Your essay must be a minimum of two pages in length (not   counting the title and reference pages), and it must be formatted in APA   style. You should include an introduction section that gives background and   context to your reader. You must use at least two scholarly resources as   references. Any information from these resources must be cited and referenced   in APA format.     Read carefully and answer fully.

Scenario: A company called Colony Nursery and Landscaping   opened a new store located a few hundred miles away from its original   location. The company wants to implement an award system that awards their   customers with points whenever customers make a purchase, but the two stores   are not able to share information. Colony Nursery and Landscaping will need   to implement an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system that will solve the   information silo problem by collecting and making this user data available.   Colony Nursery and Landscaping is hoping that by providing customers with   this award system, they will be able to maintain competitive advantage.   Colony Nursery and Landscaping cannot afford to purchase, develop, or   maintain this system on-site, so they are investigating cloud solutions.

In addition, for many organizations, Colony Nursery and   Landscaping included, information silos make it difficult to tap into needed   information. Discuss whether or not the problem of information silos can be   solved by using the cloud. Some organizations do not have the resources to   construct or maintain their computer infrastructure, so they utilize cloud   services instead to reduce costs and improve scalability. In this assignment,   you will discuss whether or not the cloud offers solutions for Colony Nursery   and Landscaping and identify an application that the ERP system could provide.   Compose an essay that includes the elements listed below.

• Define what an information silo is.
• Explain why information silos are a problem for        organizations.
• Discuss why organizations are moving to the cloud.
• Determine whether or not using cloud services, such        as a cloud-based host for data storage, would solve the ERP information        silo problem at Colony Nursery and Landscaping.
• Explain how using the ERP system and awards program        would provide a competitive advantage for Colony Nursery and Landscaping.
• Discuss why the implementation of an ERP system might        require business process reengineering for Colony Nursery and        Landscaping. Be sure to explain the business processes that will be        affected (e.g., the customer awards system). Use diagrams or tables as        needed, but this is not required.