Managing Information Systems

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 Information Systems
• Information Systems are becoming the
foundation of business models and
processes
• They allow for the distribution of
knowledge

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 IT and IS
• What is Information Technology?
– Any form of technology used by people to
handle information.
• What are Information Systems?
– Integrated components processing, storing and
disseminating information in an organisation.
– Interdisciplinary study of systems that provide
information to users in organisations.
Pyle, I.C. & Illingworth, V. (Eds) (1996). Oxford Dictionary of Computing, 4th Edition. Oxford / New York: Oxford
University Press 3
 Information and Data
• Information
– Clusters of facts meaningful and useful to
human beings in processes such as making
decisions
• Data
– Streams of raw facts representing events such
as business transactions – meaningless without
structure
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 Experiences of IT and IS
• Examples of IT
– Hardware (PC, UNIX server)
– Software (e-mail, Internet, Windows, Word)
– Consumer devices (mobiles, train times)
• Examples of IS
– File systems, databases, e-mail servers / clients
– e-commerce
– SAP, student records

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 Management Information
Systems
• MIS
– The study of information systems focusing on
their use in business and management.
• Approaches
– Technical
– Behavioural
– Sociotechnical

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 Approaches to IS
TECHNICAL APPROACHES

COMPUTER
OPERATIONS
SCIENCE
RESEARCH

MANAGEMENT
SCIENCE
MIS
SOCIOLOGY

PSYCHOLOGY POLITICAL
SCIENCE
SOCIOTECHNICAL

BEHAVIORAL APPROACHES 7
 Why is IS Important?
• For an organisation to survive and prosper
– More locations (networking, Internet)
– New products and services
– Improve jobs and work flows:
• Efficiency
• Cost
• Ethical and social issues

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 Why is IS Important?
• Worldwide changes:
– Global economy
– Knowledge- or information-based society
– Business enterprise
– Digital firm

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 Global Economy
• Growing percentage of economy relies
upon import and export
• Need to operate globally
• IS can provide global trading infrastructure

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 Information Economy
70%

60%
% SERVICE
50%
% WHITE COLLAR
40% % BLUE COLLAR
30% % FARMING

20%

10%

0%
10

60
00

30

40

50

70

80

97
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19

19

19

19

19

19

19

19

19

19

YEAR
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 Changes to Society
• Change of employment profiles:
– Less farming
– Less ‘blue collar’ – manufacturing
– Increased service
– Increased ‘white collar’ – office-based
• USA: 55% of work force are in knowledge-
or information-based activities
• Shift of manufacture to low-wage countries
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 Business Enterprise
• Change from hierarchical organisations
• Now flat, decentralised
• Relies on instant information
• Flexibility with customer focus, with
increasing importance

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 Digital Firm
• An organisation where:
– Nearly all relationships with customers,
suppliers and employees is digital
– Business processes accomplished through
digital networks
• Flexible
• Dependent upon on IT

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 Course Objectives
• Provide an understanding of
– IS and underlying IT
– Impact on organisations of IS
– Implementation and management of IS
– IS and global organisations
• Provide awareness of IS in your role as a
professional

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 Course Content
• Information Systems in an Organisation
• Information Systems, Organisations,
Management and Strategy
• Enhancing Management Decision Making
• Managing Data and Information
• Redesigning the Organisation with
Information Systems and Managing Change
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 Course Content
• Electronic Commerce and the Internet
• Information Systems Security and Control
• Managing International Information
Systems
• Managing Assets

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 Tutorials
• Three case studies over semester
– Information systems, organisations and
decision support
– Changing organisations
– International organisations and the Internet

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 Assessment
• One piece of individual course-work
– 40% of module
– Case study report
– Set in week 1
– Due beginning week 12 (Monday by 5:00pm)
• Exam
– 60% of module

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 Text Book
• Haag, Cummings, McCubbrey (2004).
Management Information Systems for the
Information Age, 4th Edition. McGraw Hill.
• Turban, McLean, Wetherbe (1999). Information
Technology for Management, 2nd Edition. John
Wiley & Sons. Inc.
• Laudon, K.C. & Laudon, J.P. (2002).
Management Information Systems: Managing the
Digital Firm, 7th Edition. Upper Saddle River,
New Jersey: Prentice-Hall International, Inc.
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 Topics
Topic
Introduction 1
Information Systems in an Organisation 2, 11.1
Information Systems, Organisations, Management and Strategy 3
Enhancing Management Decision Making 13
Managing Data and Information 7, 12
Redesigning the Organisation with Information Systems and 10, 11.2/3
Managing Change
Electronic Commerce and the Internet 4, 8, 9
Information Systems Security and Control 14
Managing International Information Systems 16
Managing Assets 5, 6
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 Case Study

Planning a New Internet Business

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