Data, Technology, People, and Organizational Components of Information Systems - Assignment Example

Theory Questions Name Student Number Date of Submission Table of Contents 1. References List 14 Information system can be defined in terms of functional perspective or structural perspective. In terms of functional perspective, an information system (IS) is a medium implemented technologically for the purpose of disseminating, storing and, recording linguistic expressions as well as supporting inference making[Tec12]. In terms of structural perspective, an IS comprises a collection of technology, models, data, processes, people, and partially formalized language to form a cohesive structure that serves some organization function or purpose. Components: a) Data- data resources include database and data itself (data is the raw material of IS). Data take many forms to describe business transactions and other entities and events. The data resources of IS are usually classified into organized and processed data (databases) and knowledge in several forms such as rules, facts, and case examples concerning successful business practices. b) Technology- one of the tool that assist managers to cope with the change is the information systems technology. A Computer Based Information System (CBIS) uses computer telecommunication, storage, software, and hardware technologies. Telecommunication technologies refer to the communications media and network support used in CBIS. Hardware refers to physical computer equipment and associated media, machines, and devices. Software are programs and procedures[Sar12]. c) People- for a computer based information system to be useful, it requires people. This is the most overlooked component of IS, but people are likely the component that mostly determine the success or failure of IS. Some of the people associated with CBIS include database administrators, system analysts, programmers, end users, IS specialists among others[Sar12]. d) Organization- an information system is a component of an organization. In fact, for some organizations such as credit reporting firms cannot operate without an information system. The main components of an organization include culture and politics, operating and structure procedures, and its people. Formal organizations consist of different specialties and levels. Their structures show a visible division of labor experts trained and employed for different functions such as human resources, accounting, finance, manufacturing, and sales and marketing. Formal standards operating procedures are used to coordinate work in an organization through a structured hierarchy. People are arranged in the hierarchy in a pyramidal structure of rising responsibility and authority. The higher level of the hierarchy comprises executive, managerial, technical and professional employees, while the lower levels comprise operational personnel. 1. Four examples of Information systems are: Management Information System, Knowledge management System, Customer Relationship Management system and Supply chain management system. For each information system: Describe the functions of the system Explain broad areas or fields in which the system is used and how the system has improved or changed the way work is done in that area. a) Management Information System It is a computer system that stores and shares information on how an organization should be successfully managed. It is normally viewed as a subset of the business internal controls. Management information systems store data of various categories such as procedures, documents, people and technologies. MIS is a methodical and efficient approach to collect, store, and process raw data that emphasizes what is supposed to be done so as to handle a firm effectively. In the past, data was manually inputted and consulted, meaning that there was delays and risk of human errors regarding organizing data into proper reports to ease management functions. Nevertheless, advancement of management information systems into a better organized procedure has improved the manner in which businesses are run. MIS are faster and more systematic as compared to manual consulting and handling. MIS can analyze and assemble raw data stored into reports outlining trends and patterns in organization functions and decision making. Managers can use these reports to properly plan and direct business activities. These reports may also show hypothetical scenarios that result from eventual management-changing decisions. Hence, MIS saves time, helps managers in making informed decisions quickly, and also assists those with authorization to the information to understand the enterprise better and the industry it is in. b) Knowledge Management System The goal of Knowledge Management System (KMS) is to support knowledge creation, transfer, and application within an organization. KMS exist to assist businesses generate and share information. They are usually used in organizations where employees generate new expertise and knowledge, which may then be shared by other employees in the organization to develop additional commercial opportunities. Examples of firms that apply KMS include lawyers firms, management and accountants’ consultants (John & Leidner, 2001). Knowledge Management Systems are established around systems that allow effective distribution and categorization of knowledge. For instance, the knowledge itself can be contained in internet pages, PowerPoint presentations, spreadsheets, word processing documents or anything else (John & Leidner, 2001). A knowledge management system use group collaboration systems such as an intranet to share the knowledge. c) Customer Relationship Management System Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system is a computer system that assist an enterprise manage customer relationships in an organized manner. For instance, an enterprise can establish a database concerning its customers that describes relationships with adequate details so that service providers, salespeople, management and sometimes customers can access information directly, match customer’s needs with product offerings and plans, know about products purchased by a customer, remind customers of service requirements, and so forth[Rog07]. CRM assist an enterprise to allow its marketing departments to target and identify their best customers, generate quality lead for the sales team, and manage marketing campaigns. It also assists an organization in improving sales management, account, and telesales by optimizing information shared among several employees and streaming existing processes. CRM are very important because they help in forming individualized relationships with customers with an aim of improving customer satisfaction and increasing profits; to identify the most profitable customers and to provide them the highest level of service. CRM also provide employees with information and processes required to identify, understand and know their customer needs. This builds effective relationships between the customers, company and the distribution partners. Many organizations are using CRM software to assist them manage their customer relationships. CRM technology is normally offered on-demand, on-premise or by Software as a Service (SaaS) CRM, as determined by the vendor. Currently, open source CRM and mobile CRM software model have gained popularity among CRMs[Rog07]. d) Supply Chain Management System Supply chain management system is a computer system that assists in management of supply chain activities so as maximize customer value and acquire a sustainable competitive advantage. Supply chain activities include everything from production, logistics, sourcing, product development, and the information systems required to coordinate these activities[Rob112]. The organizations making up a supply chain are normally connected together by information flows and physical flows. Information flows helps the supply chain partners to control their daily flow of materials and goods up and down the supply chain, as well as coordinating their long-term plans. Physical flows are the most visible piece of the supply chain and involve movement, transformation, and storage of materials and goods. 3. What is cloud computing? Discuss its characteristics and issues to be considered by an organization when considering use of cloud computing. List two example cloud computing services for personal use. Cloud computing is the use of software and hardware resources that are offered as services over the network. These services usually provide access to high-end networks of server computers and advanced software applications. Cloud storage provides the ability to store large amount of unstructured or structured data in a way that promises high levels of performance, scalability and availability (Gordon & Marchesini, 2010). Besides protection, cloud storage also offer convenient accessibility to the information stored. One is able to access his/her important information no matter where he is provided there is a network connection. You can access and edit your information by the use of a smartphone, iPhone or a personal computer from wherever you are. Cloud computing has promised a more cost effective and efficient way of making use of the available technological resources (software applications and IT infrastructure) (Gordon & Marchesini, 2010). It is possible to instantly access large amount of data stored securely on remote servers at a sound cost. It allows consumers to use applications when they require them, rather than purchasing expensive software. Issues to consider when using cloud computing is the risks associated with it. Interfaces to data storage systems can be easily exploited by attackers to gain unauthorized access if not used correctly. Introduction of data and computing services in a cloud service provider circumstance put the customer’s information at risk because it is exposed to a new set of vulnerabilities and threats (Gordon & Marchesini, 2010). Cloud storage service providers should ensure that all the applications they offer are well protected and cannot allow unauthorized access by other users or applications. Examples of cloud services for personal use include: E-Mail Social networking 4. View the following sites: www.informationweek.com; www.itwire.com www.delimiter.com.au www.computerworld.com.au Then write a paragraph on which technologies and issues seem to be current (‘hot’) at the moment, and which seem to be most important to business managers, according to each of these sites. The four sites offer a number of issues which are very critical to business managers. For instance, in itwire.com, there is an article advising businesses that use cloud computing to store their data to always ensure that they encrypt it themselves before entrusting it to their cloud service provider. Another article in informationweek.com is urging corporates to adopt Open Source Hardware information technologies as this will be the next big thing where early adopters will reap business benefits. In computerworld.com, there is an article discussing how SAP has started offering mobile device management on Amazon’s cloud. This service will benefit enterprises that do not want to implement their own device management infrastructure in-house. In delimiter.com.au, there is an article informing how IT outsourcing contracts and negotiations will continue to get more complex due to issues such as pricing models, contract structure, service levels and global sourcing. 5. List the Latest version of three popularly used operating systems in personal computers. Discuss the features of the operating system you would prefer and why. Latest version of three popularly used operating systems in personal computers includes: OS X Mountain Lion (version 10.8) Windows 8 Linux One of the reasons why I prefer Windows 8 is that it has a Modern User Interface. This interface is marvelous as it is designed to be used mouse, touchscreens, and keyboard. Some of the unique features of Windows 8 are described below: Modern UI: this is viewed as full-screen Start menu. The Start screen is substantially designed and displays much more information. Some of the applications on the Start screen display live information[Pet121]. New Login Methods: It is possible for the user to login using a Picture password or four digit pin code. Through the mouse or touch screen, one can set password to consist of a set of simple geometric gestures over a picture one chooses. Currently this feature only distinguishes very simple gestures such as lines and curves[Pet121]. Windows Store: Windows applications can be downloaded through the new Windows Store. This feature is similar to Google’s Play store or Apple’s App Store. Easy Restore: In Windows 8, system recovery has been simplified and streamlined, and the options have been limited to ‘Refresh’ and ‘Reset’[Pet121]. Windows Live ID: This feature allows users to have one login across multiple devices provided there is an internet connection. USB 3.0: This feature is up to ten times faster than USB 2.0 and assists to improve battery life and power management. Windows 8 support both USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 6. You are hired as an enterprise consultant by a leading financial institution. While doing requirement study, you notice that the company is using a number of legacy systems. Identify the challenges that you would face in converting these legacy systems to enterprise applications. Challenges that I would face while converting these legacy systems to enterprise applications include[OLA04]: To assemble a data conversion team To establish a data conversion environment To collect/extract data from various platforms/sources To define and control base system values Defaulting values Client involvement/participation during data conversion To complete an effective Business Process Review (BPR) To maintain review and sign-off of data Project planning/Load planning To manage multiple regions Referential integrity/Data integrity Loading the data (load programs, error analysis, inserts) System testing and checkout 7. What are intelligent systems? Discuss the different types of intelligent systems and their use in different fields. Intelligent systems can be described as computing systems that are capable of learning and taking action on basis of experience. Examples of intelligent systems include: Modeling intelligent systems: modeling can be described as a representation of the available information. Intelligent systems use generalization and robustness for modeling. Techniques used for modeling include expert systems, fuzzy logic, neural networks, among others[Kri03]. Modeling intelligent systems can be used in aerospace applications such as flight data modeling, operator behavior modeling, aerodynamic modeling for design, etc. Search intelligent systems: search techniques are used in problems where there is need to determine the possibility of reaching the desired goal state from an initial state, with an aim of minimizing the cost of reaching the goal state, etc. search techniques are used in combinatorial optimization such as tasks of building a combat tactics plan[Kri03]. Design intelligent systems: These systems can be used in several applications because they assist in designing things. Control intelligent systems: The intelligent control has two main aspects namely the intelligence to analyze the changing environment and the resources to respond to the changing environment. Intelligent control can be applied in many fields such as linear control, non-linear control, stochastic control, optimal control, neural control, robust control, genetic and fuzzy control. Training intelligent systems: several characteristics of intelligent systems are freely applicable in training. For instance, intelligent systems for training can be used in training pilots. Other forms of intelligent systems include[Kri03]: Intelligent Systems for Autonomous Agents Intelligent Systems for Decision Making Intelligent systems for planning and scheduling Intelligent systems for health management Intelligent systems for prediction Intelligent systems for knowledge discovery 8. Explain the concept of “web services” and why they are important to e-businesses. Web services denote a family of technologies that are capable of standardizing the communication of applications universally so as to link customers, business partners, and systems cost-effectively through the WWW (World Wide Web). The web service is an important mechanism for interoperation between independently established distributed applications in a dynamic e-business environment. They are self-describing, self-contained modular applications that can be invoked, located, and published across the web (Bakir & Ying, 2011). They perform simple to complex business processes and once they are deployed, other applications are capable of discovering and invoking the deployed service (Bakir & Ying, 2011). Web services use a standardized XML messaging system to encode all communications to a web service. Major software vendors are taking on Web services standards and are developing new tool or products that are Web services enabled. Web services will reduce the constraints of space, cost, and time for conducting, negotiating, and discovering e-business transactions. Due to this, Web services will alter the manner in which businesses conduct e-business transactions, manage business process workflows, integrate with other business entities, and design their applications as services. Businesses are motivated to adopt Web services for a number of reasons that include lower development costs, application re-use, flexibility, streamlined processes, interoperability, standardized protocol, automatic discovery, and smooth integration (Bakir & Ying, 2011). Web services are viewed as the technology that will bridge the gap between business and information technology (IT). 9. Do you think that educational institutions should be allowed to monitor e-mail sent and received on school computers? Why or why not? Do you think that any e-mail messages sent or received over a computer at work should be considered company property? Why or why not? In my opinion, education institutions should be allowed to monitor email sent and received on school computers because the institution legally owns the electronic equipment used to create and store emails on their servers. Hence, they have the right to know what is trading in their servers. Through monitoring, the institution would be in a position to identify issues such as students-staff conflicts or staff-staff conflicts and know how to settle them. The institution is also entitled to monitor the mails as a protective measure to protect itself from potential litigation from teaching and non-teaching staff as well as students who might take advantage of the free internet to litigate the institution. Any email sent or received over a computer at work should be treated as the company property so that the owners of the network can have right to access them. This will help them to investigate possible employee misconduct such as sharing confidential information or operating a separate business on company time. Company owners/employers will also be able to verify absences through the access to these mails[Hei121]. The information gathered through the internet activity monitoring should be considered as the company property, although some communications might be more sensitive than others prompting the employers to have a word with the employees who have sent such emails. This will help the employers understand the reason behind sending sensitive information. 10. List the different types of technological safeguards employed by organizations. Also explain encryption and how does it help to secure information by taking any popular encryption software as an example. Types of technological safeguards used by organizations include (Yawut & Keawpipop, 2011): Firewalls Intrusion detection and prevention systems Penetration testing and vulnerability scanning Encryption Multifactor authentication Antivirus and patches Access control Privileged accounts Activity logging and monitoring Change management Backup and restore Encryption refers to the process of encoding information or messages in such a way that hackers or eavesdroppers are unable to read it, and only the authorized person can read it. The information or message commonly referred to as plaintext is encrypted by the use of an encryption algorithm to form unreadable information (referred to as ciphertext) (Yawut & Keawpipop, 2011). The encryption process is done using an encryption key, which elaborates how the information is to be encoded. The authorized receiving party would be able to decode the ciphertext through the use of a decryption algorithm that normally needs a secret decryption key, that any unauthorized party do not have access to (Yawut & Keawpipop, 2011). References List Tec12: , (TechTerms, 2012; Faud, 2012), Sar12: , (Faud, 2012), Rog07: , (Trapp, 2007), Rob112: , (Handfield, 2011), Pet121: , (Dreyer, 2012), OLA04: , (OLAV & CO., INC, 2004), Kri03: , (Kumar, 2003), Hei121: , (Tschabitscher, 2012), Read More