Information Management - Assignment Example

Running Head: INFORMATION MANAGEMENT Information Management of the of the Information Management Question Using the course concepts and theories from Block 6 analyse the information systems strategy of an organisation of your choice. Question 2 Critically evaluate how this organisation is responding to its changing environment by using information systems to rethink its business processes. Introduction Information is a basis of success every business’s success and each and it is something that every business of any scale must take account of. The meaning of information is any kind of data that is related with the business for example its sales, targets, expenses, earnings, customer service and reliability. (Laudon, 2004) One can call data as the raw form of information. Whereas, information is defines as the functional explanation of the data. This information needs to be managed, and proper management of information is so effective that it can transform a business operation, and improve outcomes and earnings to a great extent. (Chan, 2004, 312) Currently, this has been realized by the public sector that they will have to perk up their performance due to various initiatives taken by the government for example Public Performance Reporting. Moreover, application of present Modernizing agenda of government or information age government has made the things more serious. (Johnson, 2001) This was advised to all the business holders that all the services offered by them should be available electronically by year 2008. Hence, it has become necessary in order to achieve success in a business to employ most current technologies in order to manage its information, which will eventually serve as a powerful tool for the development of business in long run. (McKeown, 2003, 12) To develop effective information management system for businesses is extremely useful. It looks quite expensive initially but proves to be cost effective for the organisation in long run. It saves a lot of energy and time of both the employees and stakeholders. (Bogan, 2005) The best quality of information management system is it saves all the information gathered at one place. The British Councils library network is considered to possess the most modern library information management in the world. Almost every area, town and county of London is having a local library that is having valuable books to read and be issued by the readers/ users. Every year large number of new books is brought to the library stock. British public libraries contain the most superior of reading materials for the public. The libraries contain a most modern system that offers the excellent service and facilities, under the supervision of experienced, qualified and trained staff. From accessing the World Wide Web to aiding the development of children with multimedia, there are a range of services set to the maximum professional standards. For this reason, these libraries have always been regarded as more than just an ordinary lending library. Central Library of Croydon More than providing books and information, the British Council Libraries have raised the relationship between the people and literature. These libraries have become an essential component British citizen’s life.         In this paper, the management of information system used by the Central Library of Croydon, which is located at the Croydon Clock tower in Central Croydon in London Borough of Croydon, will be discussed. The library incorporates one of the most sophisticated library management tools used worldwide. (www.croydon.gov.uk, 2009) Some of the information management systems that constitute the core part of the functioning of the library will be discussed in this paper. Working of the Information Management System 1. Accessioning of a new book/journal/video cassette/CD A new book that has been acquired has to be entered into the records of the library. This is known as accessioning of a book. The information about the book as its title, author, publisher, price etc are stored and it is given a call number. This call number forms the primary key of the table "catalogue" in which this record of the book is stored. Once the database is updated, the book becomes a part of the librarys catalogue. A bar code is put on the book, as it is the means of accessing information about the book by using a bar code reader, at the time of issue. The book is covered with protective and transparent material. 2. Issue of a book/journal/video cassette/CD: A book can be issued to only one user at a time. At the time of issue, the Bar Code behind the book is read for relevant information about the book and its present status by using a Gun-Style Hand Held Bar Code Reader. (Griffiths, 2008, 147) The system automatically changes the status of the book to "issued" and also enters the due date in the system. Issue of a book also increments the number of books issued to a user in the user database. The bar code on the user membership card gives the information about the type of membership and for what duration the book can be issued. 3. Renewal of a book/journal/video cassette/CD A book can be renewed either through phone, mail or at the circulation counter of the library. First, it checks whether the user is eligible for renewal or not depending on the number of times the book has been re-issued or the requests pending from other users for this book. Renewal of the book simply resets the due date and records the renewal status. It also records any fine accrued in the user book table. 4. Return of a book/journal/video cassette/CD Return of a book makes many changes to the database. A book has to be returned in person. Returning book decrements the number of books issued to a user by one. The fine associated with the user and book pair has to be recovered at the time of return so that the entry in the table can be deleted. 5. Searching the catalog Catalog can be searched for Books, Video Cassettes, Journals and CDs by using the O-PAC. Searching the catalog can be done based on many criteria like title, author, call number, key word or book index. Each of these searches can be performed partially. The search result displays whether the book(s) is present in the library or not. Multiple entries matching the criteria are displayed sorted in the order of their call numbers. 6. Checking the status of the user account User account can be checked on-line by simply clicking on the status link in the navigation panel of the MIS. The library subsystem automatically gathers the users id and displays the status of the user along with the fine associated with each book issued to him/her. 7. Displaying recent arrivals Recent arrivals can be viewed by selecting the options of last week, month, year etc. These displays are done by searching the books database and comparing the accessioning date of each book with todays date. 8. Suggesting new purchases Users can suggest new additions to the library by clicking on the suggestion box. This needs the users id to be recorded along with the associated recommendation. 9. Reserving an issued book/journal/video cassette/CD         Users can also reserve a book, journal, cassette or a CD if the one they want is unavailable at the time they want it. As soon as their desired book, journal, cassette or CD is returned and he/she does not want to get it reissued or he cannot get it re-issued, the first one to reserve it gets intimation through post about the availability of the article. There is a waiting period of 5 days after which the article is made available to the next person who reserved it. 10. Miscellaneous         A Part of a book can be photocopied at a price of Rs.2 per Page and the information goes straight away to the database keeping a record of the number of photocopies.         In addition, one can use internet at a price and the information about the total usage goes to the database.         A Calendar of events can also be accessed through the terminals kept at various places in the library for browsing the catalogue. 11. Web Search         A web search is provided on the website at the address http://www.croydon.gov.uk/leisure/libraries/catalogue/ that can be used to browse through the library collections not only the ones in London but also the ones at other libraries in whole of UK. In addition, one can request for a book at some other library. Users and Services Users of the software can be classified into three categories: Role1 -----> Normal Users (Students, Faculty etc). Role2 -----> Clerical Staff of the Library. Role3 -----> Managerial Staff of the Library. The services to be provided for each role can now be listed as below: Role1: Users who log onto MIS with ROLE1 are normal users of the system. They wish to use the library itself and hence need to be provided the following services: 1.         Renewal of books. 2.         Check of User account status. 3.         Search System. 4.         Suggestion Box. 5.         Options for reserving an issued book. Role 2 Users who log onto MIS with ROLE2 are regular users of the system. They use the library software for the service of Users with ROLE1. The services provided are: 1.         Issue, Renewal and Return of books. 2.         Access to the User and Book Databases. 3.         Search System. 4.         Fine information. Role 3 Users with ROLE3 are managerial staff and hence use the system only occasionally. The services to be provided to them are of administrative nature like, Authorization of a new purchase etc. The library module thus interacts with the Accounts section and the Central Stores. Analysis Modeling Data Modeling  Identification of entities: Various entity sets in the system are: 1. Catalogue This entity models the books of the library and maintains details about book like title, author, publisher, price and information like whether the book is only for reference, whether the book has been issued already etc. 2. Library users This entity models the users of the library and maintains details about users like identification number, maximum number of books allowed, actual number of books issued to the user etc. Identification of relationships Various relationships among the entities of the system are: 1. User book The user book relationship stores the user id and the call number of the book for every book that is issued. The fine associated with each instance of a book issue is also stored. 2.         User recommendations: The user recommendation relationship maintains information about the recommendations made by users for new purchases by the library. Entity- Relationship Diagram Various attributes of the different entities of the system are shown in the section following. Design Data Design In data design, the entity relationship diagram is converted into database. Some other subsystems used in the library are: 1. Acquisition subsystem: It is used to place an order for new books and update library’s database by including these books into it. 2. Cataloguing subsystem The subsystem for cataloguing offers an on-line listing in a variety of orders present in a conventional library. This is in fact carried out by just storing the necessary information in the appropriate database. The books automatically come into the listing after coming into the database. 3. Circulation subsystem This subsystem performs very crucial task for the library that is to control various operations of the library for example renewal, return or reissuing of reading materials. It main function is to maintain the users’ records, reading materials or keeps the record in case of any fine if applicable. 4.  OPAC (On-line Public Access Catalogue) subsystem The OPAC subsystem offers the comprehensive search facilities. The searches can be done with information like author, title and many other heads. Apart from these subsystems, the services provided by the library include: 1.         Allowing the user to check the status of the account. 2.         Display of recent arrivals. Conclusion Hence, there are several reasons for information management implementation in an organisation. It provides an insight of the complete information of an organisation. It enables its employees and stakeholders an opportunity to keep an eye on the over all popularity and performance of organisation, most popular goods that they offer, existing loss or profits, workforce and the popularity of organisation amongst service users. By evaluating such information, one can easily find out about what is going correct within the organisation and what is wrong with it. Proper management of information helps individuals to figure out which department of organisation needs all over transformation and which one needs slight changes. Question 3 Write a short report (between 250–300 words) in which you reflect on what you have learned about how the functional theories you have read about in this block can be applied to the present case. How has your participation in this activity deepened your understanding? Answer A number of theories have been proposed that demonstrate the change caused due to the implementation of information systems in an organisation. Organisations pass through different phases while implementing information management into their systems. There are six phases that organisations go through while doing that. (Nolan, 1979, 115) These phases are: The first stage is characterized by the implementation of information operations due to employee’s interest to make their task easier, not to make things less costly for the organisation. The second stage is characrterised by the increase in the number of system users. The third stage involves the planning and methodologies, which are to control the usage and investment in technology. The fourth stage is the addition or improving information system by adding a number of computing functions within the organisation. The fifth stage is the proper administration of data. Organisation tries to improve its information management system according to its requirements. The sixth and last stage is the intelligent information management in order to utilize its effectiveness to carry out a number of processes within the organisation. This six-stage model is very effective since it makes it easier to categorize different organisations according to their information management stage and provides assistance in predicting their potential response to new Information Communications Technologies. Every organisation is different from one another regarding their information growth stage. Therefore, is the case with this library but one can easily classify Croydon Library to stand at the sixth stage of information management implementation because of its advanced implementation of information management technologies. References Bogan, Christopher E., English, Michael J. (2005). Benchmarking for best practices: winning through innovative adaptation. New York. McGraw-Hill. Brynjolfsson, E. and Hitt, L.M. (2000), ‘Beyond computation: information technology, organisational transformation and business performance.’ Journal of Economic Perspectives, 19, 4, 23–48. Chan, Peng, Land, Carl. (2004), ‘Implementing reengineering using information technology’. Business Process Management Journal; Volume 5 No. 4; p 311-324. Doherty, N.F., King, M. and Al-Mushayt, O, (2003) ‘The impact of inadequacies in the treatment of organisational issues on information systems development projects’ Information and Management, 41, 49–62. Griffiths, J. (2008) ‘Interview of a Senior Manager Croydon Library’, Journal Magazine. Pg 147 Johnson, Gerry., Scholes, Kevan. (2001), ‘Exploring public sector strategy’. Harlow. Pearson Education Ltd. Laudon, K.C. and Laudon, J.P. (2004) Management Information Systems: organisation and technology in the networked enterprise, Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ. McKeown, Ian, Philip, George. (2003) Business transformation, information technology and competitive strategies: learning to fly. International Journal of Information Management; Volume 23; p 3-24. Nolan. R, (1979) Managing the crisis in data processing. Harvard Business Review, March–April, p. 115. Ross, J.W. and Beath, C.M. (2002) New Approaches to IT Investment. MIT Sloan Management Review, 43, 2, 51–59. Website, (2009) www.croydon.gov.uk Read More