Abstract: Information technology (IT) is used by many businesses. It involves use of various application software to carry out a business’s activities. A bank can apply software like communication and accounting software. Businesses also involve ethical and social issues in their activities. These help a company in establishing a favorable environment for its employees, customers and potential clients. Network is also part of IT, which could encompass LANs and MANs. HSBC bank uses the two network technologies. Many enterprises like HSBC also apply artificial intelligence for security and other purposes. HSBC mainly uses intranet and internet. Another tenet of IT is Software Development Life Cycle, which encompasses various stages.
Introduction
Information technology involves networking, storage devices, computers, processes, and infrastructure to create, secure, and exchange electronic data forms. Commercial IT use includes telecommunications and computer technology. IT has become a popular culture in businesses, mainly because the globe has massively gone digital. Such types of businesses include banks like HSBC Holdings PLC. It offers financial services, is a multinational, ranked the second-biggest bank in Europe, and encompasses worthwhile assets. Its recent form is in London, where Shanghai and Hongkong established banking corporations acting like a new group holding enterprise. HSBC uses various application software, has crucial social and ethical issues, applies various networking technologies like LANs, and MANs and applies artificial intelligence in the form of intranet and internet, which foster communication and improve security amongst its customers.
Literature Review
There are several various types of application software that businesses could use in their operations. Studies reveal that multitasking could be counterproductive to an enterprise’s operations and could decrease its productivity by up to forty per cent (Akerkar, 2019). However, having an automated operating system could assure business owners that the tasks will be finished by permitting workers to dwell much on intensive tasks. Some of the application soft wares businesses can use are communication software. To efficiently handle data exchange, enterprises require ensuring streamlined communication in all their locations and departments. Communication Software like Microsoft Office and web-based email is usually used in enhancing internal and external sharing of information. Nonetheless, companies could also apply a cloud-based system integrator in connecting all existing software, which creates a central database permitting verified users access reports at any moment and effortlessly operates with other branches (Akerkar, 2019). Hence, the communication software helps keep the employees connected.
Another application software that businesses can use is accounting software. It assists financial advisors in monitoring performance through tracking the bottom line, revenues, and expenses. Having updated information, accountants could use books with appropriate data, and the enterprise realises profitability (King, 2018). There exists many accounting software such as Xero. Xero software encompasses a clean interface and completely incorporates a payroll service (third-party). Enterprises could gather payment online from their clients via Xero’s integration with GoCardless and Stripe. The advantages linked to Xero are that it is a mobile application, enables simple inventory management, is a cloud-based, third-party application marketplace, and has payroll merging with Gusto (King, 2018). Therefore, its many advantages enable it to foster smooth accounting activities.
Social and ethical issues are crucial in running a business. The former are matters or challenges which influence a significant population. On the other hand, ethical issues are challenges that people have caused, negatively influencing themselves as a society (Nuseir & Ghandour, 2019). Business ethics enrich the law by outlining manners beyond government control. Corporations aim at gaining trust and promoting integrity among their workers from stakeholders like consumers and investors. Like ethics, laws and rules apply to all people (standards of wrong and proper behaviour). Everyone’s actions within an enterprise impact them individually and the whole company. When a worker responsibly and ethically acts, the whole company benefits (Laasch, 2021). When management leads an entity ethically, workers follow the steps. Workers make better choices in a less stint having business ethics guiding them, which raises their overall morale and productivity. When workers use integrity and honesty basis to finish their tasks, the entire company gains, workers that operate for a company demanding significant business ethics standards in all operations tenets stand a higher chance of performing their task routines at a greater level and also get more inclined in staying loyal to the entity (Laasch, 2021). A company’s social issues encompass its social responsibility, which refers to enterprise initiatives and practices from which the company and the social benefits.
Social responsibility encompasses every individual within the organisation taking part in giving back to the community, which the whole company contributes to society and ethically acts. Understanding the significance of business ethics is crucial in comprehending the effects of business ethics. Unethical and ethical behaviour affects society and the community. Socially responsible enterprises draw more employees closer who aspire to make a global difference, besides gathering paychecks. Big companies have numbers strength where combined worker efforts can accomplish significant outcomes, which boosts productivity and raises workstation morale (Laasch, 2021). Companies daily experience ethical and social issues since they are part of a workplace. Hence, both are crucial as they impact the organisation internally, externally, and the company’s society.
Network technology encompasses data systems used in delivering and managing digital resources over a network in a computer. Local Area Network (LAN) is a network technology type that is the most common and authentic. It is a simple network. LANs join computer groups and devices with low voltage together across small distances. Such distance could be within a building or between two or three close buildings to share resources and information. Notably, organisations have the mandate of managing and maintaining LANs (Bourgeois, 2016). Hence, many businesses can afford to use and manage LANs as they are original and straightforward.
Metropolitan Area Network (MAN) are networks smaller than WANs but bigger than LANs. They encompass elements from the two networks. MANs span a whole geographical region: a town, campus, or a city. A single individual or a company handles the maintenance and ownership (Bourgeois, 2016). Therefore, it is a network used over a large section of an area.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is the computer’s ability to handle tasks with the know-how that exceeds natural human and animal intelligence. AI impacts businesses in various ways, like improving security. AI has many presents and future security applications besides guarding against crime prevention and protection assurance (Brooks, 2018). Hence, since individual and information dangers are becoming widespread, one’s business will gain trust if one includes AI in its operations.
Software Development Life Cycle refers to using the lowest cost and greatest quality to build software. The process follows the following stages.
Requirements collection involves the team identifying, gathering, and defining present challenges, customer expectations, requests, and requirements associated with software service or application. Some activities linked to this stage are establishing a detailed plan, tracking issues, product or project planning, software specifications, and documentation (Raghunathan, 2019). The next stage is software design, where the team drafts software design choices concerning the architecture and makes the software solution. It could encompass establishing design documents, tools discussion, runtimes, practices, frameworks, or coding guidelines which will assist the team in meeting the software need particularity and objectives described in the needs gathering stage (Raghunathan, 2019). The software development stage involves teams building the software solutions based on design choices. Teams meet the goals and results set during the first stage through solution implementation. The test and integration stage involves software implementation packaging and testing for quality assurance. Quality and testing assurance ensure the implemented solutions are of standard and high quality. The deployment stage involves deploying software into a production atmosphere. The task collected, developed, designed, and tested is shared with the users and consumers of the software service. Maintenance and operationalisation are when the software undergoes operationalisation to ensure no issues or deployment-linked issues. The stage could involve reviewing, monitoring, and comprehending infrastructure configurations, network settings, and production’s performance application services. It could encompass incident management or resolution in case of any alterations and issues made to affect a user base or customer (Raghunathan, 2019). Therefore, software development follows a series of steps to be wholesome.
Analysis and Discussion
HSBC adopted the use of Xero. Its old bank Business Internet Banking feed stopped operating. The bank urged its customers who had yet to update their bank connection to the new standard open banking connection. It stated that there would be a message on the customer’s Xero dashboard warning if their feed news required updating. The new open banking feed would operate similarly to the old one but encompassed two discrepancies; there would no longer be an HSBC bank feed’s charge, and the connection would require an every 90-day authorisation as a data protection need (Sykes, 2018). HSBC directly links with Xero to simplify its customers ‘ manage their accounts. Therefore, that would ensure that the customer’s data is safe and updated according to the bank’s requirements.
Some of the ethical issues linked with HSBC are conflicts and rights. HSBC also encounters conflicts. Every employee has the right to openly give their opinions to the meeting and strategic planning. This could arouse conflicts between the bank’s workers. HSBC employed above two hundred and ten thousand globally. These shareholders expect much profit from the bank, which can cause conflicts between them and the bank. Additionally, being amongst the world’s best banking organisations, there could arise conflicts between HSBC and other banks in the line of realising profits, employing the best market’s workers, giving their shareholders profits and banking services (Sykes, 2018). Conflicts are ethical and social issues and are essential for HSBC because they coax it to solve these conflicts in ways that will maintain a healthy competition with their close competitors. Also, they are vital as they keep the bank in check to ensure it performs well and maintains its significant reputation globally. Thus, conflicts strengthen HSBC and assist it in becoming a better entity and ethically solving various issues.
HSBC Company is friendly to its employees. Its primary motto is maintaining balance, life, and work policies. The line manager openly welcomes employees’ opinions concerning the corporation. They can easily participate in a meeting aimed at developing strategies. The bank offers their employees globe-class training and remuneration facilities. Also, it offers their employees share options, and they take part in various play treaties. The bank hired individuals abled differently as a section of corporate social responsibility (Sykes, 2018). These are fundamental rights for HSBC employees. The bank providing a conducive environment for its workers and additional services motivates the employees who give their all in the service of customers and the bank’s wellbeing. It ensures that the bank soars greater profits and the workers also gain besides their wages. Thus, the rights encourage the workers, create a good working environment that attracts more customers, build the bank’s reputation, and give a platform for the employees to showcase their prowess in their areas of expertise.
HSBC applies three networking technologies types based on its requirements and needs in its systematic activities. They encompass Local Area Network (LAN), a single-site and small network for any enterprise. It links network tools within a small distance. The system interconnects the geographical area and computers within a building to one kilometre. Every terminal is linked to the primary computer, called the SERVER. LANs cables use particular connectivity technologies designed especially for Token Ring, Ethernet, and banks. HSBC has a server controlled by the technology network manager in the company. These managers also use the LANs cables in linking the computers (Sykes, 2018). Thus, HSBC can easily communicate with the necessary departments within the bank with the help of LAN.
HSBC uses intranet and internet AI. The intranet assists in preparing documents and ensuring HSBC bank’s policy management. It keeps the staff in the know of the bank policies and follows the appropriate process. HSBC Intranet Software encompasses comprehensive policy, procedure, and document management to efficiently utilise the intranet (Sykes, 2018). The intranet is crucial in maintaining communication with workers and maintaining an appropriate record of the workers’ activities and works. Thus, it assists in communicating internal meetings and tasks and other choices, making the processes easier.
HBSC also uses the internet to give its customers exemplary online banking services. They give them various banking services offers, credit cards, and debit cards and utilise their information to maximise the banks’ gain level (Sykes, 2018). Thus, HSBC banks could also save and secure their crucial and sensitive information and improve their security and safety process for better service.
Conclusion
Generally, information technology is commonly applied in various companies, including HBSC. Businesses can use application software like communication software to enhance internal and external information sharing. The accounting software can also be used as it helps financial counsellors to monitor performance by tracking expenses, revenues, and the bottom line. Xero is accounting software that includes an interface and a payroll service commonly used by HSBC bank. Social and ethical issues are essential for a business to create a good work atmosphere for workers and customers. LAN and MANs are examples of network technology that HSBC applies in its operations, and other businesses can adopt them. Artificial intelligence is essential in a business because it improves security. HSBC uses intranet and internet as AI forms to keep the company going. Software development procedures have various phases that ensure it is a complete process.
