Information Systems Management Explained

Columbia Southern University

Throughout the course, there has been a lot of knowledge pounded into our heads about Information Systems Management. This course has really set me up for the future in my degree field of Human Resource Management. Not everything involves HR, and not everything in this course impacts HR on a general scale, but all the topics and learning objectives intertwine with one another and all form information on how to handle the systems of technology, which in turn, will handle how HR will function. HR cannot function without systems, security, and technology. Information Systems Management deals with a lot of topics, but the ones that are being discussed are the five-component framework, Porter’s five-forces model, Management IS (MIS), technical and human safeguards, and the system development life cycle (SDLC). All these play a vital role in MIS.

The components of an information system, according to the five-component model, are hardware, software, data, procedures, and people. According to Kroenke, the book states, “the outermost components, hardware and people, are both actors; they can take actions. The software and procedure components are both sets of instructions: Software is instructions for hardware, and procedures are instructions for people. Finally, data is the bridge between the computer side on the left and the human side on the right.” (Kroenke, 2018). This is stating that everything is intertwined with one another. Hardware is the actual components of a system. People are the ones handling and touching the hardware, like a computer, laptop, or mobile device. Software is installed on the hardware and tells the hardware what to do and how to function. Just like procedures, it is what tells the person what to do and what to push on the hardware and how to solve problems. Data is the glue that holds it all together. Without data, nothing would function correctly. Data is collected and tells the software what needs to be done to have the hardware it is installed on to work properly. Data is also collected and is given a set of procedures for the person to work the system and navigate correctly with the information that was given by data. Without data both people and the hardware systems cannot work as one. You need all five components working together to have information systems. Without one component, it would not work.

Proper functioning of an organization is key to success. In order to become successful in your organization, a man named Porter set out a five forces model to follow. The five forces model consists of bargaining power of customers, threat of substitutions, bargaining power of suppliers, threat of new entrants, and rivalry. (Kroenke, 2018). The bargaining power of customers is big for smaller businesses. When you have a small business, the customer has the capability of bargaining lower prices due to the quality of the item. If they don’t like what they are getting for the price, then the customer will then go to the rival business. According to Jeffrey Carey, he stated that “substitute products give consumers the opportunity to choose alternatives based on price or quality.” (Carey, n.d.). This means that a customer can select another product because it may be healthier, or get an off brand just because it is cheaper. This makes the brand name merchandise have to reconsider their costs and whether they need to change certain thigs to please the customer. The bargaining power of suppliers is big too. When a business needs supplies, the organization they want to order from may raise their prices due to the current demands of their items. Either the organization pays that said amount, or tries to negotiate the price, or they won’t get any supplies. Threats of new entrants means that when a business opens up, they may have better marketing strategy and may have low prices in order to gain customers. Doing so would take customers away from an already developed organization. This can cause a business to fail if they do not make changes to stay competitive with the new entrant. Rivalry is competing between similar businesses to see who comes out on top. Like Kroenke, he stated companies like Bing and Google. These company’s primarily do the same thing, but spend a lot of money on marketing to have online users use their systems instead of the competition. Understanding these concepts can help a business know what to expect and assist on how to make the necessary changes that come with developing a successful business.

Management Information Systems is the use of systems at a managerial level. When you are a business manager or on a management team, you have to be able to demonstrate that you have the capabilities of running the organizations information systems and be able to train others in those areas as well. A collaboration system is a way to communicate information to members of teams or to individuals via an online system. This is one way to communicate in different regions or locations because you can communicate with the team and share vital information that may be needed. One example of a collaboration system would be an instant messaging system, such as Facebook messenger or AOL. These systems are able to let you know who is online and be able to speak to them via video or chat with the click of the button. Content management system is simply an online database that manages the data that a company collects and able to be accessed by their employees to get important information. A site like SharePoint is a good example. People who are authorized access will have all the information they need at their fingertips. The look in one central location for information and is logged by who uploads and who access the information at what time. This will help the company with any issues that come from the site with loss of information or other threats. A database management system, according to Kroenke is a program used to create, process, and administer a database. An example would be Microsoft Excel. In Microsoft Excel, you can input data and format it in a way where it updates itself and when you input new data, can create real time up to date information. With Excel, the possibilities are endless with managing data and organizing it into one database. An expert system is a place where someone can go to get valid expert advice from other people on a certain subject. Earlier in the course we talked about these systems and a small engine repair shop was referenced. An auto repair website would be a great expert system. They can upload how to videos from the mechanics themselves and post instruction guides in how to fix certain things. Even having this implemented in the shop is beneficial. Not one person knows everything, so having a go to database made by mechanics for mechanics will help with training and gaining expert knowledge. A customer relationship system is a process in which a company had communication with a customer about issues or general questions. An example of this would be the Amazon customer service chat. You can contact and communicate with a live person and they will answer and assist in all issues/questions you may have. This is great when you want to have information ASAP and not over the length of days to weeks. According to Rob Biedron, he stated “in the simplest of terms, an ERP is a solution that integrates all the processes you use in business.” (Biedron, 2018). An example of this type of system is the Cloud. One central location for all system information that a business can use. A social media information system is the use of information technology to support the sharing of content among networks of users. Social media enables people to form communities of practice, or simply communities, which are groups of people related by a common interest. (Kroenke, 2018). One of these is Facebook. They communicate with their users and post policy updates and always share information with their users. A decision support system, like one Navy Federal Credit Union would use, is a system that assists a company in judgements or decisions making. When someone applies for a loan, they place all information provided by a customer into a system, and based on analytics, provides a decision based on what was given in the system. Lastly, an enterprise system is a way for multiple systems to combine into one database that speak to one another. Marketing sales is one system where the sales and movement and inventory are all combined into one database.

In order to protect Information Systems within a company, you need to have some sort of security. With the security, there are some technical and human safeguards that need to be in place for the company’s protection. With technical safeguarding, which is the involvement the hardware and software components of an information system. (Kroenke, 2018). One example of a good technical safeguard is smartcards. Using smartcards ensures information is protected by the user and not accessible by anyone else. Also, the management team can see who accesses the systems and at what tome. This would help in the event of a threat to the system. With smart cards, you install certificates and passwords specific to that user, making it almost 100% protected. A human safeguarding technique would be the hiring process. Doing a background check prior to hiring will assist the company in selecting the best qualified and trustworthy person for the job. By doing this, you help minimize the risk of hiring a person wanting to cause harm to your company.

Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC) is a process used to develop and create programs/applications. (Kroenke, 2018). The life cycle has five steps for development, such as Define System, Determine Requirements, Design System Components, Implement System, and Maintain System. (Kroenke, 2018). The SDLC was a step by step process that was designed by researchers and is considered to be the best of the best. They took failures and attempts and created a formula that helped design successful applications. SDLC is a set method that doesn’t have many changes that are made. The scrum, or agile development, is a way of developing as you go. They produce more changes and offer more benefits than the SDLC. This is because they test as they go. While testing they will push out a product for a short period and wait on the feedback and make the changes to help their application gain success. With the differences there is a similarity. They both develop the app and have benefits. One may take longer than the other, but both will develop successful applications. It is like a business. There is not one set management style. Everyone is different, but if you know what you are doing, and care about what you are doing, you will have success.

Management Information Systems (MIS) is more crucial to understand now, than it was years ago. Technology has grown in the business world very quickly. With the new programs being implements, and the way of record keeping going from filing cabinets and cardboard boxes to online databases for storage, like Cloud, companies have to stay up to date. Also, with the many databases available to use and applications that can be used in the company, there I no longer a need for manual operations. Businesses are also expanding and communication with one another with the difference in location and time-zones, companies need ways to communicate. Using social media systems or collaboration systems will assist in resolving those issues. So, overall, with every aspect of the MIS, you need a little bit of everything in order to become successful and to stay competitive with your competition.

References

Biedron, R. (2018). Examples and Uses for ERP Software. PurchaseControl. Retrieved from https://www.purchasecontrol.com/blog/erp-uses-and-examples/

Carey, J. (n.d.). The Five Elements of Porter’s Competitive Forces Model. Chron. Retrieved from https://smallbusiness.chron.com/five-elements-porters-competitive-forces-model-77015.html

Kroenke, D. (2018). Using MIS (10th ed.). New York, NY: Pearson