I.T Lifecycle Management case study. (Specifications for Analysis)

Question

I am required to perform an objective of at least three (3) competing I.T products and/or services using the weighted point evaluation model. (Excell Worksheet)

1. I am also required to make a recommendation based on the evaluation stated above and justify the cost and benefits of the chosen I.T product and/or service, explaining how the cost can be controlled.

The business case is as follows: You are employed in the IT department of Caribbean Organic Foods Ltd., a rapidly growing Trinidad-based food processing company. The company sources raw materials from producers in Trinidad, Jamaica, St. Lucia, Guyana and Belize. It processes and packages the finished products in a plant located at its Trinidad headquarters and operates several shops across Trinidad and Tobago with plans to expand regionally over the next two years. The company also exports packaged products to a growing number of North American and Latin American territories. The company is preparing to purchase thirty (30) laptops for staff across several departments including Marketing, Finance, Production, Distribution, QA, and IT. Most employees receiving the laptops will be using standard productivity software and accessing the company’s web-based enterprise applications, but some staff also run specialized applications for tasks such as accounting, payroll, data analytics and project management. The laptops will replace the existing desktop systems used by the company. They should therefore work well with the existing HDMI-ready monitors, USB keyboards and USB mice from the outgoing systems for a desktop experience when in-office, while simultaneously permitting the flexibility of taking the laptops home for remote work. The laptops are expected to be deployed with a 5-year lifecycle in mind, but extended deployments may be considered on a case-by-case basis determined by performance and condition at the end of the initial period. You have been asked to identify appropriate, competing business-line 14” laptop models from Dell, HP and Lenovo and conduct a weighted-point evaluation on the options found. For the purpose of this assignment, you may assume the pricing found on the manufacturers’ websites to be equivalent to the discounted corporate bulk pricing after including shipping and handling to Trinidad and Tobago. A budget of US$45,000 (US$1,500 per laptop) has been approved for the purchase, though you have been asked to reduce the spend as much as possible while still identifying suitably durable and reliable options. For the sake of simplicity, you may assume that the price found on the manufacturer website is the final price for your scenario.

The following minimum specifications should be met unless not within budget: • 14” FHD (1920x1080) LED display • Quad-core mid-range CPU (e.g. Intel Core i5 or AMD Ryzen 5) • 8 GB RAM • 256 GB SSD • Two (2) USB 3.2 ports (including at least 1x USB-C) • Standard HDMI Type A port • RJ-45 Gigabit Ethernet port • Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth • Integrated webcam and microphone • 5-year next business day on-site warranty • Accidental damage protection for the duration of the warranty • Windows 11 Professional • USB mouse • Power adapter • Appropriate carrying case with shoulder strap (briefcase or messenger style) Downgrades should be made only if the above are not available within budget and should be appropriately explained. You may add additional relevant items as seen fit within budget, such as a docking station or USB hub to compensate for a shortage of on-board ports. Once you have sourced your options and performed a weighted-point evaluation, you are to make an appropriate recommendation for purchase that reflects the results of the weighted-point evaluation. Note that apart from meeting the minimum specifications, your weighted-point evaluation should also consider the cost within budget and any usability and durability factors found to be relevant during your research. Avoid using too many factors. Use appropriate groupings such as performance, storage, ports, warranty, build quality, etc. Finally, indicate as part of your recommendation what measures should be taken to control the TCO of the laptops after the initial purchase is complete.

Answer 1

To evaluate the best option for Caribbean Organic Foods Ltd., we can consider three competing laptop models from Dell, HP, and Lenovo. For the evaluation, we will use a weighted-point evaluation model, which involves assigning weights to different factors and rating each laptop model based on those factors.

The minimum specifications for the laptops are already provided, and we can use these specifications as the baseline for our evaluation. However, we can also consider other relevant factors such as price, durability, battery life, and customer support. We can group these factors into categories such as performance, storage, ports, warranty, build quality, etc.

Once we have rated each laptop model based on these factors, we can multiply the rating by the weight assigned to each factor and sum up the scores to get the overall weighted score for each laptop model. The laptop model with the highest overall weighted score will be the recommended option for Caribbean Organic Foods Ltd.

After choosing the best laptop model, we need to justify the cost and benefits of the chosen option. We should explain how the cost can be controlled to ensure that the total cost of ownership (TCO) remains within budget. One way to control the TCO is by providing regular maintenance and updates to ensure the laptops remain in good condition and have optimal performance. We can also consider purchasing extended warranties or insurance to cover any accidental damage or hardware failure.

In summary, to evaluate the best option for Caribbean Organic Foods Ltd., we need to consider three competing laptop models from Dell, HP, and Lenovo using a weighted-point evaluation model. Once we have chosen the best option, we should justify the cost and benefits and explain how the cost can be controlled to ensure the TCO remains within budget.