Information systems in organizations

• The text discusses information systems and people.

Key Questions and Concepts

• The chapter explores the main roles of information systems in organizations.
• It distinguishes between data, information, knowledge, and wisdom.
• The components of an information system are described, along with their roles.
• Promises and perils are presented, as well as ethical questions posed by information systems.

Digital Transformation

• Organizations use digital technologies to develop new business models.
• This includes integrating technologies into relationships with customers, suppliers, and partners.

Major Roles of Information Systems in Organizations

• Managing operations involves functions to deliver goods and services, including compliance and industry-specific operations.
• Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems support customer interactions by building and maintaining relationships via web-based front offices and online self-service.
• Data-driven decision making uses business intelligence drawn from internal and external sources.
• Teams collaborate using social networks and online communities, where people create profiles, form ties, and share interests.
• Competitive advantage is gained through the development and application of innovative information systems.
• Individual productivity improves with computer software and electronic devices.

Information Value

• Timeliness is important, but real-time data often costs more.
• Accuracy is crucial, balancing it with timeliness to avoid delays.
• Completeness adds value, but striving for it can cause delays.

Nature of Information

• Data = individual facts or pieces of information.
• Information = data that is assembled or analyzed for meaning and usefulness.
• Through refining and analysis, information becomes increasingly useful for decision-making and action.

Information System (IS)

• An IS allows people to produce timely, accurate, and complete information, using technology, processes, and procedures to transform data into information and knowledge.
• Information systems bring together critical components to collect, process, manage, analyze, and distribute information.

IS Components

• People are involved, including leaders, managers, staff, the IT team, and users.
• User-generated content (UGC) is contributed by system users.
• Technology includes hardware, software, and telecommunications.
• Information Technology (IT) refers to the hardware, software, and telecommunications that comprise the technology component of information systems.
• Information And Communications Technology (ICT) encompasses information processing and communications technologies, emphasizing telecommunication.
• The Internet of Things (IoT) features physical objects with sensors and technology to collect and exchange data.
• Processes are sets of activities to achieve tasks, supported by business process management.
• Data is the raw ingredient, converted into digital format, integrated, and shared.
• Management Information Systems (MIS) studies how people, technology, processes, and data work together.

IS in Various Sectors

• Information systems are used differently depending on the sector, like marketing, finance, HR, sales, manufacturing, and entrepreneurship
• In nonprofits and government, information systems are used for fundraising, updates, and micro-volunteering.
• The Chief Information Officer (CIO) leads the IT department.
• A Crisis Management Team addresses threats from unforeseen circumstances.

Chapter 1 Summary

• Digital transformation and information systems impact business operations, customer interactions, decision-making, collaboration, strategy, and productivity.
• Data evolves into information and knowledge through assembly and analysis.
• Key information traits are timeliness, accuracy, and completeness.
• Information systems consist of people, technology, processes, and data.
• Early systems posed risks and ethical concerns.

Chapter 2: Information Systems & Strategy

• Strategy: A plan to achieve goals, recognizing potential advantages and disadvantages.
• Material aspects involve adapting to maximize advantages and minimize disadvantages.
• Strategies rely on IS, transform industries & help nonprofits achieve missions.

External Factors

• Factors that affect how the five forces operate: disruptive innovations, policies, complementary services & environmental events.
• Disruptive innovations reshape industries through technology.
• Sustaining technologies improve processes and yield marginal gains.
• Government policies impact market dynamics via regulations.

Complementary Services

• They enhance primary offerings by fulfilling ancillary needs.
• Ecosystems are economic communities involving related industries and consumers.
• Environmental events (e.g., disasters) disrupt industries, requiring strategic adaptation.

Competitive Strategies include

• Low-cost leadership.
• Differentiation.
• Focused strategies.

Low-Cost Strategies

• They produce similar products at lower prices via automation and efficiency.
• Differentiation provides unique features to justify higher prices and limit competition.
• Focused strategies target specific market niches.
• Value Chain Model (Michael Porter): Describes how companies create value by transforming resources.
• Primary activities relate directly to creating, marketing, selling, and delivering products/services.
• Support activities aid primary activities through administration, HR, procurement, and technology.

External Value Chain

• Includes suppliers and customers, offering chances for strategic moves.
• IT spending allocates resources into running, growing, and transforming businesses.
• Strategic enablement involves using IS to grow or transform a business model.

IT Benchmarks

• They assess extended value chains by comparing across industries and regions.
• Five Forces: New entrants, buyers, suppliers, substitutes, rivalry = influence competition.

New Entrants

• They pose a threat, eased by network effects but increased by switching costs.
• Network effects: Product/service value grows with more users.
• Power of Buyers: Leverage influences deep discounts.

Power of Suppliers

• Supplier are in full control and impose switching costs.
• Substitutes offer alternatives at attractive savings & affect the threat.
• Rivalry: Intense competition lowers industry profitability.

IS Integration

• Integrating IS into strategy relies on automating processes and innovating.
• Increasing public access via e-government improves services through online interactions.

Chapter 2 Summary

• Data, information, and knowledge are resources used to create value (data is raw facts, information is assembled data, and knowledge is the application of information)
• Effective decisions hinge on the combination of timeliness, accuracy, and completeness.
• Data's usefulness depends on whether the data is accurate, precise, complete, consistent, and timely, while remaining non-biased and without duplications.

Chapter 3: Information Communications Technology: The Enterprise Architecture

• Enterprise architecture integrates key considerations to achieve goals.
• Each element is part of the larger business strategy, and technological framework.
• Key hardware: computer

Computer: Key hardware components include

• Input
• Processing (CPU)
• Output
• Storage

Common Storage options include

• Primary Storage
• Secondary Storage
• In-memory components dramatically speed up performance but are more expensive
• Key concepts are measured in Bytes

The computer carries out tasks with the aid of software, types include

• Application Software
• System Software
• Operating Systems
• Utility Software

How is software created

• Source Code: -Is written using programming language and tools -Tells the device how to use and process data
• Open Source: Is software allowing user modification
• Commercial off the shelf (COTS). Ready to install and use
• SaaS: Software available via the internet

Networks

Key definitions- A group of interconnected devices.

Networking is accomplished through

• Transmissions: Wired, and Wireless via radio waves
• Communication via: Standards Protocols

Network Metrics defined

• Bits per Second (BPS)
• Bandwidth

Communication methods (Key Definitions)

• Wired Transmissions -Twisted-pair wires -Coaxial cables -Optical fiber

Transmissions

• Wireless media such as microwaves -Wi-Fi -Bluetooth

Types of Networks (based on geographic area)

• Local area network (LAN). Small set of connected devices
• VoIP: technology for packet based voice transmissions, mainly used over the internet
• Client-server / Peer 2 Peer

Wireless Standards include

• Ethernet
• TCP/ IP

Topologies

• TCP: Transmission Control is made of smaller groups
• IP is the standard protocol for the internet
• Enterprise architecture is a roadmap for technological planning

Trends include:

• Personal Computing
• Client-Server
• Cloud Computing
• Virtualization

Key concepts from the third chapter

• Input, output, storage and processing technologies
• Types of computing include mainframes, and desktops (among many others)
• Software handles all sorts of basic functions on a device
• Data and voice transmissions enable fast communication

Chapter 4: Databases & Data Warehouses

• Information Types: Structured, Unstructured and Semi-Structured
• Structured: Easy to break down into logical components
• Unstructured: No apparent components
• Semi-Structured: Some inherit organization of data

Metadata

• data describing the data.
• Accuracy measures the data point
• Precision determines how correct the data is
• Completeness ensures all related fields are present

File Management

• filing cabinets to database. Managing information is more than just storing physical data
• Key Terms: Table, Record, Field
• Batch Processing: Carrying out individual tasks sequentially within a large set of procedures and parameters.
• The downfall of file processing is largely due to: Data Redundancy, Data Integrity, and Data Dependence.

Database Basics

• The data is logically related
• Information retrieval is fast
• Data redundancy is minimized.

To achieve all of these goals, software is used to manage the data; A "Database Management System", the software package is responsible for:

• Security
• Data Retrieval
• Data Replication
• To effectively sort and retrieve data- the data must be relational

Key relationship structures

• One to one, shown as 1:1
• One to many / 1:N
• Tables are related using these properties

Tables have

• Primary Key: one unique value in one particular grouping.
• Foreign Key: the same key as the table it comes from.
• All values are determined by the primary key
• Structured Query Language retrieves info
• interactive voice response is used for data and entering it
• the DB must have system and structural scalability
• must be free of referential integrity or errors among tables
• database architecture must be graphical

More Key points

• Data Dictionary: Data to track relationships among tables
• Data warehousing is more streamlined to save space
• Data analysis and intelligence- can use extract transformation and load

Data warehouses may need to handle “BIG DATA” to fully represent modern datasets, requiring

• Volume: large,
• Velocity: quick
• Variety: Varied information

Key points

• Large data can be stored on specialized servers (NoSQL)
• Block chain provides secure and transparent data storage
• Cryptographic technology is one method to make this more secure.
• Shadow systems are more targeted, but they can lead to management challenges.

Management strategies

• Master Data Management: A wide range of data points within departments
• Data Stewardship: a person ensures correct data among units

Summary chapter 4

• Information and data help facilitate businesses
• Relationships among data are important
• Proper management yields fast info, less issues, and more clarity

Chapter 5: Information Systems for the Enterprise

• Information systems streamline both small Organizations roles
• Large companies need to store large amounts of data

4 Major Categories of IS

• Finance and Asset Management: financial accounts, assets, and resources -Finance requires reporting, integrity, and standards
• Human Capital Management (HCM): all activities related to human workers -HCM has metrics to ensure success
• Supply Chain Management (SCM): focuses on sourcing and delivering sources -SCM requires accurate business processes in the supply chain
• Customer Relationship Management (CRM): focuses on understanding customer relationships -Requires data to tailor customer interactions
• There are many methods and services to ensure good business processes.
• Integrations can require middleware, as well as software and SaaS models.

Major Summary Points

• All systems need standards to streamline and make uniform processes
• Chain management: is vital because managers needs metrics
• All these systems need communication and business-process integrity