SPRING 2002

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BUSINESS INFORMATION SYSTEMS DEPARTMENT
BISeTimes
SPRING 2002 Volume 1, Number 2
Visit our web site at http//bis.cba.cmich.edu/
DOW CHEMICAL HONORS CMU STUDENTS
INSIDE THIS ISSUE BTE Update 2 Student
Groups 3 MIS Update 4 BIS Alumni
4 Faculty Activities 5 Scholarships
5 MSIS Update 6 SAP 6 ???? WHEN CMU
CALLS DURING A FUND CAMPAIGN, DIRECT YOUR DOLLARS
TO HELP YOUR DEPARTMENT MIS Endowment Fund,
Account 66591. AITP, Account 44007. BTE, Account
43055. BIS Discretionary Fund, Account 41911. MIS
Advisory Board Fund, Account 46215 ???? CONSIDER
STARTING A BIS OR MIS ALUMNI ASSOCIATION IN YOUR
COMPANY, CITY, AREA e-mail Elizabeth Kemm at
kemm1e_at_cmich.edu or call 989.774.3817
Three Central Michigan University business
students received 500 scholarships at the fourth
bi-annual Dow Chemical SAP Award of Excellence
luncheon Oct. 12, 2001, at noon at The Embers,
Mt. Pleasant. The luncheon recognized excellence
in SAP course work performed by two management
information systems undergraduates and one
masters of science in information systems
graduate student in their SAP course
projects. "Students in this area are learning an
enterprise resource software program that is one
of the top ones used in business and industry,"
said faculty member Frank Andera, Director of the
SAP University Alliance Program at CMU. "They
are highly sought after by employers like
Dow." The awards ceremony included a welcome by
CMU President Michael Rao and presentation of the
awards by James Whyte, Senior Information Systems
Specialist at The Dow Chemical Company.
(continued on page 2.)
FROM WHERE I SIT Monica Holmes, Chair BIS
Department
I have often heard it said that CMU is poised to
do great things. I believe that the time is
right for us to make strategic decisions to move
the programs in the BIS department to newer
heights. I say this because the BIS faculty have
worked very hard to accomplish several things
this past year. Last fall, the first issue of
the BIS-e Times was published and distributed to
approximately 1,500 alumni as well as faculty
(retired and current), friends of the BIS
department, and members of the MIS Advisory
Board. The department is very pleased with this
development because all of the supporters of BIS
can read about the activities going on here at
CMU. Since that issue, several remarkable
accomplishments have been achieved.


Most important of all accomplishments, and
perhaps the most exciting, is the success we have
had in recruiting four outstanding faculty
members who will be joining the BIS department
this fall Dr. Anil Kumar and Dr. Karl Smart,
Mr. Zhenyu Huang, and Ms. Hongjiang Xu. Dr.
Kumar comes to us from the University of
Wisconsin-Whitewater while Dr. Smart is from
Brigham Young University in Utah. Mr. Huang is
finishing up his doctorate from the University of
Memphis while Ms. Xu comes to us all the way from
Australia. Look for more news on their coming in
the fall newsletter.  I believe that the number
one asset of any university is the faculty. I am
pleased to announce that the Board of Trustees
has granted tenure to Dr. James Cappel. It is
also very important that faculty have the time to
re-tool their skills, conduct their research, and
return to their teaching energized by what they
learn. Consequently, I am pleased to report many
of the BIS faculty taking sabbaticals and
receiving funding to conduct research. (continued
on page 2.)
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Dow Chemical Honors CMU Students (continued from
page 1.) Mr. Whyte is very involved with our
students in recruitment and also serves on our
Management Information Systems Advisory Board,"
said Monica Holmes, BIS Department Chair. "Our
students and staff are very pleased with the
support from Dow. This award has helped many
students study an enterprise resource system that
is in wide use throughout the world."  Dow is
very impressed with the way CMU students are
taught to use the SAP system, said Whyte. "CMU's
program is progressive and teaches students how
to leverage the system," said Whyte. "SAP is a
tool that helps facilitate the decision-making
process in business. Dow is recognizing the
student's talents and efforts and encouraging
more participation in the program. Recruitment
is not the only factor for giving this award.
CMU's program is a major factor. "Dow also offers
four annual internships and is involved in many
other ways with CMU. The students who come to
CMU have a geographic preference for this area,
so that fits with Dow in the recruitment
process," said Whyte. CMU alumna Jackie Plourde,
former intern at The Dow Chemical Co. and
currently an information analyst at Eli Lilly Co.
in Indianapolis, tells students that SAP training
will be very valuable in their careers. "It was a
lot of hard work to do the project, but not only
did I get a good grade, the scholarship money was
very helpful personally," said Plourde. "The
training in SAP helped me get offers from
companies that use SAP. The first time I
received the award, I had been accepted for an
internship at Dow, and it made me feel that I had
proved myself to them and that they were making a
good decision to hire me for the internship."
From Where I Sit (continued from page 1.) Dr. Jim
Scott is currently on his sabbatical in South
Texas, completing his research project on
wireless networking. Dr. Frank Andera
successfully completed his sabbatical during fall
2002 with a research project on the success of
the SAP University Alliance program in the U.S.
This coming fall, I will be taking my sabbatical
at the Southern Illinois University at
Edwardsville to work with their faculty on
student learning outcomes in core MIS courses.
Dr. Mark Hwang has received a research
professorship for fall 2002 to continue his
research on data mining. And Dr. Dale Gust will
be taking his sabbatical in spring 2003, and he
will be working on the integration of ERP
concepts into the core business curriculum. I
would also like to recognize the efforts of Dr.
Nancy Csapo whose energy has translated into an
increase in the Business Teacher Education majors
and minors. Dr. Csapo also continues to be
recognized on campus for her expertise in
pedagogy, especially in active learning teaching
methods. I am sure that soon we will see her
becoming well-known nationally for her expertise
in pedagogy. Last year, the MIS undergraduate
program was revised to require additional
technical courses. Another programming language
course, a networking course, and an overview
course in enterprise resource planning are now
required of all MIS majors. This move should
strengthen the technical skills of our
undergraduate students. The MSIS continues to
produce strong graduates, especially in the
ERP/SAP area. One more graduate was placed with
SAP Americas, bringing the total of three
graduates working for the vendor whose software
is so complex and is challenging to use as a
teaching tool. It says something about our
ERP/SAP program that the vendor finds our
graduates so attractive. We plan to continue to
expand our strengths in this area with Dr. Hwang
joining Dr. Hayen and Dr. Gust as well as myself
in this field.  I want to thank you for your
generous support of our faculty and students.
See the list of scholarship recipients on page 5.
As the costs of education for our students
continue to increase and the university faces
budgetary issues that may impact our goal to be a
better program, I ask that you consider this note
as an invitation to donate to the worthy
activities of the BIS department. See the cover
page for the accounts to which you may designate
your contributions. Thank you for supporting the
valuable work of the Business Information Systems
department at Central Michigan University.
Business Teacher Education Update
The BTE program at CMU currently has 62 majors
and 60 minors. This is up ten majors and ten
minors from last fall. Eight of our majors are
completing their student teaching this
semester. Several BTE students volunteered as
judges and evaluators for a regional high school
Business Professionals of America (BPA)
competition held on CMUs campus January 12,
2002. CMU sponsors the event annually. Pi Omega
Pi, Zeta Epsilon chapter, the Business Teacher
Education Honor Society, will induct 7 new
members on March 22, 2002. At the meeting, a
panel discussion consisting of recent BTE
graduate and current student teachers will share
their student teaching experiences and first year
teaching experiences.
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Spotlight on Student Groups
AITP

• What is AITP?
• Association for Information Technology
  Professionals is a professional association
  composed of managers, analysts, programmers, and
  other IT professionals who share an interest in
  information technology and its use in
  organizations. The benefits of joining the
  student chapter of AITP include
•  
• Providing leadership and service experiences
• Current Activities
• For the 2001-02 school year, the activities and
  events of AITP have been aimed at increasing
  membership and continuing teamwork, which are
  fundamental tools for keeping an organization on
  its feet.
• With involvement in the National conference by 17
  students and 4 faculty, working fundraisers, and
  taking a part in the MIS Advisory Board, AITP
  members have been busy.
• In March 2002, eleven AITP members and one
  faculty member visited Stryker Instruments in
  Kalamazoo to tour their facilities and meet with
  their IT staff.
• Student officers have worked with students at
  Northwood University and Saginaw State University
  to help start or revive AITP student chapters
  there.
• At the AITP Nation Conference held in Kansas City
  in early April 2002, the CMU student chapter
  received two prestigious awards for the third
  consecutive year (1) the SCOPA award, given to
  only about a dozen chapters nationwide
  recognizing overall excellence and (2) the
  Student Chapter of the Year Award for Region 9.
• For more news about AITP, visit the
  organization's website at http//cbatest.cba.cmich
  .edu/aitp, developed by AITP members Greg Rudzik,
  Matt Landis, and Carl Ciaramitaro.

• Opportunities to meet employers in the IT field
• Learning more about the IT profession
• Opportunities to meet fellow students

Current AITP Members
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MS In Information Systems Program Update
Distinguished Alumni
Twenty-one new full time students began their
study in the fall of 2001. These students are in
a cohort program, which means that they take the
same classes every semester. If everything goes
well, they will finish their course work by the
end of 2002. About 15 students are taking classes
on a part time basis. Currently, 12 students are
working for the department as graduate
assistants. Dr. Mark I. Hwang became the Director
of the MSIS program on January 1, 2002. He is an
associate professor of MIS and has taught the
graduate database, systems analysis and design
and project courses. He has also advised a
number of MSIS and MBA Plan B projects.  As the
department hires more MIS faculty (three are
expected to join in the fall of 2002), the MSIS
program will grow strongly. With the emphasis on
SAP and technical skills, the program should
attract more students who plan to jump-start
their career with an advanced degree in
information systems.
Jody Clayton, Senior Applied Technologist for
Oracle Corporation
Jody Clayton (neé Lembo) graduated from Central
Michigan University in May 1996 with a Bachelor
of Science in Business Administration. She
majored in Management Information Systems through
the BIS department. In deciding to major in MIS,
Clayton said, I knew I wanted to go into
business. I enjoyed working with computers, and
it seemed to be the way the world was going.
MIS became the perfect fit. While a member and
later president of the CMU student chapter of the
the Data Processing Management Association
(DPMA), now known as Association of Information
Technology Professionals (AITP), Clayton gained
her most valuable professional experience
meeting corporate sponsors and interacting with
professors, peers, and former CMU graduates or
networking. Networking and relationship
building are key factors to becoming successful
in todays business world. After graduating, she
joined the Professional Opportunity Program at
Detroit Edison. This two-year program, designed
for recent college graduates, rotates IT
professionals in 3-6 month intervals through the
different IT departments at DE. This is an
excellent opportunity for recent college
graduates, said Clayton, it is not a fast-track
to management but rather a way to gain knowledge
about the different aspects of the IT world.
While involved with this program, Clayton
learned not to underestimate the importance of
business classes such as finance, economics,
production operations, and accounting while
working towards your MIS degree. Anyone can
learn to code, but understanding how changes in
the economy affect business decisions and how
business value can be derived from a more
efficient business process will help you in your
career as an IT professional. In December 1997,
she began her rotation in the Database
Administration Group for DE. While in this
position, she obtained her Oracle Certified
Professional certification in May 1998. After
pursuing her MBA at Wayne State University and
graduating in May 1999, Ms. Clayton joined Oracle
Corporation, headquartered in Redwood Shores,
California.. Currently, she serves as a Senior
Applied Technologist primarily supporting the
Automotive OEMs and Automotive Tier One Suppliers
during pre-sales activities. (continued in
right column)
DEPARTMENT MAJORS DO WELL
The latest Employment Survey Summary provided by
CMU Career Services, for the 2000-2001 academic
year, shows that BIS graduates fared well.
Numbers are limited to those who completed the
survey (968). There were 23 Management
Information Systems graduates who now report
employment. The average starting salary was
41,415. In related majors, 3 in Accounting
Information Systems graduated with jobs, with an
average salary of 42,000. One graduate from the
Office Systems Administration program started
with a salary of 36,000. Teacher Education
graduated 170, including 14 BTE Majors and 12 BTE
Minors, with an average starting salary of
31,615.
(continued from left column) Claytons biggest
challenge is keeping up with current technology
it is ever-changing. She says, In a sales
environment, I not only have to know how Oracles
product works, but also how others work and more
specifically how they will work within my
customers environment. But the rewards of this
position highly outweigh the challenges. The
ability to understand what customers are asking
for and the challenge to build strategies and
solutions to solve their business problems with
our software is exciting. Explains Clayton,
Working at the worlds second largest
independent software company allows me to
interact with extremely intelligent and creative
people on a daily basis.
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BIS Faculty Activities
BIS Scholarship Winners
Publications
James Cappel (right)Entry-level IS Job Skills
A Survey of Employers, Journal of Computer
Information Systems, Fall/Winter 2001.
On April 12, the BIS department was pleased to
award 39 scholarships to undergraduate students
from several different areas of Business
Information Systems. The following students
received awards IMA CHAMBERS SCHOLARSHIP   DAMON
P. LINDLEY ACHIEVEMENT AWARD   WILLIAM
WOHLGAMUTH SCHOLARSHIP   MIS
ENDOWMENT STUDENT AWARD Lauren James Anupa
Pant   CROWE, CHIZEK AND COMPANY LLP OUTSTANDING
STUDENT SCHOLARSHIP Lauren James Amar
Hussein MIS SCHOLARSHIP Congratulations to
all of the recipients!
Jennifer Fry Brooke Sponseller Shannon
Surato Kristin Tack
Nancy CsapoPreferred Teaching Methods of
Business Faculty and Their Students The Journal
of the Academy of Business Administration,
Spring/Spring 2002. Nancy Csapo Alternatives to
Traditional Assessment of Student Learning, Best
Practices in Business Instruction, 2001.
Daniel Frezza Laura Gerhard Kristi Primeau
Dr. Richard Featheringham (left) Applications
in Business Communication Communicating at GEI
South-Western Publishing Company, 2001.
Linda Adomako Benjamin J. Andera Carrie
Beauvais Julish A. Bhat Gregory Boehmer
Jason A. Coats Robert D. DeSmith Treasa
Evans Amar Hussein Venkata Kambala Lisa Marie
Kehoe Matthew J. Kipp
Jeremy Kurkierewicz Kristie Morrison Laurie
Morse Sayeed Noman Harry Noviandry Ranine
Ngwenya Wanda M. Owings Amy L. Schipp Gary
Shergill Lazina M. Tarin Francis N. Tawiah Liren
Wang

Presentations James Cappel Skills of
Information Systems Graduates An Exploratory
Study at the AIS Americas Conference, Boston.
James Cappel and Roger Hayen (right)
Certification in Enterprise Software An SAP
R/3 University Alliance Program Experiment at
the International Association for Computer
Information Systems Conference, Vancouver.
Endowed Professorship Mark Hwang (left) Fall
2002, Will identify and test factors that impact
the success of data warehousing, such as
management support and user participation.
Grants Nancy Csapo (right)Career and Technical
Teacher Education Program Improvement Grant,
Michigan Department of Education, 2001-2002
(grant funded by State of Michigan in the amount
of 5,000).
Gautam Patel Varalakshmi Vedula
Ranine Ngwenya Adesegun Oyedele
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Business Information Systems Department Central
Michigan University Grawn Hall
305 150
East Bellows
Mount Pleasant, MI 48859