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Chapter 8
Chapter Summary
• Technologies such as radio frequency identification (RFID) and smartphones are fueling
explosive growth in the amount of data available for businesses to process. This data can
provide real business value, but the challenge is how to manage and evaluate this data to
gain business knowledge.
• Business intelligence (BI) tools are growing in sophistication and power. Technologies such
as in-memory computing will provide greater speed and flexibility to BI users and will
increase the number of employees in a company that can make use of BI.
• Mobile computing technology is increasing the use of ERP and BI data by making it more
convenient to access data when and where it is needed.
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• Cloud computing is the delivery of a software product to a user via the Internet. The user
typically accesses the cloud product through a Web browser or a lightweight (meaning
small and simple) application for a computer or mobile device.
• Web services and service-oriented architecture offer a combination of software tools that
enables various programs within an organization to communicate with other applications.
• SAP’s Web services platform is NetWeaver, which is a collection of components that
support business transactions over the Internet by providing seamless connectivity of
diverse applications through the Internet. NetWeaver also includes modules such as
Enterprise Portal, Mobile Infrastructure, Business Intelligence, Master Data Management,
and Exchange Infrastructure.
• Software as a service (SaaS) is a software delivery model in which a software product is
hosted by a company—such as SAP—on its servers and is accessed by customers via a
Web browser. The SaaS model allows companies to use ERP without a large initial
investment, making ERP systems available to smaller companies. SaaS solutions allow for
more rapid improvements in the software through user communities. There are risks
associated with using an SaaS provider, however, and the decision to buy or lease must be
weighed carefully.

Key Terms

business intelligence (BI) radio frequency identification (RFID)
cloud computing service-oriented architecture (SOA)
enterprise information management software as a service (SaaS)
multidimensional data cubes Web services

Exercises

1. Assume you have just graduated and you have landed a job at Fitter as its new sales
manager. The person you replaced has just retired after 35 years in the job. You are eager
to put to use some of the skills you learned at school, especially the work you did on
mobile computing and SaaS. Write a memo to your new boss, the vice president of
Marketing and Sales, on the virtues of SaaS and mobile computing, and explain why Fitter

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