Royal Caribbean Cruises, Ltd Hbr Case Study - 1130 Words

Royal Caribbean Cruises, LTD: A Case Study 1. Using the Information Systems Triangle as a framework, evaluate the alignment of RCCLs business strategy, organizational strategy, and information systems strategy before Tom Murphy became CIO and then after Tom Murphy took over as CIO (up to 9/11/2001). Prior to Tom Murphys tenure as CIO, Royal Caribbean Cruises Lines (RCCLs) business strategies were not fully aligned with the organizational and IT strategies. Tom Murphy was instrumental in bringing these together. A threefold business strategy was in place. It consisted of 1) design better cruise experiences, 2) reduce costs and 3) grow revenues. It improved guest experiences through luxurious ships with rock-climbing walls and†¦show more content†¦Royal Caribbeans expenses for the year were based on much higher volumes (based on the income statement for December 31, 2001), and it had recently invested additional capital in several new ships to maintain. The company had to do what was necessary to survive, until travel returned to previous levels. The updated business strategy was to stay alive in the face of low volumes and large capital assets. The organizational strategy consisted of immediate layoffs (33% staff and 90% consultants) to focus on support needs only Ââ€" resulting in eliminating new technology talent in favor of retaining legacy support skills. Finally, the IT strategy was to shelf Leapfrog and return to the basics to make common processes efficient. To accommodate business needs and cash flow concerns, Tom followed a micro-strategy approach with smaller, incremental project implementations. In this way, the company was able to continue until volumes began to approach previous levels, and many laid-off employees were reinstated. 3. Should Tom Murphy recommend a modest budget increase, a significant budget increase or a return to the glory days before 9/11 to the corporate planning committee? Support your answer. By mid-2003, the industry was in recovery mode but prices were still relatively low to entice customers and utilize the hotel capacity available