Need some assistance with this Stage 1: Strategic Use of Technology

Before you begin work on this assignment, be sure you have read the Case Study on Maryland Technology Consultants (MTC). MTC is a fictional company created for IFSM 300s Case Study. It is also recommended that you review the additional Stages (2, 3 and 4) as well as the vendor brochure provided for Stage 4. This will help you understand the overall report and potential solution.OverviewAs a business analyst in the Chief Information Officers (CIO's) department of Maryland Technology Consulting (MTC), you have been assigned to conduct an analysis, develop a set of system requirements, evaluate a proposed solution, and develop an implementation plan for an IT solution (applicant tracking or hiring system) to improve the hiring process for MTC. This work will be completed in four stages, and each of these four stages will focus on one section of an overall Business Analysis and System Recommendation (BA&SR) report to be delivered to the CIO.

Section I. Strategic Use of Technology (Stage 1) - The first step is to look at the organization and explain how an IT system could be used to support MTC's strategies and objectives and support its decision-making processes.

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1. Strategic Use of Technology

1. Organizational Strategy In this section, you should clearly present at a broad level what MTCs organizational strategy is (refer to case study information), then what issues the current manual hiring process may present that interfere with achieving that strategy, and how improving the hiring process will benefit MTC and support its business strategy. (Use two to three strong sentences that explain how the system would support the strategy and justify your position with specifics from the Case Study.)
2. Competitive Advantage - First, provide an overview of the competitive environment that MTC is currently operating in based on information from the case study. Then explain how and why MTC can use the new hiring system to increase its competitive advantage. Your explanation should demonstrate your understanding of what competitive advantage is as well as how improving the hiring process will help achieve MTCs competitive advantage. Include how MTC can use the type of data/information that will be in the hiring system for strategic advantage. (Paragraph of 4-5 sentences)
3. Strategic Objectives- Review the four Strategic Goals presented in the Strategic Business Plan section of the MTC Case Study. The CIO has asked you to come up with an example of an objective to meet each goal and explain how a new hiring system would help achieve that objective. As you can see from the example provided in the table below, an objective is a statement that is clear (not vague) and is something that can be measured or evaluated to determine whether it has been met or not. An important part of setting goals is that they are SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound). In order to evaluate whether a goal has been achieved, its important to be able to measure it. Consider this difference Student wants to get a degree (non-specific and not measurable) vs. Student wants to earn a degree in Information Systems Management by May 2020. (This goal provides specific what and when.) First, insert an introductory opening sentence for this table. Then, for each of the rows listed below, complete the table with the requested information. (Provide an introductory sentence and copy the table. Create an Objective for each of the 3 remaining Goals and explain using 2-3 complete sentences for each.) This is not about an objective to implement a hiring system or broad business goals but rather the focus is on objectives that would be supported by the use of a technology solution to support/improve the hiring process.

Strategic Goal (from case study)	Objective (clear, measurable and time-bound)	Explanation (2-3 sentences)
Increase MTC Business Development by winning new contracts in the areas of IT Consulting
Build a cadre of consultants internationally to provide remote research and analysis support to MTCs onsite teams in the U. S. EXAMPLE PROVIDED (Retain text but remove this label and gray shading in your report)	Increase international recruiting efforts and employ 5 research analysts in the next 12 months.	The new hiring system would allow applicants from around the world to apply online, increasing the number of international applicants. It would enable the recruiters to carefully monitor the applications for these positions, identify the necessary research and analysis skills needed, and screen resumes for these key skills. Recruiters could quickly view the number of applicants and identify when additional recruiting efforts are needed to meet the objective.
Continue to increase MTCs ability to quickly provide high quality consultants to awarded contracts to best serve the clients needs
Increase MTCs competitive advantage in the IT consulting marketplace by increasing its reputation for having IT consultants who are highly skilled in leading edge technologies and innovative solutions for its clients

4. Decision Making - In the reading, How Information Supports Decision Making, you were introduced to the information requirements of various levels of the organization. First, insert an introductory opening sentence for this section. Then, for each of the management roles listed below, complete the table with the appropriate level (as defined in the reading one word is all that is required in this column), an example of a specific decision supported by the Hiring System to be made at that level, and what type of informationfrom the hiring system would be needed to support that decision. Think about what information the hiring system could provide about applicants, etc., and then identify an example of a decision that might be made by each level of management. A decision is a choice or conclusion that the management might make about business operations or future planning. This is not about the decisions about implementing a new technology solution or about general responsibilities of each role. Example: A decision example could be stated as: CEO decides to expand MTCs services to include cybersecurity. He can make this decision because the hiring system provides information that many applicants have the needed skills, certifications and experience to enable MTC to easily recruit IT consultants in this area. (Provide an introductory sentence then copy the table and insert information within, writing in complete sentences.)

Role	Level as defined in IS Course Reading	Example of Possible Decision Supported by Hiring System	Example of Information the Hiring System Could Provide to Support Your Example Decision
Senior/Executive Managers (Decisions made by the CEO and the CFO at MTC supported by the hiring system.)
Middle Managers (Decisions made by the Director of HR and the Manager of Recruiting supported by the hiring system.)
Operational Managers (Decisions made by the line managers in the organization who are hiring for their projects supported by the hiring system.)