Issues, Trends and Strategies for Computer Systems Management

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Issues, Trends and Strategies for Computer
Systems Management
Chapter 1. Introduction

• UMUC Graduate School of
• Management and Technology

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Agenda

• Syllabus Explanation of the course, assignments
  and grading standards
• Web Tycho orientation
• http//www.lespang.com
• Student introductions
• Introduction

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Student Introductions

• Name
• Position/Employer
• Managerial/technical background
• What you want out this course
• Something of interest

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What is MIS?

• Definition A combination of computers and
  people that is used to provide information to aid
  in making decisions and managing an organization.
• Components Information technology (hardware and
  software), people, procedures and data
• Goal Enable managers to make better decisions
  by providing quality information

People
Technology
Process
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What is Information?
Wisdom
Synthesis of Experiences
Knowledge
Actionable
Information
Context
Data
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Information Systems Model
Environment Political Economic
Institutional Technical Socio-Cult
ural
Organization Strategies
Structure Politics Culture
Information System People
Processes Management
Technology Hardware
Software Telecommunications
Information Data Knowledge
Source Richard Heeks
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Why is IT Important?

• Personal Productivity
• Teamwork and Communications
• Business Operations and Strategy
• Electronic commerce
• Electronic business

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What do Managers do?

• Traditional
• Organizing
• Planning
• Control
• Mintzberg
• Interpersonal
• Informational
• Decisional
• Luthans
• Traditional 50
• Formal Communication 30
• Networking 20
• Making Decisions
• Managers need information to make decision or
  help others make decision

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Business TrendsFrom Traditional Organization
Structure
CEO
Condensed reports
Commands
VP Finance
VP Marketing
VP Accounting
VP HRM
VP MIS
Analyze data
Layers of middle managers
Customers
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To Decentralization Form of Management
Management Team
CEO
VP Fin
VP Mrkt
VP Acct
VP HRM
VP MIS
Strategy
Finance Team
Marketing Team
Accounting Team
HRM Team
Methodology/Rules
Sales Team
Franchise
Customers
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Business Trends IT Implications

• Specialization
• Increased demand for technical skills
• Specialized MIS tools
• Increased communication
• Methodology and Franchises
• Reduction of middle management
• Increased data sharing
• Increased analysis by top management
• Computer support for rules
• Reengineering
• Mergers
• Four or five big firms dominate
• Need for communication
• Decentralization and small business
• Communication needs
• Lower cost of management tasks

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Business Trends IT Implications

• Temporary Workers
• Managing through rules
• Finding and evaluating workers
• Coordination and control
• Personal advancement through technology
• Security
• Internationalization
• Communication
• Product design
• System development and programming
• Sales and marketing
• Service Orientation
• Management jobs are information jobs
• Customer service requires better information
• Speed

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Business Process Reengineering

• Involves the radical redesign of core business
  processes to achieve dramatic improvements in
  productivity, cycle times, and quality.
• Seven principles of reengineering
• Organize around outcomes, not tasks.
• Identify all the processes in an organization and
  prioritize them in order of redesign urgency.
• Integrate information processing work into the
  real work that produces the information.
• Treat geographically dispersed resources as
  though they were centralized.
• Link parallel activities in the workflow instead
  of just integrating their results.
• Put the decision point where the work is
  performed, and build control into the process.
• Capture information once and at the source.

Hammer and Champy, Reengineering the Corporation
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Management and Decision Levels
Organizational Structure
Decisions
Mgmt Type
RELATIVE unstructured qualitative future
oriented external uncertain ABSOLUTE structured q
uantitative present internal certain
Strategic Mgmt
Senior Management
Tactical Mgmt
Middle Management
Lower Management
Business Operations
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Managing Technology

• Deal with the immediate technology issues.
• Become familiar with new technologies and
  approaches.
• Learn from others successes and failures.
• Recognize the corporate culture.
• Look for opportunities to use/reengineer new
  approaches.
• Think innovatively.

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Backup Slides
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Everyone Uses Computers
MIS affects all areas of business...
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Making Decisions

• Methodology vs. Ad Hoc Decisions
• Decision Process
• Collect Data
• Identify Problems Opportunities
• Make Choices

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3
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Changing Business Environment

• Sector Trends
• year Farm Mfg Mgt Service
• 1920 29 44 22 6
• 1940 23 38 30 8
• 1960 9 36 43 12
• 1980 3 32 52 13
• 1993 3 26 58 14
• Professional/clerical jobs are info. processing
  jobs
• 1970-1985, 19 million new jobs
• 90 information and knowledge

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Meetings
Managers and professionals spend considerable
time in meetings. Providing support for teamwork
and group decisions is an important issues in MIS.
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Discussion IT in the Fast Food Industry
How does McDonald's use IT?