Strategic Goals and Objectives in a Modern Business Environment - Essay Sample

Introduction

According to Paul, Aithal, and Bhuimali (2018), modern organizations operate in highly competitive environments that require them to develop new strategies to achieve their strategic goals and objectives. The advent of technology has a remarkable impact on how businesses operate in their respective market sectors. As a result, business informatics students must not only learn about the challenges of running enterprises in contemporary society but also anticipate facing them in a real-life scenario (Buchalcevova, 2016). Acquiring, storing, and making effective use of information is increasingly becoming a vital step towards helping organizations to stay top of others in their industries. Business informatics (BI) is a unique academic course that combines various fields of study, such as information technology (IT), business administration, and economics, with multiple concepts of computer science (Vorisek, Pour, & Buchalcevova, 2015). BI began as a movement in Germany before evolving into a well-established academic discipline with various levels of study, including diploma, bachelor, master, master, and doctor of philosophy (Ph.D.) programs.

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Babaei and Beikzad (2013) averred that numerous countries across the world, such as Sweden, France, Germany, Ireland, Belgium, and Russia, incorporate business informatics in their study programs. Researchers predict that developing countries will soon begin integrating BI in their academic programs in tertiary institutions due to the growing need to understand the role of information technology in addressing the challenges faced by companies across the world (Paul et al., 2018). Equipping students with adequate knowledge and skills in business informatics is crucial in helping them to use and apply computer science tools as well as technologies to the problems that modern businesses face. The invention of the commercial systems played a vital role in addressing numerous issues and processes of managing successful enterprises (Buchalcevova, 2016). However, business informaticists are essential in helping these organizations to optimize the use of such systems and software with the capacity to bring about remarkable improvements in their daily operations.

An informaticist professional, who is a BI graduate, can offer unique education and training needed to solve a warranting system complexity by staying current in knowledge of such systems and others that seek to address various business challenges (Vorisek et al., 2015). The informaticist would develop proposals to advocate for the replacement of the business system upon need and establish policies to ensure effective use of the system. Lastly, the informaticist would help the organization in gathering data from business systems and applications, probably in the form of a data warehouse, analyze that data, and present it as a way of advancing the strategic goals and objectives of the organization (Babaei & Beikzad, 2013). BI entails the application of information technology concepts and knowledge to different businesses to improve their operations. Such decisions may also include a remarkable organizational shift to a big data system or developing and integrating a particular software application with the capacity to improve business operations (Paul et al., 2018). This research aims to provide a comprehensive discussion on what instructors need to cover in a holistic online-based hardware introduction for business informatics students with long-lasting significance.

History of Computer Hardware and Development

Understanding the definition, meaning, and implication of computer hardware is crucial for comprehending its historical development. Wavrik (2015) defined computer hardware as a combination of the physical parts of the computer. Some of these and tangible components of the computer include its case, monitor, central processing unit, speakers, mouse, and the keyboard. Computer hardware also extends to every element inside the computer, such as the motherboard, hard disk drive, sound card, video card, and the hard-disk drive (Raven et al., 2016) However, many people tend to confuse between computer hardware and software. It is essential to understand that computer hardware is what one can physically touch. Computer software, on the other hand, is an intangible part of the device and refers to a combination of various instructions fed in a computer to perform predetermined operations. Therefore, the computer system depends on both the software and hardware components to work efficiently (Raven, Qalawee, & Atroshi, 2016). The software component plays a vital role by directing the hardware to perform any instruction or computer from the user.

Historically, the development of computer hardware dates back to the sixteenth century when people across the world conceptualized the need for attaining civilization (Mirrer, 2017). As a result, many ancient scientists began thinking about how they could better their lives and the entire society. The earliest computing hardware was in the form of tally sticks before developing the Phoenician clay shapes that represented counts of various items, such as grains in containers or livestock. Minoan excavations also indicate that people, particularly businessmen and government officials, relied on different Phoenician clay shapes to perform their daily duties (Jesiek, 2013). The devices aimed to help in computation, however, evolved gradually from simple recording and counting tools to the abacus, the slide rule, the first analogue computers, and the current digital ones. The desire to enhance reasoning and improve mathematical accuracy inspired ancient scientists to create formal logic tables, formulas, and patterns that could help them to perform simple calculations in the sixteenth century (Tanasic, 2017). Afterwards, computer hardware followed a remarkable historical developed as detailed below.

Earliest Devices

According to Buchalcevova (2016), people have historically used multiple devices to help them perform different calculations and computations for millennia. Examples of such crucial devices include the classic scales used for establishing equality by weight and the simple enumeration concept that relied on the checkered cloths. However, the abacus represented a more arithmetic based device used in medieval society. A remarkable transformation in the development of computer hardware occurred in 1623 when Wilhelm Schickard developed the first mechanical computer (Raven et al., 2016). As a result, Schickard became the father of computing during this era. Johannes Kepler, a German astrologer, mathematician, and astronomer, was among the first people to use the mechanical calculator and remarked it as a calculating clock because it used cogs and gears (Paul et al., 2018) Buchalcevova (2016) (Vorisek et al., 2015). The mechanical calculator was crucial in performing simple calculations, such as addition and subtraction. The machine could also perform partial multiplication and division.

Baize Pascal, a former French physicist, author, mathematician, and Catholic theologian, developed another device with the ability to not only add but also subtract in 1642 (Babaei & Beikzad, 2013). Pascal's invention was a crucial step in the history of computer hardware because it increased the options available for people to perform various calculations with ease. Also, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, a prominent German mathematician and logician, developed the Leibniz Wheel in 1671 (Paul et al., 2018). This device could automatically add, subtract, multiply, and divide while relying on the ideas of previous inventors such as Schickard and Pascal. Besides, Charles Xavier Thomas, a French entrepreneur, developed the most successful and mass-produced mechanical calculator in 1820 to aid in performing mathematical computation in business. Most of the mechanical calculators, including Monroe and comptometer, remained in use until the late 1970s (Babaei & Beikzad, 2013). However, inventions in computing hardware continued during this period.

Zarkadakis (2018) ascertained that researchers began to develop algebra, logarithms, and analytical geometric applications to assist people in performing complex mathematical calculations in the late sixteenth century. For example, John Nappier, a Scottish physicist and mathematician, conceptualized and developed the first logarithm tables to help in simplifying tedious calculations involving multiplication of different digits. Nappier realized that it was possible to perform the process of multiplying and dividing numbers through addition and subtraction, respectively, of the algorithms (Vorisek et al., 2015). The Scottish inventor also developed the slide rule, which allowed mathematicians to represent real numbers as intervals and distances on various lines. The slide rule allowed researchers to perform multiplication and division operations faster than using the mechanical calculator. The slide ruled remained crucial for engineers until the invention of the pocket calculators (Raven et al., 2016). Therefore, Nappier's creativity was critical to the advancement of simple calculations to complex computations.

The Invention of the Punch Card Technology

Zarkadakis (2018) averred that the punched care technology was a critical invention by Basile Bouchon, a French textile worker, in 1725 before its subsequent development in the eighteenth century. Bouchon utilized a perforated loop of paper to create the pattern that tailors needed to reproduce on clothes. For example, Joseph-Marie Jacquard, also French weaver and merchant, developed a loom that used punched cards to control the woven pattern. Jacquard's invention was crucial in the field of programming (Manikandeshwar, 2015). Charles Babbage, a British-born polymath, relied on Jacquard's to develop an analytical engine in 1833. The Census Bureau of the United States used a combination of punch cards, improved by Herman Hollerith, to conduct the census in 1890. Hollerith later used the same concept to launch IBM, the first computing firm, in 1911. IBM's punch cards remained crucial for business data-processing (Tanasic, 2017). The punch cards remained critical throughout the ninetieth century, but also revolutionized the education industry as many engineering and science students used them to submit their programming assignments.

References

Babaei, M. & Beikzad, J. (2013). Management information system, challenges and solutions. European Online Journal of Natural and Social Sciences, 2(3), 374-381.

Buchalcevova, A. (2016). Analysis of the management of business informatics framework from the green ICT viewpoint. International Journal of Information Technology and Management, 15(1), 41-58. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/288903607_Analysis_of_the_management_of_business_informatics_framework_from_the_green_ICT_viewpoint.

Jesiek, B. K. (2013). The origins and early history of computer engineering in the United States. IEEE Annals of the History of Computing 35(3), 6-18 Retrieved from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/257344217_The_Origins_and_Early_History_of_Computer_Engineering_in_the_United_States.

Manikandeshwar, M. (2015). Computer hardware: An overview. International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR), 4(10), 200-203. Retrieved from https://www.ijsr.net/archive/v4i10/SUB158622.pdf.

Mirrer, L. (2017 December). How the computer age was born in the 'Silicon City' of New York. Huffpost. Retrieved from https://www.huffpost.com/entry/how-the-computer-age-was-_b_8331174.

Paul, P. K., Aithal, S., & Bhuimali, A. (2018). Business informatics: With special reference to big data...