You are Hoi Lui, a management consultant leading a small team which has been commissioned to prepare a consultancy report for the Data Communications Services (DCS) Company directors to help them plan for the next three years.

DCS Company has two product areas. The largest area is the manufacture of data communications components which it mainly sells to original equipment manufacturers (OEM). The other smaller and less developed area is based on supply and support contracts for specialist IT management network systems, mainly to domestic medium-sized enterprises. You are a qualified accountant and your colleagues are Danny Leman, a company researcher, and Freddie Lithium who is a part-qualified finance professional. You and your team have collected and analysed the following information about DCS Company to help you prepare the consultancy report.

– Exhibit 1: A report on DCS Company’s organisational overview, the external environment and the business model sourced and prepared by Danny Leman, your colleague

– Exhibit 2: A transcript from interview which was held between you and Java Peraya, the CEO of DCS Company.

– Exhibit 3: Summary of financial and business performance of DCS Company extracted from the Integrated Report (2012–2015) presented to you by the finance director of DCS Company

– Exhibit 4: The October board report, a recent board meeting notes which include strategic choices facing DCS Company – presented to you by the marketing manager of DCS Company

– Exhibit 5: An evaluation of alternative future strategies being considered by the DCS Company board, prepared and presented to you by your colleague, Freddie Lithium

– Exhibit 6: Minutes from the focus group meeting you held with middle management of DCS Company

Following your findings you are now starting to prepare the consultancy report and associated tasks for DCS Company.

The case requirements are included in the tasks shown below:

Question 1c:

Under the Strategy and resource allocation heading in the October board report, the possibility of DCS Company supplying and supporting such technologies as cloud computing and big data analytics is referred to. To accompany the consultancy report a presentation is needed about the exploitation of such new technologies.

Required:
Prepare information for two presentation slides to be presented to the DCS Company board, including relevant bullet points and supporting notes, highlighting the key benefits and identifying the main opportunities presented by big data analytics to DCS Company and its customers. (6 marks)

Professional Skills marks are available for demonstrating communication skills in highlighting the key points to include in the slides and for clear supporting notes. (2 marks)