Sun Entertainment, Auckland | Information Gathering Strategy | Case Study Example

Introduction

Sun entertainment is a company, which is based in Auckland and has made investments in multiple ventures. The company is aiming at making new investments in the varied segments with the use of information technology. It is believed that with the introduction of IT in their working styles it will become easy to perform functions on time and increase their revenues. The adoption of new technology is quite expensive as a result of which, the managers are hesitant to make investments in the new ventures. Before, aiming any investments in the new technologies it is very important to collect the information with the aid of which, the benefits of using the services can easily be ascertained.
In this paper, the aim is to explain the use of an improved recruitment system, which will help in saving on time for the managers of the company. Recruitment is the most crucial activity of a company and if done in a proper manner it can help the company in maximizing its profits (Brown 2011). It is a very time taking and tedious process to recruit the right personnel in the company. It will prove to be very helpful for the company to use the latest IT technology for the purpose of recruitment, as it will reduce the time consumed and the level of money and effort. Ultimately, it will help in selecting the right person at the right place at the right time which is the main aim of recruitment (Cooper Robertson and Tinline 2003).
In the following paper, there is a discussion about primary and secondary sources, which are used for the purpose of collecting information. Along with this, it also includes a detailed description of selected tools, validation of the collected information that whether it will be able to generate the required results or not. Further, there is a discussion about the selection and rejection of tools in order to define the suitability of the tools for the research. Lastly, the paper includes a critical examination of the information gathering strategy that has been formulated.

Primary and secondary sources used to collect information

It is very important to collect the information in the context of, selected strategy before implementing it in the company. There are basically two sources, which are used for collecting information, i.e. primary and secondary (Axinn and Pearce 2006). In this paper, there is a mixed strategy used, as no one method can completely rely on the context of, collecting the most accurate and reliable information. The primary methods of data collection are very helpful in collecting first-hand information and for this purpose, a survey is conducted with the aid of a questionnaire. It will be helpful in getting a maximum response for the selected sample of respondents. Also, it will be helpful in getting first-hand information from direct customers (Wilson 2010.). The main drawback of using the primary method is that it is a very time taking and expensive process.
Along with this, a secondary source will also be used in order to, get reliable and accurate information that can easily be aligned with the topic in context. Under the secondary resources, the method of literature review is used in which the information is collected from the articles and scholars. This method is very helpful since it collects information from varied sources and saves on unnecessary times and efforts. Using literature review method, will be beneficial since, it will help in the highlighting the results of the companies who have used similar services in past or are currently using it (Lancaster 2012). The above discussed two methods will prove to be very helpful in collecting the data and information in relation to the use of IT for the purpose of recruitment of personnel in the company.

Detailed description of selected tools

The tools that have been selected for the purpose of gathering information are survey questionnaires and literature review method. The questionnaire method is very helpful in collecting the most relevant information for implementation of the IT technology in the company. The questionnaire method is beneficial as with the help of this maximum information can be collected easily. The questionnaire method is less time consuming and helps in deriving the final conclusions of the work in a timely manner (McNabb 2008). The questionnaire will make use of both open and close ended question in order to get the extract the most relevant information from the respondents. The questionnaire that will be used is designed in order to extract the information from the respondents in concern to the topic of the research.
The questionnaire includes the question with the aid of which the information regarding users and their requirements, areas of business which will be benefited with its use, the relation between the cost and benefits of implementation of the strategy, the impact of the strategy on the existing business and the compliance between the new strategy and the existing infrastructure of the business, etc. This information will prove to be very useful for the managers to take the decision regarding the implementation of the IT enabled recruitments system. This information will prove to be very beneficial for the managers as they will be able to take the final decision regarding the investment in the particular venture.

Literature review:

According to Smith and Salvendy (2009), there are many companies who have used IT for the purpose of recruitments. When using IT enabled systems for the recruitments the companies make use of online portals to recruit the personnel. It is easily able to match its requirements with that of the interested people and conduct the recruitment in an easy and simple manner. The online portals are easy to use and with the aid of these the companies’ can cut on unnecessary costs and timing which are incurred in the process of recruitment. With this framework, the company can easily recruit the right personnel in a cost effective manner (Smith and Salvendy 2009).
This view has been also supported by, the author Connors (2011) that the use of internet for the purpose of recruitment helps the company in increasing its profit to a different level, as it is able to cut on costs and maximise its profits. The companies, which use these services, are in a position of dual benefits in comparison to their competitors. IT enabled recruitments system of the company assures that the right candidate will be selected and along with this, there are high chances that the companies will be able to get the trained customers, which is again an added advantage for it. Thus, it is indicated from the views of the author that the use of IT enabled recruitments services can prove to be very helpful for the company (Connors 2011).
It is quite clear from the above discussion that if the company uses the IT enabled recruitment system it will be able to maximise its returns in minimum costs and in timely manner. If the company is able to recruit the right personnel it ensures for further increases its productivity. Thus, it acts like dual benefit for the company in which, it will be only gaining and maximising its profits. From the above discussion, it is clear that the information that has been collected from the secondary sources support the IT enabled recruitment system in the organization. For the purpose, of conducting the primary research the HR managers from 5 different companies will be selected including the Sun Entertainment in order to, get the exact and accurate information which is in alignment with the topic.

Validation of the collected information

The information that has been gathered is collected with the aid of mixed sources which includes both primary and secondary sources. The main motive to use both the methods is to avoid the limitations which are faced by the methods.  It is very important to collect relevant and accurate information as the company has to make huge financial investment for the adoption of IT for recruitments. The company with the aid of this investment wants to increases and maximise its profits which is only possible if the investment which is made is right. The information that has been collected is well justified as it has both the first hand information and secondary information on the basis of which final conclusions are drawn (Rugg and Petre 2006).
The first hand information will help in handling the drawback of secondary information related to time. There is no authenticity regarding the time when using the secondary sources but with the aid of primary methods it can be handled in an effective manner.  Along with this primary methods are vey time taking in lieu of which they are combined with the secondary sources to draw final conclusions in order to complete the research in a timely manner. The data that has been collected is well suited for the research and to draw conclusions and it is well justified on the basis that there is mixed strategy to collect the most varied and diverse information. Along with this the companies will be able to understand the impact of using such services by the other companies (McNabb 2008). The positive impact on other companies, which is highlighted by the secondary sources will play an important role in motivating the company to take the final decision regarding using the IT enabled recruitment system.
The company will be able to use this information and data for the purpose of drawing the final decision regarding the use of IT enabled recruitment system. The information is accurate and reliable which can be used as the base of final conclusions of the research. The best manner has been selected in order to collect information which easily justifies the information and assures that the data and information that has been collected is accurate and exact and aligns with the requirements of the research. In the above section, the points which can be used for the purpose of justifying the selected data collection methods and use the collected information for the purpose of deriving the final conclusions.  The data that has been discussed above is quite reliable and can be used by the managers of the company for the purpose of taking the decisions to use the IT enabled recruitment system. It has been collected from authentic resources in order to maintain the validity and reliability of the information so that it can be easily used.

Reasons for selection/rejection of tools

There are varieties of tools which can be used for the purpose of collection of data under both primary and secondary sources. The primary methods have tools like questionnaires, interviews, group discussion etc. In the secondary method the tools included are the literature review, case studies, etc. In this research the only reason to select the mixed tools is to get a diverse range of information (Romney and Weller 1998). Along with this in the primary research the questionnaire method is selected as it is less time and efforts consuming as compared to the other methods. Though it is also an expensive method and takes time in analysis but still it is lesser in comparison to other methods. Along with this questionnaire method is suitable as it gives ample to respondents to give their views and there are minimal chances of biasness which is another major drawback of interview and hence it is not used for the collection of information.
The secondary method which is used here is literature review in which the information from different books and journals is collected in order to get refined information which can be directly used to draw the conclusions. The other method for collection of secondary information  like case studies are not used as they have a very limited perspective and explain the situation in the context of single factor which cannot be used for taking the final decision for the company.
The tools of primary and secondary information other than primary and secondary information which have not been used in the research work are only because they might not be able to generate the result and provide information and data which is required here (Romney and Weller 1998). The major reason is that the company has to take a major decision which will might have a dynamic impact on its working and thus it becomes very important to select a method which is able to give the most reliable and accurate information.
The questionnaire and literature review method have been used in collectively in order to get the most exact information which is provided to the managers of sun entertainment so that they are assured about the results which the company might have to face as a result of undertaking IT enabled recruitments. The basic motive to use these tools is to get reliable and exact information in order to take the best decision.
The right selection of tools is very important to get the right information which is needed by the company. The resources of the company are very important as they have an impact on its profits level. If the company is not choosing the right tools to collect information there are high chances that it may has dual loss, i.e. the investment that will be made to collect information and the investment that will be made in the latest technology which is based on inaccurate information. Thus it is very important to be very careful to select the best tool as if the base is right, it is assured that the results will also be positive and beneficial.

Critical examination of the information gathering strategy

In the above paper, there is discussion about the information gathering strategy, which will be used for the purpose of collecting information to take decision regarding the adoption of IT for the purpose of recruitments in the company. It is very important for the company to devise a strategy with the use of which it is able to simplify the procedure for recruitments and be assured to have better personnel which will help in achievement of its basic objectives. The information gathering strategy that has been discussed above makes the use of a combined and mixed strategy which can be followed to collect the required information.
In this section of paper, there is critical evaluation of the strategy that has been discussed. Though, the best methods, which are most appropriate and suitable have been suggested yet, it is important to examine it critically in order to, ascertain the level of help it will provide to the mangers of the company to take the final decision in the context of adoption of IT enabled recruitment system (Crane 2008). In order to, examine the designed strategy it is important to analyse from the initial of its designing. The first element is related to the selection of the methods, which can be used for the purpose of collection of data and information. There are two methods, which are used for the purpose of collection of information and data, i.e. primary and secondary methods. Under the primary method, the tool that has been used is survey questionnaire. A questionnaire is designed, which will be used to extract information in the context of the topic. The major issue is that the respondents may not agree to give their views as they may be challenge the privacy issues. They may be uncertain as where the information will be used.
It is important to assure the respondents that due importance will be given to privacy and security of the information and the given information will not be misused. The tool is highly beneficial as there are varied viewpoints, which can be used as the base for deriving the final conclusions. The information that has been given by the respondents is very helpful to take the final decision by the managers in the context of adopting the new recruitment system. Though, the method has some limitations yet, final conclusions that will, be drawn prove to be very helpful for the managers to take the right decision for the progress of their company (Crowther and Lancaster 2012). Thus, it is clear that the chosen method is the best suitable one in order to collect the information in the context of the topic.
Along with this, the secondary methods of literature review, has been used for the purpose of collecting the refined information. The major issues when using it as a method to collect information is alignment with the requirements of the research. It is important that the information that is available is able to align with the requirements of the research so that the collected data proves to be very helpful for the mangers to take the final decision for the adoption of IT for recruitment.
Thus in the above paper, there has been a discussion about the methods that will be followed for the purpose of collecting information, which will be used by the managers to take the final decision regarding the adoption of an IT enabled recruitment system in their company. In the above paper efforts have been made to provide ample information and data to the managers with the use of which they will be able to take the final decision in concern to the implementation of the designed strategy.

References

Axinn,W.G. and Pearce, L.D. 2006. Mixed Method Data Collection Strategies. UK: Cambridge University Press.
Brown, J.N. 2011. The Complete Guide to Recruitment: A Step-by-step Approach to Selecting, Assessing and Hiring the Right People. CA: Kogan Page Publishers.
Connors, T.D. 2011. The Volunteer Management Handbook: Leadership Strategies for Success. NY: John Wiley and Sons.
Cooper, D., Robertson, I.T. and  Tinline, G. 2003. Recruitment and Selection: A Framework for Success. US: Cengage Learning.
Crane, P.E. 2008. An Investigation of Data Collection Methods Applicable in Groundwater Research in Rural Regions of Developing Nations. CA: Proquest.
Crowther, D. and Lancaster, G. 2012. Research methods. US: Routledge.
Lancaster, G. 2012. Research Methods in Management. US: Routledge.
McNabb, D. E. 2008. Research Methods in Public Administration and Non-profit Management: Quantitative and Qualitative Approaches. US: M.E. Sharpe.
Romney, A.K. and Weller, S.C. 1998. Systematic Data Collection. NY: SAGE.
Rugg, G. and Petre, M. 2006. A Gentle Guide to Research Methods. US: McGraw-Hill International.
Smith, M.J. and Salvendy, G. 2009. Human Interface and the Management of Information. US: Springer.
Wilson, J. 2010. Essentials of Business Research: A Guide to Doing Your Research Project. NY: SAGE Publications Ltd.

Appendix

Questionnaire:

1. List of requirements of the HR manager when dealing in the recruitment of the personnel?

……………………………………………………………..

2. Do you think the use of IT for the purpose of recruitment will prove to be helpful?

• Strongly agree
• Agree
• Disagree
• Strongly Disagree
• Neither agree nor disagree

3. According to your views what needs to be incorporated when dealing with development and implementation system for IT enabled recruitments?

………………………………………………………………………

4. Will the IT enabled recruitment system prove to be helpful for the company?

• Strongly agree
• Agree
• Disagree
• Strongly Disagree
• Neither agree nor disagree

5. Will the new IT enable recruitment system be able to work in compatibility with the existing infrastructure of the company?

• Strongly agree
• Agree
• Disagree
• Strongly Disagree
• Neither agree nor disagree

6. What are the methods which can be used for the purpose of the integration of information in the decision support system of the company?

……………………………………………………………………..

7. What is the level of cost which the company needs to bear for the new recruitments system?

………………………………………………………………………

8. Will the benefits of the new service align with its cost of implementation?

• Strongly agree
• Agree
• Disagree
• Strongly Disagree
• Neither agree nor disagree

9. Will the new recruitments system have any impact on the stakeholders of the company?

• Yes
• No
• May be

10. Has there any earlier effort made by the company in this direction?

• Yes
• No