Analysis Exercise Solutions
Module I: Foundation Concepts
CHAPTER 1: FOUNDATIONS OF INFORMATION SYSTEMS IN BUSINESS
1. Using PowerWeb Resources
a. Prepare a one or two page summary describing the Current News articles you found
most interesting and relevant as a business professional.
b. End your paper with a few sentences describing one thing you have learned from
your reading that might help you in your future career.
These are subjective questions. PowerWeb is an outstanding instructor/student resource.
Students should familiarize themselves with it early in the semester. One example that is
interesting in the category is job careers. Students often find this area informative in
gathering and informing themselves on current market demand and opportunities in this
field.
Consider requiring students to submit their papers via e-mail. E-mailed assignments have
several advantages:
e-mail is easier to store, transport, and organize
software can quickly compare assignments both present and past for potential
plagiarism
the fear posed by automated detection helps reduce actual incidents
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Analysis Exercise Solutions
Module I: Foundation Concepts
2. Career Search
a. Select several job listings most relevant to your desired job title. List the degrees,
training, experience, and/or certifications these job postings shared in common.
This is a subjective question. Today’s students should be adept at using search engines in
order to locate information regarding job opportunities.
b. Outline your plan for obtaining any requirements that you do not currently have. If
you have already met all relevant hiring requirements, then what additional skills
can you obtain before your start date that will speed your career advancement?
This question allows students to match real-world job requirements against their future
plans. The results may encourage students to obtain relevant summer employment,
certifications, and/or post-graduate degrees.
c. Which website did you find most useful? Describe the attributes you found most
important in making this determination.
Students should mention quality of information, quantity of relevant information, and
ease of use. Students might express ease of use in terms of time required to find relevant
information, the number of false leads, and/or the number of screens or clicks required to
find relevant information.
PowerWeb Content Suggestions
General Job Sites
http://www.careerbuilder.com/
http://www.jobs.com/
http://hotjobs.yahoo.com/
Technical Job Sites
http://www.justtechjobs.com/
http://www.computerjobs.com/
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Analysis Exercise Solutions
Module I: Foundation Concepts
3. Skydive Chicago: Recognizing IS Components
a. What are the inputs, processes, outputs, and storage devices associated with this
information system?
Does a video tape system even count as an information system? Yes! The system
described in this problem may use a video camera and VCR as input and output devices,
but with only small changes to these process, Skydive Chicago could just as well dump
the video to a computer's hard drive and upload it to an web server.
Input Process Output Storage
Freefall Skydive Videoing Tape Video Tape/VCR
Library Tape Video Training Performance Video Tape/VCR
improvement
Archive Tapes Training program Training program Video Tape/VCR
effectiveness changes/safety
assessing recommendations
Archive Tapes Training library Updated training Video Tape/VCR
updating library
b. Briefly describe each “process” associated with this information system.
Students watch video of their previous jump
Students prepare for their next jump by watching videos of other students who met
the jump's training objectives.
The training director reviews all student jumps in order to identify instructional areas
that could benefit from changes to instructional methods.
The training director reviews all student jumps to pick the best examples of jumps for
future students to review.
c. How might Skydive Chicago combine Internet technologies and student video to
their advantage?
This question lends itself to many creative and useful answers. Here's one: rather than
require students to visit their training room in order to review training videos, Skydive
Chicago might post these videos on-line. Indeed, Skydive Chicago might post its entire
training program on-line. If they did, skydiving students could prepare for their next
training levels in advance and arrive at the dropzone ready to skydive. These materials
may also provide some marketing benefit to the dropzone as well.
d. What other products or services might Skydive Chicago provide using internet
technologies?
This is a subjective question. Possible answers might include:
e-commerce for skydive related equipment & services
advertising for 3rd party products such as credit cards, insurance, books or videos
special event or training on-line registration & payment services
skydiver jump account management (managing account balances, jump logs, etc.)
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Analysis Exercise Solutions
Module I: Foundation Concepts
4. Office Products Corporation: Recognizing IS Components
a. Identify the people, hardware, software, data, and network resources and the
information products of this information system.
People: customers, dealers, order entry clerks, warehouse personnel, president.
Hardware: IBM AS/400, 60 PC workstations, printers, telecommunications links,
video display terminals, dumb terminals (dealers), PC workstation for president,
controller, sales manager, inventory manager, and other executives.
Software: database management system
Network: local area network
Data resources: database
Information products: orders
b. Identify the input, processing, output, storage, and control activities that occurred.
Input: order entries
Processing: AS/400 (checks the availability of ordered parts, allocates the stock, and
updates customer and product databases).
Output: order pick list on the warehouse printer, management reports (printed and
viewed on screen).
Storage: magnetic disk on AS/400
Control: Data entry procedures, formatted screens, AS/400 checks the order as it is
entered.
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Analysis Exercise Solutions
Module I: Foundation Concepts
5. Western Chemical Corporation: Recognizing the Types and Roles of Information
Systems
a. Make an outline that identifies how information systems support (1) business
operations, (2) business decision-making, (3) strategic advantage, (4) an e-business
enterprise, (5) electronic commerce at Western Chemical.
The telecommunications system, word processing, and data from the chemical refinery
process are designed primarily to support business operations. The use of the refinery
data to “suggest” answers to problems to the engineer and the periodic, exception and
demand reports generated by the system are designed to support managerial decision
making. The text summaries and graphics displays provided to top management help
support strategic decision-making. Overall, the systems improve operational efficiency,
which helps the strategic position of Western Chemical in the industry.
b. There are many different types of information systems at Western Chemical.
Identify as many as you can in the preceding scenario. Refer to Figure 1.13, 1.15,
and 1.17 to help you. Explain the reasons for your choices.
Using the system to capture data about sales orders and purchases describes a transaction
processing system. The electronic mail and word processing systems are office
automation systems. The sensors capturing data about the refinery process are part of a
process control system. The use of the data to suggest answers to complex refinery
problems would represent an expert system. The reports sent to managerial end users
represent an information reporting system. The use of computers by managerial end
users to interactively assess the possible results of alternative decisions represents a
decision support system. The text summaries and graphic displays provided to top
management are an executive information system.
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