MIS Fundamentals

What’s in a name ? NamePercent Management information systems 33% Information services17% Information systems14% Data processing12% Information resources management 3% Others21% 100%

Names Used Interchangeably MIS –Management information systems CBIS –Computer-based information systems IS –Information systems IM –Information management

Definition of a Management Information System A management information system is –An integrated user- machine system –For providing information –To support the operations, management, analysis and decision-making functions –In an organization The system utilizes –Computer hardware and software –Manual procedures –Models for analysis, planning, control, and decision making, and –A database

MIS For strategic and policy planning and decision making Management information For tactical planning and decision making Management information for operational planning decision making And control Transaction processing Inquiry response

Strategic Planning Management Control Operational Control

Information requirements by Decision Category Characteristics Of Information Operational Control Management Control Strategic Planning Source Scope Level of Aggregation Time Horizon Currency Required Accuracy Frequency of use Largely internal Well defined, narrow Detailed Historical Highly current High Very frequent External Very wide Aggregate Future Quite old Low Infrequent

Data, Information, Knowledge DataData – facts, images, or sounds that may or may not be pertinent or useful for a particular task Information Information – data whose form or content are appropriate for a particular use Knowledge Knowledge – instincts, ideas, rules, and procedure that guide actions and decisions --Alter 2002

Programmed vs. Nonprogrammed Decisions are programmed to the extent that they are repetitive and routine, to the extent that a definite procedure has been worked out for handling them so that they don’t have to be treated de novo each time they occur Decision are nonprogrammed to the extent that they are novel, unstructured, and consequential –There is no cut-and dried method of handling the problem because it hasn’t arisen before or because its precise nature and structure are elusive or complex or because it so important that it deserves a custom- tailored treatment

TYPES OF INFORMATION SYSTEMS DATA WORKERS KIND OF SYSTEM GROUPS SERVED STRATEGIC LEVEL SENIOR MANAGERS STRATEGIC LEVEL SENIOR MANAGERS MANAGEMENT LEVEL MIDDLE MANAGERS OPERATIONAL OPERATIONAL LEVEL MANAGERS OPERATIONAL OPERATIONAL LEVEL MANAGERS KNOWLEDGE LEVEL KNOWLEDGE & SALES & MANUFACTURING FINANCE ACCOUNTING HUMAN RESOURCESMARKETING --Laudon & Laudon 2002

Information Systems Defined An information system can be defined technically as a set of interrelated components that collect, process, store, and distribute information to support decision making, coordination, and control in an organization An information system is an organizational and management solution, based on information technology, to a challenge posed by the environment --Laudon & Laudon 2002

FUNCTIONS OF AN INFORMATION SYSTEM INPUTOUTPUTPROCESS FEEDBACK INFORMATION SYSTEM ENVIRONMENT Customers Suppliers Regulatory Stockholders Competitors Agencies ORGANIZATION

COMPUTER-BASED INFORMATION SYSTEMS (CBIS) Formal systems Fixed definitions of data, procedures Collecting, storing, processing, disseminating, using data

INFORMATION SYSTEMS ORGANIZATIONSTECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMS SYSTEMS

SOCIOLOGY POLITICAL SCIENCE PSYCHOLOGY COMPUTERSCIENCE OPERATIONSRESEARCH MANAGEMENTSCIENCE TECHNICAL APPROACHES APPROACHES TO INFO SYSTEMS MIS BEHAVIORAL APPROACHES

What Is an Information System? An information system can be any organized combination of people, hardware, software, communication networks, and data resources that collects, transforms, and disseminates information in an organization People have relied on information systems to communicate with each other using a variety of physical devices (hardware), information processing instructions and procedures (software), communication channels (networks), and stored data (data resources) since the dawn of civilization Computer-based information systems (CBIS)

An IS Framework for Business Professionals

System Concepts What is a system? Feedback and control Other system characteristics –Environment –Subsystem –Interface –Open system –Adaptive system

What Is a Systems A system can be most simply defined as a group of interrelated or interacting elements forming a unified whole A system is a group of interrelated components working together toward a common goal by accepting input and producing output in an organized transformation process

Feedback and Control A system with feedback and control components is sometimes called a cybernetic system, that is, a self-monitoring, self-regulating system Feedback –Is data about the performance of a system Control –Involve monitoring and evaluating feedback to determine whether a system is moving toward the achievement of its goal

Other Characteristics A system does not exist in a vacuum, rather, it exists and function in an environment containing other systems If a system is one of the components of a larger system, it is a subsystem and the larger system is its environment Some of these systems may be connected to one another by means of a shared boundary, or interface

Other Characteristics (Cont.) Open system is a system that interacts with other systems in its environment –The system exchanges inputs and outputs with its environment –It is connected to its environment by input and output interface A system that has the ability to change itself or its environment in order to survive is an adaptive system

What is an Information System? Input of Data Resources Input of Data Resources Processing Data Processing Data Output of Information Products Output of Information Products Control of System Performance Storage of Data Resources

What is a System? Manufacturing Process Input of Raw Materials Output of Finished Products Environment Other Systems Control by Management Control Signals Control Signals Feedback Signals Feedback Signals System Boundary

Work Systems, Information Systems, and E-Business E-business = the practice of performing & coordinating business processes through the extensive use of information technology (IT) – IT = computer and communication technologies – E-business does NOT equal the Internet, though the growth of the Internet acted as a very powerful catalyst

Work System = a system in which people and/or machines perform a business process using resources (e.g., information, technology) to create products/services for internal or external customers

Information System = a work system that processes information, thereby supporting other work systems – Capture – Transmit – Store – Retrieve – Manipulate – Display

Mason & Mitroff’s Definition of MIS An information system consists of at least one person of a certain psychological type who faces a problem within the organizational context for which he needs evidence to arrive at a solution and that the evidence is made available to him through some mode of presentation

Psychological Type Thinking-Sensation Thinking-Intuition Feeling-Sensation Feeling-Intuition

Class of Problems Structured –Decisions under certainty –Decision under risk –Decisions under uncertainty Unstructural –“Wicked” Decision problems

Method of Evidence Generation Data based Model based Multiple models Conflicting models Learning systems

Organizational Context Strategic planning Management control Operational control

Mode of Presentation Personalistic –Drama role play –Art Graphics –One-to-one contact group interaction Impersonalistic –Company reports –Abstract models Computerized information systems