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Kelly's Salon Case Study
In 1995, Kelly's Salon was opened by Kelly Kostanza in a strip mall near the College campus. Kelly's Salon
started as a barbershop with one chair. Over the years, Kelly has expanded her business to include hair
styling for both men and women. Her business has grown to three barber chairs, three hair styling
stations , and a shampoo station. In response to her customers’ requests, Kelly would like to further
expand her b usiness by adding two stations for manicures. The small gift shop next door to her has
recently come up for sale, and she is thinking about acquiring that area for manicures.
When Kelly's Salon first opened, it was the only barbershop within a ten -mile r adius. It was one of the
first businesses to open in the strip mall where it is located, and the number of customers has increased
each year. Over the years a couple of other barbershops have opened around the area, and there is
news that a Hair Cuttery (offering men’s and women’s haircuts and styling only) will open about 5 miles
away. In the shopping center across the street, an expensive spa has n ow opened where hair styling is
offered along with manicures. Just around the corner from Kelly's Salon is a home with a sign offering
manicures.
While Kelly's Salon continues to grow and profits are increasing, Kelly is sure that she could improv e her
operation in the areas of scheduling, supply ordering, inventory management, collecting customer
information, and marketing.
Customer and Employee Scheduling: Currently, Kelly takes appointments by phone and accepts
walk -in customers on an as -available basis. If there is a vacancy in the schedule , she is happy to have a
walk -in customer for that time slot. As her business has expanded, Kelly has found that keeping track of
which employees will be working at any particular day and time, and matching that with customer
appointments has become almost unmanageable. Until recently, she has been comfortable with allowing
staff to decide what days and times they want to work, and most of them are part -time. So far, little
effort has been made to find a substitut e if one of her employees cannot come to work. Now, Kelly has
recognized that she is t urning away a significant number of walk -in customers, and at other times, her
staff is not busy at all. It seems to Kelly that she is very busy on Saturdays, and that Mondays are slow
days, but she has no real data to use to make a schedule for her emplo yees. She would like you to help
her improve her process for scheduling staff and customers .
Inventory Management: Now that she has employed four part -time barbers, six part -time stylists,
and two part -time shampoo girls, and is contemplating adding at least two manicurists, Kelly is also
concerned about maintaining an adequate stock of supplies. It has become difficu lt for her to keep track
of what supplies have been used and what needs to be ordered. She knows that if she runs out of
shampoo or hair spray, for example, that she will not be able to serve her customers. She makes notes
to herself and sticks them on h er office message board to remind herself to place orders, but she only
knows to do so when one of the employees tells her that the last container of a product has been taken
from the supply cabinet. Many times, the shop is very busy and either the employ ee forgets to tell her,
or she forgets to make a note. Kelly is happy her business is growing, but the chaos of making sure
there are adequate supplies is creating a great deal of stress for her.
Supply Ordering : Even if Kelly successfully keeps track of the supplies that have been used, she really
does not have time to place orders to her suppliers. Over time, she has noticed that the prices she is
paying seem to be going up quickly, but she has no way check to see if she could order supplies at a
lower cost. She is wondering if she could save money by finding lower -cost suppliers, suppliers who offer 7/8/2016 – Re v 1 2
free shipping, or suppliers who sell in bulk. It has become apparent that Kelly's Salon needs an improved
supply ordering process.
Customer Information : There are some regular customers who come to Kelly's Salon , and Kelly
recognizes them, but often cannot recall their preferences. Several of these customers have called
requesting appointments with their favorite barber or stylist, and, while Kelly knows this is important to
them, she cannot assure the customers that it will be possible. Many of her barbershop customers come
in every two weeks, while most of her customers who want a haircut and style are more likely to visit a
few times a year. Ke lly would like to know in which category each of her customers fall. She is also
seeking your help in finding a better way to document the process of maintaining customer preferences
and personal information.
Marketing: Kelly would also like to contact h er customers and keep them coming back, but currently
she has no way to do that. She would also like to make sure when she contacts each customer that she
is doing so appropriately. She would also like to provide special offers such as coupons around the time
of their birthday, believing that these types of marketing efforts would increase her repeat business and
her profits. She would also like to reach more new customers, especially as she expands her business.
Kelly's Salon uses very little marketing except word -of-mouth, and essentially still operates the same as it
did in 2000 when Kelly opened her one -chair barbershop.
Kelly's Salon is a for -profit business and must cover its variable costs, fund future improvements and
produce a reasonable profit for the owners. Kelly would like to expand into the gift shop area next door,
and improve her current management practices. She also believes that she could actually increase her
profits if she did a better job of marketing in combination with better sch eduling and management of her
supplies.
Kelly's Salon currently uses no technology. There is not even a computer in the back office. Kelly has
hired you to help her with determining how she could apply information technology to help her manage
her growing operation. Throughout this course you will assist Kelly with analyzing her busi ness and
applying a technology -related solution to improve the operation of Kelly's Salon . Your advice will be
based on the business practices discussed in the class and the course materials to help her increase
revenue, keep the business running, and bring the business into the 21st century.
Note 1: You will be looking for a technology solution. While installing a tea and coffee bar may attract
new customers, it is not a technology solution.
Note 2: As you approach the assignments, you will find it helpful to think about your own experiences
with a barbershop or styling salon . Making a trip to a local barbershop or salon may help you think about
the processes, challenges, and opportunities.
Identify and explain the next steps in implementing the solution (Stage 5)
The case study and assignments address the Course Outcomes to enable you to:
STAGED ASSIGNMENTS
The re are four staged assignments which use the Case Study and are designed to follow the relevant
course topics in the class schedule . The weight of the assignments is shown in the Course Syllabus. The
Purpose of the Assignment s
This case study specifically addresses the following course outcomes to enable you to:
analyze business strategy to recognize how technology solutions enable strategic outcomes
analyze internal and external business processes to identify i nformation systems requirements
identify and plan IT solutions that meet business objectives
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due dates are shown with the Assignments . Upon completion of these assignments , you will have
performed an array of activities to demonstrate your ability to apply the course content to a “real world
situation” to :
Analyze the business environment and justify Kelly 's selected generic strategy and process for
improvement
o Stage 1 Project: Business Environment Analysis (Word document with analysis)
Determine the functional (business) requir ements by analyzing inputs , processing and outputs for
the process selected for improvement , using the process model provided
o Stage 2 Project: Business Analysis and Functional Requirements (Word document with
table of inputs , processing and outputs )
Evaluate various IT requirements
o Stage 3 Project: IT Requirements (Word table)
Propose an IT solution and e valuate what it would take to implement your solution
o Stage 4 Project: Proposed IT Solution and Next Steps (Word document )
Course Learning Outcomes : These assignments are designed to help you identify how to effectively
analyze and interpret information to improve the business. This is an opportunity for you to apply course
concepts, vocabulary, and critical thinking skills and think like a business professional. When you are
writing a paper or developing a presentation , write in third person, preparing your document as if it is
going to the owner, Kelly Kostanza , whom you want to impress with your knowledge and abilities.
Writing Expecta tions: For academic writing, the writer is expected to write in the third person. In
third person, the writer avoids the pronouns I, we, my, and our. The third person is used to make the
writing more objective by taking the individual, the “self,” out of the writing. This method is very helpful
for academic writing, a form in which facts, not opinion, drive the tone of the text. Writing in the third
person allows the writer to come across as unbiased and thus more informed.
Do more than just going thr ough the mechanics of pulling together information -- think about what you
are doing, why you're doing it, whether it make sense, whether the information seems realis tic, and what
the results show. Support your recommendations with course concepts, vocabu lary, and your research.
Resources : Several of the a ssignments require external research, using sources other than the
materials provided in the classroom. It is important that you identify relevant, timely resources that
specifically support the points or information you provide in your assignments. You should read the
source and assimilate the information first, and then put it into your own words and incorporat e it into
the flow of your writing (with an appropriate in -text APA citation and a list of references at the end of
your paper). Direct quotes should be used very sparingly —only when the author’s own words uniquely
present a concept that would be lost if paraphrased by you.
Evaluation: The grading rubric is included with each assignment. Review the rubric to ensure all
aspects of the assignment have been addressed.
Example: Be sure to read and refer to the “Walmart Example” posted in the classroom to help you
understand what is expected for each of the assignments.
Format: One of the prerequisites for this course is that you have a fundamental working knowledge of
word processing software. Detailed instructions for each Staged Proje ct, 1 through 4 , are posted in the
designated area of the classroom. You must prepare each assignment in the indicated format (i.e., table,
outline, report, double -spaced , or other specified format) and submit it by the date indicated in the
schedule. No credit will be g iven for late assignments or those submitted in file formats other than those
stated in the assignment instructions. 7/8/2016 – Re v 1 4
Software Expectations: Because these assignments require you to use Microsoft Word , or produce
documents that can be read using MS Word (as indicated in the instructions), you may need to "brush
up" on your familiarity with Word to use functions that perhaps are new to you. Therefore, do not wait
until the last minute to begin an activity. You should read through all the assignments in advance to
ensure you (1) understand what is expected, and (2) allow enough time to effectively create the
information being requested.
There is a significant amount of information available to you to assist in developing your skills in using
the Microso ft Office Products. MS Word, or its equivalent, is required for these exercises. Do not
hesitate to use the on -line help and wizard tools built into the MS Office applications for help as you work
with the software tools. There are also many web sites that provide tips. Even YouTube has some useful
videos demonstrating various techniques.
If you use software tools other than Microsoft, it is your responsibility to ensure that the documents you
submit can be read, and retain their formatting, when they a re read and reviewed using the Microsoft
Office suite.