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INFOSYS.110 BUSINESS SYSTEMS:

DELIVERABLE 2: BUSINESS SECTION
2014

Name Samuel Brothers
NetID Sbro472
Group Number: 097
Website Link: http://infosys110group97.blogspot.co.nz/
Tutorial Details
Tutor: Day: Time:
Nicholl Tuesday 11am
Time Spent on
Assignment:
14 hours Word Count: 1642

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BUS-CHAT
INTRODUCTION
Anyone who frequents public transport understands the struggle of waiting on an unreliable
bus services. This is exemplified in the display screens for the bus arrival that are rarely
correct. Several factors, namely traffic, accidents, and human error, compound this
problem. That is why we believe offering a service which will both show where a bus is and
what the bus can see will mean people can allocate more time appropriately for their transit
times.
3. BUSINESS SECTION
3.1 Vision
Bus-chats vision is to install on all buses both a GPS device and a small camera which will
relay information on demand back to a user who is using the smartphone application. In this
way, the user can assess how far the bus actually is away from their stop, and respond
accordingly. For regular travellers, this means that local knowledge of landmarks will
suggest the bus is in all reality going to be stuck in the traffic for however much longer.
3.2 Industry Analysis: Public transport
Industry: Public tranport industry. Specifically, improving customer satisfaction in this
industry as brand image and customer trust are at an all time low.
Force: High/Low: Justification:
Buyer power: Low Buyer power is notably low as there are few
alternatives for most commuters. Ferries and
train services do fleetingly exist, but they do not
have the infrastructure nor the capacity for the
1.2m trips that Aucklanders take every year in to
and out of the CBD. This is why it is so vital to

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improve the bus service before to promote
people still using this difficult and dated system.
(Matthew Dearnaley, 2007)
Supplier power: High Buses take time and are costly to manufacture.
There is a limited market in NZ by virtue of the
fact there are only several big citites and
suppliers have to ship parts around the world to
reach our shores. For this reason, Auckland
Transport (AT) has little bargaining power in the
purchase of them. (Matthew Dearnaley, 2006)
Threat of new entrants: Low There is little threat of the bus system being
overthrown, it would be too costly. Once a bus is
fitted with all the right equipment for Bus-Chat,
the chances of a new company coming in to try
and poach the business is slim because it would
require a whole new system to be put in place.
Once a company is secured as a customer, they
would not want to endure the hassle of changing.
(ARTA, 2009)
Threat of substitutes: Low Substitutes exist for bus systems but they are
underdeveloped and too infrequent to be a viable
option for most people. This, once again, is why
time and effort should be focussed on
augmenting the current system to be the best it
can be until a substitue can become a
compliment. (NZ Herald, 2010).

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Rivalry among existing
competitors:
Low By virtue of the fact that they are all under the
same parent organisation, there is no real rivalry
as each system is designed to address its own
issues.(ARTA, 2009).
Overall attractiveness of the industry:
3.3 Customers and Thei r Needs
At present, customers have little to no alternative. These customers are people who catch
public transport out of convience and price or out of necessity. Public transport in Auckland
at the moment is a benign monopoly. Customer needs are, with valid conviction, a desire to
catch a bus when it says it will be there and to arrive to their engagements at a suitable
time. These needs are important society as a whole because it is direct reflection on
government ability to cater for the needs of the populous.
3.4 The Product and Service
In short; if a customer can reliably establish where their bus is, in relation to how much
traffic there is on the road and physically how far away it is from their stop, they can
formulate an estimation of their own accord as to the time delay they face. This, of course,
can be cross checked with ATs evaluation of the route; nevertheless this is unreliable. This
will put the customer in an informed position where the onus can fall not on AT, but on self-
judgement. In this way, regular travellers will make educated decisions on when to leave the
house to catch their bus and will not have to waste precious minutes waiting for a late
service.
3.5 Suppliers and Partners
Suppliers for our vision will need to include, but are not limited to, a telecommunication
provider as well as a camera supplier. The telecommunication service will need to be
prepared to receive requests for data and then in turn reply with GPS locations. This task is
relatively simple as this is now a standard procedure for all mobile electronics. The camera
provider will too need to be integrated so that when a request for information is sent, the

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camera will take a quick snapshot of where the bus lies in traffic, which will be included in
the packet of data sent back to the requestor. This is not dissimiliar to services such as
Viber, where locations and photos are sent instantaneously .

Partners would need to include AT in order to equip the buses, as well as the NZ
government in order to establish pricing/availability of these services. Because the
telecommunication services have been put in check for extortion before, it would be
necessary to ensure this did not happen to resume viability of the idea.
3.6 Strategy: Cost Leadership
Public transport, namely bus systems, are made available to a broad market. In comparison
to other modes of transport, the overall cost is a fraction of what it costs for the operation
to run. Analagous to Porters Generic Strategies, this therefore leads us to announce it as
cost leadership. Coupled with the fact that the main intention of Bus-Chat, the information
system, is to help people and augment brand perception, it becomes evident that this was
never planned to be a high-profit venture. The scope is aimed at angry bus passengers and
the cost strategy will be subsidised by the fact that once more people fall in sway with
buses, it will attract more customers.
The overall strategy is therefore Cost Leadership.
3.7 Value Chain Activity: Outbound logisitics
The most important value chain activity for this business is outbound logisitics.
Outbound logistics are the most vital part of this operation because the request sent to this
bus is seeking information to be captured and processed back to the user so they can form
their own opinion on it. It is the fundamentla underpinning of Bus-Chat because the
outbound data has previously been skewered by factors that affect the bus after that data is
sent.
3.8 Business Processes

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3.8.1. PRE-EMPTIVE CUSTOMER SUPPORT PROCESS - This is an industry-specific customer support
system that tries to dissipate the need for customer support by making the entire process easier and less of a
hassle. By giving the customer tools to avoid the wait, there is lessened likelihood that there will be complaints
and so in this way AT can avoid costs in this department by investing in these preventative measures.


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3.8.2. OPERATI ONS MANAGEMENT PROCESS
AT can minimise costs and gain a competitive edge by streamlining their processes with Bus-Chat. They will
have a more succint idea of where the buses are, what Auckland traffic is like at what times, and how
efficiently the service runs as a whole.


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3.9 Functionalities
3.9.1. PRE-EMPTIVE CUSTOMER SUPPORT PROCESS
Instantaneous telecommunication services to relay information.
GPS locators to assess which bus service is the closest to the customer.
3.9.2. OPERATI ONS MANAGEMENT PROCESS
Data feedback from both bus communication systems (GPS/camera) and
drivers themselves.
Headquarters to monitor and log data about the transit times so it can be
turned into useful information.
3.10 Systems

3.10. 1. CUSTOMER SATI SFYING SYSTEM By putting the power of decision into the
customers hands, the regular travellers will be able to make better decisions about where
and when to leave for the bus and to eliminate time spent wasted while the bus is caught in
traffic.
3.10. 2. OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT SYSTEM The logistics headquarters at AT will be able to
assess and analyse the information provided by Bus-Chat and will eventually be able to
compile these trends to provide better information on the bus boards for those who rely on
them/do not have Bus-Chat. Customer satisfaction will rise in both respects as AT gets the
display more accurate.
3.10. 3. DRI VER ACCOUNTABILI TY SYSTEM Bus drivers can be held accountable for their
actions and work times because it will be possible to track and measure how effective and
or safe their driving is. In this way, Auckland roads will become safer and more efficient due
to a cohesive monitoring and managing of the drivers on the roads by the AT headquarters.

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3.11. Summary Table: Value Chain to Systems

Value Chain
Activity
Processes Functionalities Specific Information
System(s)
Broad Information
System(s)

Bavarian
bergkase
fromage
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1. Pre-emptive
Customer Support
process

1. Instant information from the cellular provider
about the buss situation
2. Cameras an GPS to assess the buss situation
themselves.
Camera request systems

Smartphone application
systems
Information transmission
systems

Global positioning systems
2. Operations
Management
process
1. Data feedback from bus systems as well as
drivers

2. Headquarters to compile and analyse data
Suburb demographic systems

Traffic density systems
Information storage
systems

Data analysis systems

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CONCLUSION
Bus-Chat is going to become an immensely useful feature to frequent travellers who prefer
to have the power of estimation in the own hands. By giving them the information they
need to make informed decisions, there will be no bad taste towards the bus boards with
their incorrect information. Indeed, these boards will be improved by AT themselves when
they too pay attention to the trends observable only by Bus-Chat. This is why this system
will make public transport in Auckland a reliable and valued process again.

REFERENCES

1. Mathew Dearnaley. (Oct, 2006). "Auckland buses - fewer fares but longer journeys".
The New Zealand Herald. p. A15.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10405339


2. AP. (Feb, 2011). Nine millionth rail passenger arrives at Britomart". The New
Zealand Herald, p.A21.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10691825


3. ARTA. (March, 2009). Auckland Transport Challenges. From the Draft 2009/10-
2011/12 Auckland Regional Land Transport Programme, Page 8.
http://theplan.theaucklandplan.govt.nz/aucklands-transport/


4. Mathew Dearnaley. (June, 2007). "City bus users get new fleet of green machines".
The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved from
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10447864


5. ARTA. (January, 2009). Annual report
2007/2008. https://at.govt.nz/media/imported/4468/AT-ARTA-Report-
AnnualReport2009.pdf