Technical University Sofia Coca-Cola Hellenic IT Services. Master Program in ERP Systems (Information Technology for Business Management)

Transcription

1 Technical University Sofia Coca-Cola Hellenic IT Services Master Program in ERP Systems (Information Technology for Business Management) Diploma Thesis Guide

2 Content Structure of the Master Program ERP Systems Diploma Thesis in the Master Program in ERP Summary of the TU-Sofia academic requirements for the Diploma Thesis Getting your Diploma Thesis assignment topic Support for the Development of the Diploma Thesis by the Program teaching staff Deadlines Sample Diploma Thesis assignment topics Appendix A Sample structure for a Diploma Thesis delivery a Technology-based plan for an organisation

3 Master Program ERP Systems Career in IT or business management Sustained knowledge and skill for managing business improvement by IT Three study semesters Taught in English Language Business leadership through technology methods and concepts Individual specialization for professional development IT for business transformation Focus for next steps of career development Project 1 IT Strategy Development Diploma work Project 2 It solutions in various industries IT Service Management fundamentals IT Service Management IT Project Management Organizational Behavior and IT Finance Management and IT Technologies main types and concepts ERP Systems I ERP Systems II Business Intelligence Systems E-business Next generation business applications

4 Diploma Thesis in the Master Program in ERP Practical focus and significance The Diploma Thesis is the pinnacle of a students journey in being awarded a Master Degree The objective of the Diploma Thesis is to help the student become confident in applying the acquired knowledge and skills in complex practical work situations of real organizations The Diploma Thesis should be aimed for an existing business, governmental or non-for-profit organisation. The actual name and sensitive information of the organisation may not be disclosed in the work The topic of every Diploma Thesis should be of significant importance to the potential recipient organisation The Diploma Thesis should be of significant complexity drawing knowledge and concepts from various subjects and projects covered in the Master Program in ERP Communication and copy right While the students are the authors of their Diploma Theses, TU-Sofia is the copy-right barer and retains, among others, the right to communicate the Theses for the purpose of supporting the academic and professional success of its students and sustaining and improving the academic standards and reputation of the institution in general Compliance with academic standards The Diploma Thesis is a significant element of the awarding of the Master Degree of TU-Sofia and as such needs to comply with the academic requirements of the University

5 Summary of the TU-Sofia academic requirements for the Diploma Thesis The Diploma Thesis for a Master's Degree is a document presented by the student in front of an University examination commission, which grants the degree. The Diploma Thesis should be in the form of a bounded booklet of 50 to 70 pages (60 to 66 symbols per row, 30 rows per page, font size 14). A Diploma Thesis will usually include the following sections: 1. Title page in a standard form (to be provided by TU-Sofia) 2. Approved assignment for the diploma thesis 3. Table of contents 4. Prospect of the diploma thesis separated to some chapters (This is the main body of the work chapters recommended) 5. Conclusion annotation 6. Reference list 7. Annex according to the assignment documents to the developed product, listing of the program, results, etc. The prospect (main body) of the diploma thesis must contain the following elements: 1. Introduction 2. Literature review comparative analysis of the information of the developed problem, founded from literature source, companies analysis, etc. and the chosen methodology and technical equipment. NOTE: Reference data for the used scheme elements or program products are put only if written in the assignment. 3. Chapters introducing the proposed solution, design or strategy that satisfy the assignment.

6 Getting your Diploma Thesis assignment topic Sample topics Students are provided with a list of sample topics for their Diploma Thesis (last pages of this document) Select the best Diploma Thesis topic for You The Students are encouraged to study the sample topics, select, adjust and modify one of them and arrive at a topic that will require development of material and learning experience that best suits their professional and career goals The finalized preferred topic should be ed to the Program Manager - Stoian Valchev

7 Support for the Development of the Diploma Thesis by the Program teaching staff Tutor and Subject s Every student is assigned two counterparts form the team of lecturers of the program: A Diploma Thesis Tutor and a Diploma Thesis Subject. The Tutor helps the student on structure, presentation and logical robustness of the Diploma Thesis. The Subject provides guidance on the specific subject of the Thesis. The appointment of the Diploma Thesis Tutors is done by TU-Sofia with the aim to balance workload of the teaching team. Wherever possible Tutors will be assigned in accordance with their familiarity with Diploma Theses assignment topics Logistics of your work process scope, discover, shape The students and their Tutor and Subject will organise their work around three meetings, in which the Diploma Thesis will be developed: Scoping, Discovery and Shaping. In the Scoping Meeting the topic and objectives of the Diploma Thesis are detailed and the overall structure of the final document is agreed In the Discovery Meeting the student presents a first draft of the Diploma Thesis for discussion, decisions on alternative courses of exploration and adjustment of the final document structure In the Shaping Meeting the student presents a final draft and receives input on completing the Diploma work After each of the meetings the Diploma Thesis Tutor records the key decisions and communicates them to the participants with a copy to the program academic coordinator

8 Deadlines Communication of sample topics to students, 2015-Sep Submission of preferred Diploma Thesis topics by Students to the Program Manager, 2015-Oct Assignment of Diploma Thesis Tutors and Subject s, 2015-Oct Development of Diploma Theses and submission, 2015-Nov Jan Presentation of Diploma Theses before the respective board of TU Sofia, 2016-June, (According to TU-Sofia s academic calendar)

9 Sample topics for Diploma Theses (to be adjusted and modified by students) (1/2) 1 Build an E-Business plan for a startup company The student should build a complete E-Business plan as per the requirements covered in the lectures. Stoian Valchev 2 Build a plan to implemtn ERP in a company Identify the need for ERP, technical options, business and technical change management plans etc. Hristo Enev 3 Create a plan for implementaiton of a Shared Services Center for a compamy Identify the needs for a common service center. What is the required service scope? What are the options for service provision - internal and external. What are the steps? Vania Gotseva 4 Create a plan to introduce industry standards in the IT services of a company Identify the need for improvement. What ssystems of external best practices are available and applicable - ITIL, ISO etc. Which is the best. What is the approach and phases? Budget and benefits? Ivan Krentchev

10 Sample topics for Diploma Theses (to be adjusted and modified by students) (2/2) 5 Build an IT Strategy for a copmany Identify business priorities. What are the important technologies? What are the key technologies to use? Benefits? Budget? Dimitar Merakov 6 Build an Information Security plan for a company What are the trends that are impacting What is their impact on..systems strategy, implementation, user behaviour, etc etc How can they be addressed / mitigated How should businesses react / behave what are their options What do you expect to be the public perception of / reaction to these issues Stoian Valchev 7 Optimising company operations, by implementation of decisions based on information approach, KPI/Strategic/Tactical/Operational reporting definitions and BI implementation to deliver the approach. What can be improved? What types of information needs to become availble and to whom? What does it mean for the organisation - what change is neede? What is required technically? Dimitar Dimitrov 8 Optimising decision making and adding value by incorporating analysis of public and social data in existing Business Intelligence implementation of a company What can be improved? What public data can be obtained - what are the sources? How can the data be used? What changes are needed by in the organisation to make it work? What is needed technologically? Dimitar Dimitrov

11 Appendix A: Sample structure of a Diploma Thesis delivering a Technology-based plan for an organization What is this and why is it needed? A significant portion of the Diploma Theses in the Master Degree in ERP will deliver as an outcome a plan that entails use of technology to achieve business goals. Examples of such plans are: Plan to introduce e-business tools/process; Plans for implement ERP; Overall IT Strategy for an organisation; Plan to outsource IT; Plan to insource IT etc Such a specific outcome is distinct from other types of theses that deliver hardware devices, software or a combination and requires a specific structure of the respective Diploma Thesis document in order to present it appropriately for the purpose of the Program as well as a potential use by an organization While there are no strong requirement for the structure of a Diploma Thesis at TU-Sofia with exception of the elements given in Summary of the TU-Sofia academic requirements for the Diploma Thesis of this material, the teaching staff of the Master Program in ERP proposes the following discretionary recommendation for the structure of the thesis that produces a plan: Chapter 1: Introduction of the Diploma Thesis topic Introduce the topic of the thesis, what will it produce, what is in scope and out of scope, why is the topic important and significant for organisations Chapter 2: Introduction of the recipient organisation and the problem or opportunity that the thesis addresses Introduce the business or organisation which will use the result of the Diploma Thesis Describe the objective and mission of the organization in general Describe the specific issues or opportunities in the organisation which the solution of the diploma thesis will address Describe the limitations the organisation has for a potential IT based solution time, cost, existing standards and requirements Chapter 3: Identification of general characteristics of the solution Outline the requirement for the potential solutions given the needs of the organisation Introduce the alternative solutions in generic business terms w/o specifying technology choices or vendors Describe the best and recommended solution in general terms as the best alternative Chapter 4: Outline specific technology choices Introduce the main technology practices and choices for realising a specific solution Make recommendation for use of types of technologies and or vendors Chapter 5: Time and recourse plan Propose stages and time plan Propose resources Chapter 6: Benefits, risks and opportunities Outline the expected benefits Outline the main risks and approached to mitigate Outline additional opportunities and how they can be captured