Introduction to Business computing Last session conclusions

Introduction to Business computing Last session : conclusions 21 january 2003 AC 2003

Official topics • Master the Microsoft Office suite – Word – Excel – Power. Point – Access • An a bit of Internet AC 2003

The larger view • To study tools for treating information • and to communicate • That involves – – – the office suite tools Internet Information systems E-commerce CRM (Customer relationship mgt), SCM (Supply chain mgt) • And the history of all this AC 2003

Why study the history of information treatment and communication ? • The purpose of studying history, in general, is to be better prepared to understand the future • The XXIst century is likely to be everything but uneventful ! AC 2003

Let ’s look at the NTIC • New Technologies in Information and Communication • As future managers you will deal a lot with Information and Communication • These are tools to create wealth • (To create wealth is one of the central purposes of running businesses) AC 2003

Let ’s look at the NTIC (2) • Communication has tremendous new tools at its disposal : – Internet • e-mail • Newsgroups (= forums) • ICQ (= I seek you) – Mobile phones AC 2003

Communication • In terms of tools it has a long history • Not to go farther in the past we can mention – – – The telephone Edison’s electric telegraph The Post office (mid XIXth century) Pigeons Chappe’s Telegraph (1800, by Claude Chappe, in Paris there is a subway station called Télégraphe, because a télégraphe was installed there) – Indian ’s smoke fires – The Gaulois also used fires to communicate, to gather for Gergovie, and to call for reinforcements at Alesia – The Marathon runner AC 2003

The XIXth century : the century of electricity • All along the XIXth century scientists worked to understand electricity (from Volta, Ampère, Faraday to Maxwell) • Then engineers were able to replace many mechanical devices by electrical devices : – Steam engine -> electric motor – Mechanical/optical telegraph -> electrical telegraph – Invention of the telephone • The understanding of the electromagnetic waves lead to the invention of the radio (télégraphie sans fil, in French) • Internet is the grand child of all these researches and inventions AC 2003

The technical XXth century : • The XXth century capitalized on and developped many inventions of the XIXth century : – – Electricity Railways Cars Vaccination • It added some new breakthroughs, among them : – Aeronautics – Medical breakthroughs (penicillin, …) – Nuclear power • The XXIst century is already fascinating… AC 2003

Communication (2) • More to come AC 2003

Information • Information media also have a long history – the invention of History about -3000 BC – the invention of the press by Gutenberg (the first metal caracters in the West ; there were some in Korea before http: //130. 238. 50. 3/ilmh/Ren/bokt-chartier-china. htm) – Which date ? The Google reflex : 1447 – Newspapers (T. Renaudot) : 1631 (or 16 something) – more here : http: //www. lian. com/TANAKA/comhosei/NPin. EB. htm – Photography (Niepce 1826 http: //www. hrc. utexas. edu/exhibitions/permanent/wfp/) – (improved by Daguerre, Eatsman, the Lumière brothers, etc. ) – Cinema : Les frères Lumière 1895 – Radio (in the 20 ’s) – TV (in the 30 ’s) – Internet AC 2003

Technology • As we see Information and Communication have been using more and more sophisticated technologies • It is unlikely that it will stop (right now we are witnessing the end of the argent-based cameras, more than half the cameras sold nowadays are digital ; we can buy a 3. 3 million pixel camera for 670€ rue du marché notre dame, and send pictures of Poitiers to Beijing in seconds) AC 2003

New • As we see there have been many steps in developping information media and communication techniques before the present day tools • The Office suite softwares are a very small part of the history of new information and communication tools AC 2003

When using Word, Excel, PPT, or Access. . . • … it is important that we realise we use information and communication tools • These have been created with a goal – Word : to make nice looking but first of all efficient business letters, etc. – Excel : to calculate and present productively, for instance accounting and budgeting data (Visicalc 1978) – Access : same kind of comment AC 2003

Back to Communication • The tools have undergone tremendous technological leaps… • … but the people are the same as before • Therefore the rules of communicating haven ’t changed much – Know who we talk to – Respect – etc. AC 2003

NTIC and palaver • When discussing, for instance, daily fees for an intervention with some interlocutor… • … and the discussion goes on and on. • It would be a tremendous mistake to curtail it by saying : – « well my fees are this, and that ’s it » , – or by saying right away « OK I accept your conditions » AC 2003

NTIC and palaver (2) • It would be a tremendous mistake to curtail it by saying : – « well my fees are this, and that ’s it » , – or by saying right away « OK I accept your conditions » • Why ? • Because the real subject is not « my fees » but « who I ’m and who are you ? » • That is a palaver. AC 2003

NTIC and palaver (3) • The real subject is not « my fees » but « who I ’m and who are you ? » • That ’s a palaver. • The purpose of a palaver is to get to know each other and see whether we can and want to work together • For instance : – « Is he rigid/stuck up ? Or flexible ? » – « Is he too weak ? Or able to assert what he wants ? » AC 2003

Communication • Communication tools nowadays are flabbergasting • Yet we communicate usually with one of the following goals : – convince people to take such and such action – to sign a contract AC 2003

Communication • In both cases we need to master the psychological aspect of the communication – who are we talking to – what do they perceive of me – how to convince them – do I want to sign a contract with them – do they want to sign a contract with me – etc. AC 2003

Communication • Mastering the tools without mastering the psychology of communication. . . • . . . is useless AC 2003

Information (cont ’d) • Besides Internet there are many other recent tools – CRM customer relationship management : it treats customer information to make the sales dept much more efficient – SCM supply chain management : it makes plants/factories much more efficient in getting their supplies (Raw materials) – Manufacturing Information systems : to make plants more productive • E-commerce : commerce using Internet ; the commerce part hasn ’t changed (and in fact there are examples in the past of distribution channels with no client/product contact and no client/salespeople contact : mail order sales !) • E-learning : using to NTIC to make teaching and learning more efficient AC 2003

What ’s the purpose of learning ? • (not get a diploma : that ’s only the proof that we learned, that ’s not the goal) • Get a great job – To be well trained, well prepared – to open minded • Prepare for a good future (for ourselves and for what we will have in charge) • Improve our knowledge • To have informed opininons • To be autonomous and creative and not just a « mold-copy » • To be useful • To be accomplished, TO BE RESPONSIBLE AC 2003

Learning (cont ’d) • So we need to get information – mastery of techniques and facts • • Understand facts Think We need to know quite a bit of History Why ? To foresee a little bit the Future AC 2003

Learning (cont ’d) • We need to know quite a bit of History • Why ? To foresee a little bit the Future • The XXth century was rather hectic (cf for instance the US interest rates in the 19 th and 20 th centuries http: //www. forecasts. org/data/index. htm) • What will the XXIst be ? AC 2003

US interest rate AC 2003

Will there be major conflicts ? • Conflicts of the XXth century : – – – – WWI Armenia WWII Middle-East wars (1956, 1967, 1973, 1991, Intifadas) Korea Vietnam Algeria Many wars in Africa : Boers, Tutsis and Hutus • How to reduce their number in the XXIst century ? AC 2003

Will there be major conflicts ? (2) • • How to reduce their number in the XXIst century ? Let ’s understand better how they arise -> let ’s study History Internet is a great provider of information (neither more nor less reliable than in books), but much faster to get ! • Then let ’s understand think. AC 2003

Will there be major changes in the World order ? • What happened in the past ? Leading countries period : – – – 200 AD : Roman empire, Han empire 1200 : Cheng Ji Sihan (Genghis Khan) 1500 : Spain 1700 : France 1850 : British empire 1950 : America • 2030 - 2050 ? – Possibly China (if you work hard at ESCEM ; here we teach mostly techniques and also some facts…) AC 2003

Will there be major changes in the World order ? (2) • 2030 - 2050 ? – Possibly China (if you work hard at ESCEM ; here we learn mostly techniques and also some facts…) • We need to develop a business and historical culture – Read the newspaper at least once a week – Take part in discussions – Have an opinion on all important societal topics (but an informed one) • Not only will this land you great jobs… • … but it will make you great managers and people responsible for the Future AC 2003

Techniques, Facts and Opinions • Techniques : ESCEM teachings • Facts : your questions, read the newspaper at least once a week, Internet – example : today is the 40 th anniversary of the Elysée Treaty. What is the Elysée Treaty ? – 1963 French-German cooperation treaty • Opinions (informed ones ; uninformed opinions are useless, weak and dangerous) AC 2003

What were the Evian accords ? AC 2003

Techniques, Facts and Opinions (2) • An example of question : – related to Turkey – « should it become a member of the European community ? » • Have an opinion ! (an informed one) • Defend the Pros, then the Cons. AC 2003

Techniques, Facts and Opinions (3) • An example of question : – related to South America – « should the IMF lend more money to Argentina or not ? » • Have an opinion ! (an informed one) AC 2003

International legal system • It is likely that the XXIst century will witness the emergence of an international right to intervene into domestic affairs of countries • But it will have to be codified • Argentina is one of the next candidates for such an intervention AC 2003

Techniques, Facts and Opinions (4) • An example of question : – related to Africa – « what ’s going on these days in Marcoussis ? » – There is a peace conference concerning Ivory Coast • Know the fact ! • Have an opinion ! (an informed one) AC 2003

Techniques, Facts and Opinions (5) • An example of more business oriented question : – related to America – « what is the US trade deficit in 2001 ? (the difference between their exports and their imports) » – http: //www. uaw. org/publications/jobs_pay/01/0901/jpe 06. html • Know the fact ! • Have an opinion ! (an informed one) AC 2003

Good sources of Information • General : – Search engines : Google, Altavista, Fast, Voilà, etc. – Newsgroups : Google Newsgroups (ex-déjà News) • On line newspapers : – NYT, Le. Monde, WSJ, Washington Post, etc. • Specialised sites : – for instance Hoover ’s on line for financial data • A page of tools : http: //lapasserelle. com/sm/web_tools. html AC 2003

Good sources of Information • A page of tools : http: //lapasserelle. com/sm/web_tools. html • Use it to find Amazon sales revenues for the quarter ending Sept 2002 : …. . ? • In three days will be published the figures for the next quarter. – Those persons working at Amazon, that already know the figures are forbidden to buy or sell Amazon stocks on the Nasdaq – Why ? (After all they have the information…) – Because it would be using « Insider information » AC 2003

Using Hoover ’s on line. . . • Who are Amazon ’s main competitors ? • Which ones are profitable ? • What is Microsoft last quarter data – Revenue 7. 7 billion dollars – and Profit 2. 7 billion dollars • What is IBM last quarter data – Revenue 19. 8 billion dollars – and Profit 1. 3 billion dollars AC 2003