View
883
Download
0
Category
Tags:
Preview:
Citation preview
1
Information Systems
and
Functional Applications
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe
Faculty of Professional Studies
Thames Valley University
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
2
Why IS is important to organisations?
Understand the role and relevance of an information system aids decision making.
Identifying and evaluating appropriate information systems.
Managing the process of information gathering, processing, storage and retrieval
Managers make decisions using the information available to them at the time.
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
3
Life-blood of the organisation
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
4
MEDIATING FACTORS:
Environment
Culture
Structure
Standard Procedures
Politics
Management Decisions
Chance
ORGANISATIONS INFORMATION
TECHNOLOGY
The two-way Relationship between organisations and Information Technology
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
5
About Business Strategy
Organisation has a limited set of resources (e.g. time, people, money, physical resources) and they must decide how to use those resources.
Strategy is deciding what the organisation is going to do and how it will use its resources
A business system is a collection of people, machines and methods organised to accomplish a set of specific functions.
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
6
About Business Strategy? (cont…) Contributing to the establishment of the
organisation's long term business objectives e.g. identifying and evaluating external factors which may impact on the organisation
Identifying and appraising the organisation's skills and resources
Identifying and defining business options; evaluating these options, performing risk assessments and recommending strategies for adoption
Analysing the economic impact of environmental change upon the organisation
Analysing market and competitive developments in relation to marketing strategy
Contributing to the development of the organisation's information systems strategy as a complement to its business strategy
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
7
Examples of Strategies
Strategy 1: Manufacture equipment with the money and use the building and the people to manufacture widgets.
Strategy 2: Outsource the production of widgets and use the people and building to be widget distributor - or perhaps a widget store.
Strategy 3: Sell the patent to a larger firm, sell the building, fire the employees and retire!
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
8
Implications of information management in organisations
It has the potential to contribute to the achievements of organisations
It has different purposes in different organisations. These purposes will be influenced by the organisation's goals as well as by its culture and its stance on information.
It is practiced in a political, social and cultural context which shapes both what information management does and how it does it.
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
9
Developing IS/IT strategy
Once key strategic issues have been
identified, they feed into business
objectives, particularly marketing
objectives.
SWOT analysis can be used in
conjunction with other tools for audit
and analysis, such as PEST analysis and
Porter's Five-Forces analysis.
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
10
SWOT Analysis
SWOT analysis is an important tool for
auditing the overall strategic position of
a business and its environment.
SWOT is an abbreviation for Strengths,
Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
11
Strengths and weaknesses are Internal factors:
For example, a strength could be your specialist marketing expertise. A weakness could be the lack of a new product.
Opportunities and threats are external factors.
For example, an opportunity could be a developing distribution channel such as the Internet, or changing consumer lifestyles that potentially increase demand for a company's products. A threat could be a new competitor in an important existing market or a technological change that makes existing products potentially obsolete
SWOT Analysis (Cont…)
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
12
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
13
SWOT Analysis (cont…)
Strength
your specialist marketing expertise.
a new, innovative product or service
location of your business
quality processes and procedures
any other aspect of your business that adds
value to your product or service.
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
14
SWOT Analysis (cont…)
Weakness could be:
lack of marketing expertise
undifferentiated products and service (i.e. in
relation to your competitors)
location of your business
poor quality goods or services
damaged reputation
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
15
SWOT Analysis (cont…)
Opportunity could be:
a developing market such as the Internet.
mergers, joint ventures or strategic alliances
moving into new market segments that offer
improved profits
a new international market
a market vacated by an ineffective competitor
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
16
SWOT Analysis (cont…)
Threat could be:
a new competitor in your home market
price wars with competitors
a competitor has a new, innovative product or
service
competitors have superior access to channels
of distribution
taxation is introduced on your product or
service
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
17
Critical Success Factors (CSF)
A small number of easily identifiable operational goals
Shaped by industry, manager, environment
Believed to assure firm’s success
Used to determine organization’s information requirements
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
18
CSF example
Example Goals CSF
Profit concern Earnings per share
Return on investment
Market share
New product
Automotive industry:
styling
quality dealer system
cost control
Energy standards
Not for profit Excellent health care Regional integration
Improved monitoring of regulations
Efficient use of resources
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
19
Process of Decision Making
Strategic Decision Making: Determines long-term objectives, resources, and policies
Management Control: Monitors effective or efficient usage of resources and performance of operational units
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
20
Process of Decision Making (cont…)
Operational control: Determines how to perform specific tasks set by strategic and middle-management decision makers
Knowledge-level decision making: Evaluates new ideas for products, services, ways to communicate new knowledge, ways to distribute information
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
21
Decisions
Types of management decision:
Structured: Repetitive, routine, procedure have been agreed
to deal with them.
Unstructured: Judgement, insight and evaluation is necessary to
deal with them.
They are usually important decisions that affect the future of the organisation, there are no set procedures.
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
22
Structured or Unstructured
In which town will the new branch be located?
How many extra staff do we hire for the Christmas period?
What can be done about an employee who has had too many sick days off after being warned about their attendance.
Should the stores adopt their own store card?
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
23
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
24
Information requirement
Strategic information
Tactical information
Operational information
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
25
Information requirement (cont…) Strategic information: Strategic information is
concerned with the whole organisation and is relevant to the long term operational success.
It is derived from both internal and external sources and is summarised at a high level.
Tactical information: Tactical information is concerned
with activities or departments and is relevant to the short and medium term.
It is primarily generated internally (but may have a limited external component)...Tactical information data is based upon quantitative measures and is prepared routinely and regularly.
Operational information: Operational information is
concerned with specific tasks and is relevant to the immediate term.
It is derived from internal sources and is largely quantitative, detailed since it involves the processing of raw data) and is prepared very frequently.
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
26
Strategic level Information
Strategic information is used to plan the objectives of the organisation, and to assess whether the objectives are being met in practice.
Strategic information systems is to help organisations to do things better, to win. (Strategic Information Systems, M Neumann, 1996).
An information system to be strategic it is to aligned with business goals as this has an impact on organisational performance.
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
27
Strategic level information (cont…)
Strategic information systems
computer systems at any level of an organisation that change the goals, processes, products, services, or environmental relationships to help the organisation gain a competitive advantage
Information considered as a resource, much like capital and labor
IT-critical competitive strategies: Customer lock-in, customer lock-out, new business entry
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
28
Strategic level information (cont…)
What do managers need to know about organisations in order to build and use information systems successfully?
What impact do information systems have on organisations?
How do information systems support the activities of managers in organisations?
How can businesses use information systems for competitive advantage?
Why is it so difficult to build successful information systems, including systems that promote competitive advantage?
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
29
Strategic level information (cont…)
Strategy of an organisation is the roadmap towards attainment of its long term goals and objectives.
Effective operationalisation of strategy enables effective and efficient realization of organisational goals.
In the dynamic business environment of today, information has emerged as one of the key drivers in successfully steering the organisational strategy.
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
30
Operational-level information
Support operational managers by keeping track of the elementary activities and transactions of the organisation.
The principle purpose of systems at this level is to answer routine questions and track the flow of transactions through the organisation.
Covers things such as sales, receipts, cash deposits, payroll, credit decisions, flow of materials.
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
31
Knowledge-level information
Support knowledge and data workers in an organisation. The purpose of these systems is to help the organisation discover, organise and integrate new and existing knowledge into the business, and to help control the flow of paperwork. These systems, specially in the form of collaboration tools, workstations, and office systems, are the fastest growing applications in business today.
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
32
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
33
Abdisalam Issa-Salwe, Thames Valley University
34
Reference
BPP, Information Systems, Study Text, Paper 2.1, BPP Professional Education, United Kingdom.
Lachlan M. MacKinnon, Information: Types of Information System Systems, http://www.macs.hw.ac.uk/~lachlan/dbislectures/lectures/types.ppt,
Recommended