CCT 355: E-Business Technologies Class 2: Foundational concerns of business information systems

Administration Assignment of presentation topics/dates will be next week Dates/topics can be switched by mutual agreement – but *not* moved all to the end (e.g., if you have an early October date, you can trade with a mid-November, but not move to mid-November unilaterally) Looks at specific technologies beginning next week – first, a foundation

Business? Information? Systems? What we will talk about as “business” What is information? What are systems?

Relation to Data, Information, Knowledge, Wisdom What is data? Information? Knowledge? Wisdom?

What is an information system, then? IT transmits data - but data alone is rather pointless IT helps structure data into information, which has more semantic value While knowledge is mostly human domain, IT increasingly supports knowledge communities and decision support Limitations of IT to knowledge – e.g., level of trust in automated decision support? IT alone doesn’t work – information systems are social, political systems as well Relation to wisdom?

IT and Automation IT does best at scheduled, simple repetitive tasks (examples?) Increases efficiency, reduces human error Implemented for years in manufacturing and logistics management - but increasingly common in knowledge work Examples?

Competitive Advantage of IT? IT can increase speed and lower cost of distribution and production of information IT and the productivity paradox - for years, the above was true, but return on investment (ROI) was stagnant or even negative - why? Paradox solved - IT now trends positive ROI - why?

Does IT Matter? - a summary of commentary on Nicolas Carr’s provocative piece When everyone uses IT as part of doing business, IT ceases to be a source of competitive advantage NOT using IT is a source of competitive disadvantage – but that’s not necessarily what IT professionals promise!

Input Process Output (IPO) Model Data is provided, computer transforms it, transformed data is returned Output data usually then become inputs for other processes = feedback loops Garbage in, garbage out (GIGO) - badly formatted inputs break processes, wrong inputs generate incorrect results What’s garbage? Depends on the problem.

A Balance… IT alone doesn’t do much - it must be implemented intelligently by intelligent people People, business process, technology, end objectives, market dynamics, partners and competitors, ethical concerns, legal concerns - all interact to determine success or failure of implementation IS systems (e.g., ERP, CRM, TPS, SCM, etc.) blend – create information ecology usually as robust as weakest link Right balance? Well, that’s where knowledge and wisdom come in.

Cui bono? Literal translation: who benefits? Figurative: to what good purpose? Both excellent questions in any technology implementation Technology has potential to shape/be shaped by existing social structures in an organization Critical perspective essential to not fall victim to hype

Enterprise Software and Social Media Traditional enterprise software not particularly social or open “Enterprise 2.0” – learning lessons from social media/Web 2.0 and applying to business contexts

SLATES McAfee sees promise in social media/web 2.0 technologies to break impasse and barriers of early IT systems

SLATES Search Links Authoring Tags Extensions Signals

Enterprise Information systems and FSOSS Traditional enterprise systems – proprietary, closed, difficult and expensive to administer A move to free software/open source solutions? Why FS/OS? Why *not* use FS/OS?

Recurring case studies (Cornell) FSAE SLATE/SLATE 2 Cases help contextualize information problems Questions of transferability – what works in one context may or may not work in similar Sometimes, may or may not work the year later!

On networking Mehria’s presentation from 2011

Telling a story… What is a case study? What is a good case study narrative? What information pieces may NOT be effective? Consider transferability and audience in writing up your interview DO NOT just do an interview dump – that’s not analytical at all – narrative is your telling of a story, not theirs. Dump notes, they get the mark, not you. But DO use “in vivo” quotations – people speaking from their own voice is very effective in making your point

Next week A look at ERP solutions and their implementation issues And a look at FSOSS solutions