A dilemma of terracotta professional – the case of implementing information systems in a terracotta unit

Abstract

Subject area

The case concerns strategy.

Study level/applicability

This study is applicable to information system, development sector and application of technology in development sector.

Case overview

Krutika Terracotta Unit is a small unit located in Bhubaneswar, Odisha (India), owned by Mr Tarun Tapan Sahoo. The organization product portfolio varies from decorative statues, pots and vessel to customized products demanded by customers. Organization is also involved in training and renting the products for traditional fairs, marriages and religious ceremony in Bhubaneswar along with order sales. The case attempts to get a close picture of the industry. The exercise of developing the vision, mission, and goals for the organization was carried out and an attempt was made to align the information system with the business objectives even though the organization does not have a very structured organogram. Using BIS will surely reduce manual work and will give qualitative output. There will be lesser hassles in management. The defined and integrated approach will also help in taking strategic decisions well. The objective is to develop and apply well-structured BIS which can be integrated with the existing system so as to develop the terracotta organization in terms of reachability and profit-making with better decision-making capacity.

Expected learning outcomes

To learn about the business model of a handicraft marketing organization; to learn about the processes involved in traditional art form of Terracotta; to go through the exercise of creating vision, mission, goals of the organization through mutual discussion and expectation of owner; to determine how BIS helps in achieving higher productivity in Krutika Terracotta Unit; and to get an idea about how NPV calculation and social ROI should be measured for finding feasibility of technology investment.

Supplementary materials

Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email support@emeraldinsight.com to request teaching notes. Defence statement has been uploaded. Consent form to publish has been uploaded.

Citation

Mohapatra, S., Nayak, A., Bhangadiya, A., Bagchi, I., Sharma, P.K. and Behera, S. (2014), "A dilemma of terracotta professional – the case of implementing information systems in a terracotta unit", , Vol. 4 No. 4. https://doi.org/10.1108/EEMCS-04-2013-0038