Management Information - Essay Example

Running head: Case Study: Management Information Case Study: Management Information s Information technology management is a combination of two branches of study, Information technology and Management. This aims at achieving the goals and objectives of an organisation through computers. Also called IT management, this name is a common business function within corporations. Strictly speaking, there are two incarnations to this definition. One implies the management of a collection of systems, infrastructure, and information that resides on them. Another implies the management of Information Technologies as a business function. (Wikipedia, 2005) Information Systems (IS) is serving the purpose of organisational and managerial needs by applying Information Technology. It is very important for an IT specialist to know the needs of the organisation and to use and implement the Information Technology to get the best from its use. The strength of most of the businesses lies in the most appropriate use of technology. This not only gives them the cutting edge but also help them to compete successfully in the marketplace or to streamline current operations. IT professionals utilise their business-based backgrounds in working with managers and users to specify technology needs that benefits the organisation. In addition, they write programs to codify that technology and later manage it. As such, the IS professional might develop code for business transaction processing systems, client/server systems or end-user support systems; they might implement such systems in languages as COBOL, C++, Visual Basic or JAVA. IS specialists also design and administer databases and data warehouses, analyse and implement enterprise-wide solutions to information problems and manage telecommunications efforts. Some IS specialists implement and manage corporate-wide Intranets. Finally, IS specialists can also provide project management skills, technical writing or training by melding their knowledge of information technology and business processes. Management information system (MIS) is a computer-based system that makes information available to users with similar needs. The users usually compose a formal organisational entity-the firm or a subsidiary sub-unit. The information describes the firm or one of its major systems in terms of what has happened in the past, what is happening now, and what is likely to happen in the future. The information is made available in the form of periodic reports, special reports, and outputs of mathematical simulations. Both managers and non-managers use the information output as they make decisions to solve the firm's problems. The database contains the data provided by the AIS. In addition both data and information are entered from the environment. Software that produces periodic and special reports, as well as mathematical models that simulate various aspects of the firm's operations uses the database contents. Persons who are responsible for solving the firm's problems use the software outputs. Some of the problem solvers can exist within the firm's environment. The environment becomes involved when the firm brands together with such other organisations as suppliers to form an inter-organisational information system (IOS). In that case, the MIS supplies information to the other members of the IOS. As firms gained experience in implementing company-wide MIS designs, managers in certain areas began applying the concept to their own needs. These functional information systems, or subsets of the MIS that are tailored to meet users' needs for information concerning functional areas, received much publicity in some areas and somewhat less in other. Leverage learning curve advantages from experience with IT. As a company gains experience using IT systems, they become familiar with a set of best practices that do other firms in the industry know more or less. Firms outside the industry are generally not familiar with the industry specific aspects of using these systems. New entrants will be at a disadvantage unless they can redefine the industries best practices and leapfrog existing firms. (Wikipedia, 2005) The system required in school for the teachers and students in the school is a simple one. It will just require the solution database, SQL server that are a part of windows server system will hold the information about the school. SQL server offers rich data analysis and data mining capabilities that integrate with familiar applications such as Microsoft Office. SQL server will be hosted centrally on a cluster of hardware devices, enabling the addition of new servers to the cluster on an incremental basis. This makes solution highly reliable and able to scale to accommodate future expansion. (Idea taken from Meldum Academy, 2003) Benefits: The security of data will be achieved through the implementation of the software. Students will be able to get the on line access from their homes. The easy and simple way of log in will help all the faculty members and the students in going through educational processes. Word and Excel could be easily used in order to prepare reports. Any change in the data will be easy to maintain Easy dispatch of reports to the parents and maintenance of the online track record will be possible. On line database for students will be available about their lesson, which will help them in doing home assignments. The decision of designing the same technology for Canon and the educational organisation is wrong. Both the organisations differ in their needs and level. The information system needed in Canon will be much more complex and at high technical level since it will be used by the professional IT professionals. The information transferred by the IS in Canon will be of different status. Since Canon is an IT solution provider therefore the Departments involved in the whole organisational process will be entirely different. On the other hand a simply designed software and htm. Will be quiet sufficient in order to fulfil the requirements of an educational organisation. The second difference is that it will be in use of the people who do not have expertise in using the information technology. So the same IS cannot be used in both the organisations. The cutting edge of Canon has remained its competitive prices of products. But in the case the price of the proposed MIS will be essentially high due to its technological advancement, which will be of no use for the educational Institution. Again the educational institution will have to bear the additional cost required in order to train its staff and students to use such advanced technology. Another point, which should not be forgotten that the educational institute would not have high tech set up available with them as the Canon, will have. And last but not least the maintenance of such high tech system will be far out of the reach of the schools since most of them have limited budget. So, in order to provide these schools with the right product Canon has to just keep in view their requirements level and their budget. Since it will not be beneficial at any cost to get a work done in a much more expensive way as it was getting done in a cheaper way. Following are the few techniques, which can be used in order to make the proposed technology useable in the schools. Consolidation: Reducing the number of separate locations where information resources are located can follow a consolidation strategy. The reasoning is that a few large concentrations of resources can operate more efficiently than many smaller ones. This strategy is easiest to achieve in terms of the information resources within IS. This is where most of the resources are located, and they may be scattered over a wide area in the form of regional data centres and the like. Consolidation is more difficult for an information resource located in user areas, where any strategy that is perceived as a constraint on end-user computing is met with resistance. Downsizing: (Sadhwani, Bindiganavale, Vijayaraman, and Ramakrishna) states that downsizing is the transfer of the firm's computer-based applications from large equipment configurations, such as mainframes, to smaller platforms, such as minicomputers, PC-based LANs, and UNIX-based workstations. In some cases, the smaller platforms remain in IS, and in other cases, they are located in user areas. This move to less expensive, yet powerful, smaller systems has been called smart- Sizing. (Critical Success Factors in Downsizing, 1993) Downsizing advantages: Although downsizing is usually linked with cost-reduction, there are several other advantages to the process. By switching to popular platforms such as PCs and locating them in user areas, the users see the systems as being more users friendly. The users therefore are able to increase their productivity. Users participate more in system development, decreasing the time required to get systems on the air and establishing better relationships with IS. Downsizing Risks: Downsizing also has its risks. The big issue is loss of security, followed by the possibility of reduced data integrity and the difficulty of disaster recovery. These risks are not derived so much from the use of smaller systems but from the location of those systems in user areas rather than in IS. The risks are not nearly so great when the equipment remains in IS. Although users may see cost reduction as an advantage of secondary importance, top-level management sees it otherwise; practically ensuring that downsizing will continue to be a viable strategy. Outsourcing A cost-cutting measure that can have a greater impact on IS than downsizing is outsourcing. Outsourcing is the contracting out of all or a portion of a firm's computer operation to an outside service organisation. Although outsourcing is receiving much current attention, it is a product of the 1960s. It was during this period that Ross Perot formed electronic data systems, or EDS. Perot convinced such organisations as life insurance companies and the federal government that his firm could process their data at a lower cost than they could, and many organisations took his offer. An outsourcer can be defined as a computer services firms that performs part or all of a customer firm's computing for a long period of time, such as five or then years, as specified by a written contract. Outsourcing Service: (Apte and Winniford, 1991) listed the services offered by outsourcers include the following: Data entry and simple processing Contract programming Facilities management Systems integration Support operation for maintenance, service, or disaster recovery Facilities management (FM) is the complete operation of a computing centre. Systems integration (SI) is the performance of all the tasks of the system development life cycle. Once the system is implemented, the SI outsourcer turns it over to the customer. Outsourcing Advantages: Like downsizing, outsourcing is viewed as a way to reduce costs, but it offers other advantages as well. By entering into a contract with the outsourcer, the firm can more accurately predict its future costs. Also, when maintenance of existing systems is outsourced, management can focus all of its attention on the development of new strategic systems. Finally, outsourcing provides a way for firms to acquire access to leading-edge technology and know-how that they otherwise would not be able to afford. Outsourcing Risks: Many CIOs are hesitant to give their approval to long-term outsourcing contracts because they do not want to be at the mercy of an outside organisation. Once the firm gives up its computing capability, it is difficult to rebuild it quickly should that become necessary. Also, some firms have developed leading-edge-computing capabilities that provide a competitive advantage, and they are hesitant to hand them over to outsourcers. This practice of keeping computer work inside the company is especially strong for applications that have strategic value, such as executive information systems and manufacturing resource-planning systems. As the competition among outsourcers gets keener, they will lower their prices and reduce the length of the contracts, making outsourcing more attractive, CIOs as a group, however, will probably always consider the alternative very carefully and only outsource those tasks that are clearly in the best long-term interests of the firm. Putting the Cost Reduction Strategies in Perspective: For the right services, under the right conditions, outsourcing can be a wise decision. But if outsourcing is not pursued carefully, the firm can find itself with a totally inadequate CBIS. The alternatives of consolidation and downsizing are less risky. Firms are likely to follow all three strategies in some combination. All reflect the fact that top-level management is keenly aware of the CBIS as an organisational resource and is not hesitant to make strategic decisions concerning this resource. Even though some of the decisions go counter to what the CIO would prefer, such executive awareness and involvement cannot be all bad. References Arjan Sadhwani, Bindiganavale S. Vijayaraman, and H.V. Ramakrishna, An Empirical Study of Information Systems Downsizing, in proceedings of the Tentb Information Systems Education Conference (ISECON) {Park Ridge, IL: DPMA Educational Foundation}, 55-61 Apte, U., and Winniford, M., (1991). Global outsourcing of Information Systems Functions: Opportunities and Challenges, in Managing information Technology in a Global Society, ed. Mehdi Khosrowpour, Harrisburg, PA: Idea group Publishing, 58-59 Critical Success Factors in Downsizing, (1993). Datamation 39 (October 15, 1993), S2 Meldum Academy, 2008, community school tops the class, published: June 2003, retrieved as on SQL server 2000 December 04, 2005 from, Wikipedia, (2005). Management information system, the free encyclopaedia, page last modified 18:25, 31 December 2005, retrieved as on January 04,2005 from Wikipedia, (2005). Information Technology, the free encyclopaedia, page last modified 12:08, 7 November 2005, retrieved as on December 04, 2005 from Read More