Discussion Forum
Week 3
1. What do you think will be the next wave of technology and which industry(s) will it
affect?
AI, 5G and the Internet of Things. The next of wave of technology will be Artificial
Intelligence with greater levels of intelligence than previously achieved, such as enhanced
human emotion recognition features (https://digital.hbs.edu/platform-
digit/submission/affectiva-building-ai-that-reads-human-emotions/). Furthermore, with
faster internet speeds enabled through 5G, smart systems and devices will be able to be
implemented at scale, allowing humans to live, work, and play smarter.
Multiple industries such as healthcare, telecommunications, transport, to name a few,
will be impacted. Robots will increasingly work alongside humans and driverless cars will
become more prevalent on the roads.
2. Will Walmart ever win Amazon? What would they need to do?
Both Walmart and Amazon can be said to be two of the world’s largest retailers. Walmart
has a strong physical presence and infrastructure, mainly in the US, while Amazon is
dominating the online space and has a global reach. Both are strong advocates of using
innovative technology such as robots and automation to reduce costs and improve
efficiency and sustainability. (https://tinuiti.com/blog/walmart/walmart-vs-amazon/)
Although Walmart falls behind Amazon in terms of third-party sales and marketplaces, it
can still close the gap with Amazon by focusing on developing the resources and digital
marketing opportunities it offers marketplace sellers and creating a more seamless
customer experience. For example, Walmart recently made investments to improve its
website's search functionality, making it easier for customers to find things, manage
product reviews, and speed up delivery. https://etaileast.wbresearch.com/blog/walmart-
not-surviving-but-thriving-strategy-ecommerce-war-against-amazon
To increase customer intimacy, Walmart also plans to launch a membership program
called Walmart+, a subscription-based service in attempt to rival Amazon Prime.
Furthermore, it is undeniable that Amazon is a high growth company with rocketing stock
prices, yet Walmart is asset rich and with a sounder financial standing in terms of
revenue compared to the highly overvalued Amazon.
With Walmart’s plans to partner Microsoft to acquire TikTok, Walmart may well be on its
way to winning Amazon.
For an interesting read on Walmart vs Amazon market valuation, click here.
3. Will the acquisition of TikTok fit into Walmart’s strategy in digital transformation? How
will it help them to boost its business?
By acquiring TikTok, Walmart will certainly gain a tremendous advertising edge. A rapidly
growing social media platform, TikTok has an enormous user base of 800 million active
users per month. TikTok uses AI to analyze user’s interests and preferences to display a
, personalized content feed for its users, which Walmart can leverage in its digital
transformation strategy to boost its e-commerce platform, expanding Walmart’s reach
beyond the US to become a global e-commerce site. Through TikTok’s online presence as
an online advertising platform and marketplace for third-party sellers, Walmart can build
its digital marketplace and connect to a younger audience, the next generation of online
shoppers, namely Gen Z.
Walmart’s partnership with Microsoft is also strategic because together, Microsoft and
Walmart can compete with Amazon on two fronts, the retail/e-commerce front
(Walmart) as well as the cloud computing technology front (Microsoft).
https://edition.cnn.com/2020/08/28/tech/walmart-tiktok-bid-hnk-intl/index.html
Week 4
1. Share about a well-known enterprise system and explain how it brings business value.
Starbucks – that ubiquitous café known for their famous fragrant coffee and those 1-for-1
promos that attract long queues. Have you ever wondered what kind of EIS system
Starbucks uses, considering it has 31k stores in 80 countries worldwide?
Well, Starbucks uses Oracle for its four major IS systems: transaction processing system,
supply chain management system, decision support system and customer relationship
management (CRM) system.
How does Oracle enable Starbucks to be so successful?
Oracle’s Exadata Database Machine provides a consolidated database cloud able to
handle enormous amounts of data at high speeds, ensuring scalability, rapid analysis of
customer loyalty, sales and supply chain information. Oracle’s Online Analytical
Processing (OLAP) manages large-scale statistical analysis of multidimensional data. In
addition, Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition provides the company with
crucial insights into point-of-sale data to drive the company’s decision making on
innovation and improving the customer service experience.
Recently, Starbucks has also decided to leverage Microsoft Azure Sphere, a
comprehensive IoT security solution that utilizes cloud technology to enable secure, high-
speed data sharing among Azure Sphere-enabled devices such as Starbucks coffee
machines. Furthermore, Microsoft Azure Blockchain Service empowers Starbucks in its
commitment to ethical sourcing of coffee by providing greater transparency in the
journey of coffee, from bean to cup, where each stage is recorded on a public ledger.
http://starbucksinformationsystem.blogspot.com/2014/11/starbucks_10.html
https://www.orafaq.com/wiki/Oracle_OLAP
https://news.microsoft.com/transform/starbucks-turns-to-technology-to-brew-up-a-
more-personal-connection-with-its-customers/
2. Should technology be a core process in today's context, and why?
Whether or not to include technology as a core business activity would greatly depend on
the business context and the business’ objectives.
For example, a tech company such as Google is highly driven by technology innovation
and development; technology plays a key role and it would thus make sense to place it on
Week 3
1. What do you think will be the next wave of technology and which industry(s) will it
affect?
AI, 5G and the Internet of Things. The next of wave of technology will be Artificial
Intelligence with greater levels of intelligence than previously achieved, such as enhanced
human emotion recognition features (https://digital.hbs.edu/platform-
digit/submission/affectiva-building-ai-that-reads-human-emotions/). Furthermore, with
faster internet speeds enabled through 5G, smart systems and devices will be able to be
implemented at scale, allowing humans to live, work, and play smarter.
Multiple industries such as healthcare, telecommunications, transport, to name a few,
will be impacted. Robots will increasingly work alongside humans and driverless cars will
become more prevalent on the roads.
2. Will Walmart ever win Amazon? What would they need to do?
Both Walmart and Amazon can be said to be two of the world’s largest retailers. Walmart
has a strong physical presence and infrastructure, mainly in the US, while Amazon is
dominating the online space and has a global reach. Both are strong advocates of using
innovative technology such as robots and automation to reduce costs and improve
efficiency and sustainability. (https://tinuiti.com/blog/walmart/walmart-vs-amazon/)
Although Walmart falls behind Amazon in terms of third-party sales and marketplaces, it
can still close the gap with Amazon by focusing on developing the resources and digital
marketing opportunities it offers marketplace sellers and creating a more seamless
customer experience. For example, Walmart recently made investments to improve its
website's search functionality, making it easier for customers to find things, manage
product reviews, and speed up delivery. https://etaileast.wbresearch.com/blog/walmart-
not-surviving-but-thriving-strategy-ecommerce-war-against-amazon
To increase customer intimacy, Walmart also plans to launch a membership program
called Walmart+, a subscription-based service in attempt to rival Amazon Prime.
Furthermore, it is undeniable that Amazon is a high growth company with rocketing stock
prices, yet Walmart is asset rich and with a sounder financial standing in terms of
revenue compared to the highly overvalued Amazon.
With Walmart’s plans to partner Microsoft to acquire TikTok, Walmart may well be on its
way to winning Amazon.
For an interesting read on Walmart vs Amazon market valuation, click here.
3. Will the acquisition of TikTok fit into Walmart’s strategy in digital transformation? How
will it help them to boost its business?
By acquiring TikTok, Walmart will certainly gain a tremendous advertising edge. A rapidly
growing social media platform, TikTok has an enormous user base of 800 million active
users per month. TikTok uses AI to analyze user’s interests and preferences to display a
, personalized content feed for its users, which Walmart can leverage in its digital
transformation strategy to boost its e-commerce platform, expanding Walmart’s reach
beyond the US to become a global e-commerce site. Through TikTok’s online presence as
an online advertising platform and marketplace for third-party sellers, Walmart can build
its digital marketplace and connect to a younger audience, the next generation of online
shoppers, namely Gen Z.
Walmart’s partnership with Microsoft is also strategic because together, Microsoft and
Walmart can compete with Amazon on two fronts, the retail/e-commerce front
(Walmart) as well as the cloud computing technology front (Microsoft).
https://edition.cnn.com/2020/08/28/tech/walmart-tiktok-bid-hnk-intl/index.html
Week 4
1. Share about a well-known enterprise system and explain how it brings business value.
Starbucks – that ubiquitous café known for their famous fragrant coffee and those 1-for-1
promos that attract long queues. Have you ever wondered what kind of EIS system
Starbucks uses, considering it has 31k stores in 80 countries worldwide?
Well, Starbucks uses Oracle for its four major IS systems: transaction processing system,
supply chain management system, decision support system and customer relationship
management (CRM) system.
How does Oracle enable Starbucks to be so successful?
Oracle’s Exadata Database Machine provides a consolidated database cloud able to
handle enormous amounts of data at high speeds, ensuring scalability, rapid analysis of
customer loyalty, sales and supply chain information. Oracle’s Online Analytical
Processing (OLAP) manages large-scale statistical analysis of multidimensional data. In
addition, Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition provides the company with
crucial insights into point-of-sale data to drive the company’s decision making on
innovation and improving the customer service experience.
Recently, Starbucks has also decided to leverage Microsoft Azure Sphere, a
comprehensive IoT security solution that utilizes cloud technology to enable secure, high-
speed data sharing among Azure Sphere-enabled devices such as Starbucks coffee
machines. Furthermore, Microsoft Azure Blockchain Service empowers Starbucks in its
commitment to ethical sourcing of coffee by providing greater transparency in the
journey of coffee, from bean to cup, where each stage is recorded on a public ledger.
http://starbucksinformationsystem.blogspot.com/2014/11/starbucks_10.html
https://www.orafaq.com/wiki/Oracle_OLAP
https://news.microsoft.com/transform/starbucks-turns-to-technology-to-brew-up-a-
more-personal-connection-with-its-customers/
2. Should technology be a core process in today's context, and why?
Whether or not to include technology as a core business activity would greatly depend on
the business context and the business’ objectives.
For example, a tech company such as Google is highly driven by technology innovation
and development; technology plays a key role and it would thus make sense to place it on
