Palm Island Restaurant

Chris Ralston, owner of Palm Island Restaurant, listened to the sales proposal and wondered what to do. Chris had taken over Palm Island 12 years ago and had made it into one of the most popular restaurants in town. But profits were slipping and the customers seemed drawn to some newer restaurants.

The proposal recommended using an information system to provide better control of all restaurant operations and to give better customer service at the same time. The new system would affect almost everyone who worked at the restaurant. Instead of writing down orders on a paper pad and bringing a copy to the kitchen, the waiters would use a hand-held terminal to key in the orders at the tables. When the order was complete, they would press a button and the order would be transmitted into the kitchen by radio waves. In the kitchen, the orders would be divided automatically into separate cooking tasks. These tasks for each order would be scheduled along with tasks for other orders to minimize delays. The tasks would also be sequenced so that the entire table's order would be finished around the same time. At the end of the meal, the bill would be computed and printed out automatically, including a complete, legible listing of every item ordered. By having these data on a computer, it would be easy to maintain sales statistics about which items were ordered when and about how well the waiters succeeded in encouraging guests to order high-profit items. The sales data would link directly to the inventory system used for ordering food, which should help in purchasing.

At first, Chris thought that most of the people affected by the system would like it. The waiters wouldn't have to run back and forth to the kitchen unnecessarily. The chefs wouldn't have to decipher messy handwriting. The customers would get the food more quickly and would never have to wonder about whether the bill was added up correctly. In addition, Chris would feel more in control and wouldn't have to worry as much about free meals and drinks served to waiters' friends.

When Chris told several staff members about the new system, their reaction was strange. They seemed very defensive, almost as though they were being accused of something. Chris wondered whether they would cooperate with the new system and wasn't sure what to do if they really resisted, since they were important members of the team. Chris also wasn't so sure that the new system would significantly improve profits. After all, people came to the Palm Island for its food, not its computer system.

Questions:

1. Summarize the Palm Island's value chain.

2. Use the WCA framework and the five perspectives to summarize the situation and identify issues that seem important to analyze.

3. Explain why you do or do not agree with the following: The proposed information system probably accomplishes little in solving Palm Island's problems.

Source: Palm Island is a fictional restaurant. This case was written to illustrate issues that occur in many business situations.

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