IT Staff and the End User Who is responsible for development and policy? Who should control the selection of applications for the organization? User may only focus on short term needs IT staff may only focus on mastering the technology and developing plans

Why are Users Developing Information Systems? Pent-up demand Staffing flexibility issues Users are aware of “cheaper,” stand-alone solutions

Why are Users Developing Information Systems? Need for control Organizational changes

Reasons to Maintain an IS Department Professionalism recruitment and retention of employees developing and maintaining standards of practice trained to see “the big picture” -- integration, controls

Reasons to Maintain an IS Department Feasibility studies anticipating growth evaluating reliability and capabilities of hardware and software long term, integrated goals

Reasons to Maintain an IS Department Corporate Databases importance of planning for data warehousing, data sharing reliability and integrity of corporate data security concerns technological expertise in distributed systems

Reasons to Maintain an IS Department Cost Analyses Understanding the true costs of a system Short term local savings and long term corporate costs

Responsibilities of the IS Function Plan long-term IT architecture Establish procedures Maintain services inventory

Responsibilities of the IS Function Develop and maintain standards corporate data dictionary Develop career strategies for IS staff Be responsible for hardware/software acquisition

Responsibilities of the IS Function Maintain vendor relationships Educate users Review systems

User Responsibilities Understanding the IT function’s scope Evaluate amount of user time devoted to new projects Serve as conduit for introducing IT services

User Responsibilities Manage the relationship between the business unit and the IS department Evaluate controls Participate in planning

Management Responsibilities Establishing balance between IS staff and users Developing a corporate IT strategy Managing purchasing and supplier relationships

Management Responsibilities Supporting the creation, maintenance, and enforcement of standards Facilitating technology transfer Encouraging experimentation Developing planning and control systems