Critical Business Processes

Question 1

Visioning Information Technology at Cirque du Soleil

This case aims to highlight the topic of aligning IS/IT strategy with a business and the challenges this alignment poses for the senior IT executive. In this context the notion of IT architecture, its role in the alignment between business and IT, and the levels of maturity of an IT architecture are also discussed.

Please answer the following questions.

1. What characteristics of Cirque du Soleil made Danielle Savoie’s job particularly challenging?
2. What are the key abilities required of Danielle Savoie to achieve alignment between IS/IT and a business?
3. What were Cirque’s critical business processes?
4. How well do you think the current IT architecture at Cirque du Soleil enabled the critical business processes?
5. What recommendations would you make to Danielle to manage Cirque’s data?
6. What course of action would you recommend to Danielle Savoie if she is to successfully implement her vision of IT as a sailboat, with Cirque’s producer as captain and the IT vice-president as helmsperson?

Please use APA style for citations and bibliography.

Question 2

The plaintiff is a female employee of your company. Her performance over the years has been adequate but rocky at times. Specifically, she doesn’t always get along with fellow workers and has what has been described as a “caustic” personality. Your company has a very clear policy against sexual harassment which is posted in the workplace, there is training on harassment and zero tolerance for any “bad” behavior. In addition, there are ways of reporting harassment to someone other than the supervisor if the supervisor is the harasser. Assume that prior to filing suit, plaintiff came to the HR department and reported inappropriate touching by her supervisor. She claimed the conduct had been ongoing for years but admits she didn’t report it to anyone until she was sitting in front of you. You cause an investigation to occur that results in the termination of the supervisor. The plaintiff files an EEOC complaint and later a lawsuit. Analyze the company’s liability under Title VII particularly under the “Faragher” decision.