3.5 Corporate Information Systems Strategy

1
3.5 Corporate Information Systems Strategy

• Chapter 5
• Pg 66

2
What is a Corporate Information Systems Strategy?

• A statement of the long-term objectives and goals
  for an organisations information system.

3
Describe the Factors Influencing an
Organisations Information System(s)

• Management organisation and functions
• Planning and decision-making methods
• General organisational structure
• Responsibility for information systems within an
  organisation
• Hardware and software
• Standards
• Behavioural factors
• Efficiency of information flows

4
Management Organisation and Functions

• Managers do the following as part of their jobs
• Organise and implement
• Plan (strategically and tactically, depending on
  their level within the organisation)
• Control and review

Back
5
General Organisational Structure

• Information must be communicated up and down the
  various levels of a hierarchical structure to
  allow managers to make timely and effective
  decisions.
• Back

6
Responsibility for an Info System within an
organisation

• Data processing responsibility usually falls to
  IT dept
• Responsibility of MIS usually less formal and can
  lead to problems
• IT dept not aware of existence of systems set up
  by individual depts.
• Can compromise data security (dept head not aware
  of DPA etc)
• Most of such data can be duplicated for different
  depts (waste of time and resources).

7
Responsibility cont

• Best Information Systems are those that are
  developed formally.
• All data is kept together (data warehousing)
• All managers have software capable of extracting
  info in a formal way they can use.
• Data is not duplicated therefore consistent.
• back

8
Hardware and Software

• Many organisations have limited budget and have
  to make do with existing H/W and S/W
• This means that often the optimum system cannot
  be developed.
• back

9
Behavioural Factors

• Attitude of staff to change is a very important
  factor. New systems need full co-operation of
  staff (especially senior managers)
• If staff members are poorly motivated changes
  will be resisted.
• Job security may become an issue with some staff.
• back

10
Information Flow

• Describe the methods and mechanisms of
  information flow within an organisation both
  formal and informal and the constraints imposed
  upon this by organisational structures.

11
Information Flows

• Formal vs Informal
• Many reports generated automatically and
  distributed as a matter of routine.
• Daily stock lists
• Monthly sales figures
• Lists of overdue accounts
• Other reports are asked for informally
• Request after sales meeting for last five years
  sales figures to make future predictions.

12
Formal vs Informal cont..

• Formal information requests eg form filling,
  authorisation by senior managers etc (SLOW!)
• Informal requests generally much faster.

13
Efficiency of Information Flows

• Without adequate flows of data and info to the
  various functions within the organisation, no MIS
  will be able to supply appropriate info at the
  right time and this will lead to bad decisions
  being made.
• Factors that can affect those flows include..

14
Organisational Structure

• An organisation with a flat structure has fewer
  levels and it is therefore easier to route the
  info to the most appropriate person.

15
Geographical Structure

• Wider geographical structure can cause problems
  but latest technology no longer means distance is
  a hindrance.
• videoconferencing
• Distributed processing
• All processing doesnt take place on a single
  site.
• Although more complex to manage has the advantage
  of increased security.

16
What Can be Done to Review Current Information
Flows?

• Inspect current input/output subsystems
• Track the documents used for input/output into
  the system
• Interview the end-users are they getting info
  at the right time?
• Use questionnaires how satisfied are users with
  current info flows?
• Examine requests made for developments to improve
  the current system
• Inspect the reports and info from the current
  system.

17
Personnel

• Understand the levels of task/personnel within an
  organisation
• Strategic
• Tactical
• Operational
• And relate the needs of these three levels to the
  information system

18
Planning and Decision Making

• Can be at different levels
• Strategic
• Setting broad objectives and formulating a policy
  for the whole organisation
• Tactical
• Setting medium to short-term objectives.
• Operational
• Dealing with jobs in hand.