Managing information systems 7th edition brow ch01

MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMS
CHAPTER 1
MANAGING IT IN A DIGITAL WORLD

1
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MANAGING INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY, 7e
.

Information Technology (IT):
Computer technology (hardware and software)
for processing and storing information
and
Communications technology (voice and data networks)
for transmitting information.

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MANAGING INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY, 7e
Part I
• Technologies available today and emerging technology trends for
hardware, software, networks and data
Part II
• Software applications to support business operations and business
intelligence, as well as e-business applications
Part III
• “Best practices” for acquiring and implementing new systems and
managing IT projects

Part IV
• Planning and managing an IS department’s resources, as well as
managing information security; social/ethical/legal issues
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MANAGING IT IN A DIGITAL WORLD
• IT has become more pervasive
- IT is not used only by back-office workers, but also front-line workers
- More and more employees are reliant upon IT for accomplishing their work
activities

• Business managers, not just IT managers, are responsible for IT
investments and effective system utilization
• By the Year 2000, the total annual cost of IT purchases was more than
half of the annual capital expenditures of businesses in developed
countries
• IT is linking emerging, developing and developed economies, which can
help “level” the economic playing field
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RECENT INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY TRENDS
• Computer Hardware: Faster, Cheaper, Mobile
- Computers have become smaller and faster
- Hardware prices have dropped
- High growth in small, mobile devices for communications and access
to the Internet

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RECENT INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY TRENDS
• But it can be hard to predict long-term IT trends….

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RECENT INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY TRENDS
• Computer Software: Integrated, Downloadable, Social
• Integrated
- Standardization has enabled more integration
- Many “standards” are just de facto standards (Microsoft
Windows, Office, Internet Explorer)
- Many companies have benefitted from “Enterprise Systems”
investments (e.g., electronic health records in hospitals)
Enterprise Systems:
Software packages with integrated modules that pass
common business transactions across groups,
divisions, and geographic locations in “real time”
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RECENT INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY TRENDS
• Computer Software: Integrated, Downloadable, Social
• Downloadable
- Bit-size software programs for smart phones downloadable from
App stores
- Download speeds have increased so that even large files can be
downloaded by users

• Social
- Growth of Web 2.0 (social media) applications (such as
Facebook, LinkedIn)
- Used by companies for marketing and branding activities
- Collaboration tools connect employees across distance
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RECENT INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY TRENDS
• Computer Networks: High Bandwidth, Wireless and Cloudy
- High demand for high speed Internet access
- Wireless technologies to replace hardwired lines; support for mobile
devices anytime/anywhere
- Use of Internet to access remote hosts, data storage, and other IT
capabilities from the “Cloud”

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NEW WAYS TO COMPETE
• New ways for businesses to use IT to compete on:
• Low Cost – Competing with other businesses by being a low-cost
producer for a good or a service
• Automating transaction time
• Shortening order cycle time
• Providing operational information for decision making

• Differentiation – Competing with other businesses by offering
products or services that customers prefer due to superiority in
product innovativeness, quality or customer service

•
•
•
•

Giving sales personnel information to better serve customers
Providing just-in-time supplies for customers
Creating new information-based products
Allowing product customization by the consumer

• OR Both Low Cost and Differentiation, enabled by IT
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NEW WAYS TO WORK
• New ways for people to work using IT:
• Telecommuters: Individuals who use mobile technology
and/or network connections to work remotely
• Pros
- Flexibility
- Work-life balance
• Cons
- Feelings of being isolated
- Concerns about job promotion opportunities
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NEW WAYS TO WORK
• New ways for people to work using IT, continued:
• Virtual Teams: Geographically separated work teams whose

members communicate through the use of IT

-

• Pros
Workers can be located anywhere

- Teams can be composed of members with specialized skills from
different business units or companies
• Cons
- Coordination across team members more difficult
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NEW WAYS TO WORK
• New ways for people to work using IT, continued:
• Free Agents: Individuals who choose to contract out their
services and are not tied to an organization
• Pros
- Work may change more than when an employee of a single
organization
• Cons
- Lack of benefits
- Unpredictability in scheduling and work
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MANAGING IT IN ORGANIZATIONS
Information Systems (IS) Department:
The organizational unit or department that has the primary

responsibility for managing IT
• Information Systems departments can vary greatly across
businesses, depending on the organization’s dependency on IT
for:
• reliable & secure business operations and
• competitive advantage based on new technologies

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MANAGING IT IN ORGANIZATIONS
• Example: IS Organization in Support
Mode
- Low Need for New Information
Technology for competing
- Low Need for Reliable & Secure
Information Technology for
business operations
- IT used mostly to support back-office
support functions

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MANAGING IT IN ORGANIZATIONS
• Example: IS Organization in
Strategic Mode
- High Need for New Information
Technology for competitive advantage
- High Need for Reliable & Secure

Information Technology for
business operations
- Strategically dependent on IT to
enable new business strategies

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MANAGING IT IN ORGANIZATIONS
• Three Types of IT Resources (Figure 1.1 – based on Ross et al.)
- Technology Infrastructure: Computers, software and networks
that enable an organization to conduct business and share information
across organizational units as well as business partners
- Human Resources: IT professionals and managers who have the
needed mix of technology, business and interpersonal skills to plan for,
design and manage the other IT resources
- Business/IT Relationships: Established relationships between
business and IT workers to ensure that the other IT resources are aligned
with the business needs
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IT LEADERSHIP ROLES
• • IT leaders have to work closely with the senior managers o keep the
In many organizations, the senior IT leader is a CIO.
company’s IT resources aligned with the business goals
Chief Information Officer (CIO):
A firm’s high-level general IT manager with both technology and
business leadership experience. Together with the organization’s
executive management team the CIO ensures the alignment of IT

resources with business goals and plans for integration of IT for
strategic advantage.

• Two primary responsibilities:
• - Computer and communication operations
• - Acquiring and maintaining applications software

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IT LEADERSHIP ROLES
• Example: IS Organization Chart

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