Author: spr1314sweber

Sending Inventory to the Clouds

Posted on by spr1314sweber

images

Since the creation of inventory management software, many small businesses have not been able to take advantage   of the expensive computer solutions available only to large corporations. But things are about to change, thanks to  BrightPearl and cloud. The Internet cloud, that is.

In traditional inventory management systems, the company is required to purchase the software and install it into the specific office computers that need to use it. The cloud changes the way people can access the software, and it can support hundreds of computers simultaneously. It also can save companies money by regularly updating, without having to install new versions manually. Initial installation is low cost, and does not require highly skilled IT professionals to set up. Brightpearl currently supports Magento, eBay and eKMPowershop.com. It starts at only $99 per user each month, and there is a $120 connector fee to set up the connections to different e-commerce

channels.

The Cloud is useful in a number of ways. Real-time monitoring allows the system to update across the entire system instantly, therefore reducing the amount of error that can occur between the transfer of information from one computer to the next. Just like Google Drive, the cloud will update across offices, and will allow everyone to see the inventory purchases across divisions. The cloud even supports devices such as smart phones and tablets, so you can monitor your inventory at home, in meetings, or on the go. Departmental communication will also be increased, so everyone will know each departments demand, inventory, or when items need to be restocked or shipped. It also allows you to see where the bottleneck issues are, what the fixed orders should be, and how to calculate ROP.

Although there are many upsides to the cloud, there are also several drawbacks. Security is main concern for the use of the cloud, and is very controversial within the industry. If the system was hacked, people could see how many orders are being made, and therefore use the information to their advantage. It could also lead to a loss in IT workers, since the cloud service would handle all customer service problems and issues. IT people would no longer be of service, and many would lose their jobs. Another drawback to using an inventory monitoring system in the cloud is performance risks. According to IT specialist David Kim, “Leaving out integration issues alone, cloud-based ERP are essentially related to threatened speed, reliability of network, outage risks, and limitations on data transfer” (Kim, 2013).

Do you think BrightPearl and the cloud is a good place to monitor the entire inventory for a company, or should they stick to the original software systems? Do you think the cloud will eventually take over business computer systems, or is it too risky for companies to vitally important information like their inventory management systems in a cloud that could be hacked by outside competitors?

——

Sources: http://www.mbtmag.com/articles/2013/05/benefits-cloud-based-inventory-management-software

http://www.academia.edu/2777755/Benefits_and_Drawbacks_of_Cloud-Based_versus_Traditional_ERP_Systems

http://www.zdnet.com/cloud-services-make-inventory-management-simpler-7000015550/

How Forecasting May Forever Change Hollywood

Posted on by spr1314sweber

Is it possible to forecast how much money a movie will make just by reading a script?  Statistics professor and movie guru, Vinny Bruzzese says you can.

Mr. Bruzzese and his team have supposedly come up with an equation to forecast how much money a movie will make in the box office, just by reading the script. For only $20,000 his company, Worldwide Motion Picture Group, will read any movie scrip and will compare it to other narratives with comparable story lines, Facebook likes, and data taken from focus groups consisting of over 1,500 moviegoers. With this information, he can dissect any scrip or screenplay, and help directors see how much money their movie will (or will not) make.

Based on statistics and moviegoer opinions, Bruzzese reads a script, and uses data to determine if characters are likable, or should be changed. He uses corresponding data with certain celebrities to determine how many people will attend a movie just because that person is in the film. His recommendations usually come in a 30 page report, and include both minor and large corrections.  Mr. Bruzzese also said that he will not hesitate to inform a writer that the movie is crap, and characters need to be developed into something completely different in order to for the audience to be engaged enough to see the movie in theaters.

So far, Mr. Bruzzese has reviewed over 100 scripts in Hollywood, including “Oz the Great and Powerful,” which earned $484.8 million in the box office. His services also include reviewing scripts for TV shows and Broadway productions. Although his price may be high, Hollywood directors seem to be interested in his operation, and many have found it to be incredibly useful. However, he clearly states to each screenwriter that he will not be held responsible if the movie flops, and his equation is not correct. As we learned, forecasting is rarely 100% correct, and is used as more of a guideline than an indicator of fact.

But what are the implications of using statistical forecasting on an art form like movie making?  Some people are not as excited about the idea. One movie critic wrote, “It’s the enemy of creativity, nothing more than an attempt to mimic that which has worked before. It can only result in an increasingly bland homogenization, a pell-mell rush for the middle of the road” (Ol Parker).

So do you think forecasting of new moves will inhibit creativity in scriptwriters? Do you think Hollywood directors should only focus on their movies making the most amount of money? Will Hollywood movies just become cookie cutters of the previous ones before them? Or do you believe an equation made for forecasting movie success help make new movies better?

________________

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/06/business/media/solving-equation-of-a-hit-film-script-with-data.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&smid=fb-share&adxnnlx=1368414010-4e41KEMI8B67C1EjLSjPvg