31266_INTRODUCTION TO INFORMATION SYSTEMS – LECTURE 1 – 23RD FEB

The Role of Information Systems in Businesses Today and their Challenges

The Role of Info Systems in Business Today

- Wireless technologies (iPhones, e-mail, social media, video conferencing)

- You can do online shopping

- Read E-newspaper

- Conduct online chat/meetings (Skype and Facebook)

What’s new in Management Information Systems (MIS)

- In the technology area there are three interrelated changes

o The emerging mobile digital platform

o The growth of online software as a service

o The growth in cloud computing with more business software runs over the Internet

Why do we need MIS?

- Improve quality of information and information systems

- Connect information system together

- Increase information sustainability – to share info, locally and globally

- Achieve customer and supplier intimacy

- Improve decision making

- Seek competitive advantage

Perspectives of Info Systems

- What is data?

o They are the facts. E.g. 5 foot tall person with brown hair and blue eyes.

o Unstructured (information that doesn’t reside in a traditional row-column database. E.g. Text and

multimedia content)

o Structured (resides in a fixed field within a record or file. E.g. Databases)

- What is information?

o Captures data as information. E.g. Is a picture was taken, the photographs is information, but what you

look like is data.

- DATA IS ALWAYS CORRECT. INFORMATION CAN BE WRONG (E.G. 2 RECORDS)

- What is knowledge?

o Knowledge is what we know

o Data + Information = Knowledge

- What is a system?

o A set of interacting or interdependent components forming an integrated whole (Student enrolment

system, timetabling system, payroll system)

o System function: Input Processing, classifying, arranging, calculating Output (feedback as well)

o Environment: Suppliers, customers, regulatory agencies, stockholders, competitors

- What is an information system?

o A combination of hardware, software, infrastructure and trained personnel organised to facilitate

planning, control, coordination, and decision making in an organisation.

o 6 components that assemble together to provide information and knowledge:

Data

Software

People

Procedure

Telecommunication

Hardware

31266_INTRODUCTION TO INFORMATION SYSTEMS – LECTURE 1 – 23RD FEB

Information Systems Challenges

- Data could be incorrect

- Information may be incomplete

- People may lack skill, experience, knowledge

- Usability including number of clicks or limited fields

- Procedures with undetailed steps

- Processes with the wrong interface, or too many steps

- Software should be shared and distributed

- Hardware must be reliable, speedy, good time, loading, etc.

- System behavior – input correct data but no correct data output matching

31266_INTRODUCTION TO INFORMATION SYSTEMS– LECTURE 2 – 2ND MARCH

Business Information Management (Organization and Information Systems)

Information Challenges

- Relevancy: How do we find information relevant to our decisions?

- Accessibility: How do organisations make relevant information available to employees and partners through

computer applications, web and email? How is the knowledge used to apply information captured and shared

between employees?

- Security: How do we protect this information from accidental or deliberate threats?

- Value: How can this information help organisation reach their business objectives?

- Legality

Business Management System Impacts

- Workers: Use Transaction Processing Systems – To perform transactions

- Middle Managers: Use Management Information Systems

- Senior Managers: Use Decision Support Systems – Used decision making; Past, present and future predictions

- Executives: Use Executive Information Systems – Primarily, want to foresee the future, long term investments.

E.g., building another office/building. Looks at resources needed, etc.

- As the position gets higher, there is a lower population. As the position gets lower, there is a higher population

Transaction Processing Systems

- Batch processing systems

- Online transaction processing

- Online entry with delayed processing

- Process data generated by, for and about transactions

- Activities: Data collection data editing, data correction, back up and regular maintenance

- Examples: Sale ordering system, customer relationship management, scheduling system, tracking system,

invoicing and billing

Management Information Systems

- Used to analyse strategic and operational activities

- Supply information to management to manage them effectively and efficiently

- Examples: Food and beverage; Front office and back office; Security; Housekeeping; Financial control and

accounting

Operational Management

Operations manager/Self directed teams

Tactical Management

Business unit managers/Self

directed teams

Strategic

Management

Executives/

Directors

31266_INTRODUCTION TO INFORMATION SYSTEMS– LECTURE 2 – 2ND MARCH

Why Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)?

- We want to align between information technology, business processes, organisation structure, and strategy

- Real-time monitoring of business functions

- Supports human resource, sale, marketing, distribution

- Business integration and automated data update

- Linkage between all core business processes and easy flow of integration

- Flexibility in business operations and more agility to the company

- Better analysis and planning capabilities

- Critical decision-making

- Competitive advantage

- Use of latest technologies. E.g. Oracle, JD Edwards, PeopleSoft

- Advantage

o Eliminates costly and inflexible legacy systems

o Improved technology infrastructure

o Improved work processes and data access for decision-making

- Disadvantages

o Expense and time

o Radical change

o Integrating with other systems

o One vendor risks

ERP

System

Finance

Human Resource

Logistics Management

Maintenance Management

Sales and Distribution

Quality Management

Materials Management

Manufacturing

Strategic & Operational

Planning

31266_INTRODUCTION TO INFORMATION SYSTEMS– LECTURE 2 – 2ND MARCH

TPS and MIS

Decision Support Systems

- DSS gives direct computer support to managers during the decision making process

- Provides interactive and ad hoc support for the decision making process of managers and other business

professionals:

o Product pricing

o Profitability

o Forecasting and risk analysis systems etc.

-

-

-

31266_INTRODUCTION TO INFORMATION SYSTEMS– LECTURE 2 – 2ND MARCH

- DSS Examples: Medical field; Natural disaster; Real estate investment companies; Universities

- Advantages:

o Improves performance and effectiveness of the user

o Allows faster decision making

o Reduces the time taken to solve problems

o Has been seen to improve collaboration and communication within groups

o Reduces training times because the experience of experts is available within the programs algorithms

o Provides more evidence in support of a decision

o May increase decision-maker satisfaction

o Providing different perspectives to a situation

o Helps automate various business systems

- Disadvantages:

o Too much emphasis/control given to the machines

o May reduce skill in stagg because they become dependent on the computers

o Reduction in efficiency because of information overload

o Shift of responsibility – easy to blame the computer

o Disgruntled employees who feel they are now only doing the clerical work

o False sense of being objective – humans still feed information in and decide how exactly to process it

Business Values in Information Management

- Definition: An informal term that includes all forms of value that determine the health and wellbe ing of the firm

in the long-run

Summary

- Information needs vary, according to magerial level (top, middle, low)

- An info system can be divided into two types:

1. Those that meet the needs of low-level manages

2. Those that meet the needs of middle and upper-level managers

- Low-level managers: Those who run day-to-day operationg and make routine decisions – use operations support

systems, which usually fall into three categories: transaction processing systems, process control systems, and

CAD software

- Mid and upper-level managers may use one of two types of management support system to assist in decision-

making activities:

o Management information systems

o Decision support systems

1. MIS extracts data from a database to compile reports, such as sales analysis, needed for making routine

decisions

2. DSS is an interactive system that collects and integrates data from multiple sources to assist in making non -

routing decisions

31266_INTRODUCTION TO INFORMATION SYSTEMS– LECTURE 2 – 2ND MARCH

31266_INTRODUCTION TO INFORMATION SYSTEMS– LECTURE 3 – 9TH MARCH

Stakeholders

Stakeholder

- Definition: A stakeholder is any individual who can affect or is affected by an organisation, strategy or project.

They can either be:

o Internal or external (Inside the business, or customers)

o Senior or junior

o Power or non-power

- “People or small groups with the power to respond to, negotiate with and change the strategic future of the

organisation” (Eden and Ackermann 1998: 117)

Stakeholder Categories

- Providers Suppliers; partners;

- Users/beneficences Customers; staff

- Governance Audit; steering groups; regulatory; boards

- Influencers Media; trade unions; local interest groups

Stakeholder Theory

- The purpose of a business is to create as much value as possible for stakeholders

- To be successful and sustainable

- Innovation is the way to keep these interests aligned

- Businesses can decline if there is no sale, no profit, no service, no stakeholder

Stakeholder Analysis Matrix (SAM)

- SAM is a method that is used for developing a useful engagement plan

- The aim is to provide a clearer understanding of stakeholders and, as a result, provide insights as to how best to

engage them

- There are many ways to develop the two dimensional matrix. Influence against impact, power against interest of

importance against influence

-

Importance of stakeholder

Unknown Little/no importance Somewhat important Significant importance

Influ

ence o

f stakeh

old

er Significant

influence

Box C: Stakeholders with high influence, who can

therefore affect the project outcomes, but whose

interests are not necessarily aligned with the overall

goals of the project. They might be financial

administrators, who can exercise considerable

discretion over funding disbursements. This

conclusion implies that these stakeholders may be a

source of significant risk, and they will need careful

monitoring and management.

Box A: Stakeholders appearing to have a high

degree of influence on the project, who are also of

high importance for its success. This implies that the

implementing organisation will need to construct

good working relationships with these stakeholders,

to ensure an effective coalition of support for the

project. Examples might be the senior officials and

politicians or trade unions.

Somewhat

influential

Little/no

influence Box D: Stakeholders in this box, with low influence

on, or importance to the project objectives, may

require limited monitoring or evaluation, but are of

low priority.

Box B: Stakeholders of high importance to the

success of the project, but with low influence. This

implies that they will require special initiatives if

their interests are to be protected. An example may

be traditionally marginalised groups (e.g.

Indigenous people, youth, seniors), who might be

beneficiaries of a new service, but who have little

‘voice’ in its development.

Unknown

31266_INTRODUCTION TO INFORMATION SYSTEMS– LECTURE 3 – 9TH MARCH

Stakeholder List

Priority Group Description Relationship

Government Officials Premier, deputy premier, attorney-

general, police minister

Those with a direct policy interest and

political stake in the issue

Independent influencers Bar association, law reform

commission, council for civil liberties,

unions, university academics, former

politicians

Experts with the credibility to

influence government media

Tier one media The Courier Mail, The Australian,

Farfax, ABC tv news

Could influence political decision-

making by covering our key messages

Motorcycle community Club members (social and outlaw) and

monitoring enthusiasts

Individuals who are generally

supportive

Voters Voters who are undecided on whether

to support the laws (approx. 50%)

Voters will influence how hard the

laws are pushed through their support

Tools and Techniques for Identifying Stakeholders

- Brainstorming

- Stakeholder List

- Organisation Charts and directories

- Rich Picture

Rich Picture

- C.A.T.W.O.E – Is broken down over six phases, as described below:

o Client

o Actor

o Transformation

o World View

o Owner

o Environment

- Widely used by managers and non-technical staff in systems description and development, although perhaps not

as much by more engineering oriented developers

- No defined structure or sequence

- Inventor: Peter Checkland; born in 1930; Rich Picture introduced in 1981