Operations and IT Management - Research Paper Example

Project 506283 Topic: "Does the information lifecycle approach eliminate conflicts between operations managers and information technology managers?"  Information professionals are often called to resolve issues whenever corporations and firms start to integrate international business operations— often characterized with complex operations spanning different cultures, time zones and business streams. (McNamara, 2011) To date, information technology has offered a ‘cost efficient and labor effective’ tools or instruments for data administration but the implementation of information integration is complex and is challenging (McNamara, 2011).

Imagine corporation starting making tradeoffs across geographic locations as borderless economy widened markets and problems from marketing operations and communications resulting thereof could be daunting. In some context, these could result to conflicts between corporate operation managers and information technology managers. This is because global markets vary in “currencies, telecommunications, languages, laws and practices” and at such complex situation may result to conflicts and frustrations (McNamara, 2011) .

It is in this context that Information Lifecycle Management (ILM), a practice of employing policies for effective information management through its ‘useful life’, is introduced to resolve potential and escalating conflicts between operation and information managers of a company or firm (Robbins, 2006). ILM offers a Records and Information Management (RIM) for 30 years already and had its roots from information management using microfilm, negatives, photographs, audio or video recordings and other assets including video lifecycle management (Longley and Shain, 1985).

ILM documents or records business transactions and cover “policies, processes, practices, and tools used to align the business value of information with the most appropriate and cost effective IT infrastructure from the time information is conceived through its final disposition” (Robbins, 2006). It also support business processes following business policies and services that directly relates with “applications, metadata, information, and data” (Robbins, 2006). The documentations and recording is useful as support mechanism especially on project management that is based on risk management (Robbins, 2006).

Risk management required that “projects be planned, organized and structured to ensure success from their initial organization and planning through design, development and implementation” (Stoneburner, Goguen, and Feringa, 2002) It provides a process which involved resolution of all threats against project’s success. Information management is also vital in successful risk management because the process of its resolution need thorough understanding of project’s risks including its complexity, changes in the business function, employment of new technology, number of organizations involved, including the skills and knowledge of teams (Stoneburner, 2002).

As managers predict complexity of problems, considering rapid changes of economic and political climate such as “changes in the organization of the department, ILM can help secure the rapid changes of information in business processes, technology handling, project team management , and other changes affecting the contractor” (Forrester Research, 2011). The process of risk mitigation can be a subject of ILM documentation too to record evidences on how risks were mitigated. ILM is equally useful to in cases where there are inevitable changes of management (Forrester Research, 2011).

The ILM could help record all the processes to “ensure that changes are analyzed quickly to determine their impact (risk, cost and time) and that this information is brought to the attention of the appropriate level of management soonest” (Forrester Research, 2011). Meanwhile, as information managers can do their works with so much ease, operations management can also focus on carefully managing the processes of production, distribution, and other services that include product development.

With systematized information documentation and operation at one end, the operation managers can take competitive edge “in managing purchases, inventory control, quality control, storage, logistics and evaluations of processes” (Forrester Research, 2011). The management can also deal uprightly over concerns and “purchasing, control and coordinating function of management, and in the management of product and service, quality, inventory, supply chain, logistics and transportation, facilities, configuration, and enterprise resource planning“(Forrester Research, 2011).

Through ILM’s systemic information management, it is likely that there will be better working relations between information and operation managers of a company or of a firm. Risks will be easily assessed by reviewing all recorded information from the database and decisions can be done judiciously and fairly. With less conflict and constraints, workers motivation to work will be improved and they will have high probability for achievement. As such, employers will be able to meet diligently the aims or objectives of the corporations with the aid of standardized information management tools.

They will also be able to promote their best practices, principles, methodologies, tools and standards to other corporations who are in need of their technical enlightenment as proof that the use of information technology, through ILM, in managing information aided them in efficiently and effectively rendering their services to clients. REFERENCES Carter McNamara, (2011) Operations Management. Free Management Library. http://www.managementhelp.org/ops_mgnt/ops_mgnt.htm. Accessed March 6, 2011.

Stever Robbins (2006). Understand What Motivates Your Boss. Harvard Business School: Working Knowledge (For Business Leaders). http://hbswk.hbs.edu/archive/5252.html March 6, 2011. Gary Stoneburner, Alice Goguen, and Alexis Feringa. (2002) Risk Management Guide for Information Technology Systems. Recommendations of the National Institute of Standards and Technology. National Institute of Standards and Technology Gaithersburg, MD Forrester Research (2011). Navigating IT Management: An Overview.

CBS Interactive Longley, Dennis; Shain, Michael (1985), Dictionary of Information Technology (2 ed.), Macmillan Press, ISBN 0-333-37260-3