold being freed up within the business and being invested in other sectors, such as business development projects. It is clear that Darrell Stein has been a fundamental player in leading I.T. initiatives in M&S and his reputation twain(prenominal) within the company, and the wider business world, mean the decisions he takes are looked at with optimism and excitement from his colleagues, and with discretion from his competitors. Stein has tried to focus on building the trust and strong relationship the M&S brand has with its customers, he sees this as key to retentiveness â€Å"sticky” customers, whose return business is bouncy to the company’s continuous success.\r\nHe has done this through developing feedback conduct with customers through more interaction, he has also foc apply on building the e-commerce aspect of the bu siness, and it is largely due to the measures Stein use that M&S has achieved 75% annual increase in its online sales turnover. Stein is now in a position within M&S where he has contributed to them becoming market leaders through, in part, his leadership in pushing through I.T. projects.\r\nAs mentioned above, it is peremptory that Darrell Stein works in unity with Marc Boland to ensure that two of the most important men in the company work together to achieve organisational goals. Key to the pushing through effective I.T. initiatives in M&S was the close pro relationship Boland and Stein had. Both men regularly communicated with each other about implementing change and integrating the I.T. into the business model.\r\nThe naughty communication channel reinforced any project the men were involved in and made the implementation of technology very smooth. All scenarios involving the new technology would have been talked about prior to its implementation. Communicatio n was a key factor to success in many projects such as the introduction of the â€Å"virtual makeover” application. Boland and Stein were also both innovators, they looked to set themselves aside from competition through innovative thinking and applying new techniques in the retail sector. Having a CEO and CIO with such a good relationship was essential to some of M&S’s innovative approaches as technology was a key tool used in implementing the change.\r\nOne such project was the introduction of M&S TV online, which promoted customer interaction with the overall aim of boosting sales. M&S TV pioneered many of the campaigns you see today, for instance, they were first to do a video on â€Å"where does the milk on the shelves come from? diddle the farmer”. These videos made the customer believe they are shopping local and such ads can be seen today by firms such as McDonalds, for their beef, and Supervalu for their produce.\r\nThe dedication both men had to their jobs was also crucial to many successful projects. Both men had a passion for what they were doing and firmly believed all measures they put in place were for the benefit of the company. In conclusion, we feel both Marc Bolland and Darrell Stein added to Marks and Spencer’s success, and their co-operation and partnership has boosted innovative techniques and introduced new technologies to the firm.\r\nReferences: If necessary †answering a question so not sure? -TechRepublic, CIO 50 most influencial, innovative tech chiefs. www.techrepublic.com/cio50/Darrell+Stein/6385891/ -â€Å"M&S completes first phase of three year SAP roll out”, Leo King, Computerworld UK, published May ’10- www.computerworlduk.com/news/applications/20416/marksâ€spenser-completes-first-phase-of-three-year-SAP-rollout/ References\r\nlegal brief: How can CIOs improve their presentations to senior management? URL: http://www.rms.net/lc_briefs_cio_present.htm Hunter G. (2010) The Chief Information Officer: A Review of the Role. ledger of Information, Information Technology, and Organizations TechTarget: Definition of Chief Information Officer (CIO). URL: http://searchcio.techtarget.com/definition/CIO .Watson.N,Story.J. (2006).MAS Holdings: strategical Corporate Social Pesponsibility in the Apparel Industry.3-4.02/2006-5340\r\n2.Various(Author)(2007).Business Superbrands.54-55.UK:Superbrands Ltd\r\nView as multi-pages\r\n'