ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION SYSTEMS

2

WHAT DO MANAGERS DO?

They make decisions

Better decisions = better managers

The amount of information people must understand to make decisions, solve problems, and find opportunities is growing exponentially

Fire your Customer

3

PROGRAMMED VERSUS NONPROGRAMMED DECISIONS

Programmed decisions Decisions made using a rule, procedure, or quantitative method Easy to computerize using traditional information systems

Non-programmed decisions Decision that deals with unusual or exceptional situations Not easily quantifiable

4

TYPES OF DECISIONS• Structured

– How many workers to staff line A

– What is the EOQ for raw material Z

– How many turbines to power Lethbridge?

• Unstructured– What are the benefits of

merging with XYZ – How will consumer react if

we lower the price by 10%– What are the benefits of

MacDonald's opening up Hotels

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WHO, WHAT, WHY: ORGANIZATIONAL LEVEL

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WHO, WHAT, WHY: MANAGERIAL LEVEL

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WHO, WHAT, WHY: EXECUTIVE LEVEL

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BASIC SYSTEMS MODEL

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SYSTEM TYPE: TRANSACTION PROCESSING SYSTEMS

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SYSTEM EXAMPLE: PAYROLL SYSTEM (TPS)Global logistics

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SYSTEM TYPE: MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEM

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SYSTEM DESCRIPTION: MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMS

MISs are used by managerial employees to support recurring decision making in managing a function or the entire business

Supported Activities• Scheduled Reporting - produced automatically based on a

predetermined schedule. Some include:• Key Indicator – e.g. Monthly Sales Report• Exception – e.g. Monthly Late Shipments• Drill Down – printed only if needed

• Ad Hoc Reporting – unscheduled reports (e.g. sales data by person report to identify issues)

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SYSTEM ARCHITECTURE: MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEM

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SYSTEM TYPE: EXECUTIVE INFORMATION SYSTEM (EIS)

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SYSTEM DESCRIPTION: EXECUTIVE INFORMATION SYSTEMS

EISs, also called Executive Support Systems (ESS), information systems to support executive decision-making

System Detailsuse graphical user interfaces to display consolidated information :

• Soft Data -• Hard Data –

Supported Activities• Executive Decision Making• Long-range Strategic Planning• Monitoring of Internal and External Events• Crisis Management• Staffing and Labour Relations

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SYSTEM ARCHITECTURE: EXECUTIVE INFORMATION SYSTEMS

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SYSTEMS THAT SPAN ORGANIZATIONAL BOUNDARIES

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DECISION SUPPORT SYSTEMS

Decision Support Systemssystems designed to support managerial-level employees in organizational decision making

System Details use computational software to construct models for analysis (most common is MS Excel) to solve semi-structured problems (e.g. sales or resource forecasts)

Supported Activities: “What-if” analysis – changing one or more variables in the model to observe the effect (e.g. What is the payment if the interest rate increases by 1% ?)

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EXPERT SYSTEMS

Expert Systemsused by operational level employees to make decisions usually made by more experienced employees or an expert in the field

System Details use inference engines that match facts and rules, sequence questions for the user, draw a conclusion, and present a recommendation to the user

Supported Activities:These systems support many activities, including:

• Medical Diagnosis• Machine Configuration• Financial Planning• Software Application Assistance (help wizards)

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OFFICE AUTOMATION SYSTEMS

Office Automation Systemsincrease productivity within the office setting

Supported Activities• Scheduling Resources

Examples: electronic calendars• Document Preparation

Examples: software (word processing and desktop publishing); hardware (printers)

• CommunicatingExamples: e-mail, voice mail, videoconferencing and groupware

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COLLABORATIVE TECHS (GROUPWARE)

Groupwareenables people to work together more effectively

Supported ActivitiesThese systems come in two types:

• Asynchronous Groupware – Systems that do not require users to be on the system working at the same time, including: e-mail, newsgroups, workflow automation, group calendars, and collaborative writing tools

• Synchronous Groupware – Systems that allow and support simultaneous group interactions including shared whiteboards, electronic meeting support systems, video communication systems

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SYSTEM DESCRIPTION: GROUPWARE BENEFITS

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SYSTEMS THAT SPAN ORGANIZATIONAL BOUNDARIES

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SYSTEM DESCRIPTION: FUNCTIONAL AREA INFO SYSTEMS

Functional Area Information SystemsCross-organizational information systems are designed to support a specific functional area

Supported ActivitiesThe following functional organizations have systems to support their operational and managerial activities

• Accounting• Finance• Human Resources• Marketing • Operations Peppers &

Rogers

Workforce absenteeism

daytraders

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GLOBAL INFORMATION SYSTEMS

Global Information SystemsA variety of special-class systems used to support organizations that operate globally

Supported ActivitiesDepending on the organization, one or more of these systems may be required (definitions on next slide):

• International Accounting Systems• Transnational Information Systems• Multinational Information Systems• Global Information Systems• Collaborative Information Systems