SCHOOL OF BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT (SEB) MANAGEMENT, MARKETING AND INFORMATION SYSTEMS (MMI) StAR Proposal Using SAP to Improve SEB Students Business Analytic Skills, Leader Abilities and Entrepreneurship By Jing Yang, MMI 1 David C. Yen, SEB Izabella Lokshina, MMI Hua Zhong, MMI November, 2014 Amount Requested: $12,000 per year Proposal Summary SAP ERP (enterprise resource planning) and the advanced SAP modules (i.e., APO, BW, and CRM) are state-of-the-art information systems designed for decision-making in complex globaleconomic environments, which involves vast amounts of information. The emerging trends such as big data and business intelligence require decision makers to utilize innovative information systems in their business that facilitate effective decisions. The introduction of SAP EPR into SEB curriculum not only help SEB students practice their knowledge of business learned from low-level courses, but also provide them an opportunity to integrate all the knowledge into a whole piece. 1 Point Person, 330 Netzer, 1-607-436-3381(office), Jing.Yang@oneonta.edu
Section I Narrative A. Proposal Significance and Objectives Significance SAP is the world s leading provider of ERP software; its products have the largest global market share in the private and public sectors. SAP ERP has the highest level of tight integration of functional modules, a feature that provides business value for the majority of the Fortune 500 companies. Even in the Internet era, e-business scenario and turbulence in the global marketplace, thanks to its quick re-design and re-positioning of its products, SAP continues to drive the enterprise segment. By aligning with SAP, the SEB will be partnering with the global leader and providing distinction to our program. At current stage, the whole SEB is undertaking innovative steps to restructure curriculum catering to the changes in economic environments. SEB curriculum committee has proposed many new programs/concentrations such as Supply Chain Management (SCM), Entrepreneurship, Data Mining and so on, several of which such as SCM have been successfully approved by the college. Although these courses are housed in different departments, it needs a platform to cut across the departmental boundaries and create an integrative collaboration among disciplines such as management, marketing, information systems, finance, entrepreneurship and so on. The adoption of SAP EPR would span the departments of EFA and MMI and provide an integrative context for the courses offered in SEB. Further, we also see great future potential for inclusion in our 4+1 programs (Cyber Security Program with Criminal Justice, Department of Sociology and Health Information Technology Management Program with the School of Natural and Mathematical Sciences) which is currently submitted to the graduate program director. In summary, the proposal significance is to contribute to SEB and School of Social Sciences and School of Natural and Mathematical Sciences in general, to the following courses and/or subject areas in particular ACCT335 Accounting Information Systems, ECO375 Statistics and Decision Making, INTD108 Introduction to Database Applications, MGMT341 Human Resources Management, MGMT353 Production & Operations Management, MIS351 Management Information Systems, MKTG364 Consumer Behavior and the new proposed ERP course and Logistics Management course in the MIS and Marketing areas accordingly. Objectives SEB students who take courses with use of SAP ERP will gain the following knowledge and skills: Hands-on experience using the select modules of the SAP ERP system and integration of the lessons learned with the underlying ERP knowledge covered in the textbook. Understanding of how SAP ERP and other software packages are integral components of E-Commence/Business, Internet Marketing and IT governance which are related to other functional, business areas such as marketing and accounting. Understanding of technical and user-centered problems and thus, improving the students creative and critical thinking, logical reasoning, and problem solving skills. An appreciation of interdisciplinary nature of information technology and developing the team building and project management skills. 2
Access to, and participation in, real-world case studies that include the use of SAP ERP to provide solutions and this will help bridging the gap between the real world practice and implementation with the knowledge learned from the academic area. Option to become SAP-certified and this will greatly enhance students competitive advantages in the future job market. B. Contribution to the SP2015 This project request is well aligned with SUNY Oneonta strategic goals of enhancing academic excellence through greater support of for high-quality teaching by deploying advance information technology as a learning tool, as well as enabling partnerships with business and industry through these multidisciplinary efforts. Specifically, this proposal will contribute mainly to the goals of teaching, learning and scholarship by adopting ERP technology to make our student more current and maintain the competitive advantage in the future job market. Student Engagement objective will be accomplished by assigning the team project to make them understand and practice how to perform a feasibility study, analyze the current situation, pinpoint the potential problems, investigate the possible causes and recommend a desired implementation alternative. It is our intent to work with the surrounding businesses such Ioxus, Mead and Corning to developing system implementation and technology adoption strategies through an experiential learning approach to build a strong Community Partnership relationship. We can exchange the lessons and experience learned from teaching and researching ERP with the international community in SAP alliance to achieve the Global Connectedness objective. C. Linkage to Any of the Following Priorities (Experiential Learning; Curricular Infusion of Pillars; Technology Enhanced Learning; and Public/Private Partnerships) The department of MMI will take the lead in this effort. From a programmatic standpoint, the student will be much more able to place course content into the integrative context of SAP. They will experience the effects decisions have on other aspects of the business. Our students, while highly recruited, will also become more valuable to recruiters because of their exposure to and hands on experience with SAP and also from the more integrative perspective they will have as a result of that experience. As indicated in the previous section, the assignments used in MMI courses (i.e., Management, Marketing, and Information Systems) will be the team projects and/or business cases which will greatly contribute to students experiential learning capability by analyzing, designing, and implementing the SAP applications. By nature, the adoption and teaching of ERP (SAP) will improve technology enhanced learning with other computer-aided instruction tools and technologies used in the college. In terms of the Public/Private partnership, the SAP vendor/company will benefit from SEB s involvement in the alliance through what its faculty can contribute to others. SEB s focus on undergraduate teaching has created an environment where teaching is valued. This results in support for curriculum and course development that will embrace SAP as an additional focus. SEB faculty members contribute to the development of pedagogy through presentations and publications at national conferences as well as numerous textbooks. These outlets will continue to be important, as well as SEB faculty contributions to the repository of course materials available to other schools in the alliance. Further, the research skills can also be applied to projects related to SAP. To this end, a strong partnership with other academic institutions and ERP industry can be accomplished. 3
D. Supporting Data from Assessment Process or Other Evidence That Contributed to The Decision to Submit This Request It is important to recognize that business and technical culture play an important role in this learning experience. In summary, courses with use of SAP ERP would touch on areas such as group dynamics, teamwork, personal leadership, legal implications, ethical behavior, and change management. This is also matched with new AACSB standards to enhance student engagement and bring the currentness to the SEB courses and curriculum. E. How the Activity Will Be Assessed, Using Measurable, Documented Outcomes Student learning outcomes and assessment, and industry expectations of students, who successfully complete the courses taught with the use of SAP ERP, are given below: Student Learning Outcomes and Assessment Understanding Process Environment and Business Process Interrelationships Understanding the art of Technology and the basis in Technology as Enabler Gaining Hands-on Experience by Performing the Core Business Transactions in Functional Areas of Sales and Distribution, Production and Planning, Financials, Controlling, Procurement, Accounting, Marketing and Human Resources. Assessment of Student Learning in Business Process Integration and Technology through Internships and Case Studies and also through SAP Certification (preferred) Industry Expectations It may include the following items such as Broad Perspective, People Skills, Facilitation Skills, Ability to Communicate, Leadership Ability, Understanding of the Shareholder Value, Conversant in Process and Change Management. F. Implementation Strategy and Timeline A special interest Enterprise Integration Group (EIG) involving SEB faculty members from business disciplines of information systems, management, marketing, accounting and finance to be formed. EIG mission is to train business professionals, who have an integrated view on the entire business, who appreciate the importance of optimized business processes and who understand the underlying information technology that supports the business process. Currently, we are developing an innovative curriculum that will use SAP ERP software to teach fundamental concepts related to the use and management of enterprise information systems. As discussed earlier, SAP ERP and the advanced SAP modules (APO, BW and CRM) will allow us to provide students with state-of-the-art information system for decision-making in complex environments involving vast amounts of information. The implementation strategy will be developed into two different phases. Phase I is aiming at developing curriculum, building an Industry advisor board, and developing the required expertise to effectively teaching SAP with underlying entrepreneurship concepts. This phase is expected to be completed in the period from 2015-2017 to prepare for phase 2 which SEB plans to develop other web based courses, extend the application to SAP to other functional areas such as accounting, marketing, and finance, and develop a certificate program and other internship opportunities. Staring 2020, much effort will be spent on refining our courses, improving the course quality, maintaining systems and applications updates and disseminating the education learning to other universities and schools through the publication of papers and the participation in the MIS/Decision Science conferences. 4
Proposal Title: Section II Funding Request Using SAP to improve SEB students business analytic skills, leader abilities and entrepreneurship Point Person and contact information Name: Jing Yang Campus Phone: 1-607-436-3381 Campus e-mail: jing.yang@oneonta.edu Department/Unit: MMI, School of Economics and Business Budget Detail please enter whole dollars; enter fractions of positions in decimals (e.g. 1/2 time = 0.50) 1-time Costs by year Recurring Use of Funds Description Number of Positions (ongoing) Costs: FY2014-15 FY2015-16 FY2016-17 Total 1-time Costs Personnel Costs: Ongoing Salaries (PSR) $0 Temporary Salaries (Temp Service) $0 Student Employment (Student Temp Service) $0 Other Than Personnel Costs (OTPS) and Campus Recharges: Materials & Supplies $0 Travel (not related to Professional Development) $0 Contractual Services $9,000 $0 Student Scholarships $0 Professional Development $3,000 $0 General Equipment $0 Contracts related to Equipment Maintenance $0 Campus Storehouse $0 Campus Telephone $0 Campus Mail $0 Campus Print Shop $0 Capital Costs -- renovation $0 Capital Costs -- new construction $0 Total Costs: 0.00 $12,000 $0 $0 $0 $0 5
Other Funding Sources: New Funds (i.e. projected revenue generation) Projected Amount Available: Reallocation of funds from existing resources (include account number, funding source) Total Projected Other Funding Sources: $0 Estimation on the Potential Costs: $12,000 (recurring, ongoing costs) 1. Associate membership is free (but no hosted software access) Full Membership has a cost of $9,000 per year for a hosting fee (paid to a University Competence Center, not to SAP). 2. Training expenses to send the faculty to learn the SAP software and module (one faculty per year) There is an annual meeting held by SAP University Alliance. Faculty training/travel around $3,000 per faculty/per year 3. Costs to have some ERP software installed and maintenance charge No cost full members are hosted, so no software or hardware needed for SAP on our campus. [Requested Budget] 1. Full membership $9,000 per year 2. Training $3,000 per year 6
Section III Consultation StAR Appendix A The Chief Information Officer has reviewed this proposal and verified potential costs as it relates to technology: [x ] Yes [ ] No [] Not Applicable Comments: Given that the software is to be hosted off-site and that it appears that all access to the software will be through other means, there is no projected impact on IT facilities or resources. The Associate Vice President for Facilities has reviewed this proposal and verified potential costs as it relates to facilities: [ ] Yes [ ] No [] Not Applicable Comments: The Budget Director has reviewed this proposal and verified potential costs: [ ] Yes [ ] No [] Not Applicable Comments: The Senior Executive Employee Services Officer has reviewed this proposal and verified potential costs as it relates to human resources: [ ] Yes [ ] No [] Not Applicable Comments: Other consultation (be specific): 7
2014-2015 StAR Proposal -- Budget Template Proposal Title: Point Person and contact information Name: Campus Phone: Campus e-mail: Department/Unit: An interdisciplinary project to enhance the School of Economics and Business (SEB) s curricular excellence and improve students competitive skills: Using SAP to improve SEB students business analytic skills, leader abilities and entrepreneurship Jing Yang 1-607-436-3381 jing.yang@oneonta.edu MMI, School of Economics and Business Budget Detail please enter whole dollars; enter fractions of positions in decimals (e.g. 1/2 time = 0.50) 1-time Costs by year Recurring Number of (ongoing) Use of Funds Description Positions Costs: FY2013-14 FY2014-15 FY2015-16 Total 1-time Costs Personnel Costs: Ongoing Salaries (PSR) $0 Temporary Salaries (Temp Service) $0 Student Employment (Student Temp Service) $0 Other Than Personnel Costs (OTPS) and Campus Recharges: Materials & Supplies $0 Travel (not related to Professional Development) $0 Contractual Services $9,000 $0 Student Scholarships $0 Professional Development $3,000 $0 General Equipment $0 Contracts related to Equipment Maintenance $0 Campus Storehouse $0 Campus Telephone $0 Campus Mail $0 Campus Print Shop $0 Capital Costs -- renovation $0 Capital Costs -- new construction $0 Total Costs: 0.00 $12,000 $0 $0 $0 $0 Other Funding Sources: New Funds (i.e. projected revenue generation) Projected Amount Available: Reallocation of funds from existing resources (include account number, funding source) Total Projected Other Funding Sources: $0