Information system prosoal - Essay Example

Information Systems Proposal Table of Content Table of Content 2 2 Introduction The world has transformed into a global village through Information Technology. Information or data is easily processed and analyzed by integrated software to produce quality information organizations use for business and decision making. Information Systems is a collection of hardware, software, data, human resource and procedures. Five categories of Information Systems are available; Decision Support Systems Expert Systems and Neutral Networks Management Information Systems Information Systems in Organizations and Transaction Processing Systems (Rainer & Cegielski, 2011).

Types of Information Systems I. Decision Support Systems This system is responsible for providing information, models, and data manipulation tools. It is an interactive process that assists in making formed decisions in a semi structured and unstructured scenario. The information gathered in the process is used to support analytical work, simulation and optimization, Online analytical processing (OLAP), data mining, and executive information systems. In simulation and optimization, a simulation model is used to calculate simulated outcome of important decisions and assumptions.

Optimization model then determines optimal decisions, relying on the protocol supplied by the user, mathematical search techniques and constraints. OLAP refers to the use of data analysis tools to explore large databases of data transaction. Data mining refers to the implementation of analysis tools to establish patterns available in large transaction databases. The Executive Information Systems (EIS) is a highly interactive system that offers a flexible access required to monitor results and an organization’s conditions on a general basis.

This is achieved through the use of internal and competitive information gathered and the user-friendly interface (Rainer & Cegielski, 2011). II. Expert Systems and Neutral Networks This type of information system is used to capture and store knowledge of human experts. This knowledge is used to imitate human reasoning and decision making processes for the less expertise. It is made of two components; knowledge base and inference rules. The former incorporates subject knowledge and experience gathered from human experts.

The latter is a set of logical judgments applied to the knowledge base so that whenever a user describes a situation, the expert system uses the logics to derive at a decision. Non-management employees are the primary users of this system since it helps them with job-related decisions. Its use is important in resolving diverse problem like diagnosing illness and the search for oil. In computer science, the system is referred to as artificial intelligence (AI). Human intelligence is applied to computers through sophisticated softwares.

This technology is in a position to sense actions, based on logical assumptions and past experience. Today, it is used in word processing programs that have speech recognition (Bey-Miller, Clarke & Dyk, 2008). III. Management Information Systems (MIS) Information is important in the management of an organization. Management Information Systems is responsible for providing information required by the organization’s management team. MIS does the following: Extract and summarize data derived from TPSs Enable managers to monitor and direct the business Offer qualitative feedbacks due to its accuracy Pre-specified reports are easily made available on a scheduled format.

This implies that the top managers are in a position to make strategic decisions as middle managers venture on tactical decisions. The line managers will focus on operational decisions as knowledge workers innovate and integrate knowledge. Clerical workers will have the opportunity to use and manipulate the information for the benefit of the business (Rainer & Cegielski, 2011). IV. Information Systems in Organizations or Office Information Systems This type of system incorporates hardware, software and networks to facilitate the flow of work and communication among employees.

It is also referred to as office automation. The manual trend of performing office duties is replaced by use of electronic devices and computers. For example, a registration department posts a class schedule on the internet and email to students instead of photocopying the schedule and mailing to the students. A range of business office operations are supported by the system. These include creation and distribution of graphics and documents, sending images, forming schedules, and accounting. It serves across the divide; from executive management to non-management employees.

Word processing, spreadsheets, databases, presentation graphics, e-mail and Web browsers are some of the softwares commonly used (Rainer & Cegielski, 2011). V. Transaction Processing Systems Any business has daily routine activities that need recording. The recording done is vital in tracking, collecting and analyzing information. Transaction Processing System is a computerized system designed to perform these functions. It is responsible for processing data resulting from business transactions like payroll system.

Five steps are involved in Transaction Processing: data entry, processing, maintenance of the database, documentation and generation of reports and inquiry process (Wigand & etal, 2003). Table 1 Type of Information System Application Management Information Systems Middle management and Supervisors Decision Support System Top management Transaction Processing Systems Billing department, procurement section and production section. Information Systems in Organizations Office secretaries, data clerks and administrators Expert Systems and Neutral Networks For non professionals Conclusion The world being a global village, sophisticated hardware, software and communication technologies make it difficult to determine the type of system a business should adopt.

In most cases, most softwares support transaction processing as well as management information systems. Others may offer transaction processing, management information and decision support systems. Organizations therefore need to consolidate information requirements into a single system. References Bey-Miller, R., Clarke, R. & Dyk, V. (2008). Introduction to Information Systems. Pearson Education South Africa (Pty) Ltd; South Africa. Rainer, R. K. & Cegielski, C. G. (2011). Introduction to Information Systems, 3rd Edtn.

John Wiley & Sons Inc.; U.S.A. Wigand, T. R. & etal. (2003). Introduction to Business Information Systems. Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg; Germany.